Gu Qingfeng stepped into the blood mist, and instantly his vision blurred. The air around him was thick with a strange, chilling atmosphere that made the hairs on his neck rise.
"Father!" Gu Yang whispered nervously, sticking close to Gu Qingfeng, clearly uneasy about what might lurk in the mist.
"Don't worry. Dad's here," Gu Qingfeng replied, his tone firm but wary. The blood mist obscured sight for most, but his heightened senses, after reaching the Blood Refining Realm, allowed him to navigate without too much trouble.
As they pressed on, blurry shapes emerged ahead. When they drew closer, the disturbing forms became clear—several corpses dangled from the trees. Their bodies had been disemboweled, hung by the necks, and their faces, half-rotten, had the hollow gaze of the dead.
The sight stopped Gu Qingfeng cold, while Gu Yang's face drained of color.
Bodies in the mist, hanging from dead trees. Anyone would be shaken by such a grisly sight.
But after his initial shock, Gu Qingfeng squinted at the disfigured corpses. A grim recognition dawned on him.
"Liu Hong..." he muttered, his expression darkening.
Liu Hong, a senior instructor at the Jinniu Martial Arts School, a veteran warrior who had reached the late stage of skin refining, now hung lifeless. He had likely sensed something wrong and tried to escape Lin County—only to meet his end here.
Gu Qingfeng examined the remains. There were no signs of struggle; the man had been killed in one blow. Whoever or whatever was responsible could dispatch a warrior like Liu Hong in an instant. That meant they were dealing with something formidable.
Suddenly, a jolt of danger surged through Gu Qingfeng's body. Instinctively, he yanked Gu Yang aside and activated his Iron Body Technique. His right fist shot forward, colliding with a shadowy figure.
Boom!
The impact sent the shadow hurtling backward, but the force also knocked Gu Qingfeng a few steps back.
A low, raspy voice echoed from the mist. "A warrior in the Blood Refining Realm? Lin County truly surprises."
The shadow reappeared, this time more clearly visible. A tall, thin man with a blood-streaked face, eyes sharp and predatory like a viper, approached with frightening speed. Gu Qingfeng didn't waste time, summoning the full power of his blood and qi. The energy roared through him, rising above his head like smoke, his fists crashing forward with enough force to split rocks.
"Blood and Qi Smoke? So you're no ordinary Blood Refining Realm fighter!" the man, Shangguan Jiang, sneered, his cold eyes narrowing. "You've learned to master it, even in a backwater like Lin County?"
Shangguan Jiang's lips twisted into a cruel grin as he licked blood from the corner of his mouth. "The organs of a warrior like you must taste exquisite. Surrender now, and I might spare you some pain."
With that, he launched a ferocious attack. Gu Qingfeng met him blow for blow, but there was something unnerving about his opponent. Every time their fists or feet connected, a strange, cold energy seeped through, trying to corrode and freeze Gu Qingfeng's body. But his abundant blood and qi, robust and forceful, pushed back the chilling aura.
The fight continued, each strike echoing through the mist. Shangguan Jiang's snake-like movements made him slippery, but Gu Qingfeng's attacks were relentless, shaking the very air.
"You'll learn that martial artists like you don't belong in a world like mine!" Shangguan Jiang's voice dripped with malice. His right hand withered, turning into a blue-black ghostly claw that struck with eerie power.
Another collision sent a sharp pain through Gu Qingfeng's fist. His skin split, revealing rotten flesh beneath.
"What kind of sorcery is this?" Gu Qingfeng gritted his teeth. Even his Iron Body Technique couldn't fully defend against this twisted technique.
Shangguan Jiang's deranged grin widened, his aura growing darker and more sinister. "Kill!"
Realizing there was no retreat, Gu Qingfeng resolved to fight to the death. Either he would kill Shangguan Jiang, or both he and Gu Yang would perish here. His blood surged, his fists thundered, and he fought with everything he had.
The sounds of their clash roared through the blood mist. Gu Qingfeng's iron defense faltered under the onslaught of the ghost claw, but Shangguan Jiang wasn't invincible either. Gu Qingfeng's punishing strikes landed solidly, injuring him.
Neither fighter showed any sign of stopping. Both were locked in a deadly dance, determined to finish the other.
Then, in a brutal moment, Shangguan Jiang's ghost hand latched onto Gu Qingfeng's shoulder, its claws sinking deep into his flesh. Pain ripped through him, but instead of retreating, Gu Qingfeng stepped forward, throwing a devastating punch into Shangguan Jiang's chest.
The blow crushed his ribs, sending him flying like a broken doll. It was the kind of injury that should have killed any normal person, but Shangguan Jiang struggled to rise, still clinging to life.
Without giving him a chance, Gu Qingfeng moved in. Fists rained down like a furious storm, each one pounding Shangguan Jiang with raw, unrelenting force.
Fear crept into Shangguan Jiang's eyes as he tried to speak, "You... you can't kill me... I'm with the—"
Gu Qingfeng didn't care. His only goal was to end this.
With one final punch, Shangguan Jiang's head exploded, and his body slumped lifelessly to the ground. The fight was over.