Chapter Sixty: Dragon Claw Technique

Below the stage, people weighed the terms of a deal; above, another negotiation was underway, fraught with confrontation. Mr. Fox held half a booklet in his hand, while at the iron cage door, Wind Startled the Thunder hesitated, retracting half a foot.

“Heh... three quarters of an hour? Do you really think I’m some invincible cockroach?” Wind Startled the Thunder laughed coldly, pulling back his outstretched foot and making sure to shut the iron door behind him. To his mind, the man before him must be deranged—a little medicine would surely cure anyone of such absurd demands.

“Brother Diga, I know I’m asking too much! But you saw it yourself—there were supposed to be two others before you to wear down the opponent’s strength, and now they’ve both backed out. I’ve got no one else to rely on but you...”

“And this is how you rely on me? Threatening me with what should rightfully be mine! Sorry, but I don’t care for your lousy martial manual. You need to survive to claim it, and you need to survive to practice it...” Wind Startled the Thunder wasn’t feigning bravado; he genuinely felt powerless. Inside the cage lurked someone whose palm could make a man bleed from every orifice. He had remarkable regenerative abilities, true, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t die!

“One hundred taels...” Mr. Fox grabbed Wind Startled the Thunder’s arm as he tried to leave.

“Mr. Fox, let’s part ways amicably. I really can’t help you with this...”

“Three hundred taels... starting from when you last a quarter of an hour, I’ll pay three hundred taels more for every quarter you endure...”

“My life is worth only three hundred taels? Let go... My mother’s waiting at home for me to tell her stories...” Wind Startled the Thunder shook off the offer—a sum like that was nothing but trouble.

“Five hundred taels! Five hundred, can’t you accept that? And for every quarter you last, I’ll double it again...”

Now Wind Startled the Thunder hesitated. That meant if he could hold out for three quarters, he’d earn fifteen hundred taels. He thought of the woman at home, always pinching pennies, and how lately he’d nearly worried himself into wrinkles trying to scrape together a decent bride price. If he could bring back fifteen hundred taels, her burden would surely ease.

“Fine, it’s a deal! For those fifteen hundred taels, I’ll risk it all today. Hand over the manual...” Wind Startled the Thunder tucked the booklet into his chest and, resolute as if facing death, stepped back into the iron cage.

“Master, look—it’s that odd fellow we saw before…” The Zhang Fei mask immediately recognized Wind Startled the Thunder.

The Zhao Zilong mask shook her head silently; in her eyes, the man was simply walking to his doom.

Just now, Night Rakshasa’s palm strike had likely reached the peak of Stone-Splitting Realm—perhaps she’d already begun mastering the fine control of bodily power. The severity of her strike was clearly a warning. Who knew what great reward had been promised to this man, yet it meant nothing. If Night Rakshasa could kill one, she could kill another.

“Who’d have thought that the weak girl who followed out of curiosity would be such a rare expert!”

“Master, should I try to make contact later…?” The Zhang Fei mask was itching for action; the master had said they’d need to make preparations, and all the skilled fighters stayed in Longxi. Now was the time for talent.

“No rush, let’s watch first…” The Zhao Zilong mask raised a hand, cutting off the conversation.

Meanwhile, on the stage, the man and woman took their stances. Night Rakshasa placed her dominant hand forward, the other behind, and stood proudly in a T-step. She was ready for a defensive posture, knowing full well that anyone daring to step onto the stage after witnessing her lethal strike must be handled with caution.

Wind Startled the Thunder, by contrast, crossed his arms in the classic Ultraman pose, not hurrying to attack. After all, the longer he stalled, the more he earned.

“Brother Diga, you can’t let her recover her strength!” Mr. Fox was nearly swearing below, unsure whose side Wind Startled the Thunder was on.

Wind Startled the Thunder glanced sidelong; he’d hoped to slack off, but being caught by the boss left him no choice but to press on.

“Night Rakshasa, do you believe in light?” The question, abrupt and without context, left Night Rakshasa puzzled. As she pondered its meaning, Wind Startled the Thunder charged forward at blinding speed.

“Well done, quick and decisive—I’ll cripple you in one move!” Night Rakshasa gathered force in her right hand, bracing for impact.

As the gap between them shrank to within ten feet, Wind Startled the Thunder drew a deep breath and spat out a long-prepared glob of phlegm.

Cough... spit...

“Oh my—he’s using that trick again…” Mr. Fox was familiar with the scene; the boy had used the same move during his debut at the betting house.

“Incredible, he actually dared spit at a Stone-Splitting Realm expert!”

“Ugh… Master, this guy is disgusting…”

“He’s courting death… absolutely fearless…”

“Ha ha… The Fourth Young Master really picked a bold one. Let’s hope he doesn’t die too miserably…” Amid the exclamations, the glob of phlegm barely grazed Night Rakshasa’s shoulder and splattered a few steps away. A tiny spray landed right on the nose tip of her Rakshasa mask.

“Despicable! How dare you spit at me—I’ll kill you!” Wind Startled the Thunder was elated; provoking her was the first step to success. Night Rakshasa, on the other hand, snapped into a berserk rage—never in her life had anyone’s spit touched her.

Her fist thundered forth, aimed straight at Wind Startled the Thunder’s face, the force clearly at least thirty percent greater than before. Wind Startled the Thunder had already witnessed the power of her punches and was wise enough not to take it head-on.

Cloud Hand to block the wrist, Azure Dragon Claw to attack...

Snap...

As his left hand made contact with her wrist, Wind Startled the Thunder felt as if he’d grabbed the arm of a mechanical digger—hard, impossibly hard. Bone-crushing pain shot through him, and the sharp crackling sound told him the bones were surely fractured. Yet, broken bones or not, he had successfully blocked a Stone-Splitting Realm master’s attack.

But the Azure Dragon Claw with his other hand sent Wind Xiaoman’s rage soaring. The opponent was a woman, and where was the Azure Dragon Claw directed? Clearly, he was taking liberties!

Night Rakshasa’s nostrils flared in fury, and, forced by circumstance, she leapt back. Though a simple sidestep would have sufficed, her instincts as a woman dictated retreat.

“Utterly shameless! I’ll take your life…”

“Haha… my life is right here—come claim it if you dare…” Wind Startled the Thunder held his hands in claw shape before his chest, his ten fingers wriggling lewdly.

“You can either kill me today, or witness my sect’s ultimate technique—the Milk-Grabbing Dragon Claw…” Wind Startled the Thunder had no idea what sort of existence he faced; his hand, fractured moments ago, was already fully healed…