Chapter 279: Turning Defeat into Victory, Western Venom’s Shame
Genius always has aspects beyond ordinary people.
Zhou Yan was undoubtedly a genius, thus he accomplished things that ordinary people wouldn’t even dare to imagine.
He struck Western Venom Ouyang Feng.
The fleeting opportunity, the auditory impact of the chaotic exchange on Ouyang Feng and Huo Gong Toutuo, his masterful spear techniques, and his extraordinary deductive abilities, all approaching Qiu Qianren’s cultivation realm.
These favorable conditions converged to create a stunning spear thrust.
Ouyang Feng’s reaction was also at its peak, but the great spear still managed to pierce two inches into his body in a flash of lightning.
Feeling the resistance of muscle from the spearhead through the shaft, Zhou Yan twisted his wrist. Just as Ouyang Feng grabbed the spear shaft with both hands, the spearhead spun and was abruptly withdrawn.
Ouyang Feng let go with an incredulous roar and retreated rapidly. Huo Gong Toutuo was also momentarily stunned by the sudden turn of events. Zhang Sanqiang stomped his right foot, his body collapsing a brick wall as he landed on the long street.
Amidst the dust and smoke, Ouyang Feng had stopped his retreat. An irregular wound five to six inches wide had opened up on his abdomen, writhing and tearing, revealing pale white subcutaneous tissue and a dense network of channels. Blood gushed out like a spring.
What a pity, Zhou Yan felt truly regretful. Just a few more inches would have shredded his abdominal cavity. Then he himself was stunned, that he had actually injured Ouyang Feng.
The air seemed to freeze with Zhou Yan’s spear thrust and Ouyang Feng’s severe injury.
Even Ouyang Feng was momentarily bewildered when he saw Zhou Yan, thinking, “I was actually wounded by this little thief, how is this possible?”
The almost frozen atmosphere was instantly shattered by various sounds.
“Magnificent! Young friend has injured the old Western Venom.”
“Uncle, ah, Zhou Yan, I’m not done with you.”
“Kid, you’re dead.”
All the voices were drowned out by overwhelming killing intent. Ouyang Feng swiftly tore off his white robe and wrapped it around his waist. His body shot forward like an enraged arrow, the sound of air tearing and surging like a basin of cold water poured onto a red-hot iron, whistling sharply and piercingly.
Ouyang Feng lunged towards Zhou Yan.
“Well done. I’ll deal with Ouyang Feng. You just need to withstand fifty moves from the old monk, and I’ll come to your aid.”
“No problem.”
“Good. You don’t join my cult, and I’ll always have regrets. To be able to fight shoulder to shoulder with you today is also a joyous occasion.” Zhang Sanqiang’s voice still echoed in Zhou Yan’s ears. He pushed his great spear, which danced like a colossal dragon, to meet Ouyang Feng.
Zhou Yan’s figure flickered, accompanied by a clear sword chime, as he attacked Huo Gong Toutuo.
“Kill these bald donkeys!” Yanbo Diaosou brandished his fishing rod and charged towards Baoxiang and others from the Vajra Sect, who were fighting the Manichaeism envoys and Dharma Kings in the courtyard. Liu Qingzhou and Old Man Hundred Herbs followed closely.
…
Zhang Sanqiang knew Ouyang Feng wouldn’t last long. As he moved forward, his footwork, combined with the blood energy mobilized by the Qiankun Great Shift cultivation technique, merged his speed with his spear momentum. By the time he truly unleashed his spear, the power of his blood gathered on the spear like an explosion.
The Ming Cult’s sect-protecting cultivation technique, Qiankun Great Shift, could stimulate human potential. At this moment, Zhang Sanqiang squeezed out all the potential within his body.
The Fine Iron Great Spear, with a fierce spear cry, lunged before Ouyang Feng. Ouyang Feng channeled his internal force, his sleeves swirling like giant iron fans, and with a “swish,” his sleeves tore into countless butterfly-sized fragments that flew wildly. The great spear grazed Ouyang Feng’s arm and thrust towards his chest.
Ouyang Feng was greatly alarmed. How could Zhang Sanqiang’s cultivation have instantly increased by three to four tenths?
Spirit Snake Fist was also pushed to its extreme by Ouyang Feng. His arms were as if boneless, his fists turning strangely in the air, smashing onto the great spear with booming sounds.
With dull thuds, Zhang Sanqiang retracted his spear and thrust it out again. Ouyang Feng swung and smashed again. The spear tip retracted and thrust again. After three thrusts, Zhang Sanqiang followed with three more, thrusting dozens of times in the blink of an eye. Ouyang Feng did not retreat a single step, parrying all the spear styles. However, blood from his abdominal wound continuously seeped through his tightly bound robe, dyeing his lower body scarlet.
Suddenly, with a spear cry, the great spear was smashed into the ground. Zhang Sanqiang, not giving Ouyang Feng a chance to gather strength for the Toad Stance, straightened his arm and struck with a powerful punch.
Ouyang Feng’s scalp tingled. The punch Zhang Sanqiang swung was still in the posture of holding a spear, and the fist’s edge also contained the sharpness of a long spear.
He should be called Zhang Sanfeng.
Zhang Sanqiang used the Qiankun Great Shift cultivation technique to stimulate his body’s potential and engage in a fierce exchange with Ouyang Feng, with the aim of exacerbating Ouyang Feng’s injuries.
In fact, it had succeeded.
The spear thrust by Zhou Yan had already greatly affected Ouyang Feng. With every movement, the tearing pain of the wound was agonizing, like a drill twisting in his gut. He was losing a large amount of blood every moment, which led to a weakening of his strength and mental fatigue.
Enough, enough. When this old man recovers, I will take the lives of the little thief Zhou Yan and Zhang Sanqiang.
Ouyang Feng thought this, and a desire to retreat began to form in his heart.
Zhou Yan naturally knew Zhang Sanqiang’s objective, so his confrontation with Huo Gong Toutuo was entirely based on evasion. He used the Tomb Lightness Skill, his footwork swift and light like a gust of wind, darting and retreating with incredible speed, swaying left and right in an instant.
Even though Huo Gong Toutuo possessed the peerless cultivation technique One Reed Crossing the River, which was not inferior to the Tomb Lightness Skill, he had no possibility of gaining an overwhelming advantage in a short time.
“Kid, one day I will crush every bone in your body, piece by piece.”
Zhou Yan’s flickering figure seemed to remain in Huo Gong Toutuo’s palm strikes, but in reality, he had already flashed to the opponent’s side. He used the Qingfeng Sword to execute the Jade Maiden Swordplay move “Small Garden Pruning Chrysanthemums,” stabbing the lower body several times. He immediately retreated several feet like a wisp of smoke, then said, “Your strength and physical functions are diminishing with age, and I haven’t reached my body’s peak yet. So, you will only see me grow stronger until one day I defeat you like a stray dog.”
Huo Gong Toutuo’s body suddenly emitted a series of bone-cracking sounds. His left sleeve coiled around Zhou Yan’s long sword, and his right hand clawed down towards his head. This grab, from wrist to finger, was extended straight with fierce power.
Zhou Yan’s heart tightened. On his journey from Ten Thousand Beasts Manor to Shaoshi Mountain, while resting along the way, he had seen Chan Master Tianlong of the Shaolin Temple of the Western Regions practicing his martial arts, using this technique, one of Shaolin Temple’s ultimate skills: Dragon Claw Hand.
This Huo Gong Toutuo has mastered nearly seven or eight Shaolin Temple ultimate skills. He’s someone who relies on talent, Zhou Yan mused inwardly. He shifted his body, lightly evading the attack. Huo Gong Toutuo’s missed grab was followed by another, instantly resembling a bright yellow flying dragon, its shadow soaring, its claws dancing rapidly.
“Kid, that’s why I will kill you before you reach your prime.”
“Then let’s see.”
As soon as Zhou Yan finished speaking, dull sounds of fists and palms colliding echoed from not far away. After dozens of punches exchanged between Ouyang Feng and Zhang Sanqiang, Ouyang Feng grabbed Zhang Sanqiang’s arms. Zhang Sanqiang’s arms sank and swung, grabbing back, and he kicked towards Ouyang Feng’s abdomen from below.
Their arms and legs collided a few times in the air. Zhang Sanqiang headbutted, and Ouyang Feng once again struck Zhang Sanqiang with the unpredictable Spirit Snake Fist.
However, the force of the punch was instantly shifted to Zhang Sanqiang’s feet. The unshifted Peng Force could not inflict fatal damage on Zhang Sanqiang.
Zhang Sanqiang stepped back, shifting the punch’s force, while Ouyang Feng turned and moved like a sprint.
“Amitabha!”
In a flash, Huo Gong Toutuo unleashed two claw strikes and suddenly leaped into the air.
After all, he was someone who had fled from Shaoshi Mountain to the Western Regions in the past. The dignified sect leader of the Vajra Sect, seeing Ouyang Feng retreat, left without any hesitation, even more decisively than Ouyang Feng.
With the departure of the two, Baoxiang, Bao Lei, the martial monks of the Vajra Sect of the Western Regions, and other martial artists in the courtyard began to withdraw.
Zhou Yan pounced like an eagle, with Zhang Sanqiang and others in close pursuit.
…
The figures of Zhou Yan, Baoxiang, Zhang Sanqiang, Bao Lei, Liu Qingzhou, and others flickered in and out of sight along the streets of Jingzhou city under the bright daylight, their evasive pursuits creating a stunning spectacle.
A cry of “Ah!” suddenly came from the street. Bao Lei turned and saw a female disciple, wielding a long saber, severing the arm of a martial monk from his sect and sending it flying.
“Senior Brother, save me.”
The martial monk pleaded for help. Bao Lei, with a helpless gaze, turned and fled wildly.
At this moment, Zhou Yan’s figure descended silently from the archway at the street entrance, blocking Bao Lei.
Bao Lei’s face contorted, and with a mighty Lion’s Roar that shook the heavens, he then lunged at Zhou Yan like a lion.
Under the bright daylight, Zhou Yan’s Qingfeng Sword swung in a circle, trapping Bao Lei’s lunging arm within it. Bao Lei suddenly felt a section of his shoulder and elbow lighten, his arm seemingly lost in the sword light before him.
“Ah!”
Bao Lei’s right arm was severed at the elbow. He screamed hysterically and retreated.
Zhou Yan’s figure floated forward and thrust his sword into the throat of Bao Lei, who practiced the Shaolin Temple’s “Lion’s Roar” technique.
