Martial Arts: Starting with Upgrading the Dilapidated Temple

A gap was pried open in the iron fence of the sewage outlet, and Xu Hao and Chen Yuanzhi had just poked half their heads out when their pupils suddenly contracted.

The outside world is not a path to survival, but rather another gateway to hell.

Along the moat, torches formed a long dragon, turning the dark water surface crimson.

Despite the chaos in Rat Alley in the west of the city, the Observatory did not lose its composure; instead, it prepared a backup plan.

A squad of elite crossbowmen clad in black armor, armed with "罡破弩" (a type of crossbow capable of piercing the protective aura of a Bone Forging Realm martial artist), were anchored like nails on either side of the water outlet. The slightest movement on the water's surface would instantly result in a deluge of arrows.

After the two retreated back to the fence, Xu Hao coldly instructed, "If you want to live, keep your words to yourself and wait for me outside the fence."

Xu Hao and Chen Yuanzhi crawled out of the fence again, while Chen Yuanzhi stayed behind.

Xu Hao's [Concealing Breath] spiritual effect was pushed to its limit, and his entire body seemed to have turned into a cold, unyielding stone.

He gripped the base of the moss-covered, slippery city wall with both hands, like a giant gecko, and silently slithered into the shadows.

In the distance, towards the direction of Rat Alley, flames soared into the sky, and shouts of battle could be faintly heard.

Two crossbowmen nearby were drawn by the distant explosion and instinctively turned their heads to look.

Xu Hao made a move.

He sprang from the shadows without making a sound.

The hundred-refined steel blade in his hand drew a dark arc in the night. At this moment, the newly mastered "Overturning River Force" in his body showed terrifying control - the blade cut through the air without causing the slightest fluctuation in the airflow.

puff.

It was as slight as a bubble bursting.

The two crossbowmen felt a chill in their throats, and even their screams were choked in their tracheas.

Xu Hao moved like a ghost, steadily supporting two corpses that were about to fall, and gently laid them down on the soft, wet mud.

Even now, the surrounding guards remain completely unaware.

Xu Hao quickly turned around, climbed back to Chen Yuan's place, and led Chen Yuan over the section of the city wall he had cleared, then slid into the icy moat.

The moment I entered the water, the chill felt like steel needles piercing my pores.

Xu Hao took out a hollow reed tube that he had prepared beforehand and stuffed it into Chen Yuanzhi's mouth, then pressed his head down and submerged into the murky water.

The underwater area was pitch black, with turbulent undercurrents.

Xu Hao closed his eyes, and the [Listening to Breath Talisman] on his chest became scalding hot in the water.

Water's conductivity far surpasses that of air; at this moment, any slight vibration within a radius of a hundred feet seemed to explode right next to his ears.

ding... ding...

An extremely faint metallic clanging sound reached my eardrums.

Xu Hao sketched a deadly net in his mind—the riverbed was densely covered with countless threads as thin as hair, with tiny copper bells no bigger than a fingernail and poisoned barbs hanging from them. This was the "Mother and Child Bell Array" of the Surveillance Bureau; once touched, the alarm bells on the shore would ring out through the sky.

Xu Hao was like a real big fish, his body swaying with the frequency of the undercurrent. With each stroke, he precisely avoided the deadly lines, dragging Chen Yuanzhi towards the center of the river.

Just as they were about to swim out of the restricted area, the water ahead suddenly began to twist unnaturally.

This distortion doesn't come from undercurrents, but from someone going against the current.

The hairs on Xu Hao's back suddenly stood on end in the icy water.

A dark figure, seemingly already melted into the water, suddenly shot out like an arrow.

The man held a specially made "water-splitting dagger," a weapon that was three times faster underwater than on land, and it aimed straight for Xu Hao's back.

Blood-Clad Tower!

These assassins were even more persistent than the Observatory, lying in wait underwater.

At this moment, Xu Hao was dragging Chen Yuanzhi with one hand, which greatly restricted his movement, making it impossible for him to completely avoid him.

In a flash, Xu Hao suddenly turned to the side, taking the blow head-on with his back.

puff!

The Water-Splitting Thorn easily pierced Xu Hao's protective qi, penetrating his left shoulder, and blood instantly stained the river red.

The intense pain caused Xu Hao's facial muscles to twitch slightly, but a violent ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

Since you're looking for death, then so be it.

Xu Hao did not retreat. Instead, he used the force of the other party's stab to thrust his Hundred-Refined Blade forward in his right hand.

But this is not a simple matter of swinging a knife.

He unleashed the "River-Turning Power" technique in the water.

The surrounding water seemed to be stirred by an invisible hand, becoming incredibly viscous.

Xu Hao's strike didn't land squarely; instead, it carried a spiraling, drilling force, slamming heavily into the water ghost's chest.

Water is both the softest and the hardest.

With the support of this spiraling force, the surrounding water pressure instantly increased several times, like a heavy hammer smashing down through a curtain of water.

Bang!

A muffled thud exploded underwater.

The man in black stared wide-eyed as an extremely sinister force pierced his chest cavity, instantly turning his internal organs into a jumbled mess.

A large cloud of blood mist exploded at the bottom of the river, and the water ghost's body slumped down.

But the commotion was too great to hide.

"There are people in the water! Fire arrows!"

A roar came from the shore.

Immediately afterwards, a series of "plop plop plop" sounds rang out as countless crossbow bolts rained down into the water, leaving trails of white bubbles around Xu Hao.

Xu Haoqiang took a deep breath, ignoring the injury on his shoulder, and with a powerful push of his legs, he became like a black torpedo, using the explosive force of "Overturning the River Force" to carry Chen Yuanzhi through the last section of the hidden stake defense line.

Half an hour later.

In a reed marshland three miles outside the city.

With a splash, two disheveled figures scrambled onto the muddy bank.

Chen Yuanzhi collapsed to the ground, vomiting large mouthfuls of foul-smelling river water. His lips were so cold that he couldn't even speak.

Xu Hao sat beside him, tearing open the clothes on his left shoulder without any expression.

The thorns were still stuck in the flesh, their barbs hanging from the skin, a horrifying sight.

He took out a small jar of strong liquor from the storage room, bit off the mud seal, tilted his head back, and took a swig.

Then, he gripped the handle of the spike with his right hand, and without even flinching, pulled it outwards with a sudden jerk.

puff!

Black blood splattered.

Xu Hao groaned, his face turning deathly pale, but he didn't stop. He poured the remaining half-jar of strong liquor directly onto the bloody wound.

Swish-

The sound of strong liquor washing away wounds was particularly jarring in the silent reed marshes.

Xu Hao's muscles were taut like iron, and cold sweat rolled down his forehead, but he didn't utter a sound, only squeezing out a breath of cold air through his teeth.

Chen Yuanzhi stopped vomiting and stared blankly at the boy in front of him, who was a few years younger than him.

Under the moonlight, the boy's bare upper body was covered in scars, and the ruthlessness with which he treated his wounds was more chilling than that of an executioner.

"What are you looking at?"

Xu Hao casually tore off a piece of his shirt and skillfully bandaged the wound, his voice hoarse, "If you don't want to die, get up and keep going. This smell of blood will soon attract wild dogs."

Chen Yuanzhi swallowed hard, struggled to his feet, and the arrogance of a young master that had once filled his eyes vanished, replaced by a deep sense of awe.