<(x5) Sixth Level Spirit Apprentice - Human slain>
<+30 Void Qi | 48 / 5,000>
<(x2) Fifth Level Spirit Apprentice - Human slain>
<+10 Void Qi | 58 / 5,000>
Xuan slaughtered them effortlessly, and now there was only a single goon left alongside the woman.
He seemed the strongest of the group, but he was now frozen in fear.
So Xuan didn't beat around the bush as he took one step forward and swung his sword down, killing the man right then and there.
<(x1) Seventh Level Spirit Apprentice - Human slain>
<+7 Void Qi | 65 / 5,000>
Xuan twirled the sword around, then tossed it back to Yuelan.
He approached the woman who went by the name of Yena.
She was on the ground, tears streaming down her eyes as she held the knife in front of her.
"W-Wait! We can talk this out!" Yena yelled. "I was only trying to mess around! I wasn't going to kill you, I promise!"
"You like to flaunt the word 'promise' a lot," Xuan remarked. "By now, it has lost its effect, so just shut your mouth."
He yanked the knife out of her hands, and without another word, stabbed it through her heart.
And moments later...
<(x1) Fourth Level Spirit Apprentice - Human slain>
<+4 Void Qi | 69 / 5,000>
He let out a silent sigh as he met Yuelan's conflicted gaze.
"We'll have to get used to doing this, Yuelan," Xuan said flatly. "But I won't rush you, so let's pack up their gear and head out to find some Spirit Warrior monsters, okay?"
Yuelan stared at him for a few moments, then nodded.
With that, the two collected all the loot and soon made their way elsewhere.
.
.
.
"D-Did you catch all that?" Zhihao asked, his hands shaking uncontrollably.
He leaned over the balcony railing, spotting nine corpses scattered on the ground.
He could still see the departing backs of the two demons who did this to them.
"Zhihao... please..." Yue muttered, placing a hand over his shoulder.
Yue was his girlfriend, and the two hid away from all the chaos to cultivate alongside some other people they encountered.
But the noise earlier made Zhihao check it out.
He could never have expected there to be such a massacre happening right below their survivor camp.
Zhihao gently pushed Yue aside as he ran past tens of people and arrived in front of an old man with a cane.
His name was Hui Chun, and he was the elder of this small survivor settlement.
"Old coot! I—"
"I heard," Elder Chun replied, stroking his beard. "The woman went by the name of Yuelan, correct?"
"Uh... yes..." Zhihao replied, flustered. "Your hearing really is something else, though..."
Elder Chun chuckled. "I may be blind, but my ears work just fine. As for the man, I didn't hear his name."
Zhihao swiftly nodded. "I didn't hear it either, but they seemed close... They didn't look like a couple, so maybe siblings?"
Elder Chun's expression darkened. "Siblings, perhaps. But their hands are soaked with far more blood than you saw today."
"What?"
"They seemed incredibly strong, and they killed without hesitation, Zhihao," Elder Chun stated, slowly standing up and extending his cane. "Spread rumors about their cruelty. Make sure all those who seek information find out about the existence of these two demonic siblings."
"Old coot... are you sure? It kind of looked like self-defense?" Zhihao asked. "They were chased into that alleyway, and—"
"No!" Elder Chun slammed the ground with his cane, causing it to slightly cave in.
Red veins bulged on his wrist, which went unnoticed by the startled Zhihao.
"No matter their stance or affiliation, killing is unjust. If they were so strong, they could've just disarmed the attackers! But no, they ruthlessly killed them all! Because of that, I want you to do what has to be done, Zhihao."
Zhihao stared at the old coot for a few moments, fear welling up in his chest.
"Y-Yes... I will get to it right away."
.
.
.
"Yuelan, doesn't it feel like someone's talking about us?" Xuan asked, picking his ear.
"I think you're just being paranoid, big brother," Yuelan replied, then abruptly stopped, pointing her finger ahead.
To Xuan's surprise, there was a single gorilla-looking monster ahead.
Yet it was a bit unique, as it had a large turtle shell strapped to its back and sharp crab pincers for hands.
And the Qi too... its Qi feels immense. Definitely much larger than what I had felt from the other monsters, Xuan thought with a frown.
"Yuelan, I'm going to deal with this one," he whispered, determined.
She nodded and held out her sword, but he didn't accept.
"I want to try unlocking a Fist Skill. I'll just keep hitting it until I get it," he said with a grin.
"Heh... I guess you're a bit of a masochist," Yuelan remarked with a click of her tongue, then turned to the side.
It seemed like there was another monster just like the one in front of them.
So with a nod, she ran toward the other monster.
As for Xuan, he took a deep breath and activated Swift Step, appearing right behind the strange monster.
He maneuvered around the shell and struck its side. Yet, as expected, the Qi surrounding the monster waded off his attack.
It almost felt as if he had struck a solid wall. And before he could throw another punch, the hybrid gorilla lunged at him.
It was so fast that he barely had enough time to Swift Step out of the way, but even so, Xuan followed up with a kick to the side of its head, then another right after.
And like that, the fight continued in a stalemate, with the hybrid gorilla hitting and Xuan countering for what felt like tens of minutes.
Beads of sweat began falling down his forehead, his body aching all over.
His Qi reserves finally fell below 1 million, and that was when the pop-up he was waiting for finally appeared.
—
—
A faint grin appeared on Xuan's face.
Now we're talking.