Xu Xiaoshou closed his eyes heavily. His entire body was trembling.

"How long have you been watching me? Was it five days?"

​​

"No wonder I have been feeling uneasy these few days."

Red Dog held onto his mask and chuckled. "Your reaction is so calm. You must have faced many assassinations in the past. Have you gotten used to it?"

"You must be gifted. Otherwise, no one would pay such a high price for your life."

"Gifted people are clever."

"You are buying time... So, have you called for reinforcements? Are they also the Sovereign Stage? Let me guess… Is it people from the Spirit Palace, elders, or perhaps the vice dean?"

His eyes were twinkling behind the mask. Though his voice was soft, his tone was firm and left no room for argument.

Xu Xiaoshou's heart dropped.

Red Dog blatantly exposed his tactics to delay the inevitable. Before he could change the topic, a message suddenly flashed on the Information Bar in Xu Xiaoshou's mind.

Ambushed, Passive Point +1.

Even though his Agility skill had reached the Master Stage, Xu Xiaoshou still had no time to react.

Red Dog had given him no warning at all. As he spoke, a death-like stench spread and enveloped his surroundings.

Clang—

A crisp thundering sound that could only come from a weapon rang shrilly. A black dagger sailed into the air.

Xu Xiaoshou clutched his chest tightly. The force from the stab sent him backward.

Even though he possessed the Toughness skill, he was no match for the thunderous blow. The flesh and blood in his chest exploded from the stab. He plummeted down.

Toughness did not mean that he was invincible.

Xu Xiaoshou fully understood that when his enemy's attack exceeded his body's tolerance limit, it would be game over for him.

Red Dog, who had planned to kill him in a single blow, was also dumbfounded.

He never allowed his enemy any breathing room, even if they were only at the Innate Stage.

He had used almost 70% of his strength in that one blow, but it had rebounded.

What kind of body was this?

Red Dog was shocked.

"Master Level Physique?"

His face contorted in disbelief. He had been an assassin for decades, and he had killed many gifted cultivators over the years.

However, this was the first time he had encountered a victim with a Master Level Physique who was so young.

He swayed his hands.

His left arm, which held the dagger, was dislocated from the force of the blow. He vaguely noticed a trace of a fracture in his bones. For Red Dog, this was simply unimaginable.

How could a trifling Innate Stage hurt him?

With a crack, he twisted his arm back into place. His eyes were fixated on Xu Xiaoshou.

"What spiritual technique is this?"

Xu Xiaoshou crouched down. That blow nearly pierced through his chest, severely injuring him. Under the effect of Eternal Vitality, he had already almost recovered.

Nonetheless, he did not show it and still adopted a pained expression on his face. He covered the wound that was fully healed with his hand, using the bloodstains from the earlier assault to conceal his healed state.

His previous assumptions had manifested. Even if his opponent were a Sovereign Stage cultivator, as long as he was not aiming to kill in a single blow, he would not die. His resilience and speed of recovery were phenomenal.

Even with this knowledge, he was not confident to launch a counterattack.

He knew that there was no point in doing so.

No matter how strong his attack was, could he kill his opponent with a single blow?

After all, it was the Sovereign Stage.

If he were rational, he knew that this casual strike was not the maximum force that Red Dog was capable of.

If he rushed forward indiscriminately and angered the other party, he might not live past today.

"This is not a spiritual technique. It is a natural talent."

Xu Xiaoshou answered Red Dog's question, his voice trembling. "I am sure you can see it too. I am a Master Level Physique..."

Slash!

A dagger flew out again, giving Xu Xiaoshou no time to react. It was aimed directly at his forehead.

With a bang, Red Dog sent Xu Xiaoshou flying again.

His body whizzed upside down in the air, though it had yet to reach full speed. It was suddenly caught in the abyss as if hitting an invisible barrier wall.

'Is this the bounded domain?'

Xu Xiaoshou's face was full of blood. He felt a wave of hopelessness.

Red Dog was too vicious and did not give him any chances. He was indeed an experienced killer.

Xu Xiaoshou had heard a little about the invisible barrier that shielded him.

The bounded domain was a small realm. Only powerful Sovereign Stage cultivators could cultivate a bounded domain. In the realm, the master of the bounded domain was the invincible god.

The master of the bounded domain needed to have a strong understanding of the Way of the Heavens. With that, they could manipulate almost everything in the realm.

Xu Xiaoshou knew that he had walked right into Red Dog's bounded domain. It was most likely when he walked into the scruffy-looking uncle.

It was only after that encounter that his consciousness was fully affected. After that, he was no longer able to exercise self-control.

This was a sign of being disturbed by the Way of the Heavens.

'Am I finished…'

Xu Xiaoshou's body fell from the air feebly.

...

Clang!

The dagger, which had experienced a countershock from Xu Xiaoshou, flew into a perfect parabola and landed at the same time as him.

Red Dog touched his mask as if he was deep in thought.

"Interesting."

"Your Master Physique seems to be more than an ordinary Master Physique. Is this special countershock force a spiritual technique?"

"Or is this your bloodline power talent?"

He was curious and took a step forward. He moved closer to Xu Xiaoshou's body and squatted down before him.

Slash!

A black shadow flew out of Xu Xiaoshou's chest and pierced Red Dog.

At such a close distance, he twisted his body and limbs. He flexed his hands, forcefully sending the black sword flying in the opposite direction.

Omm—

Hiding Pain wailed pitifully. This tenth-grade spiritual sword's weakness was fully exposed.

Even if Hiding Pain were wrapped in the Black Fallen Scabbard now, it would disintegrate into shards with just a gentle flick from Red Dog.

Xu Xiaoshou's heart fell. It did not matter if the black sword broke.

The important thing was that he stood no chance against his opponent's speed.

"Heh, sneak attack?"

Red Dog chuckled lightly, reaching out his hand to cover Xu Xiaoshou's head. His voice was ice-cold.

"Little guy, you are too slow!"

With that, he lifted Xu Xiaoshou's head and slammed it on the ground.

Boom!

The impact instantly created a deep crater. He anticipated that the young man's body would rebound straight up again. He was not disappointed.

Red Dog smiled, and a sadistic pleasure flashed in his eyes.

"Interesting, how interesting!"

"Hahaha, how can you be so interesting?"

His eyes opened wide in wonder as if he had discovered an incredible toy. He grabbed Xu Xiaoshou's rebounded head and slammed it down again.

Bang!

The body rebounded.

Red Dog was crazed and laughed wildly.

"How interesting! How come you have such attributes? Is it rebound or backlash?"

"Are you still a human? Ahahaha... You must be a ball!"

Bang bang bang—

Pools of blood formed on the ground as Red Dog took delight in smashing his head. Xu Xiaoshou had no power to resist even though he wanted to. His body was drained of its strength from the blows.

Red Dog's Way of the Heavens imprisonment was far too terrifying. It restrained his body so that he could not even move a finger.

He was like a toy at the mercy of others, falling under the masked man's hands again and again. He went sent flying, flying, and falling.

"Oof!"

Xu Xiaoshou choked on a mouthful of his blood.

Darkness descended before his eyes. It was hard for him to see anything.

The sky and the earth blurred in his dizziness. He could not tell which was which.

Was this the power of the Sovereign Stage?

Xu Xiaoshou's lips were dry. His opponent was not even trying hard but just toying with him. As for his trump cards, he could not use them at all.

Life was playing a joke on him. Suddenly, he was nearing the end. It was too soon.

He slowly closed his eyes.

F*ck!