Slaying the Beast! Tallying Military Merits
The beast was already incredibly fast, and now that it had gone berserk, its attacks came like a howling gale and driving rain. Claw shadows flew, stirring up gusts of blood-tainted wind and forcing Hongxiu back again and again. She could only rely on her nimble movements and long whip to barely keep it at bay, with danger closing in on all sides!
This is trouble! Hongxiu cursed inwardly as sweat beaded on her temples. This Blue-Scaled Leopard was even harder to deal with than she had expected!
She instinctively looked toward Zhou Tong, who stood not far away, hoping this supposed "Bone Forging Realm expert" would lend a hand. After all, when the lips were gone, the teeth would feel the cold. If the beast seriously injured her, Zhou Tong would fare no better.
Yet Zhou Tong stood with his arms folded at a safe distance, watching coldly from the sidelines. His face even bore a trace of smug delight at her misfortune! Hmph, that's what you get for speaking up for that brat! Now you know how dangerous it is, don't you? Beg me! Beg me and I'll... think about it! he thought maliciously.
Hongxiu's heart sank at the sight, and she cursed him inwardly as "useless"! She would be better off relying on herself than counting on such a selfish scoundrel!
While she was distracted, the Blue-Scaled Leopard seized its chance. With a soul-shaking roar, its massive body turned into a streak of blue lightning and pounced again! Its sharp claws glinted coldly as they went straight for Hongxiu's throat!
The strike was swift and vicious. Hongxiu's pupils contracted sharply as she felt the breath of death envelop her! She twisted aside with all her might, but still felt she could not completely avoid it!
At that critical moment, a calm voice sounded beside her ear:
"The military merits for this beast are mine."
Hongxiu froze at the sound and turned to look. At some point, Dongfang Yueming had appeared not far from her side, his saber pointing diagonally downward and his eyes sharp as blades, fixed on the charging Blue-Scaled Leopard!
He... has he gone mad?! Hongxiu was stunned! This was an intermediate-level mortal beast in a berserk state! Even she could barely withstand it at full strength, yet a mere Flesh Refining Realm cultivator dared provoke it? Was he overconfident? Or did he simply not know how to write the word "death"?!
Run, you fool! Hongxiu almost cried out!
But in the next instant, Dongfang Yueming moved!
He unleashed the Gale Movement Technique at the consummate level with all his strength!
His speed erupted, exceeding anything Hongxiu could have imagined! Like a light breeze sweeping over the ground, he left a string of blurred afterimages behind him!
The berserk Blue-Scaled Leopard seemed to sense the new threat. It abruptly changed direction, abandoning Hongxiu, who was right in front of it, and opened its bloody maw. Exuding an unparalleled savage aura, it lunged at the unbelievably swift figure!
It's over! Hongxiu's heart instantly sank to the bottom of the valley! She could almost see the bloody scene of Dongfang Yueming being torn to pieces by the Blue-Scaled Leopard!
Yet the expected scream never came!
Like a ghost, Dongfang Yueming slipped past the Blue-Scaled Leopard at an inconceivable angle just as it was about to strike him!
A flash of saber light blazed forth, swift as lightning tearing across the night sky!
The saber light swept across the Blue-Scaled Leopard's neck!
Squelch-!
A faint but distinct slicing sound rang out.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
The Blue-Scaled Leopard's charging body abruptly stiffened, its enormous momentum carrying it several meters across the ground before it stopped. The savage light in its crimson eyes rapidly faded, replaced by blankness and deathly stillness.
A fine line of blood slowly appeared on its neck, then suddenly widened!
Pfft-!
The leopard's massive head flew into the air, and scalding beast blood spurted out like a fountain!
The headless corpse crashed heavily to the ground, twitched a few times, then fell completely still.
Another kill in a single strike!
Even against a berserk intermediate-level mortal beast, he had still... killed it instantly with one slash!
Hongxiu stood rooted to the spot, her beautiful eyes wide and her red lips slightly parted, her face filled with incredulous shock! She even forgot to wipe the sweat from her forehead, staring blankly at the young figure standing there with his saber!
Dongfang Yueming slowly lowered his saber and glanced at the E-grade blade in his hand. The tiny nicks left on it from killing low-level mortal beasts had grown larger after striking the Blue-Scaled Leopard's tough hide, and even the edge had curled in places.
He gently ran his hand along the blade, a trace of regret passing through his heart.
What a pity... this saber is only an ordinary weapon after all. It's been with me for so long, but it's nearly reached its limit.
Watching Dongfang Yueming kill the berserk intermediate-level mortal beast, the Blue-Scaled Leopard, as easily as chopping melons and vegetables, Zhou Tong's jaw nearly dropped! His shock was even greater than his earlier wariness!
Th-this brat's movement technique! It's definitely at the consummate level! Zhou Tong's thoughts churned like rivers and seas, and he no longer had the slightest doubt! Only by cultivating a movement technique to the consummate level could one evade so unpredictably, like an antelope hanging by its horns!
A powerful sense of danger surged into Zhou Tong's heart! No! This fellow is too frightening! His saber technique is deadly, his movement technique has reached the consummate level, and his Flesh Refining Realm strength is probably far beyond the ordinary greater stage! I have to break through to lesser bone tempering as soon as possible!
A ruthless gleam flashed in his eyes. As long as I reach lesser bone tempering, my strength will undergo another transformation! When that happens, no matter how monstrous this brat is, he'll be no match for me! Won't I be able to crush him however I please?! His desire to break through had never been stronger!
Dongfang Yueming put away the Blue-Scaled Leopard's ear, then casually swung his saber several times, killing a few low-level mortal beasts that had taken the opportunity to charge at the still-dazed Hongxiu.
He hefted the damaged saber in his hand and thought, This E-grade saber doesn't look like it'll last much longer. But there are too many eyes around right now, so I'll make do with it for the time being. Once I've settled in at the Beast Defense Frontier and am acting alone, it won't be too late to switch to the Light Snow Uncle Shi gave me. That quasi-A-grade treasured saber was too conspicuous; it was best not to reveal it too soon.
Hongxiu, whom Dongfang Yueming had "casually" saved, was feeling unusually conflicted.
She looked at Dongfang Yueming's still-calm profile, a jumble of feelings in her heart. At first, she had indeed approached him with some intention of using him, hoping to leverage his greater flesh refining strength to counterbalance Zhou Tong, give herself more say in the team, and even gain another shield in times of danger.
But she had never imagined that this seemingly aloof young man would actually honor that seemingly casual "nod," stepping in without hesitation when she was in danger, and that he would be... so powerful and dependable!
This sudden sense of security stirred her heart, long accustomed to weathering storms, scheming, and putting on an act. An unfamiliar feeling quietly began to take root.
Time passed.
At last, under the leadership of the Blood Replacement Realm experts and through the warriors' desperate fighting, the seemingly endless beast tide began to show signs of collapse. The remaining mortal beasts let out waves of unwilling roars before finally receding like the tide and vanishing beyond the distant horizon.
The battle was over.
Yet what greeted everyone was not the joy of victory, but the thick stench of blood hanging in the air and the appalling scene before them.
The ground was piled high with the twisted corpses of all manner of mortal beasts. Severed limbs and broken remains lay everywhere, and crimson blood had stained the Gobi a dark red.
Among the beast corpses lay the bodies of many human warriors. Some had been torn to pieces, while others had been gnawed beyond recognition, their deaths gruesome. Many more had survived by luck but were gravely injured, lying on the ground and groaning. Quite a few had lost arms or legs.
This was the cruel norm at the Beast Defense Frontier. The very first test had eliminated nearly thirty percent of the warriors.
Looking at the scene before him, like an asura's battlefield, Dongfang Yueming could not help feeling a ripple in his heart.
Cruel... he thought silently. This was the path of martial arts, the true picture of struggling against heaven, earth, and beasts. To gain strength, one had to face death.
He looked down at the E-grade saber in his hand. Cracks covered the blade, and its edge was badly curled. Clearly, the battle had completely ruined it.
The saber is ruined, but the haul wasn't bad. He hefted the leather pouch at his waist. It was heavy. By a rough estimate, it contained at least thirty-odd mortal beast left ears, including that of the intermediate-level mortal beast, the Blue-Scaled Leopard, worth three military merit points. This "appetizer" had earned him nearly forty military merit points.
"Brother Dongfang..." Hongxiu walked up to him, her voice tinged with genuine gratitude. "Thank you... for what you did." If Dongfang Yueming had not acted in time, she would likely have been seriously injured, if not killed.
Dongfang Yueming gave a slight nod in response. He was not much of a talker to begin with, and besides, it had taken little effort.
Just then, the gray-clad staff member who had held the megaphone earlier appeared again and struck the bronze gong in his hand with force.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
The clear ringing of the gong drowned out the groans of the injured and the crowd's discussions.
"The battle is over! We'll now begin tallying military merits!" the gray-clad staff member shouted. "Each temporary team is to hand the mortal beasts' left ears you collected to your captain! The captains will come forward to register them together!"