376 Joining the Fray
A long sword emitting a frigid gleam descended rapidly. Qin Huai’s skin took on a reddish tint as his aura fully deployed. His fists surged forward, colliding with the blade and sparking like a clash of treasured weapons.
“Zhou Cunzhong, you must be the one who killed him!” The person who confronted him was none other than Tang Yuqin’s fiancé, Fang Chuixue. As the saying goes, ‘Seeing your enemy makes your eyes turn red.’ The moment Fang Chuixue spotted Qin Huai, he charged at him relentlessly.
“Experience my Five Heroes Manor’s hanging moon sword technique!” Fang Chuixue unleashed a ferocious slash, his blade surrounded by an intimidating aura resembling a full moon. The dazzling gleam of each swing made it difficult for Qin Huai to anticipate his attacks.
Qin Huai deflected each blow using both fists, leveraging the four-directional tiger-wolf technique and ten-dragon force. Under the emotional onslaught from Fang Chuixue, they retreated from the center of the battlefield, distancing themselves from the conflict.
“Your physical strength is indeed formidable, comparable to a treasured weapon,” Fang Chuixue commented. “You must have trained a lot to seduce women.”
His remarks became more biting as his strikes intensified. Qin Huai started to wonder if he practiced some high-grade cultivation technique that bolstered his vitality the more he taunted.
Driven by curiosity, Qin Huai found himself retreating more swiftly, struggling increasingly to resist his assault.
“Hahaha… Looks like you’re finding this more challenging,” Fang Chuixue observed, noting Qin Huai’s unsteady steps. He was no longer agile, instead tracing a clumsy path backward, sometimes nearly collapsing. His arm showed signs of injury, blood staining the skin.
“Almost, almost! Almost!” The sight of his successful blows exhilarating him, Fang Chuixue knew that Qin Huai was nearing his limit. “No matter how resilient your body is, you’re still an ant in front of my four-full-pattern advantage! Rogue cultivators like you are nothing compared to disciples from large sects like ours!”
His roar reached a crescendo. And then, with a powerful thrust, he breached Qin Huai’s defense, blood splattering his form. His face lit up with a triumphant grin. “Go to hell, pretty boy!” he screamed, his voice breaking with the force of his shout. “Hanging moon sword, falling full moon!”
Whoosh!
A cold light transformed into a round plate, plunging from above. Simultaneously, another disc emerged from the shadow beneath Qin Huai’s feet. With a whistling sound, the sharp radiance slashed through the air.
In Fang Chuixue’s eyes, Qin Huai’s body seemed to cleave in two from his private part.
“Alright!” Fang Chuixue roared triumphantly. But his cheers halted abruptly as an overwhelming force assaulted him from behind.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
He grunted as his body quivered. Unsteadily, he looked down at the two fists that had pierced his chest. Qin Huai, who had appeared to be cleaved apart, disintegrated into smoke and vanished.
“What…” Fang Chuixue slowly turned, meeting the dazzling white light in his eyes. “King…” he began but never finished. His body crumbled instantaneously.
“Ding! You have collected a [Moon Hanging Sword Technique Essence (Red)], [Moon Hanging Sword Technique] experience points +200,000!”
“Ding! You have collected a [Roaring Breath Technique Essence (Red)], [Roaring Breath Technique] experience points +200,000!”
“Ding! You have collected [Ancient Azure Illusion Scripture Essence (Purple)], [Ancient Azure Illusion Scripture] experience points +4,000!”
Qin Huai absorbed all the experience orbs into his body.
“I really didn’t want to kill you… But you insisted on confronting me.” Qin Huai looked helplessly at the blood and remains scattered across the sky.
“Roaring breathing technique… To think there was such a cultivation technique that relied on shouting to increase its power,” Qin Huai remarked, amazed. He held endless admiration for the martial arts masters of this world. Just this level of inventiveness deserved his respect.
“But it’s a pity that I can’t assess if my acting skills have improved from Fang Chuixue’s perspective,” Qin Huai said, shaking the blood off his armor.
Fang Chuixue had not suspected him at all. Reflecting on his various actions, Qin Huai was hesitant to score his acting prowess.
He resumed his trek towards the mountain wall.
In the forest, the battlefield had scattered, with the sounds of fierce combat echoing from all directions. Qin Huai did not want to waste this opportunity — he intended to scavenge the aftermath. These combatants were all prodigies, and the experience points they dropped could potentially enhance his blood heart technique or ancient azure illusion scripture.
Activating the wind breath technique, Qin Huai sped through the forest. He noticed that many people were merely sparring, using this chance to gauge their opponents’ strength.
The real killers were the Jiang brothers, the Earth Tiger Gang, and the Heavenly Eagle sect, who were engaged in a brutal conflict.
Qin Huai spotted numerous bloodstains in the forest.