Apex War God - Chapter 40

The approaching man was tall and lanky, his long, unkempt hair covering most of his face. His angular, reptilian eyes had a wicked gleam that deterred people from looking him in the eyes. Holding a crowbar that was twice as long as the usual, he sauntered over.

This man was one of the eight guardians under Black Ape, ranked fifth among them—Viper Zhang Ping. Although he was a Medial Grade Warrior, he was already close to the Superior Grade and definitely much stronger and more ruthless than Fatty Dong.

But what made him so dreaded wasn’t his strength but his penchant for raw human hearts. He was notorious for swallowing live human hearts; thus, other than a select few inside block 7, everyone else was afraid of him. After all, he might dig out and consume one’s heart if one got careless.

Fatty Dong glanced at Zhang Ping before saying to Yang Wu, “Young man, the chance only comes once. If you don’t agree, this human heart-loving guy beside me won’t hold back.”

Zhang Ping flicked his tongue and commented, “Fatty Dong, you’re trying to prevent me from having a good meal, aren’t you?”

“It’s a pity for a young man like him to die!” Fatty Dong shook his head regretfully.

Yang Wu wasn’t interested. Right now, he was raring to continue the battle. He had been refining the large volume of bloody aura suppressed inside him. Furthermore, the earthly spirit spring infused into his skin was also being refined. The only way for him to direct these precious energies to his dantian was through fighting, which would accelerate his growth in power.

“Stop your nonsense. Just come for my heart! Who knows, this viscount might get your heart first.” Yang Wu crooked his index finger provocatively.

“Hehe! How bold! I’ll send you to your death!” Zhang Ping cackled sinisterly and dashed toward him in short, staccato steps, accompanied by a hiss as he crossed the ground. His movement was slick and ethereal, much like a snake, as he drew closer to Yang Wu.

It was a Medial Grade Warrior Art—Coiled Snake Footwork!

This move was Zhang Ping’s trademark. The chains on his legs did little to slow him; he was right in front of Yang Wu in a blink of an eye and stabbing the long crowbar in his hand toward the latter.

The nickname of Viper suited the opponent, indeed. This thrust was unusually sharp and tricky, his crowbar going straight for Yang Wu’s throat like a striking snake.

This attack came fast and furious; even a Superior Grade Warrior might not be able to avoid it with a lapse of attention.

Yang Wu’s perceptions were incomparably sharp, so he could clearly see the trajectory of the flashing crowbar coming at him. Even though he made his move later, he knocked the crowbar off its original course. Just when he thought he was out of danger, the other hand of his enemy appeared out of nowhere, reaching for his heart.

Both actions were impeccably timed and executed, hardly leaving space for defense.

Yang Wu couldn’t avoid on time, and his opponent managed to catch him on the desired spot. Luckily, he managed to bring out his Profound Energy and form a film of protection in time to defend against the attack. Otherwise, his heart would have been dug out by Zhang Ping.

Despite that, his enemy’s fingers still scratched his chest. Had he retreated any slower, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

When Zhang Ping realized that he had failed to dig out the young man’s heart, his pupils contracted for a second. Then, he slithered forward once more to launch another attack. This time, he aimed for Yang Wu’s crotch, a despicable move.

However, Yang Wu anticipated the second wave of attack and retreated speedily. Just then, Zhang Ping’s crowbar went hurtling for the former’s head at an ideal angle. The series of real and seemingly fake moves was timely and precisely executed.

Yang Wu couldn’t adapt to the opponent’s attacks and had to back down several times. He sustained many hits, apparently at a disadvantage.

The many onlooking prisoners cheered in response, boosting Zhang Ping’s morale.

“Guardian Zhang is indeed formidable. Quick, get his heart and eat it!”

“This kid doesn’t know how to cherish his life at such a young age. To think he rejected Guardian Dong who had given him face! What insolence!”

“Guardian Zhang’s skills are on par with the higher-ranked guardians’. This guy has done well to hold up for ten moves.”

“Take him down! Let him see just how powerful the Black Ape gang is!”

Meanwhile, watching on the side, the eagle-eyed Fatty Dong felt that Zhang Ping was running out of tricks for some reason.

His lanky counterpart only knew these few moves at most. If not for the inherent advantage of Coiled Snake Footwork, how could he have the upper hand in a fight? If he could not defeat Yang Wu shortly, he would eventually lose his edge over Yang Wu when Yang Wu figured out the patterns.

True enough, although the young man maintained a defensive posture, he was studying his opponent’s moves and had a pretty good grasp of the other’s tactics by now.

Besides, while on the defensive, he had been taking the opportunity to replenish the energy he had lost. In fact, he was becoming more enthusiastic as the fight continued. It seemed like several more acupoints could open soon. This was probably due to the Nascent Profound Essence he recently refined.

The Nascent Profound Essence had not only raised the grade of the Supreme Nine Profound Art but also tempered his constitution again. Even a King might not possess as much life force as Yang Wu did now. Only such an intense battle could squeeze out the remnant energy of the Profound Essence, little by little.

The Supreme Nine Profound Art was circulating faster and faster inside his body, with the meridians and acupoints humming unceasingly. All his pores were eagerly taking in Profound Energy like they were breathing. The water-attributed Profound Energy at the soles of his feet was the densest. The peach-pit dantian was absorbing the Profound Energy nonstop, and soon, the clouds of energy thinned as they were transformed into Nascent Profound Essence.

“Kill!” Zhang Ping could not keep up with the pace anymore. Growing impatient, he howled to boost his morale. He threw the crowbar and thrust his claws forward like a snake’s fangs.

“Arrowing Snake Strike!”

This was Zhang Ping’s trump card; he was ready to tear Yang Wu apart.

However, Yang Wu had recovered to peak condition. In fact, an excessive surge of energy had him yelling, “Fight!”

The young man’s aura peaked, Profound Energy manifesting rapidly on his body. He stomped his foot hard and instantly cracked the ground and split mountains; dust flew everywhere. After he vented the flourishing energy within him, the many holes in the peach-pit dantian opened up. Powerful energy instantly broke open seventeen acupoints, bringing him to a total of seventy-two open acupoints.

Although this number was far less than the required 108 unblocked acupoints for a Superior Grade Warrior, this was still a considerable feat.

His ferocious cry was like that of a raging bull. The might he showed when crushing the ground was domineering, overwhelming Zhang Ping’s murderous intent and inspiring timidity in Zhang Ping. Even so, Zhang Ping still followed up with his claw attacks after throwing the crowbar.

This time, Yang Wu did not dodge the flying crowbar but whacked it aside. Profound Energy emerged from the hollow of his palm, and the crowbar went spinning far away. Even then, the force of this palm strike was undiminished as it greeted Zhang Ping’s outstretched arms.

Yang Wu broke all techniques with brute force.

The young man no longer avoided his opponent’s combination of feints and attacks. He intended to deal simultaneously with both moves with one move. Be it a follow-through attack or a trump move, he would settle them all with a single palm!

Zhang Ping did not expect Yang Wu’s aura to suddenly grow so strong. The force from the palm was already enough to give the former a premonition of death. He couldn’t duck the attack and had to concentrate all his strength on his arms to resist the deadly palm strike and rip out this palm.

Bang! Bang!

Yang Wu unleashed a series of palm strikes, repeatedly hammering his enemy’s claws until they broke. Screams of agony resounded as the latter’s ten fingers spurted blood.

The spectating prisoners gave a start as a chill shot up from their feet to their heads.

Zhang Ping was the fifth guardian, a peak Medial Grade Warrior, just one step away from Superior Grade. Nevertheless, the young man had crippled his ten fingers with a single palm. His claws were as good as gone forever.

Yang Wu did not pursue his opponent. He swept his razor-sharp glare over the crowd, prompting all the felons to step back involuntarily, frightened by his intense, intimidating air.

Then, he glanced at a nearby mountain peak, where an indomitable, rugged man was standing and watching him. That was Black Ape himself, the leader of the Black Ape Gang. He gave the latter a clear thumbs-up. When the man on the summit saw that, a faint smile appeared on his face. Is he paying me a tribute?

Just as he thought this, Yang Wu’s big thumb flipped down; without a doubt, the young man was taunting him. The expression on his face froze.

The look on the prisoners’ faces changed once again. This time, they also showed a deep sense of respect, aside from fear.

Since Black Ape joined the block, he had fought his way to the top. The burly man was tough with his two fists, and even the leaders from the superior blocks claimed that fighting head-on with the gorilla was a lose-lose proposition. None had total confidence in taking him down in one shot; hence, he reigned as one of the big shots in the mountain prison.

In block 7, Black Ape was undoubtedly the head. Everyone bowed to him; even the barbarians were beaten into submission. Now, this young man who looked no more than sixteen had taunted their leader openly. It was hard not to admire him for his courage.

“Haha! The younger generation will surpass us in time! If you can make your way to the foot of this mountain, then I—the leader in this place—will fight you. If you win, then you’ll be my boss. If you can’t make it here, then…then you can go to hell!” Black Ape roared and guffawed at Yang Wu.

Just as his laughter died down, a few prisoners with powerful auras walked over, leading hundreds of men. The disquieting scene was one to be reckoned with, indeed.

When Yang Wu saw the approaching crowd, he felt a chill.

Does this guy want to drown me in bodies? What a shameless tactic! The young man had an urge to run away but finally chose the most stupid way to meet this challenge.

“What a rash person!” Black Ape said to himself with a faint, disdainful smile, crossing his arms over his chest.