A few punches landed in quick succession—
Zhu Si's head exploded on the spot.
After finishing him off, Zhao Xuan downed a packet of Mid-Grade Energy Liquid, then hurried back toward the flattened hilltop.
Just as he'd expected,
the two fifth-rank grandmasters who had each taken one of his full-power blows were nowhere to be seen.
"Hmph. Run? You really think you can run?" Zhao Xuan snorted coldly.
He had deliberately chosen to chase Zhu Si first because he was certain these two wouldn't get far.
They were just ordinary fifth-rank grandmasters—
neither monstrous prodigies nor those with the terrifying physique and defense of a land-king-class beast.
Zhao Xuan didn't believe for a second that after taking a full-force strike—even a sixth-rank great grandmaster would struggle to endure—they could escape with their lives.
And besides—
When Zhao Xuan set out for the Lingyin Mountains this time, he had spent a fortune at the Ability Users' Guild to buy a special tracking powder.
Originally, he had intended to use it on land-king-class beasts, in case he failed to kill them in one blow and they fled.
After all, the targets he planned to hunt this trip were the low-defense type of land kings—
and low defense often came with high speed.
He didn't want to see his prey get away right under his nose.
So—he had spent several million on those powders.
But in the end, Zhao Xuan hadn't expected that this time, the powder would be used not on beasts,
but on humans.
Before reaching this hill, he had already sprinkled the powder across his fists and legs—
ensuring that anyone he struck would be marked.
Zhao Xuan swiftly took out a pair of specially-made goggles.
Once he put them on, three trails of glowing dust appeared before him.
One marked his own path back after slaying the sixth-rank grandmaster.
Another marked the trail he'd taken while pursuing Zhu Si.
The last one… was the escape route of the two wounded fifth-ranks.
"Not bad. You two actually thought to run deeper into the mountains instead of back toward Hang City, hoping to throw me off."
A faint gleam flashed through Zhao Xuan's eyes.
"Tap—tap—tap!"
With a cold smile, he stamped his feet several times—
and in the next instant, his figure vanished, streaking along the powder trail like lightning.
Before long, Zhao Xuan caught up to the two grandmasters, who were staggering and fleeing in panic.
The moment they noticed him,
their faces twisted in horror.
"Damn it! How did that brat catch up!?"
"It's that tracking powder! He must've gotten it on us!"
Even in their panic, they didn't dare stop running.
"Run? Where exactly do you think you can go?" Zhao Xuan's tone was cold as ice as he closed in on them.
A chase began—
one fleeing, one hunting.
The gap shrank rapidly.
"Damn it, this won't do!" one of the fifth-ranks gasped between ragged breaths. "We can't keep running! At this rate, that monster will catch us anyway. Old Xiao, do you want to live or not!?"
"Of course I want to live!" the other panted. "Tell me, Lao Liu—what's your plan? What can we do to survive?"
"We fight!" Liu Er's voice was hoarse and fierce. "Keep running and we die anyway! And even if by some miracle we escape, once that brat reports to the Hang City branch, we'll be hunted across all of Nanjing Province—hell, across the whole Nine Provinces! There'll be nowhere left to hide!"
"Our only chance… is to stake everything on one counterattack! If we can kill Zhao Xuan, we'll not only live—we'll profit."
"Don't forget—he's got a spatial relic core worth tens of billions on him!"
"Now that the boss is dead, Zhu Si and the others are dead too—if we take Zhao Xuan down, that relic core will be ours. Split two ways… that's billions each!"
As he spoke, the fear in Liu Er's expression slowly gave way to naked greed.
Xiao Laosan's eyes gleamed the same way—
shining with avarice and feverish hope.
"One word, Old Xiao—are we doing this or not?"
"Do it!" Xiao Laosan barked without hesitation.
"Good."
Liu Er's eyes sharpened to a killing edge. "Then listen carefully. We start slowing down—make it look like we're exhausted. When he gets within ten meters, we strike together. A feint of weakness, then kill him in a single counterattack!"
"I don't care if that brat can hit as hard as a great grandmaster—there's no way his defense is that strong. He can't possibly withstand two dying blows from fifth-ranks!"
"Got it. I'll follow your lead!"
…
Wounded as they were, their speed was already no match for Zhao Xuan's semi-draconic form—
even uninjured, they wouldn't have been faster than him.
Now that they deliberately slowed, the gap closed fast.
Fifty meters.
Forty.
Thirty.
Twenty.
Ten—
Just as Zhao Xuan stepped within ten meters—
"Boom!!"
"Boom!!"
Both men suddenly spun around, aura surging violently.
Their killing intent erupted—
two fists lunged forward, shattering the air.
Cornered beasts striking back with everything they had.
"Courting death!"
Zhao Xuan had long been expecting this.
After all, anyone with half a brain could tell they couldn't escape.
If there was only one path left, they'd take it—fight to the death.
Ignoring Xiao Laosan's punch, Zhao Xuan focused on Liu Er.
He roared—
"Haaah!!"
Their fists collided.
Thunder cracked.
Liu Er's arm shattered like dry wood—
Zhao Xuan's punch didn't even slow as it slammed into his chest.
"Pffft!"
Blood sprayed from Liu Er's mouth as he was hurled through the air.
Meanwhile—
Xiao Laosan's fist landed square on Zhao Xuan's chest.
The impact rang out like metal striking metal.
Zhao Xuan merely staggered two steps back, the attack barely denting his composure.
"Impossible!!!" Xiao Laosan screamed in disbelief.
Zhao Xuan's eyes flashed coldly.
He seized the man's arm and—
Boom!!!
His iron-hard fist crashed down.
Xiao Laosan was blasted dozens of meters away, slamming into the ground hard enough to shake the mountain floor.
"Hmph. Run, then—let's see how far you get."
Zhao Xuan sneered as Liu Er, battered and bloody, tried crawling deeper into the forest.
"Tap!"
He vanished and reappeared before the man.
A sweeping kick cleaved the air—
"Ugh—ahhh!!"
With a scream, Liu Er's legs snapped under the force, and he collapsed in the dirt.
Zhao Xuan raised his fist high.
Armament Haki and lightning coiled around his knuckles in dark waves.
"Don't—don't kill me! Please, Zhao Xuan!" Liu Er shrieked, face twisted in terror.
"I—I have two three-year-old kids! I'll change! I swear I'll change—please, spare me!"
"Two kids…" Zhao Xuan's brows furrowed slightly.
At that instant—
a flash of malice gleamed in Liu Er's eyes.
He lunged up with a roar—
"Die!" Die! "Die!!!"
His fist shot toward Zhao Xuan's chest.
Boom!!!
Caught off guard, Zhao Xuan was forced back several steps.
A burning pain flared across his chest, a crimson fist mark forming there.
Blood rose to his throat—he swallowed it down.
But before he could react further—
A second rush of killing intent.
Liu Er was already charging again, eyes blood-red, teeth bared.
"Hmph."
Zhao Xuan inhaled sharply, forcing down the pain.
He vanished from sight.
"Step!"
Reappearing right in front of Liu Er.
A punch crashed out—
Liu Er tried to block, but Zhao Xuan's power was monstrous, bolstered by his Azure Dragon Fruit and his terrifying physique.
Even some sixth-rank great grandmasters couldn't withstand it—
how could a battered fifth-rank?
One punch sent Liu Er skidding back dozens of steps.
Before he could regain balance—
Another punch.
Then another.
And another—
Seven, eight blows rained down in a blur.
Zhao Xuan gave him no chance to breathe.
"Uaghhh!!"
Liu Er screamed as he was flung back again, blood splattering the forest floor.
"I'm sorry! I was wrong—please—I don't want to die! My children—they need me—ahhhh!!!"
"Boom!!!"
Zhao Xuan didn't hesitate this time.
He'd learned his lesson well—
Hesitation leads to defeat.
His fist hammered into Liu Er's chest again.
Crack—crack—crack!
Ribs shattered like brittle glass.
"Ahhh! No—no—please! I don't want to die—!"
But Zhao Xuan's expression remained like ice.
Another punch fell.
Then another.
Until—
Boom!
The fifth-rank grandmaster lay still, lifeless.
Coldly glancing at the corpse, Zhao Xuan turned—
only to find Xiao Laosan had already fled.
"Run? Pointless."
With a chill in his eyes, Zhao Xuan followed the blood trail and powder glow once more.
Soon—he caught up.
A few punches later, Xiao Laosan lay dead as well.
Ding!
You have completed a prolonged pursuit and battle. Your proficiency in all skills (except Swordsmanship) has greatly improved! All abilities (except Swordsmanship) +600!
As the system prompt sounded, a warm current flooded Zhao Xuan's body.
Where it passed, his internal injuries healed rapidly—
and his Armament Haki swelled, growing several times stronger.
No—
it wasn't just stronger.
If before, his Armament Haki had been like mist—
now it had condensed into droplets, dense and tangible.
[Heavenly Rewards Diligence System]
Name: Zhao Xuan
Age: 18
Spiritual Power: 49.58 / 187.58
Physique: 764.58 / 1206.78
Abilities:
Shave (Master: 2996 / 8000)
Iron Body (Master: 3045 / 8000)
Paper Art (Master: 2065 / 8000)
Moon Step (Master: 2572 / 8000)
Tempest Kick (Master: 4354 / 8000)
Finger Gun (Master: 1535 / 8000)
Swordsmanship (Master: 435 / 8000)
Armament Haki (Master: 89 / 80000)
Azure Dragon Fruit (Expert: 3698 / 4000)
Looking at the panel, Zhao Xuan's lips slowly curled upward—
until his grin turned wild.
Then—
"Hahahahahahaha!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"
His laughter—mad, triumphant, and unrestrained—echoed through the mountains.
"Truly, when you aim for one thing, you may miss it—
but fortune comes when you least expect it!"
"I'd planned to break through by hunting land-king beasts…"
"Who knew it'd happen like this! Hahaha!"
Yes—
He had broken through.
Zhao Xuan's Armament Haki had advanced.
His power had leapt another tier.
Even his physique had risen by a full two hundred points—
a terrifying number.
It took him a while to calm down again.
"This gap between my spirit and physique is getting out of hand…"
"It's almost sevenfold now. And my Azure Dragon Fruit ability is on the verge of advancing to Master level. If I'm right, that breakthrough will increase my physique even more than Haki did."
His brows furrowed.
"Looks like boosting my spiritual power has become an urgent priority."
Zhao Xuan clenched his fists—
resolve gleaming in his eyes.
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