77 - Investing in the Reborn Empress, She Actually Calls Me ‘Husband’

Chapter 77: A One-Sided Beating, Shang Wu: "Blackie, Speak Up!" On the ring. When enemies meet, their eyes turn red with rage, and the atmosphere was initially quite tense. But hearing those familiar voices cheering for him, Li Mo felt a bit embarrassed, to the point where he ignored Wang Hao's predatory gaze. "Please stop chanting those cheers." "Let me see what you're worth, Junior Brother Li." Wang Hao's entire body pulsed with internal energy, locking onto Li Mo across from him. At the moment Qian Bufan announced 'start,' Wang Hao launched himself at Li Mo like an arrow from a bow. His fist emitted a faint dark light, indicating a specially made glove. As the punch swung out, the wind hummed like the roaring of tigers and leopards, and the internal energy rumbled like thunder. Within the Qingyuan Sect, not a few people recognized this move. It was the personal technique of an Inner Sect Steward, the high-level martial art, Tiger and Leopard Thunderous Hand. "Good coming." Li Mo felt a surge of excitement within. To be fair, this was the first time he was officially sparring with someone. Last time he fought Cui Peng, it was a brief clash where Cui was heavily injured and hardly exchanged moves before being beaten tol death. He didn't draw his sword. Instead, his muscles and bones quivered, and the vigor surged through his thirty-six meridians. His waist twisted, and he punched directly into the confrontation. Wang Hao was initially stunned, then his mouth curled into a sinister smile. Looks like his opponent was holding back, not wanting to use the Red Xiao Sword to gain an advantage with a weapon? He originally worried that his gloves wouldn't withstand the sharpness of a high-grade weapon. Li Mo's action played right into his hands. Facing a higher-level enemy, not using full power right away, simply to save face. Today, he planned to show him what true cruelty meant... But could he really? "What? A Qi and Blood stage trying to fight an Internal Energy stage without weapons?" "Not only without weapons, but he also doesn’t seem to be using any martial arts." "Li really does have a foundation in body refining. I often see him in the Divine Blade Cave; maybe he has something else up his sleeve?" "Reaching the extreme of the Qi and Blood stage through body refining shouldn't be that exaggerated, or everyone would do it and skip other martial arts." "Isn't his swordsmanship reputed to be amazing?" .... A Qi and Blood stage facing an Internal Energy stage, unarmed against an armed opponent. Who wouldn’t find that confusing? However... the two fists collided almost instantly. Clang— Flesh against glove resulted in a bell-like sound. A ring of dust spread from their center. A figure staggered back, leaving a series of deep pits on the ground. Upon seeing who retreated, the crowd was as shocked as if they had seen a ghost. It was Wang Hao! Wang Hao's face paled, his smile frozen at the corners of his mouth. The arm he just used to clash continued to tremble uncontrollably. He hadn't practiced body refining, but this didn't mean he was physically weak. Moreover, he had just used internal energy. How could Li Mo be so strong? Before he could finish this thought. The young man's figure opposite him vanished from sight. Of course, not literally disappearing. Wind Shadow Step. Wang Hao also used his footwork. Yet Li Mo's figure, like a raging storm, followed him relentlessly. What was going through Li Mo's mind now? Well... on the ring, intentional killing wasn’t allowed, so he was pondering whether beating his opponent to death might not be a good idea. No need to pull out the hammer. Even using a sword, the sharpness of Red Xiao, coupled with the swordsmanship he honed amidst studying with Ice Block and Jiang Chulong, would be unbearable for Wang Hao. Also. He wanted to test this body, which even exceptional skills couldn't breach at the Internal Energy stage, to see where its limits lay. In an instant. Li Mo appeared in front of Wang Hao. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment. Gazed upon by those flame-like pupils, an inexplicable chill ran through Wang Hao, prompting him to swallow hard. But soon, shameful anger arose within him. In the history of the Nine Peaks Grand Meet. No Internal Energy and Jade Liquid stage had ever looked so pathetic in front of a Qi and Blood stage. He was furious, yet it was useless. Intense pain seared from his waist, momentarily robbing him of his ability to think. "Inner armor?" "Does that mean you're pretty tough?" Li Mo frowned. His previous punch didn’t feel like it fully struck Wang Hao’s body. "Wait....." Before Wang Hao could complete the thought crossing his mind. "Did Li really get close to Wang Hao?" "No, it's Wang Hao who got too close to Li!" Again the Tiger and Leopard Thunderous Hand clashed with an ordinary punch. Crack— The glove crumpled inward from the impact. Seizing the opportunity, Li Mo, as Wang Hao’s spirit wavered, assaulted like a relentless storm, delivering an elbow strike to his chest. The seamless flow of energy from the Six Harmonies Fist unleashed in one continuous motion. Fists, elbows, knee strikes... Bang bang bang— Inside his inner armor, Wang Hao was mashed into the platform by Li Mo. The condensed internal fluid, now completely useless, served solely to protect his vital points. He didn’t spare efforts trying to counterattack. But... he couldn’t even break through! "Wait... wait..." Bang bang bang bang— "I... I concede...." Bang bang bang bang bang! The blue stone floor was now webbed with cracks from the pounding. Compared to a high-level duel, this felt more like a street brawl. And a brutally one-sided adult’s fight against a child at that. The scene was overwhelmingly brutal. "Gulp... my... heavens..." "Is this Li actually human?" "Lucky he advised me not to relieve myself anywhere, or I’d be wondering now if my bowels would involuntarily evacuate..." "Lecture Li usually looks so gentle, like a amiable gentleman, how is he so terrifying when he moves?" "Don’t forget who his mentor is..." .... Many eyes dared not watch the platform. Particularly when they observed Wang Hao trying to crawl off the platform to admit defeat, only to be yanked back by the ankle, leaving claw marks across the stone, everyone broke out in cold sweat. Too savage. Those with their families hurriedly covered their children’s eyes. "Phew, good thing I didn’t spar with Brother Li..." Xiao Qin sighed heavily. Truthfully, Wang Hao was stronger than him. Facing Wang Hao, without his master’s help, he wouldn’t stand a chance. "Master, is this what you meant by the advantage of superior fundamentals in the Qi and Blood stage?" "Were you this strong in the Qi and Blood stage back then?" Naïve and inexperienced, Old Xiao asked. "Um... yes, sort of..." The Thousand Shapes Martial Lord’s voice was unsteady. "Master, why does your voice sound weak?" Xiao Qin didn’t understand; hadn’t his master regained much since using the Yin Spirit Restoring Wood? "Ahem, oh, this young friend Li is beyond your master's expectations." "And the Restoring Wood doesn’t yield results so quickly." The Thousand Shapes Martial Lord's old voice had yet to regain its former depth and mystery. He too was taken aback. This kid, how many meridians does he have? Could he have been so mistaken? "Being alive is great..." Lin Jiang swallowed hard, his palms sweating as he wiped them on his clothes. Even if Brother Li’s fists didn’t land on him, the mere thought sent chills down his spine. © All contents are copyrighted by their respective owners or authors. ---- Despite Brother Li’s fists not landing on him, the mere thought sent chills down his spine. "Yeah, yeah!" Murong Xiao nodded vigorously. Luckily, he had reacted quickly back then; thinking about it now, that had been the wisest decision of his life. At this moment, the looks directed at them had transformed from doubt to admiration and praise. They hadn’t thrown any fixed matches. They simply had foresight! On the high platform. Shang Wu was pumping her small fists, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling with delight. She surely hadn’t chosen the wrong precious disciple. She suddenly stood, her gaze sweeping across the stunned elders. She gathered her breath into her dantian: "Blackie, Speak Up!" © All contents are copyrighted by their respective owners or authors.