Chapter 48

The mountain ridge was about one meter wide, uneven and rugged, making it difficult to traverse. On both sides of the mountain ridge were bottomless abysses, and the high altitude and strong winds meant that one could only move in small steps to maintain stability. If the steps were too large, a strong gust of wind could easily cause one to lose balance and fall off the mountain ridge. This is how the name "half-step" came about. This mere twenty-meter-long mountain ridge became a natural barrier for the bandits of Guoshanfeng.

When Ye Zhen reached the "half-step," it was already completely dark, and the forest was even more dim.

Seeing the full view of the "half-step," Ye Zhen drew a sharp breath. It was too dangerous. Although his Snake Spring Grass could now leap forty meters in one bound, he had no confidence in safely using it on the "half-step."

The mountain ridge was uneven, with the narrowest part being only half a step wide. Near the gate of the bandit camp, the bandits had densely placed iron caltrops. A misstep could result in a fall into the abyss.

With his left hand, Ye Zhen lifted the back of the neck of the third leader with a beard, and with his right hand, he held the waist of the third leader. Ye Zhen hid behind the third leader's body, using the corpse to step onto the "half-step" and slowly advanced toward the bandits' lair.

"Who's there?"

"Who is it?"

"Speak up, or I'll shoot!"

The moment Ye Zhen stepped onto the "half-step," the bandits on the opposite side noticed his figure, or rather, the figure of the third leader with a beard. They started shouting questions.

If he spoke, he would be exposed. Ye Zhen decided not to speak. The third leader, being the third leader of Guoshanfeng, must have had some authority among the bandits.

The figures on the bandit camp gate flickered. Seeing that the newcomer did not speak, they vigorously waved their torches. With the help of the torchlight, some keen-eyed bandits recognized the newcomer.

"It's the third leader, it's the third leader! Third leader, where are the other brothers? The boss said you would bring a large amount of loot, but where are the others?"

Ye Zhen did not respond, carefully moving his steps. In the time it took, he had already walked halfway through the twenty-meter-long "half-step" with the third leader's corpse.

"Third leader, why aren't you speaking? Are you injured?" The torches on the opposite side were waved more frantically, and the torchlight revealed the blood on the third leader's lips.

"Third leader?"

The bandits on the opposite side were extremely alert. After several unanswered questions, a torch was thrown from inside the camp gate toward Ye Zhen.

Almost the moment the torch was thrown, Ye Zhen knew it was bad; he would be discovered!

In an instant, the thrown torch clearly illuminated the third leader's appearance: closed eyes, ashen face, bloodstains on the lips, a large hole in the chest, and feet hovering a few inches off the ground.

At the same time, Ye Zhen let out a thunderous roar, "Open the gate for me, I'm injured!" As he roared, Ye Zhen instinctively used his hands to make the third leader's limp head suddenly stand up.

"A ghost!" The bandits with weak nerves screamed in terror.

In the darkness, the torches flickered, and the third leader, floating on the mountain ridge, looked like a ghost.

The third leader had some authority among the bandits. Under Ye Zhen's unexpected roar, several bandits guarding the camp gate instinctively pushed the gate open a bit.

Taking advantage of the bandits' shock, Ye Zhen used the torchlight to quickly advance several steps, reaching within five meters of the camp gate.

"Bad, the third leader is dead, someone is coming, shoot, shoot arrows!" A quick-witted bandit shouted urgently.

"Quick, close the gate, it's not the third leader!"

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

The sound of arrows suddenly rang out.

Almost the moment the bandits shouted, Ye Zhen's figure suddenly crouched and then leaped, carrying the third leader's corpse like an arrow toward the camp gate. As he leaped, he threw the corpse to block the incoming arrows, and his fists, covered in true essence, struck the wooden gate!

Bang!

Wood splintered.

Ye Zhen's fists, like a battering ram, fiercely struck the wooden gate, not only preventing it from closing but also creating two large holes, sending four bandits guarding the gate flying backward, spitting blood.

Entering the camp gate, the torches provided a clear view, and the danger of falling off the mountain ridge was gone. Ye Zhen's figure flickered, and he immediately attacked two bandits who were about to shoot arrows at him.

With a light flick of his hands, he caught two arrows, and as he approached, he thrust them backward, piercing the chests of the two bandits.

For a moment, Ye Zhen was like a tiger among sheep, slaughtering the bandits, causing them to scream in terror. Some bandits even knelt and begged for mercy.

Ye Zhen showed no mercy, killing both the bandits with Blood Cultivation at the third and fourth levels and the ordinary bandits with only basic skills.

The scene in the forest had taught Ye Zhen a cruel and bloody lesson, not to mention the dozen withered corpses hanging in the bandit camp.

Everything made this young man's heart as hard as iron in that instant!

Ye Zhen did not kill all the bandits at the camp gate. He left two to escape into the camp, closely following them.

On the way, the two bandits Ye Zhen had spared shouted frantically, and occasionally, other bandits, hearing the commotion, rushed over.

But in front of Ye Zhen, any existence below the True Essence Realm could not last a single move. With a flick of his body, Ye Zhen struck them down with a palm.

Following the bandits to several vaguely visible houses, as they passed one house, a bandit without pants suddenly jumped out, slashing at Ye Zhen with a large knife.

The large knife was covered in a pale green true essence.

Without even looking, Ye Zhen launched a Five Mountains Divine Fist from a distance, and before the fist reached the bandit, the green fist imprint exploded the bandit's head like a rotten melon.

"Second leader..."

The two bandits, who were running frantically, suddenly screamed as if their throats were being squeezed. One of them even collapsed in fear.

It turned out that the bandit Ye Zhen had casually killed with a punch was the second leader of Guoshanfeng.

With a palm, Ye Zhen sliced through the throat of the bandit who had collapsed, then grabbed the neck of the remaining bandit and lifted him up, demanding, "Where is Guoshanfeng?"

The bandit's eyes rolled back, and he weakly raised his arm to point at the only courtyard in the area. With a few cracks, Ye Zhen crushed the bandit's neck.

As Ye Zhen stepped into the courtyard, a burly man with a bare chest and a hairy chest also stepped out from the inner hall.

"Miss He, I'll give you another half an hour to consider. If you submit to me, Guoshanfeng, I won't disgrace you, and even your father will benefit greatly! Once I deal with this fly, if you still want to, don't blame me for using force!"

As he stepped out of the inner hall, Guoshanfeng was still persuading a girl tied up inside.

"I'm the fly, why don't you try?"

Whoosh!

Ye Zhen suddenly burst forward, using Snake Spring Grass and Five Mountains Divine Fist to attack from a distance.

Huh?

Guoshanfeng's eyes narrowed, and his expression became extremely serious as he saw the fierce attack. His palms flickered, and he used a slow yet fast boxing technique to meet the attack.

Bang!

The two true essences collided, creating a small whirlwind. Ye Zhen remained in place, but Guoshanfeng took a small step back.

"True Essence Second Level cultivation?" Ye Zhen sneered. Ye Zhen's current cultivation was at the late True Essence First Level, but with his extremely pure true essence, only those at True Essence Second Level or higher could match him in a direct confrontation.

Guoshanfeng's brows furrowed, surprised by Ye Zhen's strength.

"Brother, which gang are you from? Why are you challenging my territory? Have we offended you in any way? If you have a reason, I, Guoshanfeng, will not hesitate to make amends." After taking a small disadvantage, Guoshanfeng's eyes flickered.

"I want your head, will you give it to me?" Ye Zhen laughed coldly.

"Boy, don't be disrespectful! Your cultivation is nothing to me. You'd better know your place."

"Is that so, then come on!"

With a roar, Ye Zhen charged forward like a whirlwind, using the recently learned Lightning Leopard Flash Punch.

"Disrespectful brat!"

Guoshanfeng roared, changing his boxing technique. The slow yet fast boxing technique he used to meet Ye Zhen's attack was even more refined this time.

The boxing technique was slow yet fast, continuous, and unbroken, like waves. Guoshanfeng's true essence even turned a faint blue, indicating a highly advanced technique.

More importantly, once this boxing technique made contact, it was sticky and continuous, making it difficult to move freely and fully utilize one's strength.

"The boxing technique Guoshanfeng is using is definitely a middle-grade human-level martial technique!"

Ye Zhen's expression became increasingly serious. Whether it was the Five Mountains Divine Fist, the Lightning Leopard Flash Punch, or the Inch Step Collapse Punch, none of them could break through Guoshanfeng's continuous boxing technique. The continuous force field seemed to restrain Ye Zhen's punches.

If it weren't for Ye Zhen's extremely pure true essence, which gave him an advantage in true essence, he might have already been defeated.

After a short while, Guoshanfeng's boxing technique remained continuous like waves, while Ye Zhen's punches became increasingly weak.

"Unfortunately, I haven't perfectly combined the Lightning Leopard Flash Punch and the Inch Step Collapse Punch. Otherwise, I could have defeated him with one punch!"

Sighing inwardly, Ye Zhen suddenly used Guoshanfeng's continuous boxing technique to create a moment of instability. His shoulder swayed, revealing a weakness.

Guoshanfeng, who had been anxious for a long time, saw an opportunity and advanced, slicing at Ye Zhen's throat with a palm.

At the same time, Ye Zhen's body slightly swayed, and he used his shoulder to collide with Guoshanfeng. His shoulder was instantly covered in true essence and vibrated at a strange frequency.

Snake Glide Step!

"Bad!"

Guoshanfeng shouted in alarm, but his palm still cut into Ye Zhen's shoulder, and Ye Zhen also took the opportunity to collide with Guoshanfeng's chest.

However, Guoshanfeng's palm was not weak. Even with Ye Zhen's true essence defense and the Snake Glide Step to dissipate the force, the palm still made Ye Zhen's right arm lose sensation.

With his right arm numb, Ye Zhen's left hand quickly struck sixteen points of green light, the Vein Sealing Hand technique.

Visibly, Guosh