Chapter 2001 — So Moved! Wei Zhao Must Find a Countermeasure—Without One, He Can Hardly Defeat the Earth-Rank Man in Black

Even as he healed his wounds and replenished his strength, Wei Zhao's mind raced, groping for a way out. But under the circumstances before him there was no other way at all: his strength fell short, his martial skill fell short, his mental cultivation... yes—his mental cultivation!

Wei Zhao had all along been using the first layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art to heal his injuries and restore his strength, yet he had never once tried the second layer for that purpose. Back then it was because his command of the first layer had grown so proficient that there was no need to call upon the second; and so his use of the second layer had been plain and single-minded, and he had never done anything else with it.

At the thought, Wei Zhao swiftly shifted the art from the first layer to the second. The next moment, his injuries began to mend at two or three times their former speed, and the true qi he had lost was rushing back into his body at a rate many times faster than before!

At this Wei Zhao was overjoyed—and even in his joy he silently cursed himself for a fool. Had he only used the art this way from the start to replenish his strength and heal his hurts, he would never have fallen into such a wretched state. At the very least, in a straight clash of blows like this, he would no longer come off the worse!

Of course, the situation today was pure chance. The Earth-Rank man in black had come with a purpose; anyone else would never have traded blow for blow with a skilled hand like Wei Zhao, who possessed such formidable martial techniques.

But he could not get past Wei Zhao, and so he could forget about killing Xu Shilan. And Wei Zhao had met him head-on from the very first exchange, fighting with utter desperation, leaving the Earth-Rank man in black no choice at all—he could not simply keep dodging forever, could he? And even if he dodged, it would be a single dodge; if Wei Zhao followed with a feint and then a real strike, he would be in danger.

Besides, as a mid Earth-Rank expert, he had his pride, and he had no wish whatsoever to show weakness before Wei Zhao, an early Earth-Rank expert. He was two whole ranks above the man—why should he dodge?

But above all, the Earth-Rank man in black believed his own strength greater than Wei Zhao's, and that if they wore each other down like this, the first to die would surely be Wei Zhao. And in truth, after five successive collisions, had Wei Zhao not discovered that the second layer of the art could heal him and restore his strength faster, a few more exchanges would certainly have killed him.

So when the Earth-Rank man in black spoke those words, it was also to sound Wei Zhao out, to see whether his estimate was right. If Wei Zhao truly was an early Earth-Rank expert, then no matter how formidable he was, one or two more exchanges would surely finish him.

"I told you already—it ends only in death. Let us continue!" Wei Zhao rose to his feet and looked at the man in black with a smile.

Matters had come to such a pass that Wei Zhao could not possibly let the Earth-Rank man in black go. Never mind whether the man's word could be trusted, whether he would spare Wei Zhao's family—simply from the way things stood, Wei Zhao could not abandon Xu Shilan and walk away alone!

Moreover, the Earth-Rank man in black had to die. He had already learned Wei Zhao's background and true strength; once he returned and spread the word, once it reached the ears of Wei Zhao's enemies, his true power would be laid bare. And would the clan whose three Earth-Rank experts Wei Zhao had killed ever let the matter rest?

So no matter what, he could not compromise.

Hearing Wei Zhao's words, the Earth-Rank man in black dearly wanted to say: Are you some kind of cockroach? Why are you still coming? How is an early Earth-Rank expert like you still not dead? Are you even an early Earth-Rank at all? Yet for all his doubts, the man in black could be certain that Wei Zhao was indeed early Earth-Rank—otherwise, at a juncture like this, if Wei Zhao were still holding back his strength, that would be sheer idiocy.

Xu Shilan covered her mouth, and crystalline tears slid silently down her lovely face. Wei Zhao had no obligation to trouble himself over her at all; if he had the strength to snuff out his opponent with ease, then of course he should act.

But as things stood, Wei Zhao was plainly no match for the other man, and he was staking his life on the fight—struck flying again and again, rising to his feet again and again, smiling at his opponent and saying, let us go again!

Xu Shilan was deeply moved and wanted to weep. Having lost her parents' love since childhood, she felt for the first time that someone would treat her so well. She longed to say, no, do not mind me, just go—and yet she dared not make a sound, for fear of distracting Wei Zhao.

Though no martial artist herself, Xu Shilan could tell that this was a true clash of strength, where a single lapse of attention or a single misstep could mean a wretched death...

All along, Xu Shilan had dealt with Wei Zhao out of a wish to repay a kindness. He had cured her headaches, and she was grateful to him—but it was only gratitude. Her relationship with Wei Zhao could at best be called that of a slightly closer friend.

Of course, it was also because of Feng Xiaoxiao, Tang Yun, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu that her relations with Wei Zhao had grown so good.

And Wei Zhao's conduct now had gone far beyond that of an ordinary friend—how could Xu Shilan fail to be moved?

In truth, Wei Zhao did all this simply because Xu Shilan was there at his invitation, and so he was duty-bound to protect her life. Beyond that, the Earth-Rank man in black had threatened Wei Zhao, saying he would go after the people around him—so how could Wei Zhao let him live?

Feng Sanhuang's expression was grave as well. He was deeply grateful to Wei Zhao, and though he wished to help, he knew that with his own skill, stepping in would only make things worse. Watching Wei Zhao fall again and again and rise again and again, he even thought that if he could take the man's place, he would surely die in Wei Zhao's stead...

For protecting Xu Shilan was Feng Sanhuang's own duty, yet for Wei Zhao it was neither duty nor obligation—Wei Zhao did it purely to help a friend...

Cheng Yiyi's eyes held dread; watching all that unfolded before her, she was at a loss...

Six times, seven times, eight times... Wei Zhao was now in a very bad way—but so was the Earth-Rank man in black!

As he fought on, he marveled: why was Wei Zhao still not dead? How could he still rise and trade blows with him? If Wei Zhao were an early Earth-Rank expert, he should have dropped dead by now; even if not dead, he should have had no strength left to rise and fight him. Just how was Wei Zhao doing this?

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