Chapter 71: There's Another One

A headless corpse plunged into the water, Shao Yi’s detached head still displaying an expression of utter confusion.

He couldn’t grasp it. Hadn't that guy already lowered his guard? So how could he react so swiftly?

He couldn't comprehend how a sword could suddenly burst from someone's chest.

Even more bewildering, with a single strike where the opponent couldn't even fight back, why had he himself been forcibly flung away?

Splash!

Water sprayed everywhere as the head bobbed and sank.

Xu Xiaoshou clutched his chest and scrambled up from the ground, pulling out the short sword and gazing at the small hole in his ribcage that had nearly gone straight through.

“It really hurts…”

His Innate Body, the sharp light, and spiritual yuan protection—three layers of enhancement—had all been directly breached by that guy’s dying counterattack.

A peak Yuan Ting Jing expert was truly terrifying!

Silently sighing to himself, the wound on his body was already nearly healed.

With a wave of his hand, Xu Xiaoshou incinerated the corpse, leaving only the head with its expression of shock and doubt.

“Not understanding?”

“That’s right!”

“If you could figure it out, I’d be the one lying there…”

Xu Xiaoshou felt a lingering fear; if it hadn’t been for “Reverse Shock” saving him at the crucial moment, he probably would have been stabbed again.

If it had struck a vital point, even “Unceasing Vitality” might not have worked.

He touched his chest, marveling inwardly.

The Innate-level “Reverse Shock” was indeed impressive—the stronger the opponent’s attack, the farther they’d be thrown back.

This meant that from now on, if no one could kill him in a single blow, the distance between them would always be increased.

In situations where information was uneven, Xu Xiaoshou would have more time to prepare, just like the “Reverse Sword Style” he’d used earlier.

In such scenarios, it was almost invincible!

And with the frenzied effects of “Unceasing Vitality” and “Abundant Vitality,” as long as it wasn’t a one-hit kill, who could outlast him in a war of attrition?

Thinking of “Abundant Vitality,” he immediately withdrew the Jin Zhao Ling Yuan rampaging through the area, and the rain stopped evaporating, pouring down steadily.

This basic passive skill was terrifying!

It had allowed him to maintain the intense atmosphere throughout the deadly battle, even burning that guy alive with “Jin Zhao Tian Yan.”

Yet, when Xu Xiaoshou looked inward at his Qi Sea, there was still a small amount of spiritual yuan left…

And it was recovering at a visible speed…

“Who could withstand this…”

Xu Xiaoshou silently mourned for his future enemies; these three basic passive skills were downright insane!

Even the “Breathing Method” had been developed into a combat skill by him.

That guy must have felt utter despair when he saw his elixirs being drained away…

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head, the rain soaking his face and helping him calm down slightly.

A peak Yuan Ting Jing expert…

Though powerful, he was honestly weaker than Xu Xiaoshou had imagined—probably because the guy had only landed one effective attack from start to finish.

After this battle, Xu Xiaoshou realized that the gap between him and those veteran Innate experts wasn’t insurmountably vast.

It made sense, really—cultivation wasn’t his strongest aspect; in fact, it was his weakest.

Yet, in others’ habitual thinking, cultivation was the basic standard for measuring strength.

This often led people to underestimate him subconsciously, even if they knew he had more tricks up his sleeve.

As long as he played this to his advantage, he could probably take down even the strongest enemies.

The rain continued to fall as Xu Xiaoshou stood silently in it, his mind filled with various insights.

Soon, he forcibly suppressed his myriad thoughts and snapped back to attention.

“There’s still one more person…”

“The fight might not be over yet!”

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the ground; the spoils from this battle were just two short swords and a head—everything else had been burned away.

Interrogating was pointless; even if that guy dared to speak, Xu Xiaoshou wouldn’t dare to believe him.

But one thing was certain: the one who escaped had a higher cultivation than the one who died, and…

He might very well come back!

Deep down, Xu Xiaoshou preferred to believe people were cold-blooded, especially assassins like these—the one who fled might not turn back for the one left behind.

But what if?

In this fight, many of his “what ifs” had come true, and that retreating, calculating man was the real master of using his brain in battle.

He let out a heavy sigh, feeling exhausted in body and mind.

Yet, he had to force himself to stay alert—maybe that guy was just waiting for him to lower his guard!

“What to do?”

Should he take the initiative, lie in wait, or set a trap?

Countless ideas flashed through his mind, but he dismissed them one by one.

Without a powerful output to kill the enemy before they reacted, none of these would matter.

And the one who escaped was at least in Ju Wu Jing…

That’s a full two major realms above him!

Xu Xiaoshou wore a bitter expression—who had he offended to send such terrifying assassins after him?

Based on his experiences, shouldn’t the opponents only be slightly stronger, serving as stepping stones to help him grow step by step?

This completely ignored the script—how was he supposed to handle it?!

Xu Xiaoshou pondered deeply; if the enemy really returned, how could he take him down?

Cultivation? Forget that.

Innate Body?

Well, maybe.

But close combat would be a life-or-death struggle, with one of them ending up dead—way too risky.

“So, that leaves ‘Jin Zhao Tian Fen’ and ‘Innate Sword Intent’…”

The former could be used for wearing down, but it couldn’t be the main approach—it took too much time!

As for Innate Sword Intent…

Xu Xiaoshou racked his brain, feeling like he’d grasped a glimmer of hope.

Things like intent realms were truly what allowed one to defy realms and kill enemies.

Even a Houtian sword intent could counter Xian Tian; now that his sword intent had reached Xian Tian, taking down a Ju Wu Jing shouldn’t be impossible, right?

“It’s very possible!”

“But it can’t involve close combat, and it has to be a one-hit kill…”

Suddenly, Xu Xiaoshou’s eyes lit up. “Drawing Sword Style!”

Yes.

Only his self-created fourth style of Baiyun Youyou: Drawing Sword Style, could potentially achieve both.

But he quickly deflated.

With his sword intent now at Xian Tian, the Drawing Sword Style consumed an absurd amount of spiritual yuan; in his last fight with Mo Mo, just two strikes had drained his Qi Sea dry—how could he fight like that?

Even with “Abundant Vitality,” it couldn’t recover instantly from such wasteful expenditure.

And if the enemy survived those two strikes, would he have to charge in with his fists for a brawl?

Well, it wasn’t entirely out of the question.

That guy probably didn’t have something as cheat-like as “Sealing Force” for an Innate attribute power!

“No, no, too dangerous!”

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head again; unless he could gain a massive amount of usable spiritual yuan in an instant, otherwise…

Wait?

An instant, with a massive amount of spiritual yuan?

It seemed… not entirely impossible?

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly trembled all over, his legs even going weak for a moment.