Chapter 2299 — Impossible!

In Wei Zhao's eyes, Tagan Long was nothing but a spoiled young master, a early-stage Earth-rank fighter propped up by elixirs. Yet Wei Zhao had never imagined that Tagan Long could unleash such a domineering martial technique—and that his on-the-spot combat instincts and reaction speed would so far exceed Wei Zhao's expectations!

Still, even if the two had fought this one exchange to a draw, Wei Zhao's face was ugly to behold. He had not lost, but in truth he had lost all the same—because Wei Zhao had used the fifth form of the Wildfire Fist, while Tagan Long had used only the first form of some Eight Trigrams Palm!

The first form against the fifth form, and Wei Zhao had managed only a tie—if that was not a loss, what was? And Wei Zhao's strength far surpassed Tagan Long's! This was the true art of fighting above one's level, of playing the pig to eat the tiger!

Back in the Ulonghot Mountains, this brat had worn the fool's face of a wastrel young master, showing nothing and revealing nothing—and yet he possessed such formidable strength!

As the saying goes, a master reveals himself the moment he moves. The instant Tagan Long struck, Wei Zhao knew this was no fool but a true expert, and a mighty one—such was Wei Zhao's appraisal of Tagan Long!

This one had hidden himself far too deeply. Had Wei Zhao not taken him on with his own hands at this very moment, Tagan Long might have slipped past Wei Zhao's eyes entirely!

In truth, Tagan Long had no wish to expose his strength either. Had this not been a matter of life and death, he would never have fought Wei Zhao himself. Had there been an expert at his side, he would surely have let that expert act while he put on a show of terror.

But now there was no expert beside him, and he had no choice but to fight. This was a moment of kill-or-be-killed; he could not afford to hold back.

Anxiety stirred in Wei Zhao's heart. Had he known earlier that Tagan Long was an expert, he would have thought his plan through thrice over. Killing Tagan Long would be satisfying enough, but what if Tagan Long proved a hard bone to gnaw?

Even if he killed him, the price would be steep, and that was not something Wei Zhao cared to see. Had he known, he might have chosen to slip away the moment he finished stealing the books. Even if he came to make trouble for Tagan Long, he would not have struck so rashly—he would surely have compressed an energy bomb in his palm first, to blast Tagan Long to death.

But now there was no time left, and no time for further thought. Once more he threw the fifth form of the Wildfire Fist, driving straight at Tagan Long's chest!

"Hmph!" Tagan Long gave a cold snort and said, "I did underestimate you. I never thought your strength was so decent! Five Elements Eight Trigrams Palm, second form—watch this!"

With that, Tagan Long neither dodged nor flinched. He raised both palms and pushed them out to meet Wei Zhao's fists!

A might greater than before rushed at him, and Wei Zhao's heart lurched in shock! How could Tagan Long's strength be so great? Had he been holding back just now? From the sound of his words, it seemed so—he had not used his full power before, and only now was he truly taking Wei Zhao seriously!

That feeling of being slighted rankled Wei Zhao deeply. It was as though he were facing an enemy a full tier above himself, hearing the words he himself had once spoken—that thrill of fighting above one's level was now utterly gone before Tagan Long!

This was a formidable rival. Wei Zhao realized he had been far too careless, far too deceived by Tagan Long's outward appearance.

"Boom!" "Boom!"

Two more thunderous crashes—yet this time, though Tagan Long still staggered back a few steps, it was Wei Zhao's body that was sent flying backward!

"Hmph! Again!" Wei Zhao spat out a mouthful of blood, crashed to the ground, clambered up, wiped the blood from his lips with his sleeve, and said coldly.

"Since you don't mind life or death, then I'll send you on your way!" Tagan Long's gaze toward Wei Zhao was icy and sharp. In his eyes, Wei Zhao was already a dead man. "You've learned my secret—I cannot let you leave this place alive, no matter who you are or where you come from!"

So it was true—Tagan Long had been playing the wastrel all along, enduring in silence. Wei Zhao thought grimly on how deep this one's scheming ran, but his hands did not pause. He hurled the fifth form of the Wildfire Fist once more—yet this time it was not merely the fifth form, but the fifth form paired with the Firestream Divine Bullet, the equivalent of an eleventh form among ordinary martial techniques!

"Wildfire Fist!" Like a moth diving into flame, Wei Zhao unleashed the fifth form of the Wildfire Fist at Tagan Long once more, and Tagan Long, after drawing a deep breath, pushed both palms out flat again!

"Five Elements Eight Trigrams Palm—third form. You may die now!" Tagan Long barked coldly. "To force me to unleash my strongest technique—you are no ordinary sort. Consider your death fitting!"

Moreover, Wei Zhao could clearly feel that this Five Elements Eight Trigrams Palm of Tagan Long's was extraordinarily powerful, far stronger than ordinary Earth-rank techniques! Wei Zhao's Wildfire Fist was already a first-rate martial technique, yet beside Tagan Long's Five Elements Eight Trigrams Palm it still fell short by a measure!

It stirred in Wei Zhao a sudden urge to steal the art for himself. What would it be like, he wondered, if he mastered this Five Elements Eight Trigrams Palm?

Of course, it was only a passing thought. He reckoned a technique like this could never be kept in the Library Pavilion, and he had no mind to linger in battle now. If he did not settle matters before him quickly and draw the old ancestor in seclusion, Tagan Long's grandfather Tagan Hao, the Second and Third Protectors, and that old Twelfth Elder down upon him, then today Wei Zhao would find no wings to fly with!

Fine as the technique was, one needed a life left to cultivate it. Besides, now that he knew of it, there was no hurry. While there is green mountain, there is no fear of no firewood—there would be chances to steal it later.

"Boom!" "Boom!"

Wei Zhao's twin fists crashed against Tagan Long's palms. Tagan Long's face changed abruptly, shifting from shock to pallor, then to a flush of crimson—"Pff!"—and he spat out a mouthful of blood. Tagan Long was blasted flying backward by Wei Zhao's blow, a blade of blood spraying from his mouth—clearly he had suffered grave internal injuries!

"Impossible... impossible..." Tagan Long stared at Wei Zhao in disbelief. "How can this be? You are only mid-stage Earth-rank—how could you use an eleventh-form technique? That is a Heaven-rank technique..."

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