Chapter 18: Distress Signal

Night fell, and Jiang Changkong once again tackled the simulation exam and claimed his reward.

Leaving the martial arts school, he walked alone on the street.

“Again?”

Jiang Changkong frowned, sensing the presence of someone tailing him once more.

Could it be Zhang Tao?

With such severe injuries, how could he have recovered so quickly?

The hidden pursuer’s strength was roughly on par with Zhang Tao’s from before.

After a moment’s thought, Jiang Changkong slipped into the street and began moving swiftly.

The pursuer quickened their pace as well, launching a sneak attack from behind, just like last time.

However, this time, the sound of a sword rang out.

Weapons were involved!

Block and Hammer!

Without hesitation, Jiang Changkong manifested a faint Taiji Diagram and met the attack with a solid punch.

Boom!

Two forces collided, releasing powerful shockwaves that swept through the surroundings, cracking the ground wherever they passed.

Both sides slid backward simultaneously, stabilizing themselves after several meters.

“You’ve improved quite a bit,” Zhang Tao remarked coldly, holding his sword.

“Senior, non-professional martial artists aren’t allowed to carry swords on the streets, let alone use them,” Jiang Changkong replied with a dark expression.

“Would you dare expose what you’ve done?” Zhang Tao sneered, his sword pointing diagonally at the ground. “Even if I kill you today, it would only be to recover the school’s losses.”

“How do you know this isn’t for the best?” Jiang Changkong retorted coldly.

“I’ll give you one last chance. Hand over all the Star Stones you obtained, and I’ll pretend nothing happened,” Zhang Tao said, his sword glowing faintly red as he channeled Star Power.

“You—” Jiang Changkong began, but his expression suddenly shifted as he sidestepped.

Swish! Swish!

A red sword qi shot toward the spot where he had just been standing.

“Who’s there?” Zhang Tao’s face changed as he turned to look. A young man approached with a sword, and Zhang Tao blurted out, “Li He?”

“Zhang Tao, I thought we were good friends. How could you keep all the benefits to yourself?” the young man snarled.

Jiang Changkong narrowed his eyes. Both of Zhou Wen’s pursuers were now here.

“Did Gu Xiaoyu tell you?” Zhang Tao’s expression darkened slightly. “I didn’t want you to take the risk. Let’s take him down and split the rewards.”

“Fine.”

Li He turned his gaze to Jiang Changkong, channeling Star Power as he rushed forward, his sword gleaming with a rainbow-like light.

The martial arts they practiced were likely similar.

Jiang Changkong could feel the scorching heat emanating from the red glow on their swords.

Two opponents would be tricky, but not impossible to handle.

Their weapons were only First Tier Top Grade.

If they were Second Tier, his earlier clash with Zhang Tao wouldn’t have been so easy.

For that reason, he had no intention of calling for help!

Two sword lights attacked simultaneously, and Jiang Changkong manifested Taiji Diagrams with both palms.

He sidestepped to avoid one sword, while his other hand, wreathed in a Taiji Diagram, met the second attack.

Using supreme softness to deflect force, he redirected Zhang Tao’s sword toward Li He.

“You’re asking for death!” Zhang Tao roared, his sword qi vibrating as his Star Power surged abruptly.

Li He let out a sharp cry, his red sword qi blazing as he lunged at Jiang Changkong.

With his palms crisscrossing, Jiang Changkong used Taiji to deflect the force, sparks flying everywhere.

His Bronze Skin Iron Bone Technique had advanced, and his Star Power had grown significantly thicker. He could now channel more Star Power through the Tai Chi Fist Scripture.

Though he couldn’t deflect all the sword qi, he managed to neutralize most of it.

As for the remainder, he didn’t care—he simply grabbed the blades with both hands.

A slight pain shot through his hands, but he remained uninjured!

Sizzle! Sizzle!

Sparks flew everywhere as the two stared in shock at his hands.

These were sparks from metal clashing, not from their Star Power!

There were no alloy steel plates on his hands!

With nothing but his bare palms, he had withstood two First Tier Top Grade swords!

“How is this possible?”

A flicker of horror crossed their faces—could the person before them be a Star Demon?

No, even a Star Demon shouldn’t have such formidable defense!

“The impossible is yet to come!”

Jiang Changkong snorted coldly, pushing both hands forward as Star Power and the Power Rune erupted simultaneously.

Boom!

Both forces surged out together, forcing the two to hastily retreat while brandishing their swords to deflect the impact.

Jiang Changkong leaped forward, now utterly confident.

After the Taiji Fist’s extreme softness deflected their attacks, although the two could still cause him pain, they could no longer injure him.

Unless they struck the same spot repeatedly, they wouldn’t even break his skin.

Boom!

This time, Jiang Changkong abandoned caution, adopting a brute-force approach, with Zhang Tao bearing the brunt of it.

Zhang Tao hurriedly raised his sword to block.

The Taiji Diagram descended with the fist, first deflecting the force, then unleashing a fierce, unyielding power.

Clang!

The sword trembled violently, and under the explosive impact, Zhang Tao’s tiger’s mouth split open, nearly causing him to drop his weapon.

Li He’s sword energy had already arrived, forcing Jiang Changkong to turn back, shifting his palm into a fist.

Thud!

As the sword struck, Li He saw it clearly this time.

His sword had accurately pierced the fist, yet it felt as though he had struck an impenetrable wall.

Not an inch of progress!

What the hell, how are we supposed to fight this?

Even with his full strength, he couldn’t break through the defense?

What could he possibly use to fight?

Li He cursed inwardly—what gave Zhang Tao the confidence to target someone like this?

Jiang Changkong gave them no time for regret. After blocking the sword strike, he pressed forward.

Boom!

Li He’s body shuddered, red light spilling out as his aura grew extremely unstable.

Seizing the opportunity, Jiang Changkong grabbed the blade, exerted force, and wrenched it away.

Now weaponless, Jiang Changkong felt even less fear.

Even without a weapon, they were no match for him before—now, he could easily dominate them.

“Li He, hold him off. I’ll go get help.”

Zhang Tao tossed out the words and fled once more.

Li He: “…”

Jiang Changkong was momentarily stunned. Last time, he abandoned Gu Xiaoyu, and now he’s leaving Li He behind too?

Not a shred of loyalty.

But it didn’t matter—a good beating would suffice.

Jiang Changkong’s fist descended, and this time, Li He spat blood outright.

Crack!

Li He’s arm went limp.

“Spare me, big brother, spare me…”

Li He pleaded repeatedly, his left arm broken.

If this continued, he feared he would die here.

Jiang Changkong didn’t respond, preparing to land another blow when his phone rang.

Someone had sent him a message. He didn’t have many contacts—Zhou Wen, Ji Ziling, Li Qiuchuan.

Could he have been exposed?

In that instant, Jiang Changkong vanished.

He couldn’t delay important matters.

While running, he opened his phone to find messages from Zhou Wen.

Several messages in a row, urgent: “Notify Senior Sister, help.”

“Hurry and notify her, don’t call. We’re surrounded by Star Demons.”

“Here’s the location. Come quickly.”

“Senior Sister Ying Yanxue is in danger.”

“Reply if you receive this.”

There was also a location pin.

Jiang Changkong halted briefly. He couldn’t call—Ji Ziling was probably still busy leading others to earn money.

“Received.”

Jiang Changkong replied with two words and immediately called Li Qiuchuan: “Go to the Iron Tower right now and find Senior Sister Ji Ziling. Have her check her phone—it’s urgent, concerning the lives of Ying Yanxue and Zhou Wen.”

“Okay.” Li Qiuchuan replied with a single word and hung up.

“Senior Sister hasn’t replied yet, probably hasn’t seen it. Changkong, I’m counting on you.” Zhou Wen sent another message.

Jiang Changkong asked, “How much longer can you hold out?”

Zhou Wen: “It depends on the Star Demon’s patience. If they’re willing to pay any price, we can only hold out for six hours. If we’re lucky, maybe a bit longer.”

“Alright, don’t worry.”

Jiang Changkong didn’t return home. Instead, he turned around and headed toward the outskirts of the city.

“Tell Senior Sister to be careful. This time, it’s a Star Demon squad—over twenty of them, and even the weakest are at the late-stage stellar qi level…”

Zhou Wen sent a message.

Jiang Changkong’s heart tightened. Even the weakest were at the late-stage stellar qi level.

And there were Star Cloud-level ones too. No wonder Ying Yanxue, that super genius, had to call for help.

It was unexpected, though. In the time they hadn’t seen each other, Zhou Wen had actually ended up hanging out with Ying Yanxue.