"Class Leader, count me in." Tyler He was increasingly convinced of Joe Di's strength. Anyone who dared to seek opportunity in a territory contested by fiend beasts couldn't possibly be weak. Joe Di's medical skills were extraordinary, and if he had the courage to go where even Victor Wu, a powerful innate expert, dared not tread, then Joe Di's martial prowess must be formidable as well.
"Hmph, Tyler He, do you think I'd back down from something you dare to do? Let's go, we'll all head over together!" Frank Pang brandished his long blade, brimming with confidence.
He had just reached the late Yellow Stage, and now that both Joe Di and Tyler He were willing to go where even Headmaster Victor Wu dared not, Frank Pang's courage swelled, and his previous fears vanished completely.
Sometimes, that's just how people are. When you're afraid of something, but others aren't, their attitude rubs off on you, and before you know it, you start to feel like maybe there's really nothing to be afraid of.
In truth, Joe Di hadn't planned to go with anyone else. If he went alone, it would be much easier to escape if things went south. But now that Frank Pang and Tyler He insisted on following, he couldn't just abandon them.
"Alright then, everyone follow me." Joe Di turned toward the direction of the fiend beasts' roars.
Though they were all fired up to venture forth with Joe Di, as they actually started moving—and the roars of the fiend beasts grew louder with each step—Frank Pang and Tyler He couldn't help but feel uneasy.
An hour later, the thunderous sounds were so intense that the ground itself shook with each impact.
Both Frank Pang and Tyler He were deeply impressed by Joe Di. Even in such circumstances, Joe Di showed not a hint of fear, carefully and cautiously inching forward.
In fact, neither of them knew that Joe Di was actually fearless because he was ignorant. He thought he could escape by flying on his blade, and if things got too dangerous, he'd just take Frank Pang and Tyler He and fly away. What he didn't realize was that, when facing truly powerful fiend beasts, not only might flying not help, but even running might be impossible.
"Don't move from here." Joe Di sensed an overwhelming aura pressing down on them and quickly pulled Frank Pang and Tyler He behind a giant boulder.
Boom! Crack! A violent crash rang out as two enormous fiend beasts collided midair. As they tumbled to the ground, swathes of thick trees around them snapped and shattered.
Seeing such terrifying power, Joe Di's heart sank. He realized he'd been too arrogant—if either of these fiend beasts weren't distracted by fighting each other, he wouldn't stand a chance of escaping.
Knowing he'd overestimated himself, Joe Di also understood they couldn't leave now. If they tried to run, they'd be exposed to both fiend beasts. If the dominant beast got annoyed by outsiders disturbing its fight, they'd be nothing but easy prey.
Joe Di didn't recognize either fiend beast. One had a massive head, resembling a lion but much larger, with two horns. When it opened its mouth, its sharp teeth were at least twenty to thirty centimeters long.
The other fiend beast looked like a crocodile, its whole body covered in thick scales. Compared to ordinary crocodiles, it was much larger—at least twenty meters long.
Both fiend beasts were covered in wounds, their bodies smeared with blood and caked with mud.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The two fiend beasts crashed together again on the ground, the violent tremors shaking the earth beneath the trio's feet and making Frank Pang and Tyler He's hearts race.
At this moment, Frank Pang and Tyler He had lost all their earlier bravado, hiding under the boulder with pale faces. They'd once thought themselves strong, but now, witnessing the fiend beasts' power, they realized they were nothing but ants in comparison.
Crack! Something slammed into the giant boulder where Joe Di and the others were hiding. The rock shook violently, and a thin crack appeared down its center.
The three exchanged nervous glances—even Joe Di didn't dare make a sound. He couldn't be sure whether the battling fiend beasts had noticed them yet.
Based on Joe Di's estimation, the two fiend beasts' strength was likely at the peak of Qi Refinement.
All three hoped the fiend beasts would fight their way farther away, but instead, they seemed fixated on this spot—brawling right here and getting closer to the boulder where the trio was hiding.
Boom! Another attack struck the boulder, splitting it with an even larger crack. It was clear that one more hit would shatter the rock completely, exposing the trio to the fiend beasts.
Joe Di knew he had to come up with a plan. Waiting for the perfect opportunity was wishful thinking—fortune rarely favored the passive.
Joe Di's spiritual sense extended less than a hundred and fifty meters, and although the fiend beasts were drawing closer, they were still beyond his range.
With the boulder now split open by the fiend beasts' attack, Joe Di could clearly see that the scaled crocodile fiend seemed to have the upper hand. The horned lion fiend, though more imposing, was starting to falter.
"Give me your long blade," Joe Di whispered to Frank Pang.
No matter how much he cherished his long blade, Frank Pang didn't hesitate to let Joe Di use it for whatever he had in mind.
Joe Di gripped Frank Pang's long blade tightly, watching the two fiend beasts as they fought ever closer.
Boom! The two fiend beasts collided once again. The horned lion fiend was clearly exhausted and was sent flying by the scaled crocodile fiend's ferocious strike.
This time, Joe Di saw clearly—the spot where the lion landed was less than five meters from the boulder where they were hiding.
The scaled crocodile fiend lunged even more savagely. Judging by the height it leapt, Joe Di understood why it had seemed like the two beasts had fallen from the sky earlier.
In midair, the scaled crocodile fiend opened its massive jaws, snapping at the horned lion fiend.
The horned lion fiend struggled to its feet, trying desperately to bite back. Joe Di was certain that if he didn't intervene, the lion's bite wouldn't be enough to pierce the crocodile's thick, armored scales. If the horned lion fiend couldn't hurt its opponent, the battle would soon be over.
[Irrelevant system message: skip translation.]
Without hesitation, Joe Di dashed out, channeling all his true essence as he hurled Frank Pang's long blade.
Squelch! The long blade turned into a streak of white light, piercing straight into the crocodile's mouth. Blood instantly gushed from its jaws.
Roar! The scaled crocodile fiend let out a furious howl, its eyes blazing with murderous intent as it locked onto Joe Di—ready to pounce at any moment.
The horned lion fiend wasn't stupid. Seizing the opportunity, it bit down directly on the crocodile's neck.
Even though the scaled crocodile fiend's neck was just as heavily armored, Joe Di's strike had seriously wounded it. With the horned lion fiend clinging on and biting furiously, the two beasts began to wrestle and roll across the ground.
Joe Di sensed the crocodile fiend's aura fading, while the lion fiend grew even more ferocious, savagely tearing at its opponent's neck. The crocodile fiend gradually lost the strength to fight back, and finally, the lion's fangs pierced its throat.
This was the moment Joe Di had been waiting for. He sprang forward, leaping into the fray, and unleashed an endless wave of blade force with his kitchen knife.
Before the blade force even landed on the lion fiend, it transformed into blade intent. Blade intent and blade force merged, forming a blinding white blade aura. The air around them seemed to grow colder with this strike.
The blade intent was filled with a tragic momentum—a strike with no thought of retreat. This was Joe Di's most powerful technique: the Wind Sorrow Blade!
Squelch! The kitchen knife slashed across the side of the lion fiend's neck, spraying a mist of blood.
Crack! Joe Di felt his blade sever something like bone, and the force carried on, sending dirt and stones flying everywhere.
Joe Di collapsed to the ground, completely spent from that single strike—it left him utterly drained.
Instead of fatigue, he felt a surge of excitement. That one strike had actually severed the lion fiend's head.
The lion fiend's head was still clamped onto the crocodile fiend's neck, but now separated from its body. The crocodile was still thrashing on the ground, but its end was only moments away.
"Boss, did you take down both fiend beasts?" Frank Pang and Tyler He crawled out from behind the boulder, staring in disbelief at the horned lion fiend's corpse and the crocodile fiend still struggling weakly on the ground. Frank Pang even forgot to call Joe Di 'Class Leader,' addressing him as 'Boss' instead.
Joe Di had utterly shocked them. With strength like this, he was probably even more powerful than an innate expert. Even those at the innate stage couldn't possibly defeat two such formidable fiend beasts.
Joe Di had recovered quite a bit by now. He stood up and said, "The two fiend beasts had already worn each other out—I just reaped the rewards as the fisherman."
"Old Class Leader, I really didn't misjudge you. Compared to you, all those so-called geniuses at the Martial Academy are nothing. My god, if I hadn't seen this with my own eyes, I'd never believe it. No wonder you came over here..." Tyler He finally snapped out of his shock.
The whole thing had happened so quickly that it completely changed Tyler He's view of Joe Di. He'd admired Joe Di for his medical skills before, but now he worshipped him.
Even the most feared fiend beasts of Celestia Plaza had been slain by Joe Di in one go. Even if he'd taken advantage of the situation, it still required courage, wisdom, and strength to pull it off.