Chapter 34: Battle Against Tu Mian (Part 2) - Part 2

Tu Mian had previously fought with bare hands, relying on his superior cultivation to suppress his opponent.

After exchanging dozens of close-quarters moves with him, Zhao Chun could more or less sense that he was not skilled in martial arts techniques.

If she could break through the two centipede Gu, she might find an opportunity to break his defense once she got close.

Zhao Chun gritted her teeth; this was precisely where the difficulty lay. These two centipede Gu were agile and covered in hard shells; though she could block them, they were difficult to kill.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her. Recalling how she had slain the Black Cicada with gold-fire spiritual energy that day, she acted on instinct, channeling her spiritual energy into her sword and swinging it down in a decisive strike!

The male centipede Gu was larger in size and could not dodge in time, being struck back into a small crimson sphere by the sword light. The female Gu was slightly weaker in power but extremely agile, swiftly dodging to the side to evade the attack.

The male and female centipede Gu were Tu Mian's Life Gu, connected to his very bloodline. When the Gu were injured, his own body suffered as well. Zhao Chun looked up and saw that his complexion was much paler than before, and she prepared to strike at the female Gu again!

However, Tu Mian could not allow her to slay another one. He felt a surge of fury, wondering what that gold-red light was that could actually break the shells of his centipede Gu. He inwardly lamented that he had miscalculated against Zhao Chun this time.

"How could you possibly break the secret technique of my Renyang Sect so easily?" he shouted sternly as he withdrew the Gu into his hand.

What happened next surprised Zhao Chun: Tu Mian actually took those two crimson spheres and swallowed them without even chewing!

This was one of the three Life Gu methods of the Renyang Sect. Before disciples could guide Qi, they had to select a type of Gu to serve as their Life Gu. Thereafter, they were taught three secret techniques: Control Technique, Internal Generation Technique, and Avatar Technique.

The Control Technique was the foundation, allowing one to command Gu to fight enemies. The Internal Generation Technique involved swallowing the Life Gu into the body, using the Gu's blood and essence to bolster one's own strength, temporarily boosting cultivation. However, after using this technique, a very long period was required to nurture the Gu's blood and essence again.

Tu Mian was using this method. The even more powerful Avatar Technique was a Foundation Establishment method, where the Life Gu served as an external avatar; the human and the Gu shared a single mind, allowing the user to fight opponents of a higher realm.

However, because these techniques were so peculiar, the Renyang Sect had few followers, and even fewer who could reach Foundation Establishment. Compared to the massive numbers of disciples in other sects, it could be considered a minor sect.

Zhao Chun was unaware of all this, but what she could see was that after swallowing the male and female centipede Gu, Tu Mian's entire body instantly emitted an eerie, crimson glow. His aura became aggressive and imposing. While Zhao Chun had previously sensed his cultivation was at the fifth level of Qi Refinement, now that his spiritual energy was overflowing, he felt more like Meng Han. Although not as terrifying as Meng Han, he was definitely beyond the scope of the mid-stage of Qi Refinement!

"Late-stage Qi Refinement..." She did not dare to act rashly, gripping her Crimson Blade Dagger across her chest to guard against Tu Mian's attack.

Against the fifth level of Qi Refinement, she could have fought back using her gold-fire spiritual energy, but against the late stage, the gap was simply too large; she would have virtually no power to resist.

However, she was not entirely unprepared...

She just had to wait for the "moment" she required to arrive.

At that moment, Tu Mian moved.

His eyes had long since turned crimson, and his face was covered in bumpy, crawler-like patterns, making it almost impossible to recognize his previous "smiling fox" appearance. He looked more like a death-dealing demon.

His arms had become thick and muscular, looking disproportionate to his somewhat slender torso. Beneath the skin of his forearms, it looked as if centipedes were crawling and slithering, making Zhao Chun's scalp tingle with dread.

Tu Mian was incredibly fast. Even though Zhao Chun retreated rapidly using the Snake Step, he still closed the distance to her in just three breaths, roaring as he launched a heavy punch toward her!

At this distance, Zhao Chun had no way to dodge. She could only raise her arms in front of her chest to protect her upper body and head, bracing to take the hit head-on.

A moment before the fist struck her arms, a violent gust of wind from the punch made her ears ring. The following force sent her flying backward, crashing through the wooden pillars standing beside the martial combat stage.

This single punch absolutely exceeded the limits of what the mid-stage of Qi Refinement could achieve!

Zhao Chun's hands were almost unable to move, and her back was covered in wood splinters. She had only survived these injuries thanks to the protection of the Eight-Treasure Mirror; otherwise, the moment that punch hit her, the force would have shattered her arm bones and pierced through her chest and abdomen!

This was the absolute suppression of the late-stage of Qi Refinement!

A single strike had nearly stripped Zhao Chun of all combat capability.

"How pitiful." Tu Mian curled his lip, though he felt no actual pity. "A fourth-level Qi Refinement practitioner under the age of twelve—you would be considered upper-middle among the Lingzhen disciples. A pity that such a good talent must die here!"

He was not a man of many words; with only a few mocking remarks, his next punch was already about to smash into Zhao Chun's head!

"The moment has come..." Zhao Chun looked up, seeing that behind Tu Mian, there was not just the sky and the clouds, but a brilliant, blazing light!