Chapter 1509: Head-on Clash

Chapter 1509: Chapter 1509: Head-on Clash

When we arrived, the crown of the bodhi plum tree in Xu Shaohui’s courtyard was originally quite large, but under Xu Shoujiang’s orders, much of it had been cut down, making it quite bare.

Those branches, at least slightly thicker ones, were sharpened to a point, sharp enough to even pierce through human bodies.

With a wooden sword in hand, Lin Tian felt no discomfort, and the moment he thrust it was a matter of split-second timing.

Yet unexpectedly, the bull suddenly closed its three eyes and halted with its hooves and even took a step back.

Indeed, Lin Tian’s stab missed, leaving him in a dire situation.

After all, this was the mountainside, the forest dense. Hearing Yu Yang’s voice, Lin Tian acted hastily without considering his retreat.

Now behind him, his path was blocked by the trunks of several large trees. Trying to escape? There was neither the space nor the time for that.

The bull was less than a meter away from Lin Tian; he could even feel the humid breath from its nose upon him, and the stench emanating from its body.

Lin Tian understood perfectly well why this situation arose. It was not due to his master’s inadequate instructions, but because he couldn’t keep up with the pace, falling half a step behind.

In a duel of this level, being half a step slow creates a significant lapse.

The utmost priority now is self-rescue!

The bull’s eyes were already red with fury, its gaze wary of the wooden sword in Lin Tian’s hand as it began to shake its head, its horns, one large and one small, swinging down heavily like the curved swords wielded by primal nomads.

Lin Tian instinctively swung the wooden sword to meet the blow, but unfortunately, the sword was only effective against the bull’s Chaos Eye, and snapped instantly upon hitting the horn.

Meanwhile, Lin Tian kept retreating, but after just a couple of steps found himself wedged between two thick tree trunks, like jam squeezed between cookies.

That sense of restraint is fatal in such circumstances; waiting for Xu Shoujiang to come to his aid would surely be too late. He could only rely on himself.

Without the robust physique of the bull, Lin Tian couldn’t break through the tree trunks, so he reached for Thousand Jin Rock again.

Yet before he could cut through the trunks, the saber-like horns swung down.

Lin Tian gathered his strength in his arms, Spiritual Qi surged within him, and he swung again.

This swing was far too rushed, lacking in angle and force, merely aimed at self-preservation.

Clang~

Thousand Jin Rock collided with the horns, producing a sound akin to clashing metal. The force emanating from both sides left Lin Tian’s hands stinging at the base, his arms numb and trembling, causing him to stumble back several steps before stabilizing.

As for the bull, it was no better off; Thousand Jin Rock is vastly different from Thousand Cyan Threads. The latter excels in sharpness, whereas Thousand Jin Rock triumphs in skillful yet underestimated power, with force equivalent to a thousand jin.

The collision’s force transmitted from the bull’s large horns to its head, leaving it stunned with a throbbing ache, standing in a daze for several seconds.

Suddenly, Yu Yang’s slightly joyous voice echoed again, "Lin Tian! Stop fleeing, don’t fear it, it’s not your match. Remember, every time you swing the blade, unleash the explosive power of the Thousand Jin Rock Formation, strike the horns, two strikes will break! Without its horns, it’s like a toothless tiger. Get it!"

The final ’get it’ from Yu Yang stirred Lin Tian’s blood, making him feel brimming with energy.

With the Golden Core circulating within his Sea of Qi, Spiritual Qi flooded toward each cell in Lin Tian’s body, enveloping him in power so pleasurable it felt as though his entire existence was elevated.

Lin Tian opened his mouth and let out a long howl, swinging the massive Thousand Jin Rock in a wide arc.

The blade aura quickly converged and then spread outward.

A series of explosive sounds akin to firecrackers erupted—the blade aura Lin Tian unleashed sliced through the trees within a ten-meter radius, causing the crowns to fall one by one, allowing the scorching sunlight to shine down once more. The temperature rapidly rose, yet Lin Tian felt utterly thrilled.

The previous sense of restriction had completely vanished.

However, Lin Tian only cared for his own exhilaration, utterly disregarding Xu Shoujiang and Xu Beishan above the tree crowns. As the trees fell, they suddenly found themselves caught off guard, yet experts being experts, swiftly maneuvered and landed atop another tree crown.

Xu Beishan was astounded and said to Xu Shoujiang, "Ancestor, something seems wrong with Lin Tian’s condition, should we go down and help him?"

Xu Shoujiang didn’t respond immediately, his gaze instead fixed for a few seconds before he spoke, "Don’t go down; this kid is about to exert full force."

"What?!" Xu Beishan’s eyes widened, "He’s going head-to-head with that bull?"

"Just watch."

"No, no. Last time, West Tide went head-to-head with it, only to have his body cleaved by those two horns."

Xu Beishan was genuinely anxious; the vivid memory of that day’s bloody lesson was still fresh. He couldn’t bear to see Lin Tian follow the same fate.

"Ancestor, I’m going to help him!" With those words, Xu Beishan gripped his long blade intending to leap down. Though not a Divine Artifact, his blade was exceedingly sharp, worthy of being held in his hands.

Xu Shoujiang promptly halted the impulsive fellow, raising his brow and speaking with a deep voice, "Don’t let hatred cloud your judgment! What can you do going down now? Only add another corpse; Lin Tian isn’t a rash fool who disregards his life. Our only role now is to cover for him; let him handle the rest. Rushing down now will only restrict him."

Xu Beishan, not a foolhardy man, but driven by worry just now, was quickly brought back to sense after Xu Shoujiang’s reprimand.

It was then he noticed that the bull below was no longer as reckless; it stood five meters away from Lin Tian, lowering its head and using its great horns as a shield, now in a standoff with Lin Tian.

In this world, every creature possesses Spiritual Qi. The bull is no exception; though its intelligence hasn’t fully developed, it instinctively seeks the opponent’s weakness—an innate beastly skill, remarkable in that the bull retains rationality even in such a furious state.

"First chop the smaller horn, then the larger one. Once you hit, don’t linger in the fight, immediately retreat, and look for another opening, keep calm, I’ll find its weakness!"

Lin Tian didn’t reply, merely maintaining steady breathing. With this alone, he felt he had already won.

"Now, upward sweep!"

As Yu Yang’s words concluded, Lin Tian was already dashing forward, wielding Thousand Jin Rock along the ground in one hand, his speed at its peak.

The distance between man and bull was just five meters, a mere blink for Lin Tian.