High Martial Arts Era

Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Martial Arts Are Meant to Kill Enemies

"The alert has been completely lifted, it should be safe now," Li Yuan thought for a moment and then stepped out of his room. His aunt and younger siblings were still asleep.

"Let's head to school first." Li Yuan left home and walked out of the residential area. The military vehicles that had been stationed at the end of the street at 4 a.m. were gone, as were the patrolling soldiers. However, Li Yuan's sharp eyes spotted a drone hovering several hundred meters in the air, seemingly on guard.

Li Yuan headed to the bus stop to catch an electric car, but after waiting for a while, no bus arrived.

"Forget it."

"I'll just run to school." Li Yuan turned and started jogging along the street toward the school. With his physical fitness, a so-called jog could maintain a speed of about eight to nine meters per second. It would take him less than ten minutes to reach school.

On both sides of the street, many shops were opening, and there were also many pedestrians who seemed to be heading to work. The presence of more people added a sense of safety.

As he rounded a corner, suddenly...

"Young man, you're late for your morning run today," a cheerful voice called out.

"There was a Astral Realm creature attack last night, so I waited for the alert to be lifted before heading out," Li Yuan slowed his pace and responded with a smile, "Boss, you're opening your shop today? I thought you'd be taking a break."

The person calling out to Li Yuan was the owner of the Fuwei Noodle Shop. He was moving some things around. The two had encountered each other many times and were familiar strangers.

"Got to pay the rent, can't afford to stop," the owner laughed. He was slightly chubby but had strong arms, easily lifting a large table.

"Hope you make a fortune," Li Yuan said casually as he continued jogging.

As he passed a narrow alley, dark and unlit, he glanced instinctively. He saw a blurred figure emerging from the sewer at the end of the alley, seemingly about to rush out onto the main road.

"Hmm?" Li Yuan's heart tightened, feeling an instinctual sense of danger. But his running body, driven by inertia, had already moved twenty meters ahead. He stopped completely, turned around, and stared intently at the alley, instinctively stepping back.

"Thump~" "Thump~" Li Yuan's keen hearing picked up the faint, rapid sounds coming from the alley.

"Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" It seemed there was also heavy, rapid breathing.

Instinctively, Li Yuan retreated to the side of a closed shop, where two hollow metal rods were leaning against the wall, apparently used for supporting goods. Something in his subconscious told him to run now. But before he could react...

Boom!

A tall, thin figure burst out of the narrow alley and stood on the sidewalk. Li Yuan's sharp eyesight immediately took in the scene.

It was a humanoid creature nearly two meters tall with four arms, blue skin like the color of the sea, green hair, and red eyes gleaming with intelligence. It seemed to have come straight from the water.

Its limbs were long, proportionally more so than a human's, giving it a sense of elegance. Its fingers had evolved into sharp, webbed claws, and the most striking feature was a structure on its back that looked like both a fin and a tail.

"A Fish Spirit Clan? A Astral Realm creature!" Li Yuan recognized it instantly, his hair standing on end.

Astral Realm creatures were varied and bizarre, resembling animals, humanoid beings, or enlarged insects from Blue Star. Among them, humanoid creatures made up about a third. The Fish Spirit Clan was particularly well-known for their ability to live both on land and in water.

They had been the main force in many of the attacks on Jiangcheng.

"How is there still a Astral Realm creature here?" Li Yuan was on high alert, feeling like he was facing a formidable enemy. "Wasn't the alert lifted?"

Almost instinctively...

Target creature, life level is 10.2, a ranked creature, in critical condition, currently around 9.2. Killing it can yield spiritual nourishment. Li Yuan's thoughts triggered a slight fatigue in his mental awareness, revealing the creature's life information.

10.2 level! Already a ranked creature, equivalent to a real warrior.

However, the information showing it was critically injured slightly boosted Li Yuan's spirits.

Its effective physical fitness seemed to be around 9.2.

"Shot?" Li Yuan noticed a bullet wound on the creature's chest, though there wasn't much blood, making it hard to see at first glance.

A body with a warrior's level of fitness was robust; a small-caliber bullet wouldn't be fatal unless it hit a vital point.

Aside from noticing the creature's critical condition, Li Yuan also paid attention to the last sentence in the information: "Killing it can yield spiritual nourishment."

What was that?

Li Yuan had examined many warriors' life levels before but had never encountered such a prompt.

It seemed slow, but in reality, within a second of the Fish Spirit Clan creature rushing out of the alley, Li Yuan had already identified and assessed the enemy.

Instinctively, Li Yuan grabbed one of the hollow metal rods beside him, adopting an attack stance, and stared at the creature.

From all the Astral Realm creature data Li Yuan had studied since childhood, he knew these creatures were incredibly violent and would inevitably engage in combat upon encountering someone.

But unexpectedly...

Boom!

The injured Fish Spirit Clan creature, sensing Li Yuan was not to be trifled with, immediately turned and leapt, its webbed claws scraping the ground as it pounced toward the Fuwei Noodle Shop owner dozens of meters away.

Its speed was astonishing.

Clearly, it sensed Li Yuan was a formidable opponent.

"A Astral Realm creature?" The noodle shop owner saw the Fish Spirit Clan creature pouncing towards him, adrenaline surging, and instinctively grabbed a kitchen knife!

At that moment...

"Whoosh!" The air exploded with a sharp whistle!

A nearly three-meter-long hollow metal rod flew through the air like a giant arrow, stabbing directly at the Fish Spirit Clan creature.

The creature was fast, but the metal rod was even faster and more ferocious!

"Roar~"

The Fish Spirit Clan creature instinctively sensed the danger and dodged, but it was slower on land and injured.

"Thud~"

The metal rod struck the creature's shoulder with terrifying force, sending its nearly two-meter-tall body crashing to the ground.

Bricks shattered.

The creature rolled on the ground.

Blood seeped from its scale-like shoulder, quickly stopping!

"Huff! Huff~"

The creature flipped over, emitting strange low growls filled with rage, staring at Li Yuan from dozens of meters away, ignoring the closer noodle shop owner.

It raised its arms slightly, the sides of its limbs gleaming with a chilling light, like bone knives.

"Want to kill me?" Li Yuan gripped the last metal rod, staring at the creature.

Earlier, seeing the noodle shop owner in danger, Li Yuan had instinctively thrown the metal rod.

Li Yuan always acted cautiously, avoiding unnecessary risks.

He knew his life was irreplaceable.

But standing by and watching someone, especially a familiar face, die?

Li Yuan couldn't do it.

After throwing the metal rod, facing the Fish Spirit Clan creature and its bloodthirsty eyes, Li Yuan felt no fear.

Or rather, he had no time for fear, only instincts.

"Martial arts are meant to kill enemies," Li Yuan thought, filled with indescribable courage and resolve.

"Roar~"

The Fish Spirit Clan creature roared, leaping towards Li Yuan with astonishing speed.

Boom!

Without hesitation, Li Yuan activated the "Dragon Movement" technique, moving like a dragon to meet the creature.

A long weapon required enough space to wield.

"Whoosh" "Whoosh!"

The Fish Spirit Clan creature realized Li Yuan was a formidable opponent and didn't attack as carelessly as it would an ordinary human. Its arms swung like blades, trying to slash Li Yuan.

"Whoosh!"

The metal rod, like a spear, accelerated at the last moment, creating dozens of afterimages that momentarily distracted the creature.

Then, the metal rod pierced through the gap between its arms, striking its eye.

One of the five ultimate moves of the Rock Spear Technique: Mountains and Valleys.

"Thud~"

The creature's eye burst like a grape, blood and fluid splattering!

The impact made Li Yuan's arm tremble, and he quickly retreated, absorbing the force.

"Ahh~" The pain of the burst eye made the Fish Spirit Clan creature howl in agony, its vision blacking out.

Instinctively, it covered the injured eye with one hand.

"Thud~"

But Li Yuan's metal rod was agile, striking the creature's other eye without mercy.

Both eyes exploded! The creature wailed in agony.

"Your skills are too poor, not even reaching the third stage," Li Yuan murmured.

He raised the metal rod high and, with a powerful swing, smashed it down on the creature's head.