"Ding!"
You have experienced a transcendent battle beyond your rank! Your understanding of all abilities has reached unprecedented levels. All skill proficiencies +300!
"Ding!"
You have fought a higher-tier opponent in a fierce, exhilarating battle! Through repeated use of Storm Kick, Armament Haki, and Azure Dragon Fruit abilities, you have gained new insights. Storm Kick, Armament Haki, and Azure Dragon Fruit proficiency +200!
The moment Zhao Xuan twisted Zhao Shi's neck—
that ethereal system notification echoed in his mind.
All the tension that had been holding him upright drained away.
"Boom."
He collapsed, landing heavily on his back in the massive crater.
Then, slowly—he released his Dragon-Human form.
His body, drenched in blood, slumped against the cracked earth.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
He gasped—ragged, hoarse breaths filling the silence.
And as his vision settled on Zhao Shi's lifeless body,
a smile crept across his blood-smeared face.
It grew wider.
And wider.
Until finally—
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Laughter erupted—
wild, unrestrained, echoing through the night sky.
It was laughter of triumph, of release—
and a touch of madness.
It rolled, wave after wave, until it faded into the howling wind.
Then, with trembling hands, Zhao Xuan summoned his status panel.
[Heaven Rewards Diligence System]
Name: Zhao Xuan
Age: 18
Spirit: 23.86 / 173.98
Physique: 100.97 / 997.41
Abilities:
Shave (Master: 786 / 8000)
Iron Body (Master: 1445 / 8000)
Paper Art (Master: 365 / 8000)
Moon Step (Master: 872 / 8000)
Storm Kick (Master: 2300 / 8000)
Finger Gun (Master: 199 / 8000)
Swordsmanship (Expert: 397 / 400)
Armament Haki (Adept: 2111 / 4000)
Azure Dragon Fruit (Adept: 1898 / 4000)
A satisfied grin returned to his face.
Closing the panel, Zhao Xuan pulled out several energy pouches and gulped them down.
After regaining some strength, he climbed out of the crater and sprinted toward the collapsed hotel ruins—
rejoining the ongoing clash between the South River defenders and the Cult of Demons.
He wasn't back at full power,
but against Fourth-Tier opponents, he was more than enough.
His arrival instantly shifted the battle's momentum.
"Zhao Xuan's back!"
"We're saved!"
"Kill them! Kill every last one of those cult scum!"
Cheers erupted as Zhao Xuan's first move—a single sweeping kick—
sent a Fourth-Tier cultist flying, lifeless.
Morale on the South River side skyrocketed.
The Cult's, on the other hand—plummeted.
They had all witnessed Zhao Xuan's duel with Zhao Shi.
And now, seeing him return alone…
meant only one thing—
Their Fifth-Tier Demon Son was dead.
If even their strongest had fallen,
what chance did the rest of them have?
Fear spread through their ranks like wildfire.
Within minutes, their forces had been crushed—scattered, slaughtered, routed.
Yet despite the victory, no one relaxed.
Because they all knew—
this wasn't the true battle.
The outcome here meant little.
The real decider was far away—
the three high-tier titans clashing on the outskirts of East Hang City.
"Don't worry."
Seeing everyone's anxious stares toward the eastern skyline,
Fatty Fu finally spoke.
Zhao Xuan's eyes narrowed.
"Oh? Fat Brother, you sound… sure of something. Don't tell me—"
The others turned toward him, waiting.
Fatty Fu chuckled.
"Heh, nothing escapes you, does it, Brother Zhao? Let's just say—Grandpa Jiang isn't showing his full strength."
"Grandpa Jiang?" everyone echoed.
"Yeah," Fatty Fu said, hands behind his head, his voice calm and steady.
"He's the President of our South River Ability Guild—and also the Head of the Hang City branch.
He's the one fighting those two Demon Elders right now."
Gasps spread through the group.
Fatty Fu continued before anyone could interrupt,
"Let me guess—you're wondering why, if he's so strong, the fight hasn't ended yet, right?"
They nodded.
Fatty Fu grinned.
"Well, here's the truth. Yesterday, my father and Grandpa Jiang captured a core cultist.
From his mouth, we learned that there aren't just three Demon Elders here—there are four."
Everyone stiffened.
"That fourth one," Fatty Fu went on,
"is cautious—painfully cautious.
He won't act unless he's absolutely certain of victory.
So Grandpa Jiang's been holding back—pretending to struggle—
to lure the fourth elder out of hiding and wipe all four of them out at once."
A wave of realization washed over the group.
Their tense shoulders eased.
"Ahh… so it's all part of the plan!"
"Then we've got nothing to worry about."
But Zhao Xuan didn't relax.
He frowned.
"Fat Brother…" Zhao Xuan said slowly,
"was it really a good idea to reveal this plan out loud? That fourth elder is still in hiding.
If he overheard you—"
Everyone froze.
Fatty Fu just chuckled.
"Relax, Brother Zhao. That sneaky bastard holds a grudge. Ten years ago, Grandpa Jiang crippled him—personally.
So he's definitely lurking near the East Suburbs, waiting to ambush Grandpa Jiang for revenge.
He's not anywhere near us."
He waved dismissively.
"Besides, even if he were nearby, we're just insects to someone at his level.
Why would a dragon care what ants whisper about?"
Laughter and relief rippled through the group.
Zhao Xuan, however, still looked uneasy.
A few moments later, someone remembered—
Zhao Xuan had fought Zhao Shi alone.
And returned.
Alive.
Their eyes went wide.
"Wait… does that mean…?"
They turned toward him as one.
Fatty Fu scratched his chin.
"Uh, Brother Zhao, about that Zhao Shi guy—where is he now?"
All eyes fixed on Zhao Xuan.
He sighed, feigning nonchalance.
"Dead."
Silence.
Then—
"WHAT?!"
"Y-you mean—you killed him?"
"By yourself!?"
Zhao Xuan smiled faintly.
"Well… not entirely by myself."
His gaze softened, landing on Di Ruqing.
"If not for her holding him off, I wouldn't have had the time to break through."
Everyone fell quiet again.
It was true.
Without Di Ruqing's interference, Zhao Shi could have easily interrupted Zhao Xuan's breakthrough.
Still—
they'd seen the fight with their own eyes.
Even if Di Ruqing's efforts bought a few moments,
the one who struck the killing blow was Zhao Xuan.
A Fourth-Tier—slaying a Fifth-Tier.
Unbelievable.
Then—
A voice boomed from the eastern outskirts.
"Kehahahaha! Jiang, you old ghost—tonight's your death anniversary!"
The laughter cut short—
replaced by thunder.
"BOOM!!!"
A colossal bolt of purple-white lightning split the night sky.
And then—
"AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
A scream of agony tore through the heavens.
"Damn you! Jiang—you're… you're Eighth Tier!?"
"No! Impossible! It's a trap! A trap!!!"
"AAAAHHHHH!! You can't kill me! If you do, you'll never find your son's body—!"
"KRAKAKAKAKAKAKOOM!!!"
Thunder swallowed the voice.
The ground shook.
The air hummed.
And then—silence.
Everyone stared eastward, wide-eyed.
"So the fourth elder finally took the bait."
"And the President… he's Eighth Tier…"
"Then this battle's as good as won."
Relief spread like wildfire.
Until—
"CRACK!!!"
A thunderbolt split the air,
and a charred figure plummeted from the sky—
crashing into the ground barely thirty meters away.
"BOOM!!"
Dust billowed.
Then—
A blackened hand clawed at the crater's edge.
A man—half-burned, twitching—dragged himself out,
gasping raggedly, every breath a rasp of pain.
His gaze lifted—
and when he spotted Fatty Fu, his eyes gleamed with sudden malice.
"Kekekekekeke… Heaven doesn't abandon me after all!"
He staggered forward.
A Fourth-Tier guard captain tried to block him—
only to be swatted aside like a fly,
his body spinning through the air and crashing lifelessly to the ground.
Everyone froze.
The man—
charred, burned, and yet monstrously strong—
was far beyond ordinary.
An awful realization hit them all at once.
"Could it be…" someone whispered.
"He's one of the Three Demon Elders of the Cult!?"
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