DRIP. DROP.

Beads of sweat trickled down his chin, shattering on the ground below.

The air was thick with the heavy stench of blood and the chilling aura of corpse qi.

"This is it!"

Knowing full well that there was no way out today without a fight to the death, Chu Tiankuang let out a furious snort. He unleashed a torrent of powerful True Qi and led the charge forward.

"Kill!"

The life-and-death struggle began anew.

Meanwhile, less than a hundred meters from the bloody battle, Qi Yun stood behind a towering tree. His hands hung at his sides, and beneath his wide sleeves, the fingers of his right hand moved slowly, pinching the air in a strange and precise rhythm as if plucking invisible strings.

The Bronze Wolf Dogs could fight on instinct alone, but their attacks were too direct and simple, their weaknesses easily exploited.

But with his active control, the four Bronze Wolf Dogs’ attacks became far more cunning, their coordination more refined.

They often launched combined assaults from unbelievable angles, forcing Chu Tiankuang and his four companions onto the back foot.

A single Bronze Wolf Dog could, at its limit, handle a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator.

’This Chu fellow is at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer. It’ll take at least three of the dogs coordinating to guarantee a kill,’

Qi Yun analyzed the battle as he controlled the Bronze Wolf Dogs.

He had already developed his own approach to Magical Combat from his battles with the Seventh Outer Mansion.

He would use the White Bone Skeleton to spray Yin Sha Corpse Qi, creating a dense fog to obscure vision, then use the Bronze Wolf Dogs to launch an ambush.

As for himself, he wouldn’t make a move unless absolutely necessary.

This wasn’t a conclusion he’d reached through battle, but rather something he owed to Yue Rong.

Ever since witnessing Yue Rong’s terrifying Demon Body and his utterly berserk fighting style, Qi Yun’s budding pride had been instantly shattered.

Yes, thanks to the Magic Technique Panel, the Magic he’d mastered was indeed stronger than that of ordinary Outer Mansion Disciples.

But that was it. He was only stronger than those Outer Mansion Disciples.

When facing someone like Yue Rong, the direct descendant of a Foundation Establishment Master...

...the starting point for everything they mastered, from True Qi Heart Methods to Mysterious Techniques, was far higher than his own.

During their previous spar, if Yue Rong hadn’t exhausted all his True Qi and stamina,

even if Qi Yun had used every trick up his sleeve, his chances of winning would have been less than twenty percent.

’I am a Magic Cultivator. My strength lies in striking down enemies with Magic from a great distance.

Distance is a Magic Cultivator’s greatest advantage.

At least, until I acquire a powerful enough means of self-preservation in close combat...

...my Magical Combat style will be to create distance with the Clear Wind Technique, use the White Bone Skeleton to create a terrain advantage, and tie down enemies with the Bronze Wolf Dogs as meat shields.

Then, I’ll finish them off with over-the-horizon Magic bombardment!’

He watched as the four Bronze Wolf Dogs became covered in wounds under the full-force assault of Chu Tiankuang and his men. They looked like they could be torn apart at any moment.

The hand signs Qi Yun was forming paused, and the corner of his mouth lifted into a slight smile.

’A Qi Refining Fourth Layer is indeed hard to kill.’

’Half a year ago, you might have actually managed to find a sliver of a chance to survive.’

’But now... it’s too late.’

The spell he was casting changed in an instant. A divine light flashed in Qi Yun’s eyes as the vast and heavy Innate True Qi within him surged like a tide.

"Pivot of creation, stirred; Yin and Yang, contend.

Dust of Golden Stone, heed my command!

Seize!"

Opening his Storage Pouch, Qi Yun completed the spell.

In an instant, countless fine, dust-like particles of gleaming black Fine Iron Sand swarmed out like a black torrent bursting from a dam.

In the blink of an eye, they converged before him into a massive, churning black cloud of sand over ten meters in diameter, letting out a low, heart-pounding hum!

A Gold Element Technique—the Sand Iron Skill.

Over the past half-year of cultivation, although Qi Yun had focused most of his energy on breaking through to the Qi Refining Fifth Layer...

...he had also taken the time to learn another Magic technique to expand his arsenal.

This Sand Iron Skill was a relatively simple Magic technique that allowed one to control Sand Iron for both offense and defense.

Furthermore, the power of the technique itself could be increased depending on the quality of the Sand Iron being controlled.

For example, there was Poisonous Sand laced with venom, or Fire Sand heated to extreme temperatures...

What Qi Yun was currently wielding was just ordinary Fine Iron Sand, its advantages being its hardness and weight.

The true power of this skill, however, lay in the fact that it had already been updated twice.

[Sand Iron Skill 2.0: Greatly increases casting range, reduces Heart and Spirit consumption.]

[Sand Iron Skill 3.0: Increases Magic power, increases casting range.]

These two upgrades had increased the Sand Iron Skill’s casting range to a whopping fifty zhang, reduced the consumption of his Heart and Spirit, and lowered the difficulty of controlling the Sand Iron.

And most crucially, the increase in Magic power allowed Qi Yun to control more Iron Sand, while the impact and Penetration Power of each grain was on a completely different level than before!

’I’ve never used this Daoist Skill on a living person since I mastered it.’

’You guys... are lucky.’

With a gentle smile, the spell in Qi Yun’s hands suddenly changed. The massive, suspended black cloud of Sand Iron was instantly squeezed and shaped by an invisible giant hand, then transformed into a destructive torrent of steel. It tore through the dense fog, rushing at astonishing speed toward Chu Tiankuang and his four companions over a hundred meters away!

...

"Die!"

Bracing himself against the Bronze Wolf Dog’s gaping maw as it lunged for his vital points, Chu Tiankuang roared. His True Qi flared, forming a Protective Power that blocked the vicious bite. At the same time, he ruthlessly swung down his long saber.

CLANG!

The Bronze Wolf Dog’s neck, already battered by repeated blows, was completely severed. It collapsed limply to the ground and gradually faded into nothingness.

’Finally... they’re all dead...’

His chest heaving as he panted for breath, Chu Tiankuang leaned on his saber with one hand. He had less than twenty percent of his True Qi left, and the four bloody claw marks on his back now throbbed with unbearable pain.

He had fought four of them at once while also having to watch over his four companions. To have only been scratched once was a testament to the weight of his Qi Refining Fourth Layer cultivation.

"Let’s go. We’ll head back and recover first..."

Taking a deep breath, Chu Tiankuang was turning to speak when he suddenly heard the terrifying sound of howling wind approaching from behind.

’There’s more?’

His expression changed. He hurriedly raised his saber and spun around, only to see a fist, black as ink and gleaming with a metallic luster, rapidly expanding in his vision!

"Wha—"

BANG!

The punch was fast and sudden, precise and ruthless!

Chu Tiankuang’s face caved in. His nose shattered, and teeth mixed with blood and shredded flesh flew everywhere. The terrifying force of that single punch sent him flying backward off his feet!

And that punch... was only the beginning!

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

An overwhelming barrage of heavy Sand Iron fists rained down from the sky. Each fist was formed from highly condensed Fine Iron Sand, weighing several hundred jin, and was deliberately controlled by Qi Yun.

A single punch could dent a steel ingot, let alone a body of flesh and blood.

"AHHHH!!!!"

For a moment, bloodcurdling screams echoed through the dense fog.

Under the iron fists, tendons snapped and bones broke. Two of the Outer Mansion Disciples, their True Qi exhausted and unable to dodge or defend in time, were smashed directly into a bloody pulp.

’The Sand Iron Skill?

No, this Magic isn’t that powerful!

Is it some other Magic?

Just how many types of Magic does this son of a bitch peasant know!’

His face battered, bruised, and distorted, Chu Tiankuang desperately held up his Protective True Qi to block the bombardment of iron fists, letting out a roar of despair and unwillingness to the heavens.

But in this mountain forest shrouded by the fog of Corpse Qi, no one was fated to answer him.

There were only the overwhelming iron fists, surging down upon him.

Utterly drowning him!

...