Chapter 443 94: I'm Better at Using My Fists

The wilderness sand baked beneath the blazing sun, filling the Gobi Desert with an oppressive heat.

"URGH..."

Clad in a camouflage military uniform, Du Lie stood frozen in place. Beneath his bald head, his eyes were wide with disbelief. The Qi Flame on his body rapidly dissipated as if out of control, and a visible thread of blood appeared across his neck.

The next moment, with a heavy THUD, his corpse collapsed to the ground, his bald head rolling away from his body. Blindingly bright crimson liquid gushed out like a fountain, dyeing the earth red.

Just like that, a Martial Artist at the Peak of Limit-Breaking died.

"This..."

Witnessing this scene, everyone in the Tan family convoy paled with shock and fury, mixed with a trace of sheer horror. Their bodies stiffened, completely forgetting to even pull their triggers.

On the opposing side, the woman in black had a solemn look in her eyes as she stared fixedly at Lu Chao's unfamiliar face. There was no anger in her gaze—only deep wariness and confusion.

"The Superpower Bureau?" she asked, her voice eerily calm as she frowned.

Planting her feet firmly on the ground, a yellow Qi Flame rapidly surged around her, and an alloy longsword appeared in her hand.

RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!

The brief moment of silence was shattered by a renewed hail of gunfire. Some members of the Tan family finally snapped out of their daze. Driven by terror and rage, they yanked their triggers in a desperate bid for survival.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

However, all the bullets seemed to veer off course, narrowly grazing past the man in black. The rounds either struck the dirt or shattered against the rocks, letting out a series of muffled THWACKS.

Lu Chao appeared to be advancing in a straight line, but his figure flickered erratically. His plain face remained apathetic, yet his incredibly profound eyes revealed absolute, unwavering focus.

"Everyone, get back!" the woman in black suddenly shouted.

With a fierce cry, she swung her sword, unleashing a horizontal arc of yellow Sword Qi that tore through the air!

SWISH!!

The sound of the all-rending edge and kinetic force rang out. Amidst the deadly threat of the crossfire, Lu Chao seemed to have anticipated the strike, bringing down the blade in his right hand.

BANG!!

His blade struck the Sword Qi, instantly cleaving it in two. The fractured energy whizzed past Lu Chao, shooting off to his left and right.

BOOM! BOOM!

The sand behind him exploded on impact, as if struck by high-explosive grenades. The woman in black's gaze hardened. She quietly gripped her sword with both hands, treating him as a mortal enemy.

Opposite her, Lu Chao closed the distance step by step, his speed not dropping in the slightest. His eyes remained locked on her the entire time, as if confirming his target.

"So it's you..."

The Life Magnetic Field of the Exploration Level was reflected in his mind, carrying a trace of familiarity. He instantly realized that not only was this the person who assassinated Zheng Wu according to the intel, but she was also the black-robed figure who had attempted to silence Ink Green Rattan.

WHOOSH!!

Recognizing his formidable strength, the woman in black leapt into the air and lunged at him, gripping her sword with both hands. The blade fractured the air. The yellow Qi Flame condensed upon the steel, compressed to its absolute limit, extending the edge into a thin, foot-long aura of lethal energy.

Lu Chao neither dodged nor evaded; he simply swung his blade diagonally upward.

CLANG!!

BOOM! BOOM!

The sound of clashing metal rang out once more, followed by a muffled explosion. The residual shockwave swept over the sand beneath their feet, blasting out a crater.

Lu Chao stood steadily in place. Sparks flew from their crossed blades as they ground against each other with a harsh, grating screech.

The woman in black's expression changed slightly. She felt a surge of kinetic force crash into her, numbing the webbing between her thumb and index finger and nearly forcing her to drop the weapon.

She marveled at his incredibly strong physique. Not daring to hold back any longer, she immediately changed her stance. Forcing a breath to suppress her discomfort, she unleashed a Secret Technique and gripped her longsword tightly, unleashing a flurry of slashes.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

The solid yellow Qi Flame upon the blade tore through the sky, leaving a trail of afterimages in its wake. In a mere fraction of a second, she delivered over a dozen luminous sword strikes, aiming straight for Lu Chao's vital spots.

His neck, his chest, his lower abdomen, his legs...

Amidst the assault, bursts of Sword Qi erupted, crisscrossing the space between them. They sliced through the air like sharp crescents, leaving him with no time to breathe.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

However, entirely beyond her expectations, every single strike was flawlessly deflected by his black blade. It was as if he had completely seen through her force-exertion techniques, making it look like she was voluntarily swinging her sword right into his parries.

In her line of sight, Lu Chao stood firmly rooted to the spot without moving an inch. He solely relied on his dynamic vision to rapidly scan her, taking in every muscle twitch and shift in aura. Every swing of his blade was like an early preemption, effortlessly destroying her Sword Qi.

"This..."

The longer she fought, the more terrified she became. Her opponent hadn't even utilized his Qi Flame, yet he was easily repelling all her lethal moves. To make matters worse, the constant rebound of kinetic force caused her arms to tremble, making the exertion increasingly taxing.

SWISH!

CLANG!!

As blade and sword clashed once again, Lu Chao cast a profound gaze at her through the scattering sparks. With his focused state empowering his entire body, everything in the outside world slowed down in his eyes.

Since he did not want to expose his identity, he had deliberately concealed his Qi Flame. Even so, relying solely on his several innate talents was more than enough to handle anyone at the Exploration Level.

CLANG!

Suddenly, his blade hummed with power. Lu Chao's kinetic force erupted. Relying purely on brute strength, he executed a forceful slash that knocked her longsword back. The yellow Qi Flame coating her blade shattered upon impact, fading into faint wisps.

He then stepped forward, gripped his blade with both hands, and delivered a sweeping horizontal slash!

RIIIP!!

The woman in black's clothes shredded as she skidded back several meters. Stabbing her alloy longsword into the earth to catch her balance, she dropped to one knee. A long, narrow slash marked her upper chest near her neck. The flesh was mutilated, and the wound was so deep that bone was visible.

Blood dripped from her black clothes and cuffs, trailing down the blade and soaking into the ground, dyeing it red.

"Who exactly are you...?" she asked, her eyes filled with shock and doubt.

Had she not practiced a Secret Technique that allowed her to dodge a fatal blow at the most critical moment, her head would likely have been severed by now. However, she couldn't figure it out. The Tan family had investigated everyone in the Superpower Sub-Bureau and the Special Investigation Team within the Red Maple City Circle, yet no one matched this man's profile.

She wondered if he was a contingency plan planted by the City Lord's Mansion, or perhaps...

"Dead people don't need answers."