A wildflower in the desert is far more stunning than a rose from a greenhouse. Its very existence is full of the unknown, beyond human prediction. Painted on paper, it becomes art.
Sometimes, people are the same.
Just when everyone thought Su Mo was about to be defeated, a rust-streaked long sword suddenly pierced through the abdomen of one of his attackers.
The cost was a punch to his own waist.
The fight didn’t stop because of this. The onlookers all held their breath, watching the intense battle.
However, different from before, with the Earth Fist missing from the Three Talents Fist Formation, a flaw was exposed, and Su Mo’s long blade threw it into complete disarray.
But now, his blade technique had completely abandoned defense. Every move was an offensive killing stroke.
The remaining two, seeing this, tried to create distance to avoid the brunt of his assault. Unexpectedly, Su Mo focused solely on attacking one of them, completely ignoring the other.
With just one slash, the user of the Heaven Fist clutched his chest, a sticky sensation spreading between his fingers.
“From our observation, that blade shouldn’t be that sharp…” He lost all strength, collapsing weakly to the ground.
“The blade itself isn’t sharp,” Su Mo sneered, “but my Sword Intent is sharp enough. Breaking your defense was effortless.” He swung the blade towards the last person. “You’re the one who made those disrespectful comments earlier, right?”
Without waiting for an answer, the blade’s momentum, heavy as a mountain, aimed straight for his head.
The last user of the Man Fist had no time to dodge. Su Mo forced him to his knees. “Fairy, spare me!”
Su Mo tilted the blade, avoiding a vital spot. With a thud, an arm fell to the ground, blood spraying everywhere.
“Stop!” Xiong Lin had arrived, but he was ultimately a step too late.
He had originally stayed away to avoid suspicion, never expecting the men he arranged would be utterly defeated by Su Mo. While no lives were taken, they were all left crippled.
Furious, he threw a heavy punch towards Su Mo.
“Enough!” Erha’s voice suddenly rang out, followed by a sonic attack even stronger than the one on the city wall.
For Xiong Lin, the power wasn’t enough to seriously injure him, but he still stopped. A flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.
“What, confused why I’m not poisoned?” Erha’s tone was quite contemptuous. “Then you underestimated me. After all, I am an A-Class.”
Xiong Lin didn’t dare confront him directly and could only cite the rules of their agreement. “Although you are permitted to accompany her in and out of human cities, you are not allowed to initiate attacks!”
“Please, is this initiating?” Erha widened his big, round eyes. “This is clearly acting out of urgent concern to save someone!”
“You…”
“You what? Don’t make me send you to meet your great-great-grandfather with one big slap!”
Big slap?
What’s that?
No one present knew, except for Su Mo.
Su Mo smoothed the fur on Erha’s head and said sincerely, “Thank you.”
Erha grinned. “No problem.”
Su Mo pointed his blade at Xiong Lin, enunciating each word clearly. “I will remember the grievance of today. I will repay it twofold in the future!”
After speaking, he turned and left the City Lord’s mansion, heading straight for the city gates. Erha, after urinating right in the street, followed closely behind.
The damage was low, but the insult was extreme.
Only after everyone had dispersed did Xiong Lin let out a furious roar. “Su Mo, I’ll make you pay for this sooner or later, damn it!”
Then, a sound like tinkling silver bells laughed behind him, accompanied by a strange, peculiar fragrance.
“City Lord Xiong, you seem quite angry.”
“Nonsense, of course I’m angry! If it weren’t for your lousy idea, would I have made an enemy of her? Would my subordinates have been killed or crippled by her?” Xiong Lin roared as he turned to face the woman behind him.
It was Li Xiaomou.
“I only suggested you find a way to get her white jade ring. I never told you to kill her. You’re the one who took things too far, and now you blame me?”
Xiong Lin took a deep breath, gradually calming down. “What if she really grows stronger in the future and comes seeking revenge?”
“If you’re afraid, why didn’t you just kill her earlier to eliminate the threat?”
“King Ha is there! He’s a Sixth Rank!”
“I thought his strength was only Fifth Rank?”
“Who knows if that’s true or false? What if he’s hiding his power? Then I’d have provoked an even more terrifying existence.”
Li Xiaomou’s expression suddenly became intrigued.
As expected, she’s so outstanding. With just D-Class cultivation, she’s made a B-Class expert worry.
She’s truly captivating… or perhaps… he is!
……
……
Outside the city.
Only when Xiong City had completely disappeared behind them did Su Mo suddenly cough up a mouthful of blood.
“You’re really something else. It was just a fight, was it necessary to go this far?” Erha expressed great confusion about his actions.
“If you weren’t there, I might have held back a bit.”
“Is that a compliment?” Erha was happy, tilting his head and asking gleefully.
“You could say that.”
“Hahahaha, so it is!”
As they spoke, Su Mo coughed up another patch of bloody water. Seeing this, Erha immediately shut up.
“This is just my fighting style. Focus on attack, neglect defense. Now that I’ve comprehended my own unique Sword Intent, I’ve named it ‘All-Out’!”
Erha was uncharacteristically serious. He thought for a moment and said, “Not to criticize you, but this method of only attacking and never defending, while powerful, is ultimately imperfect. It’s like injuring the enemy a thousand at the cost of damaging yourself eight hundred.”
“I know,” Su Mo said, then added, “But I believe that if the offensive power is strong enough to give the opponent no chance to counterattack, then defense becomes optional. Of course, the defense I’m talking about neglecting is tactical defense. Basic defensive capabilities still need to be improved; they’re even particularly important.”
The role of basic defensive capability was perfectly demonstrated in the recent fight. If not for the enhancement from the Golden Skin Fruit, that punch probably would have knocked him out cold on the spot. Of course, Ye Qingyi’s years of basic training, the Red Fruit, the Ice Bead, and others were also indispensable.
“Alright then. You have to walk your own path; no one can do it for you.” Erha put on a mature demeanor, like an elder.
Su Mo found a spot and immediately sat down in meditation to regulate his breathing.
As he recovered, he pondered what to do next.
The most pressing task was to find a way to leave this place. Otherwise, everything else was moot.
Furthermore, after today’s battle, Su Mo had successfully comprehended his Sword Intent and confirmed his future development direction: focus on offensive power while vigorously improving his basic defensive capabilities.
Just imagine: when a tank starts switching to playing an assassin, and plays it exceptionally well, what kind of scene would that be?
Borrowing a famous phrase Lord Guan used to describe his sworn brother: ‘To take the head of a general from amidst a million troops is as easy as reaching into a bag and taking something out!’
Absolutely awesome.
After about three hours, Su Mo slowly opened his eyes.
Although the spot where he was hit still hurt, the injury was no longer serious.
The external injury could be completely ignored thanks to the amplifying effect of the Golden Skin Fruit. The internal injury was left to the Water Attribute Jade Seed he had recently planted.
It was quite a coincidence—it happened to be responsible for the waist area.
As his cultivation improved and his understanding of the Jade Planting Art deepened, Su Mo increasingly felt this technique was extraordinary.
Putting other aspects aside, the core of the technique, “Planting the Jade,” was simply divine for enhancing physical quality and recovery ability. Su Mo couldn’t praise it enough.
At this moment, he could clearly feel a warm current flowing around his waist—the Jade Seed healing the internal injury.
At one point, Su Mo even wondered: with the Water Attribute Jade Seed, would certain… aspects… become terrifyingly strong in the future…