Chapter 179: Chilling
He hadn't noticed the brown bear in the tree until just now. Seeing its cold, resentful gaze, Lin Feng furrowed his brow slightly.
'Another one with such human-like eyes. How have so many beasts on this mountain gained sentience?'
'A single Red Flame Fruit shouldn't be enough to cause this.'
Lin Feng couldn't help but feel puzzled. The Red Flame Fruit was only a fifth-grade Spiritual Medicine. While valuable, it wasn't particularly rare.
But the level of sentience and the sheer power of the beasts on this mountain seemed abnormally high. It made Lin Feng suspect there was some deeper secret to this place.
But even with his many doubts, this wasn't the time for questions. The look in the brown bear's eyes made it clear that the creature already saw him as an enemy it had to defeat.
AWOO!
The brown bear let out a low roar, then leaped into the air and pounced at Lin Feng. Its speed was incredible, far beyond that of a normal beast. It seemed this bear was just like the others he had encountered; otherwise, it wouldn't be this powerful.
Seeing this, Lin Feng gave a faint smile. He was a little bored, and he still had plenty of questions that needed answers. The arrival of this brown bear was actually quite fitting.
Lin Feng's eyes narrowed. He raised a hand and thrust his palm forward, using seventy percent of his strength in this first strike.
He wouldn't be the least bit careless when facing a natural predator like this.
BANG!
The large and small forms collided with an explosive sound. A shockwave radiated outward, sending fallen leaves scattering in all directions.
The brown bear, weighing nearly a ton, was sent flying several meters before it crashed to the ground. Its sharp claws had been shattered.
'What is this thing?'
Lin Feng stared at the brown bear in surprise. Its defense was incredibly tough. It was strange that such a powerful palm strike hadn't managed to injure it.
The brown bear slowly got to its feet. Its pair of azure eyes were filled with slaughter and savagery as it stared intently at Lin Feng. It could clearly sense that this fellow before it seemed even stronger than the other human.
"Your hide is tough," Lin Feng said. "Now I'm really curious to test it."
After speaking, Lin Feng's figure flashed as he charged the brown bear. He lashed out with a whip kick. He was now genuinely interested in this creature. Though it was an anomaly, its strength was quite impressive.
The brown bear roared and shielded its chest with its forelimbs, directly meeting Lin Feng's kick. The bear's defense was terrifyingly strong, even surpassing that of some spiritual beasts.
Lin Feng's leg became a blur as it viciously slammed into the brown bear's forelimbs. The sheer force of the kick tore through its tough hide, sending blood spraying.
But even an injury like this didn't push the brown bear back an inch. Even Lin Feng was a little surprised by this, because the brown bear stood firm like an iron pagoda, not budging at all.
ROAR!
While Lin Feng was still surprised, the brown bear swatted at him with its other forepaw. The massive limb swung down at Lin Feng like a steel blade.
Lin Feng immediately dodged, but the paw still grazed the top of his head as it swept past, nearly sending him flying.
The brown bear was stunned by this outcome. This guy was clearly much weaker than it, yet he had managed to dodge. This infuriated the bear, and it charged at Lin Feng like a mad dog.
Lin Feng's brow furrowed. 'This creature's intelligence is truly unusual. It knows how to coordinate its offense and defense. Looks like it'll be a tricky opponent.'
But in Lin Feng's eyes, such an opponent was still not enough to be a threat. After all, his own strength was on another level. He sidestepped lightly, easily evading the creature's attack, then lashed out with a Tendon-Breaking Claw.
His sharp fingernails glinted coldly in the sunlight as they stabbed toward the brown bear's neck. But the attack was ineffective; the bear simply tilted its head and dodged the vicious strike.
Immediately after, the massive bear claw swung out, forcing Lin Feng back and leaving several bloody scratches on his arm.
The scratches, however, didn't cause Lin Feng any real harm, though his clothes were becoming rather tattered. At this point, Lin Feng adjusted his attitude and began to take the brown bear before him seriously.
Lin Feng knew the brown bear's strength far surpassed his own. It was also massive, yet surprisingly agile. He couldn't afford to be careless. Mobilizing all the Inner Strength in his body, he engaged the creature in fierce hand-to-hand combat.
The creature's defense and attack power were certainly strong, but it lacked any advanced techniques. Lin Feng's own strikes were fast, and he gradually seized the initiative, beginning to overwhelm the brown bear.
The brown bear's eyes filled with shock. It had never imagined that this frail-looking human could possess such tyrannical attack power.
ROAR!
The brown bear roared at the sky, then viciously swatted its massive paw at Lin Feng. Lin Feng thrust out a palm of his own, pushing the bear's paw aside. The veins on his hand were bulging; clearly, he was now putting some real force into it.
BANG!
The brown bear staggered back about thirty feet, but it quickly regained its footing and shot forward once more.
It rushed toward Lin Feng in a flash. Its speed was simply incredible. Even on the complex, rocky terrain, it moved with astonishing swiftness, like an arrow loosed from a bowstring.
Lin Feng's expression turned ice-cold. He knew the bear's attack patterns were strange, but he felt no fear. 'If this brown bear wants to treat me as food, then I'll be happy to play along.'
The two massive bear paws clapped together violently. Lin Feng retreated rapidly, but he couldn't escape the attack's range. The force was so immense that it knocked the wind out of him, sending his entire body flying back several hundred feet.
Lin Feng's eyes narrowed. That blow told him this brown bear was no simple beast. But instead of stopping, he charged after it. This was the perfect opportunity to practice, and Lin Feng had no intention of letting this once-in-a-lifetime chance slip away.
Using a profound footwork technique, Lin Feng instantly closed the distance to the brown bear. The bear let out a wild roar and slapped its massive paw, which whistled through the air toward him.
BAM...
With a muffled thud, the brown bear was sent flying backward. It tumbled several times in mid-air before crashing violently against a rock face. The impact shattered the stone, leaving a web of cracks across the cliff wall.