This was also in line with his character—in one word, stable!
He couldn't take it lightly before truly reaching the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm.
Really.
No one he expected.
In just a few breaths' time, the momentum on Su Zhan gradually weakened again, and finally disappeared.
"Damn! Didn't the villagers say my cultivation talent was outstanding? Wasn't I supposed to be the future Inner Disciple, the pride of the whole village… that!"
Su Zhan accelerated his run, cursing under his breath.
Now he finally understood the difficulty of breaking through to the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm.
It was not even on the same level as breaking through to the Second or Third!
No wonder they called the Fourth Level a barrier—once achieved, your power soared. For ordinary people, failing twice meant losing half a year.
Try a few more times, and as you get older, the probability of breaking through drops sharply… until, in the end, there's no chance at all!
"I'm timid just now."
"He's just attempting a breakthrough… so what if he succeeds?"
"Seize the thief, capture the king first—kill him! As long as he dies, those black shadows will naturally disappear!"
Zhou Yueshan took a deep breath, suppressing all other thoughts. No longer crazed with greed as before, he now wore the fierce expression of one truly ready to kill.
He started moving again—this time, ignoring the Clones entirely. Too lazy to waste time on them, he used his Fourth-Level Mortal Realm speed to slip past their siege.
Slash!
Even if several sword tore his clothes and drew blood, the pain was minor.
Zhou Yueshan didn't care.
In his eyes, there was only Su Zhan, running ahead!
"This guy is coming straight for me!"
Su Zhan's eyes narrowed, alarm bells ringing in his mind.
Through the almost overflowing killing intent in Zhou Yueshan's gaze, he knew… Zhou Yueshan was serious.
Murderously intent!
No longer fighting or entangling with the Clones, but locking his focus entirely on Su Zhan himself!
"Clones, stop him!"
Su Zhan grew tense, not daring to relax. He summoned his remaining trump card—more Clones—sending them to intercept Zhou Yueshan.
But Zhou Yueshan didn't fall for it.
Against more than a dozen Clone attacks, he dodged only those that wouldn't slow his advance. The rest he took head-on, so long as they didn't hit vital spots, all to keep closing the distance to Su Zhan!
"Come again!"
Su Zhan gritted his teeth, ordering the Clones to keep harassing him, trying to force Zhou Yueshan to maintain a safe distance.
But he underestimated Zhou Yueshan's determination.
Some attacks, he didn't even try to dodge—simply enduring them. As long as his vital points were safe, nothing else concerned him. He kept getting closer and closer to Su Zhan.
On the surface, Zhou Yueshan's wounds multiplied, blood dripping as if he had suffered heavy damage. But on closer inspection, they were all surface wounds with minimal impact on his combat strength.
"Damn, if only I had mastered Blood Shadow Sword…"
"If I had, killing Zhou Yueshan would be no problem at all!"
With Blood Shadow Sword, each Clone's combat power would soar, and with a single strike, even Zhou Yueshan wouldn't dare take it head-on.
Zhou Yueshan had already seen through the fact that the Clones couldn't truly harm him, so he advanced fearlessly. Otherwise, he might have already fled!
"Not good… the distance is closing!"
Watching through his Clones' vision, Su Zhan's face turned grim.
He had thought they could delay Zhou Yueshan for a few more seconds, enough for him to open up the distance and escape beyond Zhou Yueshan's sight—or even beyond his spiritual sense.
But Zhou Yueshan simply refused to give him the chance.
Even at the cost of injury, he pushed forward!
"With the ruthlessness he just used to strike at the Clones, if even one blow lands on me… I won't survive to take a second!"
Su Zhan broke into a cold sweat.
If he guessed right, Zhou Yueshan also practiced an aggressive weapon technique, focused entirely on offense.
Not only that—he too could unleash violent bursts of power, concentrating all his strength into a single instant. With such a strike, even a Fourth-Level Mortal Realm cultivator could die instantly!
"If this doesn't work, there's only one option left…"
That last option was to release the 20 Clones still cultivating inside his body.
With those plus the 11 still fighting, he would have 31 Clones in total.
At that number, even Zhou Yueshan couldn't ignore the combined attack. The overwhelming offensive would certainly force him to deal with some of them, slowing him down and giving Su Zhan a chance to escape completely.
Just then—
"Breakthrough… it feels like I'm about to break through to the Fourth-Level Mortal Realm again… this is my third chance!"
"One last try."
"If I fail again, I'll accept my fate and escape first!"
Su Zhan felt the momentum surging from his body again. Normally, he chose the safe path, but this time he decided to gamble—to turn his bicycle into a motorcycle!
If he won the bet, all problems would be solved.
If he lost, he wouldn't regret it—he'd just admit that the timing wasn't on his side.
Su Zhan chose to gamble.
Zhou Yueshan also chose to gamble!
"This time, I will show no hesitation… Your life belongs to me, and your treasure as well!"
Even as the breakthrough's momentum surged toward him, Zhou Yueshan didn't waver. Letting the Clones' attacks cut his body and bleed his blood, he kept advancing toward Su Zhan without pause.
At this moment, the two sides were locked in an invisible game…
But fight and fight, Su Zhan did not stop, constantly summoning and dismissing Clones. Every moment that slowed Zhou Yueshan mattered; every second he could buy was precious.
Zhou Yueshan's power was unleashed to its fullest.
Although the frequent use of techniques consumed a great deal of his spiritual qi, he had no intention of stopping. Whenever a Clone blocked his path, he would slice it cleanly in half with a single strike—determined to find the quickest way to close the distance to Su Zhan!