Chapter 20: Chapter Nineteen: Unbroken

Wu Tie soared into the air, and just as huge chunks of stone rained down like raindrops, Shi Lingqing's mouth curled up and he laughed happily.

Luo Lin let out a low growl, his straight blade sweeping out a circle of silver light that shattered seven or eight stones flying at him. Behind him, a newly arrived youth swung both hands, sending dozens of gleaming triangular spikes flying out.

The triangular spikes flickered with a faint cold light, accurately striking the falling stones.

The triangular spikes, the size of a little finger, were heavy and sharp; only a dull thud was heard as the stones were smashed into bean‑sized fragments, which then fell on Luo Lin and the others, now devoid of any lethal force.

"Go, kill!" Luo Lin shouted, charging forward toward Wu Tie: "Ding, cooperate with me!"

The youth behind him slapped his waist‑held beast‑skin pouch; the triangular spikes that had just landed sprang back up, flying back into the pouch like a swarm of happy bees.

Six other youths surged forward to attack Shi Lingqing's group, the youth Luo Lin called "Ding" staying close behind Luo Lin. As Luo Lin moved, Ding flicked his right hand, sending three triangular spikes arcing toward Wu Tie's body.

Wu Tie glided in the air, unable to dodge in time.

The triangular spikes came with extreme speed, a whisper of cold wind piercing Wu Tie's left and right chest and abdomen.

With a crisp clang, sparks flickered and the triangular spikes rebounded, leaving no mark on Wu Tie's seemingly thin tight‑fitting armor.

Ding's eyes lit up: "Fine armor!"

Wu Tie's feet slammed onto the ground, landing right in front of Luo Lin, his spear thrusting straight at Luo Lin.

Luo Lin swung his straight blade, striking the spear heavily.

With a tremendous boom, Shi Lingqing's party and the six charging youths all turned their gaze this way.

Wu Tie's arms trembled slightly; the force transmitted from Luo Lin's blade was not as great as he had imagined. On the contrary, Wu Tie's power completely overwhelmed Luo Lin, his spear shattering the blade and the spearhead thrust straight toward Luo Lin's chest.

Luo Lin let out a strange cry, leaping backward while two small daggers shot from his waist pouch, turning into cold light that slammed heavily at Wu Tie.

Wu Tie swung his spear in an arc, knocking one dagger away with a single strike; the other dagger came too fast, brushing past the spear and sinking deep into Wu Tie's waist.

Another crisp clang rang out, sparks flickering; the tight‑fitting armor suffered no damage, and the dagger rebounded.

"Good!" Wu Tie himself couldn't help shouting excitedly.

He slammed his left hand on a slightly protruding diamond‑shaped plate on his chest‑abdomen; the cuffs and collar of his tight‑fitting armor glowed faintly. The armor writhed, and a pallid metallic fluid oozed out, quickly coating his hands and head.

The metallic fluid solidified, encasing Wu Tie's entire body in the tight‑fitting armor.

At his eyes were two thin crimson sheets flashing with a ferocious bloody light; paired with the pallid white armor over his whole body, he looked grim at a glance: "I said this is my turf—you're not allowed to fight here."

Once his head was fully covered by the armor, Wu Tie's voice turned low and stiff, with a faint metallic ringing.

Luo Lin let out a loud roar, waving his straight blade while two daggers spun around him at high speed, producing a piercing whine; his body exploded into three afterimages that rushed at Wu Tie.

Luo Lin's speed exceeded Wu Tie's expectations, and his technique of turning his body into afterimages left Wu Tie flustered and struggling to cope.

He only heard the sound of tearing wind; shadows flickered wildly around him before Wu Tie could locate the enemy—blade light flashed, the straight blade hacking him dozens of times, the two daggers whistling as they slashed him dozens more times.

Wu Tie stood rooted, utterly still.

The pallid tight‑fitting armor was immaculate; despite Luo Lin's frenzied assault, it bore not a single mark.

Ding behind Luo Lin bellowed, slapping his waist pouch; dozens of triangular spikes flashed with cold light, whistling as they shot forth. The spikes hammered Wu Tie's body, producing only scattered sparks—none inflicted any harm.

Having stood in place while enduring a fierce onslaught, Wu Tie gradually grew accustomed to Luo Lin's storm‑like assault.

An invisible force field around his body could now capture Luo Lin's afterimages; of the three shadows, only one was Luo Lin's true form.

Suddenly, Wu Tie bellowed; the air beside him solidified instantly, causing two of Luo Lin's three afterimages to collapse, while his true body jerked to a halt directly to Wu Tie's front‑right.

This was precisely the spot most convenient for Wu Tie to attack; his spear, tipped with a hint of cold light, thrust heavily toward Luo Lin's thigh.

Wu Tie did not want to kill.

Originally, he had little desire to fight in this battle.

If it weren't for Shi Lingqing… Wu Tie might never have lifted a hand against Luo Lin's group.

Thus he only wanted to seriously injure Luo Lin; if he could pierce one of Luo Lin's thighs, perhaps Luo Lin would calm down for a while.

Among the six youths charging at Shi Lingqing's party, the newly arrived youth abruptly halted, rubbed his hands together, and a stone pillar as thick as a sea bowl materialized in his grasp.

Gripping the stone pillar, nearly as tall as himself, he slammed it into the ground; the surrounding earth instantly heaved like violent ripples.

Everyone within a hundred meters lost their footing; Wu Tie's thrust lost its aim, merely grazing Luo Lin's thigh. The spear tip was razor‑sharp, tearing Luo Lin's trousers and leaving a half‑inch‑deep blood groove on his thigh.

Blood spattered; Luo Lin howled in pain as his straight blade flew from his hand, turning into a cold light that slammed hard into Wu Tie's chest.

This strike was far stronger than the two daggers' attacks; although it likewise failed to pierce the tight‑fitting armor, Wu Tie felt as if hit head‑on by a siege hammer, stumbling backward over ten meters.

The straight blade trembled violently, spinning and rebounding upward dozens of meters.

Luo Lin let out a loud cry, again becoming three afterimages that rose ten‑odd meters, seizing the straight blade with one hand, then swooping down from the sky toward Wu Tie.

The blade's light shone like snow, illuminating Wu Tie's eyes.

This plunging aerial strike was extraordinarily fierce, the blade's edge aiming straight for Wu Tie's neck.

As Wu Tie prepared to dodge, the youth holding the earth‑yellow stone pillar flicked his wrist; the seemingly heavy pillar flew lightly over a hundred meters, landing heavily a few meters before Wu Tie.

Yellow light flickered on the pillar as the ground undulated; two stone arms shot up from the earth, gripping Wu Tie's calves fiercely.

Wu Tie's body shuddered, rendering him immobile.

Luo Lin bellowed, flashing mid‑air, and his long blade slammed heavily into Wu Tie's neck.

Sparks flew; Luo Lin's long blade shuddered violently, the blade bending near breaking. Wu Tie's tight‑fitting armor remained mirror‑smooth, unmarred.

Before Luo Lin could land, Wu Tie gripped his spear and thrust it at him.

Luo Lin's blow was clearly aimed at severing Wu Tie's head, with no intention of holding back.

Wu Tie's chest burned with rage; he straightforwardly thrust his spear at Luo Lin's vital heart—as Wu Zhan had said, and Lao Tie had taught these days: if someone wants to kill you, strike first and kill them!

"Guarding against the unripe"… Lao Tie, long‑winded and ostentatious, said this to Wu Tie.

Luo Lin had overexerted; his body in mid‑air had lost the ability to dodge.

Ding from behind yelled, dozens of triangular spikes shooting forth; they struck Luo Lin's clothes, jerking his body sideways by over half a foot.

Blood sprayed; the sound of flesh tearing was clearly audible.

The spear pierced Luo Lin's left shoulder; Wu Tie swung both hands hard, and Luo Lin, howling in agony, was slammed to the ground by the spear's momentum.

Now, a single swing of Wu Tie's arms unleashed pure bodily strength of twenty‑to‑thirty thousand catties.

He was infuriated that Luo Lin had struck so viciously, and he also tapped into the elemental power he had just cultivated; aided by that power, his physical strength increased by more than double.

Swinging his spear, the earth-yellow stone pillar before Wu Tie suddenly brightened; where Luo Lin's body hit the ground, a large expanse of earth writhed, and a big patch of land instantly turned into a thick mud pool.

With a tremendous boom, countless mud shot up into the sky, and Luo Lin heavily smashed into the mud pool.

The stone arms beneath Wu Tie's feet suddenly sprouted four more, each gripping his thighs and waist; the earth-yellow stone pillar shot up violently and came crashing down toward his head.

Wu Tie let out a low angry roar, his body shook violently as all his power erupted; the stone arms emitted a piercing cracking sound. He struggled hard twice, all the stone arms snapped, and he swept his spear horizontally, slamming it hard against the pillar.

Though the pillar looked light, it actually weighed several thousand catties.

But this weight meant little to Wu Tie; as he swept his spear, a huge boom sounded, the pillar was smashed and flew tens of meters, shattering a distant boulder.

"I said, this is my territory—no fighting!"

In the mud pool, Luo Lin, who had just spat a mouthful of blood from the fall, struggled to get up; Wu Tie stepped beside him and grabbed his head with his left hand.

For no reason, Wu Tie recalled the skulls he had washed at the Wu family's Shibao.

Luo Lin's neck was fragile; Wu Tie clearly felt that if he wished, a slight turn would be enough to tear Luo Lin's head off…

Veins stood out on Luo Lin's forehead, his whole body stiff, and he gasped heavily.

Wu Tie could sense that Luo Lin's heart was filled with anger and despair, but no fear.

Anger and despair, but no fear.

Wu Tie's hand tightened, and Luo Lin's hair made a cracking sound.

Just a few meters away, Ding let out a loud shout, then he suddenly thudded to his knees before Wu Tie: 'Release Luo Lin… we, we…'

Ding, whose face still bore a hint of youthfulness, was obviously not good with words; he placed his hands on the ground and knocked his head three times against Wu Tie with a thud-thud-thud; right before him lay a sharp stone, his forehead split open and blood flowed all over his face.

Wu Tie's heart gave a violent twitch.

At this moment, Ding's silhouette overlapped with Wu Jin's.

The anger and killing intent in his heart receded like a tide, completely gone; Wu Tie slowly loosened his left hand, lifted Luo Lin up, and threw him before Ding.

"This is my territory." Wu Tie repeated his stance again.

Shi Lingqing and her retinue quickly approached Wu Tie from afar; she coquettishly called out: 'Young master, please, young master, decide for us…'

The youth who controlled the earth-yellow stone pillar stepped forward two steps and, in a deep voice, said: 'We will follow this adult's lead; on his territory, we will no longer fight.'

Wu Tie nodded.

Ding carefully rose to his feet, glanced at Wu Tie, then lifted Luo Lin, whose bones were many broken, and quickly returned to his companions.

Shi Lingqing looked at Luo Lin's group, gritted her teeth, and strode toward Wu Tie.

Wu Tie ignored her, turned and leapt; his body glided like a bird, using the ferns for leverage, and after a few jumps he ran far away.

Shi Lingqing couldn't catch up; she could only coquettishly shout 'Young master' a few times, but got no response from Wu Tie.

Shi Lingqing's group and Wu Tie's group faced each other from over two hundred meters away for a while. They stared at each other, and the youth holding the stone pillar snorted: 'Shi Lingqing… I see where you, this wicked woman, could flee. We will keep watch on you; as long as you leave this adult's territory…'

Shi Lingqing snorted without fear: 'I roughly guessed your background… I can afford to linger in this young master's territory; do you dare to waste time with me?'

Holding her head high, Shi Lingqing laughed triumphantly a few times, then turned and walked toward her wooden shed, swaying.

One leg remained abnormally numb; although she had intended to leave like a princess, her movements were now rather awkward.

Four ox-tribe warriors and eight human guards followed behind Shi Lingqing, facing Luo Lin's group as they slowly retreated. When the distance between the sides exceeded a li, they turned and followed behind Shi Lingqing.

Seven youths looked at the gravely wounded Luo Lin; the youth holding the longbow gave an angry low shout.

"Chief!" Several youths looked at the youth holding the stone pillar.

The youth gritted his teeth, now looking toward the direction Wu Tie had gone, now looking toward where Shi Lingqing and her group were.

After a long while, he finally said coldly: 'She says we can't afford to drag this out? Then we'll drag it out with her. All consequences, I will bear. No matter what, we will surely avenge Old Three's grudge to the fullest.'

"An eye for an eye, blood for blood. Kill one of me, I will slaughter your whole clan." The youth's voice was icy cold, sending a chill that rose from the bones.

Luo Lin, held in Ding's arms, opened his eyes and stammered: 'Boss Wu, that kid's armor… is it an ancient treasure? Why can't we break through?'

Luo Lin's face was ashen, his voice weak to the extreme.

Boss Wu stared blankly at the direction Wu Tie had vanished, then suddenly laughed: 'Indeed, this kid is tough to handle; his armor is likely an ancient treasure. We're not allowed to attack? But what are we here for?'

"We are the Mist Blades, we are assassins, we are killers, we are reapers walking in darkness… Who said we must kill face‑to‑face?"

Wisps of light smoke curled around; Wu Tie crouched on a small hillock overlooking Shi Lingqing's group, grilling.

Suddenly, from far away, a mournful wail of an ox-tribe person came.