Returning to the Mysterious Era

Chapter 143 - Taking One Punch

"Three-Eyed Mad Lion?"

Cassius had never heard of that Covert Martial Arts sect before, but since Shire County was in the northern part of the Hongli Federation, the Three-Eyed Mad Lion Sect was likely a northern sect. His previous two time-travels had taken place in the southeastern part of the Federation, so he wasn't familiar with the northern Covert Martial Arts sects.

"It's quite surprising to find such a hidden gem while touring Shire County. You look to be around thirty years old, a few years younger than me," the blond man named Duomo spoke slowly. "With your strength, you could easily rank among the top three of the younger generation in the northern Covert Martial Arts circles. Is the Wind Elephant Sect a reclusive sect based in Mirror Lake and Bright Mountain? I've never heard of it."

"The Wind Elephant Sect is not a northern Covert Martial Arts sect." Cassius seemed to recall unpleasant memories. "I am the fifteenth-generation disciple of the Wind Elephant Sect. I am also its last surviving member." His eyelids drooped slightly. "That was the wrong question to ask; I feel worse now. Get ready for a beating."

"What?" Duomo was slightly taken aback. He knew he'd probably just accidentally poked a sleeping bear with his question, but how was he supposed to know anything about Cassius's past? Why was this guy...

"Tss!"

Like a snake ready to strike, Cassius bent backward like a bowstring as white airflow swirled around his nose and mouth. He bared his neat white teeth at Duomo in an inexplicably menacing grin.

Crack... crack...

His muscles and bones started to tremble frantically. In an instant, Cassius's entire muscular frame expanded, his whole body swelling several times its size. His upper garments burst until they were hanging like rags, revealing his body that now stood over two meters tall, like a giant made of rock. The thick, throbbing, wriggling veins were so prominent under his iron-hard muscles that the hot red blood underneath could be seen through his skin.

"Holy..."

As Duomo watched in shock, Cassius lifted his head. His red pupils, glowing like a pair of headlights, had a hint of violence.

"I know you didn't mean to, but it still puts me in a bad mood. To soothe my hurt little heart, just let me hit you. Take this punch, and I'll forget you ever asked that question," the voice said.

Duomo's gaze shifted downward to Cassius's giant arm hanging at his side, as large as a battering ram. Beneath the rock-like muscles were worm-thick veins, like pulsating tree branches. The diameter of the arm wasn't much smaller than the tree beside it. If a punch like that hit him, he'd surely die.

Sensing Duomo's stare, he tried to hide his arm behind his torso, as if hoping to avoid detection. But its massive size was impossible to conceal! Realizing this, Cassius showed his arm without hesitation. He clenched his fist and held it in front of his chest. "I'm not one to hide anything; I'm pretty straightforward. I just feel like hitting someone right now. My fist might be a bit big, so bear with it."

Bang!

Cassius's leg muscles compressed and swelled, generating a massive burst of forward force. He shot out like a cannonball, rapidly closing the distance, each step leaving deep craters in the ground. His fist tore through the air viciously, like a spear penetrating its target.

Boom!

His fist slammed into a large tree, causing yellow splinters to shoot out like water. The thick tree trunk, as wide as a grown man's torso, snapped violently with a loud crack and was left on a diagonal angle.

Duomo quickly dodged to avoid the strike, his brows furrowed at the overwhelming power he sensed behind that punch. Even if he got hit and lived to tell the tale, he'd still be suffering some seriously grave injuries.

This Cassius guy... His strength is beyond what I imagined.

Buzz!

A swift hand chop, wrapped in white Qi, sliced through the air like a blade. Duomo quickly sidestepped, crouching low to dodge. The tree behind him wasn't so lucky; there was a clean cut across half of its trunk and it trembled, on the precipice of falling.

"Why are you dodging around? I can sense you walk the righteous Dao as well. Too afraid to take even one punch from me?" the voice taunted.

Duomo didn't know how to respond to Cassius's insult, so instead, he planted his feet firmly on the ground and sped off in the opposite direction. That guy was far too battle-hungry, possibly even mentally unstable. He should not stay here any longer.

Duomo's footsteps struck the ground rapidly as he darted into the darkness like an arrow loosed from a bow. A raging figure was hot on his heels, each step echoing with a thunderous boom.

Boom!

A fist, surrounded by white airflow, rushed after him again.

"Are you a freaking battle maniac?!" Duomo yelled as he ducked and spun, whipping his leg around like a steel bar.

Thud!

His shin collided with an elbow in midair, the impact shredding Duomo's pants. Both men's muscles rippled like waves at the clash.

"Stop hounding me. I saw nothing and I asked nothing. I've got my own things to do; I don't have time to join you in your madness," Duomo said while swiftly counter attacking. His fists, palms, and feet blurred as they continually deflected Cassius's heavy strikes. His movements carried a subtle technique and charm. Strangely, their combat styles seemed to complement each other.

"What is this technique?" The more Cassius fought, the more thrilled he got. Duomo seemed to possess an incredible intuition, able to discern the blind spots in his opponent's attacks and break their power just as it was being gathered.

"If I tell you, will you stop pestering me?" said Duomo in exasperation as he parried one of Cassius's heavy punches with a reverse palm strike.

"Alright!" Cassius agreed heartily and charged forward, arm swinging and slicing through the air in a curved white arc.

Bam!

Duomo twisted his body, instinctively lifting his arm to strike Cassius's wrist as his punch came in at high speed. It was strong enough to disperse the force of the swing. Any other Covert Martial Arts Practitioner would have had their wrist shattered by that blow; Cassius would have met the same fate had he not trained in hardening Qigong and perfected the Stone Armor Technique. Cassius's wrist slammed into Duomo's fist at a breakneck speed. It was as if the enemy had used his own power against him.

"This technique is called Heart Eye, or simply the Third Eye. It temporarily enhances dynamic vision, reflexes, and some sort of intuition that I can't quite explain," Duomo said as he stepped forward, his body instantly dodging Cassius's interception. His punch landed on Cassius's solid chest, creating a loud bang as the impact forced him back. He quickly pivoted, launching himself forward, and disappearing into the shadows in just several quick leaps.

Cassius stepped back and lifted his right foot, bringing up a large clod of dirt and grass. He reached out to touch his chest—no injury, but a tingling sensation lingered as if some special force had been applied.

Shaking off the dirt from his shoes, Cassius glanced into the dim forest, muttering to himself, "Heart Eye... so that's where the 'Three-Eyed' in the Three-Eyed Mad Lion Sect comes from. What a powerful Secret Technique."

During the series of clashes, he could feel the framework of his opponent's Covert Martial Arts seemed more complete than that of the Wind Elephant Sect. Though their styles couldn't be any more different from each other and their techniques varied, Duomo's Covert Martial Arts was overall a notch above Cassius's Wind Elephant Covert Martial Arts. It was at least a second-tier Covert Martial Arts, possibly even first-tier, though Cassius couldn't be sure. He stood there, pondering for a while.

Cassius hadn't actually been going berserk just now. He was merely trying to force Duomo to demonstrate his true capabilities. Moreover, it had been a long while since he had met a master of Covert Martial Arts, and a simple exchange had left him itching for a real fight. Wouldn’t it be more unreasonable for him to not have one?

In that brief period when fist collided with fist, Duomo could sense that Cassius held no killing intent. It was a sparring match where both parties suppressed a certain level of their abilities. They had to restrain themselves, otherwise, it would evolve into a battle to the death, at which point it'd become a full-on clash between masters of Covert Martial Arts which they'd no longer be able to stop even if they wanted to.

Cassius had held back at least half of his strength, and Duomo had likely restrained himself quite a bit as well. He couldn't be sure if the other was a master pugilist, but at the very least, Duomo also had second-level accelerated blood flow. The Three-Eyed Mad Lion Sect behind Duomo must be very strong.

Cassius's heart stirred; he was quite interested in the Heart Eye Secret Technique that Duomo mastered. But considering his opponent's Covert Martial Arts sect, he thought it best to play the long game. He was curious whether the collision between the Midak Balance Destruction Technique and Heart Eye Secret Technique would spark something new. If the two were combined, could they create a deadly punch?

A part of him was fervently eager, but Cassius tempered his emotions. He glanced at the torn strips of cloth on his body, annoyed that he hadn't brought his cloak this time. A large hand extended out and casually tore them off. His pants were also mostly gone; there was no fabric left at the lower legs, just jagged black rags around the knee area.

It's not cheap to buy new clothes after every fight, Cassius chastised himself, then turned and took a step forward. His robust, towering figure was instantly swallowed up by the darkness.

Several hundred meters away, the entire uneven clearing was a mess with remnants of a fierce battle having taken place. There were broken and fallen trees everywhere, and the ground was pockmarked with footprints and holes. Additionally, a large amount of sawdust was scattered across the soil. n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

A deathly pale Jian lay beside a tree, his lips tinged purple. His legs kicked out, but each attempt to crouch or stand failed; all he managed to do was leave evidence of his struggle on the ground. Blood flowed everywhere, most of it already absorbed by the soil. Jian was drained of strength. Any movements he made completely exhausted him, to say nothing of mustering the energy to pull the trunk piercing his chest.

As time passed, Jian's situation became not just about whether he could free himself or not, but about potentially dying from weakness. "Help... Save me!" Jian kept shouting, but the forest did not answer him. Growing more desperate, his eyelids grew heavier.

Just as Jian was about to lose consciousness, he heard dull footsteps coming over. Jian raised his head weakly and saw a tall figure about three meters away. He murmured, "Save... save me. I... I need blood... Blood..." The next second, a vast shadow covered up Jian's entire form.

"Blood, blood!" His eyes lit up, and he looked up with a pleading, almost dog-like expression. Jian's mouth opened wide, his tongue crazily secreting saliva as it stretched outward.

"You want blood? I can give you that." Cassius lowered his head. "But can you even bite it?" Even if he didn't activate the Stone Armor Heavy Armor technique, his skin would feel like it was clad in a suit of tough, formidable armor.

"I can bite, I can bite! Let me try... Mmm!" Jian's eyes widened as he felt a finger shove into his mouth. A sweet, bloody taste burst out from the broken skin.