Translator: E.3.3. Editor: Vermillion

  Just like that, the burly man Xia Da easily snatched, with one hand, the cold, black spear which exuded a concentrated scent of blood.

  Xia Da simply seized it with his palm without having to use his true energy. His muscular body was strong enough to resist the waves of true energy that the serpent-man Yu Feng had sent his way.

  Yu Feng’s pupils shrank and his heart shuddered. Able to catch that terrific spear merely with his hands of flesh…… This human before his eyes had a body built magnificently, one that was even stronger than that of the typical spirit beast.

  Xia Da noticed the astonishment on serpent-man Yu Feng’s face. His lips curled, showing off a row of sparkling white teeth, and he chuckled: "This spear…… is not bad."

  Afterwards, Xia Da hurled a mighty force, and an overpowering force of energy burst out of his hands. Yu Feng, with a spear in his hands, was instantly propelled into the air and forced to glide towards Xia Da.

  "Damn it! What kind of force is this!"

  Yu Feng was panic-stricken inside. Even with his strength as a seventh level Battle-Saint, he simply could not resist this terrifying pull.

  His long serpent tail shook violently, as if a sharp blade cutting through the air, and sliced scathingly towards Xia Da.

  A serpent-man’s tail was normally their strongest weapon. Those who have trained solely with their serpent tails found it to be much more powerful than the typical man-made weapons.

  However, Yu Feng’s flinging serpent tail was once again caught by Xia Da. The immense pain from a ripping sensation caused Yu Feng to howl. With a clatter, his long spear fell onto the ground.

  Xia Da laughed coldly and scornfully. A gigantic, rock-like fist came rushing down and smashed mercilessly onto Yu Feng’s body.

  Suddenly, serpent-man Yu Feng, who was at the peak of seventh grade Battle-Saint, found himself knocked into the sky by the smack of a fist. A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed out as he crashed hard into the walls of the alleyway and knocked off a pile of bricks.

  "Someone who acts blindly without thinking about the consequences. I told you to scram, yet you insist on sticking your foot in." Xia Da clenched his fist. The sound of his knuckles cracking was akin to branches snapping in half.

  Xia Da carried his monstrously large body, and edged closer one step at a time toward Yu Feng, who was struggling desperately on the floor.

  A formidable force of pressure surged out of his body, one that caused the hearts of all the seventh grade Battle-Saints present to sink and tremble.

  This was an eighth grade War-God…… like a warrior simply without a rival!

  Serpent-man Yu Feng had blood dripping from the corners of his mouth. His serpent tail continued to sway as a sense of horror smeared across the eyes he used to glare at Xia Da…… Damn it, who would have thought this was an eighth grade War-God!

  He suddenly felt so humiliated. He had promised to defend the store, yet the first time he made a move, he was almost beaten up like a dead dog.

  "I wanted to let you off the hook for the sake of the Serpentine Sovereign. But since you are clearly seeking death, you can’t blame me for the rest." Xia Da was like a towering mountain that sat majestically with all its grandeur. He peered down upon Yu Feng, who was sprawling on the floor, and slowly lifted up his foot.

  The muscles on his feet were just as sturdy as those on the rest of his body. With a single trample, this serpent-man would be off to meet his maker.

  Yu Feng’s pupils shrank. A gush of true energy burst from his body as he sought to flee in a scurry. Yet, Xia Da merely laughed coldly and stepped down on his serpent-tail. With that, the true energy within his body had completed dissipated……

  Spat, out came another mouthful of fresh blood. Yu Feng landed hopelessly on the floor.

  "Serpent-men will be serpent-men. An inferior species at the end of the day, and no different from the man-beasts living in the Wildlands." Xia Da taunted with a light smile. His rock-like fist rose once again, this time targeting the serpent-man Yu Feng’s head.

  If this fist landed, Yu Feng’s head was bound to explode, regardless of his cultivation as a seventh grade Battle-Saint.

  "Hey…… let go of that serpent-man."

  The air suddenly froze. Those from the Ferocious Hall merely looked at that serpent-man as if he were a joke. Not a trace of pity could be found in their eyes. Since he dared to ruffle Elder Xia’s feathers, he had to prepare for death. But alas, a calm voice cut through the deadly still atmosphere.

  Everyone was taken back, and gazed toward the source of that utterance.

  Xia Da also paused the fist ready for launch, twisted around his head, and glanced at the slim figure leaning by the door frame.

  "You want to save this bonehead? Sure…… trade you with the Five Stripes Path-Understanding Tree." Xia Da stood up straight and smiled at Bu Fang.

  Bu Fang didn’t return the smile, and continued to look at him coolly.

  Suddenly, Sheng Mu, who had stayed quiet all this time, stepped toward Bu Fang with a chuckle.

  "Elder Xia, I’ll take care of this fellow for you! Merely a fifth grade Battle-King, yet with the guts to act all tough in front of us. I’ve found him to be an eye sore for a while now!"

  With a loud bellow, Sheng Mu immediately appeared in front of Bu Fang. His eyes widened, sniggering coldly, as his hands clawed toward Bu Fang.

  Bu Fang was still leaning by the door frame, his complexions unchanged.

  "Troublemaker, you will be stripped as an example to others."

  Behind Bu Fang, Whitey’s robotic voice boomed. Its mechanic eyes flashed red, and such beam scanned across Sheng Mu, blinding his eyes.

  Bang……

  Sheng Mu’s clutch landed on Whitey’s stomach, yet did not leave a single scratch.

  "What…… is this random thing? A puppet?"

  Sheng Mu wrinkled his brows, and conjured up another force of energy with his hands. This time, his claw aimed to tear through the puppet.

  But no matter how much force he exerted, Whitey remained unshakable.

  Afterwards, Whitey lifted up a palm and smacked down.

  Sheng Mu felt a crisis coming his way. A burst of true energy enveloped his entire body.

  Boom Bang!

  With a bam, Sheng Mu was sent flying from Whitey’s slap. He was hurled ferociously against the walls.

  The others from the Ferocious Hall felt their hearts beating with fear. Sheng Mu was knocked into the air without even able to strike back…… Why was this puppet so powerful?!

  Whitey’s mechanic eyes flared, and then extended an arm to pick up Sheng Mu from the pile of rubbles.

  Rip!!

  A crispy sound reverberated in the air. Sheng Mu found his garments torn into shards, instantly revealing his muscular, burly body.

  Bang!

  After stripping him clean, Whitey threw the bare naked Sheng Mu onto the floor.

  "A demon who strips others!"

  Someone from the Ferocious Hall exclaimed out of terror. It turned out that this puppet was the guardian of the store, a demon who strips others!

  "I’m going to kill you!" Sheng Mu roared. He took out another piece of garment from the spatial spirit beast tusk hanging by his neck and clothed himself. His eyes flashed fury blazes of rage.

  Whitey’s mechanic eyes whirred, with its red beams once again landing on Sheng Mu. That ray of red flickered, with a slight tint of purple shine crystallizing.

  Serpent-man Yu Feng, who was laying nearby, simply stared aghast with his mouth hanging ajar.

  What the hell? What just happened? What was I doing? What was the point of me getting all beaten up?

  How he wished to drill a hole through the ground in that very moment and bury his head……

  Who would have thought that the store’s defense capacity was so solid. And yet there he was, boasting shamelessly about being the protector of the store. Owner Bu must have laughed at his overconfidence when he suggested it. Though Owner Bu had already turned down his offer, he still decided unilaterally to come to the store’s defense.

  And the result was being pounded like a dead dog. It was beyond an imaginable level of humiliation.

  "Back off first." Xia Da stopped a Sheng Mu ready to strike again. His face showed a trace of fascination as he gazed toward Whitey and curled his lips. That glance was much like one a hunter emitted whilst studying his prey.

  "You puppet, have got quite the strength…… why don’t you come at me."

  Xia Da was not short of brute force, and he certainly took pride in his impressive strength. Eyeing the chubby puppet, Xia Da bawled and stomped his feet. The floor tiles in the alleyway instantly cracked and were fragmented into bits.

  Boom!

  A tremendous force of pressure appeared before Whitey. Rock-like fists rained down on Whitey’s plump stomach.

  A muffled ring echoed though the entire alleyway.

  Whitey was steady like an unshakeable mountain. Its robotic head lowered, the red beams from its mechanic eyes continued to flash, and rested on Xia Da’s body.

  Xia Da scrunched his brows. How could there be no effect whatsoever?

  "Fine! Your store dares to posses this Five Stripes Path-Understanding Tree, so it is unsurprising you’ve got something to depend on! Then today…… I’ll test if your source of reliance is tough enough!"

  Xia Da’s pupils shrank. Waves of true energy circulated within his body and his entire person swelled up. This expansion made him even bigger than Whitey’s figure, as if he had truly transformed into a brooding mountain.

  Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang!!

  Xia Da lifted up both of his fists and, like an unstoppable motor, showered an unmoving Whitey with a torrent of smacks.

  The entire alleyway shook violently, as if it were hit by an earthquake. Gray sprinkles of dust floated into the air and covered the alleyway with smokes of haze.

  Bu Fang stopped leaning carelessly by the door frame. He adjusted his stature and scrutinized the ferocious, beastly streams of light flashing amidst the dust storm.

  He had absolute faith in Whitey. But the fellow this time was like a mad dog. His rain of fists was like hammers plummeting down. For an average seventh grade Battle-Saint, every one of those blows would be fatal.

  Within the store, the red-clothed Mu Lingfeng also watched soberly.

  Xia Da was as large as a beast. He was well known within the Three Godly Temples of the Wildlands and had once ripped a seventh grade spirit beast into two halves with his bare hands. He was a disturbing and fearsome kind of existence. With someone like this giving his all…… this store was perhaps near its end.