The second the creature moved, Jiang Dao exploded.
"Kill!" he roared, his voice a shockwave in the tight confines of the catacomb. His body seized, every ounce of strength condensing in an instant. His frame swelled, muscles straining against his skin as he surged forward, long saber in hand.
BOOM!
He crashed into the grotesque figure like a freight train hitting a brick wall. The impact was sickeningly dull, unleashing a violent torrent of air that screamed through the cavern. Both of them were thrown backward, careening through the dust-choked darkness.
Jiang Dao landed on his feet, his body still expanding. Veins like thick cables popped out across his skin. He rolled his neck and cracked his wrists, the sound sharp and menacing in the sudden silence. His eyes were chips of ice.
"A 'Vicious Monstrosity'?" he sneered, his voice booming off the stone walls. "Is that all you've got?"
He was a terrifying sight. Now standing nearly eight feet tall, he was less a man and more a small giant, a walking mountain of tumorous muscle radiating raw, untamed power.
From the sidelines, Li San could only stare, his mouth agape. "You… you're not human either?" He'd never seen anything like it.
The creature's demonic eyes narrowed, fixed on Jiang Dao. "So, there is something different about you. No wonder you killed so many of my corpse puppets. But it doesn't matter. Down here, you still die. And the stronger you are, the more thrilling this will be."
Jiang Dao didn't waste another word. Gripping his saber, he charged again. His Iron Shirt and Golden Bell Shield techniques were pushed to their absolute limits, turning his body into a living weapon—taller, harder, and bursting with explosive strength.
He unleashed his ultimate technique: the Mad Demon Blood Soul Saber.
The air filled with the shriek of steel and the flash of bloody after-images. His slashes were a relentless storm, each one faster and more brutal than the last. The creature was a blur of motion, wreathed in a ghastly yin energy as it met his assault. Its skin was like iron; Jiang Dao's saber rang against its flesh with metallic clangs, unable to break through.
"Brother Jiang, watch out for its ranged attacks!" Li San shouted, finally snapping out of his shock. "Don't let it get any distance!" He didn't care what Jiang Dao was anymore—human or not—so long as he could kill this thing. If the monstrosity lived, they were all dead.
BANG!
Jiang Dao brought his saber down in a devastating overhead cleave aimed straight for the creature's skull. It let out a venomous shriek, thrusting a sinister palm toward Jiang Dao's chest. Instead of dodging, Jiang Dao took the hit. At the same time, his free hand turned pitch-black as he channeled his Poison Sand Palm, slamming it directly into the creature's face.
The double impact sent them both flying back again. But Jiang Dao remembered Li San's warning. He knew these things had tricks. The moment his feet hit the ground, he was already lunging forward again, saber raised.
"Damn you!" the creature hissed, spitting a glob of black blood. It had no time to recover before Jiang Dao was on it again. It desperately threw up its hands to defend itself.
"God-Slaying Slash!" Jiang Dao's voice dropped, becoming utterly cold and terrifying. His entire presence shifted. All his power flooded into his arms, making them swell even larger. A bizarre, dark energy swirled around the blade of his saber.
The air itself seemed to split as he swung.
The creature's face twisted in terror. It felt the palpable aura of death in that single strike. It tried to dodge, to phase away, but it was too late.
SQUELCH!
The saber hit home. The raw force finally shattered the creature's defense. It screamed as the blade bit deep, shearing through its left shoulder and down to its right hip, nearly tearing it in two.
"Aaargh!" it howled in agony, trying to strike back. Jiang Dao was faster, driving another poisoned palm straight into its mangled face. The force of the blow caved in its skull. Black blood erupted as its body flew backward like a discarded rag doll, slamming into the far wall.
Jiang Dao took a blow to the chest in the exchange and was knocked back, but his hardened body absorbed the worst of it. His Life-Nourishing Art was already circulating within him, mending the internal damage. He landed, coughed up a small spray of blood, and rose to his feet, a majestic and terrifying figure. With his dark hair wild and blood streaming down his chest, he raised his saber and charged again.
Li San was paralyzed. Too strong, he thought. How can anyone be this strong? Is he really a man?
The creature on the ground was a wreck. Nearly bisected and with its face caved in, it was drowning in its own agony, teetering on the edge of death. It couldn't comprehend it. How could a mere mortal do this?
"Mokeqi… aluosaluosa…" a stream of garbled, hypnotic syllables suddenly spilled from its broken mouth. Its eyes flared with a sickening green light that washed over Jiang Dao.
Jiang Dao felt a spike of pain in his mind and froze mid-stride.
A cold, broken smile spread across the creature's face as it continued its chant. The world around Jiang Dao began to blur, his focus wavering.
Li San saw the vacant look in his eyes and screamed, "Brother Jiang!"
The shout was just enough. Jiang Dao's eyes snapped back into focus, sharp as lightning. He closed the remaining distance in a single, terrifying bound.
"You—!" the creature gasped.
CRUNCH!
Jiang Dao's foot connected with its chin, snapping its head back. The creature was launched into the air, teeth shattering from the impact. Before it could fall, Jiang Dao grabbed it by the ankle. He began slamming it against the ground like a whip, again and again, smashing it into the stone floor.
The sound was a series of wet, heavy thuds, punctuated by the splattering of black blood and the creature's agonized screams. Its bones snapped like twigs under the relentless, brutal assault. It was completely helpless.
"Stop! Please!" it shrieked. "I'm from the Spirit Child Palace—!"
Suddenly, Jiang Dao stopped. He dropped the broken body to the floor. His gaze was terrifyingly intense as he stared down at it.
"The Spirit Child Palace?" he asked, his voice a low growl. "You're one of them?"
"Yes, spare me," it choked out. "I just joined them. If you kill me… they won't let you go."
Jiang Dao's eyes narrowed. His mind was racing.
Of all the factions in the world, the Spirit Child Palace was the last one he wanted to cross paths with again. He'd already killed one of their precious "Spirit Children" back in Hengzhou City and had been looking over his shoulder ever since. And now, here was another one. They were like a plague.
Splurch.
Without another word, he drove his saber straight through the creature's throat, the tip punching out the back of its neck. Its eyes went wide with disbelief, black blood bubbling from its lips.
"You… you…"
Jiang Dao gave the blade a vicious twist. Then, with a savage rip, he tore its head from its body. The head flew through the air and landed with a wet smack. Even severed, its lips still moved and its eyelids fluttered, as if it couldn't believe it was dead. The headless corpse twitched for a few moments, then went still.
The stench of foul, black blood filled the air. Jiang Dao's expression was grim as he turned back to Li San.
Li San flinched and took a step back. "Brother Jiang, what are you doing?"
"It's over, Brother Li," Jiang Dao said. "Let's get everyone out of here."
Li San let out a shaky breath, his mind still reeling. "Brother Jiang… what are you?"
"I'm human," Jiang Dao replied calmly. The grotesque muscles across his body began to recede, his frame shrinking back to its normal, albeit still formidable, size. He started gathering their unconscious comrades, and Li San, after a moment's hesitation, did the same.
It took them the better part of an hour to haul everyone out of the catacomb and bring them around.
"Hall Master, what happened?" Du Feng asked groggily, scrambling to his feet.
"We're leaving," Jiang Dao said, his tone leaving no room for argument. He'd thought leaving Hengzhou meant leaving the Spirit Child Palace behind. So much for that. This was a bad omen.
As his men gathered themselves, Li San approached him. "Brother Jiang, thank you. I am in your debt."
"Don't worry about it," Jiang Dao said. "Just stay away from Qianyuan City."
Li San understood immediately. A shiver ran down his spine. "Brother Jiang… may I ask, the techniques you use… is that Hard Kung Fu?"
"It is," Jiang Dao said, meeting his gaze.
The confirmation seemed to rattle Li San to his core. He'd never heard of, let alone seen, Hard Kung Fu trained to such an inhuman level. He knew that when he told this story, no one would ever believe him. Without another word, he gathered his men and they departed into the night.
Not long after they were gone, a strange, sinister wind whipped through the ruins of the Little Stone Temple. Back in the desecrated catacomb, two figures materialized out of the shadows—one dressed in black, the other in white.
The figure in black looked at the mangled corpse and frowned. "Useless. To be killed so easily."
"Heehee," the figure in white giggled. She was barefoot, with an exquisitely beautiful face—one of the same monstrosities from Hengzhou. "It looks like he wasn't killed by an exorcist. This feels like the work of a martial artist…"
"To reach this level of martial skill, the only power for hundreds of miles is the Blazing Flame Gang," the black figure stated coldly. "It must have been one of them."
"So, what is your plan, my lord?" the woman in white asked with a playful smile.
"What do you think? They're just mortals. A blood debt must be paid in blood. Whoever did this is stained with Wu Lai's essence; he can't hide. Find him, kill him, and forge his soul into a new Spirit Child."
"My lord is so wonderfully decisive," she cooed. "Heeheehee…"
By dawn, Jiang Dao and his men had made it back to the Greenstone Town branch. Lu An, the local subordinate, rushed out to greet them. "Hall Masters!" he said, bowing low.
"At ease," Jiang Dao said.
Lu An rose and immediately noticed something was wrong. "Hall Master Jiang… where are the other Hall Masters?"
"Hall Master Hu and Hall Master Fan died honorably in the line of duty," Jiang Dao said flatly. "I will see to it they are commended. Now, prepare a room for me."
"Yes, Hall Master!" Lu An felt a chill but knew better than to ask questions. Men like them died all the time; the how was a question that could get you killed. He quickly led Jiang Dao to a private room.
Inside, Jiang Dao sat cross-legged and turned his focus inward, to the core of his power. He visualized the seven martial arts he had mastered. Beside each one, the word [Modifiable] shimmered into existence. The rules were strict: he could only alter two at a time.
He considered his options. His most powerful offensive art was the Mad Demon Blood Soul Saber. His most valuable is the Life-Nourishing Art. The choice was clear. He focused his will.
The text in his mind shifted:
Mad Demon Blood Soul Saber [Unmodifiable]
Life-Nourishing Art [Unmodifiable]
A torrent of dense, complex information flooded his consciousness. A warm current spread through his body, seeping into every muscle and bone. For a moment, the meridians and veins across his skin pulsed with light before fading back into him. The internal energy from his Life-Nourishing Art, once the width of a charging cable, now flowed like a thick rod of power.
It came with a new function: [Accelerated Recovery]. For one minute, he could trigger a burst of healing and stamina regeneration, allowing him to get back into a fight when he should be on the brink of death. It was a game-changer, an ace in the hole.
The Mad Demon Blood Soul Saber was also upgraded. All three of its core principles were enhanced: Speed, Malevolence, and the God-Slaying Slash. Each strike would now carry at least double its previous force.
He checked his internal stats:
Strength: 4.1
Speed: 3.3
Spirit: 1.4
His gaze fell upon his remaining techniques. I wonder, he thought, if the Wind Thunder Palm and the Poison Sand Palm can be fused…
The power of both was considerable. Combined, they could be devastating. He closed his eyes and began the mental calculus, mapping out the intricate pathways of energy, searching for a point of synthesis.
Time melted away. Hours passed. Lu An brought food several times but found the door shut and left, unwilling to disturb him.
Finally, at noon, Jiang Dao's eyes snapped open. A slow smile spread across his face.
It worked.
He had successfully merged the two styles into one: the Wind Thunder Poison Sand Palm. And like his other arts, the fusion had unlocked something new—an ability he called [Thunderflame].
When he unleashed his full palm strength, there was now a chance that a violet, toxic energy would ignite in his palm. It looked like fire and crackled with the sound of thunder. A direct hit would cause a victim's body to rot instantly from the inside out. It was an order of magnitude more lethal than either of the original techniques.