Chapter 230 - Imminent Peril

Wangyue Pi tilted his head slightly at Xue Qiming, his smile growing even more sinister. "Mr. Bodhi... I’ve caught you again..."

The smile on Xue Qiming's face slowly faded until it disappeared completely.

The chain between them was taut and motionless.

Wangyue Pi held onto the gourd tightly, refusing to let go, and licked his lips.

"What is this gourd made of? Even though it's not very big, it's quite dense. Instead of using it to store your wine, you might as well hand it over to me today. I could use a new weapon. Those tiger-headed hooks are a little too light for my liking."

Clang! clang!

Xue Qiming pulled hard on the chain in his hand, but it wouldn’t budge. He shook his head helplessly.

"Let go..."

Wangyue Pi fixed the gourd to the iron clasp on his waist. It seemed like he enjoyed finally having the opportunity to mock Xue Qiming back. "Little Xue, what's wrong?

Haha

! Of course, I seized your weapon back in Northern Qiang, and you couldn't get it back. Now it’s the second time. Do you still think you're strong?"

"But you still lost last time..." Xue Qiming sighed, as if regretful. "Really... If the Northern Qiang had fewer short-sighted fools like you, they wouldn't still be stuck in that godforsaken northern wasteland."

"What did you say?!" Wangyue Pi glared at him fiercely.

Xue Qiming pouted. "Come on now... Can we talk sensibly here? I already returned your tiger-headed hooks just now, so you should return what's mine, right?"

Zhou Tong, standing on the city wall, heard this and mentally slapped himself. He was now even more certain that this man’s thoughts were far from normal.

Wangyue Pi laughed as well, somewhat surprised. He pointed at Xue Qiming.

"What kind of joke is this? In a life-and-death battle, why should I return your weapon? Do you think everyone’s as foolish and simple-minded as you?"

"So, you're not going to return it?" Xue Qiming raised an eyebrow.

At some point, the wind had stopped, and the oppressive atmosphere grew heavier.

Wangyue Pi’s heart grew cold. He narrowed his eyes and fixed his gaze on Xue Qiming. "Listen closely... I won’t give it back."

There was a brief moment of silence on the battlefield, only for an instant. The next moment both men suddenly lunged forward!

"Then I’ll take it myself!"

"Come on!"

They almost shouted the words at the same time, and as they spoke, they both lunged toward each other!

Wangyue Pi lunged forward with the power of a tiger, casting a massive shadow over Xue Qiming’s head, blocking out the sun.

Xue Qiming wrapped the chain around his arm and, facing Wangyue Pi’s pounce, reached up with both hands to grab his collar. Almost simultaneously, Wangyue Pi’s large hands gripped Xue Qiming’s shoulders tightly!

Xue Qiming’s right foot swept a half-circle on the ground, kicking up a cloud of yellow sand. His body shifted to the side, and his hands suddenly exerted force, pulling Wangyue Pi’s waist down with tremendous strength!

"Get down here!"

Boom!

Xue Qiming slammed Wangyue Pi’s massive body into the dust! However before he could straighten up, two large hands shot out from the smoke, grabbing Xue Qiming’s shoulders once more.

Before Xue Qiming could react, a surge of force came from his shoulders, and his body was uncontrollably pulled down. The ground was filled with swirling dust, making it hard for Xue Qiming to see what was going on.

Just as he was about to roll over and rise, a fist shot out from the smoke, heading straight for his head with the intent to crush his skull!

A chill ran down Xue Qiming’s spine as he hurriedly twisted his head to the side. The next moment, a loud blast nearly deafened him. He quickly glanced with the corner of his eye, only to see a fist-sized crater appear in the dirt where his head had just been!

Before Xue Qiming could look any further, Wangyue Pi’s second punch came crashing down. Xue Qiming furrowed his brows, his eyes flashing with ruthlessness. He no longer dodged while lying on the ground. With a clenched right fist, he met the incoming iron fist head-on!

Bang!

The two fists collided with a violent impact before quickly separating, and the next punch was already on its way. Lying on his back, Xue Qiming could only muster about eighty percent of his strength. He could already see that Wangyue Pi’s next punch was coming!

"Goddamn it! Get off!" In the nick of time, Xue Qiming suddenly kicked out. The kick was so fast that it left an afterimage and solidly struck Wangyue Pi’s chest.

Wangyue Pi’s lack of agility showed. Despite seeing the kick coming, he couldn’t dodge in time. He could only watch helplessly as he was sent flying once again like an arrow from a bow.

Before Xue Qiming could get up, a powerful force suddenly yanked at his arm. To his surprise, he was quickly dragged off the ground!

"Huh?"

Xue Qiming’s mind quickly turned, and he immediately understood what had happened. The gourd was still hanging from Wangyue Pi’s waist, and the other end of the chain was still wrapped around his own hand...

Looking up again, Xue Qiming saw that the other end of the chain had Wangyue Pi holding the gourd high above his head, ready to strike, while Xue Qiming himself had not yet regained his balance!

Xue Qiming’s mouth opened slightly, and he could only say one thing, "You dog—"

Bang!!

Wangyue Pi swung the gourd down hard onto Xue Qiming’s back, slamming him into the ground.

Xue Qiming's body formed a deep dent in the dirt as he crashed down. He couldn’t suppress the fresh blood gushing out of his mouth.

Xue Qiming braced himself on the ground, trying to rise. Just as he managed to get halfway up, another surge of fresh blood spurted from his mouth. After spitting out the blood, he took several heavy breaths, wiped his mouth, and spat, "Goddamn... This feels much better..."

Bang!!

Before he could finish speaking, another heavy punch landed squarely on his head, slamming him back into the pit.

Wangyue Pi cracked his knuckles, the bones making a sharp sound. He sneered, "Does it still feel good now?"

In the pit, Xue Qiming shook his head, his chest stained red with blood. He once again braced himself to rise, muttering, "Something about this feels so familiar. I remember the last time I said...

Hmm

, I have a punch... that’s called..."

Bang!

The third punch landed, and Xue Qiming collapsed to the ground.

"I don’t remember what you said last time," Wangyue Pi replied coldly.

It was noon and the burning midday sun hung high in the sky, casting blinding rays.

Xue Qiming raised his head slightly, squinting in the harsh rays that wrapped around Wangyue Pi’s towering figure. His silhouette appeared unnervingly large, but his facial expression remained unreadable.

Seeing that Xue Qiming didn’t rise this time, Wangyue Pi pulled the chain, dragging Xue Qiming up into a half-kneeling position. From his elevated stance, he said coldly, "Mr. Bodhi, looks like it's over."

Xue Qiming shook his still-ringing head and muttered, "

Hmm...

not yet. I haven’t used my full strength yet..."

A vein twitched on the side of Wangyue Pi’s face as he clenched his teeth and sneered in fury, "If words could kill, you might still be able to fight right now." With that, he raised the gourd high once again, preparing for the final blow. "Seems like I’ve won this time... and I won’t give you another chance."

Wangyue Pi aimed the iron gourd directly at Xue Qiming’s head and brought it down with all his strength!

"Die!"