Gao Wu insists on cultivating immortality.

Chapter 37 Between life and death
The sky was covered with thick clouds, which suppressed the eastern morning light into a dim band of light.

The howling wind carried fine snowflakes that danced in the air, making the deep, dark mountains even more desolate and lonely.

Gao Wu practiced his sword against the wind, and the snowflakes were blown away by the strong wind he generated before they even fell.

After practicing the sixty-four moves of the Swimming Dragon Sword ten times, Gao Wu was enveloped in white steam, and his hand holding the sword was trembling slightly.

To swing a sword weighing nearly 20 kilograms with all one's might, while maintaining stable control, coupled with the weight on one's body, places extremely high demands on the body.

He practiced the sword technique ten times in a row at a high intensity. It was only because of his super strong physique and the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra that he was not afraid of huge physical damage that he could practice so frantically without any scruples.

Sheathing his sword, Gao Wu exhaled a long breath of turbid air, the white vapor shooting out like an arrow two meters away before twisting and dissipating in the howling cold wind.

Feeling the boiling blood and qi within his body, Gao Wu silently recited the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra. The azure dragon formed from spiritual light danced, quickly calming the boiling blood and qi in his body, and completely relieving and relaxing the numb and swollen muscles and sore bones.

The physical fatigue that brought about mental exhaustion was also swept away, and the whole person was immediately invigorated.

Feeling the wondrous effects of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra from the inside out, Gao Wu couldn't help but feel proud.

While his strength, agility, and spirit attributes aren't particularly strong, the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Curse allows him to wear down any opponent of the same level on the arena.

Reaching this level is already considered superhuman for ordinary people.

Today is the competition day. With his excellent form, he should be able to defeat Han Yang, the top student from Dongjiang No. 1 Middle School!
Gao Wu was feeling quite pleased with himself when he suddenly heard a strange noise behind him. Out of a martial artist's instinct, he quickly turned around and saw a tall figure striding towards him, long sword in hand.

The tall figure was wearing a black hoodie, with the hood and mask covering his entire face, revealing a pair of crimson eyes filled with madness and ferocity.

Gao Wu had seen this kind of look before. He had seen it in the eyes of a frenzied beast when he was fourteen years old, and it left an extremely deep impression on him!

He had a feeling that the guy who suddenly appeared was probably after him!
"Hi, good morning." Gao Wu gripped his sword hilt in a defensive stance, but still greeted the other person warmly, even flashing a polite and sunny smile with his white teeth showing.

"Gao Wu, you deserve to die!" The tall man's voice was sharp and rough, like the roar of a wild beast.

"Why does this seem familiar?"

The other person was masked and had a very strange voice, but Gao Wu had a feeling of familiarity; he should know this guy!

Judging from the other person's physique and gait, he should be a high-level martial artist. Since he knows him, the possibilities are quite narrow.

“Brother Zhang!” Gao Wu’s heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly recognized the other party.

After all, they ate together every day, and although they rarely spoke, he still had a deep impression of Zhang Hao. It was just that the other man had changed so much; his body had swelled up at least twice its normal size, and his voice sounded so strange that he couldn't recognize him at first glance.

The man was also a little surprised that Gao Wu could still recognize him even in his current state. He simply ripped off his mask and cursed at Gao Wu, "You little brat, I'll let you die knowing why."

"Brother Zhang, what's wrong with you?" Gao Wu asked, puzzled. The other man seemed to have gone mad and came to him with a sword. What did he want?
He wasn't naive; just because Zhang Hao knew him, killing him wouldn't allow him to escape unscathed.

The two had no enmity whatsoever, so why would Zhang Hao take such a huge risk to kill him? It doesn't make sense.

Looking at Zhang Hao's swollen, purplish-red face, covered with pustules and with layers of festering skin, it looked like the skin of a toad, which was terrifying and completely unrecognizable.

Gao Wu guessed that the other party had probably been injected with some kind of drug, causing him to become mentally unstable. However, Zhang Hao seemed to retain a certain degree of rationality…

"You little brat, stop pretending to be stupid!" Zhang Hao was already very agitated, and upon hearing this, he became even more furious.

He had followed Tie Dalong for years, hoping to become Tie Dalong's apprentice, but Gao Wu beat him to it. How could he not be furious!
Iron Dragon Martial Arts School is so small, with so few resources. Once Gao Wu gets it, it's no longer his business.

Therefore, he had no choice but to take that path. The power gained from the sacrifice was so violent that it pushed his body to the brink of collapse! He knew very well that he didn't have much time left in this state!
Zhang Hao grew angrier the more he thought about it; it was all because of Gao Wu. He planned to kill Gao Wu, and then go kill that disgusting fat woman, Tie Ying.

He often ate with Gao Wu, so he knew that Gao Wu went to Bailong Mountain to practice swordsmanship every day. He also timed his arrival perfectly and successfully caught up with Gao Wu.

In the desolate wilderness, no one would know if Gao Wu were killed for a while.

"Brother Zhang, something's wrong with you?"

Gao Wu said with concern, "Why don't you go to the hospital to get it checked out?"

"Great White Raven King, I offer this man's blood and life as a sacrifice, begging for your blessing..." Zhang Hao suddenly chanted loudly, his crimson eyes growing even more ferocious, his muscles bulging, and he clearly grew larger. Gao Wu's heart skipped a beat; Zhang Hao had clearly become a follower of a demon god! This was extremely bad!
"Die!" Having chanted the incantation, Zhang Hao completely lost his mind. He roared and drew his sword, charging straight at Gao Wu.

In this state, Zhang Hao possessed a fearless ferocity and madness, yet his sword-wielding posture was perfectly standard, clearly the starting stance of the Rock-Splitting Sword from the Youlong Sword.

The Dragon Sword Technique at the martial arts level is merely a high-level sword skill, not exactly a secret. Zhang Hao, as an assistant instructor at the martial arts school, naturally knows the Dragon Sword Technique. Even some students who have paid hefty tuition fees can learn it.

Of course, the Youlong Sword, personally taught by Tie Dalong, still has many more intricate variations. Just by looking at Zhang Hao's posture as he charged forward with the sword, Gao Wu knew that Zhang Hao had not received Tie Dalong's true teachings.

The problem is that Zhang Hao's fearless and crazy appearance is terrifying. Even though his swordsmanship is slightly better than Zhang Hao's, he is not confident that he can block Zhang Hao's sword.

Swords are different from fists and feet; getting punched or kicked a few times won't kill you. No matter how strong his physique is, he can't withstand a sharp sword.

Given Zhang Hao's formidable strength, any part of his body that is struck by a sword would be in grave danger.

The threat of death gripped Gao Wu's heart like an invisible hand. He stopped breathing, his body tensed, and a scene flashed through his mind of facing a strange beast when he was fourteen years old.

That time, he was almost killed by the strange beasts lured by the demon god's followers, and the fear of being on the verge of death left a deep mark on his heart.

Faced with a life-or-death crisis, this deep-seated wound in his heart reopened. The fear of death completely overwhelmed his mind and body...

Gao Wu knew this stemmed from his instinctive fear of death.

However, he has grown up and now possesses the Book of Immeasurable Merit. He can no longer be as weak and incompetent as he was four years ago, and he will never repeat the same mistakes.

The beasts deserve to die, but the followers of the demon god deserve to die even more!

Thinking of this, Gao Wu felt his blood boil and his fighting spirit soar. He wanted to personally shatter the terrifying nightmare in his heart!
With agility of nine points, their thinking and reaction speeds are five times faster than the average person.

In a state of heightened mental concentration, Gao Wu observed Zhang Hao's movements becoming increasingly slow. Observing Zhang Hao from this perspective, he felt that while Zhang Hao possessed great strength, his agility was considerably inferior to his own.

Judging from Zhang Hao's sword-wielding posture, there are still some obvious problems with his swordsmanship, and his body coordination is also lacking. After practicing swordsmanship for several years, he's still only at this level, so it's no wonder that Tie Dalong doesn't think much of Zhang Hao.

Zhang Hao didn't think that much about it. The sacrificial incantation increased his power by at least 70%. He could cut a mere high-level martial artist in two with a single sword strike.

The two were only a dozen meters apart. Zhang Hao, charging at high speed, had already reached Gao Wu in the blink of an eye. He raised his long sword and slashed diagonally at Gao Wu.

This move, the Stone-Splitting Sword, is the most ferocious and powerful technique of the Soaring Dragon Sword. Zhang Hao's strength was immense at this moment; as his longsword struck, it stirred up a thunderous roar, truly possessing the power to shatter stone and break gold!
Gao Wu looked at Zhang Hao's open chest as he raised his sword high, and he suppressed the urge to thrust his sword forward. Zhang Hao's mind was not clear, and his body was clearly showing signs of abnormality.

Reaching the mastery level of the Dragon Sword allowed him to better understand combat and control the rhythm.

If this sword strike fails to completely eliminate Zhang Hao, he will suffer the full force of Zhang Hao's Stone-Splitting Sword.

The risk is too great!

In the critical moment, Gao Wu remained unusually calm and assessed the battle, abandoning the risky advance.

He noticed that the sword in Zhang Hao's hand was no more than a meter long. Judging from the cloud patterns polished on the blade, it should be Zhang Hao's daily training sword, weighing less than ten kilograms, and made of ordinary steel.

The sword, forged from a single piece, ensures sufficient hardness and toughness. Under Zhang Hao's full-force swing, its power is terrifying.

However, it was far inferior to the sword in his hand.

Gao Wu made a quick judgment and swung his sword with both hands to meet Zhang Hao's sword attack.

Sparks flew as the two swords clashed, and amidst the crisp metallic clang, Zhang Hao's longsword snapped in two, a section of the blade flying off.

At the same time, Gao Wu and Zhang Hao passed each other, both swinging their backhands in unison.

Zhang Hao's broken sword grazed past Gao Wu's vest, but Gao Wu's counter-attack sword, accompanied by a sharp whistle, sliced ​​upwards from under Zhang Hao's armpit, leaving a crimson line of blood running through Zhang Hao's chest and neck...

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(End of this chapter)