Chapter 12

As the soldiers marched back in unison, the chilling cold and the suffocating pressure gradually dissipated, and his confidence returned. He knew he couldn't take on a hundred, but in a one-on-one fight, he was brimming with confidence. His lips curled slightly, and with a whoosh, a short sword flew out from his sleeve, circling his body like a venomous snake ready to strike, its tongue flickering, poised to bite his opponent at any moment.

Yesterday, in the tent, he had indeed underestimated his opponent. He hadn't even seen his enemy clearly before drawing his sword, and as a result, he suffered a significant loss. His opponent had caught his flying sword bare-handed, which was partly due to his own lack of full effort, but the opponent's strength could not be underestimated.

This time, he was here to reclaim his dignity, and the current situation was one where he could afford to win but not to lose. As he focused intently on his opponent, the demeanor of someone from a major sect naturally emerged. His energy was contained and not released, which made Qin Feng take him more seriously. Although arrogant and overconfident, he did have some real skills.

"Interesting," Shuchang muttered softly behind him.

"Kill him, kill him!" A weak voice came from behind, and Shufeng bent down, reached out, and slapped a plaster over Wild Dog's mouth. "Shut up, you dead dog. This is all your fault, and we still don't know how to resolve it!"

Wild Dog's eyes widened, and though he couldn't speak, he was filled with indignation. How could this be his fault?

"If you were capable of defeating him, you wouldn't have lost the military flag. If you hadn't provoked him, Qin Feng would have dealt with him, and the flag wouldn't have been cut. Now, this mess is all because you overestimated yourself. Do you think you can handle someone Qin Feng can easily deal with? Qin Feng usually just plays with you, but you take it seriously."

Wild Dog blinked at Shuchang, who huffed and turned away, ignoring him.

Qin Feng took a step forward, and the flying sword circling Yang Zhi shot out like lightning, aiming straight for Qin Feng's face. However, Qin Feng only took this one step, then paused for a moment before accelerating forward. This time, his speed was as fast as lightning, unlike the slow step he had taken earlier.

If Yang Zhi were a seasoned warrior, he would know that someone who could easily trigger his energy, make his flying sword attack, and then use the change in rhythm to gain the upper hand in battle was not someone he could face. At this moment, he had two choices: surrender or run. Unfortunately, Yang Zhi didn't want to do either. In his sect, due to his special status, he was always flattered, and in competitions, few people fought him seriously. Moreover, Yang Zhi's talent was indeed exceptional, and his sword control was among the best in the Ten Thousand Sword Sect, which had made him overly confident.

Now, Qin Feng had already positioned himself between the flying sword and Yang Zhi, and the direction of his iron knife never changed, always pointing at Yang Zhi.

The iron knife didn't emit a chilling light, but it made Yang Zhi's heart race. He pushed off the ground and flew backward, waving his arms to control the flying sword, which pursued Qin Feng from behind, trying to force him to turn and defend.

In sword combat, the distance between the enemy and oneself is crucial. If the enemy can directly approach, failure is not far off. The sword was fast, but Qin Feng seemed even faster. Yang Zhi watched in panic as the iron knife drew closer, and in his flustered state, the flying sword behind Qin Feng began to wobble and tremble.

"Damn, all show and no substance," Shuchang couldn't help but shake his head. Yang Zhi wasn't entirely without skill, but he lacked real combat experience and the determination to fight to the death. Perhaps in his mind, the competition was just a performance, not a matter of life and death.

But for Qin Feng, there was no such thing as a performance. Once he started, it was a fight to the death. If Yang Zhi had treated this as a life-or-death battle from the beginning, even if he lost, he wouldn't have been completely overwhelmed from the start.

The outcome of the fight was already decided by their mental states before it even began, and the gap in their abilities was significant.

Shuchang shook his head.

Yang Zhi was completely flustered. At this moment, he saw in Qin Feng's eyes and felt from his aura that Qin Feng wanted to take his life. Losing his composure, he immediately lost control of the flying sword, and the iron knife in front of him grew larger.

He couldn't help but scream. Before his scream ended, the iron knife disappeared, replaced by a large fist that struck him squarely in the left eye, sending him flying backward. His feet tightened, and his flying body was pulled back. Another punch landed in front of him, and with a thud, his right eye was hit. He was pulled back again, and this time, a punch landed on his nose.

Shuchang shook his head, unable to bear watching. Scissors was wiping blood from his nose in the distance, and the little cat, lying on the ground, struggled to prop itself up, staring in shock at the scene.

The soldiers of the敢死营 (Dare-to-Die Corps) saw a one-sided beating. The once mighty Yang Zhi, who had brutally beaten Wild Dog, was now like a toy in Qin Feng's hands, receiving punches left and right, his once delicate face swelling and blood splattering.

"Turns out, when Qin Feng beat us before, he was being gentle," Scissors touched his buttocks, still trembling.

Wild Dog's eyes rolled back, and his breathing was rapid. Shuchang waved his hand and tore off the plaster from Wild Dog's mouth. "See the difference?"

"See it, see it!" Wild Dog's voice was surprisingly strong. "It's exciting. Hit him again, on the left, to make it symmetrical."

With each punch from Qin Feng, the cheers from the Dare-to-Die Corps grew louder, but gradually, they quieted down. Yang Zhi was now like a broken sack on the ground, with no chance of retaliation, but Qin Feng continued to punch and kick methodically and seriously. The sound of bones breaking could be heard, and the soldiers felt a chill run through them.

Qin Feng was too calm and too serious, just as Wild Dog had said, he had to make it symmetrical to be satisfied. Scissors dragged the little cat by one leg and threw it in front of Shuchang. "Doctor Shu, look at this guy who's asking for it. Is there any hope?"

Shuchang glanced back and threw a pill. "Swallow it, little cat. I didn't expect you to have a masochistic tendency!" A quick look showed that the little cat was only suffering from external injuries. With a month of rest, he would be fine.

The little cat quickly swallowed the pill and half-sat up, pulling on Scissors' leg. "What choice do I have? If I go back unharmed, I won't have a good life. By the way, Doctor Shu, will Qin Feng kill him?"

"Qin Feng would kill him with one strike if he wanted to. Don't worry, it's just external injuries. It looks bad, but it's not serious," Shuchang said, pursing his lips.

Finally, Qin Feng stopped, lifted Yang Zhi from the ground, and examined him. He then punched Yang Zhi's left face again, satisfied that both sides were equally swollen. He nodded, let go, and dropped Yang Zhi to the ground. He turned around, looked at the surrounding soldiers, and chuckled, "Where's the applause?"

Clap, clap, clap. After a moment of silence, it was the little cat who clapped first, and then the applause became rhythmic. Qin Feng's final act of making Yang Zhi's face equally swollen had truly shocked everyone.

"Bind this ignorant fool to the flagpole and stick our camp flag in him. He cut our flag, so let him serve as the flagpole!" Gao Yuan laughed.

"Doctor Shu, give Yang a pill. If he dies, my beating will have been for nothing," the little cat pleaded softly.

Shuchang sighed and shook his head. "A compulsive person!" He walked to Yang Zhi, put a pill in his mouth, and helped it slide down his throat, checking his pulse. It was indeed just external injuries, with no internal damage. However, with this, the enmity between Qin Feng and the Yang family would be deep.

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**Note:** The term "敢死营" (Dare-to-Die Corps) is a military unit name and has been left untranslated to maintain the original context.