Chapter 82: The Philosophy of Martial Dao

A distance of one li is merely a three- to five-minute walk for an ordinary adult on Earth, let alone a cultivator from the Yuanwu Continent?

Soon, the group arrived at the location Cang Luo had described, where two Iron-Scaled Lizards were fighting over food.

But the actual situation was vastly different from Cang Luo's description.

Where were the Iron-Scaled Lizards?

Two of them? Not even half a rat could be seen.

The group murmured among themselves, their gazes toward Cang Luo filled with doubt and disappointment.

Zhao Renwu was inwardly delighted—he now believed Cang Luo not only had low cultivation potential but was also mentally deficient.

How dare he boldly predict that Iron-Scaled Lizards were here?

He even described their number, their fight over food, and how they were both badly injured—as if he'd seen it with his own eyes! If you hadn't seen it yourself, you'd truly think he had precognitive abilities.

Hah! Now look how it turned out? All the prestige and trust you built before everyone has been burned to ashes! I wonder how long you can last as boss.

Zhao Renwu chuckled softly, then sighed: "No one is a sage; who can avoid mistakes? Don't blame the boss—he meant well. It was just one misjudgment, nothing serious."

As soon as Zhao Renwu finished speaking, his cousin Zhao Renli took over: "Deputy Gang Leader, you're wrong. We, as members, may make mistakes—but the boss absolutely cannot."

Not even once. The boss's every decision affects the fate of every member. What if this mistake causes injuries or deaths among our brothers?"

Zhao Renli's words won the approval of most, and the atmosphere instantly turned solemn; many now looked at Cang Luo with blame in their eyes.

Xiang Xiang Yunjiao glanced at the group, anxious: "Don't be like this. Maybe we just found the wrong place—perhaps the Iron-Scaled Lizards are nearby."

"Cang Senior Brother, isn't that right?"

She noticed Cang Luo's eyes seemed vacant, assuming he hadn't heard or was angered by Zhao Renli's words, so she stepped closer and tugged his sleeve, whispering: "Senior Brother Luo?"

Xiang Xiang Yunjiao's intimate gesture toward Cang Luo made many adolescent youths feel uneasy.

Zhao Renwu frowned and murmured: "Sister Yun, let's find a safe spot to set up camp and begin our operation tomorrow."

"Yes, Sister Yun, and Sister Yin—let's find a place to light a fire and pitch tents," Zhao Renli added beside her, but Xiang Xiang Yunjiao remained unmoved; Yin Mengruo, however, hesitated slightly.

At that moment, Wang Fuhai suddenly spoke: "Huh? Where are Brother He and Brother Liu? Weren't they ordered by the boss to flank the Iron-Scaled Lizards?"

"Pfft! Flank what? What beast are you going to flank?" Zhao Renli scoffed, glancing pointedly at Cang Luo, drawing everyone's attention.

The group sighed helplessly—they had once believed Cang Luo could lead them to expand the sect, yet their first hunt ended in failure, and now he stood there blankly, saying nothing.

For a moment, the group not only lost all faith in Cang Luo but also grew deeply anxious about the future of the Warwolf Gang.

Just then, Li Zhanxing, a member of the Bai Hu Tang who had been assigned to the right flank under Liu Xuande, suddenly burst out from the side and appeared in their line of sight.

He rushed to Cang Luo's side, excited: "Boss! We've trapped the two Iron-Scaled Lizards, but they're still resisting fiercely. The two Tang Masters are holding them off—sent me to fetch reinforcements!"

As soon as Li Zhanxing spoke, the group froze.

What?

There really are Iron-Scaled Lizards?

Zhao Renwu thought he'd misheard: "Brother Li, what did you just say? There really are two Iron-Scaled Lizards? Where?"

"Uh? Yeah, there are."

Li Zhanxing scratched his head, embarrassed: "We were ordered by the boss to set up an ambush here, but someone accidentally startled the Iron-Scaled Lizards—they ran off."

We chased after them, surrounded them, but couldn't subdue them..."

"This..." Zhao Renwu opened and closed his mouth, speechless, staring at Cang Luo in utter shock.

How is this possible!?

Cang Luo was telling the truth? There really were two Iron-Scaled Lizards!

How did he know? Could he really have raised them himself?

Shocked, Zhao Renwu suddenly remembered his earlier sarcastic remarks—and his cheeks burned. He quickly looked away, unable to meet Cang Luo's gaze, wishing he could crawl into a hole.

Others shared Zhao Renwu's expression—none dared raise their eyes to Cang Luo; Zhao Renli even slipped quietly behind the crowd, avoiding Cang Luo's sight entirely.

Only a few who supported Cang Luo wore delighted expressions; Xiang Xiang Yunjiao grabbed Cang Luo's hand and exclaimed: "I told you the Iron-Scaled Lizards had run elsewhere! You all misjudged the boss!"

Li Zhanxing noticed Zhao Renwu's faction lowering their heads and asked, puzzled: "What's wrong with you guys?"

"Hehe, nothing."

Cang Luo switched his viewpoint from the satellite camera back to his own eyes and said casually: "I didn't expect the Iron-Scaled Lizards to notice you—but good thing you've managed to hold them."

Cang Luo's words left the group utterly ashamed. He didn't blame them—he took responsibility himself. Such noble character earned their deep admiration.

One of Zhao Renwu's disciples, ashamed, said: "Boss, we misunderstood you..."

Cang Luo waved his hand and smiled: "It's fine. Let's hurry and help—don't let those two Iron-Scaled Lizards escape."

Saying this, Cang Luo ran toward the location of the Iron-Scaled Lizards; the group quickly followed, with Zhao Renwu and Zhao Renli bringing up the rear.

They exchanged a glance—each saw deep resentment and hatred in the other's eyes...

Not long after, Cang Luo led the group to He Cheng and Liu Xuande.

At that moment, five members of the Qing Long Tang and four of the Bai Hu Tang, led by He Cheng and Liu Xuande respectively, surrounded the two silver-gray Iron-Scaled Lizards, swords drawn.

Both He Cheng and Liu Xuande were at Warrior Stage 5; they occasionally launched one or two attacks, but they had no effect—unable to pierce the Iron-Scaled Lizards' armor—yet they at least prevented the beasts from fleeing.

Iron-Scaled Lizard: a top-tier Tier One beast, Earth-elemental, with a tendency to evolve toward Metal-elemental traits. Its strength rivals a human Warrior Stage 8. Adults can reach four meters in length—larger than Earth's Komodo dragons.

Moreover, its body is covered in silver-gray armored scales, each studded with two-inch-long backward-facing spines, making it nearly indestructible among its peers. Its massive jaws possess terrifying bite force, and its tail can also be used as a weapon—making it both offensive and defensive.

He Cheng and Liu Xuande finally breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing reinforcements; they were helpless against the Iron-Scaled Lizards. Had it not been for their numbers and the beasts' minor injuries, they wouldn't have dared to encircle them.

Cang Luo nodded to them, asking nothing about the situation—he had already seen everything via satellite.

Looking at the trapped Iron-Scaled Lizards with nowhere to run, Cang Luo shouted: "This is the first battle since the founding of the Warwolf Gang—who will take down these two beasts?"

After what had just happened, Cang Luo's prestige had reached its peak; immediately, disciples responded, drawing weapons and charging at the two Iron-Scaled Lizards.

Zhao Renwu and Miss Bai Li rushed forward first—Zhao Renwu to salvage his reputation, Miss Bai Li because she was a battle fanatic.

Dozens surrounded the two Iron-Scaled Lizards, swinging swords, slashing with blades, thrusting with spears.

Unfortunately, the Iron-Scaled Lizards' hides were thick and tough; without forming qi, none of them could pierce the beasts' armored scales.

However, the crowd was not in a hurry, for killing the Iron-Shell Lizard was only a matter of time; it could not escape anyway, so they would simply wear it down slowly.

They were not in a hurry, but Cang Luo was; if they dragged this out, how long would the fight last?

Cang Luo shouted, "Although the name of the Military Body Fist I cultivate suggests it is a fist technique, in reality, it is a philosophy."

A philosophy of the Martial Dao!

The Military Body Fist can be applied to any cultivation method or technique."

"A philosophy of the Martial Dao?"

The crowd was stunned again, feeling deeply confused; since when did a fist technique have anything to do with philosophy?

Cang Luo drew his long sword and said solemnly, "The core of the Military Body Fist is that formlessness defeats form, which can be summarized in three words."

Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!

As long as you can truly understand the concept of formlessness defeating form and achieve fast, accurate, and ruthless execution, you will surely achieve twice the result with half the effort on the Martial Dao."

Having spoken, Cang Luo activated his movement technique at full power and rushed swiftly toward the nearest Iron-Shell Lizard; his speed was so fast that the onlookers along the path hurriedly scattered.

That Iron-Shell Lizard saw Cang Luo charging at it and assumed he was no different from the previous group, posing no threat, so it casually whipped its tail, intending to fling Cang Luo away.

Unfortunately, it was wrong; at this moment, Cang Luo had not only activated his Dynamic Capture ability but also awakened the first layer of the Meiti Shengong, making his strength incomparable to theirs.

It could be said that Cang Luo's current strength, aside from being unable to condense qi, had already reached the level of a Warrior Stage 1 in terms of speed, power, and physical durability.

In the blink of an eye, with the help of his Dynamic Capture ability, Cang Luo easily dodged the Iron-Shell Lizard's tail-whip attack and thrust his sword straight into its eye.

The long sword pierced through its throat, and the Iron-Shell Lizard perished!

Cang Luo withdrew his long sword and, amidst the shocked gazes of the crowd, rushed toward another Iron-Shell Lizard, killing it effortlessly with the same technique.

Fast, accurate, ruthless!

Without even breaking the Iron-Shell Lizard's hard armor, plus two demon cores, sixty-two low-grade Spirit Stones were easily obtained.

After continuously killing two Iron-Shell Lizards, Cang Luo said calmly, "This is the realm achieved after fully mastering the Military Body Fist; one is no longer bound by specific moves or techniques, but uses the simplest and most direct method to eliminate the target."

Of course, the premise is that the gap in strength between you and the target cannot be too large."

After Cang Luo finished speaking, the crowd remained silent for a long time, all staring at Cang Luo with shocked expressions.

What was happening? What did the Gang Leader just do? How did he kill the Iron-Shell Lizard that they could not deal with with just a single exchange?

Is this the strength of a Warrior Stage 7? Even a peak Warrior Stage 9 could not possibly kill an Iron-Shell Lizard, which possesses both offense and defense, with a single strike, could they?

Is this the power of the Military Body Fist?

A philosophy of the Martial Dao?

After a long while, the crowd gradually recovered from their shock, and a disciple suddenly shouted, "Glory to the Gang Leader! Glory to the Gang Leader! Glory to the Gang Leader..."

Others joined in shouting loudly, including the disciples of the Renwuyi Sect.

At this moment, Cang Luo's prestige within the War Wolf Gang was unique and unmatched; in their eyes, there was no boss Zhao Renwu, only the Gang Leader Cang Luo.

Cang Luo casually waved his hand to stop their shouting and said lightly, "Leave a few brothers to handle the Iron-Shell Lizard; the rest follow me. There is another demon beast three li north; do not let it escape."

"What?!"

"Did the Gang Leader discover another demon beast?"

The crowd was startled again; how exactly did the Gang Leader discover it?