Chapter 20

In a patch of thorny bushes, Luo Xiu completely hid his body. After a moment, he heard footsteps approaching.

Not far from where Luo Xiu was hiding, the corpse of a Black-Armored Wolf lay in a pool of blood, and an Iron-Tailed Tiger demon was voraciously tearing into the flesh, drawn by the scent of blood.

Suddenly, a figure appeared in Luo Xiu's line of sight. "Is it him?"

The person Luo Xiu saw was wearing white light armor and carrying an iron spear, the same person he had seen at the outpost earlier, who had even smiled at him.

"Roar!"

The Iron-Tailed Tiger demon, which was devouring the Black-Armored Wolf, also heard the footsteps. The moment Chen Hu appeared, it pounced, its claws bared.

"Looking for death!"

Chen Hu snorted coldly. The iron spear in his hand glowed, and with a swift thrust, the spear pierced through the Iron-Tailed Tiger demon's head.

He was a Qi Sea Realm martial artist capable of battling second-level demons, so dealing with a mere first-level demon was effortless.

In his line of sight, Chen Hu also saw the corpse of the Black-Armored Wolf. He walked over, examined it, and frowned, his gaze sweeping the surroundings.

"Being able to kill a Black-Armored Wolf alone, that kid must be quite skilled." Based on his experience, Chen Hu instantly determined that the Black-Armored Wolf had been killed by a person, not the Iron-Tailed Tiger demon.

More footsteps sounded, and five more people emerged from the nearby forest.

"Big Brother!"

"Brother Hu!..."

These five people, upon seeing Chen Hu, addressed him, allowing Luo Xiu, who was hiding in the nearby bushes, to determine that they were a group and that Chen Hu was their leader.

Including Chen Hu, there were six people in total, and the only one Luo Xiu recognized was Yuan Dashan, who was among them.

"Could it be him who wants to kill me?" Luo Xiu frowned in thought. After all, the Wang Yun and Zhang Hun he had killed were originally under Yuan Dashan, and perhaps they had recognized him at the outpost.

"Big Brother, where is that kid?"

"We've been tracking him all the way here. He should be nearby, but where is he?"

"He just killed a Black-Armored Wolf; he can't have gone far!"

These people chattered among themselves, and under Chen Hu's orders, Yuan Dashan went to harvest the tiger skin and iron tail.

"Brothers, we take money to do the job. Since we've been paid, that kid must die. Everyone, split up and search. If you find him, kill him if you can; if not, send a signal, and the others nearby will come to help." Chen Hu said sternly.

"Yes!" Everyone responded.

"Yuan Dashan, after you harvest the tiger skin and iron tail, start searching immediately. Got it?"

"Yes, Brother Hu!"

From their conversation, Luo Xiu could roughly determine that the person who wanted to kill him was not Yuan Dashan but Chen Hu, the leader.

"From what he said, it seems someone hired them to kill me..." Luo Xiu narrowed his eyes. If there was someone who had a grudge against him and wanted him dead, the most likely suspect was Zhang Hai.

Zhang Hai had been reduced to a cripple by him, making him the most likely candidate.

"I am a student of the Martial Hall, protected by the Martial Hall. These people still dared to take the job to kill me, showing they are reckless and willing to risk their lives for money."

Luo Xiu expanded his perception and found that Chen Hu and the others had already dispersed, searching the area from different directions.

Only Yuan Dashan was closest to him, carefully harvesting the tiger skin, which would be more valuable the more intact it was.

Luo Xiu quickly formed a plan and, with a swift movement, dashed out of the bushes toward Yuan Dashan, who was near the Iron-Tailed Tiger demon's corpse.

"Who's there?"

Yuan Dashan, hearing the noise, reacted instantly and quickly picked up his twin axes.

"It's you!" Yuan Dashan's pupils constricted. The person was dressed in black, wearing a hood, the very person Chen Hu wanted to kill.

And this person seemed to have been hiding nearby all along!

"Buzz!"

The glow of inner qi appeared on Luo Xiu's body, a symbol of a martial disciple at the sixth level of Body Tempering or higher, who had reached the pinnacle of inner qi circulation.

He knew he had to take down Yuan Dashan as quickly as possible, or else if Yuan Dashan sent a signal, Chen Hu and the others would come.

"Swish!"

The green sword was drawn and swung directly at Yuan Dashan.

Yuan Dashan immediately raised his twin axes to block. A metallic clang echoed, and sparks flew as Yuan Dashan was forced back three steps, his palms tingling.

"Such strength!" Yuan Dashan exclaimed in his heart. He was at the eighth level of Body Tempering, and the person who could force him back in one strike must be at least a ninth-level Body Tempering expert.

"This is a tough opponent; I need to send a signal to get Chen Hu and the others here." Yuan Dashan dropped one of his axes, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small red bamboo tube.

But at that moment, his movement froze, as a sword was already pressed against his throat.

"If you send a signal, I'll cut off your head." Luo Xiu said coldly, knowing that the red bamboo tube was similar to a firework, which would send a signal when the mechanism was pulled.

The cold edge of the sword pressed against his throat, and Yuan Dashan felt a sharp pain as his skin was cut.

At that moment, he felt a bone-chilling cold. The other person's speed was too fast, and he didn't even have the chance to send a signal.

Yuan Dashan quickly nodded and threw away the signal device, knowing that his life was in the other person's hands.

"Who sent you to kill me?" Luo Xiu asked sternly.

"Whoosh!"

A cold light shot toward him. Before Yuan Dashan could answer, a silver-white arrow pierced his heart from behind.

Luo Xiu's face changed. His attention had been focused on Yuan Dashan, so he hadn't noticed anyone else approaching.

Yuan Dashan's eyes bulged as he looked at the arrow piercing his body, blood gushing from his mouth.

He felt his consciousness fading, and just before he died, Chen Hu's voice echoed in his ears.

"Kid, I knew you were hiding nearby!"

"Thud!" Yuan Dashan's body fell into the blood.

The sudden change caught Luo Xiu off guard, but he didn't need to spread his life perception to see figures emerging from the bushes.

The leader was Chen Hu, with three others by his side, and a bowman hidden nearby.

Luo Xiu instantly understood that Chen Hu had used Yuan Dashan as bait to lure him out.

With this realization, Luo Xiu turned and fled without a word.

"Whoosh!"

A silver arrow shot toward him, swift and deadly.

While running and leaping, Luo Xiu shifted his steps, barely slowing down, and avoided the arrow.

"Chase him!" Chen Hu ordered, and his subordinates immediately spread out, surrounding and pursuing Luo Xiu.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!..."

Rushing through the forest, Luo Xiu's speed was like that of a leopard, his movements agile like a monkey. With his advanced Inch Step technique, even Chen Hu, a Qi Sea Realm martial artist, found it difficult to keep up.

Only the bowman's arrows required Luo Xiu to be cautious, as the bowman's strength far exceeded that of Zhang Hun.

"Damn, he's so fast?"

Chen Hu's face was grim. In his line of sight, Luo Xiu's figure was becoming increasingly distant and blurry.

He was indeed a Qi Sea Realm martial artist, but he was not skilled in speed.

However, he wasn't worried that Luo Xiu would escape and cause trouble for them, as there was no evidence, and even if Luo Xiu reported to the Martial Hall, it wouldn't be a problem.

In a hidden patch of weeds, Luo Xiu stopped. In his perception, Chen Hu and the others wouldn't catch up in the short term.

"Who wants to kill me? How did Chen Hu know I was hiding nearby?" Luo Xiu was filled with doubt.

For the first question, Luo Xiu thought the Zhang family was the most likely suspect. For the second question, he believed he had left some traces, and with Chen Hu's extensive forest experience, he had deduced that Luo Xiu was hiding nearby, though he couldn't pinpoint the exact location, so he used Yuan Dashan as bait.

In his perception, the life auras of the human martial artists were very prominent. The five of them were searching the area, not far from each other, ready to assist if needed.

"Among these five, only Chen Hu is at the Qi Sea Realm, and the others are at the ninth level of Body Tempering. Perhaps I can take them down one by one!" Luo Xiu's eyes flashed with determination.

Since they were there to kill him, he wouldn't be merciful. Just like Wang Yun and Zhang Hun in the Water Dock Mountain, he had killed them decisively!

The special ability of life perception allowed Luo Xiu to avoid the demons lurking in the forest while moving quickly, but Chen Hu and the others, despite their experience, couldn't completely avoid them.

Based on the strength of the life auras, Luo Xiu first targeted one and then carefully approached.

"Damn, a seventh-level Body Tempering kid is so troublesome."

A thin, scar-faced man walked through the forest, a knife in his hand, muttering to himself.

"Hisss!"

Suddenly, the scar-faced man stopped, his gaze fixed on a large tree trunk where a bowl-thick python was coiled, its tongue flicking, staring at him.

With a cold snort, the scar-faced man rushed forward, and the knife flashed, severing the python's head, which flew and landed far away, the body falling from the tree.

This python was just a first-level demon, and with his ninth-level Body Tempering strength, killing it was easy.

The knife tip pierced the snake's body, and the scar-faced man extracted a snake gallbladder.

At that moment, he sensed a strong sense of danger, his back hair standing on end. He instinctively swung his knife backward.

"Clang!"

The sound of metal clashing echoed in the forest, and the scar-faced man's palms tingled as he was forced back two steps.

But then, a sword pierced through his body. In his final moments, the scar-faced man's eyes were filled with terror, unable to comprehend how a seventh-level Body Tempering kid could be so fast.

"The fastest martial arts in the world are the fastest. This saying is indeed true."

Luo Xiu pulled the sword from the man's body, blood dripping from the blade, his eyes cold.

In just over three months, a series of events had occurred, not only changing his body but also his mind.

Without a moment's hesitation, Luo Xiu quickly left the area. With his advanced Inch Step technique and life perception, he held the absolute advantage in this hunt!

Unconsciously, it was not yet midnight, but the sky had darkened, and a bolt of lightning followed by a downpour of rain.

Dark clouds rolled, and the forest was shrouded in darkness.

"Thud!"

The green sword once again cut the throat of a ninth-level Body Tempering martial disciple. Luo Xiu's face was expressionless. "The hunt has just begun!"