The boy who just a second ago looked harmless to both sides, in the next moment turned into a fierce tiger ready to devour anyone.
With a single punch, he blasted a Black Mountain Army soldier to death.
This scene stunned everyone on the field. The four members of Black Mountain Army knew each other's strength well enough—though Fourth was the weakest among them, he had still managed to cultivate Power in his body, failing only to break through to Refining Force.
Moreover, these people were villains who licked blood off their blades, their hands dripping with blood—their experience in killing was abundant.
It wasn't that Fourth was too weak—the simple fact was, the boy before them was too strong.
In an instant, the three remaining on the field suddenly realized that this youth in a conical hat and raincoat was not some lamb to be toyed with at will, but a wolf sharpening its fangs and thirsting for blood.
This one's a handful.
The three Black Mountain Army bandits all had this same thought rise in their minds.
"Brother, we mistook you for someone else just now... It's all a misunderstanding."
When Su Mu lifted his gaze, the cold-faced leader took the initiative to soften his tone and spoke loudly. In his eyes, Su Mu was now an unpredictable variable—better to avoid trouble if possible.
He didn't want this variable of Su Mu interfering before they killed Shi Feng.
As for what happened after, a cold light flashed in his eyes.
"Heh, a misunderstanding?"
The youth suddenly laughed. Now you say it's a misunderstanding?
Too late!
Su Mu took a deep breath, injected Power into his feet, and performed Five Animals Qigong Deer Run—his figure stretched out a blur of an afterimage, leaping into the midst of the melee like a charging deer.
"Looking for death! Second, Third, you two go deal with him. Killing Shi Feng alone is more than enough for me."
"Got it."
The two Black Mountain Army soldiers who had been aiding the cold-faced man in butchering Shi Feng immediately left the fight, split left and right, twisted their sabers, and lunged for Su Mu.
"These villains fight dirty, brother, you must be careful!"
Shi Feng shouted a reminder. Seeing hope for survival, his right arm holding his saber was suddenly flooded with new-born Qi Power, and he threw himself into battle with the cold-faced man.
Shhh!
Two blades of icy saber-light flashed, ripping through the air from different angles, slashing at Su Mu's vital spots simultaneously.
Su Mu's eyes narrowed. Since achieving Great Success in Five Animals Qigong, his control over his body was nearly flawless. The tricky, sharp slashes seemed to slow down severalfold in his eyes; all he needed was a bit of focus to easily track the path of their blades.
Five Animals Qigong—White Ape Turned Around.
His figure moved—Su Mu's body twisted aside, and the two sabers, carrying their Power down in rapid arcs, both hacked at empty air. In the eyes of the bystanders, it almost looked as if Su Mu had coordinated this with them in advance.
"Huh? Missed... This kid sure is lucky."
Hiss hiss!
The two Black Mountain Army soldiers kept hacking, but the sweat was pouring down their foreheads as they slashed—one of them gulping nervously.
This kid was damned weird. Every time he lifted his saber, the opponent seemed to know in advance, dodging before he even fully moved, making every attack miss.
He wasn't wrong—Su Mu's Perfection Realm Five Animals Qigong gave him near-perfect body control. On top of that, he'd cultivated three Grade-Entering Martial Arts, with weapons as mere extensions of his limbs; Su Mu's understanding of muscle force far surpassed the pair.
Not to mention Su Mu's senses were far keener than normal, plus his Jade-Level Comprehension—whenever either of them so much as moved their blade, or tensed their wrists, forearms, or waists, Su Mu could predict their next moves a beat ahead.
Their saber technique was bold and sweeping, their Power even stronger than the one who'd just died by Su Mu's hand, but after swinging repeatedly and hitting only air, their Qi Power was exhausted. Before they could draw new strength, their movements began to slow.
And that was exactly the opening Su Mu was waiting for. In that brief hesitation, a breath of energy surged through all his limbs, his arm muscles swelling slightly as they tensed and bulged.
In an instant, Su Mu entered Limit-Breaking State, then stomped forward—a lone tiger into a flock of sheep.
Roar!
All the Power in his body surged into both fists, focused into a single point, gathering with explosive force as a punch shot out in a flash.
Rock Shattering Fist—Armor Collapse!
Su Mu noted the Black Mountain Army soldier was wearing cotton armor—not as sturdy as iron armor, but its softness and elasticity gave decent defense against fist and foot, so instead of Tiger Subduing Fist, he used Rock Shattering Fist, crafted to shatter heavy armor.
Bang bang!
At the instant fist met cotton armor, the surface caved in with a muffled thump—the first sound. Then a surge of Power blasted through the cotton's surface, detonating with a second, even louder bang.
Crack.
Within the blast echoed a string of clear bone snaps—the Black Mountain Army soldier's ribs shattered in an instant. He screamed, his mouth gaping wide.
Splurt!
A gush of blood sprayed from his mouth as he flew backwards and crashed to the ground. Though not dead, he was completely incapacitated.
The cotton armor he wore was utterly useless before this youth's fist?!
Watching his comrade get crippled by a single punch right before his eyes, then sent flying past him, a wave of cold, unmistakable fear swept through the survivor's heart.
In that instant, their gazes met.
Su Mu's eyes were calm but murderous, while for the first time, terror shone in the Black Mountain Army soldier's eyes—but it was far too late.
Bang bang!
While the man hesitated in fear, Su Mu didn't pause for a second—kill or be killed. Su Mu stepped forward into close quarters, punching hard once more.
Another pair of dull, explosive cracks—the Black Mountain Army soldier ended up just like the other, his cotton armor untouched, but the flesh beneath caved in, bones snapped, and he was sent flying, crashing and writhing on the ground in agony.
"Well done!" Shi Feng cheered ecstatically from the side.
Seeing that one had died and two were crippled after facing Su Mu, the cold-faced leader was chilled to the core. This was no wolf—this was a man-eating tiger out of the mountains.
This wasn't just running into trouble—it was smashing headfirst into solid steel.
"Kid, if you stop now, there's still time. I could even recommend you to Lord Guardian. With your strength in Black Mountain Army, you'd have a grand future—wealth and glory for life."
His expression twisted, his voice fierce and threatening as he shouted.
"But if you persist in being stubborn, Black Mountain Army and Lord Guardian will never let you go—your whole family will be exterminated!"
Exterminated, my whole family?
Su Mu came to this world alone. Life and death weren't his to control—what did he care for threats?
The way this one alternated bluster and flattery was laughable at best.
"Don't worry, brother—with this, I'll report everything to the County Captain once we return! Our Cyan Cloud Army will protect you for sure—from Black Mountain Army's villains, anyone can and should kill them!"
With Su Mu taking action, the tide of battle turned instantly. Now the key to victory was the youth everyone thought harmless.
Seeing real hope for survival, Shi Feng's spirits soared.
When the cold-faced man saw things going wrong, he made a snap decision—abandoning his two wounded Black Mountain Army men, he immediately turned to flee. He'd mastered a Grade-Entering Lightness Technique—that was his trump card.
If he wanted to run, how could a snot-nosed brat and a half-dead Shi Feng hope to block him?
"Damn it—you'll pay for this!"
He spat a threat behind him.
"Not good! If this bastard escapes..." Shi Feng saw the man activate a body technique and instantly felt regret—yet in the next second—
A sudden gust rushed past Shi Feng, a figure flashing through the air like a startled swan.
The villain had barely run a few steps when he felt a gale at his back. He looked around in shock and rage—seeing that man-eating tiger's shadow swelling in his pupils, swinging its sharp claws to pounce.
Vajra Subduing Tiger!
A piercing Tiger Roar struck first, followed by a powerful blow to his temple.
"No, you—you can't kill—..."
He didn't even finish the sentence before there was a crisp crack—
Bam!
The cold-faced man's face twisted in agony, blood bursting from every orifice as his skull shattered instantly, eyes wide open in total disbelief, dead on the spot.
One Tiger Roar Fist.
One Armor-Piercing Fist.
Ape Deer Transformation. And a Lightweight Body Technique superior even to his own... He couldn't understand how a boy this young could possibly master so many martial arts—and every one of them at such depth.
He died full of regret.
"I didn't want to get involved... Why were you all so insistent on dying?"
Su Mu murmured quietly. The cold-faced man's mouth opened and closed as if to speak, but in the end he only let out a muffled groan before dying for good.
There was no answer—nor had Su Mu wanted one.
This so-called Rebel Army had wanted him dead for no more than a handful of silver coins; sending them all to hell together was all Su Mu could do—four companions for the road to Yellow Springs.
With that, Su Mu flicked the curved saber from the ground, catching it as it spun into his hand.
"No, please don't kill me..."
The two on the ground begged for mercy. Su Mu ignored them, slashing with the saber to send them to the afterlife. With that done, he knelt to loot the bodies right in front of Shi Feng.
The look on Shi Feng's face turned to numb shock. The youth's movements felt almost too practiced—be it killing, "finishing off," or even looting corpses, it all happened naturally, as if he were no beginner at any of it.
Shi Feng also recognized the punch Su Mu had thrown—that roar was unmistakable.
"Vajra Temple's... Tiger Subduing Fist? Is this young brother from Vajra Temple?"
Having recognized the Tiger Subduing Fist, Shi Feng was even more startled. That fist technique was famous in Qingyun County for its difficulty. To produce a Tiger Roar demanded at least Great Success in cultivation.
But this youth still looked so young, fourteen or fifteen at most. Did he start training in Tiger Subduing Fist from his mother's womb? If not, how did he train it to such mastery?
While barely surviving, Shi Feng let his wild thoughts roam. Su Mu was already done looting the four corpses. The cold-faced man had over two hundred taels on him; the other three together had more than a hundred—over four hundred taels in all.
"These bandits really are oozing fat."
There were other items, but with Shi Feng still present, Su Mu didn't bother to check—he stuffed them into his chest for now.
"We shouldn't stay here long."
After looting, Su Mu gave Shi Feng a glance and turned to leave.
"Brother, my name is Shi Feng. Today's lifesaving debt will never be forgotten. I won't say thanks—take this Cyan Cloud Army token. If you ever run into trouble around Qingyun County, bring this token to find me at the Cyan Cloud Army!"
Seeing Su Mu about to leave, Shi Feng understood that the youth didn't want more trouble. After all, Black Mountain Army had risen to power in Qingyun County these years—not even the Five Great Clans dared provoke them lightly.
Shi Feng stopped Su Mu and handed over his own waist token. Su Mu caught it without much thought—seeing the bloodstained word "Cyan Cloud," he considered for a moment and kept it.
"I'll hold onto this token—for future use."