That’s why Zhao Ya provoked the masked man with words, intending to make him lose his reason and be blinded by anger.
In doing so, Zhao Ya’s chances of winning would increase substantially.
After all, when a person is emotionally agitated, they are prone to making mistakes.
However, to anger a top martial artist with just a few words is not an easy task.
But Zhao Ya noticed that even during the hottest spring days, this masked man refused to shed his cloak and mask, and deliberately spoke and laughed with an air of mystery, revealing that he had a strong sense of vanity.
So Zhao Ya targeted this point with some ridicule.
The result was significant.
The masked man was nearly driven mad with rage.
He valued his attire, but in Zhao Ya’s mouth, it was worthless and accused him of putting on airs.
How could he tolerate that?
He was desperately wishing he could slap Zhao Ya to death.
As he struck out with a palm, Zhao Ya dodged with a swift movement, slicing down with the Meteorite Iron Saber immediately after.
After entering the Fourth Realm, Zhao Ya’s strength skyrocketed in all aspects, and the Gale Saber Technique was no exception.
Especially after reaching the peak performance, Zhao Ya’s understanding of the saber technique had reached a new level.
The saber moves were the same, but in some places, they had changed, incorporating many of Zhao Ya’s insights.
To put it bluntly, this Gale Saber Technique became more harmonious with Zhao Ya himself, and its power was greatly enhanced.
The speed of this saber strike was so fast, even the masked man was taken aback.
If he continued with the move, his arm would inevitably be chopped off, so helplessly he had to withdraw his move and retreat.
But Zhao Ya was relentless, his Meteorite Iron Saber dazzling like flying, seizing this rare opportunity, each strike aimed at the masked man’s vital points.
That wasn’t all; Zhao Ya’s body technique was incredibly fast.
After each strike, just as the masked man was about to counterattack, Zhao Ya had already evaded.
After a long fight, the masked man hadn’t landed a single hit on Zhao Ya, while his own robe was slashed with several large cuts.
The masked man wailed in anger.
"Always dodging, if you have the guts, fight me head-on."
Zhao Ya was uninterested in such words.
Why give up his advantage to fight head-on?
Moreover, Zhao Ya continued his verbal assault while dodging.
"Laugh, why aren’t you giving those creepy laughs now? I think you really need to take a good look at your head, actually believing in the plots from those novels."
"Hey, should I recommend a doctor for you? He specializes in someone like you."
If being slashed at his clothes was just physical harm, then this was a mental critical hit.
The masked man was infuriated to the point of being speechless, his eyes reddened with the desire to slap Zhao Ya to death.
But how easy is that?
Even purely in terms of strength, they were evenly matched.
And that was him having entered the Fourth Realm years ago, having stabilized his realm and honed his skills.
If another month passed, Zhao Ya’s realm would also stabilize and his strength would surely surpass him.
Here, we’re only discussing martial prowess. With Zhao Ya’s Five Organ Talent, the gap would be even greater.
Yet Zhao Ya was in no hurry.
To kill a Fourth Realm martial artist is exceedingly difficult because, at this stage, even if they can’t win, they can still escape.
That’s why Zhao Ya made every effort to provoke him.
Not only that.
Zhao Ya also used the powders in his deer hide pouch, originally intended for wild dog experiments, and poisons crafted from Paradise Sect’s aphrodisiacs, all against this masked man.
The whole poisoning process was extremely discreet, his techniques as smooth as silk, and the masked man didn’t notice a thing.
After a few minutes of this skirmish, the masked man grew increasingly impatient.
He initially thought this matter was simple.
Just lead Zhao Ya away from the Dingtai Martial Arts Hall, and he’d easily kill him.
But he never expected.
This fellow broke into the Fourth Realm too, and was exceptionally troublesome.
Continued entanglement would be increasingly unfavorable for him.
The masked man felt a hint of retreat in his heart.
Since he couldn’t deal with him quickly, he decided to withdraw for now, and reconsider his plan later.
With that thought, the masked man unleashed several palms, temporarily forcing Zhao Ya back, then without a word, turned to flee.
Zhao Ya certainly wasn’t going to give up, immediately chasing after him.
As he pursued, Zhao Ya shouted.
"Why run? Didn’t you say you were going to knock out all my teeth? Why are you running now?"
"I’ll give you one more chance, how about another fight? This time, I promise not to evade, just direct confrontation."
But no matter how Zhao Ya called, the masked man remained silent, determined to escape first.
But after running a short distance, the masked man suddenly felt his legs go weak, nearly falling from a branch.
He staggered to regain his balance, but was shocked in his heart.
What was happening?
Why suddenly, his legs grew weak for no reason?
Seeing this from behind, Zhao Ya’s eyes lit up.
Because he knew, the poison he administered was taking effect.
Truth be told, Zhao Ya wasn’t certain before this.
The poisons used on the masked man were mostly confiscated from subordinates.
And being a Hall Master of the Paradise Sect, the masked man likely had means to counter these aphrodisiacs.