This... was already beyond the scope of a normal Martial Artist.
Cai Mingliang seemed to realize something. His expression changed drastically, and a term blurted from his lips:
"A Secret Medicine Fighter?!"
SWISH!
WHOOSH!
Then, with an exaggerated sound of breathing, the long saber in the black-clad man's hand slashed down through the air. Sound Force erupted, and the blade cut through the air with such force it seemed to make it explode.
Speed!! Power!!
Cai Mingliang took a deep breath, crossed his twin blades, and with a sudden burst of Sound Force, he blocked upwards!
CLANG!!
The clash of metal on metal sent a scalp-numbing vibration through the air. Cai Mingliang was forced back several steps, his body slamming into the room's wooden door. He felt his arms go numb, temporarily unable to muster any strength.
'This strength...'
On the other side, the black-clad man didn't seem to be faring much better. He didn't swing his saber again, but instead immediately charged forward like a wild bull, crashing into Cai Mingliang.
CRACK!!
The wooden door shattered on impact, and the two men, now grappled together, tumbled out of the house.
A mid-to-long weapon is greatly hindered inside a room, so the black-clad man's first priority was to change the battlefield. An open area was his home turf.
This split-second adaptation revealed his vast combat experience. Even under a surprise attack, his thoughts remained completely rational.
'Secret Medicine Fighter?'
Zhao Xuanqi had heard Cai Mingliang's low cry and had also observed the abnormalities of the black-clad man.
His body seemed different from an ordinary person's. He clearly hadn't reached the realm of Cross-Training, yet his cardiopulmonary function seemed far beyond what was normal for a Martial Arts Family.
The characteristics of his abilities seemed to be a different path to the same goal as the enhanced organ function of the Inner Cultivation realm.
But clearly, this person couldn't be an Inner Cultivation master.
For Cai Mingliang to be the leader of this operation, his strength must be above the Nine Sounds realm. Yet, he was still forced to retreat and fell to a disadvantage after a single slash.
'The situation looks bad. Given how things are going, I don't know how long Cai Mingliang can last. If he's defeated, the two of them will surround me, and I'll be in a terrible position.'
"Kid, where do you think you're looking?!"
As a hundred thoughts raced through Zhao Xuanqi's mind, a savage laugh and the sharp sound of Sound Force cutting through the air rang by his ear. The Cang Mountain Gang's leader, wielding two short knives, was already slashing at him.
'His speed, power, and technique all seem equivalent to a standard Nine Sounds practitioner. Nothing too special.'
'This guy? He's different from the one just now?'
Zhao Xuanqi instantly judged his opponent's attack trajectory. He dodged with a sideways roll, creating distance, and a smile touched his lips as well. "You're not very lucky. It's just the two of us in this room, so I don't have to hide anymore."
At that moment, the Cang Mountain Gang leader, who was about to press his attack, suddenly froze. He felt a terrifying sense of crisis erupting from the small body before him, a feeling so intense it seemed to shatter the sharp intuition he had honed through years of life-and-death battles.
It was as if a little white rabbit had suddenly torn off its own fur, revealing a monstrous and terrifying body within.
Like a predator that ruled the mountain forests, the king of a hundred beasts standing at the apex of the food chain.
There are three realms in the art of fighting.
The first is Force, where one point of strength overcomes ten points of skill.
The second is Skill, where four ounces can deflect a thousand pounds.
The third is Presence, which subdues the enemy without a fight.
Like a butcher before livestock, a tiger before a rabbit, or an eagle in the sky gazing down at a hamster.
Having been reincarnated, Zhao Xuanqi had lost his physical strength and the bodily control granted by his Martial Dao realm, but the presence he carried in his soul—like that of the king of a hundred beasts—was never lost.
However, this ability was too abnormal. It could only be produced by an extremely powerful and confident mind that had been forged through countless trials. Therefore, he hadn't even revealed it when facing Liu Changfeng's probing.
Moreover, he no longer needed to hide the fighting techniques of the Hundred Beasts Fist. This, right now, was his strongest state!
SWISH!!
His figure shot forward. In that instant, in the eyes of the Cang Mountain Gang leader, his arms seemed to undergo a subtle change.
Soft as cotton, flexible as a whip!
CRACK!!
A crisp crack echoed as Zhao Xuanqi's arm flicked out like a steel whip. The Force was like a needle, its trajectory erratic and difficult to trace!
Fierce Form, White Ape Stabbing Sword!
Fast! Deceptive! Deadly!
Faced with this thrust, the battle-hardened Cang Mountain Gang leader's mind went completely blank. He couldn't find the target point, couldn't grasp the trajectory. Only at the moment the dagger's tip was about to land did he violently twist his torso, moving his chest, abdomen, and neck aside to redirect Zhao Xuanqi's point of attack.
PFFT!
The short dagger instantly pierced his right shoulder, leaving a dark, gaping hole from which bright red blood immediately gushed out.
But this man was, after all, a desperate outlaw. The pain stimulated his ferocity, and in the face of a life-or-death crisis, he temporarily forgot the fear in his heart.
Even a cornered rabbit will bite.
"ARGH!!"
The Cang Mountain Gang leader roared, and holding a knife in each hand, he lunged forward in a wild thrust. He completely abandoned defense, adopting a suicidal tactic of trading his life for his opponent's—willing to be stabbed several times and die on the spot, as long as he could kill Zhao Xuanqi.
The struggles of a cornered beast, its savagery laid bare!
However, Zhao Xuanqi, who had the complete advantage after a successful strike, suddenly dodged to the side, completely losing the all-devouring predatory aura from before.
The transition was as smooth as flowing water.
As an inheritor of the Hundred Beasts Fist, he had a deep understanding of the hunting techniques of wild beasts.
A dying prey's final counterattack is often the most dangerous.
Given the disparity in their physiques and pure strength, playing a life-for-life game with such an opponent would be irrational.
Energy is highest on the first charge, wanes on the second, and is exhausted on the third!
One dodge, two dodges!
Although his movements seemed frantic, everything was actually within Zhao Xuanqi's control.
The forced ferocity was on the verge of depletion, and fear once again took over the Cang Mountain Gang leader's mind.
His blades slowed, his lunges hesitated.
The dying prey had exhausted its last bit of strength.
'Now is the time to end it!'
He coiled his body and shot forward!
Zhao Xuanqi's aura abruptly shifted, and he once again became the extremely dangerous hunter. He took advantage of a gap in the Cang Mountain Gang leader's lunge to close in on his torso.
Ape Sword, upward thrust!
Pfft.
The dagger stabbed up from under the Cang Mountain Gang leader's chin, pierced through his upper jaw, and destroyed his brain.
All movement ceased abruptly. The Cang Mountain Gang leader's body froze in place. As Zhao Xuanqi pulled out the dagger, the body slowly crumpled to the ground.
BANG!!
Before Zhao Xuanqi could even breathe a sigh of relief, a loud crash came from the courtyard outside.
He rushed to the doorway in a few steps and saw Cai Mingliang lying by the courtyard wall. A jagged slash mark was visible on his chest and abdomen. It seemed he had used his twin daggers to protect his vitals and avoid being killed in one blow, but the immense force had still broken his ribs. He lay collapsed on the ground, blood streaming endlessly from his nose and mouth.
And the black-clad man, long saber in hand, turned around. His blood-red eyes met Zhao Xuanqi's.