Chapter Fifty-Seven: Leave Not a Single One

"Su Ye—you actually dare to show yourself!"

Zhou Yuyang was the first to shout out. Although Su Ye once again emerged from the roaring waves, Zhou Yuyang had witnessed it before, so he wasn’t particularly surprised. Since Su Ye had appeared, it was as good as courting death! Of their group, aside from three or four who were still at the Meridian Opening stage, the rest—over a dozen—were all at the Qi Gathering level, with one even having reached the second stage of Qi Gathering. With such overwhelming strength, killing Su Ye would take no time at all.

"Oh? So you’re Su Ye? Have you come to beg for mercy?" sneered one of the Yu family brothers.

Now that they knew Su Ye was here, there was no need for concern. Even if Su Ye dove back into the water, they’d follow and kill him there.

Zhou Zhi, on the other hand, gazed at Su Ye’s feet in surprise. How was Su Ye able to stand on the water’s surface? Did the boy have some sinister trick? But Zhou Zhi quickly dismissed the thought. On Earth, there was the Dead Sea—ordinary people could float there. So if this strange lake on the island had unusual properties, it was nothing worth fussing over.

"You didn’t hide away, but dared to show yourself? I’ll grant you have some courage," Zhou Zhi said, his tone suddenly turning sharper, louder. "But you are doomed to die!"

Su Ye slowly clenched his fist, his gaze sweeping over them as he spoke in a clear voice: "Three years ago, you Yu family plotted against me, digging the Thunder Meridian from my body. For years, I suffered endless torment, but even in my darkest agony, I never thought of killing anyone! But today, I finally see your ugly, inhuman faces for what they are!"

He bent his body slightly, ankles already submerged in the surging waves, and assumed a charging stance. His cold eyes swept the crowd as he shouted, "You tried to kill me once, then again—since you want my life so badly, I’ll leave none of you alive. I’ll kill you all!"

Zhou Yuyang burst into wild laughter at these words, pointing at Su Ye from afar. "You spineless coward, you think you can kill someone? Come over here if you have the guts! Hiding in the water—what kind of man are you?"

Bang!

Su Ye didn’t wait for Zhou Yuyang to finish. His whole body shot forward, slicing through the air above the water towards the shore, leaving a long, surging wave behind him.

"Kill him!"

With thunder crackling across his body, Su Ye’s right fist clenched tight. Mid-air, he spun, unleashing a punch at Zhou Yuyang.

Bang—

"Aaagh…" Zhou Yuyang had no time even to react. He couldn’t comprehend how Su Ye’s speed had become so monstrous. With a miserable cry, he was sent flying twenty or thirty meters away.

"What? What level of cultivation is this?" Zhou Zhi and the Yu brothers cried out in shock. Such power was exclusive to Qi Gathering cultivators! Charging from the surface of the water—could even they manage such a feat? Wasn’t Su Ye supposed to be only at the Meridian Opening stage? According to their family records, he’d only opened twenty-three meridians.

How could he now rival the Qi Gathering stage?

But Zhou Zhi and the others responded swiftly. Now was not the time to consider Su Ye’s cultivation; they clenched their fists and charged at him directly.

"Let me show you my ‘Hundred-Refined Leg Technique’!"

Within the Zhou family, Zhou Zhi’s leg technique was renowned, often sufficient to shock an entire audience without him needing to throw a punch. Since the age of nine, he had practiced this art, forging his legs until even steel could be kicked and bent by his blows.

Hearing that Zhou Zhi was about to use the Hundred-Refined Leg Technique, the others quickly stepped back, eager to watch his display.

Whoosh!

Zhou Zhi leaped into the air, spinning as he rose, his legs whirling and slicing streams of energy through the air. To the eye, a whirlwind seemed to form beneath his feet, making the clothes of those around billow fiercely.

With an imposing and violent force, the Hundred-Refined Leg Technique crashed toward Su Ye’s head.

"I’ll take your life in a single move!"

Bang!

To their surprise, Su Ye did not dodge. Instead, with a sharp motion, he swept his arms wide, as if gathering all the oncoming force into his grasp. There was a muffled thud as Zhou Zhi’s foot smashed into Su Ye’s left rib.

"Fool, you dare take my leg technique head-on?" Zhou Zhi growled. Even though his foot was seized by Su Ye, he was certain the kick would have shattered Su Ye’s bones.

"The Hundred-Refined Leg Technique, is it?"

Suddenly, Su Ye snorted coldly, gripping Zhou Zhi’s leg with one hand. He balled his right fist and smashed it down hard on Zhou Zhi’s shin.

In that instant, terror flashed through Zhou Zhi’s mind.

How was Su Ye still standing? How could he still attack?

He desperately tried to withdraw his leg, but Su Ye’s grip was like iron pincers—there was no escape.

Crack!

"Ah—!" Zhou Zhi screamed. He stared at his own leg, bent at an unnatural angle from Su Ye’s single punch.

His leg had been broken with one blow!

"You dare flaunt such a pathetic technique before me?"

Su Ye withdrew his fist, equally shocked by the power he now wielded after breaking through the hundred and eight meridians. Zhou Zhi was a Qi Gathering martial artist! Normally, such cultivators could shield themselves with a protective layer of energy, but clearly, even that could not withstand his punch.

Without wasting a moment, Su Ye clenched his fist again and drove it straight into Zhou Zhi’s chest, caving it in with a resounding crash.

Zhou Zhi’s scream ended abruptly. His body went rigid and collapsed to the ground, motionless.

The dozen or so martial artists around them were struck dumb—no one uttered a sound.

Was Zhou Zhi dead?

Had he really been killed with a single punch by Su Ye?

"Attack! Kill him!" The Yu brothers finally snapped back to reality. In such a situation, they had to strike together.

Their forms blurred, clothes billowing as surges of energy burst from their bodies.

"Take this!" One of the Yu brothers charged forward, fist aglow with white light, slicing through the air.

Su Ye stood his ground, meeting force with force. He clenched his fist and struck out.

Bang! Crack—

A loud snap echoed as the Yu brother’s elbow twisted unnaturally, a shard of bone jutting out.

"Ah! Ah… He—he's not at the Meridian Opening stage!"

Su Ye paid no heed to their cries of alarm. His fists crackled with arcs of lightning. Whoever was struck by him suffered shattered bones—incapacitated in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, ten men had already fallen.

In the distance, Zhou Yuyang struggled to his feet, feeling his bones had been crushed. He had wanted nothing more than to torment Su Ye, but now, looking up, he saw Su Ye had single-handedly defeated more than a dozen Qi Gathering martial artists.

"This… impossible—how did Su Ye become so powerful?"

Zhou Yuyang shrieked, collapsing to the ground in terror. The Zhou family’s fighters were dead.

A tide of fear overwhelmed him. He staggered to his feet and fled for his life. As for the other family fighters—let them die if they must; survival was now all that mattered.

Su Ye saw Zhou Yuyang escaping. Five or six other martial artists nearby, equally terrified, scattered in every direction.

Just as Su Ye was growing anxious, several beams of light shot out from the lake, felling those fleeing warriors.

"Su Ye, hurry! They have been struck by my Poison Fangs—there’s no saving them," Qian Li Luo called quickly from the lake.

Su Ye turned, looking at her with gratitude, then nodded heavily and charged after Zhou Yuyang.

"Zhou Yuyang—where do you think you’re going?"

Zhou Yuyang, grievously injured, staggered and fell repeatedly, glancing back only to see Su Ye already closing in. His legs gave out and he collapsed to the ground.

"Su Ye, you can’t kill me! I’m the heir of the Zhou family. I can give you money—a lot of money! Name your price—a million, five million? You can’t kill me, no!"

In Zhou Yuyang’s eyes, Su Ye was now a god of death returned from the underworld.

Su Ye approached step by step, his voice cold as ice: "I said, none of you will leave alive! Even if you were the emperor himself—you will die today!"