Chapter 76: You Animals! I’ll Kill You! (4000 words, combined chapters)
“Shit.”
Looking at the bizarre monster before him, Xu Ming had already let out a curse.
How did a perfectly normal person turn into this kind of beast?! This is way too ridiculous!
Xu Ming had never heard of humans transforming into monsters.
“Aaauuuugh!”
Already transformed into an odd beast, Sheng raised his hands, tilted his head back, and let out a roar to the sky.
Looking at this creature,
to be honest, Xu Ming felt utterly screwed.
Xu Ming realized something—he rarely fought people of the same level.
Even when facing someone slightly above his level, Xu Ming always felt absurdly calm.
But who would’ve thought that his first mission would be so tough?
Facing a fourth-stage monster alone wasn’t bad, but then there was also a Sea Observing Realm cultivator.
He eventually managed to defeat the monster and even had a chance to take down the cultivator.
But in the end, this cultivator transformed into a monstrous being whose strength was impossible to gauge.
As a mere Mercury Mirror realm practitioner, Xu Ming could hold his own against someone who had transcended the Cavern Realm and reached the Sea Observing Realm, all thanks to years of training enhancing his various attributes.
Otherwise, with his average martial talent, any ordinary Mercury Mirror realm practitioner would’ve been smashed dead by a fourth-stage monster without a second punch.
Just look at Haizhi and Han.
Despite their talents and careful cultivation through Blood Floating Pagoda techniques, they were like chicks in front of a fourth-stage monster.
The only ones who could truly fight on equal footing with such beasts were Wu Yanhan with her Martial God Body and Yin for some unknown reason.
Thanks to attribute boosts, at eleven years old, Xu Ming had already reached the level of a fourteen-year-old Martial God Body, possibly even surpassing it in the future.
Xu Ming thought he was already ridiculously overpowered.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have survived so many times already.
But now, looking at the monster before him, Xu Ming wasn’t sure if his overpowered abilities would be enough.
The ominous aura radiating from this beast made Xu Ming tremble uncontrollably.
It was like a hand from the abyss reaching out to grab him, dragging him into eternal darkness!
“You brats! Remember this! A martial artist isn’t brainless! You must use every trick to eliminate your opponent, not just brute force.
But!
If!
The day comes when you can’t escape, have no options left…
When death stares you in the face, there’s only one thing you need to do—throw your last punch!
Fight until your last breath! Only your fists can save you!”
In Xu Ming’s mind, memories of Coach Meng’s training sessions surfaced.
Xu Ming took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and assumed a fighting stance.
No longer worrying about life or death, he focused solely on throwing as many punches as possible until he couldn’t lift his arms anymore.
In an instant, Sheng disappeared from his spot, reappearing behind Xu Ming. He swiped downward at a forty-five-degree angle toward Xu Ming’s head. Xu Ming jumped to dodge and delivered a sidekick to Sheng’s head.
A “snap” echoed as Sheng’s neck broke and hung limply to one side.
It looked like Xu Ming had the upper hand, but Sheng’s tail, which had burrowed underground, suddenly emerged and stabbed toward Xu Ming’s back.
Xu Ming noticed but couldn’t evade in time. His waist was slashed open, blood spraying everywhere.
Xu Ming kicked Sheng’s chest with immense force, sending him flying two meters away with a sunken chest.
“Aaauuuugh!”
Sheng lay on the ground, raising his head and letting out a fierce roar at Xu Ming.
Landing back on the ground, Xu Ming swallowed a blood-stopping pill.
From afar, Sheng reset his broken neck with a “snap,” and his crushed chest slowly inflated like a balloon filling with air.
Xu Ming’s black eyes gradually turned crimson, wild blood energy swirling around him. Beneath his skin, red mist swirled as if his blood had turned from liquid to gas.
Blood Qi Berserk (Intermediate)
“Bang!”
With one step, Xu Ming shattered the ground beneath him.
“Aaauuuugh!”
Feeling his life threatened, the fully transformed Sheng roared.
Before he finished, Xu Ming’s fist slammed into his head.
Sheng’s tail darted under Xu Ming again, but Xu Ming stomped on it, burying it in the dirt like squashing a snake.
His next punch carried thunderous might.
“Boom!”
The punch struck Sheng’s chest, Xu Ming’s fist embedding itself completely inside. Thunder coursed through Sheng’s chest, leaving it scorched black.
Yet Sheng acted as if nothing happened, raising his neck and forming a dark sphere, reminiscent of “Black Flash.”
“Aaaargh!”
A beam of black light shot from Sheng’s mouth. Xu Ming sidestepped, grabbed Sheng by the neck, lifted his head, and squeezed with all his might. The sound of bones cracking was like fireworks.
“Dong!”
Xu Ming threw another punch, sending Sheng crashing into the barrier, sticking to it like glue.
As soon as Sheng opened his eyes, Xu Ming was already there, delivering a powerful kick to his chest.
The entire barrier shook violently.
“Aaaaauuuuugh!!!”
The monsterized Sheng seemed thoroughly enraged, clawing toward Xu Ming.
Xu Ming couldn’t dodge in time and blocked with a side punch, getting thrown back and slamming into the barrier.
Xu Ming and Sheng clashed again.
Though much smaller than a Thunderstorm Bear, Sheng possessed incomparably greater strength and durability. Every punch exchanged between them landed equally hard.
The fully berserked Sheng had no concept of “dodging.”
And Xu Ming couldn’t dodge either! It wasn’t because he couldn’t; Blood Qi Berserk only lasted a minute. Even enduring a hit, Xu Ming needed to throw a punch.
In this one minute, if he didn’t kill Sheng, he would surely die.
“Boom!”
Xu Ming’s next punch triggered thunder, numbing one of Sheng’s arms. Twisting his body 360 degrees, he delivered a devastating kick to Sheng’s chest.
The feeling of ribs breaking resonated through Xu Ming’s foot as Sheng was hurled away.
Xu Ming closed in again.
“Ziiip!”
Hundreds of bone spikes erupted from the ground, aiming to pierce Xu Ming like a hedgehog.
Xu Ming leaped and slammed his fist down.
There were only ten seconds left.
Sheng caught Xu Ming’s punch, but a spike erupted from his chest, aiming straight for Xu Ming’s heart.
Xu Ming shifted to avoid it, but the spike pierced through his chest nonetheless. Still, Xu Ming threw another punch.
Another spike pierced his thigh, yet Xu Ming continued punching.
More and more spikes erupted from Sheng’s body, turning him into a living hedgehog.
Except for vital areas, Xu Ming didn’t dodge a single one, repeatedly smashing his fists into Sheng’s head.
Step by step, Xu Ming advanced while Sheng retreated. Each time Sheng tried to fly away, Xu Ming pulled him back and threw another punch.
Completely overwhelmed, Sheng could only rage helplessly.
Blood poured from Xu Ming’s body, turning him into a bloody mess.
Meanwhile, Xu Ming’s punches grew stronger.
In the final second of Blood Qi Berserk,
both Xu Ming’s Martial True Qi and his punch strength reached their peak! This was Xu Ming’s ultimate strike, the strongest punch ever, even blessed by the heavens. Thunder wrapped around his fist once more.
One punch—life or death!
“Aaaargh!”
Smelling death, Sheng unleashed his final attack—a black beam of death energy.
“Boom!”
A massive explosion reverberated across Book South Mountain, scattering night clouds everywhere.
Birds fled from the forest, monsters scurried back to their dens, rabbits hugged their heads in fear, chickens buried their heads in the dirt, exposing their butts.
The intense Martial True Qi dissipated, snapping the eight array flags in half.
Yanhan covered herself with both hands and was blown ten meters away.
As the Martial True Qi faded, Yanhan stood up to see a blue-green list appearing in the night sky.
On that list, rows of text appeared.
“Kekekeke”
On the other side of Book South Mountain, Haizhi, Han, and Yin were flung backward, smashing into a rock wall. In front of them, the jumping zombie cackled triumphantly.
“Shit! Am I really gonna die here?”
Haizhi wiped the blood from his lips.
For half a day, Haizhi had been running while carrying Han and Yin.
Finding a chance, he quickly shoved healing pills into their mouths.
Later, though Han and Yin woke up with some fighting strength, it wasn’t much.
Not to mention the injuries they sustained.
Eventually, as they fought while fleeing, they ended up in this predicament.
The jumping zombie leapt closer.
Approaching Haizhi, the zombie opened its massive mouth, aiming to bite down on Haizhi’s neck.
“Boom!”
Just as the zombie was about to succeed, a loud explosion echoed from somewhere.
The zombie suddenly stopped.
Haizhi lowered his hand, and Yin and Han stared dumbfounded at the zombie.
The zombie turned 180 degrees, looking toward a certain direction, its eyes filled with sorrow.
In the sky, a blue-green list appeared.
At the Xinping County mansion,
Xue Nuo held a bloodied sword in one hand and a severed head in the other, stepping out of the county office.
Just as Xue Nuo was about to head to Book South Mountain, she looked up at the horizon.
In the imperial palace of the Wu Dynasty, the bright moonstones embedded in the roof illuminated the entire Imperial Study.
The Emperor sat at his desk, still handling official documents.
“Your Majesty…” Wei entered, kneeling respectfully.
“Cough cough cough” The Emperor lightly coughed, raising his gaze. “What is it?”
“The Azurecloud List… has changed its name.” Wei spoke.
“If it’s just a name change, why bother me?” The Emperor paused mid-sentence, standing up abruptly. “Let Me see!”
If it were just an ordinary name change, Wei wouldn’t have interrupted him.
Stepping out of the Imperial Study, gazing at the starry sky, and seeing the greenish-blue list,
the Emperor read it over and over again.
“Hahahaha!!! Good!!! Good!!! Good!!!”
The Emperor was elated! Saying “Good!” three times!
At the Chancellor’s residence,
Xiao Mo Chi, drinking wine alone in the courtyard, looked up.
“Hehehe…this kid…” Xiao Mo Chi chuckled and shook his head. “Always surprising everyone.”
“Fifth Lady! Fifth Lady! Look up! Look up at the sky!”
At the Xu Guo Mansion, Chun Yan burst into the Xiao Chun Courtyard, knocking loudly on Fifth Lady Chen Su Yan’s door.
Chen Su Yan got out of bed, put on a coat, and walked out. “Chun Yan, what’s wrong? What’s in the sky?”
“Look! Look!” Chun Yan pointed upward.
Seeing the lines of text in the sky, Chen Su Yan’s eyes shimmered, even tearing up, covering her mouth tightly.
“Mother! Mother! Look! Look! Up there! That’s amazing! Fifth Brother is incredible!”
At the First Lady’s courtyard, little Peng Da happily jumped around the yard.
“Why are you so excited? Is it something to boast about?” Phoenix slapped her son’s head. “Go to sleep. You have to get up early tomorrow for studying.”
“Ohhh…” Peng Da glanced at the sky a few more times before reluctantly heading back.
“This kid…” Phoenix looked at the text in the sky, a proud smile spreading across her lips. “Not bad.”
“Flowers grow fast~ Flowers grow fast~~~”
“Once you bloom, my reunion with Brother Ming will be closer~”
At the Ten Thousand Flowers Valley of the Tianxuan Sect, a young girl watered the Blood Rafflesia with a watering can, humming a cheerful tune.
When the girl noticed the blue-green glow in the night sky,
she looked up, staring at the lines of text.
Thinking she might be mistaken, she kept checking.
The more she looked, the more she smiled brightly, her radiant grin making the flowers pale in comparison and dimming the stars.
[Wu Kingdom’s Xu Ming, eleven years old, at the peak of Mercury Mirror, killed Sheng with a single punch, ranked fifty on the Azurecloud List.]
At the same time, beneath a volcano, in a fiery magma cave,
there was a wall covered with various clay figurines.
Suddenly, one figurine cracked.
The man standing before the wall picked up the broken figurine and shook his head.
Holding the figurine, he walked to a stone pillar surrounded by molten lava.
On the stone pillar, a disheveled woman was bound by four chains.
As the man approached, the woman sensed his presence, slowly opening her eyes. The first thing she saw was the broken figurine.
“Sheng! Sheng!” Her eyes wavered, tears streaming down her face.
“You animals! I’ll kill you! Kill you! I’ll murder you all!”
The woman screamed at the man, struggling fiercely. The sound of iron chains clanging echoed endlessly throughout the cavern.
[Since splitting it into two chapters didn’t feel right, I combined them. Lords, this is two chapters combined into four thousand words, not just one. I’ll keep pushing myself to write better. Once this busy period is over, I’ll go full steam ahead.]