booktalesy Chapter 68 Power
Chapter 68 Power
"At that time, the monsters of the Eternal Night Forest will surge towards the source of the river like a tidal wave."
"Initially, they will be relatively weak demonic beasts, at most equivalent to a human at the Transformation Realm."
"The Palace Guard has sent a distress signal to the sect."
"The sect's experts will arrive in ten days."
"We just need to hold out for these ten days."
During the meal, the family representatives exchanged glances, but no one spoke.
Duanmu Hong's gaze swept across everyone's face.
"I will not force anyone to stay."
"Those who are willing to stay will fight alongside me, and I will personally recommend them to the sect after the war."
"Those who do not wish to stay can leave now, and no one will pursue the matter."
The room was quiet for three breaths.
Then, a member of the Quan family's retinue stood up in the corner, bowed deeply to Duanmu Hong, and turned to leave.
Two more people left shortly after, bowing to Zhao Hu as they went, whispering, "I have elderly parents and young children at home," before walking away without looking back.
If it were before, Lin Mu would have left as well.
But in today's battle, the martial arts techniques have imprinted the original mark of the demon beast.
When the eternal night arrives, does it mean that a continuous stream of demonic beasts will be there for him to observe?
He raised his head and looked at Duanmu Hong.
"Lord Duanmu, what were the dark gold runes on Fox Mask's body on the arena today?"
"The primordial mark of a demon beast."
"It has been passed down since time immemorial and is the source of the power of demonic beasts."
"Is it the same as the golden patterns on Quan Feng's body?"
"different."
"The power of demonic essence is inherent, but if it is directly engraved on a person's body, it will have great side effects."
"For example, the original mark of Zhulong today is that of an ancient snake demon, whose nature is inherently lustful."
"If it is directly imprinted on a human body, even if the body does not explode and the person dies, it would take nine women at night to barely offset the backlash of the demonic nature."
"Otherwise, they will be consumed by lust and die from broken meridians."
During the meal, a young man from the Quan family muttered under his breath, "Isn't that great?" but Quan Feng glared at him and made him swallow the rest of his words.
"The beast mark on the Quan family boy's body was diluted from the demonic source of the Golden-Winged Phoenix. It took dozens of generations of bloodline inheritance to remove its demonic nature, leaving only the power that can be used by humans."
Duanmu Hong explained in exceptional detail to prevent people from leaving due to misunderstanding.
"Humans have martial arts, so why would they tattoo animal patterns on their bodies?" Now that someone had answered his question, Lin Mu decided to lay out all his doubts.
"The origin of demonic beasts, the principles of literary cultivation, the intent of martial arts, as well as the runes of secret realms and ancient treasures, all belong to the strongest forces in this world."
"Unfortunately, the essence of martial arts has been lost for many years. In order to resist the invasion of demonic beasts, we had no choice but to carve beast patterns."
Duanmu Hong's words did not spark widespread discussion; clearly, only Lin Mu was unaware of them.
Lin Mu weighed the pros and cons.
The strongest of the monsters in the first ten days was only at the Transformation Realm. With Duanmu Hong in charge of Heyuan, and with a trace of his fist technique, he should be able to protect himself.
There will be a large number of original marks of demonic beasts available for viewing at that time.
Staying is a good option.
Seeing that Lin Mu said no more, Duanmu Hong put the teacup back on the table and asked again:
What are your thoughts, everyone?
No one left anymore.
Duanmu Hong stood up and raised his glass, and everyone responded.
Meanwhile, an uninvited guest arrived at the Accord on the east side.
He was wearing a long robe with the character "驭" (yù, meaning "to control" or "to command") on it when he pushed
......
After a few rounds of drinks, Lin Mu got up and pushed open the door to the private room.
The commotion in the lobby of the Heyuan Restaurant continued, and no one noticed a figure quietly leaving.
A night breeze blew in from the direction of the city wall, causing the large red lanterns under the eaves to sway all at once.
He walked along the bluestone path out of the inner city gate.
After taking only a few steps, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
That was a martial artist's intuition—someone was following him.
He deliberately slowed down by half a step as he turned the next alleyway, glancing behind him out of the corner of his eye.
The city gate was deserted, with only a few withered leaves being pushed and rolled by in the wind.
He stopped, and the commotion behind him also stopped.
When he left, that feeling returned.
The person who could leave no trace for him must be incredibly powerful.
Lin Mu made a decision immediately.
He tapped his heel on the city brick, bounced backward, and tried to retreat into the city gate.
With Duanmu Hong in charge of the inner city, no one dared to make any rash moves.
However, the newcomer had anticipated his actions and threw a punch with his right hand.
The fist comes before the mind.
Lin Mu felt as if an invisible hand had struck his chest at the Tanzhong acupoint, sending him flying backward.
His back slid several feet away from the stone wall outside the city gate, and two white marks were plowed into the bluestone slabs under his feet.
The man raised his hand and used two fingers to flip his hood back.
The moonlight fell on that face.
He had high cheekbones, very thin lips, deep-set eyes, and pupils that shimmered with a bluish-green light under the moonlight.
It's Ling Feng.
Lin Mu wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his thumb and stood up straight again.
Ling Feng took a step forward with his left foot, and then disappeared from the spot like smoke blown away by the wind.
He then appeared to Lin Mu's right, striking him with his right palm at his ribs.
Lin Mu's air membrane activated instantly, and his right hand met the attack with a gust of wind, striking with a fist and a palm, producing a muffled sound like a drumbeat.
The palm strike penetrates the body, the spiraling force disperses 30%, and the penetrating force returns to its source.
He took a half step back and then unleashed a powerful backhand punch at Ling Feng's chest.
Ling Feng slightly turned his body, his whole body like a feather pushed away by the force of the punch, floating lightly half a foot outwards along with the force of the punch, just enough for the fist to brush past his clothes.
Lin Mu threw several punches, each of which landed in the air beside Ling Feng.
The faster his punches, the farther the feather drifted.
Ling Feng threw three punches in quick succession, hitting Lin Mu in the chest.
Lin Mu closed his eyes while being beaten, and his body tempering technique was instantly activated to its maximum.
The hidden force is wrapped around the fist's momentum, and the intention is used to push it throughout the whole body.
The points Tanzhong, Jianjing, Quchi, and Hegu—every muscle and every meridian—transform the entire body into a fist poised to strike.
Ling Feng's fourth punch arrived, his right palm pressing down on the Tanzhong acupoint on his chest without any fancy moves.
The transformative force surged in like a flood bursting its banks.
At the same time, the golden fist energy that Lin Mu had been accumulating within him also blasted back through Ling Feng's palm.
Two forces exploded between the two men, and the bluestone slabs on the official road cracked inch by inch from the two men in the center. The cracks spread outwards like a spider web, and the broken stones were lifted up by the shock wave and hit the stone wall of the city gate with a crackling sound.
Ling Feng grunted, his body sent flying backward by the force of the punch. His back slammed into the boundary marker, breaking it in half and sending fragments flying everywhere.
His right sleeve had ripped open from the cuff all the way to his shoulder, and blood was gushing from the corner of his mouth, turning a dark red in the moonlight.
Lin Mu flew backward, his back carving a long mud ditch in the official road before finally coming to a stop by crashing into the trunk of an old locust tree.
It felt as if the Tanzhong acupoint on my chest had been pierced by a red-hot iron rod. The residual force of the neutralizing energy surged through my meridians, displacing my internal organs.
He wanted to move a finger, but he didn't even have the strength.
The moonlight flickered before his eyes, and the sounds of the wind, the distant watchman's clapper, and the faint footsteps of the night patrol coming from the direction of the city gate were all suppressed into a buzzing ringing in his ears.