Without giving Bo Lou the chance to use his Innate Skills, Gold Element, or any of his various High-rank Techniques, Xue Ren had unleashed thirty |Giant Fireballs| in the time it took Bo Lou to blink.
Xue Ren was surprised by how little it took to take Bo Lou down. But on second thought, no one would attack in such an unorthodox manner, which would more than drain any normal Qi Condensation Realm Cultivator of their Spiritual Energy. Moreover, Bo Lou heavily underestimated his opponent, leading to a very slow reaction time.
"Are we done here?" Xue Ren asked coldly as he slowly approached the disheveled Regional Official. "If not, I suppose we can go again. However, I won't be holding anything back if you choose to take that route."
No longer hold anything back!?
So that catastrophic string of fire spells was him holding back!??
And what was up with those huge Fireballs??
Fireball was among the weakest of all Innate Skills for the Fire Element. Who would actually practice it to such a nonsensical level instead of focusing on better, more practical Skills!?
'Was that not actually Fireball being cast…? No, its spiritual signals were unmistakable!'
No matter how Bo Lou thought it over, he just couldn't comprehend what in the hell had just happened.
"Well?" asked Xue Ren, now standing over the Regional Official like a God of the Flame. "Would you like to have a rematch? You're not one of my targets—just a minor bother—so I won't kill you."
Just a minor bother!?
After expending so much Spiritual Energy so recklessly, this brat still dared to talk like his victory would always be guaranteed!?
"You got guts, kid!" Bo Lou consumed several bluish-white pills that immediately revitalized him and put him in an even better condition than before. "But for murdering my brother in cold blood, I won't rest until your head is no longer connected to your body!!"
RUMBLE!
Full power of the Middle Golden Core Realm!
"So be it."
Xue Ren leapt to a distance of a few hundred feet away.
Raising his right hand, he continued in an icy voice: "Erect some more protective barriers. This will hurt."
"Huh—!?"
Before Bo Lou could angrily scowl at the arrogant young man, |Fireball Javelin| was shot out. It blazed through the air like a speeding bullet, reaching the Regional Official in a fraction of a second.
'So fast!' Bo Lou hurriedly dodged, making use of his energy-enhanced legs to jump around the battlefield.
SHA! SHA! SHA!
He zipped around multiple more |Fireball Javelins|. Confidence grew inside him when he realized that none of them were even close to hitting him when he was going all out.
Xue Ren's dead eyes perfectly followed the golden bolt of light blitzing around each and every |Fireball Javelin|. Yet all he did in response to his opponent's effortless evasions was increase the number of |Fireball Javelins|.
Although Bo Lou was still managing fine even with dozens of |Fireball Javelins| raining from the heavens, his fatigue started to build up. In his mind, he just couldn't wrap his head around how in the hell such a young boy possibly had access to this much Spiritual Energy.
From his perspective, Xue Ren was thoughtlessly casting Skills, doing so without any regard to conservation. And yet, no matter how many times Bo Lou was sure that his opponent would run out of fuel, he just kept on going.
It was as if his Spiritual Energy reserves were infinite!
Realizing that this would take longer than he wanted it to, Xue Ren used his other hand to cast |Giant Fireball|. He then spammed those in conjunction with |Fireball Javelin|, showering destruction from above and in front.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Fire skills were dispersed, dodged, and deflected over and over, leaving the surrounding thousand meters in ruins. The ground was now more black than green, and it was only worsening the more time passed.
"Wh-What in the shit is happening…!?" Bo Lou's previous composure and confidence was all but gone, as he was put entirely on the defensive, with even dodging becoming nigh impossible. "This amount of Spiritual Energy exceeds even what's possessed by the Nascent Soul Realm Experts I've seen!!"
Each individual attack wasn't even enough to scratch a Golden Core Realm Cultivator, but there was only so much of a difference between the Realms. Theoretically, this meant that as long as you stacked enough attacks, you'd be able to temporarily pierce the defenses of a higher stage cultivator.
This was the whole reason Mass-group Battle Formations existed.
But what would happen if you just never stopped chipping away at a stronger expert's defenses?
'I'm going to get burned if I don't do something soon!' Bo Lou frantically bashed through a barrage of |Fire Javelins| and |Giant Fireballs|, making the cracks in his protective barriers considerably worsen. 'I need to switch from the defensive to the offensive!'
In a moment of nonchalantness, an opening appeared in Xue Ren's endless barrage of Skills.
'I don't know what sort of freak this brat is, but it doesn't matter, for his cultivation is definitely weaker than mine!!' Bo Lou adjusted his speed to the absolute maximum, turning into a blur of gold. 'In close-range combat, there's no way I'll be at a disadvantage! Today, this brat dies!!'
|3rd Innate Skill – Heavenly Golden Hammer|
A massive, building-sized hammer of gold materialized above Bo Lou. He grabbed hold of it with both hands, flexing all the muscles in his body as he slammed down without holding anything back.
"DIEE!!!!!"
His deranged roar was heard by everyone in and around the Enforcement Building. They looked to their recently returned Head for guidance, wondering if he wanted them to step in and save the kid.
However, the Enforcement Head merely stood there with folded arms. His focus was entirely honed in on Xue Ren, his fierce eyes shining with scrutiny.
"This is the kid's business, and his alone," said the Enforcement Head. "No one is to interfere."
As pity welled up within the hearts of the female Officers, something completely unbelievable occurred at the crazy battle site.
"He's actually going to face that giant, terrifying golden hammer with his bare fists!?" A higher-rank Officer couldn't believe his eyes. "Is this kid clinically insane!? Why doesn't he just use his Fire Skills or dodge!?"
"You dare humiliate me like this!??" Bo Lou went mad with anger, the golden energy contained in his hammer taking another leap up in immensity. "JUST DIEE!!!!"
And yet…
CRACK—