High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Chen Yuan strained his ears, the perception granted by his ”Shadow Crow” Heart Image spreading to its limit. ”No life signs within three kilometers, but... there are vibrations in the distance. Very faint, like a large group on the move.”

You Sicheng stopped, his left hand resting on the short saber at his waist. ”The Celestial Wolf headquarters wouldn’t just do nothing. We’ve destroyed five mining areas and killed two Priests. If they don’t send reinforcements after that, their civilization would have been wiped out long ago.”

Xu Wuyi looked up to the north, the direction they had come from and the general location of the Celestial Wolf headquarters. Dark red clouds hung low, like clotted blood.

”Whatever’s coming, we don’t have time to get tied down,” Hong Nianyi said, starting to walk again. ”The flying vehicle is our only way out. We have to reach it before dawn.”

The team sped up again.

But just half an hour later, Chen Yuan suddenly raised his right hand—the signal to halt.

The five of them quickly took cover behind a rocky slope.

”They’re here.” Chen Yuan’s voice was tense. ”Due north, seven kilometers. Four high-speed targets. Their Energy readings... are strong.”

Lin Jue pulled up the detector data. On the screen, four red dots were closing in at an astonishing speed, followed by dozens of weaker light signatures.

”They aren’t ordinary War Generals.” Lin Jue stared at the data. ”Their Life Energy Levels are all above 39.8, and... their Energy fluctuations have some kind of resonance, like they’re a single entity.”

Hong Nianyi tightened her grip on her saber’s hilt. ”Divine Sons.”

Xu Wuyi looked at her. ”You know about them?”

”I’ve heard of them.” Hong Nianyi’s expression was grave. ”In the Celestial Wolf Civilization’s inheritance system, the Divine Beings are responsible for communing with the gods, while the Divine Sons are chosen warriors who receive the Celestial Wolf God’s blessing, granting them power far beyond their peers. They don’t usually leave the headquarters, unless...”

”Unless the situation is so severe that it requires them to act.” You Sicheng finished her sentence, a cold glint in his eyes. ”Looks like we’ve made quite a scene.”

For War General Level experts sprinting at full speed, a distance of seven kilometers was a journey of only a few minutes.

The five of them didn’t choose to keep running.

There was no escape.

The enemy was clearly faster than them, and they were encircling them from four directions, having obviously locked onto their position.

”Prepare for battle.” Hong Nianyi drew her Long Saber. ”Chen Yuan, Lin Jue, you two are on cover and interference. Old You, you’re with me. Xu Wuyi—”

She looked at Xu Wuyi. ”The leader is yours.”

Xu Wuyi nodded, holding his Meteor Iron Long Spear horizontally before him.

The Dark Gold Heart Image ebbed and flowed in his sea of consciousness—a majestic mountain, a Golden Crow beating its wings. He could feel that the approaching enemies were unlike any Werewolf he had faced before.

Four figures appeared at the edge of his vision.

They weren’t running, but practically flying just above the ground.

No, it wasn’t flight, but a visual illusion created by their extreme speed. Dark red streams of air engulfed them, trailing long wakes behind them.

The leader was exceptionally tall, nearly three meters, his body encased in dark gold Bone Armor. The armor plates were covered in intricate, wolf-shaped runes.

He carried no weapons, his hands hanging naturally at his sides. But from his fingertips extended half-meter-long, dark red claws, like ten Curved Sabers.

He stopped on a rocky hill a hundred meters away from the five of them. The three figures behind him landed one by one, fanning out in formation.

These four were all Werewolves, but completely different from ordinary Werewolf Warriors. Their gazes were sharper, their auras more condensed, and their bodies were wreathed in a faint, bloody light—the symbol of the Celestial Wolf God’s blessing.

The leader’s crimson eyes swept over the five humans, finally settling on Xu Wuyi.

”Humans.” He spoke, his voice deep like rolling thunder. Surprisingly, he was speaking the Federation’s common tongue. ”I am Wu Qige, First Divine Son of the Celestial Wolf God. You destroyed Celestial Wolf Four and killed two Priests. This crime must be washed away with blood.”

Hong Nianyi sneered. ”You talk too much.”

Wu Qige’s gaze shifted to her, a flash of anger in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it. He raised his right hand, and the three Divine Sons behind him stepped forward in unison.

”The Divine Beings ordered you be taken alive,” Wu Qige said. ”But I’ve changed my mind. I will take your corpses back and hang them on the sacrificial altar, so that all humans know the price for provoking the Celestial Wolf.”

The moment his voice fell, the four Divine Sons moved.

There was no warning, no gathering of power. They were like four bolts of blood-red lightning, tearing through the air as they charged.

Xu Wuyi met Wu Qige’s charge.

Spear and claw collided in the next instant.

CLANG—!

The explosive ring of metal striking metal made their eardrums ache.

Xu Wuyi felt a savage force travel up the spear shaft, making the webbing between his thumb and forefinger go numb. Wu Qige’s claws were as hard as a Divine Weapon, clashing head-on with the Meteor Iron Long Spear without a scratch.

The two broke apart after the first clash, each stumbling back three steps.

A flash of surprise crossed Wu Qige’s eyes. ”Great Success in Heart Image? No wonder you could kill a Priest.”

Xu Wuyi said nothing, flicking his wrist and thrusting his spear out again. This time, a Dark Gold Flame erupted from the spear tip, and the Golden Crow Illusion flashed into existence behind him for a moment before vanishing.

Wu Qige didn’t dare to be careless. He crossed his claws to block, and the dark red, bloody light condensed at their tips, forming a ferocious wolf-head shield.

BOOM!

The Flame and the blood-shield collided, and the resulting shockwave of Energy pulverized the surrounding rocks.

Meanwhile, Hong Nianyi and You Sicheng had joined forces against one of the Divine Sons.

That Divine Son wielded twin sabers, their blades long, thin, and curved. He swung them in arcs of blood-red light. His speed was extreme and his Saber Technique was vicious, aimed exclusively at their vital points.

Hong Nianyi’s Long Saber moved in wide, powerful strokes, using offense as her defense. Every slash carried an absolute resolve to annihilate everything in its path. You Sicheng, on the other hand, weaved around the flank, his short saber striking like a venomous snake, targeting the openings in the enemy’s Saber Momentum.

The two coordinated seamlessly, actually managing to force the Divine Son back step by step.

But Hong Nianyi’s face was growing paler and paler.

Her meridians had not yet healed from her injuries. Pushing her Saber Intent to its limit made her old wounds ache. Every clash sent her Qi and Blood into turmoil.

You Sicheng wasn’t faring much better. His internal injuries were the most severe to begin with, and forcing himself to circulate his energy now caused a trickle of blood to escape the corner of his mouth. But his eyes were still sharp, and his Saber Momentum showed no sign of faltering.

The remaining two Divine Sons lunged for Chen Yuan and Lin Jue.

Chen Yuan relied on the Stealth ability of his Shadow Crow Heart Image, darting through the rock shadows to avoid direct confrontation, harassing his opponent with a short blade and throwing darts.

Lin Jue, meanwhile, continuously threw out Rune Squares, setting up simple traps to slow the enemy’s assault.

But the gap in power was too great.

A Divine Son-level Werewolf’s combat power was already touching the threshold of the Innate realm, while Chen Yuan and Lin Jue only had ordinary Heart Image Prototypes. After just a dozen exchanges, both were in mortal danger.

”We can’t drag this out,” Hong Nianyi said to You Sicheng via mental transmission, gritting her teeth. ”One move to decide it.”

You Sicheng nodded.

Their eyes met, and they reached an instant consensus.

Hong Nianyi suddenly abandoned all defense, raising her Long Saber high. She frantically poured all her Saber Intent into the blade. A pale golden light gathered in her hands, growing brighter and more blinding by the second.