The stalemate lasted only a moment.
The internal injuries Xue Kuang had been forcefully suppressing erupted completely from this unreserved, head-on clash!
"SPURT!"
He couldn’t stop himself from spraying a mist of blood. The strength in his arms gave out, and the Black Gold Halberd flew from his grasp!
Although the sword was knocked several inches off course, it continued its deadly thrust with undiminished momentum. Xue Kuang roared, desperately twisting his body to dodge.
"SCHLICK!"
The blade grazed his chest, plowing a terrifying gash so deep his bones were visible!
The sword traced a mystical arc through the air, completely clean of blood, and flew across the river as if possessing a Spiritual Energy of its own, landing perfectly back in Xu Hesui’s scabbard.
Xu Hesui’s pretty face paled slightly; clearly, that strike hadn’t been as effortless as it looked.
She shot a cold glance at Xue Kuang on the deck but didn’t give chase, allowing the Giant Whale Gang’s treasure ship to sail off into the night.
...
「A few miles after the Giant Whale Gang’s treasure ship had fled.」
Sun Rui had just finished bandaging Xue Kuang’s wound when two figures appeared in the distant moonlight, instantly capturing their attention.
A man and a woman strode across the waves as if taking a leisurely stroll. With just a few leaps, they landed steadily on the deck of the Giant Whale Gang’s treasure ship.
It was none other than Su Yu and Qian Qinghong, who had come in pursuit!
Xue Kuang clutched his freshly bandaged chest, his eyes fixed on the pair. "Brat, do you have a death wish? A mere ant at the Flesh Refining Realm dares to stand in my way!"
He didn’t attack at once. He had been severely wounded first by Yan Gulin and then by Xu Hesui, and his strength had now fallen to the early stage of the Muscle Forging Realm. Moreover, his internal organs felt like they were being torn apart. Fighting again would be disastrous.
Besides, he suspected the two Muscle Forging Realm experts from Linyuan City might be hiding in the shadows.
Su Yu’s calm gaze swept over Xue Kuang.
With his Five Senses Divine perception, he could sense the weakness hidden within Xue Kuang’s seemingly ferocious aura.
As for the woman in white, she was also injured and would be no match for Qinghong.
"Xue Kuang, hand over the black dragon fish, and I’ll grant you an intact corpse," Su Yu said, his tone indifferent.
"Hahahaha! Grant me an intact corpse?" Xue Kuang looked as if he’d heard the world’s greatest joke. He snatched up his halberd, his face contorting. "You little bastard, tell those two cowards from Linyuan City to get their asses out here! I’ll slaughter every last one of you today!"
Su Yu shook his head, seeing that his ferocity was just a bluff.
If he were unharmed, given his tyrannical nature, he would have attacked long ago.
"Xue Kuang, stop probing. There’s no one else here. I alone am enough to kill you."
With that, he tilted his head slightly. "Qinghong, the woman in white is yours."
"Leave her to me!"
Although Qian Qinghong was surprised that Su Yu intended to kill Xue Kuang by himself, her trust in him was absolute, and she didn’t hesitate for a moment.
Her figure flashed as she lunged straight for Sun Rui!
"Bitch! I’ll tear you to shreds today!" Sun Rui was already consumed with jealousy and hatred for Qian Qinghong. She snatched up her Horse-cutting Saber, and the two women were instantly locked in a deadly struggle at the stern.
Xue Kuang’s eyes darted frantically through the surrounding shadows. After confirming there was truly no ambush, he froze for a second, then burst into maniacal laughter. "Hahahaha, it seems I’ve really been underestimated. Brat, did you get kicked in the head by a donkey, or are you just insane? You actually dare to face me with your pathetic Flesh Refining Realm cultivation..."
"You talk too much."
Su Yu cut him off, his figure flashing as he appeared right in front of him.
He threw a direct, unadorned punch—White Ape Asks for the Way!
As he threw the punch, the dense Demon Ape Evil Qi around him roiled as if it were tangible. Vaguely, the phantom of an ancient Demon Ape appeared behind him, roaring at the sky!
The Demon Ape Evil Qi and the White Ape Breaking the Limit Stance combined. Before the fist even arrived, the terrifying, tyrannical pressure it generated blew Xue Kuang’s wild hair straight back!
"What!"
Feeling that tyrannical power, Xue Kuang was terrified. He finally understood why Su Yu dared to fight him with such audacity.
A mere kid in the Flesh Refining Realm had actually mastered a dual Fist Stance!
Facing such a terrifying strike, he let out a furious roar and forcibly mobilized the Qi and Blood in his body.
His Black Gold Halberd, wreathed in a violent, blood-red aura, swept out with the roar of a blood dragon!
"BOOM!"
A deafening explosion of metal on metal rang out. The violent shockwave instantly cleared the surrounding river mist, revealing a cold moon in the night sky above!
"CRACK... CRACK... CRACK..."
Xue Kuang felt the webbing between his thumb and forefinger tear open as blood sprayed everywhere; the halberd was nearly torn from his grasp. His all-out strike had not only failed to crush this Flesh Refining Realm ant, but the overwhelming recoil had forced him back three steps!
Each step back punched a deep hole into the solid deck!
’Damn it, what kind of monster is this kid?!’
’His Fist Stance is so powerful and has reached such Perfection, it’s even stronger than mine!’
’Not only that, but his reserves of Qi and Blood are also incredibly strong, far beyond what an ordinary person could achieve!’
’If I don’t mobilize more Qi and Blood, I’m afraid I won’t be his match!’
Behind Su Yu, the dark-red Demon Ape Evil Qi continued to erupt, like an ancient, furious ape beating its chest and roaring within a bloody light!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Su Yu strode forward to press his attack, his fists a blur of blood-red afterimages.
Incredibly fast, incredibly heavy!
Xue Kuang was beaten into a steady retreat, his halberd struggling to keep up. As he fell back again and again, one of Su Yu’s punches knocked his halberd aside, causing it to slam violently into a cabin wall.
With a massive CRASH, half the cabin disintegrated as if it were made of paper, sending planks and debris flying everywhere.
"You’re courting death!"
Xue Kuang was, after all, a Muscle Forging Realm expert seasoned by countless battles. Pushed back relentlessly, his savage nature finally erupted. He bit the tip of his tongue, forcibly squeezing out his Qi and Blood. He stopped defending, and instead used his backward momentum to swing his halberd at the ship’s barrel-thick mainmast!
CRACK!
The heavy, hundred-foot-tall mast and its massive sail fell like a collapsing mountain, completely eclipsing the moon as it crashed down toward Su Yu!
Meanwhile, Xue Kuang used the opportunity to hide in the blind spot created by the falling mast’s shadow. His halberd struck out like a viper, silently thrusting toward Su Yu’s heart.
This was his killing blow!
An enemy with slightly less combat experience would have died to this insidious strike.
However, he had underestimated Su Yu.
To someone with Five Senses Divine, the flow of the night wind, the sound of splintering wood, even the frantic pounding of Xue Kuang’s heart—all were as clear as the lines on his own palm!
Not only did Su Yu not retreat, he shot up to meet the collapsing mast, stomping heavily on the falling timber!
"BANG!"
He stomped the hard, barrel-thick mast into splinters, sending wood chips flying everywhere!
Su Yu used the momentum to launch himself into the air, like a Demon Ape descending from the heavens.
The Demon Ape Evil Qi and the White Ape Breaking the Limit Stance converged on his fists, creating a blinding, blood-red light. Like a scarlet meteor falling from the night sky, it instantly illuminated the horrified face of Xue Kuang below!
Hiding in the shadows, Xue Kuang’s pupils contracted to pinpricks as a fatal sense of crisis washed over him.
He tried to raise his halberd to block, but the moment he exerted his strength, the bone-deep sword wound on his chest burst open. For a fatal instant, his Qi and Blood stagnated!
Against Su Yu, an opening of a single instant was more than enough.
"CRUNCH—"
The fist fell like a meteor, crashing heavily into his opponent’s chest.
A sickening crunch of breaking bones echoed as his opponent’s entire chest caved in grotesquely.
Xue Kuang sprayed out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs, his burly frame sent flying backward.
"BOOM!"
He smashed through the thick, solid-wood gunwale and hit the dark river, sending a water column over a hundred feet into the air.
As the spray settled, the cold moonlight revealed a shocking patch of crimson spreading rapidly across the river’s surface.
Grievously injured, Xue Kuang lost consciousness, and his body began to sink slowly toward the riverbed.
"No!"
Sun Rui saw this happen, and her eyes instantly filled with despair and anguish.
She slashed away the Silver Dragon Shuttle and charged recklessly toward Xue Kuang.
How could Qian Qinghong let such an opportunity pass? She flung out her Silver Dragon Shuttle, which shot forward like twin dragons emerging from the sea.
"PFFT!"
It sliced through her enemy’s throat from behind.
Su Yu’s eyes were calm, his heart unrippled. ’Being merciful to your enemies is a fool’s errand.’
’If Qinghong and I had lost, we would be the ones lying dead right now.’
With a single leap, he landed on the water’s surface and hauled up Xue Kuang, whose body was already half-submerged.
’I haven’t collected my spoils yet. I can’t let him sink.’
However, just as he was about to collect his spoils, the Cyan Wood Sword Sect’s treasure ship broke through the waves and emerged from the night mist in the distance.