Zhan Feng let out a strange laugh.
"Kid, you should be proud for having survived a few rounds with me. In your next life, try harder!"
With that, Zhan Feng waved his hands, intending to quickly end Zhao Ya’s life.
But just then, Zhan Feng felt a sudden dizziness and a sharp pain in his chest.
As if that wasn’t enough, along with the stabbing pain, his originally smooth Qi Blood seemed to be blocked by something, causing his previously invigorated Palm Power to rapidly weaken.
What’s happening?
Zhan Feng was startled.
Zhao Ya seized the opportunity and swung his Meteorite Iron Saber towards Zhan Feng’s neck again.
With no choice, Zhan Feng had to retreat swiftly, looking at Zhao Ya with a face ashen with anger.
"What trick did you just pull?"
As he spoke, Zhan Feng’s hands couldn’t stop trembling, because he truly felt frightened.
If Zhao Ya could really poison him without his noticing, then his life might really end today.
Zhao Ya secretly let out a breath of relief.
Zhao Ya had almost decided to give up, having been suppressed by Zhan Feng for so long, it was unbearable.
But just as Zhao Ya was about to escape, the awaited "surprise" finally appeared.
All of this came from the Meat Field.
Song Linqing knew the main objective of the three-family alliance was the Song Family’s Meat Field, so he deliberately left one, and did some tinkering with it.
Of course, he didn’t poison it.
In fact, it was extremely rare to find a poison that could secretly affect a Fourth Realm Martial Artist.
The Song Family didn’t possess such a poison either.
The trick Song Linqing used was simple: he pre-activated the larvae within the Meat Field.
This way, it wouldn’t be long before the larvae would become restless, ready to hatch.
If they were to follow the normal process, this would be when they set up the Meat Bed and place the Meat Field within it to begin hatching.
But the problem was, there was no Meat Bed now, so the Meat Field remained in this pre-hatch state, and the larvae within waited for the nourishment of Qi Blood.
This was exactly the effect Song Linqing wanted to achieve.
Because in this state, as soon as a Martial Dao expert touched this Meat Field, the larvae would be stimulated by the scent of Qi Blood and burrow into the body of the toucher.
It’s worth noting that each Meat Field cultivated by the Song Family had its own nature.
This particular Meat Field raised an Exotic Beast that, in its juvenile form, could parasitize humans, living off absorbed Qi Blood.
Don’t underestimate this. Song Linqing had once conducted experiments, and these Exotic Beasts, in their juvenile form, could even parasitize Third Realm martial artists with terrifying effect.
If it weren’t for a special Secret Medicine from the Song Family, the Third Realm martial artist would have been parasitized for life.
Neutralizing this toxicity required a specially set Meat Bed and many additional Secret Medicines, which was very troublesome.
Additionally, even if the hatching was successful, the value was not particularly high, so Song Linqing set it aside and didn’t use it.
Unbeknownst, this Meat Field became a significant weapon now.
Song Linqing deliberately left it to target Hong Shouchang or Yang Sansi.
Unexpectedly, Zhan Feng was the one who fell for it.
Though unsure if it would affect a Fourth Realm martial artist, Zhao Ya decided to give it a try upon learning that Zhan Feng was responsible for guarding the Meat Field.
Previously, Zhao Ya threw lime packages and fired Sleeve Arrows intentionally to lower Zhan Feng’s guard.
Leading Zhan Feng on a loop through the forest aimed to let the parasitic Exotic Beast within him grow quickly.
Yet Zhao Ya underestimated Zhan Feng’s robust strength. After waiting quite a while with no effect, Zhao Ya almost gave up, just when the effect manifested.
Naturally, Zhao Ya wouldn’t reveal this secret.
Since Zhan Feng believed Zhao Ya had poisoned him, Zhao Ya simply admitted.
"Indeed, the poison in your body is my doing. Are you feeling weak all over, unable to gather Palm Power?" Zhao Ya said coldly.
Zhan Feng’s face changed because Zhao Ya was right.
He had tried to gather Palm Power several times, but sharp pain would hit his chest at the crucial moment, and his Qi Blood, once gathering, would dissipate like a deflated balloon.
Zhao Ya’s direct hit confirmed Zhan Feng’s suspicions of having been poisoned by him.
With this realization, Zhan Feng felt even more terrified, and threw away his pride to run.
Zhao Ya couldn’t let him escape and chased after.
This scene mirrored the earlier chase, only this time, Zhao Ya was the pursuer.
After a few steps, Zhan Feng noticed the stabbing pain in his chest growing, and even his legs were becoming weak.
He surmised that the "poison" was acting up and further running would result in capture.
So, he decisively turned to face Zhao Ya, barely mustering Palm Power to fight.
This time, Zhao Ya held the upper hand, unleashing the Gale Saber Technique, leaving the already dizzy Zhan Feng overwhelmed.
With a ripping sound, unable to evade, Zhan Feng’s clothes on his shoulder were torn open by Zhao Ya’s saber.
If it wasn’t for Zhan Feng’s quick dodge due to his experience, that blow might’ve disabled his arm.
Zhan Feng lamented inwardly, thinking his reign might end at the hands of this youngster.
But at that moment, the stabbing pain in Zhan Feng’s chest lessened, and his obstructed Qi Blood flowed smoother.
What could this mean?
Could the poison have weakened?
Despite his astonishment, Zhan Feng had no time for such thoughts. He attempted to gather Palm Power and, realizing it had recovered significantly, greeted it with renewed vigor and resumed fighting Zhao Ya.
Naturally, Zhao Ya felt this change, sighing inwardly.
Indeed, the hard power difference was there.
Song Linqing had informed him; the parasitic state of the Exotic Beast wouldn’t last long and would gradually dissipate with the vigor of the person’s Qi Blood, until it surprisingly resurfaced.
In simple terms, the parasitic Exotic Beast would enter a dormant state once full.
As a Fourth Realm Martial Artist, Zhan Feng had exceptionally vigorous Qi Blood, allowing him to quickly break free from this weakened state in mere minutes.
Now, as Zhan Feng’s Qi Blood gradually recovered, Zhao Ya felt the increasing pressure.
The wisest course would be to flee, yet Zhao Ya was unwilling.
After so much effort and preparation, the reward was but tearing Zhan Feng’s sleeve, which felt unsatisfactory.
Biting hard, Zhao Ya swung his blade, forcing Zhan Feng back, suddenly pulling out a small package and throwing it at Zhan Feng.
"Watch out for poison!"
Hearing this, Zhan Feng’s scalp tingled.
He was genuinely terrified of Zhao Ya’s unpredictable poisoning methods.
Thus, he avoided any contact, swiftly retreating.
However, the package’s thin paper burst midair after Zhao Ya pitched it, emitting a strange fragrance.
Zhan Feng, shocked, quickly covered his nose and mouth, holding his breath.
In that instant, Zhao Ya aimed at Zhan Feng’s eye and released an arrow.
The crossbow mechanism in the sleeve vibrated, the Sleeve Arrow flying at incredible speed.
Zhan Feng, busy dodging poison, was caught off guard, and it was too late when he noticed.
With a soft thud.
The arrow directly pierced Zhan Feng’s left eye.
No matter how accomplished a Skin Grinding master, eyes couldn’t be trained to be impervious.
With a painful roar, Zhan Feng clutched his wounded eye, but blood still seeped continuously through his fingers.
"Argh, my eye, I’ll kill you!"
Losing his mind, Zhan Feng lashed out frantically, palm strikes felling trees as thick as barrels.
Zhao Ya knew Zhan Feng’s Qi Blood had fully recovered and entered a berserk state, making further attacks too risky.
Disabling one of Zhan Feng’s eyes was already a pleasant surprise, so Zhao Ya didn’t push his luck, merely hiding behind a tree with a cold smile.
"Consider yourself lucky this time. Next time, it won’t just be an eye; it’ll be your head!"
With this, Zhao Ya departed elegantly, leaving Zhan Feng roaring hysterically.
Half an hour later, Zhao Ya returned to the refuge, smiling slightly at Zui’Er.
"It’s done, let’s go!"
"Where to?"
"Yunxiao County!"