Chapter 39: Days in the Witch Tribe

  Zhuang Xiong heard someone shouting inside that they were in the middle of a meeting, and he couldn't help but curl his lip in disdain. He thought to himself, "A group of fighting maniacs with muscles for brains, I think they're more likely to get into a fight than have a meeting." But time didn't allow him to continue thinking about it, as soon as the words left his mouth, a black shadow came flying towards him with a sharp whistling sound. Zhuang Xiong involuntarily let out a cry of "damn", and hastily raised his hand to block the attack. In the chaos, he was unexpectedly struck and sent flying, feeling a dull ache in his chest. Just as he was about to steady himself and counterattack, a sudden tornado swept him up into the air.

  Zhuang Xiong was only transferred for a moment, and he fell to the ground with a white eye. He leaned against it, although he didn't know what this group of people were going crazy about. Strategic transfer first, we're just here to exercise combat experience, not looking for abuse, right? Zhuang Xiong thought for a moment and immediately used his earth escape technique as soon as he landed. However, after advancing only a hundred meters or so, he felt that the ground had solidified a lot, making it difficult to take a step. He couldn't help but secretly mock: Hou Tu, you are a well-known gentle and compassionate figure in later generations, how can you be so ruthless? But this guy seemed to have forgotten that he had sneaked into the core of the Wu tribe's Pangu Hall, who knew what he was doing there? It's not even known if he thought about it at the time. He dared to expose himself like this, thinking that he wanted to exercise, and the ancestral witch would accompany him obediently? Anyway, it seems that the reaction of the Wu tribe is to grab him and beat him to death, including the gentle Hou Tu, who is no exception.

  Zhuang Xiong was underground, but suddenly he violently burst out of the ground and shot up into the air, as if about to ride on clouds. But before he could even get started, everything around him seemed to darken for an instant, then suddenly became bright again. Time itself seemed to pause for half a moment. When Zhuang Xiong came back to his senses, three consecutive lightning bolts and two thunderclaps had exploded on his body. Although they couldn't cause him any major harm, he still felt numb all over, and was shivering with fear. Just then, a torrential downpour drenched him, soaking him to the bone, and then froze him into an ice block.

  Zhuang Xiong couldn't help but want to cry without tears, his heart filled with great anger, and the violent energy in his body suddenly erupted. In an instant, he burst open the ice block, and without looking back, the sky suddenly transformed into a vast expanse of flames. He unfolded his Road Walking Technique and left. This group of ancestral witches has gone mad, let's come again another day. The divine powers of the ancestral witches are like instincts, while Zhuang Xiong needs to control his divine powers with magic, studying its principles and whatnot. As for the ancestral witches, they can summon their powers at will, and dismiss them just as easily, without any reason or explanation - it's simply their nature, unreasonable and unyielding. The so-called increase in cultivation is merely a matter of controlling the scope and magnitude of one's powers, which is a mode exclusive to the Heavenly Dao or Saints. No wonder the Heavenly Dao wants to eradicate them.

  However, the ancestors would not let him leave so easily. The flames that filled the sky, the lightning, thunder, and ice needles seemed to be chasing after Zhuang Xiong's buttocks. Emperor Jiang was also a powerful being who could cover 280,000 miles with just one flap of his wings, closely pursuing Zhuang Xiong from behind. At this moment, Zhuang Xiong finally understood why he had encountered such misfortune and couldn't help but feel regretful: "Careless, careless! Alas, my reputation will be ruined in an instant. Fortunately, I have not revealed my true identity; otherwise, I would become the laughing stock of the Hongyuan world. How could I still show my face to others?" As he spoke, this guy was running away while distracted - wouldn't that really cause problems?

  Zhuang Xiong felt a gust of evil wind hitting the back of his head, but he didn't dare to look closely and swung his fist with full force towards the back. However, the figure behind him flashed and disappeared instantly, replaced by a large man who rolled up a crazy wind and slashed down with a knife. Zhuang Xiong could have rushed over at this time, but there were more ancestral witches chasing from behind! Zhuang Xiong felt that his pears were too big, so he could only wave his hand to block the attack. As he raised his hands, he took out the Qian Kun stick, which had turned black, and held it horizontally in mid-air. A sound of clashing weapons rang out, and Zhuang Xiong felt a slight weight on his arms, but the pressure didn't seem too exaggerated. Just then, the evil wind behind him hit the back of his head again, and Zhuang Xiong kicked the large man with the knife and swung the Qian Kun stick towards the back, only to feel the evil wind retreat instantly, and the Qian Kun stick also swung empty.

  Zhuang Xiong's eyebrows furrowed, and he let out a sudden loud roar. His feet moved swiftly, and in an instant, he dodged the man with the knife and began to fight Emperor Jiang, who was always staring at his back. It turned out that Zhuang Xiong had suddenly come up with an idea, combining his road-running techniques with some spatial skills and combat moves, using them for small-scale evasions. Indeed, it worked. It's clear that actual combat is the best teacher for people. Even Zhuang Xiong, who was almost a novice in actual combat, learned to adapt in such a short time.

  (Some tragic author cried out, "I also improved through actual combat! I'm just a brick-bashed-out person!" Zhuang Xiong's anger rose, and he wondered if someone had been hitting him with bricks. The author felt guilty and decided to make improvements.)

  Na Di Jiang and Zhuang Xiong exchanged blows quickly, sometimes seeming to flash by like a meteor, leaving behind a trail of smoke and dust. At other times, they seemed to twinkle like stars, one moment visible in the sky, the next flashing down to the ground. Suddenly, they were in front, then suddenly in back, the big man with the knife couldn't get a hand in edgewise, standing off to the side holding his knife and watching quietly, at the same time seeming to be on guard against Zhuang Xiong escaping.

  Zhuang Xiong's battle was truly exhilarating, although he had taken countless old punches on his body. However, he could also feel himself making rapid progress. He decided to put away the Qian Kun stick and rely solely on his fists to fight the enemy. With his physical strength honed from years of training, he was able to hold his own against his opponent for a while, with neither side gaining the upper hand. Just as they were in the heat of battle, a voice echoed from afar: "Big brother, don't kill him! Leave him for me to play with!"

  Zhuang Xiong was furious, his face black with rage, what did they mean by "don't kill him"? What did they mean by "leave him for you to play with"? Play with? Zhuang Xiong's angry spirit scanned the area and saw a figure clad in red, Zhang Fei, rushing towards them. It was unmistakably Zhang Fei, although it could also be Li Kui, but that fiery red hair and excited eyes were full of ferocity and danger. Beside him was a burly man in a coarse linen shirt, who hadn't shouted out yet, but his eyes were filled with fighting spirit, clearly sharing the same idea as the red-clad man, only wanting to use the time it took to speak to accelerate his speed and charge into battle. There was also a pale-faced man with a hint of red, surrounded by electricity, looking helpless as he followed the two men, also hastening his pace.

  Zhuang Xiong's heart was somewhat stunned, could it be that the legendary fire god Zhu Rong and water god Gong Gong were the best fighters? That electrifying red-haired giant, he must be one of the twelve ancestral witches with a tongue-twisting name, Hui Zi. In the blink of an eye, Zhu Rong and Gong Gong had already charged forward, not caring whether they were interrupting or not, and shouted as they rushed into the fray. Emperor Jiang seemed to have intentionally let go, tightly entwining himself around Zhuang Xiong. Although Zhuang Xiong's heart was filled with helplessness, his current strength was insufficient, and he could only watch in despair as he was tossed about like a commodity by Emperor Jiang to Zhu Rong and Gong Gong, two violent men.

  Nahui didn't make a move, and after Emperor Jiang left the scene, the two of them whispered something to each other. Zhuang Xiong only caught a few phrases like "调虎离山" (luring the tiger away from the mountain), "后土" (the god of earth), "已经调人来了" (someone has already been called over), and "什么事都没有" (nothing's wrong). He realized that he had made a mistake by blowing things out of proportion, and before he could even react, Gonggong and Zhurong were already pressing him hard. Gonggong and Zhurong truly lived up to their reputation as the ancient gods of water and fire, and their fighting style was incredibly fierce. With the combined forces of ice and fire, they had Zhuang Xiong at a disadvantage, but he still didn't want to use his magical powers. After all, he was here to train his combat skills, not to waste his previous efforts. At this point, things were just starting to get interesting, and he couldn't give up now.

  It seems that Gonggong and Zhurong also enjoyed this kind of intense battle, and they didn't recklessly release any fire or water. Of course, due to their attributes, their auras naturally carried explosive flames or icy coldness, which couldn't be helped. With the cooperation between Zhurong and Gonggong, Zhuang Xiong's combat experience was rapidly increasing. As the battle technique that had been passed down from Pangu's creation of the world, it was no ordinary feat. Although he still got hit a few times after several hours of fighting, he was now able to put up a good fight with style and sound. At this time, the other ancestral witches also arrived one by one: Emperor Jiang, Wenrou Big Sister Hou Tu, and Ice Block Face Xuanming, who began muttering to himself on the side. The other ancestral witches formed a circle around Zhuang Xiong, subtly surrounding him in the middle.

  Zhuang Xiong didn't think much of it, the twelve ancestral witches were originally the twelve drops of Pangu's essence that absorbed the earth's impurities and transformed. Affected by the impurities, although they had boundless strength and were born with great power, most of them were actually brainless brutes. Only Emperor Jiang's spatial attribute and Hou Tu's earth attribute, which shared a common origin, were not much affected. As a result, the two of them could usually remain calm, and major decisions in the witch clan were often made by them.

  Emperor Jiang was originally the eldest among the twelve, with speed that reached the limit, making him untouchable. Hou Tu, on the other hand, was in harmony with the earth's origin, and perhaps Pangu, the great god, also had more earth attributes. Adding to this, the brothers' love for their little sister made the ancestral witches generally trust these two.

  Actually, there was another one who wasn't much affected by the impurities - Zhu Long, but he was known as the Time Ancestor Witch, and his influence range was small. He was more skilled in light and darkness, which made his personality unpredictable. The ancestral witches couldn't grasp his normal state of mind, so they didn't dare entrust important matters to him.

  Although he had incredible strength, ranking among the top two, when it came to fighting, he was extremely slippery. It wasn't that he could stop time or anything, but rather, he would make people feel stifled. Even a battle maniac like Zhu Rong and Gong Gong didn't like finding him for a duel. This made Zhu Long very resentful.

  It seems that the ancestors were all very idle, and they actually surrounded Zhuang Xiong and Zhu Rong, Gong Gong's battle for several days, as if watching a play, occasionally coming up with a commentary, making Zhuang Xiong extremely depressed, just fiercely fighting with the two of them with a dark face, not caring about any rules or taboos, what use is there in breaking off descendants' feet, monkeys stealing peaches, double dragons playing with pearls and so on, whatever comes to hand, that's how they come, but Zhu Rong and Gong Gong didn't think much of it, as if they were already familiar with these moves, responding to them was easy and carefree, but Zhuang Xiong, the one who used sinister moves, was actually indignant.

  It had been over a month, and Zhuang Xiong's moves were gradually becoming more refined. He finally began to adapt to the two men's offense, absorbing their combat experience, and slowly started to counterattack. Zhuang Xiong's physical strength was originally slightly higher than Zu Wu's, and now his movements were grand and powerful, sweeping away the two men with an overbearing momentum, forcing Gong Xuan and Zhu Rong to curse in frustration. The several Zu Wu spectators, on the other hand, looked at him with shining eyes, eager to try their luck. Qiang Liang was a hot-headed person who couldn't hold back, charging forward and shouting: "Two brothers, I'm here to help you!" He threw a thunderous punch. Zhuang Xiong secretly thought to himself: This guy is also impolite, attacking first and talking later, without even greeting me. However, his hands didn't show any fear, and he countered with a Dragon Tail Strike, forcing Qiang Liang back two steps. Qiang Liang shouted "Refreshing!" and immediately charged forward again.

  Zhuang Xiong let out a cold hum, and didn't mince words. After a brief moment, he adapted to the rhythm of battle. His strength was superior to that of several others, and his mastery of the Dry Heaven Fist and Pangu's Heavenly Battle Method was not ordinary. He managed to gain the upper hand. On the other side, Tian Wu had originally planned to charge forward with Qiang Liang, but was beaten to it by Qiang Liang. Without hesitation, he transformed into a wisp of smoke and charged onto the battlefield. The situation was now evenly matched. As the ancestor of the wind witches, Tian Wu danced around several people, taking advantage of any opening. Zhuang Xiong felt immense pressure and struggled for a while, only able to focus on defense before counterattacking with a few moves. The battle had fallen into a stalemate.

  Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, thousands of years have passed. Zhuang Xiong guessed that Emperor Jiang Hou Tu must have understood his methods by now. Seeing that his strength was not ordinary, he didn't know whether it was because he didn't want to make more powerful enemies or because he actually had no ill intentions and hadn't caused any harm to the Wu tribe, so he magnanimously let him off. Or perhaps, he thought it would be a good thing to give a group of brothers who only knew how to fight and cause trouble every day a toy with such strength. Zhuang Xiong estimated that the last possibility was more likely. Although he didn't want to face this cruel reality, on one hand, he needed the Twelve Ancestor Wu's battle experience to increase his combat skills; on the other hand, the Twelve Ancestor Wu could take turns fighting, while Zhuang Xiong was alone and had already been worn out by the wind and snow, unable to retort.

  The twelve ancestral witches didn't even give him a moment's rest, and every time they thought he was almost done for, they'd give him some time to eat a spiritual fruit, take a sip of wine, and catch his breath. Meanwhile, everyone would stare at him with strange, sneering gazes that made Zhuang Xiong extremely uncomfortable. When they thought he'd rested enough, they'd pounce on him again. With the twelve ancestral witches' eyes on him, Zhuang Xiong felt like he was always on edge, and although his combat experience was growing rapidly, wasn't there a more comfortable way to do things? Sometimes Zhuang Xiong even felt like he was just asking for abuse. Why not go fight the Three Purities and test their Nine Turns of the Mysterious Skill, or go kill some small demons instead? Why did he have to come here?

  Just as Zhuang Xiong's spirit was on the verge of collapse, his strength was also constantly increasing. Even if five or six ancestral witches came together, Zhuang Xiong, whose eyes seemed to be spewing fire, could still suppress them with ease. Sometimes, eight or nine ancestral witches would join forces, and Zhuang Xiong would still be able to advance and retreat with precision, fighting with great fanfare. As long as Chuang Long, that pervert, didn't join in, Zhuang Xiong would sometimes even gain the upper hand, although he couldn't sustain it for more than a thousand or two hundred moves before being beaten back to his original form. Still, he was not afraid of defeat. Only Hou Tu and Di Jiang had never joined the battle, but Zhuang Xiong couldn't gauge their strength at that time.

  On this day, although there were only five people in the field, looking at the three other ancestral witches rushing from afar, Zhuang Xiong finally couldn't bear it anymore. In an instant, a fierce stormy attack forced several people to retreat, and he roared to the sky: "I can't take it anymore!!!"