36: First murder
"What... what is this speed?"
"How is this a beginner Martial Artist? Even a Late Stage One-Star Warrior couldn't possibly be this fast, right?"
"I know the Iron Hand Group; their agility-type Martial Artists who specialize in Wind elements aren't even this fast!"
These few Martial Artists were incredibly shocked; they never dreamed that the lone rookie Martial Artist they had carefully selected was actually very likely a Late Stage One-Star Warrior!
However, Li Canglan had used neither a Martial Skill nor his combat blade for this move.
Although the bald man was coughing up blood and his sternum was shattered, he did not die on the spot.
He struggled to stand up and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Brothers, there are five of us in total, are we afraid of just one person?"
"To have such strength at such a young age, he must have plenty of good items on him!"
"As long as we rob him, we'll strike it rich!"
The bald man's words made the others feel a bit tempted.
When Martial Artists leave the city, they are essentially risking their lives.
In an environment filled with Demonic Beasts everywhere, where is there any safety to speak of?
If you don't want to take risks, you can only stay in the city and never improve your strength for the rest of your life.
"Do it!"
The few glanced at each other and immediately made up their minds.
One of them raised a shield and charged toward Li Canglan.
The others followed behind the shield-bearer, some wielding blades.
Some even pulled pistols from their bosoms!
Upon seeing the firearms, Li Canglan's pupils constricted sharply.
Firearms cannot play a significant role when facing Demonic Beasts.
But when facing ordinary people, or even newly promoted Martial Artists, they can pose a huge threat!
Therefore, Shenxia Country has always prohibited the circulation of firearms among the civilian population.
Bang!
A gunshot rang out, and Li Canglan hurriedly mobilized his Wind element power to augment himself, barely dodging to the side.
At the same time, the shield-bearing Martial Artist rushed in front of him.
The other two Martial Artists followed closely behind.
If he attacked the Martial Artist at the very front, he would inevitably fall into an encirclement.
"Then let me test my blade on you all!"
Li Canglan's gaze narrowed, and his Aura erupted throughout his body.
He drew his combat blade, carrying the momentum of thunder as he slashed forward.
When that Martial Artist saw Li Canglan advancing instead of retreating, his heart leaped into his throat.
Although the shield in his hand was also a D-grade combat weapon, it was already pitted and scarred from years of battle.
The effect it could exert was not even half of what it used to be.
If he really had to face a Late Stage One-Star Warrior holding a brand-new combat weapon, he had no confidence at all.
However, upon seeing the Thunderbolt Slash unleashed by the opponent, he was instantly overjoyed.
This kind of low-grade Martial Skill, it's a sure win!
"Hold firm!"
With his low shout, a brown film attached to the worn-out shield.
Bang!
Blade and shield collided!
The corner of the burly Martial Artist's mouth, which had been curled up, froze there, and his expression changed slightly.
He only felt an incredibly surging force slamming into his combat shield.
Crack!
The large shield cracked!
Veins bulged on the burly man's forehead, yet his shield was still cut into two pieces by this blade!
"How is this possible?"
The burly man's face was as dark as water; a combat shield is worth hundreds of thousands, which is not a small amount of money!
However, he breathed a sigh of relief; the opponent's previous force was spent, so it was impossible for him to dodge his companions' attacks.
He was indeed right; Li Canglan had slashed down with his blade and had no time to retract his right hand.
But he didn't need to retract his right hand.
He saw his left hand lift up.
Lightning in his palm burst out.
With the help of the violent wind, it exploded right in front of the three of them!
Bang!
Before they even realized what had happened, they were directly blown away.
Three heavy thuds followed in succession as the three of them slammed into a large tree.
Seeing this, the leading bald man was dumbfounded, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Seriously injuring three Martial Artists with one move?
Where the hell did this Prodigy come from?
They were all Middle Stage One-Star Warriors; logically, even if he were a Late Stage One-Star Warrior, he shouldn't be able to crush them like this, right?
"You... are you a Two-Star Martial Artist?"
The bald man's eyes widened in sheer terror.
He couldn't understand for the life of him how a Two-Star Martial Artist could be leaving the city for the first time.
Li Canglan had no intention of wasting words with them, using his combat blade to block a bullet fired from the side.
He rushed forward and ended their lives one by one.
No matter how these people begged for mercy, Li Canglan had no thought of letting them go.
Since they had attacked him, they couldn't blame him for being ruthless.
The bald man still wanted to run, but how could his speed compare to Li Canglan, who had condensed the Raging Wind Thunder Eagle Martial Artist Mark?
"The energy my mark can contain is probably at least ten times that of these people!"
Based on the previous battle, Li Canglan made a rough estimate.
Without an overwhelming Martial Artist Mark, relying solely on a Minor Achievement Thunderbolt Slash, it would have been absolutely impossible to cut through that person's shield.
Perhaps because he had seen too much blood in the Duel Arena, at this moment, Li Canglan did not feel much discomfort.
He was just panting slightly, his body trembling a little.
Martial Artists who often kill know that this is a normal physiological phenomenon after killing for the first time.
After a few simple deep breaths, Li Canglan went up to loot the bodies.
It was a pity that these Martial Artists were probably the type to use resources as soon as they earned them, and there were no treasures like crystal cores left behind at all.
After searching their corpses, Li Canglan only found a map, a pistol, three damaged combat blades, and five small blue pills.
"What kind of decent person carries pills when they go out?"
Li Canglan curled his lips, "Martial Artists can all strengthen their bodies, they shouldn't be this weak, right?"
He put away the pills and the pistol; as for the combat blades, he just threw them away.
His carrying capacity was limited, and he couldn't carry burdens like combat blades.
Finally, he opened the map and took a look.
The map was incomplete, showing only the area within fifty miles outside the east gate of the city.
The map showed that he was currently in the habitat of the Sabertooth Boar.
The Sabertooth Boar is a One-Star Demonic Beast, with a pair of tusks as sharp as combat weapons.
It is excellent Material for crafting combat weapons.
However, because of its thick skin and flesh, coupled with its immense strength, it is not recommended for ordinary One-Star Warriors to hunt them.
But Li Canglan, naturally, was not an ordinary One-Star Warrior.
He hadn't walked far and hadn't encountered any Sabertooth Boars yet when he heard a slight sound of wind breaking.
Li Canglan reacted extremely quickly, shifting his body slightly to the left.
At the same time, he blocked in front of his neck with his combat blade!
Then he saw a bright green venomous snake fly past, grazing his blade.
Li Canglan didn't hesitate to shake his right hand.
The blade fell.
Crack!
The snake's head was severed!
The snake's head and body fell to the ground, twitching wildly.
Li Canglan stopped and waited until the green snake was completely dead before stepping forward to check.
It was a pity that no crystal core dropped.
Li Canglan picked two broad leaves from the surrounding bushes.
After the Spiritual Qi resurgence and the arrival of the Martial Artist era, besides training, the main curriculum in daily life was to let students adapt to life in the wild.
This included aspects such as how to use plants to detoxify.
As the class monitor, Li Canglan's academic performance was very good.
Near poisonous things, there must be detoxifying herbs.
Naturally, one can also rely on these herbs to isolate toxins.
He used his combat blade to remove the green snake's fangs and threw them into the snakeskin bag he had prepared before leaving the city.
As for the snake's corpse, it was too troublesome to carry, so he chose to abandon it.