Chapter 312: Good Man!

Immediately, a chilling figure wreathed in thick black qi, malevolent energy, and toxic miasma pierced through layers of fog, hurtling toward Chen Mu at astonishing speed.

Where it passed, the air hissed with a "chih-chih" sound of corrosion.

"So you finally showed yourself."

Chen Mu's lips curled into a cold smile; he did not dodge or retreat. The Xian Long Sword let out a clear, ringing cry and charged forward head-on!

The piercing realm of Sword Intent Second Level fully empowered it; the True Wu Cleansing Sword Art was pushed to its absolute limit.

Brilliant, blazing crimson sword qi surged like a river of flame—radiant as the sun, utterly yang and unyielding—instantly tearing through the dense miasma, leaving behind a hundred-meter-long, crystal-clear vacuum trace in midair as it descended upon the oncoming black figure!

"Earth Altar Realm?!"

The black figure was none other than the leader of the Tiger Fang Bandits, Ximen Fenghua. Feeling the terrifying power and realm suppression within that sword qi, he screamed in shock and fury.

His face, wrapped in black qi, twisted grotesquely with extreme jealousy and rage; his eyes turned blood-red, like a bloodthirsty beast.

"So what if I'm Earth Altar Realm?"

"You'll all die!!"

With his furious roar, the malevolent energy, miasma, poison, yin energy, and blood qi around him forcibly merged and twisted into a foul yet immensely powerful strange true qi, all channeled into one outstretched hand that swelled instantly into a massive, skeletal white bone claw, which slammed head-on toward the flame sword qi that burned all in its path!

"Boom!!"

"Boom—"

The two collided violently.

A deafening explosion erupted, as if tearing through eardrums; the terrifying shockwave spread outward like a solid force, instantly crushing and pulverizing the remaining wooden huts and rocks around them, even turning the scattered limbs and severed arms and legs into a mist of blood and flesh.

The entire Tiger Fang Mountain trembled beneath this violent collision!

"Puh—"

A dark red clot of blood erupted from Ximen Fenghua's mouth; his entire body flew backward like a severed kite, crashing violently into a broken wooden hut behind him, sinking deep into the ground and carving a long furrow.

The bone claw, forged from his demonic cultivation, did not dissipate—he still gripped it tightly, though its glow had dimmed considerably.

His face was as pale as paper, devoid of any color; his eyes filled with disbelief and terror.

"How is this possible?!"

Ximen Fenghua opened his mouth, letting out a hoarse growl, his voice trembling slightly.

Chen Mu's strength far exceeded his expectations—by far too much!

This was not the power of someone who had just recently broken through to the Earth Altar Realm's Divine Bridge stage.

"Damn it!"

Fury flashed in Ximen Fenghua's eyes; he cursed, and his pupils instantly turned blood-red.

He violently activated his demonic art; the thick crimson miasma blanketing Tiger Fang Mountain seemed pulled by an invisible force, surging wildly toward him, rapidly condensing and compressing upon his body into a dark red "miasma armor" that writhed and emitted a foul, corrosive stench!

"Hoom~"

Almost the instant the armor formed, Chen Mu's next sword strike descended!

The blazing flame sword qi fell like divine punishment.

"Roar~!"

Ximen Fenghua let out a bestial bellow; the miasma armor detached from his body like a living monster and charged headlong into the flame sword qi!

"Bang!!!"

The two clashed and exploded again; the violent shockwave further shaved off another layer of the ground.

Yet this time, Ximen Fenghua endured the recoil without retreating or spitting blood.

His crimson eyes, utterly devoid of reason, resonated more deeply with the miasma of the entire Tiger Fang Mountain; more poison miasma surged forth, coiling around him, elevating his aura once more to an even more terrifying and horrifying level.

"Aoooh!"

Ximen Fenghua roared, transforming into a dark red storm of toxic miasma that shot toward Chen Mu with blinding speed!

"Hmph!"

Chen Mu snorted. Facing this seemingly amplified assault, he did not swing his sword again—instead, he focused his mind—

Shocking Spike!

An invisible, intangible yet piercingly sharp mental attack, like the finest and deadliest steel needle, instantly crossed the distance between them, ignoring all layers of miasma defense, and stabbed directly into Ximen Fenghua's brain!

"Aaaah—"

Ximen Fenghua's forward momentum halted abruptly; he let out an agonizing, piercing scream, clutching his head with both hands, staggering wildly in midair like a drunkard. The concentrated malevolent energy and miasma around him lost control, swirling chaotically and dissolving.

"Shhh!"

Strike while he's down!

Chen Mu's eyes blazed with cold light; the Xian Long Sword swung again.

The power of Sword Intent Second Level was pushed to its peak; his internal true energy flowed without restraint; the True Wu Cleansing Sword Art unleashed its strongest strike yet!

A condensed, solid crimson sword aura, as if capable of severing mountains, ripped through the sky and slashed down with unstoppable force!

"Boom—"

The thunderous roar echoed like a divine strike from the heavens, making the entire Tiger Fang Mountain moan in agony.

Terrifying sword qi and energy surged outward from Chen Mu and Ximen Fenghua, forcibly clearing away the dense miasma across a radius of hundreds of meters, creating a brief, clear zone of emptiness!

When the light faded and the energy settled.

All the demonic energies gathered around Ximen Fenghua had vanished; his body lay like a torn sack at the bottom of a several-meter-deep, charred pit, continuously vomiting blood mixed with chunks of internal organs. His face, arms, and legs were crisscrossed with deep fissures, as if he were a porcelain vessel on the verge of shattering.

He struggled to lift his head, his unfocused gaze fixed on the tall, sword-wielding figure standing above the pit, and with his last breath, he croaked out a few words.

"You… you… who… are you…"

Before the words were fully spoken—

"Bang!"

His entire body could no longer withstand the internal and external injuries; it exploded violently, bursting into countless shards of flesh and blood that splattered across the entire pit.

"That's it?"

Chen Mu sheathed the Dragon-Subduing Sword and looked down at the shapeless pile of minced meat in the pit, his brow slightly furrowed, a trace of doubt rising in his heart.

"Du Yuansheng went to such elaborate lengths to put on an act, luring me all the way to Tiger Fang Mountain, just to use my hand to get rid of this Ximen Fenghua? Is there some private grudge between them?"

【Corpse discovered. Pick up?】

"Yes!"

The card was in hand; he checked it on the way.

Soul-Boosting Card!

Another Soul-Boosting Card!

Du Yuansheng's purpose, for now, remained unclear.

But the haul from coming to Tiger Fang Mountain was quite decent.

Two Soul-Boosting Cards could save Chen Mu several years of spirit-boosting time.

From that angle, Du Yuansheng was a rare "good man"!

Chen Mu shook his head and laughed at himself.

Since he couldn't sort it out, he couldn't be bothered to think on it further.

With a casual flick, he released several balls of flame true qi, setting fire to every corpse in the Shanzhai—including Ximen Fenghua's remains—burning them all to ash and wiping away every trace.

Then his body rose into the air, turning into a streak of flowing light, heading straight back to Weizhoucheng…