111: Chapter 111 Poison Water Array

Ye Zhiqiu's movements were not flashy; in fact, they were a bit 'clumsy.' Unlike those Jianghu experts who liked to fly around, her feet seemed rooted to the ground. Every step she took made the earth tremble slightly.

"Hoo!"

An iron rod swept across.

A Protector raised his dual blades to block.

"Clang!"

With a crisp sound, the dual blades snapped instantly. The Protector didn't even let out a grunt before he was sent flying sideways like a discarded sack, crashing against the rock wall, sliding down, and lying still.

This was 'momentum.'

Chen Mo's pupils constricted as he watched. Ye Zhiqiu wasn't practicing martial arts; she was forging iron. Every strike carried immense power. Forget any exquisite Move; I will conquer ten skills with one force.

"Ye Zhiqiu! Do you really want to see this through to the bitter end?!"

The White Lotus Sect Leader grew anxious. He flicked his long sword, creating several sword blossoms, and thrust directly at Ye Zhiqiu's face, shouting with a fierce but hollow tone.

Ye Zhiqiu didn't even turn her head. She rested the iron rod across her back, precisely knocking aside the attacking blade. Her left hand swept forward in a smooth motion, grasping the Sect Leader's long sword.

That was a bare palm!

But Ye Zhiqiu's palm now displayed a strange grayish-blue hue, resembling granite.

"Snap!"

She bent the long sword purely by squeezing it.

"The fish may die, but the net will not break," Ye Zhiqiu's voice was flat, betraying no joy or anger, as if she were stating a simple fact. "Today, all of you will die."

Just then, the boiling blood pool suddenly stirred.

"Gurgle, gurgle—"

The bubbles churned more violently, and red steam permeated the air.

"Hahahaha! It's too late!" The White Lotus Sect Leader used the force of the bent sword to spring backward violently, landing on a high rock by the edge of the blood pool. With his hair disheveled, he looked utterly deranged. "The Divine Dogs are complete! Ye Zhiqiu, so what if you kill me? As long as these few 'Dharma Protector Gods' rush out, the entire city will suffer!"

He pointed at the blood pool, his eyes fanatical: "They carry the 'Canine Plague'! One bite, or even just inhaling the air they exhale, and a person turns into a rabid dog! By then, the entire county seat will be under the rule of my White Lotus Sect!"

Chen Mo's heart sank.

Canine Plague.

These lunatics would use any desperate, ruthless scheme.

In the blood pool, several massive dark shadows slowly surfaced.

Those things couldn't be called dogs at all.

They were as large as calves, completely hairless, with dark red skin covered in blood vessels writhing like earthworms. Their eyes were only whites, and yellow drool dripped from their protruding fangs.

There were five in total.

As soon as their heads emerged, the nauseating, fishy stench intensified tenfold.

"Roar—"

The sound wasn't like a dog's bark, but more like a broken bellows being pulled.

"Destroy the blood pool!"

Ye Zhiqiu's expression shifted slightly. She forced back two Protectors trying to entangle her with the iron rod and shouted loudly, "Whoever can destroy those beasts will be rewarded with a thousand taels of silver! Promoted three ranks!"

Great rewards inspire brave deeds.

"Kill!"

Tiger Li's eyes turned bloodshot. One thousand taels! That was enough to buy a large mansion in the city and marry two more wives. He led over a dozen brothers, screaming as they charged toward the blood pool.

"Insolent!"

The White Lotus Sect Leader sneered and waved his hand.

From the shadows on both sides of the blood pool, two teams of soldiers wearing oilcloth gear suddenly emerged. These men were clearly the elite of the elite. The copper tubes they held were thicker than those outside, and the poison water they sprayed was not green, but black.

"Sss sss sss!"

Black water rained down.

The two Runners at the very front couldn't dodge in time and were hit directly.

They didn't even manage a scream; both fell to the ground, rolling, their flesh visibly dissolving into black water, exposing stark white bones.

"Retreat! Quick, retreat!"

Tiger Li was so scared his Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering. He managed to dodge the attack with a clumsy roll, but he was still dizzy from the foul odor.

The offensive immediately faltered.

The poison water blocked the path, and those monsters were already crawling onto the bank, about to charge into the crowd.

Ye Zhiqiu was held tightly by three experts. Although she could kill them, she needed time, and time was the scarcest commodity right now.

The situation instantly reached a stalemate.

Chen Mo hid behind a stone pillar, gasping for breath.

He looked at the monsters shaking off the blood on their bodies, then at the men spraying poison water.

The distance was about thirty steps.

There were blind spots in the poison water spray, but they were very small.

The monsters were stiff right after emerging from the water—that was when they were weakest. Once they adapted to the air, everyone in this cavern, except for Ye Zhiqiu, would likely die.

Time to risk it all.

Chen Mo closed his eyes.

Turtle Breathing Technique, circulate.

His breathing instantly became faint, his heartbeat slowed to an extreme, and his entire body seemed to merge with the stone pillar. This was concealment, and also storing power.

Next, he mobilized the Qi and blood within his body.

He had trained day and night for these past few months.

Skin Tempering: his skin was now as tough as old cowhide; an ordinary knife would only leave a white mark.

Muscle Tempering: his muscle fibers were dense like steel cables twisted into a rope, giving him several times the explosive power of a normal person.

Bone Forging: his bone density was comparable to iron stone, capable of enduring massive impacts.

Tendon Refining: when his main tendons sprang, it was like a fully drawn bow.

This was the Great Perfection of the Body Tempering Realm.

Coupled with the long-lasting breath and ceaseless recovery ability brought by the Five Animal Frolics.

Chen Mo suddenly opened his eyes.

In that instant, his pupils seemed to shrink to a pinprick.

"Brother Tiger! Cover me!"

Chen Mo roared, and his entire body shot out from behind the stone pillar like a cannonball fired from its barrel.

"Smash it for me!" Tiger Li reacted quickly. Although he didn't know what Chen Mo was planning, at this moment, he could only trust him.

The remaining brothers threw everything they could grab—bricks, scabbards, and some even threw off their boots.

The poison water soldiers instinctively raised their copper tubes to block.

In that very instant,

Chen Mo charged into the poison water formation.

"Sss!"

A stream of black water sprayed toward him.

Chen Mo didn't dodge, or rather, he couldn't dodge. He merely shifted his body slightly, using the thickest part of his back muscles to take the impact head-on.

"Fss la!"

His clothes instantly shredded, and a fire-like, intense pain spread across his skin.

But it didn't penetrate the flesh!

That layer of 'membrane' forged through a thousand hammerings firmly blocked the erosion of the poison water. Although it hurt and his outer skin was charred black, his tendons and bones remained unharmed!

This was the confidence of Skin Tempering Great Perfection!

Chen Mo stomped his foot, leaving a deep pit on the ground.

Tendon Refining burst forth!

His speed was so fast that he left an afterimage in the air.

Ten steps. Five steps. Three steps.

A poison water soldier looked in terror as this bloodied man, emitting smoke, rushed in front of him. He was just about to pull the trigger.

A flash of blade light.

Chen Mo's blade was fast; there were no frills, just speed and ruthlessness.

The poison water soldier's head flew off.

Chen Mo didn't even glance at him. He hooked his toe on the soldier's corpse, kicking the headless, still-bleeding body toward the other poison water soldiers to block the incoming poison water.

Ahead was the blood pool.

The five Demon Dogs had already climbed onto the bank, baring their teeth, ready to pounce.