Chapter 594: Punch That Shatters

One punch launched.

The surging, dense spiritual energy instantly shattered the window.

The shockwave exploded like a fragmentation grenade, scattering glass shards everywhere.

The black-haired woman in midair stiffened.

"Who are you! Do you know who we are?!"

As she spoke, the sharp spiritual energy of her longsword flared, weaving so swiftly not even shadows could be seen.

It cleanly tore a path through the raging wind and flying debris.

Her black hair and white cloak spiraled midair.

A storm-eye emblem on her cloak caught Luo De's eye.

A member of Stormshadow?

At first, she wasn't visible around him—he seemed to have just passed by.

No time for hesitation.

"Ice Trace."

A longblade slashed toward his face, dragging icy cold and blue blade-light, shredding the ceiling above with crackling force.

Luo De glanced at the woman's cold, expressionless face and spotted small patches of black-green scales along her jawline.

He raised an eyebrow.

His muscular forearms, sheathed in black liquid metal, crossed and tore forward violently.

The frozen blade-light shattered; blue frost spread across his forearms and blood-smeared face, looking grotesque.

But at the same time—

His clawed hands, brimming with terrifyingly sharp spiritual energy, ripped straight through her chest.

Nothing.

The white cloak embroidered with the storm-eye emblem hung suspended for an instant, then disintegrated into powder along with a strand of black hair.

In Luo De's stunned gaze, the black-haired woman had already appeared above him in midair.

"Riftwind."

White currents fluttered around her like tassels; she bent her arm, blade poised, ready to strike—but her face was filled with shock.

In the instant she slashed, the air split; invisible wind blades released from the tip of her blade.

Luo De tilted his head to avoid the vital point; the wind blade struck his shoulder and chest, drawing a thin line of blood.

He did not use 【Dragon Scale Technique】.

Nor did he intend to use his favored sword art.

As a forest warden, these were his trademarks—but today, as a prisoner, he would not use them.

Yet even so, he recognized the woman's spiritual warrior school—Blade Iron Style.

This school was less versatile than others.

But its strength lay in its devastating cutting power.

Crack—

The black-haired woman's boots hit the ground; blood dripped from the cut on her neck, sweat beading at her temples.

The collar of her chest was torn open by razor-sharp spiritual energy.

It snapped wide, revealing a white undershirt.

Two modest, evenly shaped mounds were tightly bound within.

They stood naturally.

Prominent black-green scales covered her neck and cheeks.

Luo De couldn't identify them, but they weren't dragon scales—she wasn't a half-dragon.

"Huh."

"Who are you?"

On the other side, as leader of Stormshadow, Eve felt her scalp prickle.

This man's spiritual energy was unnaturally dense.

He clearly only had an eighth-rank beginner's spiritual level (Luo De's disguise), yet he could firmly overpower her, an eighth-rank high-tier.

Was he holding back?

And—

Wearing prison garb? Could this tiny Shi Ying Town possibly hold someone like him??

Oh, right—there's Luo De.

Wait!

Luo De?

Eve swiftly scanned the town hall.

A flirtatious woman behind him, blood splattered everywhere, the tax inspector's exploded head, papers fluttering midair…

Most importantly—

This man was staring at her chest, with an appreciative gaze.

That wasn't the look of a prisoner driven mad by confinement—it should've been wilder, hungrier.

A faint smile curled at her lips.

Just as Rosalia said—he's a lecher.

"Soul Ignition."

Her longblade burst into You blue flames; she spun in place, dragging flashy, useless fire that instantly engulfed the walls, curtains, and stacked documents.

The slash had strong momentum, but the wind-up and angle—

Not hidden at all—obvious as day.

Even a dim-witted ghoul mage like Pan Ni could dodge it.

Luo De raised an eyebrow.

He immediately realized she recognized his identity.

So Stormshadow was trying to make nice with him?

The rest of the fight would be nothing but theater.

Luo De pretended to take a few blows, while Eve wildly slashed her fire-blade elsewhere, deliberately targeting the still-under-review documents.

Not long after—

The entire town hall erupted in roaring flames.

This drew the attention of other conscription squads and nearby neighbors.

Eve saw the crowd had gathered sufficiently.

She chose to take Luo De's light punch head-on, spitting a mouthful of blood as she flew backward, smashing through the wall and soaring into the distant sky—vanishing from sight.

Luo De: "..."

You're really laying it on thick, sis?

Luo De, of course, played along—caught by her final fire-blade slash, writhing in flames.

He even knelt half-bowed, feigning grievous injury and exhaustion.

"Die! How dare you draw weapons before us of the Igo Cult?!"

A seventh-rank man also joined the act, roaring as he charged forward.

He'd arrived early among the crowd but held back until now.

Seeing the higher-ups of the conscription squad rushing over, he smashed the street tiles beneath him and lunged at Luo De.

"Hmph."

His forearms, sheathed in black liquid metal, dropped his shoulder and punched forward.

Boom.

The seventh-rank man's head exploded like a watermelon; his body instantly lost all strength.

The headless corpse, like a ragdoll, flew forward by inertia, slamming into a pile of burning books and adding more fuel to the town hall fire.

"Ugh."

Whatever.

I'll just donate a new town hall to Shi Ying Town later.

Luo De dragged his "heavily wounded" body, turning to flee.

"Scum!!!"

Another furious roar.

A man wreathed in crimson spiritual energy leapt forward the same way—but faster, stronger.

A Hero Candidate.

Like a fired cannonball, he closed the distance in an instant.

One after another, huh?

Luo De crossed his arms—but, true to character, failed to block the eighth-rank mid-tier's force.

He was blasted backward.

Not only did he smash through the town hall's wall, but he also skidded across the outer walls of surrounding houses, crashing and clattering, finally rolling helplessly onto the ground.

Bricks and stones flew through the air, dust rolling in chaotic clouds.

Luo De swiftly pushed himself up and spun around, throwing a punch backward.

Block!!!

A semi-transparent wall of crimson energy appeared before the pursuing Hero Candidate.

The muscular forearm, sheathed in black liquid metal, vibrated at the same high frequency as the energy wall.

It did not shatter.

Hummmmmm—

A heavy, recoiling tremor shuddered through every inch of Luo De's right arm muscles; crackling, popping sounds erupted from his bones, muscles, and blood vessels under extreme pressure.

"Huh?"

"Thief! This is a high-level 【Hero Amplification】! Even an eighth-rank peak couldn't—"

The Hero Candidate sneered.

Luo De, the bald convict with a bleeding head, wore a casual smile and said nothing.

His metallic-gleaming arm yanked violently backward; flames like those of hell flowed over his muscles, stimulating and swelling them.

【Power Liberation. 1800%】.

Crack!

The man's face twisted in shock as the crimson energy wall before him shattered into fragments in an instant, his eyes filled with disbelief.

The next moment.

Boom!!!

The punch exploded outward.

Visible shockwaves obliterated the entire length of the street in an instant; bricks and stones rolled back like waves, spewing a towering tide of dust and shattered gravel.

(End of Chapter)