Chapter 49 - 47: In Martial Arts, Nothing is Indestructible, Only Speed is Unbreakable
Just then, Fu Jinmin’s terrified scream came from the distance, "Quick! Stop them!"
At his hysterical command, the six black-clad ninjas moved in an instant!
Their movements were as swift as lightning. They instantly split into two groups, one darting toward Lu Yun and the other toward Lin Fengjiu!
Two ninjas lunged straight for Lin Fengjiu, while the other four formed a half-circle, locking onto Lu Yun!
As they advanced, the six ninjas flicked their wrists!
"SHHH-SHHH-SHHH-SHHH!"
A dense flurry of sounds tore through the air! Over a dozen dark shadows shot out!
Two shuriken, thrown from tricky angles, flew toward Lin Fengjiu’s upper body, while the remaining dozen or so hidden weapons enveloped Lu Yun, targeting his vital points!
Seeing this, Lin Fengjiu flicked his wrist, swiftly tucking the faintly glowing Eight Trigrams Mirror back into the cloth bag on his shoulder. At the same time, he executed a profound footwork technique, his body seeming to float backward and to the side!
The two shuriken nearly grazed the edge of Lin Fengjiu’s Daoist robe, embedding themselves deep into the wall where he had just been standing.
It wasn’t over. The two ninjas attacking Lin Fengjiu were perfectly coordinated. One wielded a short kunai knife for close-quarters combat, his vicious slashes aimed at Lin Fengjiu’s lower body and abdomen.
The other circled on the outside, more hidden weapons in hand, constantly throwing them to cut off Lin Fengjiu’s escape routes!
Although Lin Fengjiu’s martial arts were considerable, facing such well-trained ninjas who specialized in coordinated attacks, he immediately felt immense pressure.
He dodged and blocked repeatedly. Seeing more hidden weapons flying his way, Lin Fengjiu made a split-second decision, pushing off with his feet to quickly hide behind a thick marble pillar.
Meanwhile, Lu Yun’s response to the dozen or so hidden weapons raining down on him was incredibly direct.
Lu Yun pulled his right fist back to his waist, then immediately blasted it forward!
"Break!"
As he threw the punch, a Fist Force, almost invisible to the naked eye, shot from his fist to meet the volley of hidden weapons!
Under the direct impact of this ranged Fist Force, most of the dozen or so hidden weapons were instantly shattered into dust and iron filings.
The few sturdier ones were twisted and warped by the Fist Force, losing all momentum before clattering to the ground.
"Such a strong Daxia man!!!"
"It’s a Grandmaster of Huajin from Daxia!"
After witnessing the power of Lu Yun’s ranged punch obliterating the storm of hidden weapons, the pupils of the lead ninja from Wa Country abruptly shrank to pinpoints.
The leader then barked out an order, "Don’t get close to this Daxia man! Trap him with smoke!"
The other three ninjas from Wa Country didn’t hesitate for a second. Without a word, they instantly pulled three inconspicuous, grayish-brown bamboo tubes from their waists.
With a flick of their wrists, they tossed them toward where Lu Yun was standing!
Seeing this, Lu Yun’s brow furrowed slightly. He had fought many ninjas from Wa Country in his youth and was no stranger to their tricks.
In terms of raw power and speed in a head-on confrontation, these guys were perhaps only on par with an Anjin Martial Artist. However, they were far more difficult to deal with than a Martial Artist of the same level.
The reason was their endless supply of strange, insidious, and unorthodox methods!
For example, all sorts of hidden weapons, Blinding Techniques to confuse the senses, devices that could instantly combust or explode, and the smoke they were using right now!
Their tricks were like buzzing flies—utterly annoying.
The three small bamboo tubes arced through the air and landed with a soft "POP."
A large cloud of thick white smoke billowed out from the tubes. It spread with incredible speed, instantly enveloping the small area where Lu Yun stood!
The smoke churned, completely obscuring all vision, blurring even the outlines of figures.
Seeing this, a hint of success unwittingly flashed in the eyes of the four ninjas from Wa Country.
’No matter how strong a Martial Artist is, once trapped in this special smoke laced with paralyzing toxins, their strength would be greatly diminished.’
’This was the perfect opportunity for them to launch a fatal strike!’
However, the faint smiles on their lips froze the very next second, replaced by utter, incredulous shock!
An incomparably tyrannical force seemed to suddenly erupt from within the thick, swirling smoke!
With Lu Yun’s position as the epicenter, the smoke violently blasted outward in all directions!
The smoke roiled and dispersed at an astonishing speed. In the blink of an eye, a clear, almost transparent zone about two meters in diameter appeared in what had been the densest part of the cloud!
It wasn’t a true vacuum. Rather, all the smoke was being held firmly at bay by an invisible force, unable to penetrate even an inch!
Lu Yun was revealed once more, still standing in the same spot.
A Grandmaster of Huajin’s personal Qi could not only be projected outward to injure enemies, but it could also repel something as light as smoke.
Seeing that the smoke was ineffective, the four ninjas from Wa Country exchanged a quick glance.
The next second, they attacked simultaneously from their wrists, sleeves, and even the tips of their boots!
Dozens of dark, gleaming hidden weapons rained down like a sudden storm!
Shuriken, kunai, Iron Thorns, Poisoned Needles... a wide variety of hidden weapons.
They came from all directions—front, back, left, right, high, and low—all from tricky angles, weaving a three-dimensional web of death with almost no blind spots as it closed in on Lu Yun!
But that wasn’t all! At the very same moment the hidden weapons were released...
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
Four extremely short gunshots rang out!
A faint muzzle flash sparked from the sleeve of one hand on each of the four ninjas!
They had hidden special miniature pistols in their sleeves, fired by pulling a thin string tied to the trigger mechanism!
Four bullets, coordinated with the storm of hidden weapons, came from four different directions, completely cutting off all of Lu Yun’s possible escape routes!
These ninjas from Wa Country had some understanding of the abilities of a Grandmaster of Huajin. They knew such masters possessed a danger sense far beyond that of ordinary people.
Therefore, they started with their most simple and brutish tactic, yet also the most difficult one to counter.
Saturation attack!
Hidden weapons to block his path and restrict his movement, with bullets to deliver the killing blow, leveraging their unparalleled speed for a surefire kill!
’Even if a Grandmaster of Huajin’s senses are powerful, they are still mortal flesh and blood!’
’The speed of a physical body has its limits. You might be able to predict one bullet and sidestep it in advance.’
’But you can’t simultaneously predict and dodge four bullets coming from different directions, all while dozens of hidden weapons are hemming you in.’
’It’s a virtually impossible task!’
’Because the body’s speed can never match the breadth of one’s perception!’
Facing this overwhelming, inescapable, and lethal assault, Lu Yun’s eyes remained as calm as still water.
In an instant, a faint, dark glimmer flashed through his pupils and was gone!
Immediately after, the surface of his entire body seemed to be instantly covered in a barely perceptible black metallic sheen.
This was the defensive technique of the first level of the "Hard Qi Gong," "Iron Skin," brought to perfection.
Skin and membranes as tough as iron!
Lu Yun’s body suddenly shot sideways to the left!
Dozens of dark hidden weapons and three of the bullets whizzed past his body.
But one bullet, he couldn’t dodge completely!
CLANG!!!
The sharp, crisp sound of metal striking stone rang out as the bullet struck Lu Yun squarely in the right thigh!
The expected spray of blood never appeared. The powerful impact of the bullet tore a hole in the black fabric of his trousers, revealing the skin underneath.
The skin where he was hit had turned a strange, faint red, with only a very shallow, almost invisible trace of blood seeping out!
Though the bullet’s kinetic energy was immense, it ultimately failed to fully penetrate the defense of Lu Yun’s skin, which was as tough as refined iron. It had only caused a minor abrasion!
"All martial arts in the world... Nothing is indestructible, only speed is unbeatable!"
"In my opinion, that’s not necessarily true!"
The moment the words left his lips, a cold light erupted in Lu Yun’s eyes, and his fists became a blur of afterimages in front of him!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
The whistling sound of his punches rose and fell like a violent storm, creating a continuous series of deep, explosive rumbles!
Over a dozen invisible Fist Forces, almost impossible to track with the naked eye, tore through the void and struck mercilessly at the four ninjas from Wa Country!
The four ninjas saw only a blur before them; they had no time to even attempt to dodge.
The black infiltration suits on their chests instantly exploded into shreds of cloth!
Beneath the cloth, several deep fist imprints were clearly branded onto their flesh.
The skin at the edges of the imprints was split open, and one could even see the shattered, caved-in sternums beneath!
But that was just the beginning! The truly terrifying part was the Huajin that had poured into their bodies!
The rampaging Qi, like countless tiny steel needles, invaded their bodies through the fist imprints, instantly wrecking their internal organs, tearing apart the blood vessels in their meridians, and pulverizing their insides!
The four ninjas froze in place, their eyes bulging to their absolute limit.
A moment later, red blood began to gush from their mouths, noses, ears, and even the corners of their eyes!
Bleeding from all seven orifices!
Their bodies fell backward, ramrod straight, and crashed heavily onto the ground.