Chapter 57: The Death of Bao Different!

Ah!

Suffering this severe blow, A Zi could finally no longer hold back her painful cry. Losing her footing, she collapsed headfirst onto the ground. This fall further aggravated the knife wound she had just received on her abdomen, causing a wave of pain so intense that she nearly fainted on the spot.

Yan Shanhe, having succeeded with a single strike, showed not the slightest bit of tender affection. Pushing forward, he raised both hands to hold high the exceptionally sharp famous blade, Snow-Walker, looking ready to deliver a fatal blow to this weak, pitiful, helpless, yet voracious little sister.

However, just as he was about to succeed, a dragon-like roar that shook the heavens suddenly echoed from behind.

Knowing that A Zi no longer posed a threat to him, Yan Shanhe instinctively turned his head to look back. He saw that after forcing Bao Butong and Feng Bo'e to parry several moves in succession, Zhang Fang had finally unleashed his ultimate move. Pouring a massive amount of "Longevity Holy Qi" from his left arm into the round shield in his hand, he hurled it directly at Bao Butong ahead.

At this moment, Bao Butong was completely dazed and overwhelmed by the onslaught. Seeing how formidable this move was, and realizing it was too late to dodge, he could only bite the bullet and raise his sword horizontally to block, attempting to receive Zhang Fang's full-powered flying shield strike.

Unexpectedly, the moment the flying shield left his hand, Zhang Fang's right hand—which had been brewing power for quite some time—pushed forward with a strike of "Proud Dragon Repents". Amidst the roar of a dragon, the supreme, yang, and unyielding mighty palm force blasted onto the airborne round shield, transferring this immense force directly into the shield body.

Struck by the palm force, the flying shield's speed and momentum more than doubled compared to before. The trajectory of the flying shield, which was previously visible, had now transformed into a silver stream of light. Its sharp blade edges cut through Bao Butong's sword like chopping melons and vegetables, first severing his treasured sword into two halves, and then shearing off his entire right arm right down to the shoulder!

Afterward, with its momentum completely unchecked, the shield slashed horizontally toward Yan Shanhe standing behind him!

Seeing the unstoppable flying shield hurtling toward him, Yan Shanhe was equally unprepared and had no time to dodge. He could only bring down his fully charged blade prematurely, striking squarely against the edge of the flying shield.

Clang!

Blade and shield collided, sounding like a clap of thunder on flat ground.

Such a direct, unadorned head-on clash was the easiest way to determine victory and defeat.

The strong win, the weak lose!

There was simply no room for any clever tricks.

Enhanced by Zhang Fang's level 8 "Proud Dragon Repents," the attack power of the flying shield had reached a horrifying degree.

After severing Bao Butong's sword and arm, it still retained an overwhelming advantage against Yan Shanhe.

The result of this clash was that the moment the blade and shield met, the famous blade Snow-Walker in Yan Shanhe's hand was jarred right out of his grip, flying off into the distance. Meanwhile, Zhang Fang's flying shield, its remaining force unspent, slammed squarely into his chest.

With a muffled thud, Yan Shanhe's entire body was blown backward through the air, and while still airborne, he could not help but spit out a large mouthful of fresh blood.

It must be said that Yan Shanhe's defensive capability was exaggerated to an infuriating degree. Even with the flying shield enhanced by "Proud Dragon Repents," it could only inflict internal injuries upon him, failing to break through his outermost physical defense!

Inside this fellow's clothes, he was definitely wearing a soft body armor impervious to blades and spears!

Without even glancing at Bao Butong, whose arm had been severed, Zhang Fang surged forward, brushing right past the foul-mouthed man and shooting like an arrow toward the direction of A Zi and Yan Shanhe.

With his right arm newly severed and reduced to a cripple, Bao Butong no longer posed any significant threat to either him or A Zi.

Compared to harvesting a head that could be taken at any time, Zhang Fang had three more important tasks to accomplish first right now:

Save A Zi!
Kill Yan Shanhe!
Retrieve the shield!

These three tasks were ranked in order of importance. As for the sequence of execution, it would depend on actual circumstances. After all, the purpose of retrieving the shield was to accomplish the first two tasks, so it could be placed first, last, or even abandoned altogether if necessary.

Should the situation genuinely develop to the point where he had to make a choice, Zhang Fang would not mind exposing his ultimate trump card—the Vibranium round shield!

However, things did not go quite so smoothly, nor were they so desperate that he needed to expose his trump card. As Zhang Fang moved, Feng Bo'e—the only one among the opposite trio who still retained complete combat capability—immediately stepped forward, slicing his single saber horizontally toward Zhang Fang's chest while shouting loudly, "Second Brother, run!"

You think you can stop me?

With Zhang Fang's current strength, facing Feng Bo'e alone didn't cause him to feel even a shred of pressure.

Especially now that he had genuine anger burning within him and was ready to fight for real!

Seeing this, he gathered the five fingers of his left hand into a palm and pushed upward leisurely and steadily, executing the "Erlang Carrying the Mountain" technique from the *Thirty-Six-Form Tiangang Shield Art*, striking squarely against the single saber in Feng Bo'e's hand.

Boom!

Blade and palm collided, and Feng Bo'e instantly felt a force akin to a giant hammer travel through the blade. The treasured saber in his hand, along with his saber-wielding arm, was forcefully knocked high into the air by this tremendous energy, leaving his chest wide open!

Feng Bo'e's heart skipped a beat with shock. In his panic, he wanted to pull back his saber to save himself, but how could there be time?

Only a deafening dragon roar rang out at close range. Following closely was a palm strike carrying the force of rolling waves, slamming heavily into his chest and abdomen.

Struck by this blow, Feng Bo'e felt his body suddenly grow light, as if all his strength had been drained away. He tumbled backward at an angle through the air, and while still airborne, he couldn't help but spew a vast mouthful of fresh blood.

Then, his vision went dark, and he completely lost consciousness.

In a one-on-one duel, Zhang Fang didn't need to worry about threats from others, so his attacks were naturally unrestrained. With a single exchange, he completely eliminated the threat posed by Feng Bo'e. Had it not been for the greater picture requiring him to capture one or two live prisoners, Feng Bo'e would likely have been a dead man by now!

"Bastard, go to hell!"

Seeing that the obstacle of Feng Bo'e had been cleared, a desperate roar filled with infinite killing intent erupted from behind once again—it was Bao Butong. Amidst his roar, completely disregarding his severed right arm, Bao Butong lunged forward, his left palm striking directly at Zhang Fang's back.

At times like this, the unique advantage of plot characters truly showed. Reincarnators like A Zi, having suffered only a knife wound to the abdomen without hitting vital organs, were already in too much pain to stand.

Bao Butong, on the other hand, even after having an arm severed, could still rely on a surge of ruthless determination to launch a desperate attack against Zhang Fang.

When all was said and done, martial artists who had tumbled and fought in the jianghu since childhood possessed a will far more tenacious than greenhouse-bred flowers!

At this moment, Bao Butong had unleashed the final potential of his life.

However, martial arts fiction was ultimately not passionate anime; simply having the resolve to face life and death did not allow one to ignite a burning cosmos and unleash infinite potential several times beyond normal limits.

Quite the contrary. Due to his newly sustained severe injuries, Bao Butong's condition was far worse than before. Coupled with the fact that the arm he had just lost was his dominant right arm, the power he could exert with his left palm this time was drastically reduced once again. With these factors compounding, a palm strike that should have possessed ten parts of power could barely manage to muster five or six parts of his usual level.

If even a peak-condition Bao Butong was not regarded by Zhang Fang, let alone this weakened attack?

Facing this palm strike, Zhang Fang didn't even care to put up a defense. Because...

Swish!

At the very same moment Bao Butong launched his furious assault, A Zi, who was also injured and fallen on the ground, suddenly flicked her wrist, shooting out a steel-nail-like hidden weapon. Imbued in this hidden weapon was also her full ten-part cultivation power.

The iron nail left her hand, instantly transforming into a pale green streak of light that brushed past Zhang Fang's cheek and nailed itself squarely between Bao Butong's eyebrows!

This item was called the Heart-Piercing Nail, possessing the deadliest lethality among the various poisons and hidden weapons of the Stars Sect. It ranked just below the Xiaoyao Powder, Formless Powder, and Bliss Thorn, far surpassing the Calm-Heart Pellet or Green-Phosphorus Needle in comparison.

A Zi held a deep grudge against Bao Butong for his foul mouth, as his previous words had been truly unbearable. Striking now, she naturally showed no mercy. After piercing the center of Bao Butong's eyebrows, the nail buried itself entirely to the tail. The potent poison quenched upon the nail immediately spread, causing Bao Butong's charging body to instantly stiffen before he crashed headfirst onto the ground, losing all signs of life.

[Your team has killed Bao Butong, the third of the Four Great Retainers of the Murong Family. Rewards obtained: 1050 Points, Cui Zhen Sword (Bronze) x1, *Zhentemo Sword* manual x1!]