Chapter 137: Eagle Claw of True Energy

A ferocious crocodile bloomed in the sky above Luolong County; this kind of crocodile firework could only be possessed by core members of the Crocodile Gang.

Upon seeing the crocodile firework, members of the Crocodile Gang would rush to the scene of the incident at the first opportunity.

Jiang Tian was a Third-grade Intermediate Martial Artist; he led his eight Great Vajras, who were the first to arrive, and these eight Great Vajras were all Second Grade Martial Artists; the nine of them were the Crocodile Gang's top combat strength.

The two hundred core members of the Crocodile Gang, along with over five hundred peripheral members, would all arrive one after another.

Looking at the corpse of Xiong Dajiao, Jiang Tian was livid with rage; when he was rushing over, he had already shouted for Meng Yifan to show mercy, yet not only did Meng Yifan not hold back, he instead choked Xiong Dajiao to death and tossed him before his feet.

This was simply too arrogant; it was a provocation against the Crocodile Gang; if this could be tolerated, what could not? This matter required Meng Yifan to provide an explanation, otherwise, the Crocodile Gang would no longer be able to survive in Luolong County.

"Boss Meng, by what right did you kill Xiong Dajiao?" Jiang Tian said, seething with anger.

"This fellow said that within Luolong County, the Crocodile Gang is the law. I would like to ask Boss Jiang, did you teach him to say that?" Meng Yifan asked.

Jiang Tian was stunned for a moment; the Three Great Gangs controlled every aspect of Luolong County; Xiong Dajiao saying the Crocodile Gang was the law was a bit of an exaggeration, but it could not be called wrong either.

For a very long time, what the Three Great Gangs said was truly more effective than the orders of the Luolong County Magistrate; saying they represented the law was also acceptable.

The Three Great Gangs were of one mind; the strategy set by Long Guxing was to temporarily avoid direct conflict with Meng Yifan's group and let the Prefect of Dongchuan Prefecture deal with them.

But now that Meng Yifan had bullied his way to the Crocodile Gang's doorstep, Jiang Tian could not act like a turtle hiding in its shell and sit idly by.

"What Xiong Dajiao said was inappropriate, but his crimes did not warrant death; you acted ruthlessly and choked him to death directly; you must give our Crocodile Gang an explanation," Jiang Tian said.

"An explanation? This young master has nothing to explain. Forcibly seizing women and harming the common people—such a scourge, this young master killed him to eliminate a pest for the people."

Meng Yifan said in a loud, clear voice that carried far away; the nearby commoners heard this and were stirred with excitement, their gazes toward Meng Yifan filled with gratitude.

The commoners had been oppressed by the Three Great Gangs for too long; Meng Yifan standing up for them now instantly made many commoners identify with Meng Yifan's rule.

The demands of the commoners at the bottom were very simple: whoever was willing to let them live well and was willing to stand up for them, they would say that person was good and pledge their loyalty to them.

Meng Yifan saw from the Game Panel that in just this short while, the number of subjects loyal to him had increased by eighty or ninety, which made him overjoyed; he believed that once the news spread, he would certainly win the loyalty of even more commoners.

Jiang Tian was enraged and shouted: "Meng Yifan, are you trying to start a war with our Crocodile Gang?"

"If you want to fight, then let's fight; this young master will accompany you to the end." Meng Yifan had long wanted to clean up the Three Great Gangs who committed all kinds of evil; since the Crocodile Gang had jumped out now, he would take the opportunity to annihilate them and let the other two gangs see who exactly called the shots in Luolong County.

"When I was out roaming the pugilistic world, you didn't even know where you were; now you actually dare to challenge me? You really have guts. Come, let's exchange a few moves and let me see what skills you have to dare to be so arrogant."

Jiang Tian soared into the air, his arms spread wide like a giant eagle roaming the firmament; his whole body surged with True Qi, Condensing Qi into Steel; with a wave of his right hand, an eagle claw formed from condensed Qi appeared out of thin air, and like an eagle catching a chick, it grabbed fiercely toward Meng Yifan.

"Damn it! Another Condensing Qi into Steel Secret Technique. The Divine Bell Cover used by Zhang Chao and Wang Zhanbiao of the Divine Machine Battalion—Jiang Tian's Condensing Qi into Steel can actually form an eagle claw? Isn't it said that the Condensing Qi into Steel Secret Technique is only possessed by sects and the government? What is this Jiang Tian's background? He actually knows such a Condensing Qi into Steel Secret Technique."

As the eagle claw struck, Meng Yifan had no time to think; he gripped the Artifact Shield tightly with his left hand, and as his True Qi surged, the Artifact Shield was activated once more, blocking the Eagle Claw of True Energy descending from the sky.

"Clang!" A sound like iron and stone colliding rang out; sparks flew from the Artifact Shield, and Meng Yifan was knocked back two steps; not only that, a wisp of Eagle Claw Qi passed through the gaps in the Artifact Shield.

Meng Yifan used his own True Qi to block this wisp of Qi, but he still felt as if his left hand had been pricked by a needle, the pain unbearable.

Qi is refined from True Qi and is more condensed; even after leaving the body, it remains condensed and does not dissipate, allowing it to attack enemies from a distance; this is the formidable nature of Qi.

Jiang Tian's Qi collided with Meng Yifan's True Qi, and Meng Yifan was at a disadvantage; this was still with the Artifact Shield blocking it, and only a wisp of Qi had penetrated; if he hadn't used the Artifact Shield, perhaps this single move alone could have left Meng Yifan severely injured.

"Haha, take another one of my Eagle Claw moves." Seeing that Meng Yifan was not having an easy time, Jiang Tian's Qi surged, and another half-meter-long eagle claw formed again, grabbing toward Meng Yifan.

"Cannot take it head-on." Having taken one move head-on, Meng Yifan knew the formidable nature of the Eagle Claw Qi; naturally, he would not be foolish enough to go head-to-head with Jiang Tian.

"Whoosh!" Meng Yifan channeled True Qi into his legs, and with a tap of his toes on the ground, his body instantly retreated over ten meters, dodging the eagle claw; Jiang Tian was a Third-grade Intermediate Martial Artist, and his Eagle Claw Qi could only leave his body for a maximum of two meters, otherwise, it could not be maintained.

Seeing Meng Yifan retreat, Jiang Tian also quickened his pace to charge over, only to find that he could not catch up to Meng Yifan's speed; this secretly shocked him, for if Meng Yifan were determined to flee, Jiang Tian truly could not keep him.

Jiang Tian said: "Kid, aren't you very gutsy? Why are you running? Keep fighting."

Meng Yifan held the Artifact Shield in his left hand and the Ghost Head Blade in his right, his body moving at high speed; Jiang Tian's eagle claw followed closely behind, but it was always just a bit off, unable to grab Meng Yifan's body.

"Divine Bell Cover is a defensive Qi secret technique, while this Eagle Claw Qi is an offensive one; I don't know any Qi secret techniques, so I'm at a disadvantage when dealing with this." Meng Yifan dodged continuously, his heart filled with a longing for the Condensing Qi into Steel Secret Technique.

Without the Condensing Qi into Steel Secret Technique, a martial artist's True Qi is relatively loose and weak, making it impossible to collide head-on with Qi.

"It's a pity that this trip out was intended for Wanxiang Tower to buy cultivation techniques, and I didn't bring the Multi-tube Rocket Launcher; otherwise, hiding at a distance and using Rockets to bombard him should have been enough to defeat Jiang Tian."

Meng Yifan felt a bit of regret; after colliding with Jiang Tian once, he realized his own strength was still too poor and he had to improve his strength as soon as possible.

"To defeat Jiang Tian, I still have to rely on the Ghost Head Blade." Meng Yifan channeled True Qi into the Ghost Head Blade and pointed it toward Jiang Tian; the sound of Ghost Crying Wolf Howling enveloped Jiang Tian.

After devouring a large number of souls, the Ghost Head Blade had become even more mysterious and unpredictable; now, this Ghost Crying Wolf Howling move was not only a sonic attack but also carried some soul-bewitching effects, which could cause people to hallucinate.