Slaying Su Fang

Zhang Xuezhou leaped away from the center of the river.

But this distance isn't very long.

His entanglement with the Great Sage Water Ape involved him mostly using the method of seeking out and dodging obstacles.

Although Zhang Xuezhou appeared to have flown for half an hour, he mostly circled back and forth, only about twenty miles from the center of the river.

Therefore, the time it took him to get back was not very long.

On the riverbank, Zhang Debiao, Xu Man, and the others seemed to have put up a last stand before their heads were severed by a disciple of the Beast Taming Sect and held in his hand.

Several disciples of the Beast Taming Sect were chatting and laughing, seemingly showing off their battle achievements.

As Zhang Xuezhou flew past, he could still see Zhang Debiao's eyes, which refused to close.

"Duh!"

Even while his body was still high in the air, Dong Zhongshu had already begun to launch his Technique Method attack.

The wind blade he had been gathering for so long swept lightly across the room, and the Beast Taming Sect disciple holding Zhang Debiao's head trembled slightly. His feet continued to move forward, but his head did not follow.

The sound of a head hitting the ground came first, followed by the sound of a body falling.

His companions shared the same fate.

As several corpses fell one after another, Zhang Xuezhou had already crossed the river.

Obstructed by the bamboo stake traps at the bottom of the river, the large ship remained in the middle of the river. The Beast Taming Sect did not intend to take the ship, but instead chose to transport its valuables.

Salt, silk, cloth, half a tael of coins, dried meat, and other items were continuously carried out of the cabin and onto the bamboo raft, while Su Fang supervised the disciples as they worked tirelessly.

Su Fang's expression changed drastically when a strong wind came from high above.

He reached behind his back to take out a bow, nocked an arrow, and drew the string—all in one fluid motion.

But the Soviet soldier had to roll on the spot the moment the arrow was fired.

Compared to his bow and arrows, Dong Zhongshu's wind blades were silent and much faster.

"Break!"

A loud shout rang out, and Su Fang felt several parts of his body become extremely cold.

His gaze swept over the Water Ape Great Sage chasing after him a kilometer away, and then looked at the red-stained deck.

"Martial arts, Law Technique, you... you are..."

There was one name that Su Fang didn't utter.

He stared at his body in disbelief.

His body, which could withstand the slashing of swords and blades, was as nothing in front of Dong Zhongshu's wind blades. He didn't even have time to use his swordsmanship, and he couldn't even manage a counterattack that would result in mutual destruction.

His gaze swept over Dong Zhongshu, who had leaped onto the large ship, and then looked at the winged figure still in the air. Only after Dong Zhongshu delivered another wind blade attack did Su Fang reluctantly close his eyes.

Unless one is extremely skilled in defense, physically agile, lacks sufficient Technique Method output to be fatal, or the terrain is complex, the battles between cultivators will not last too long and will not require three hundred rounds of back-and-forth fighting.

Once a skill is used effectively, life or death can be decided.

Taking advantage of Zhang Xuezhou's ability to fly and run, Dong Zhongshu further shortened the time to the limit by condensing the Technique Method in advance.

Within three seconds of boarding the large ship, the Beast Taming Sect Master collapsed to the ground, sprawled in blood, his body only occasionally twitching.

"Both highway bandits and river bandits deserve to be killed!"

Dong Zhongshu's gaze swept over the numerous disciples of the Beast Taming Sect. As some of the more astute disciples saw the danger and jumped into the water to escape, Dong Zhongshu drew out his Law Treasure fan from his back and waved it repeatedly at the disciples.

A violent storm swept through, and dozens more small wind blades flew out.

A blood-red hue suddenly appeared across the landscape.

As a water ball struck the large ship, Dong Zhongshu once again fanned his Law Treasure fan, instantly unleashing a torrential downpour on the river.

"You wicked monsters have run rampant within the territory of my Han Dynasty; you shall be punished!"

In the exchange of Technique Method, the Water Ball Technique released by the Ninth-Rank Demon Saint was clearly on par with Dong Zhongshu's wind technique.

This is related to the opponent's low-level Technique Method and also to the strength of Dong Zhongshu's Law Power power at that time.

"Hey!"

Amidst the shouts, Dong Zhongshu unleashed his wind blades in a counterattack.

The wind blades cut through the water curtain, slicing towards the Water Ape Great Sage like razor blades.

You've lost your chance to kill me!

With his massive, three-zhang-tall body stepping into the water, the Water Ape Great Sage paid no heed to Dong Zhongshu's wind blades.

The wind blades ripped through his blue body, but healed as easily as water.

"As long as I stand in the water, my body is immortal," said the Great Sage Water Ape. "Unless you can drain the river dry right now and then use this wind technique to cut my body."

Tiny specks of purple energy condensed in the eyes of the Water Ape Great Sage, but eventually dissipated.

With a swift and agile individual like Zhang Xuezhou, and Dong Zhongshu possessing the ability to use leverage to fly, it would indeed be very difficult for the Water Ape Great Sage to kill both Dong Zhongshu and Zhang Xuezhou.

Standing in the river, nourished by the constant flow of water, he had no chance of being killed by Dong Zhongshu.

Most importantly, Su Fang, who controlled him, is dead, which means that the Great Sage Water Ape has no one to serve and no longer needs to be responsible for Su Fang's instructions.

"I have not killed any of your people, so you need not be so hostile towards me," said the Great Sage Water Ape. "I am originally the Water God of the Huai River, a divine position conferred by the Heavenly Court, and a demon with legitimate qualifications to reside in the Southern Jambudvipa Continent. However, I am controlled by the Beast Taming Sect and have no choice but to cooperate."

"Heavenly Court!"

The wind blades that Dong Zhongshu was conjuring never stopped, but when his gaze swept over the Water Ape Great Sage, a hint of bitterness crept into his eyes.

The position of the Water God is not high in the Heavenly Court, and there is more than one Water God in the Five Lakes.

But he couldn't do anything about this water god; what a magnificent sight the Heavenly Court must have been in its heyday.

Dong Zhongshu also harbored arrogance, even attempting to recreate the Confucian School model of dominating all directions and restoring the Heavenly Court.

However, the existence of the Great Sage Water Ape dealt him a heavy blow, and the consequences of forcibly breaking into the Sole Self Realm of Sovereignty further rendered many of Dong Zhongshu's plans futile.

His anger and hatred were beyond words, and he showed no mercy when he attacked.

Until Dong Zhongshu had no choice but to suppress his murderous intent towards the Great Sage Water Ape.

Watching helplessly as the Water Ape Great Sage entered the water, until his body gradually became transparent and merged with the river water, drifting away into the distance, Dong Zhongshu held onto the edge of the boat without saying a word for a long time.

"Accountant Du?"

High in the air, Zhang Xuezhou shouted several times.

He scanned the several Beast Taming Sect disciples who had dived and fled into the distance, and only after confirming that there was no danger below did Zhang Xuezhou glide down.

He spread the bronze feathers on his arm, and his body quickly returned to normal.

"Accountant Du? Accountant Du?"

After taking a few steps, Zhang Xuezhou approached Dong Zhongshu and only then did he notice Dong Zhongshu's unusual behavior.

After patting Dong Zhongshu on the shoulder, Zhang Xuezhou saw Dong Zhongshu spit out a mouthful of blood and collapse limply to the ground.

"It's over!"

With the powerful figure he relied on falling from grace, Zhang Xuezhou felt that the same problem he often encountered on his journey had reappeared: none of the powerful figures he followed had a good ending.

The thought of returning to the real world tomorrow filled Zhang Xuezhou with a sense of impending trouble.

"I only know the Supreme Purity True Technique, I don't have any special medical skills, so please don't die!"

Zhang Xuezhou pondered for a few seconds and realized that before returning to reality, he could only give Dong Zhongshu a dose of Grain Avoidance powder, and then leave the rest to fate.

This wasn't just Dong Zhongshu resigning himself to fate; he also had to resign himself to fate in the wilderness.

He searched the large ship and found the cabin in complete disarray. Several sailors responsible for rowing were nowhere to be seen. The members of the Beast Taming Sect had either fled or died, and several water monkeys, in a state of chaos after losing control, were frantically digging around under the ship.

As he plunged the Deer-Slaying Blade in, he tried his best to eliminate any possibility of future trouble. Only when he saw the cabin continuously taking on water did Zhang Xuezhou carry Dong Zhongshu, who was clinging to the gunwale, and jump off.

Stepping onto the bamboo raft, Zhang Xuezhou used a bamboo pole to push it towards the riverbank.

The sight of dog corpses, human corpses, and water monkey corpses scattered along the riverbank made Zhang Xuezhou frown.

"Eastern... Master Zhang..."

The faint gasps of pain came from the pile of corpses, and Zhang Xuezhou then noticed a pale face rising from the dead.

You're still alive?

Zhang Xuezhou looked at Zhao Liang, who was still alive despite being shot in the chest, with a look of surprise on his face, and thought the other man was incredibly lucky.

"They are not the women you brought that day; they can't pierce my soft armor!"

Zhao Liang reached out and laboriously pointed to his chest, then pulled the arrow out of his chest.

Clearly, compared to Kong Ning, the archery skills of the Beast Taming Sect disciples were not sharp enough to penetrate soft armor.

With the help of his equipment and by feigning death while lying in the mud, and with Zhang Debiao and Xu Man, the two guest elders, drawing the fire of the Beast Taming Sect disciples, Zhao Liang ultimately survived.

Even the groom whose hand was bitten off by the hunting dogs lacked the ability to resist, leaving him still barely alive.