Chapter 19: Plenty of Strength and Means
Chapter 19: Chapter 19: Plenty of Strength and Means
"Finally, they fell for it!"
The moment the words left Wu Chen’s mouth.
The figures of six or seven pouncing Demon Corpses buried him completely.
The next moment, their bodies were struck by a heavy blow, snapping in half at the waist. They were sent flying backward, crashing into the dense horde around them and injuring another seven or eight Demon Corpses.
Instantly, a chorus of low, pained whimpers rose from the surroundings.
Looking completely at ease, Wu Chen emerged from the horde of Demon Corpses.
"They have brains, but not much!"
Looking at the vast, densely packed swath of Demon Corpses, he wasted no more words and charged forward again, blade in hand.
His movements were wide and powerful, like a tiger among a flock of sheep. He didn’t look the least bit exhausted!
The Demon Corpses were packed together, shoulder to shoulder, with no way to escape in the heat of the moment.
They could only become lambs to the slaughter, allowing Wu Chen to reap their lives with abandon!
One, two, three... In the span of a few breaths, seven or eight grotesque heads fell and rolled across the ground.
This was no time to conserve Qi Power. Wu Chen used all his strength, hacking and slashing madly.
He had pretended to be out of Qi Power for so long precisely to keep these Demon Corpses here, make them lower their guard, and finally, wipe them out in one fell swoop!
As the saying goes, a man can be a thief for a thousand days, but no one can guard against a thief for a thousand days.
If even a part of this horde of Demon Corpses escaped, they would surely become a lingering plague, tailing him all the way.
Wu Chen couldn’t guarantee that he would always be in peak condition in the coming days. One careless moment, and he could become food for the Demon Corpses.
Therefore, while he still had the strength, he had to annihilate them.
And even if he couldn’t do that, he had to wound and cripple the Demon Corpse horde so badly that they wouldn’t dare show themselves for at least ten days to half a month.
Soon, the number of rolling heads on the ground reached twenty. At this point, the packed horde finally began to break, scattering to escape Wu Chen’s life-reaping greatsword.
But without the leader’s command, they dared not retreat. They could only dodge and make token attacks, then look pleadingly toward their leader’s position.
At this moment, the Demon Corpse leader felt even more wronged than they did. As the leader, its sense of smell was extremely keen. It could not only track the scent of prey from dozens of li away, but also sense the turmoil in a human’s Qi and Blood.
It was absolutely certain that just moments ago, the Qi and Blood in Wu Chen’s body had been in chaos, and his Qi Power had hit rock bottom!
A single, death-defying charge would have been enough to tear the prey to shreds and devour it.
But what it couldn’t understand was how the prey’s Qi and Blood had gone from a raging tempest to a tranquil lake in an instant!
It was as if that earlier turmoil in his Qi and Blood had been nothing but a hallucination!
Its small, emerald-green eyes were filled with immense confusion.
However, before it could remain confused for long, it clearly sensed the Qi in Wu Chen’s body becoming chaotic again.
That was the sign that the prey’s Qi Power was beginning to run out again!
It raised its head and sniffed carefully, confirming its suspicion. The prey’s Qi and Blood was definitely circulating erratically!
It was a sign of exhaustion!
’I don’t believe you can recover your Qi Power again!’
Its not-so-brilliant brain came to a conclusion that any normal person would have reached.
And so, it took a deep breath, a low growl rumbling in its throat as it gave the signal for a united assault.
The remaining fifty-plus Demon Corpses had no choice but to launch another death-defying charge.
[DING]
[Leaf-Sweeping Leg has reached Great Success!]
Another Martial Arts skill had been maxed out, and Wu Chen’s Qi Power was restored once more!
His face was now expressionless. The repetitive reaping had made him numb.
CREAK! SQUEAK!
After slaying the sixtieth Demon Corpse, the steel blade was covered in nicks and gaps, making it increasingly difficult to wield.
But fortunately, Wu Chen had no shortage of Qi Power.
[DING]
[Stone-Splitting Fist has reached Great Success!]
With his Qi Power full once again, Wu Chen charged into the fray, wielding the saw-toothed steel blade.
When he couldn’t cut through, he would hold down a Demon Corpse’s head with one hand and frantically stab with the other.
CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH!
The sound of metal sawing through bone echoed across the field, making one’s neck ache just from listening.
With every sawing motion, the limbs of the Demon Corpse beneath his hand would twitch unconsciously.
It was an extremely horrifying sight.
Soon, he had sawed the heads off nearly twenty more Demon Corpses.
The remaining fewer-than-twenty Demon Corpses watched this terrifying scene, a feeling of deep unease washing over them.
They trembled uncontrollably, wishing they could shrink their necks into their chests. How could they dare to advance now?
Noticing the gazes of its subordinates locked on it, the Demon Corpse leader glanced around and was shocked to realize it had fewer than twenty followers left.
The light in its eyes was gone; Wu Chen’s repeatedly fluctuating aura had broken it.
Its long, dull eyes looked at the prey in the field again, and the Demon Corpse leader once more felt that familiar sense of Qi.
The prey’s Qi and Blood was becoming chaotic again!
But having been tricked several times already and nearly wiped out, how could it possibly fall for it again?
’As long as the green mountains are there, one need not worry about firewood! You just wait!’
It finally decided that there must be something wrong with its sense of smell, which had led to the failure of this hunt. With a hateful whimper, it prepared to retreat.
To avoid a sneak attack from behind, the dozen or so Demon Corpses carefully backed away a few steps before turning to flee.
CLANG! CLANG!
But at that moment, a clear and crisp sound rang out, catching the Demon Corpse leader’s attention.
It looked back curiously and saw the prey staring blankly at the hilt of the steel blade in his hand.
The blade itself, unable to bear the strain, had shattered into several pieces and fallen to the ground.
The Demon Corpse leader froze on the spot, almost weeping with joy.
It seemed its efforts had not been in vain after all!
At least it had deprived the enemy of his weapon!
WOOOOO!—
It roared excitedly. Without a blade, he was like a tiger without its teeth. What was there to fear?
The remaining dozen or so Demon Corpses thought this made sense. Having paid such a heavy price, there was no reason not to try again.
They charged toward the now-defenseless prey.
But as they closed the distance, they quickly noticed something strange. The prey’s hands were changing color.
They were turning a dazzling crimson!
[DING!]
[Red Sand Palm Great Success upgrade complete!]
[Flesh Refining Realm First Layer → Flesh Refining Realm Second Layer]
Not only had the Martial Arts upgrade to Great Success finished, but this time there was an extra line in the prompt—about his realm!
Staring at the panel, a flash of joy passed through Wu Chen’s eyes.
"Hoo!"
Wu Chen let out a long breath. After a full six shichen, his realm had finally advanced!
It was proof that his efforts and sweat over the past six shichen had not been in vain!
Wu Chen felt the flame that nourished his flesh and blood leap up within him, dispelling the fatigue from his body and bringing about some new changes.
With this advancement, his senses had become more refined.
He could feel that the sky was blue, the clouds were white, the earth was gray, and the air was full of dust.
These Demon Corpses, who had been about to leave only to turn back, were truly brainless!
"I gave you a chance, but you didn’t take it!"
Watching their monotonous pounce-and-bite attack, Wu Chen simply raised a hand and clamped it down on a Demon Corpse’s head.
His palms, like red-hot branding irons, clenched into fists without any apparent effort.
BANG! BANG!
The Demon Corpse’s head instantly exploded in his grasp like a block of tofu, splattering everywhere.
Two headless bodies slid from Wu Chen’s grasp, red and white matter dripping from his fingertips.
The Demon Corpses screeched to a halt, their feet carving several marks into the ground.
They looked at Wu Chen, who had become even more brutal after losing his weapon, and then at the headless corpses on the ground.
Before, he at least left the head intact; this time, he’d crushed it to bits!
The remaining dozen or so Demon Corpses were finally certain: even without a weapon, they were no match for this human.
Their bodies began to retreat uncontrollably. Not even their bloodline’s ingrained instincts could stop their feet for a second.
Because the Demon Corpse leader was running even faster! And it had fled without making a sound!
"Not a single one gets away!"
Having just advanced his realm, Wu Chen had strength and methods to spare.
How could he possibly let these Demon Corpses go?
In just a dozen breaths, he caught up to the Demon Corpse leader that had silently fled and gently stroked its head.
BANG!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The dozen or so remaining Demon Corpses were all wounded from their multiple attempts to besiege Wu Chen and couldn’t run fast at all.
Wu Chen caught up to them with ease, then crushed their skulls.
Then on to the next.
Until finally, not a single one was left!