Chapter 68: Irresistible Force

Chapter 68: Chapter 68: Irresistible Force

Chen Yue gave Guo Xun a cold glance. He casually swung his left hand forward, Gang Qi swirling in his palm, and slapped the shaft of the whistling halberd as it came crashing down.

CLANG!

The deafening explosion of metal on metal rang out. Guo Xun felt an indescribably terrifying force travel up the halberd’s shaft. The short halberd, made of refined iron and weighing dozens of pounds, was sent flying high into the air by the palm strike.

The web of his thumb split open, blood pouring out freely. The weapon was nearly knocked from his grasp.

His center was wide open!

At the same moment he slapped the halberd aside, Chen Yue’s right fist had already stamped itself onto the center of Guo Xun’s exposed chest.

THWUMP!

It was a sickeningly dull impact. Guo Xun’s eyes bulged, filled with utter agony and disbelief.

He clearly felt a devastating force invade his chest, instantly shattering his sternum and even bursting out from his back.

RRIP! The fabric on his back exploded, leaving a gaping hole. The flesh on his back bulged outward in the clear outline of a fist.

Guo Xun coughed up a spray of blood. His feet left the ground as he was thrown backward, landing heavily in the wild grass several yards away. He tumbled a few more times before collapsing like a boneless heap.

By this time, Gu Yiqiu was already fleeing frantically into the distance.

He couldn’t understand. Just moments ago, this junior had been so thoroughly suppressed by him that he could barely hold on. How had he become a completely different person in the blink of an eye?

That immense power, and that strange tiger’s roar that directly attacked the Heart Spirit... all of it completely surpassed his understanding of the Bone Forging Realm, and even of an ordinary Marrow Refining Realm expert!

’Was he hiding his strength this whole time? Just toying with us? But what’s the point? Could he have some Evil Skill that lets him grow stronger the more he fights?’

Countless chaotic, horrified, and absurd thoughts crashed through Gu Yiqiu’s mind, nearly driving him insane.

But the instinct to survive overrode everything. He didn’t even dare to glance back at Chen Yue, instead pouring all of his strength into his legs.

"Weren’t you just insisting that I return to Youquan Prefecture with you? How can you leave before the conversation is even over? That’s no way to treat a guest. It’s quite rude!"

Gu Yiqiu had barely dashed a hundred feet when a voice sounded in his ear, as if spoken directly behind his head.

The hair on Gu Yiqiu’s body stood on end, and his scalp tingled. His current Body Technique speed was the fastest he had ever moved in his life. ’How was I caught so quickly?’

Utterly horrified, Gu Yiqiu’s combat instincts remained. He sucked in a breath, preparing to forcibly twist around in mid-air and strike out with his palm. He didn’t hope to injure his enemy, only to slow him down for a moment and buy himself a sliver of a chance at survival.

But in that delicate instant, just as he was about to turn...

ROAR!!!

That low, majestic, and terrifying tiger’s roar exploded forth once more.

Gu Yiqiu was prepared this time. He desperately focused all his spirit, even circulating the Heart Nourishing Technique—of which he had only a superficial understanding—to try and stabilize his Heart Spirit and resist the bizarre sound attack.

However, the roar easily pierced through all the defenses he had erected around his Heart Spirit and slammed violently into his consciousness.

HUM!

Gu Yiqiu’s mind went blank. His consciousness fractured for a split second.

His mad dash came to an involuntary, abrupt halt. This sudden stop in the middle of high-speed movement caused the smoothly circulating Qi and Blood Strength in his body to instantly fall into chaos. He lost his balance and staggered.

Not only did he fail to turn and strike, but he nearly tripped over his own feet and pitched forward.

The entire rhythm of his escape was completely shattered.

And in that fatal instant when Gu Yiqiu faltered, Chen Yue had already thrown a punch.

The fist was aimed directly at Gu Yiqiu’s undefended back, exposed as he stumbled forward.

Gang Qi pulsed from the fist, radiating a chilling killing intent.

Gu Yiqiu had just barely struggled free from the stun of the Tiger’s Roar Shatters the God. The moment his consciousness returned, he sensed the deathly fist.

Horrified, he roared as he managed to twist his body around, desperately throwing his injured left palm across his chest to block.

But in his haste, with his body unstable and his Qi Blood in disarray, the Power in this palm strike was less than fifty percent of its usual strength.

CRACK!

Another crisp crack of bone. The moment Gu Yiqiu’s already injured left palm met Chen Yue’s fist, it shattered like rotten wood. His finger and palm bones were crushed to dust.

Before the excruciating pain could even fully register in Gu Yiqiu’s brain, the fist had already smashed through the block as if it were nothing, continuing onward with undiminished force to stamp itself onto Gu Yiqiu’s chest.

This time, Gu Yiqiu had no chance to block with his arms. On the line between life and death, he could only rely on the instincts honed over years of battle, desperately twisting his body a fraction of an inch to the side.

THUD!

An incredibly dull thud sounded, like a heavy hammer striking a great leather drum.

Chen Yue’s fist had landed squarely on his chest!

"Urgh-ah!"

Gu Yiqiu let out a shrill, desperate scream. His eyes instantly became bloodshot and bulged. He could clearly feel that not only was his chest shattered, but a wave of fist Power had passed through his body and broken his spine.

A thick cloud of bloody mist sprayed violently from Gu Yiqiu’s mouth. Like a broken puppet with its strings cut, he was sent flying backward through the air by the punch. He flew a good thirty feet before crashing heavily to the ground.

He skidded for several more yards across the dry grass and gravel before finally coming to a stop, leaving a shocking trail of blood behind him.

Gu Yiqiu lay limply on the cold earth. His spine was completely severed, and he had lost all feeling in the lower half of his body. With his chest caved in, even breathing had become difficult.

Foaming blood continuously welled up in his mouth. Gu Yiqiu struggled to keep his blood-streaked eyes open, his unfocused gaze fixed on the cold, lonely moon above.

His eyes were filled with endless pain, bewilderment, and a profound confusion he could not resolve.

He couldn’t understand.

He really couldn’t understand!

How could a junior at the Bone Forging Realm possibly possess such terrifying strength?

That Gang Qi, that tiger’s roar, that power... What in the world was going on?

’I, Gu Yiqiu, a Marrow Refining Realm expert, am actually going to die here in the wilderness outside Youlin County, at the hands of some unknown young man?’

The soft sound of footsteps, exceptionally clear in the silent wilderness, drew near.

Chen Yue dragged Guo Xun’s body over, walking step by step to the despairing Gu Yiqiu’s side. With a casual toss, he threw Guo Xun to the ground, who landed with a dull thud.

Guo Xun wasn’t dead yet. When Chen Yue had landed that final punch on his chest, he had deliberately held back some of his Power and struck slightly lower, avoiding his heart.

But with his sternum shattered and internal organs severely damaged, he, like Gu Yiqiu, had completely lost the ability to move and was barely clinging to life.

Chen Yue stood beside Gu Yiqiu. The moonlight behind him cast his long shadow, which fell across half of Gu Yiqiu’s face, a face twisted in agony.

Chen Yue looked down, his gaze calm as he surveyed the Marrow Refining Realm expert who, just moments before, had held the power of life and death in his hands.

Gu Yiqiu rolled his eyes, glaring venomously at Chen Yue. He rasped, his voice mixed with bloody foam:

"You... this whole time... you were just toying... with us?"