Huang Xiu felt an inexplicable connection to pigs.
The first Void Realm creature she had faced, the first opponent she had engaged in close combat, was a pig.
‘Is it because I love eating meat too much?’
Having successfully landed a blow, Huang Xiu’s mood lifted considerably, a faint smile gracing her taut face.
With a powerful tug from her core, the long spear was wrenched from the Three-Month Pig’s neck with a wet ‘pop.’
“Oink!” Another shriek of agony.
Thick, scalding pig’s blood immediately gushed forth like a fountain from the mangled wound on the Three-Month Pig’s neck.
Even after a prolonged period of pain, having lost its vigilance and grown sluggish, the Three-Month Pig now understood its predicament.
—It had been ambushed by an enemy!
The continuous loss of blood chilled its entire body, making its hooves numb and weak.
Yet, the searing pain in its neck ignited its innate ferocity.
The three pairs of cloudy pig eyes swiftly glazed over with a crimson sheen, their pupils trembling rapidly within their sockets.
Then, with a sudden turn, they fixed intently on the culprit who had inflicted such grievous harm.
The crimson whites of its eyes reflected the valiant figure of the spear-wielding girl.
She held the spear in her right hand, its tip pointing downwards.
Blood trickled down the shaft, dripping from the spearhead onto the ground, where it mingled with the mud, forming a dark red sludge.
“Oink!” All three of the Three-Month Pig’s heads cried out in unison.
Three streams of ethereal moonlight, as slender as rope, instantly descended from the sky, enveloping its entire body.
“What is that?”
Huang Xiu instinctively followed the streams of light with her gaze, her pupils widening slightly as she instantly realized something was amiss.
Those three luminous streaks were, in fact, emanating from the three crescent moons hanging in the sky.
Under the gentle caress of the radiant moonlight, the flesh and blood of the Three-Month Pig’s neck wound rapidly蠕动, staunching the bleeding.
The penetrating injury she had just inflicted vanished without a trace!
As the moonlight dissipated, the Three-Month Pig stared intently at Huang Xiu, its crimson pig eyes brimming with cruelty.
Thick white vapor billowed from its nostrils, like a steam train.
Its hooves scraped at the ground, digging up dirt that scattered behind it, only to be immediately swept away by its agitated tail.
“Oink!” It cried out once more, then charged towards Huang Xiu.
****
“Since you’ve seen it, I’ll explain,” Teacher Yuan said, his arms crossed, from the sky bridge. “Void Realm creatures like the Three-Month Pig can use moon’s radiance to heal their wounds and boost their physical attributes.”
The students in the class leaned against the railing, craning their necks to watch the battle in the arena below, not daring to even blink.
Exclamations of awe occasionally escaped their lips.
“These three are all so strong!”
Those brave enough to step forward as initial combatants naturally possessed considerable skill.
It wasn’t just Huang Xiu who had achieved a decisive blow, forcing the Three-Month Pig to use moon’s radiance to heal its wounds.
The other two had also reached this stage, one after the other.
Tian Rong, seizing the moment of the Three-Month Pig’s confusion, gripped his twin blades in reverse, launching a fluid, chaotic flurry of stabs.
He successfully left numerous deep, flesh-tearing cuts on the Three-Month Pig’s neck and body.
The Three-Month Pig was practically a blood-soaked mess, its injuries even more severe than those inflicted by Huang Xiu.
Fu Yue, though not widely known in class and usually low-key, had exceptional skill in weapons combat and robust physical conditioning.
He sprinted forward, swinging his longsword in a wide arc.
Like a hot knife through butter, he effortlessly severed one of the Three-Month Pig’s heads.
The students in the class continuously compared themselves to the combatants.
They wondered how they would perform if they were currently grappling with the Three-Month Pig.
Teacher Yuan smiled subtly, discerning that all three had remarkably solid foundations in weapons combat.
“They’re promising talents… The Weapons Combat Department might consider them.”
These three Three-Month Pigs posed no significant threat to them.
Given this…
“Bring out six more!” He waved his hand again.
****
“It can heal its wounds? That’s a bit tricky,” Huang Xiu murmured, her beautiful eyes narrowing.
She wasn’t annoyed by the healing; instead, she grew even more excited.
A faint blush bloomed on her cheeks as her blood surged with adrenaline.
If this was a real combat exercise, an enemy defeated in a single blow would be far too boring!
When she had pulled her spear free, she had already created some distance, but it was still only about five meters from the Three-Month Pig.
This distance was insufficient for it to gain full acceleration.
Its speed and impact posed no significant threat to Huang Xiu.
As the Three-Month Pig charged, she swiftly moved to its right, shifting her weight.
Utilizing the sense of distance honed by her extensive training, she waited until it entered her attack range before thrusting sharply at its neck once more.
Spear attacks primarily relied on thrusts for maximum damage.
However, one had to constantly monitor the distance from the enemy, avoiding being too close or too far.
The optimal range was typically three-quarters the length of the spear.
Huang Xiu had mastered this essence perfectly.
Combined with her arm’s reach, the spear’s approximate three-meter attack range left the Three-Month Pig utterly nowhere to evade.
Before its hooves had even warmed up, it took another hit, instantly letting out another mournful cry.
The momentum of its charge abruptly ceased.
The Three-Month Pig’s old neck wound had just healed, only for a new one to be added, the stinging pain jolting it from its rage.
The will to survive took precedence.
It turned to flee, but before it could even get away, the next second, it received another solid blow to its rear.
“You entered my combat zone, and now you want to run?!” Huang Xiu chuckled.
An inch longer, an inch stronger—the rogue advantage of the long spear was now being exploited to its fullest.
The long spear thrust out repeatedly, like a furious storm.
The Three-Month Pig, attempting to escape, was now truly caught between a rock and a hard place. In the blink of an eye, several more bloody wounds appeared on its body.
Even with the moon’s radiance to heal its wounds, there was a limit. The healing speed of its injuries visibly slowed down.
Huang Xiu was about to press her advantage and finish off the Three-Month Pig when she saw two more dark figures flying from afar.
With two resounding thuds, they landed in the muddy swamp before her, blocking the path between her and the fleeing Three-Month Pig.
Mud splashed outwards, splattering onto her feet and shoes.
Two even sturdier Three-Month Pigs shook off the mud and rose from the mire.
Perhaps because they were bulkier with more fat, or perhaps the person who threw them had gained experience and controlled their force, they didn’t exhibit the previous dizziness.
After rising from the swamp, they immediately turned their heads and glared at Huang Xiu, who was now just a few meters away.
“Oh, come on, Teacher, this isn’t how you play! At least let me finish off one first!”
Miss Huang Xiu let out a wail, leaping back abruptly to widen the distance between herself and these two Three-Month Pigs.
How could she not understand what was happening?
It was precisely because she had performed too well that the teacher had sent two more to increase her burden.
“Damn it, I’ll butcher all of you!”
Huang Xiu gritted her teeth, her lips a vibrant red, as she stood five meters away from the two Three-Month Pigs.
“Oink oink?”
The two Three-Month Pigs sniffed the blood in the air, then turned to see their trembling comrade behind them.
They instantly understood what had transpired.
All six pig eyes turned crimson, and their hooves scraped at the mud, charging fiercely towards Huang Xiu.
“Excellent!”
Huang Xiu didn’t care if the Three-Month Pigs understood her. She let out a sharp cry and swung her long spear in a wide, sweeping arc.
Then, disregarding her numb hands, she immediately jumped back.
The perfectly distanced sweep struck the right head of the foremost Three-Month Pig like a whip.
With a muffled ‘thud,’ the powerful blow instantly swelled its head, causing its entire body to uncontrollably topple to the left.
The sharp, rhomboid spearhead left a long, diagonal wound on its pig face, deep enough to reveal bone.
Huang Xiu had no time to revel in the success of that strike, for the other Three-Month Pig had already rushed before her.
This time, the Three-Month Pig had charged several meters, accumulating considerable speed and impact.
The entire pig resembled a tank, an intimidating sight.
Huang Xiu had no doubt that if this collision landed squarely, she would be sent flying backward.
She was about to dodge.
Her peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of something.
The very first Three-Month Pig in the distance was also charging forward.
And the Three-Month Pig she had swept to the ground was grunting and attempting to clamber back up.
If these two Three-Month Pigs joined the charging formation, she would undoubtedly be in a disadvantageous position.
One misstep could lead to her being sent flying, her spear dropping, and the combat training ending abruptly.
“Then… I’ll stake it all!”
Her thoughts flashed by in an instant, and Huang Xiu made her decision.
She neither dodged nor evaded, instead meeting the charging Three-Month Pig head-on, thrusting her spear straight out at the opportune moment.
It was as if she had abandoned all evasion, choosing instead to gamble with her life!
The Senluo Long Spear shot out like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, targeting the middle head of the Three-Month Pig.
The Three-Month Pig’s charge had already begun, and while it could change direction, it couldn’t do so in a rush.
It couldn’t even brake.
Under its terrified gaze, the spear tip lightly touched its brow. Huang Xiu hadn’t exerted much force with this strike.
For the Three-Month Pig’s charge had already provided immense kinetic energy.
After thrusting, Huang Xiu braced the spear butt against the ground, smoothly leaping aside, then coldly watched the tragedy unfold.
The thick hide was instantly pierced by the spear tip, which then forced its way through flesh and blood.
The two rhomboid vertices of the spearhead expanded the wound, shredding the flesh.
And the spear tip continued its unstoppable path, puncturing blood vessels, piercing through the hard skull and the tofu-like pig brain.
But it wasn’t over yet.
The kinetic energy of a charging Three-Month Pig, weighing several hundred pounds, was terrifyingly immense.
Even though the spearhead had already pierced its brain, its momentum remained undiminished.
It broke through the back of the skull, plunged into the Three-Month Pig’s neck, and continued inward along the windpipe and major blood vessels.
Until half of the entire spear shaft was embedded within its body.
At this point, even the moon’s radiance healing would be useless!
The Three-Month Pig’s life force was instantly severed; it couldn’t even twitch. Its heavy body collapsed directly.
Issuing a muffled ‘thud.’
Huang Xiu, who had released the spear and leaped away, merely intended to use its charging force to utterly slay it.
She hadn’t anticipated the immense power of this single strike.
She gazed at the Senluo Long Spear, half-buried in the pig’s body, and suddenly felt a hint of disdain.
However, in the heat of battle, she couldn’t dwell on such thoughts.
Taking advantage of the nearby Three-Month Pig not yet having risen and the distant one not yet having charged, she quickly knelt down, gripped the spear shaft, and pulled with her foot braced against the pig’s head.
Fortunately, during the spear’s creation, special considerations were made for Awakened individuals facing large monsters, anticipating situations where the spear might get stuck in an enemy’s body.
Huang Xiu pulled out the long spear with little effort.
It was at this moment that the charging Three-Month Pig finally reached her, and the one she had knocked down was just getting back on its feet.
“Oink?!”
The charging Three-Month Pig never imagined that in the blink of an eye, its comrade would already be lying on the ground, utterly lifeless.
The fear of a rabbit mourning its kind and the instinct for survival once again filled its heart.
It let out two mournful cries, but couldn’t stop its charge, and two streams of clear tears flowed from its eyes.
****
With a forceful flick of her long spear, Huang Xiu shook off much of the bloodstains, then rested the spear on her shoulder and giggled.
“You’re here, little brother! I’ve been waiting for you!”
With that, she replicated her previous move, a side-pull followed by a thrust at the Three-Month Pig’s neck.
Thus, another penetrating wound was added to the Three-Month Pig’s neck.
Accompanied by a mournful howl, the Three-Month Pig collapsed to the ground, its three pairs of pig eyes staring fixedly at the moon in the sky, unwilling to close in death!
“One left!”
Staring at the Three-Month Pig that had just managed to stand up in the distance, Huang Xiu panted slightly, fine beads of sweat appearing on her forehead.
Close combat was far more physically demanding than fighting with her abilities.
In just a short while, having only killed two Three-Month Pigs, she was already feeling somewhat tired.
The sweat on her forehead clung to her hair, causing an irritating itch.
Huang Xiu frowned uncomfortably.
Her right hand tugged at the hem of her shirt, preparing to pull it up to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
But just as she lifted it slightly, before her belly was even exposed, she suddenly froze.
She was a girl now; she couldn’t be as casual as before.
“Tsk,” Huang Xiu grumbled, wiping her sweat with her left hand and tilting her head to look at the distant Three-Month Pig. “You’re in for it!” she said coldly. “I’m angry, and I need to vent on you.”
With that, the short-haired girl didn’t charge forward.
The tip of her vertically held long spear continuously slid across the ground, leaving a winding trail.
Having grown familiar with the Three-Month Pig’s fighting methods, she no longer felt the initial constraints and tension.
*Swish, swish, swish!*
Before she could even rush over, three more dark figures descended from the sky.
Huang Xiu was too exasperated to even complain.
She gripped her specially made long spear tightly, took a small hop backward, and prepared to meet the imminent battle.
****
“Is he reaching his limit…?”
On the iron sky bridge, Teacher Yuan observed the battlefield.
On the far left, under the relentless attacks of three Three-Month Pigs, Fu Yue was barely holding on, relying solely on his special abilities.
His body was covered in dirt and mud, and a trace of pink blood trickled from the corner of his mouth down his chin.
This was the result of being gored by a Three-Month Pig and scratched by its claws when he failed to dodge quickly enough while swinging his sword.
His ribs were broken, and his internal organs were damaged.
Only the powerful physical constitution of an Awakened individual allowed him to continue fighting with such injuries.
But defeat was not far off.
Teacher Yuan hadn’t intervened directly because he wanted to see if Fu Yue could slay a Three-Month Pig despite his disadvantage.
In the center, Tian Rong’s situation was slightly better than Fu Yue’s.
His wild twin-blade attacks had already dispatched the initial Three-Month Pig by the time the other two descended from the sky.
Facing the attacks of two Three-Month Pigs simultaneously, his movements were agile, and he appeared to be at ease, holding the upper hand.
Now, both Three-Month Pigs were covered in wounds, and the moon’s radiance healing ability had been exhausted.
Clearly, he was close to securing the kill.