Chapter 93: Chapter 6: A Misunderstanding, It’s All a Misunderstanding
The Swordsman had already thrust his sword forward, a Spiritual Light flickering at its tip. Su Zhou could only tilt his head slightly, and the sword whistled through the air, striking him squarely on the forehead!
This was the secret Punishment Sword of the Legalist School. Infused with Inner Strength, it was not only unstoppable but could also strike at a person’s mind, punishing both body and soul!
CRACK!
A crisp snap echoed out, but it wasn’t Su Zhou’s skull that had cracked. It was the Swordsman’s four-foot straight sword. The razor-sharp tip pierced flesh, but upon hitting bone, it shattered from the collision of two immense forces!
Not only had the attack failed, but his weapon had even broken. The Swordsman was stunned. The Martial Monk, however, was even more flabbergasted. Layers of triangular Spiritual Power patterns had appeared on Su Zhou’s head, yet he paid no mind to the broken sword tip lodged in his forehead. He exhaled with a great shout, swung his arms, and whipped his seven-foot Long Spear in a rapid, irregular ellipse around his body. A white Gale of immense force swept out, directly knocking aside the Martial Monk’s Ironwood Long Staff.
WHOOSH!
Then, a fierce wind swept out. The Long Spear, having completed its spin, tilted up and knocked aside the massive blade of the Swordswoman who was closing in again from the left. With a surge of power mighty enough to send a Wood Centipede flying, it flung her entire body into the air. A woman’s lighter weight was a clear disadvantage.
"Hah!"
Their hearts tightened. To stop Su Zhou from pursuing the now defenseless Swordswoman—whom he could kill in a single blow—the Martial Monk and the Swordsman both roared. The monk thrust his long staff forward with all his might, while the swordsman slashed down with his broken sword. Both attacks surged with Inner Qi, a full-power strike meant to force Su Zhou back. At the same time, another Crossbow Arrow shot out from the support troops in the rear, flying insidiously toward Su Zhou’s groin.
But Su Zhou merely narrowed his eyes, as if he had anticipated their follow-up attacks. His biceps bulged as he swung the great spear in his hands, its Cross Spear head directly parrying the Swordsman’s broken blade. Then, he sank into his stance and twisted his wrist, using the cross-shaped structure of the spearhead to lock onto the sword.
Twisting at the waist, he swung the spear shaft downward. He was using his spear to control the sword, and the sword to control the man, intending to hurl the Swordsman straight at the Martial Monk!
At the same time, because Su Zhou had lowered his body, the Crossbow Arrow aimed at his groin struck his lower abdomen instead. And there it stuck. The arrow had only pierced his clothes; it hadn’t even broken the skin.
"Don’t hurt Brother Zhou!" "Keep going!"
The Martial Monk was a sincere man. To avoid injuring the Swordsman being thrown at him, he actually started to lower his long staff to catch him. But the Swordsman reacted in time. With a sharp cry, he told the Martial Monk to continue the attack, then abandoned his sword and leaped away. Using the momentum from Su Zhou’s throw, he landed at a distance before drawing a second Soft Sword from his belt and lunging forward again!
With a flick of the man’s wrist, the Soft Sword rippled like a wave of cold light, striking at Su Zhou’s face. Unlike a hard sword meant to pierce armor, this Soft Sword was aimed at mangling Su Zhou’s features. If possible, it would even plunge through his eyes or nose straight into his brain!
’He’s actually skilled in both hard and soft sword styles!’
"Bring it on!"
But at that moment, with a great roar, Su Zhou’s spear and the Martial Monk’s staff had already clashed head-on!
BANG!
A muffled bang resounded. To the Martial Monk’s utter shock, the Ironwood Long Staff in his hands was sent flying by an inhuman force. Strength comes from the bones, power from the sinews. This great spear was Su Zhou’s exoskeleton, and his Spiritual Power was a true extension of his might.
And how solid were Su Zhou’s bones and sinews?
Although the Martial Monk was tall and imposing, he was ultimately just a mortal. How could he compare in strength to Su Zhou? After the Spiritual Energy Revival, Su Zhou could lift a small car. A casual flick of his arms could unleash a force of over three tons, and with a little more effort, that number exceeded five. What’s more, he had infused his spear with Spiritual Power.
CRACK! The air split as the Long Spear sent the Ironwood Long Staff flying, then whipped across like a lash. Su Zhou had no intention of killing him, so he only struck the man lightly with the front of the spear shaft.
But even that light tap shattered the left cheekbone of the nearly two-meter-tall Martial Monk. Blood gushed from his nose and mouth. He spun around, staggered back a few steps, and collapsed.
"Lackeys of the Dog Emperor, die!"
It takes a while to describe, but the entire exchange lasted only a few seconds. By now, the others were just beginning to surround him. They had all seen the Martial Monk’s wretched state and realized that even their three strongest fighters couldn’t last a single exchange against this man.
But for that very reason, they let out cries of grief and fury. Disregarding their own lives, they summoned all their Inner Strength and charged at Su Zhou!
’Are people around here always this fearless?’
At that moment, Su Zhou reached up and casually plucked the broken sword tip from his flesh. The wound squirmed as it began to regenerate. Due to the cold weather, his Self-Healing Power had slowed considerably, so pulling out the shard drew a small spray of purplish blood.
Seeing the group charge him without a hint of fear, even after witnessing his power, he blinked, not quite understanding what was going on. "You should just surrender," he called out loudly. "I’m not going to kill anyone! I’ll even heal that bald guy later..."
"A Demon Guard! With that Self-Healing speed, he might even be a Demon General!"
"You Demon! Just how many people have you killed?!"
But after seeing Su Zhou regenerate so quickly, his subsequent words were completely ignored. Clearly, this abnormal phenomenon hadn’t frightened them. Instead, it had stoked the flames of their grief and rage.
The Swordsman roared and charged forward again. Even the Swordswoman, who seemed to have pulled her back after being thrown, struggled to her feet. She pulled a few pills from a pouch at her waist, a look of grim determination on her face as she prepared to swallow them.
’...Don’t tell me super regeneration is a standard feature of their enemies? Or have I been seriously misunderstood somehow? Is it the Centipede Cross Gunhead?’
Seeing them act as if they were ready to die, Su Zhou felt it was very strange. Unless they were mortal enemies, this reaction was completely abnormal. He didn’t want to kill them. The Divine Techniques of the Evil-Devouring Demon Lord hadn’t reacted at all, which proved they hadn’t committed any great evils like murdering innocents or arson.
But since they were attacking again even after he’d held back, Su Zhou had no habit of continuing to show mercy. Facing these ordinary Martial Artists, whose Spiritual Power circulation wasn’t even very refined, he simply extended his Long Spear. With a casual flick and a shake, a force strong enough to flip a car sent them flying into the air one by one. Then, like falling rain, they plunged headfirst into the snow.
Even the graying Swordsman couldn’t last three moves against him. In a one-on-one fight, Su Zhou held his great spear steady. The reach advantage of the seven-foot weapon made it impossible for the desperate Swordsman to get close. As Su Zhou infused his Cross Spear head with Spiritual Power, it would periodically shoot out half-foot-long Spirit Blades from multiple directions, forcing his opponent to constantly dodge and leaving him exhausted.
After a moment’s thought, Su Zhou decided it was best not to drag this out, especially since the Martial Monk’s injuries were quite severe. With a flick of his arm, he suddenly lifted the hardwood spear shaft like a lever. A blast of force swept across the Swordsman’s chin.
And the Swordsman passed out. Su Zhou had been practicing his air-rending strikes for months; a casual blow could sink an inch into wood. This, however, had been a deliberate sweep. The resulting blast of force was far heavier than a punch from a heavyweight champion. Even with the protection of his Spiritual Power, the Swordsman couldn’t withstand such a blow.
At this point, the entire squad had lost their ability to fight.
The battle came to a temporary halt.
From beginning to end, through both defense and offense, Su Zhou had remained standing on a black wooden post. Aside from two new, inch-deep footprints on its surface, he hadn’t moved from his spot. He had neither initiated the attack nor given chase.
"Demon Soldier! I’ll never let you use our lives to feed your Undying Root!"
Witnessing Su Zhou’s overwhelming power, the Swordswoman, who had been about to swallow a pill to unleash her life’s potential for one last stand, felt despair rise in her eyes. With absolute resolve, she drew a small dagger from her waist and plunged it toward her own heart—only to be knocked unconscious by a slap from Su Zhou, who had rushed over.
"Why bother with suicide?"
Su Zhou flicked his Long Spear, then slid it back into the harness on his back. He sighed and surveyed his surroundings. The Martial Monk’s eyes had rolled back in his head, and his nose was still bleeding. The Swordsman had a concussion and wouldn’t wake up for hours, even for an Awakener. The Swordswoman who had tried to kill herself was likely in the same state.
As for the ones plunged headfirst into the snow, they had all passed out. After all, while Su Zhou had held back, it was only to the extent of not killing them. Meanwhile, the old man who had launched the sneak attack with the crossbow had already snuck far away.
"Everything else aside, suicide is really unnecessary, isn’t it? I’m a decent-looking guy!"
At this, Su Zhou could only sigh again. Gathering his energy, he strode forward and gave chase. "Hey, old man up ahead! Don’t run!"
"Stop right there!"
"I said stop! Don’t run!"
