Chapter 157: Ding Shijie

This made Su Li feel a surge of surprise. Who was this man, and how was he leveling up faster than he was?

Looking at the corpses scattered across the building’s roof, Su Li realized something. Could it be that this man hunted monsters not only at night but continuously throughout the day?

While this might lead to rapid advancement, the risk was also immense. No one knew what kind of monsters lurked beneath each building. Some might be relatively weak, while others could be overwhelmingly powerful.

This was literally tempting fate.

Just like his encounter with the Nightmare Beast and the Corpse Mother. If not for a stroke of luck and circumstance, either one of those monsters could have easily crushed him.

Su Li was observing the man, and the man also noticed Su Li climbing up, followed by Liu Jiande.

The Armored White Centipede was extremely powerful. It moved swiftly, its body slightly raised, and it suddenly lunged forward.

Su Li watched the man stand motionless, empty-handed, allowing the Armored White Centipede to charge at him head-on. If Su Li hadn’t peered into the data and known the man was a Level 7 Spiritual Source Wielder, he would have instinctively swung his sword to help.

But knowing the opponent was a Level 7 powerhouse, Su Li only took a few steps forward and did not draw his sword.

Just as the Armored White Centipede was about to strike the man, he suddenly grinned. His right arm shot up. In that instant, his outstretched right hand turned completely blood-red, as if dripping with fresh blood.

His blood-red right hand thrust forward, meeting the Armored White Centipede’s open mouthparts.

The centipede’s sharp mouthparts snapped shut on the man’s right arm. The man’s figure blurred as they crossed paths. His blood-red right hand had punched clean through the Armored White Centipede’s mouthparts, ripping off half its head.

The man stopped beside the fallen Armored White Centipede. The centipede’s colossal body swayed, then crashed to the ground, missing half its head.

Su Li saw that the wound on the centipede’s head was charred black, and the man’s sleeve was ripped, revealing the skin of his right arm, which was now blood-red, just like his hand.

The blood-red color quickly subsided, and his right arm returned to normal.

Su Li watched, his heart stirring.

This man’s right arm was terrifying. The power contained within it was astonishing.

Killing the Level 7 Elite Beast Armored White Centipede in a single blow made Su Li look at him with respect. This man was truly formidable.

His strength was unlike the power of Gao Shupeng or Tao Bingjun, whose strength came from the bizarre nature of their Spiritual Source Techniques. They were, in essence, ordinary strongmen.

This man’s strength, however, was different. He was not powerful because of a unique special ability. He stood there, radiating an air of invincibility.

With the Armored White Centipede slain, the other Common monsters around the rooftop were too afraid to approach the center. The man scrutinized Su Li. His gaze fell on the Dragon Rhino Sword in Su Li’s hand.

“That sword isn’t an ordinary manufactured weapon, is it? It’s a Spiritual Source weapon acquired from slaying a monster? That’s impressive—”

The man gave Su Li a thumbs-up, his expression full of appreciation.

Su Li’s heart stirred. This man knows about Spiritual Source weapons? He smiled faintly and said, “You don’t even need a weapon. You killed that centipede with one blow. I’ve never met anyone as strong as you.”

The two exchanged compliments. The man laughed heartily. “My name is Ding Shijie. What should I call you, Brother?”

“Su Li.” Su Li gave his name. He was interested in befriending Ding Shijie. This was the first Level 7 powerhouse he had encountered. His single strike on the Armored White Centipede was astonishing. Such a person should never be made an enemy, even if they couldn’t be friends.

“Su Li? That’s a nice name. It’s not as strange as mine. It’s my late father’s fault for giving me such a weird name.” Ding Shijie laughed heartily, sounding very cheerful.

“By the way, what should I call this big brother?” He then looked at Liu Jiande beside Su Li.

Liu Jiande was about to speak when Su Li and Ding Shijie reacted almost simultaneously. Su Li turned to the left, and Ding Shijie turned to the right. Both looked at the far edge of the roof.

At the roof’s edge, two new monsters had silently appeared. The two monsters looked almost identical, resembling gorillas. They were about two meters tall, hairless, with smooth, metallic-looking skin. Their open mouths revealed two sharp fangs on the top and bottom jaws. They looked extremely ferocious.

The appearance of these two monsters caused the other scattered monsters to retreat, fearing the newcomers.

The vertical eye-like fine lines appeared on Su Li’s brow. He locked onto the two newly arrived monsters.

“Name: Gold-Eating Beast (Shi Jin Shou). Level: 8 Elite Beast. This Spiritual Source Beast feeds on metal. Its body possesses extreme hardness. Its skin has a metallic texture and sheen. Ordinary blades struggle to wound it. Its two massive palms are extremely destructive and possess immense strength. It has a certain probability of evolving into the Elite Gold-Eating Gorilla. Killing the Gold-Eating Beast has a certain probability of acquiring the special ability ‘Gold-Eating Gorilla Palm.'”

An Level 8 Elite Beast! This meant they were even more powerful than the Armored White Centipede. And two of them had appeared at once. Su Li frowned. The two Gold-Eating Beasts lifted their massive arms, which reached their knees, and slammed their palms onto the ground.

With a loud “BOOM,” the impact of their massive palms created spiderweb cracks in the concrete roof. They leaped into the air, covering seven or eight meters in a single bound, charging toward Su Li and Ding Shijie.

“This is interesting. How about one for each of us?” Ding Shijie laughed heartily, moving to confront the monster on the left.

Su Li was provoked. He motioned for Liu Jiande to stay clear, activated “Spider Walk,” and shot forward like lightning, charging the Gold-Eating Beast on the right.

Ding Shijie had no weapon, but his right arm contained a special power. Su Li guessed this was his Spiritual Source Technique. The power in his right arm was likely more formidable than an ordinary blade. The Armored White Centipede had most of its head ripped off by his arm, and the wound showed signs of burning.

Ding Shijie met the charging Gold-Eating Beast head-on.

The Gold-Eating Beast was immensely strong. It roared like an ape, raising its huge palms and swinging them down like gigantic fans.

Ding Shijie roared, bracing himself. His white skin instantly turned blood-red again. He used his right arm as a weapon, meeting the two giant, swinging palms of the Gold-Eating Beast.

The beast’s palms slammed onto Ding Shijie’s blood-red arm with a loud “sizzle.” The giant, metallic-looking palms seemed to encounter extreme heat. The Gold-Eating Beast grimaced and recoiled its hand, seemingly in pain. Ding Shijie was also sent flying backward.

Su Li, fighting the Gold-Eating Beast on the right, observed Ding Shijie’s fight. He realized that Ding Shijie’s Spiritual Source Technique was likely the ability to control the temperature of his right arm, heating it up like a red-hot iron rod, perhaps even hot enough to melt metal. He used this high-temperature right arm to attack his enemies, making it extremely lethal. Even the metal-like palms of the Gold-Eating Beast couldn’t withstand it.

Su Li’s fighting style was different from Ding Shijie’s head-on approach. He used “Spider Walk” to circle the Gold-Eating Beast on the right, evading its giant palms. He swept the Dragon Rhino Sword diagonally.

The Gold-Eating Beast, an Elite Level 8 monster, was fast. It spun its body to meet Su Li’s attack. Its massive palm slammed down to block the Dragon Rhino Sword.

The Dragon Rhino Sword sliced into the Gold-Eating Beast’s palm. Although it was difficult, it cut in.

The Gold-Eating Beast fed on metal, and its body was hard as metal, but the Dragon Rhino Sword could cut metal like mud. Even if the monster was made of cast iron, the sword would cleave it open.

With a pained roar from the monster, the large portion of its massive palm was severed by the Dragon Rhino Sword.

The fluid flowing from the severed palm was not blood but a metallic-looking liquid.

Both men had wounded the Gold-Eating Beast. Su Li was completely unharmed, while Ding Shijie had been sent flying. Su Li was clearly the superior fighter.

Su Li knew he only had the advantage because of the Dragon Rhino Sword. Without it, it would be hard to say who was stronger.

Ding Shijie tumbled on the ground, then quickly rolled away. The Gold-Eating Beast, its hand burned, was enraged. It leaped into the air again, swinging its giant palm at Ding Shijie. This time, it was smarter and avoided Ding Shijie’s right arm, aiming for his torso.

Ding Shijie reacted quickly. He extended his left hand. Air currents surged, forming a faint shield that the Gold-Eating Beast’s colossal palm slammed into.

(End of Chapter)