Chapter 28: Martial Artist Ambush

Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what exactly was happening over there.

Li Rongcheng stepped forward at this moment and said to Zhou Baijun, "I'll go take a look."

"Very well! Stay safe," Zhou Baijun nodded.

Li Rongcheng smiled, ran into the forest ahead, and his figure vanished into the darkness.

"Is this Li Rongcheng an advanced martial apprentice? In a situation like this, only a martial practitioner can be of use," one of the wealthy heirs said enviously.

Wang Teng gazed into the pitch-black night, hesitated for a moment, and then said to Xu Jie and the others, "Don't wander around here. I'm going to take a look too."

"Brother Wang Teng, please be careful," Bai Wei said with a hint of worry.

Wang Teng nodded.

With a stomp of his foot, his entire body leaped up. His toes lightly tapped a tree trunk, and in a few quick movements, he landed atop the canopy of a large tree.

The crowd gasped in surprise.

They hadn't expected that the unremarkable Wang Teng was also a martial apprentice.

Moreover, judging by his strength, he didn't seem any weaker than Li Rongcheng.

"As expected, an advanced martial apprentice!"

"Looking at his strength, he seems to be even above Li Rongcheng."

A sharp glint flashed in Zhou Baijun's eyes as she stared at the figure standing atop the tree.

Wang Teng looked far into the distance to identify the direction, then exerted force with his feet, his fierce momentum suddenly erupting.

Boom!

As his toes tapped the canopy, the entire crown of the tree exploded, and leaves scattered from the sky.

Wang Teng's figure was like a launched crossbow bolt, charging into the night sky, moving rapidly through the high altitude by utilizing the dense trees.

The group of wealthy and high-ranking heirs watched, mesmerized. Was this truly the strength of an advanced martial apprentice?

If Li Rongcheng saw this scene, he would surely denounce Wang Teng for showing off again.

And "advanced martial apprentice" my foot!

This was completely un-martial, wasn't it?

What advanced martial apprentice had such exaggerated strength? If every advanced martial apprentice were as rule-breaking as him, the cities would have been filled with martial apprentices wall-running and roof-jumping long ago.

Shortly after Wang Teng left, Li Rongcheng returned.

"Did you find anything?" Zhou Baijun stepped forward to ask.

Li Rongcheng shook his head. "That sound seemed to come from very far away. I've checked the entire vicinity and found nothing unusual."

"Boom!"

Just as he finished speaking, another massive explosion echoed from the distance.

The atmosphere immediately turned awkward.

Li Rongcheng felt a bit embarrassed.

Xu Jie and the others couldn't hide their smirks nearby, which made him even more infuriated.

"What are you laughing at! Hmm? Where is Wang Teng?" He suddenly realized Wang Teng was nowhere to be seen.

"After you left, Wang Teng went to investigate as well," Zhou Baijun said.

Li Rongcheng's expression darkened even further.

Damn it!

Why does this guy have to be involved in everything!

"Let's wait a bit longer. Perhaps Wang Teng will bring back some news," one of the wealthy heirs suggested.

"Very well, let's wait then," Zhou Baijun nodded.

...

Wang Teng shuttled through the forest, his feet tapping lightly, each time landing on a tree canopy before leaping forward.

Ordinary advanced martial apprentices indeed did not possess his level of strength.

Canopies are inherently light and unstable; if the force is too great, one falls straight through, but if the force is insufficient, one cannot jump at all.

Generally, advanced martial apprentices possessed neither such power nor such intense physical control, so they truly could not pull off such a showy display like Wang Teng.

A moment later, Wang Teng stopped, leaped down from the tree, and landed softly on the ground.

"It should be somewhere nearby!"

Wang Teng's gaze swept through the darkness, and he noticed some clues.

"There was a fight here just now. With such a massive sound, could it be a martial artist?"

His heart stirred slightly, and he was startled by his own suspicion.

"If it really is a martial artist, it's probably best if I don't go over there."

Wang Teng felt like retreating, yet he couldn't help but hesitate.

"But if martial artists are fighting, attribute bubbles should drop, right? What if there's something I need?"

He stood still. In his mind, a voice on the right told him that curiosity killed the cat, while another voice on the left tempted him—fortune is found in danger!

"Maybe I'll just take a quick look. If something feels wrong, I'll run immediately."

Wang Teng eventually convinced himself. He crept forward cautiously, feeling exceptionally nervous.

After walking another ten meters or so, the surroundings were filled with fallen trees; the trunks had been blasted apart and were charred black.

There were several craters in the ground.

The edges of the deep pits were half charred and half covered in ice crystals.

"This..." Wang Teng opened his mouth, feeling a sense of shock. Was this the power of a martial artist?

He took a few more steps, and his gaze suddenly froze.

Hmm?

A figure lay sprawled on the ground, devoid of any sign of life.

And beside that figure, several attribute bubbles were floating.

Just as a surge of wild joy rose in Wang Teng's heart, a sudden sense of horror surged through him, completely drowning out the joy.

In an instant, Wang Teng's hair stood on end, and goosebumps erupted all over his body.

He felt a sharp sting somewhere on his back.

Without thinking, he exploded with maximum speed, activating his micro-level movement technique.

There wasn't enough time to dodge to the side, so he could only tilt his body slightly...

Ssh!

A streak of sword light passed by Wang Teng's side, slicing through his clothes and piercing his skin.

Blood splattered.

Fortunately, it was only a superficial wound.

However, he did not dare to relax for even a second; the danger was like a bone-deep parasite.

Almost at the same moment he evaded, his hand shook, and a small rune gun appeared in his hand. He fired several shots toward the direction the sword light had come from.

Bang bang bang bang bang!

Wang Teng only stopped shooting once the bullets in the chamber were completely exhausted.

He ducked behind a tree, panting heavily, his heart still racing with lingering fear.

"Who is it?"

"Who exactly is it?"

"Why are they trying to kill me?"

The forest was exceptionally quiet; aside from the rustling of leaves in the wind, there was no other sound.

Wang Teng waited for a moment.

He peeked out slightly, looking toward the direction the sword light had come from.

A dark shadow was leaning against a tree, also completely motionless.

Several bubbles were floating nearby.

The faint light from the bubbles allowed Wang Teng to see indistinctly that the figure appeared to be dead!

"Did I kill them?"

"Could it be they weren't a martial artist?"

Filled with doubt, Wang Teng hesitated before walking toward the area, channeling his strength into his fists, ready to strike at any moment.

However, as he drew closer, he found that the person was indeed dead.

One shot had hit the forehead, and several others were distributed around the internal organs. If this person weren't dead, they wouldn't be human.

Phew!

Wang Teng breathed a sigh of relief.

He wiped his waist, his hands covered in blood. "That was close. I almost died!"

"Is the world of martial artists always this dangerous? Killing people at the slightest provocation."

Wang Teng was puzzled. He looked at the deceased's face, which remained wide-eyed in death, still bearing traces of disbelief and the terror of dying.

"Perhaps they never expected to die at my hands!"

Then, Wang Teng's gaze fell upon the several bubbles dropped beside the body.

Pick up!

[Crimson Flame Manual]

[Junior Fire Attribute Talent]

[Fire Attribute Primal Force *2]

...

—Newbie Divider—

The collection count is growing quite fast, almost at a thousand. After a week of recommendations, maybe there's hope for three thousand, though it's a bit uncertain.

So, let's set a small goal: if the collection breaks three thousand by the end of this week's recommendations, I'll add two extra chapters this week!

Uh, just two chapters, no more. As a man with a family and a job, these two chapters will already require me to pull an all-nighter to write!

Finally, please give me recommendation votes, tips, and investments, ahhh~

(End of Chapter)