Is This Still Human

The burly, middle-aged man’s expression froze when he noticed Ying Weiyang walking out from behind them.

A black-haired young man and a golden-haired girl—the pair matched the people in the portraits exactly.

“You…”

“Enough talk. Give me the spirit stones, and I’ll go with you. Otherwise, you’ll die.”

Xu Mu cut him off and held out his hand.

The middle-aged man’s face suddenly went deathly pale. He knew very well that the man before him had killed a retainer at the peak of the first stage of the World-Breaking Realm.

Trembling, he removed his ring and handed it to Xu Mu.

Xu Mu took the ring and gave it a cursory glance. “This isn’t even a hundred kilograms. Forget it. I’ll take everything.”

With that, he put the ring away and walked toward the exit with Ying Weiyang in tow.

Only after reaching the doorway did Xu Mu turn around and ask, “Why aren’t you leading the way?”

“Huh? Yes, yes, of course!”

The middle-aged man was utterly stunned. As far as he was concerned, this man had only come to seize his ring.

The fact that he had killed someone in the first stage of the World-Breaking Realm meant that even an idiot could tell the experts waiting this time would be far stronger.

The only thing he could do was run. He had never expected Xu Mu to actually dare go there.

Still, since this man clearly wanted to die, he certainly wouldn’t stop him. He led the way.

Under the middle-aged man’s guidance, Xu Mu and Ying Weiyang headed out of the royal city.

The shops surrounding the royal city were considered territory belonging to the Nine-Tailed Fox Clan. Fighting here was essentially equivalent to declaring war.

Only those whose strength completely surpassed that of the clan would disregard such a rule.

The Xiao Clan and the Nine-Tailed Fox Clan were roughly equal in overall strength, so they certainly wouldn’t fight directly in this place.

After crossing the distant mountain range, Xu Mu and Ying Weiyang saw several people waiting there.

To his surprise, Chen Xuan was there again, along with Li Han.

It seemed the battle earlier had raised his standing.

Apart from the two of them, there were two others.

Xu Mu used the Divine Eye to examine their identities. One was a member of the Council of Elders, while the other was a Guest Elder among the clan’s retainers.

The Guest Elder was in the third stage of the World-Breaking Realm, while the member of the Xiao Clan’s Council of Elders was in the fourth stage.

It had to be said that even this glimpse alone was enough to prove that the Xiao Clan was far stronger than the White Stone Clan.

The White Stone Clan’s commanders were generally only at the third or fourth stage.

Yet here in the Xiao Clan, even a Guest Elder had reached the third stage.

“Third Young Master! I’ve brought them!”

The burly, middle-aged man immediately jogged over and stood beside Li Han.

The mockery had vanished from Li Han’s face, replaced by a solemn expression.

He still remembered what Xu Mu had said earlier. Since Xu Mu had dared to wait for him, that meant he wasn’t afraid.

Now that Xu Mu had actually come, was he still unafraid?

Li Han didn’t believe that a piece of trash in the mid-stage of the Transcendent Realm, no matter how powerful he was, could defeat someone in the third stage of the World-Breaking Realm—much less with a fourth-stage expert present as well.

“You really came after all, Xu Mu. You’re awfully arrogant. Are all descendants of Yanhuang like this?”

Li Han stared at Xu Mu grimly.

“You’ve got some brains, at least. You knew to investigate me. I came this time to test my strength.”

Xu Mu smiled.

“Test your strength? Believe me, I can kill the woman beside you first.”

Li Han’s voice was cold.

Xu Mu smiled and patted Ying Weiyang on the head. “Don’t worry. Your lives are bound together. If he dares lay a finger on you, I’ll kill him first.”

Li Han recalled the strange technique Xu Mu had used earlier, and a trace of fear appeared on his face.

“Before we fight, I want to make one thing clear. This all started because you, the Third Young Master of the Xiao Clan, attacked me first.”

Xu Mu drew his black sword. “Come on, if you aren’t afraid to die.”

“A mere Transcendent dares to think he’s someone important!”

The Guest Elder transformed into a streak of light and reached Xu Mu in an instant.

Xu Mu immediately unleashed Demon’s Protection along with Burning Heaven Sword Qi, meeting the attack head-on.

“You’re practically begging to die!”

Seeing this from a distance, Li Han cursed under his breath.

It had been one thing when Xu Mu had done this against someone in the first stage. But his opponent now was a third-stage expert.

This detestable descendant of Yanhuang was underestimating the otherworldly races far too much.

Boom!

The two attacks collided violently. Their combined force transformed into a sphere of light that spread in every direction.

Crack!

Xu Mu’s armor of Demon’s Protection shattered on the spot, and his entire body was sent flying like a cannonball.

With a thunderous crash, he smashed through several trees before finally slamming into a mountainside a thousand meters away.

“Xu Mu!”

When Ying Weiyang saw this, she immediately ran toward him.

“Hahaha!”

Seeing this, Li Han couldn’t help bursting into laughter. “Damn it! You scared the hell out of me!”

When he had seen Xu Mu standing there without the slightest intention of retreating, he had thought Xu Mu might actually be able to withstand the attack.

Only after seeing what happened did he finally relax.

Now this was how things were supposed to go.

“A mere Transcendent dares to clash with me head-on? I’ll have enough bragging rights about this underground.”

As the Guest Elder spoke, his body suddenly shuddered, and he froze in place.

“He’s not dead?”

Whoosh!

A streak of sword qi instantly cleaved through the billowing dust.

Xu Mu emerged from the cloud of dust with one hand in his trouser pocket and the other gripping his sword. Blood stained the corner of his mouth, but his steps were steady, as though nothing had happened.

He smiled faintly. “I didn’t expect to have an audience.”

That had been the full extent of his strength in his normal state. It seemed there really was quite a gap between him and a third-stage expert.

“Brat!”

The Xiao Clan’s Guest Elder felt humiliated. He had failed to kill a Transcendent in a single blow.

He charged at Xu Mu once more. Although he did not break the sound barrier, the gale he stirred up was still fierce enough to leave a deep ravine in the earth wherever he passed.

Xu Mu activated his Spirit Vein Armament, and thin red lines drifted through the air.

Boom!

Their powers collided again, and the destructive force was far greater than before.

Every plant in the surrounding area was vaporized, leaving behind nothing but scorched earth.

Xu Mu was sent flying again, but he steadied himself after only a hundred meters.

The Guest Elder, meanwhile, was forced back several steps before regaining his balance.

The people watching were all left nearly speechless with shock.

A person in the mid-stage of the Transcendent Realm had actually forced back an expert in the third stage of the World-Breaking Realm!

Was he even human?

A gleam flashed through Chen Xuan’s eyes. As expected of Brother Mu—this was simply beyond imagination.

Having known Xu Mu so well, Chen Xuan could naturally tell that Xu Mu hadn’t even used the powerful technique he had displayed earlier.

“Grandma, what in the world is going on? Is he even human?”

Tushan Rui, who was hiding in the distance, was completely dumbfounded. This made no sense at all!

“I don’t know either.”

Tushan Ju had been shocked into opening her mouth wide. “Girl, if you had his child, I wouldn’t even dare imagine how incredible its talent would be.”

“What are you talking about?”

Tushan Rui lowered her head shyly.

“Dad, who’s fighting over there? The light just now was so bright.”

Atop a mountain peak, Xiao Qiao gazed curiously into the distance.

Xiao Gui’s eyes were solemn as he said softly, “Someone dangerous.”

High in the sky above the battlefield, a giant bird formed from qi circled endlessly.

A black-robed figure crouched behind a hillside on the outskirts and murmured, “How did Xu Mu get even stronger? I was planning to beat him up after getting the ring.”