Chapter 2272 — A Hard-Won Victory

"They haven't moved the prisoners somewhere else, have they?" Pi Zhishan said, staring at the empty, deathly silent farm in puzzlement.

"Let's search a little more," Old Master Pi said impassively.

The two of them made their way deeper into the farm, but the moment they turned a corner, they stopped in unison. There, sitting squarely in the doorway of a one-story house, was a man in black—a burly man seated with his legs planted wide apart, utterly imposing.

When the man saw Pi Zhishan and Old Master Pi arrive, a sharp glint suddenly flashed through his previously dull, vacant eyes. He rose to his feet and, without a word, threw a punch straight at Pi Zhishan.

Having received his grandfather's instructions, Pi Zhishan did not try to show off. He slapped the Wind-Thunder Purple-Lightning Beast, and in an instant, the beast evaded the burly man's attack.

From Pi Zhishan's assessment, Wang Xinyan was most likely being held inside the house behind the man in black. He left the man to his grandfather and hurried with the Wind-Thunder Purple-Lightning Beast to the doorway.

Seeing Pi Zhishan disappear, the man in black did not pursue him. He merely twisted his fist and slammed it directly at Old Master Pi.

Old Master Pi had been wary of the man from the start. Moreover, the man had changed targets at the last moment, so it was naturally unlikely that he could land a hit. Old Master Pi easily slipped to his side and struck with a Divine Fist. The blow sent the burly man staggering and made him spit out a mouthful of blood.

In theory, Test Subject No. 2 could withstand ten attacks from early Heaven-Rank experts. But even among early Heaven-Rank practitioners, strength varied considerably. Old Master Pi specialized in fist techniques; his two Divine Fists possessed boundless force, though his other skills were considerably weaker.

Yet the man in black had taken Old Master Pi's punch head-on. It had hit far harder than an ordinary early Heaven-Rank expert's attack. With no true qi protecting his body, he was sent into a violent spray of blood and suffered extremely severe internal injuries.

Of course, the man in black was now nothing more than a puppet. He had no thoughts of his own and could not feel pain. Though Old Master Pi's punch had inflicted tremendous damage, the man acted as if he had felt nothing at all. The instant he was struck, he swung another fist at Old Master Pi.

"Bang..." Old Master Pi had barely withdrawn his fist and had no time to dodge. He too took a punch from the burly man.

"Pfft..." The blow sent Old Master Pi's qi and blood surging, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. His internal organs suffered some damage as well. It was not that he had been careless; he simply had not expected his opponent to ignore all the usual rules. In an ordinary duel between experts, once one side was struck, he would first retreat and catch his breath. Otherwise, the injuries could easily worsen—unless both sides were fighting to the death.

But at the level of Heaven Rank, who would truly fight to the death unless the two sides harbored some irreconcilable blood feud?

That was why Old Master Pi had never imagined that, after taking his punch, the man in black could immediately strike back.

The exchange had roused Old Master Pi's fighting spirit. Once again, he unleashed a Divine Fist, driving it straight into the burly man's head.

The burly man was injured even more severely this time. He reeled unsteadily and toppled head over heels, giving Old Master Pi a brief moment to withdraw.

Old Master Pi had also seen through the man's style. His fists and kicks were formidable, but he possessed courage without the slightest strategy, simply lashing out in blind disorder. And there was something deeply strange about him. He gave Old Master Pi an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

The man in black had fallen, and Old Master Pi naturally would not let the opportunity pass. He drove two more punches into the man's shoulders, shattering both arms. Then, just as he was about to break the man's legs while he was still down, something entirely unexpected happened. The burly man paid no attention whatsoever to his shattered shoulders. He simply thrust out one foot and kicked Old Master Pi, sending him flying backward.

Old Master Pi had truly never heard of anyone who could attack back as though nothing had happened after being struck, without even feeling pain. It was beyond bizarre. In such circumstances, most people would have cried out in agony and retreated first. But the man before him was completely different.

What happened next left Old Master Pi even more baffled. After crawling to his feet, the man in black charged at him, swinging both arms that could no longer be raised.

If his arms were useless, he could still use his legs. Once he reached Old Master Pi, the burly man lifted a leg and kicked.

"..." Old Master Pi was utterly speechless. What kind of expert was this? He was practically a member of a death squad—someone who truly had no fear of dying.

Cursing inwardly did not stop him. Old Master Pi gritted his teeth against the internal injuries caused by that kick and threw a punch straight into the leg the burly man had thrust toward him.

Old Master Pi had taken only one punch and one kick, yet his injuries were far from light. Though he was an early Heaven-Rank expert, he had no true qi protecting his body, nor did he practice a high-defense external technique such as Golden Bell Shield. His defenses were therefore merely stronger than Wu Chengtian's, not comparable to those of other Heaven-Rank experts of the same level.

His injuries had severely impaired his mobility. Seeing that he could not dodge in time, he had no choice but to meet the attack head-on with his fist.

Old Master Pi poured every ounce of his strength into this punch. He only hoped to dispose of the bizarre man before him as quickly as possible. Even if he had to suffer another injury, he was willing to pay the price.

"Boom!"

Both sides unleashed the fiercest, most unyielding force they possessed. One was an all-out charge from a man who did not fear death; the other was a desperate ultimate strike backed by every ounce of strength. Their collision did not produce the earth-shaking, heaven-rending explosion of energy that accompanied clashes between inner-school experts, but the resulting roar was still like a peal of thunder.

The man in black was sent flying, while Old Master Pi staggered backward several steps before dropping heavily onto the ground.

The man's foot had not been hard. It did not feel like the kick of an external practitioner who had tempered his body to the utmost. It had been an utterly ordinary kick. Old Master Pi had even heard the bones in the man's foot crack. Yet he could not understand how the man possessed such tremendous strength—or why he seemed not to feel pain at all.

As if his injuries had nothing whatsoever to do with him.

Old Master Pi's fist was not crippled by the collision, but the fierce recoil still inflicted considerable damage on his meridians. Fortunately, as an external practitioner, he was not affected as severely by meridian injuries. Even so, if he did not seek treatment, his speed and strength when throwing punches would inevitably suffer in the future.

Fortunately, what consoled Old Master Pi was that the man in black could no longer get up. Both arms were broken, one leg was shattered, and only the other remained. Yet for a one-legged man to stand without the help of his hands was exceedingly difficult...

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