"Ah! AHH—"

The middle-aged man with sunglasses shot backward as if he'd gone mad, screaming, the red lights in his mechanical eyes flashing wildly.

At this point, the part of his right arm above the elbow had been completely twisted into a mangled mess. Fragments of shattered bone and mangled flesh were mixed together, along with several fingers twisted beyond recognition, forming a limp, shapeless mass.

Although most Ancient Fighters were resolute, faced with such a situation, anyone would momentarily verge on a mental breakdown.

However, before the man with sunglasses could retreat far, a large, imposing figure darted out from the shadows. Lu Yuan moved like a ferocious beast, yet his movements were agile and graceful like... a crane?

He stomped hard on the ground. A shallow pit instantly blasted open beneath his foot, and his figure shot forward like a swift arrow. In a flash, he was before the screaming middle-aged man.

"You... you..." the man with sunglasses stammered, sweating profusely, his face ashen. He gritted his teeth as he swung his remaining left arm.

Lv2 Ten Thousand Refining Crane Strength!

Lv3 Special Burst!

A full five tons of Fist Strength, further enhanced by the profound power and penetrating characteristics of the Ten Thousand Refining Crane Strength!

Lu Yuan casually raised his hand and pressed down. His thick, formidable arm slammed down like a black pillar.

CRACK! CRACK!

With irresistible force! The left arm the middle-aged man in sunglasses raised to defend himself was snapped by Lu Yuan's fist as easily as a dry stalk.

Before he could scream again, Lu Yuan's downward-pressing fist changed direction, flicking upward...

"Sure-kill Skill—Spirit Crane Skill: Mistakenly Picked Immortal Orchid... Picking it again!"

His five menacing fingers slid upward, arriving before the middle-aged man's face, then clenched violently...

BOOM!

The man with sunglasses was flung high into the air like a kite with a snapped string, then plummeted, landing on the ground with a THUD! He moved no more.

HUFF... HAH...

Lu Yuan breathed evenly, his stance firm.

He lowered his head, picked up a string of mechanical eye components dangling from his fingers, and casually examined them for a moment.

CRUNCH! CRUNCH!

Then, with a casual squeeze, he crushed them into a mangled heap and tossed it aside.

"What an antiquated model of mechanical eyes... No wonder you didn't dare face Teacher directly."

Turning his head, Lu Yuan's gaze fell on the two remaining individuals in the area. These two, who had arrived with the man in sunglasses, now stood rooted to the spot, utterly dumbfounded.

The man with sunglasses had been the strongest of the three; his Vigor cultivated throughout half his body, he could be considered a formidable expert even in the Martial Arts Circle.

Yet, before this new disciple of the Poison Hand Crane Demon, he had been crippled in just two exchanges. His arms were broken, and even his eyes... had been gouged out again!

The black briefcase tucked under the arm of one of the middle-aged men dropped to the ground with a CLATTER. The man, however, seemed oblivious, his face deathly pale as he stared intently at Lu Yuan. His Adam's apple bobbed uncontrollably, and his sock-clad toes twitched, digging into the straps of his sandals.

Lu Yuan glanced at the two men. Remembering the time he had promised Lu Jing he would return, he said calmly, "You... have twenty seconds left."

The two middle-aged men trembled violently. They exchanged a look and, in the next instant, simultaneously dashed towards the man with sunglasses lying on the ground, intending to grab him and flee.

At the same time, the muscles on Lu Yuan's body rippled like waves, and he seemed to subtly grow a size larger. The light from the streetlamp overhead dimmed, as if vast shadows were rapidly spreading, threatening to engulf the entire area.

...

"AAAH—"

Sun Zhihua stopped abruptly, his gaze fixed on a quiet, secluded path in the distance.

That sound... Sun Zhihua's expression flickered. He quickly pulled his phone from his pocket and found his girlfriend Wu Xinlei's number. He started to dial but then hesitated and lowered the phone.

Forget it, I'd better go check it out. After all, he's Xinlei's best friend's younger brother...

Sun Zhihua took a deep breath, slipped his phone back into his pocket, tightened his grip on the two small, moon-shaped knives in his hand, and advanced step by step, his expression grim.

He could roughly imagine the scene awaiting him. In the Martial Arts Circle, vendettas weren't uncommon. When one became the target of a vendetta, losing limbs was considered a light outcome. What was truly feared was ruthless assailants inflicting incurable, lifelong disabilities on Lu Jing's brother—gouging out eyes, cutting tongues, severing tendons. Or even resorting to outright murder...

With a heavy heart, Sun Zhihua moved quickly towards the direction from which the screams had emanated. Soon, a figure entered his line of sight.

He tensed instinctively, his mind racing to formulate words for the impending encounter—something to make the other party wary without losing face himself.

As he drew nearer, Sun Zhihua gradually sensed that something was amiss. He could vaguely see that there seemed to be only one person standing under the lamppost ahead. Weren't there three avengers? Where were the other two?

He moved a little closer, squinted, and finally... finally saw the scene ahead clearly.

Under the soft white light of the lamppost stood a tall, slender figure. He had one foot on the edge of a flowerbed, tugging at something, using it to meticulously wipe his hands.

Perhaps sensing Sun Zhihua's gaze, the person wiping their hands abruptly turned their head to look at him. A young, handsome face instantly registered in Sun Zhihua's eyes.

Lu Jing's brother?! He's unharmed?! Then that scream just now was...

Sun Zhihua was taken aback and blinked, somewhat surprised. He stopped in his tracks, his gaze shifting downward, quickly spotting the object Lu Yuan was using as a hand towel...

BUZZ!

Sun Zhihua's brain felt as if it had been pierced by a sharp arrow.

His pupils contracted. He saw clearly that the 'cloth' Lu Yuan was tugging at to wipe his hands was... none other than one of the three Martial Arts masters who had been so formidable earlier that he hadn't dared to move an inch!

Then... Sun Zhihua quickly spotted the second person on the ground. And the third, lying even farther off...

His brain felt like it had been pierced by three consecutive arrows.

When he saw a middle-aged man with a face that was a bloody mess, one arm broken, the other a mangled ruin of flesh and bone... Sun Zhihua finally couldn't contain himself.

His entire scalp prickled as if it were being forcefully pulled upward, sending waves of numbness over him. An intense, bone-deep chill welled up from the depths of his heart, spreading like an electric shock throughout his body.

His palms, gripping the moon-shaped knives, were slick with sweat. In a moment of distraction, one of the knives slipped from his grasp. It struck the ground with a sharp CLANG!

Attracted by the sound, Lu Yuan, who had just finished wiping the blood from between his fingers under the streetlight, turned his impassive face and started walking towards Sun Zhihua step by step.

An invisible yet immense pressure, like a tidal wave, surged towards Sun Zhihua along with the surrounding darkness, converging on him. The pressure was so intense it nearly suffocated him.

Sun Zhihua stood frozen, his expression stiff, large beads of sweat rolling rapidly down his forehead.

TAP... TAP...

Lu Yuan's faint, almost inaudible footsteps landed with stark clarity in Sun Zhihua's ears. It was as if each step fell precisely on the beat of his own heart.

He watched as the figure drew nearer and nearer.

Finally... Sun Zhihua took a deep breath and strode forward several steps, proactively approaching Lu Yuan.

"Moon Shadow Sect, Sun Zhihua!" He extended one hand; the moon-shaped knife it had held was somehow replaced by a mobile phone. His expression solemn, his eyes earnest, he said, "Let's exchange contact information. From now on... let's be friends."

"Uh..."

...

"AAAH—"

A shrill scream pierced the night sky.

Several figures, darting forward like the wind under the streetlights, paused abruptly. The next second, their rapid advance became even faster.

The two men, gasping for breath as they ran to fetch reinforcements, barely registered a blur as the group brushed past them.

Half a minute later, several figures stopped at a scene of utter disarray.

"I..." Sun Zhihua, who was waiting to the side, opened his mouth, about to say something, but Zhuang Xiujie shot him a murderous glare, and he immediately fell silent.

The group quickly spread out, taking turns examining the three figures lying on the ground. A moment later, they reassembled.

"It's the Lin brothers from the North Eagle Sect. They're not dead; they're all still breathing, barely..."

"Who did this? The wounds indicate our Crane Sect's techniques, yet they are overwhelmingly ferocious... Could it be Teacher?" one of the direct disciples spoke hesitantly.

Zhao Qiancheng remained silent.

Zhuang Xiujie, however, took a deep breath and replied quietly, "Of course, it was Little Martial Brother."

"What?!" The Crane Sect direct disciples' pupils contracted, their bodies shuddering slightly as they blurted out instinctively. "Don't joke! What... what level is his strength actually at?!"

Zhuang Xiujie glanced at the speaker and said coldly, "Joking? Who else could execute our Crane Sect martial arts to this extent, other than Little Martial Brother, who possesses the Palace of Flesh... If you don't believe me, ask this fellow here."

Zhuang Xiujie gestured towards Sun Zhihua at her side. Sun Zhihua jolted as if called upon by a teacher in class. He immediately straightened up, his expression earnest, and declared, "Lu Yuan did it. This junior, Sun Zhihua of the Moon Shadow Sect... saw it with my own eyes."

"..."

The direct disciples immediately fell silent, their faces filled with utter shock and disbelief, finding it hard to imagine, impossible to believe.

Zhuang Xiujie looked at them with a 'pitying' gaze. Apart from her and Zhao Qiancheng, who had been assigned to impart Crane Sect martial arts to Lu Yuan, the remaining Crane Sect direct disciples likely had no clue what kind of monstrously gifted prodigy their Teacher had accepted this time.

Then again, even though she already knew the depths of Lu Yuan's strength, Zhuang Xiujie was still profoundly shaken. She had examined the injuries of the eldest of the Lin brothers from the North Eagle Sect; the marks clearly indicated a True Skill of the Crane Sect's claw arts.

How long had Lu Yuan been taught the Crane-shaped Claw? Ten days?! He had actually comprehended and mastered this True Skill already.

This terrifying aptitude for comprehension... Zhuang Xiujie felt a shiver of dread just thinking about it—when talent reaches a certain overwhelming level, it no longer inspires shock... but fear.

No wonder Junior Brother Lin said before that he could gain rudimentary insights into a True Skill of fist techniques solely through Pile Skill practice. So that claim wasn't an exaggeration at all.

"No wonder... he's a true inheritor. It's not just because of the Palace of Flesh..." Zhuang Xiujie murmured, a complex expression having unknowingly spread across her fair face.

She subconsciously glanced at Zhao Qiancheng. He stood with an impassive expression, his gaze lowered, remaining silent. After a long moment, he finally spoke in a low voice.

"Take the men. Let's head back."

...

"AAAH—"

The sudden scream startled Lu Jing. She quickly took two steps back, her nervous gaze fixed on the direction from which the sound had come.

Several streetlights cast a soft, bright glow on a short stretch of the road ahead. But beyond a certain corner, darkness reigned.

The surroundings were so quiet that not even the chirping of insects or calls of birds could be heard. A cool night breeze drifted by, carrying a hint of chill.

Lu Jing instinctively wrapped her coat tighter around her. Her mind couldn't help but replay the nightmares she had experienced during her time in Xixu.

Fear crept up Lu Jing's heart. Her face started turning pale; she was like a frightened little deer, panicked and unsure where to flee. Helplessness and anxiety enveloped her. To make matters worse, her phone wasn't with her, and she had no idea whom to call for help.

Just when she was about to burst from fear...

A large hand gently patted her shoulder, and Lu Yuan's voice came from behind her.

"Let's go, Sis."

Lu Jing let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and spun around. Seeing Lu Yuan, she finally relaxed.

"You scared me to death! How did you come from behind?"

"It was closer from behind."

"Did you hear that scream just now? It was so creepy..."

"I heard it. It came from the bathroom. Perhaps... someone's hemorrhoids burst."

"..."

They chatted idly as they walked, their shadows stretching long beneath the streetlights, until they gradually disappeared into the distance.

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