Chapter 223: Beating Lu Xun (Part 2)

He flew backward more than ten meters, crashing heavily to the ground, the violent impact gouging a large pit in the earth.

Yuan Tao, behind him, bore nearly eighty percent of the force, yet still did not let go, locking him firmly.

"What kind of fighting style is this?"

"Is he trying to get himself killed? He'll die like this..."

"No, his defense is extremely strong. Even with Lu Xun's strength, it would take a lot of time to break through. Clearly, Zhao Ya and the others won't give him that time."

...

Seeing Yuan Tao holding on desperately, as if he didn't care about life or death, everyone's mouths twitched.

It was just a match—did they have to fight so fiercely?

In this situation, if Lu Xun went mad, he could really beat them to death!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

While everyone was stunned, Lu Xun didn't idle. His elbows hammered Yuan Tao's chest, each strike carrying full force, making Yuan Tao's face grow paler.

Although he had the Dragon Rhinoceros bloodline, only a tenth of it was activated, enough to defend against some Dingli realm experts, but against a Poxue realm peak like Lu Xun, with such formidable physique and strength, he was somewhat outmatched.

"Hurry up!"

Enduring the intense pain, Yuan Tao gritted his teeth and roared.

Boom!

Before the sound faded, a spear had already pierced through the air.

Zheng Yang had missed earlier, but now, risking everything, he executed the Heavenly Dao Spear Technique to its fullest. The spear, imbued with spear intent, shot straight like a meteor.

"Damn it!"

His pupils contracted again. Lu Xun quickly retreated, yet a streak of blood still flew from his chest, where the spear had cut a wound.

"Stop right there!"

Then, a figure flickered, and Zhao Ya appeared before him again. Her palm turned over, as if the sky were falling and the earth collapsing.

Martial skill [Skyfall], covering all directions, shaking the wilds!

Among Zhang Xuan's five students, the one with the best conditions was not Wang Ying, but Zhao Ya.

Her father was the city lord of White Jade City, a regional hegemon second only to Emperor Shen Zhui, with access to all kinds of martial skills and resources. This Skyfall was one of White Jade City's strongest attack techniques.

Previously, her cultivation was too low to practice it. But after her Pure Yin constitution was activated and her cultivation reached the peak of Dingli realm, far surpassing most teachers, she could now cultivate and use this technique.

As expected of White Jade City's famous ultimate attack, before it even landed, the chilling cold froze everything around.

"Hmph!"

With his hands held and unable to block, Lu Xun was not flustered. True qi surged within him, and he suddenly spun half a turn on the spot, putting Yuan Tao in front as a meat shield.

If Zhao Ya continued her attack, Skyfall would inevitably hit her companion.

"Teacher Lu Xun is... shameless!"

"Yeah, using a student as a meat shield in a fight—disgraceful!"

"Actually, this shows that these students have put him under great pressure. Otherwise, he wouldn't do something so reputation-damaging."

"Teacher Lu Xun, at the peak of Poxue realm, ranks first or second among the academy elders, yet he's been forced to this point by five freshmen who've only studied for half a month—it's terrifying!"

"It'll be hard for Zhao Ya and the others to win. With Yuan Tao as a meat shield, they can't attack without restraint. And if Yuan Tao lets go, Teacher Lu, with his speed and footwork, will be impossible to catch."

Some sharp-eyed observers saw the problem.

Earlier, Teacher Lu had been restrained by his status and couldn't use all his means. Now, pushed to the limit, he directly used Yuan Tao as a shield, leaving the others unable to attack or not attack, falling back into a disadvantage.

"Look, Zhao Ya hasn't stopped her attack..."

Just as everyone thought there was no way out, Zhao Ya's Skyfall came down without any pause, landing squarely on Yuan Tao.

Whoosh!

It struck like hitting straw or leather, without much sound. It seemed Zhao Ya had withdrawn her power at the last moment, and only her palm landed on Yuan Tao.

"Looks like she pulled back her strength. Otherwise, Yuan Tao, attacked from both sides, wouldn't be able to withstand it."

One person remarked, but before the words faded, a cry of surprise rang out.

"No, look at Teacher Lu Xun!"

Everyone quickly looked at Teacher Lu.

At that glance, their pupils contracted.

Under Zhao Ya's palm strike, Teacher Lu, still held by Yuan Tao, trembled involuntarily, his face turning pale.

Clearly, the attack that landed on the former had actually struck him.

"It's a variation of Skyfall—Sky Drop!"

City Lord Zhao Feng suddenly stood up, his eyes filled with disbelief: "Sky Drop can injure through an intermediary, but it's extremely difficult to master. Not only must one endure various kinds of pain, but most importantly, from start to completion, one must execute nearly a hundred thousand strikes... Xiao Ya, it's only been four days since her constitution was activated, and she's already mastered it. What kind of pain has she endured these past few days?"

Injuring through an intermediary is hard to master. Even with talent, it requires day-and-night exploration and practice.

By the most conservative estimate, this technique requires at least a hundred thousand strikes to achieve any success. In just four days, she practiced a hundred thousand times?

What had his daughter gone through?

And what kept her going?

After all, repeating such monotonous movements in such a short time—even he had almost given up back then, let alone a girl of only sixteen or seventeen.

"It's victory."

Yao Han, standing to the side, reddened his eyes and said.

He had seen the hardships the young lady had endured these past few days and knew what she had been through.

Previously, she hadn't trained hard and was even half-hearted. Otherwise, with the city lord's mansion's vast array of advanced martial skills and techniques, and so many experts guiding her, even if her constitution hindered progress, she wouldn't have been stuck at Martial Artist First Layer at sixteen or seventeen.

He had thought the young lady wouldn't be able to persist in cultivating such a difficult martial skill as Skyfall, but he never dreamed she not only persisted but far exceeded expectations.

"Victory?" City Lord Zhao Feng looked over.

"Yes, she wants to win for Teacher Zhang, because these children... don't want to lose."

"Don't want to lose?"

Those simple three words made City Lord Zhao Feng look at the five again, his expression growing more solemn.

As a city lord and a cultivator, he knew the difficulty of training and naturally understood what kind of pain these five teenagers, who had only started half a month ago, had endured to fight evenly with a renowned star teacher, even forcing him to abandon all pretense of dignity.

"What kind of magic does this Teacher Zhang have, to make Xiao Ya change so much, to make these students so united and trust each other so deeply!"

Looking again at Teacher Zhang not far away, City Lord Zhao Feng's eyes were full of respect.

He knew his daughter well. Such a transformation in just half a month was clearly the work of this Teacher Zhang.

Moreover, the so-called formation of these students, though crude, was executed with perfect coordination. Take the previous example: Zhao Ya's Sky Drop hadn't reached its peak, and if Yuan Tao resisted, it might fail to injure Lu Xun and instead harm him.

To offer no defense against such a powerful attack—how much trust did that require?

The surroundings were stunned into silence. Lu Xun, hiding behind Yuan Tao, turned green with rage, utterly exasperated.

He had thought these kids only had one trick, but he never dreamed they had so many, and that they would risk their lives, caring about nothing just to beat him.

Suppressing the chill in his body, Lu Xun retreated again.

Whoosh!

Before he could retreat two steps, a figure flashed before his eyes—another girl appeared.

Wang Ying!

Now, Wang Ying had lost the shyness she showed when fighting Du Lei, replaced by determination and a refusal to lose.

She kicked out.

With Wang Ying in front and Zhao Ya behind, Lu Xun could no longer dodge. He swelled his true qi and tensed all his muscles.

Bang!

The kick landed on his chest. Lu Xun felt a tremendous force hit him, his chest tightening, and he flew backward again.

The power of this kick was beyond imagination. If he hadn't experienced it himself, he wouldn't have believed that such a delicate-looking girl could unleash such devastating force.

No wonder Du Lei was kicked flying and nearly died. This girl's leg technique was indeed unparalleled, astonishing.

Plop!

He hit the ground again, his chest heavy.

After being hit several times in a row, even with his invincible defense and immense strength, he couldn't hold on.

Pfft!

He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face pale.

He had thought these students would be easy pickings, but he never dreamed they would push him to such a miserable state.

"Let go of me!"

Knowing that he had been taking hits without being able to defend himself, all because Yuan Tao was holding him, Lu Xun's eyes turned cold. With a roar, he gathered true qi at his head and slammed it hard against Yuan Tao.

Bang!

Their heads collided. Yuan Tao felt his head spin, and blood spurted from his forehead.

His defense was strong, but it could only withstand Dingli realm attacks. The opponent's true qi, combined with a physique no weaker than his, inflicted serious injury.

"Trying to break free? Dream on. I won't let go even if I die!"

Dizzy and face smeared with blood, Yuan Tao grew even more tenacious. With a roar, instead of loosening, his arms tightened like a binding spell, squeezing the breath out of Lu Xun.

"Damn it, aren't you afraid of death? If I keep hitting, you'll die..."

Seeing that the guy still wouldn't let go, Lu Xun was exasperated.

With his powerful attacks, even if the opponent's defense was decent, if he kept ramming, he could definitely kill him...

Was this guy really not afraid of death?

Shaken, just as he was wondering whether to kill him, he heard the sound of wind cutting through skin, and a violent energy stabbed straight at him.

A spear stopped right at his throat.

Zheng Yang had been waiting there. Seeing Lu Xun's concentration waver, he used the Heavenly Dao Spear Technique with spear intent, reaching his throat in an instant, ready to pierce it at any moment.

The spear was like an arrow, ready to shoot. Zheng Yang stood straight, his eyes like lightning.

"Teacher Lu... you lose."