Chapter 7: Facing the Enemy and Suffering a Setback
"Go to hell!"
"Second Spirit Ability, Tremor Wave!"
Shi Feng roared in pain as the light of his 2nd Spirit Ring suddenly flared. An earth yellow shockwave burst directly from his body, blasting away Chen Ming, who had been trying to land the finishing blow.
Although using a wide range Spirit Ability while lying on the ground caused Shi Feng to suffer some of the backlash himself, he still seized that moment to scramble to his feet, enduring the pain and fury as he quickly assumed a defensive stance.
Shrek Academy students could be called arrogant, but they could never be called weak.
After all, Shrek's students came from across the entire Douluo Continent, and only the most exceptional geniuses could pass layer after layer of examinations and earn the Shrek name.
Each grade at Shrek Academy selected its students through something like a Gu style screening process. Even as a 2nd year student, Shi Feng had already received top tier education, and he definitely did not lack combat experience against people of the same age.
If he had not been too careless earlier, and if he had not failed to expect that Chen Ming was actually an Evil Spirit Master, allowing Chen Ming to seize the initiative, Shi Feng, whose Spirit Power was already a whole realm higher than Chen Ming's, would never have ended up in such a miserable state.
"An earth attribute dog Martial Soul?" Chen Ming climbed back to his feet without even a scratch on him.
Shockwave type abilities were certainly powerful, but Chen Ming's current swollen form under Martial Soul Possession had extremely strong resistance to blunt force impact.
That hundred year Spirit Ability had indeed blasted Chen Ming away, but it had failed to penetrate the thick layer of fat and actually injure him.
"It's an Earth Wolf! An Iron Claw Earth Wolf, not some earth dog! It's a rare wolf type earth Martial Soul!"
As if Chen Ming had stepped right on a sore spot, Shi Feng roared angrily and charged at him, both claws shining with Spirit Power.
"First Spirit Ability, Iron Claw!"
Shi Feng roared. Under the enhancement of Spirit Power, his claws grew slightly larger, making the 10 sharp talons look even more cold and deadly.
"First Spirit Ability, Decaying Body!"
Chen Ming roared as well. His deep yellow 1st Spirit Ring lit up, and a layer of substance resembling moss, or perhaps rotting flesh, spread over his body, increasing his defense and resistance while also attaching the poison within Chen Ming onto the surface of his skin.
Although both of them were using hundred year Spirit Abilities, the yellow color of Shi Feng's 2 Spirit Rings was not particularly deep. Even the color of his 2nd Spirit Ring was paler than Chen Ming's 1st Spirit Ring.
But even with that gap in Spirit Ring quality, Shi Feng's Spirit Power cultivation was still a full realm higher than Chen Ming's.
Shi Feng's Iron Claws tore into Chen Ming's defense, which had already been strengthened by Rotten Body, and pierced into Chen Ming's abdomen. But they only sank in by less than an inch before losing their momentum.
The tips of Shi Feng's claws also seemed to become coated in a sticky substance like grease or asphalt.
Not only had the attack failed to deal meaningful damage, Shi Feng immediately felt a stinging poison surging into his body through his fingertips.
He instinctively tried to pull back, but at that exact moment, Chen Ming suddenly grabbed one of Shi Feng's arms. Chen Ming's throat churned, and acidic liquid carrying an intense foul stench sprayed straight from his mouth onto Shi Feng's face.
Shi Feng hurriedly circulated Spirit Power across his body surface to resist, but the moment that acid touched him, his defense was instantly broken through, and he let out an incomparably miserable scream.
"Aaaah! My eyes! My face! Aaaah!"
Under that extreme pain, Shi Feng exploded with strength that even surpassed Chen Ming's for an instant. He forcibly tore his arm free from Chen Ming's grip, then kicked Chen Ming hard in the abdomen.
Chen Ming staggered back several steps as his belly churned, but he suffered no additional serious injury. After Shi Feng's claws were withdrawn, a gelatinous substance oozed out from Chen Ming's wound and instantly sealed that small injury. Although it had not fully healed, it was no longer a major problem.
"Taste my power..." Chen Ming sneered, his eyes bloodshot.
What he had just spat out was not a Spirit Ability at all, but the acid constantly churning inside his stomach. Besides being even more corrosive than normal stomach acid, Chen Ming's gastric acid also carried a special corrosive Spirit Power attribute.
Even though Chen Ming could feel pain in his own esophagus when it surged upward, once it was sprayed out, it became a terrifying weapon.
Taking advantage of Shi Feng's injury, Chen Ming shuffled forward on his short legs and began smashing punches at Shi Feng one after another like a turtle flailing wildly, while Shi Feng rolled across the ground, resisting with all his strength.
If Shi Feng's Martial Soul had not been the extremely rare earth attribute wolf type, which gave him much better defense than ordinary wolf type Martial Souls after losing the advantage in speed, he really might have been beaten to death by Chen Ming on the spot.
"Young Lord is fighting! Everyone gather!"
"Where are you going? Hurry up and come support him! This isn't an evacuation anymore, there really is an Evil Spirit Master here! You idiots, get out here!"
Seizing this moment, the 2 guards immediately began shouting toward the temporary encampment.
As their voices spread, the guards inside, who had not been paying much attention to the outside situation, hastily grabbed their weapons and gear and rushed out.
More than a dozen soldiers armed with sharp weapons and hand crossbows poured out. The moment the soldiers holding crossbows appeared, they fired a bolt at Chen Ming without even thinking twice.
The bolt directly pierced into Chen Ming's right arm, almost punching all the way through. Even with Chen Ming's bizarre Martial Soul, he could barely move that arm now.
Chen Ming did not know whether those crossbows were Godly Zhuge Crossbows or just ordinary hand crossbows, but he knew one thing very clearly. If he did not run now, then after only a few more shots, he definitely would not be able to escape.
A mere Spirit Master was still far from the level where he could ignore conventional weapons and military equipment.
If more than 10 fully armed elite soldiers coordinated properly, then killing a Chen Ming really would not be all that difficult.
"Damn it!"
Chen Ming cursed inwardly, then kicked Shi Feng hard between the legs before immediately turning around and fleeing without even looking back.
The crossbow soldiers fired toward Chen Ming's huge retreating figure, but because the distance was already increasing, the bolts began losing power. Even if some arrows struck Chen Ming in the back, they did not penetrate as deeply as the first one that had hit his right arm, and they could not even affect his speed as he escaped.
By the time the crossbow soldiers finished reloading, Chen Ming had already run beyond their effective range.
Watching Chen Ming disappear into the distance, while Shi Feng lay groaning on the ground, the private soldiers who lived on their master's pay hesitated for a moment before rushing toward Shi Feng instead.
As for chasing that Evil Spirit Master?
If even Young Lord, a Spirit Grandmaster, could not defeat him, then should they, a group of ordinary people relying only on weapons and lacking Spirit Power, really rush up and join that mess?
Following him might not guarantee victory, and if they were counter-killed, then they would just be dying for nothing.
It was better to hurry and save Young Lord first. That way, even if punishment came later, it probably would not be fatal.
Ordinary people, even armed private soldiers, still held deep fear and disgust toward the group known as Evil Spirit Masters.
During normal times, they might dare to label refugees as Evil Spirit Masters in order to squeeze out some benefits.
But when they truly had to face a real Evil Spirit Master...
Being willing to fire 2 rounds before retreating was already an impressive return for the treatment they usually received. While charging together might indeed have won the fight, if they really died because of it, or were injured by the Evil Spirit Master's sinister methods, then the loss would far outweigh the gain.
.....
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