Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 329: Chapter 186: Revival of the Ferocious Creature

He didn’t mention inviting Wan Ze into Tongchen Pavilion.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to, but that he couldn’t.

Wan Ze had already practiced a Breathing Technique from Huangliang, though he wasn’t sure which one.

But to enter Tongchen Pavilion, Wan Ze would have to abandon his current Breathing Technique and switch to their sect’s Technique. Otherwise, he wouldn’t even pass the first hurdle.

The Qi in his meridians had already taken a set form. It was like a river that had its course diverted once; changing it back again wasn’t impossible, but it would come at a great cost.

He knew how cruel that would be, which was why he didn’t bring it up.

Besides, the Breathing Technique Wan Ze practiced came from a Sect. From Feng Jiuchen’s perspective, Wan Ze just hadn’t found the Sect behind it yet.

Of course, what Feng Jiuchen didn’t know was that Wan Ze had a cheat up his sleeve.

For others, it was an ”either-or” choice. For him, it was a case of ”I’ll take both.”

He wanted to learn the Taiyin Breathing Technique, and if he had the chance, he wanted to learn other Techniques in this world too.

But he had no intention of telling Feng Jiuchen any of this.

Suddenly, a shrill cry echoed from deep within the mountain range, so sharp it made one’s eardrums ache.

Wan Ze and Feng Jiuchen looked up at the same time, turning toward the source of the sound.

In the distance, the Fierce Bird, previously as massive as a mountain, was for some reason suddenly knocked into mid-air.

Its enormous body traced an arc under the Red Moon. Its wings hung limp, feathers detaching in the wind and scattering everywhere like a black snow.

Flames blazed on the Fierce Bird’s body, but they were like ghost flames from the depths of hell, glowing a bizarre, spectral blue.

The ghost flames mercilessly devoured its flesh and burned through its feathers.

The Fierce Bird’s wails echoed through the sky, so agonizing it made one’s skin crawl.

In the blink of an eye, it slammed into a mountain a hundred meters away. The mountain face exploded on impact, sending rubble flying in all directions and gouging out craters of all sizes in the ground.

Then, the Fierce Bird’s body slid down the cliff, dragging a long trail down the slope, leaving a path of blood and mangled flesh.

’What’s going on?’

Wan Ze stared in the direction where the Fierce Bird had fallen, his mind racing.

Just moments ago, the Fierce Bird had been terrifyingly majestic. A flap of its wings could blot out the sun, and a swipe of its claws could shatter mountains. Now, in a flash, it was on the verge of death.

’Who did this?’

’Was it that overlord?’

’Is this Huangliang?’

Wan Ze took a deep breath, suppressing the chill that rose in his heart.

In Huangliang, there was always something stronger than you, always something you couldn’t afford to provoke, always something that could swat you into a meat paste with a single slap.

’Get stronger!’

’I have to get stronger!’

”Our luck is a bit rotten today,” Feng Jiuchen cursed under his breath. He kept his voice low as if afraid of disturbing something, his expression turning grim.

He waited, pricking up his ears to listen. After confirming that the commotion deep in the mountains was gradually dying down, with no new roars or landslides, he finally let out a breath of relief.

He waved Wan Ze over, then broke into a sprint with quick, short steps. Wan Ze followed close behind, his own steps just as light, his eyes constantly scanning their surroundings.

”RRRIP—”

The sound of flesh being torn apart suddenly came from mid-air.

It was like a wet cloth being forcefully ripped in two, a sound with a texture that set one’s teeth on edge.

Wan Ze and Feng Jiuchen felt their scalps tingle at almost the exact same moment.

They both stopped, both looked up, both stared at the sky.

In the sky, a massive object disintegrated with a boom before it could even hit the ground.

The thing was so large that Wan Ze couldn’t make out its silhouette. All he could see was a blurry, dark mass rapidly expanding under the Red Moon.

Its body seemed to be sliced by countless invisible knives at once, exploding outward from the center into innumerable fragments of various sizes.

The countless fragments tumbled through the air, tracing bizarre arcs across the night sky.

It was accompanied by a spray of blood, like a rain of blood.

It landed on the ground with a SPLATTER, SPLATTER sound.

All motion abruptly ceased.

The Fierce Bird’s wails stopped. The sound of the landslide stopped. Even the wind seemed to have stopped.

A dead silence fell between heaven and earth. This silence was more unsettling than any sound, for it meant something was approaching, and you couldn’t hear it.

Without looking back, Feng Jiuchen activated his Talismanic Magic, grabbed Wan Ze, and ran.

Wan Ze didn’t struggle or ask why. He could feel something behind them had awakened.

The next second, an incomparably terrifying roar erupted from the mountains behind them.

This roar was nothing like the overlord’s previous bellow; it was a deeper, more horrifying sound.

It was as if some dreadful existence had revived!

The sound had extreme piercing power, boring into one’s mind in an instant.

Wan Ze glanced at his personal Attributes.

A data box appeared in his vision. On the pale blue screen, numbers were ticking down.

[-0.1] [-0.1] [-0.1]

With every tick, his Attributes dropped a notch.

”You son of a bitch, I’ll FUCK your ancestors!!!!”

Wan Ze was so angry he could stomp his feet.

He rarely cursed, but this time he couldn’t hold back. The loss was just too painful.

His Spiritual Form, his attribute values—he had saved them up bit by bit. Every single point was earned with his life on the line.

And now? He hadn’t done a thing, just stood there and heard a roar, and his Attributes were dropping.

’Good thing we ran fast, though.’

Wan Ze glanced back at the mountain range shrouded by the Red Moon. He let out a sigh of relief only after confirming that the unknown existence hadn’t taken an interest in them.

His stats hadn’t dropped by much. He could recover them by recuperating back home.

But this trip was a total loss. He didn’t enter the Tomb, didn’t succeed in Stealing the Celestial Secret, and even lost Attributes just from being roared at from behind.

Even if it was just his stats and he could get them back later, it still hurt!

”We’re here.”

Feng Jiuchen’s voice came from ahead, laced with an excitement he couldn’t suppress.

He quickly let go of Wan Ze’s wrist and strode to a cliff face. He placed his palm against it, fingers slightly spread, as if feeling for something.

The cliff face looked no different from the surrounding rock walls. Its grayish-black surface was covered in fine, visible cracks, with withered moss growing in the crevices.

After placing his hand on it, Feng Jiuchen began to identify something, character by character. He moved from left to right, then from top to bottom, his palm never leaving the rock’s surface.

This was his unique skill.