Daily News: You promised yourself to be a fisherman, but you've become a martial arts god?

In the firelight, a masked man dressed in plain clothes soared into the air, tearing through the night like an eagle.

"Go to hell!"

Gan Laicai's heart tightened.

Having lived a life of constant danger, Gan Laicai reacted swiftly, grabbing the willow-leaf dagger beside him and slashing at the approaching shadow.

"Too slow!"

A hint of cold disdain flashed in the masked man's eyes.

His blood and energy surged like a giant wave, pouring into his claws.

"Deadly Frost Eagle Claw - Cold Feathers Entangling the Wrist!"

The claws, as venomous as snakes, deftly bypassed the knife, gripping Gan Laicai's wrist at a tricky angle. The fingers, as hard as iron hooks, dug deep into the tendons and bones of his wrist.

With a snap and a tug, the entire hand, bones and tendons, was torn off alive.

Blood splattered.

The wounds were so cruel, as if they had been torn apart by the sharp teeth of a wild beast, that it was unbearable to look at.

"Deadly Frost Eagle Claw - Eagle's Throat Lock!"

Just as Gan Laicai was filled with shock and pain and was about to scream, a hand precisely gripped his throat, locking the sound he was about to utter in his throat.

"Spare me—"

click!

The masked man's eyes flashed with murderous intent.

Gan Laicai endured the excruciating pain and tried to squeeze out words of begging for mercy, but before he could finish speaking, his throat was crushed!

The masked man released his grip, and Gan Laicai fell to the ground like a lump of mud.

Dead beyond dead!

They didn't even know who killed them when they died!

"Those who can infiltrate gangs have all trained at martial arts schools. This guy didn't even have the strength to fight back when he encountered me."

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 20 ...

"The difference between an ordinary martial artist and someone in the Blood Refining Realm is enormous."

Li Nian glanced indifferently at the corpse on the ground.

That's right, the masked man is Li Nian!

After regaining his composure, Li Nian stepped forward to touch the corpse.

A moment later, he had five taels of silver in his hand.

"The harvest was alright."

Li Nian weighed the silver in his hand, nodded in satisfaction, and put it directly into his storage ring.

Then, their attention turned to the claw marks on the corpse.

"The claw marks on the corpse are too obvious. Anyone who knows a little about Qinyun Martial Arts School will definitely recognize that it was done by a disciple of Qinyun Martial Arts School."

"It's not impossible that the trail leads back to me."

"The Sea Sand Gang and the Giant Whale Gang have been embroiled in fierce conflict recently..."

Li Nian's eyes lit up, and an idea came to her.

He raised his foot, channeled his blood energy, and stomped hard on the wounds on the corpse's wrist and throat until they were bruised and mangled, making it look like the wounds were inflicted by a blunt instrument.

After doing all this, Li Nian walked out of the abandoned house, her cold eyes fixed on the coordinates where Zhou Hu was located.

...

"Damn it, I can't sleep!"

"This blanket even smells like egg whites!"

Zhou Hu was already tossing and turning and couldn't sleep, and the strange smell of the bedding made him extremely irritable.

I got up and paced back and forth in the room.

"If I can't sleep, I'll practice martial arts instead."

"If my elder brother sees that I have made progress, he will be happy and reward me with other military skills or something."

After making up his mind, Zhou Hu went into the yard, took off his shirt, and practiced horse stance in the snow.

His body was covered in a faint metallic sheen, and he remained unmoved in the wind and snow.

He was able to withstand the bitter cold of winter without even knocking on the Blood Gate because Zhou Hu possessed a protective divine skill.

Iron Shirt.

This martial art has a prestigious origin; it is a secret protective hard skill passed down by the Mountain-Shaking Camp, one of the Ten Elite Martial Camps of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Unfortunately, Zhou Hu was too incompetent; after five years of hard study, he barely managed to get the basics down.

After entering the sect, one's skin and flesh become like that of a beast, able to withstand the coldest days of winter, and difficult to break through with ordinary punches and kicks.

It was precisely because of this divine skill that he was able to have a place in the outer courtyard of Haoran Martial Arts School and be highly valued by Tang Zhengxiong.

Just as Zhou Hu was forging his Iron Shirt in the dead of winter, a pair of eyes on the courtyard wall gleamed like those of a hunting eagle...

chi chi-

Some snowflakes fell on the courtyard wall.

"who!"

Zhou Hu's heart tightened, and he turned around to look.

Looking around, he found nothing unusual and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The world is a dangerous place, and he has always been vigilant.

Especially since they're about to flee, they absolutely cannot afford any mishaps!

Just as he relaxed, a series of light, quick footsteps suddenly came from the side.

He hurriedly turned his head to look and saw a dark figure step up, tearing through the night with its claws, and attacking him with one claw.

"How dare you!"

Zhou Hu glared angrily.

He felt a sudden weight on his body, his entire form enveloped in a light metallic sheen. He clenched his right fist and swung his shoulder back.

"Iron Fist of Might!"

With a low shout, Zhou Hu suddenly threw a straight punch.

Although he did not open the Blood Gate, with the support of Iron Shirt and enhanced physique, his punches were unmatched by anyone trained in Blood Refinement.

Even when facing ordinary martial artists in the early stages of Blood Refinement, his fist power is not inferior!

"Let me see just how hard your iron fist is!"

The masked man's eyes lit up with interest at the punch.

Without dodging or avoiding, his internal energy surged, all of it flowing into his right claw.

He had just watched Zhou Hu practice his skills from the top of the wall and was curious about just how powerful they were.

"Heh, trying to fight me head-on? You're asking for death!"

Seeing that the other party chose to confront them head-on, Zhou Hu smiled.

He's never lost a head-on confrontation!

However, in the next instant...

The opponent's right claw suddenly gripped his fist, its five fingers digging deep into his fist like iron hooks.

That proud iron fist had its skin torn open, and bright red blood seeped out.

"Blood and energy surged in the hands and claws!"

"not good!"

"He's a Ming Jin martial artist!"

Zhou Hu's expression tightened as he sensed the bloodlust emanating from the opponent's claws.

Despite the pain in his fist, he pulled it away with all his might.

With that pull, five deep bloody scratches appeared on Zhou Hu's fist, causing the veins on his forehead to bulge in pain.

"Um?"

Li Nian looked at her own hands, a look of surprise on her face.

Neither Gan Laicai nor Zhou Hu had opened the Blood Gate; they were both mortals. Just now, a single claw could have torn Gan Laicai's wrist apart, but the same claw only left a few bloody marks on Zhou Hu's fist, leaving no visible bone.

Zhou Hu's martial arts skill is indeed impressive!

Worried that Li Nian would continue to pounce, Zhou Hu quickly raised his palm and shouted:

"Wait a minute!"

"May I ask who you are?"

"I am Zhou Hu of Haoran Martial Arts School. Where have I offended you? I wish to..."

As he spoke, his left hand quietly reached for the short dagger behind his waist, while his legs secretly gathered strength.

He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly stomped out with both feet and thrust his short dagger straight at his opponent's heart.

When the opponent made his claw strike, he recognized him as a member of the Qinyun Martial Arts School.

Qinyun Martial Arts School and Haoran Martial Arts School are at odds, so it's impossible for them to let him live.

Therefore, they resorted to this underhanded trick.

"Playing dirty tricks?"

"Under absolute overwhelming power, any technique is futile!"

Upon seeing this, Li Nian snorted coldly in his heart.

He had anticipated that Zhou Hu would not be easily executed, and he did not let his guard down.

Countless combat experiences have taught him that before the enemy is completely defeated, even the slightest lapse in concentration can cost you your life!

He has seen far too many real-life examples!

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he stepped on the snow with the toes of his right foot, and suddenly swept his leg out, kicking up a cloud of snowflakes that pelted Zhou Hu.

Wow!

The sudden movement made Zhou Hu pause, raising his hand to shield his eyes from the snowflakes.

He cursed the other party's despicable methods in his heart.

A dignified Ming Jin practitioner resorted to underhanded tactics to deal with an ordinary martial artist!

Just as Zhou Hu was cursing inwardly, Li Nian had already swooped down in front of Zhou Hu like an eagle, her claws precisely gripping Zhou Hu's throat.

Without the slightest hesitation, his grip tightened.

"Deadly Frost Eagle Claw - Eagle's Throat Lock!"

click!

With the sound of his throat bone bursting, Zhou Hu in my hand went limp and turned into a puddle of mud.

He died instantly!

They didn't even know they were dying; who took their lives?

Li Nian abandoned Zhou Hu's body, searched Zhou Hu's body and the house, and found a neatly packed package.

Inside were a few taels of silver, some dry food, and a handwritten copy of a book called "Iron Shirt".

Li Nian's eyes lit up.

"This Iron Shirt technique must be Zhou Hu's divine body-training skill!"

He had just witnessed the power of this divine skill.

After putting everything into the storage ring, Li Nian also casually put Zhou Hu's corpse into it.

Zhou Hu is different from Gan Laicai. Zhou Hu is a regular disciple of Haoran Martial Arts School and has considerable strength, so it is not advisable to frame the Giant Whale Gang.

Zhou Hu is planning to run away, so let's create the appearance of him running away!

As for the disposal of the body.

On the nearby deserted island, there were plenty of wild beasts that devoured Zhou Hu, leaving not a trace!

Having tidied everything up, Li Nian disappeared into the snowstorm...