With a sudden burst of speed, Xiao Hai charged forward, his blade flashing cold under the dim light as it cleaved down at the serpent's scaled body.
Clang!
The strike rang out like steel striking steel, sparks scattering in the air. Instead of flesh tearing apart, it was as if he had struck an indestructible wall of metal. Shock rippled through Xiao Hai's heart. That sword in his hands, though not forged with a monster core, was crafted from the finest materials, sharp enough to split boulders with ease. Yet before this beast, it hadn't even left the faintest scratch.
A cold realization struck him. A weapon alone could not guarantee victory against a magical beast. Without the strength of Dou Qi to reinforce his blade, he was merely wielding a lump of refined metal. Against such a creature, he was far too weak.
The serpent's vertical pupils narrowed dangerously. For it, the attack was less than a wound—merely an insult. Its body trembled with fury, scales glinting like dark Armor as it let out a deafening hiss that shook the ground.
Xiao Hai's instincts screamed at him. He immediately leapt back, retreating in haste.
But the serpent did not allow him such respite. Its massive tail whipped through the air with a violent gust, carrying the weight of a mountain and the intent to crush him in a single blow.
Sensing the overwhelming danger, Xiao Hai's eyes sharpened. His body shifted lightly, and with a sudden twist he executed Flowing Steps, retreating several meters in an instant. Dust swirled in the wake of his movement, his breathing steady but his heart pounding.
Yet even as he pulled back to safety, his feet halted. He clenched the hilt of his sword tighter. Run? No. This was his first true battle between life and death. To turn and flee now would leave a shadow in his heart forever.
The serpent's massive tail smashed into the ground where he had stood, sending cracks rippling through the earth. Missing its prey, the beast slowly straightened its towering body, golden eyes narrowing as it fixed Xiao Hai in its gaze. It did not lunge recklessly this time. Like the predator it was, it simply observed—cold, patient, calculating.
Xiao Hai, however, felt something unexpected boiling inside him. Excitement. His blood surged like fire in his veins, his muscles trembling not from fear but from anticipation. The corners of his lips quivered as though a battle-hungry smile might emerge.
Why? he thought, puzzled, even as he struggled to rein in this alien rush. He wanted clarity—he needed to think, to calculate, to find a way to defeat this monster. But the more he tried to suppress the feeling, the more it grew, filling his chest with an intoxicating thrill that threatened to overwhelm reason.
For several tense seconds Xiao Hai didn't move, his body frozen between fear and excitement.
The serpent grew impatient. Its tongue flickered rapidly, and with a roar-like hiss it lunged, the massive body whipping forward like a bolt of dark lightning. To it, prey that could not move was nothing but food waiting to be swallowed.
Xiao Hai's heart clenched. Once again that suffocating pressure of death descended on him, heavier than chains. His breath caught—thoughts vanished.
But in that moment, his body acted on its own.
His feet shifted, his torso twisted, and in a flash, he slipped to the side just as the serpent's fangs tore through the air where he had stood. The wind of its charge brushed past him like a blade, rattling his bones.
Thud!
The serpent's head crashed into the earth, shattering stone and soil, dust exploding in all directions. Xiao Hai stumbled back a step, chest heaving, a cold sweat running down his spine. He had survived—not because of his mind, but because instinct had saved him.
Knowing there was no time to linger on these chaotic thoughts, Xiao Hai forced his mind into focus. The battle came first.
With a sharp flick of his wrist, he dismissed the sword into its sheath. He wasn't skilled enough with the blade to cut through this monster's Armor-like scales. What he was confident in… was his fists.
His body blurred as he unleashed Flowing Steps, his movements fluid yet razor-sharp. Each step landed precisely, carrying him in a swift arc around the serpent. In the blink of an eye, he was at its flank—too fast for the beast's massive frame to react.
Xiao Hai's fist clenched, Dou Qi surging into his arm. His eyes sharpened.
"Bone Breaking Fist!"
The strike connected with a dull, heavy bang, like a hammer smashing against stone. Shockwaves rippled through the serpent's body, and for the first time its scales trembled. A guttural hiss tore from its throat, its body writhing in pain.
Xiao Hai's knuckles throbbed from the impact, but a fierce light burned in his eyes. He had felt it—the resistance of scale, the crack beneath, the pain shooting into the beast. His Bone Breaking Fist had struck true.
Seeing the serpent writhe in pain, an unconscious grin spread across Xiao Hai's face. Excitement surged once more, flooding his veins like fire. Fear, hesitation, confusion—everything was burned away, leaving only a blazing battle intent in his eyes.
As his intent soared to its peak, something within him snapped free. He stopped thinking—he simply moved.
The serpent's furious hiss shook the air, its anger boiling at being injured by such a puny human. It reared back to strike again, but before it could lash out, another fist slammed into its side.
Bang!
Then another.
And another.
The blows fell like a meteor shower, relentless and crushing, each one carrying Xiao Hai's rising Dou Qi and unrestrained ferocity.
The serpent swung its massive body, fangs snapping, tail lashing—but its attacks only met empty air. Xiao Hai's figure blurred, darting around it like a phantom. His steps flowed without pause, without thought, seamless and instinctive.
Unknowingly, he had stepped into the Perfection Realm of Flowing Steps.
To the serpent, the human's body no longer moved like flesh and blood—it was a shadow, flickering in and out of reach. Pain lanced through its armoured body as blood began to seep from between its scales. It thrashed wildly, yet every strike fell short, every attempt thwarted.
The predator's calm had been broken. And for the first time, its eyes reflected not hunger… but a trace of fear.
Slowly, the serpent began to feel it—the stench of death creeping closer with every blow. The human before him no longer looked like fragile prey, but like a god of death itself, each strike reaping away another fragment of its life. Terror coiled in its heart.
Run.
That was the only thought left. Run, before this monster in human skin tore it apart.
But its body was battered and bleeding, movements sluggish and pained. When Xiao Hai's barrage of fists abruptly stopped, the serpent froze in confusion. Yet its instincts screamed louder than ever—escape! With desperate effort it began to crawl, scales scraping against stone, blood spilling as its body writhed frantically.
Xiao Hai, however, only watched with cold clarity. His breathing was heavy, Dou Qi rapidly waning. He knew—this battle could not drag on any longer. It must end here.
His stance shifted. His knees bent low, body coiling like a spring. His clenched fist slowly unfurled into an open palm, and an immense surge of Dou Qi gathered, flooding into his hand until it blazed with destructive power.
The serpent felt it too. Its panic deepened, and it thrashed madly, dragging its ruined body across the ground. But the more it struggled, the more its wounds tore open, blood staining the earth beneath it.
Xiao Hai leapt.
For an instant he was suspended in the air, a shadow outlined against the beast's terrified eyes. His palm descended, aimed at the serpent's head with unshakable finality.
"—Heavy Palm Strike!"
Boom!
The strike landed with earth-shattering force. The serpent's skull cracked like a shattered boulder, its hiss dying in its throat as its massive body convulsed once… then fell still.
Xiao Hai landed lightly, his palm trembling, chest rising and falling with ragged breaths. Yet within him, he felt it—the Heavy Palm Strike, which he had once practiced to Great Success, had in this battle crossed the threshold.
It had stepped into Perfection.
Note: - Hello, Fellow readers. I want to apologizes to everyone for late update. There is a few doubts i have to resolved about the conntinution of the fanfic. So, it got me this late. But, from now i will upload chapter regularly.
Also, some people want to me to change some things from this fanfic, then i want to infrom them; Change will certainly happen, but now is not the time for it to happen.
For now, I will wish you a happy day. See You Soon.