Overlord of the Wilderness

When Xuli Long made his move, the Martial Arts Ninth-Layer Experts flying through the sky all halted, staring intently at him and Zhaang Ye. Down on the ground, the other Martial Artists craned their necks, their full attention captured by the sudden battle.

Xuli Long’s Cultivation was at the Early Stage of Martial Arts Ninth Layer, while Zhaang Ye’s was at the Eighth Layer Peak. While their Cultivation levels seemed only a hair’s breadth apart, the actual gap in power was immense. Every Martial Artist watching the fight looked at Zhaang Ye with pity, as if he were already a dead man.

CRACKLE, CRACKLE, CRACKLE—

Xuli Long’s giant claw materialized in mid-air and bore down heavily on Zhaang Ye. As it descended, the raging winds it generated blasted away the clouds in a hundred-zhang radius, its might as overwhelming as a collapsing mountain.

RUMBLE!

Just as the giant claw was about to crash down, Zhaang Ye abruptly threw two punches.

After reaching the Martial Arts Eighth Layer, Zhaang Ye’s body was brimming with True Qi. Furthermore, the quality of his True Qi was on par with that of a Martial Arts Ninth-Layer Expert. Unleashed with his full power, the two punches were like a volcanic eruption. The incredibly condensed Fist Force slammed into the giant claw, instantly blasting it to pieces.

"Hm?" Seeing Zhaang Ye so effortlessly shatter the giant claw he had created, Xuli Long’s gaze turned serious. Though arrogant, he was no fool; otherwise, he never would have been able to reach the Martial Arts Ninth Layer through Cultivation. After witnessing Zhaang Ye’s display, he knew at once that this opponent was far stronger than a typical Martial Arts Eighth-Layer Expert.

’But no matter how impressive Zhaang Ye’s display was, he was still just a Martial Artist at the Martial Arts Eighth Layer. I refuse to believe that with my strength at the Martial Arts Ninth Layer, I can’t take down a mere Eighth Layer Martial Artist. That would be far too humiliating.’

SWOOSH!

Xuli Long shot directly at Zhaang Ye, striking down with a palm from mid-air.

He had just said he would slap Zhaang Ye to the ground. This palm strike now contained eighty percent of his True Qi. Furthermore, he used his Spiritual Power to lock firmly onto Zhaang Ye. No matter what defensive maneuver his opponent tried, he would be unable to escape its grasp.

A cold smirk touched Zhaang Ye’s lips when he saw Xuli Long actually trying to engage him in close combat. ’My biggest weakness right now is my lack of long-range attacks, but close-quarters combat is where I excel. After being tempered by the Dragon Elephant Skill, my body’s strength is absurdly formidable. I doubt even someone at the Late-stage Martial Arts Ninth Layer could overpower me in a contest of pure strength. This Xuli Long is only at the Early Stage of Martial Arts Ninth Layer, and he wants to fight me up close? He’s practically asking to die.’

Under the gazes of the many Martial Artists and Xuli Long, Zhaang Ye suddenly thrust out a hand, balling it into a fist that shot toward Xuli Long’s palm.

CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK—

Zhaang Ye’s fist tore through layers of Powerful Qi and slammed heavily into Xuli Long’s palm.

BOOM!

The moment their fist and palm met, Xuli Long felt an utterly terrifying power surge straight up his arm. The force was so tyrannical that it instantly shattered his True Qi. Despite knowing various Force-Dissipating Techniques, none of them were of any use at that moment.

"Ah—" Xuli Long only had time for a choked gasp before Zhaang Ye’s punch sent him flying. He soared a full two hundred zhang into the air before he managed to neutralize the force of the blow. Only then did he feel the bones in his arm creaking ominously, as if they might shatter at any moment.

"Ah—"

The Martial Artists who had been watching in silence all let out a collective gasp. A mighty Martial Arts Ninth-Layer Expert had been sent flying by an opponent from the Martial Arts Eighth Layer. This was utterly unexpected. No matter how worldly these Martial Artists were, they could not believe the sight before their eyes.

"You..." Xuli Long had suffered a minor setback in front of so many Martial Artists. His entire arm was lightly injured from the impact, and he was both shocked and furious. Staring coldly at Zhaang Ye, he spat, "Good! Very good! To think I, Xuli Long, would misjudge an opponent, failing to see that Your Excellency is a Body Refining expert! But no matter how powerful you are, you are destined to be smashed into the ground today! Top-Grade Combat Skill—Dragon and Tiger Celestial Hand!"

"A Top-Grade Combat Skill!" Hearing Xuli Long shout those four words, every spectator’s eyes went wide.

Combat Skills are generally divided into three tiers: Low-Level, Mid-Level, and Advanced. Martial Artists from the First to Third Layer of the Martial Dao practice Low-Level Combat Skills. Those with Cultivation from the Fourth to Sixth Layer practice Mid-Level Combat Skills. And experts from the Martial Arts Seventh to Ninth Layer practice Advanced Combat Skills.

Above these three tiers of Combat Skills, another category exists: Top-Grade Combat Skills. These are attack methods where the technique itself borders on the Martial Dao, granting them incredible power. But Top-Grade Combat Skills are exceedingly rare; only the great families and major powers possess them. Now, hearing that Xuli Long was about to use one, everyone stared at him with bated breath, waiting for him to unleash the legendary technique.

"ROAR!" Xuli Long bellowed, unleashing a fierce and profoundly mysterious Combat Skill and launching a world-shaking assault on Zhaang Ye.

SCREECH!

ROAR!

As Xuli Long unleashed the Dragon and Tiger Celestial Hand, Zhaang Ye’s ears filled with nothing but the cries of dragons and the roars of tigers. His vision was flooded with exceptionally agile dragons and incredibly ferocious tigers. These beasts charged at Zhaang Ye in an endless tide, threatening to overwhelm him in an instant. The terrifying power on display was enough to make even Zhaang Ye’s expression shift, despite his own strength.

’A Top-Grade Combat Skill really is something else! Ordinary Combat Skills can’t even compare!’ Zhaang Ye thought, a look of amazement on his face as his Spiritual Power probed Xuli Long’s attack. ’This Xuli Long is only at the Early-stage of the Martial Arts Ninth Layer; I hadn’t taken him seriously at all. But now that he’s using the Dragon and Tiger Celestial Hand, his combat strength has skyrocketed. It’s like I’m fighting two or three of him at once. Even with my trump cards, I have to take this seriously.’

Witnessing the power of this Top-Grade Combat Skill, Zhaang Ye took a shallow breath. He suddenly unleashed his Mountain-Breaking Slash, engaging Xuli Long in a direct confrontation.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!—

Xuli Long’s True Qi was deeper than Zhaang Ye’s, and his Spiritual Power was far stronger as well. Combined with his Dragon and Tiger Celestial Hand, his attacks crashed down like raging ocean waves, one after another without cease. An ordinary Martial Arts Ninth-Layer Expert would have been struck several times and severely injured within the blink of an eye.

Fortunately, Zhaang Ye was no ordinary Martial Artist. His True Qi and Spiritual Power were inferior to Xuli Long’s, but his physical strength was far more formidable. Relying on this immense strength and his versatile Mountain-Breaking Slash Saber Technique—which served for both offense and defense—Zhaang Ye whipped up layers of tornadoes around himself, completely blocking all of Xuli Long’s attacks.

RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

Each of Zhaang Ye’s palm-blade strikes kicked up a Tornado, and each one struck with the force of a giant axe splitting a mountain. In the face of Zhaang Ye’s incredibly immense power, the dragons and tigers Xuli Long sent forth were scattered like foam, unable to even touch him.

What horrified Xuli Long even more was that Zhaang Ye’s Mountain-Breaking Slash contained a boundless Realm. Even with his Mental Power, Xuli Long could not find a single flaw in Zhaang Ye’s technique. As a result, his Dragon and Tiger Celestial Hand was completely ineffective against Zhaang Ye. The longer he fought, the more stifled and frustrated he became.

"What a powerful Top-Grade Combat Skill! This has really been an eye-opener. The Xuli Family truly lives up to its name as the number one family in the Wei Kingdom. To think that even one of their Top-Grade Combat Skills is this incredible!"

"Heh, that’s right. But as powerful as that Top-Grade Combat Skill is, this young man is even more impressive. He’s actually holding his own against Xuli Long’s legendary technique!"

"Isn’t Xuli Long supposed to be the second-strongest expert of the Xuli Family’s younger generation? To think he can’t even defeat a kid from the Martial Arts Eighth Layer. All that time he spent on the Cultivation of that Top-Grade Combat Skill seems like a complete waste."

"Exactly. For Xuli Long to be unable to defeat someone from the Martial Arts Eighth Layer... he’s bringing great shame to the Xuli Family."

"I know, right? His older brother, Xu Litian, is also at the Early-stage of the Martial Arts Ninth Layer, but his combat strength is worlds apart from Xuli Long’s. This performance from Xuli Long is just pathetic..."

"Who is this young man? Every move he makes contains boundless power. If this keeps up, Xuli Long is probably going to lose! Heh, in all my decades of Cultivation, I’ve never seen someone from the Martial Arts Eighth Layer defeat someone from the Ninth. I’m finally witnessing it today..."

When the spectating Martial Artists saw Zhaang Ye completely block the Top-Grade Combat Skill unleashed by Xuli Long, they erupted into discussion. Xuli Long’s hearing was incredibly sharp; even in the heat of battle, their chatter reached his ears with perfect clarity. Listening to their comments, Xuli Long felt waves of shame and fury wash over him.

"AHHH—"

Xuli Long roared, bellowing, "Dragon Tiger Strike!"

With his roar, the dragons and tigers filling the sky instantly converged, merging to form a single gigantic dragon and a colossal tiger.

SCREECH! ROAR!

The giant dragon and the colossal tiger roared in unison as they charged straight for Zhaang Ye. In that instant, the very heavens seemed to churn as dark clouds appeared from nowhere, blotting out the sky.

The onlookers’ eyes widened at the sight of Xuli Long’s attack. This single strike was equivalent to three Xuli Longs attacking at once with all their might. Its power was even greater than a full-force blow from a Mid-stage Ninth Layer expert of the Martial Arts. It was likely on par with an attack from a Late-stage Ninth Layer expert!

’This kid is dead for sure!’ Xuli Long thought, looking at Zhaang Ye as if he were already a corpse. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)