Chapter 292 - 287: Astonishing Divine Ability
In the nick of time, Hong Lei’s instincts as a battle-hardened Martial Artist saved his life.
Sensing the murderous intent surging from behind, he roared, spun around, and crossed his arms to shield the vital points on his chest!
"BOOM!"
A savagely powerful Ming Jin detonated where his arms met!
The deafening sonic boom reverberated wildly through the dark forest, and the ferocious shockwave instantly snapped several thick iron hemlock trees at their trunks!
Several crows roosting on distant branches shrieked in alarm, "CAW! CAW!", and frantically beat their wings to escape.
Although Su Yu’s punch was incredibly powerful, Hong Lei’s Qi and Blood was ultimately far superior. Even though he could only mobilize a fraction of it, he still managed to block the strike.
Hong Lei cried out in pain. Using the force of the recoil, he was thrown back dozens of yards, scrambling to put distance between himself and Su Yu.
"COUGH, COUGH... HAHAHAHA!"
When Hong Lei finally steadied himself and saw Su Yu in the starlight, he first spat out a mouthful of bloody foam, then couldn’t help but erupt into wild, arrogant laughter.
"I was wondering who it was! Turns out it’s just some wet-behind-the-ears punk!"
Hong Lei shook his sore and numb arms, his guard dropping completely.
He stared at Su Yu’s face, his eyes filled with scorn and contempt.
"You must be that so-called genius from the Public Security Bureau, Su Yu, right? Hahahaha! And you dare to hunt me down all by yourself with just the strength of the early Muscle Forging Realm?"
"Hilariously arrogant! I’ve seen plenty of ’invincible’ geniuses like you over the years, and I’ve killed plenty, too! Since you’re in such a hurry to die, I’ll slaughter you tonight as an offering to my fallen brothers from the Water Snake Gang!"
With that, all thoughts of retreat vanished from Hong Lei’s mind. Murderous intent flared in his eyes as he took the initiative and attacked Su Yu.
Facing Hong Lei’s taunts and counterattack, Su Yu’s eyes remained as calm as ice, showing no sign of retreat.
That first clash had allowed him to assess their relative strengths.
’This Hong Lei really is seriously injured. The Qi and Blood he can call upon now is only at the level of the mid-stage Muscle Forging Realm. It’s still much stronger than me, but not so much that he can just crush me or take me out in one shot.’
’In that case, I’ll use him to hone my fighting skills and grind a good chunk of Skill Level for my Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist.’
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
The two clashed again, the sounds of their ferocious Ming Jin colliding and detonating echoing endlessly through the silent woods.
In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged dozens of blows in close-quarters combat.
Although Su Yu managed to neutralize the danger several times with his astonishing combat instincts and powerful Fist Technique, Hong Lei was a battle-hardened master, after all.
Overwhelmed by the raw power disparity between their realms, Su Yu was constantly on the back foot, nearly getting struck several times by Hong Lei’s vicious and deceptive Water Snake Fist.
However, in this high-intensity combat, Su Yu wasn’t the least bit flustered. On the contrary, he seemed to grow stronger with every exchange.
[Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist Skill Level +10]
[Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist Skill Level +10]
...
"Kid, you really are a monster!"
After another ferocious exchange, Hong Lei used the momentum to retreat several steps, his chest heaving violently. As he watched Su Yu, whose aura only grew more formidable with the fight, a flicker of fear and astonishment appeared deep in his eyes.
"To withstand dozens of my blows at your age without being defeated... I suppose that’s where you get the nerve to chase me alone! But this is where it ends!"
Hong Lei didn’t dare to drag this out any longer.
His internal injuries, aggravated by the intense fight, were already showing signs of spiraling out of control. Moreover, Li Jingxuan and the others could catch up at any moment. If that happened, there would truly be no escape.
"With this next move, I’ll send you to hell!"
Hong Lei’s face twisted into a savage mask. He took a deep breath and began to frantically channel the Qi and Blood in his body. He was clearly planning to ignore his injuries and risk it all on a single, full-power strike.
Seeing him prepare for a desperate, all-or-nothing attack, Su Yu knew the time was ripe.
"Hong Lei, for its own selfish gain, your Water Snake Gang has abandoned all morality. You sacrificed the bodies of countless innocent people to the death vortex in the Black Water River and colluded with evil gods and demonic beings. Your crimes are unforgivable. Today, you will die."
Su Yu spoke calmly, as if pronouncing Hong Lei’s death sentence.
Hong Lei faltered for a second, then let out a piercing sneer.
"Hahahaha! Innocent people? You actually care about the lives of those ants!"
Hong Lei stared intently at Su Yu. He suddenly recalled something, and realization dawned. "That aura of yours... no wonder it felt familiar! You’re the bastard who saved that woman from the Qian Family on the Black Water Riverbank and ruined my plans!"
"In that case, we’ll settle old scores and new! Today, you have all the more reason to die!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he didn’t attack immediately. Instead, he cautiously scanned his surroundings out of the corner of his eye. Only after confirming there were no other ambushers did he let out a loud laugh.
"Little bastard, die! Black Python Overturns the Sea!"
Hong Lei unleashed his signature move!
It was the most powerful technique in the Black Python Fist.
He seemed to transform into an ancient black python bursting from the depths of the ocean, roiling the very seas. His fist, carrying a terrifying force, smashed down toward Su Yu’s head!
The incredibly ferocious wind generated by his fist formed a small, visible vortex, sucking in fallen leaves, soil, and even hard bits of gravel from the ground.
A savage, cruel grin spread across Hong Lei’s face. He could already picture the gruesome scene: Su Yu’s head exploding from the force of the blow, his body crumpling lifelessly to the ground.
’No matter how monstrous your talent is, no matter how many tricks you have up your sleeve, when faced with the absolute suppression of a higher realm, it’s impossible to bridge the gap of two minor realms and take this killing blow head-on!’
He still believed Su Yu was in the early Muscle Forging Realm. Had he known Su Yu was merely in the Late-stage of the Flesh Refining Realm, he would have been even more stunned.
As for Su Yu, he was more than prepared.
’Silent Annihilation.’
Following the whisper in his heart, in the next instant, he felt the Qi and Blood in his body get completely siphoned away.
The fist he threw seemed to touch upon the power of a fundamental Rule. A black and white aura spread out, suppressing everything around him.
Hong Lei’s ferocious fist wind, the swirling leaves, the soil and stones—the moment they touched this black and white mist, everything froze in place!
Then, an indescribably terrifying scene unfolded.
As Su Yu’s seemingly slow fist advanced.
The unstoppable Fist Force of the Black Python Overturns the Sea, the gale, the dirt, the leaves... all of it, upon touching the edge of Su Yu’s fist, simply melted away like the first snow under a blazing sun. It all disintegrated and vanished without a sound.
’This... What is this...’
Hong Lei’s face was a mask of stupefaction. He couldn’t comprehend what was happening. He wanted to speak, but his mouth only opened and closed in silence.
All he could do was watch helplessly.
The black and white light of death brushed gently over his iron fist—his pride and joy—then over his thick arm, before finally sinking into one half of his brawny torso.
There was no searing pain, no blood.
Because in the instant the light passed over him, Hong Lei’s flesh, blood, bones, and even the life force and soul within him were utterly stripped of the concept of existence itself.
Half of his body, like a thousand-year-old piece of rotted wood exposed to the elements, silently turned to fine, gray-white dust and scattered on the wind, vanishing without a trace.
"BOOM!"
Only when Su Yu’s fist had completely followed through did the Rule of Silence that suppressed everything abruptly dissipate.
The power that had been suppressed to its absolute limit erupted forth!
The ferocious wind from the punch, its momentum unchecked, tore forward like an enraged dragon, carving a terrifying vacuum corridor hundreds of feet long and thirty feet wide through the dense black iron forest ahead.
Along its path, ancient iron hemlock trees—so thick it would take several people to encircle them—violently shattered and collapsed under the apocalyptic force!
"THUD."
The mangled half-corpse that remained of Hong Lei fell like an unsupported slab of meat, slamming heavily into the dirt, utterly and completely dead.
As for Su Yu, who had just delivered this earth-shattering blow, his own condition was now dire.
The backlash from the divine ability and the complete depletion of his Qi and Blood instantly knocked him out of his White Ape Transformation state. An intense wave of weakness washed over him. His legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the muddy ground with a SPLAT.
’The power of this divine ability... it’s ridiculously strong, but the fucking cost is terrifying!’
Su Yu gasped for air, not daring to hesitate for even a second.
With a flicker of his consciousness, he immediately retrieved the only two high-grade precious herbs left in his storage ring: a Red-Scaled Earth Dragon Ganoderma and the Nine Yang Blood Orchid.
He wasted no time, stuffing both herbs into his mouth and desperately chewing and swallowing.
Then, he ripped the Cyan Spirit Origin-Transforming Gourd from his waist, uncorked it, tilted his head back, and began to frantically chug the Spirit Wine inside. GULP, GULP.