Chapter 33: The Harvest

The sharp battle blade collided with the deep cyan dragon scales, sparking violently. The scales, harder than superalloys and impervious to missiles, were carved with a deep gash.

Hot, scarlet dragon blood slowly oozed from the wound. Such wounds were scattered all over the iron-clad dragon's massive body.

"Huff, huff..."

Seeing the human across from it intentionally widen the distance, the iron-clad dragon halted its assault, its scarlet pupils filled with a chilling coldness.

In the distance, Luo Feng was also panting heavily. While keeping a close watch on the iron-clad dragon's movements, he communicated telepathically with Nengliangduo.

"You're saying a human and a flying monster are approaching, and based on their energy intensity, neither is inferior to this iron-clad dragon?"

"That’s right. The human is coming from the east, and the flying monster is approaching from the north. However, they both deliberately slowed down as they got closer. A rough estimate puts both the human and the beast at the Carrefour supermarket within ten to fifteen seconds. Be careful, meow~"

Nengliangduo, acting as a support cat, admitted that it was useless in combat and could only provide remote visual reconnaissance. In reality, while Nengliangduo possessed both martial artist and spiritual reader levels equivalent to an entry-level Warlord, it lacked refined technique. It had raw power but no mastery of force amplification, and its footwork relied entirely on bestial instinct. It hadn't cultivated techniques like the Mammoth Manual to boost its strength as Luo Feng had. Its only advantage over peers was its speed, which was on par with a standard mid-level Warlord. As for its spiritual reader abilities, it followed the beast-tamer path, meaning its combat power was entirely dependent on the strength of its pets. Currently, Nengliangduo only had two pets: a recently hatched Green-Scaled Giant Python cub with only beast-soldier-level strength, and a Silver-Moon Fierce Wolf at the high-level Warlord rank, bordering on Lord-level. In terms of raw power, they were still inferior to Nengliangduo itself.

"Got it," Luo Feng nodded slightly, then severed the telepathic link. He looked at the iron-clad dragon with a hint of regret. "A pity. I feel like if I had fought you for a while longer, my footwork could have broken through from the 'Subtle' stage to the 'Perfect' stage."

Footwork proficiency is divided into four stages: Basic, Subtle, Perfect, and Artistic Concept. Weapon mastery is similarly divided: Basic, Specialized, Consummate, and Artistic Concept. Generally, standard Warlord-level powerhouses reach at least the Subtle stage in footwork and the Specialized stage in weapon mastery; the more formidable ones reach the Perfect stage in footwork and the Consummate stage in weapon mastery. The absolute pinnacle of Warlords reaches the Artistic Concept stage in both. If, on top of this, their force amplification exceeds four times, and their ultimate attack output reaches the base strength of a first-tier Planetary-level martial artist—two million kilograms—they are hailed as Invincible Warlords.

Spiritual readers are unique. Because they use spiritual power to accelerate, fly, and launch remote attacks, as long as their psychic strength reaches the peak of the high-level Warlord rank, they are considered Invincible Warlords, even if their footwork and weapon skills are mediocre. Luo Feng was one such case.

In blade technique, Luo Feng had recently reached the Consummate stage, but his footwork was still only at the peak of the Subtle stage—slightly above average for a Warlord, but not exceptional. However, with his peak high-level Warlord psychic strength (512,000 kilograms) and the ability to control four flying blades simultaneously to strike a single point, his total attack power reached that of a first-tier Planetary-level martial artist.

The iron-clad dragon was immensely powerful—its strength, speed, defense, and physical structure were monstrous. Even top-tier high-level Warlords would avoid such a fearsome dragon species. But compared to an Invincible Warlord, it was still a significant step behind. Perhaps only a descendant of the Emperor-level 'Thunder Dragon'—the strongest of all dragon species—could trade blows with an Invincible Warlord.

*Swish! Swish! Swish!*

Three flying blades shot out from the side of Luo Feng’s combat suit. Together with the first one, four blades now orbited him, gleaming with a chilling metallic luster.

The iron-clad dragon felt a surge of horror. A single blade was enough to threaten its life; four? It didn't hesitate, turning into a streak of light, desperate to return to its lair, grab its eggs, and flee.

"Trying to outrun a spiritual reader's blades?" Luo Feng smiled, shaking his head. With a thought, the four blades accelerated, instantly breaking the sound barrier, then five times the speed of sound... in a heartbeat, they exceeded ten times the speed of sound!

Although the iron-clad dragon’s speed was monstrous, approaching three times the speed of sound, it was no match for blades moving ten times faster. It was overtaken in the blink of an eye. The constant clashing of blades against scales erupted in a shower of sparks. The immense force sent the dragon stumbling, and it soon felt agonizing pain in its limbs.

The flying blades burrowed through the shattered scales, shredding flesh and bone. The next moment, with a howl of pain, the iron-clad dragon crashed into a wall, turning it into ruins. Its massive body convulsed, momentarily robbed of the strength to move.

Luo Feng retracted the blades, which flew back to his side. Since the mission assigned by 'Bai' was to defeat the dragon, he did not kill it.

"Bai, take this iron-clad dragon."

Inside his internal space, Baichen moved his mind, pulling the iron-clad dragon—now unable to resist with its tendons severed—into the space.

Collection +1!

"Now for the dragon eggs." Luo Feng flashed toward the depths of the supermarket, toward the lair.

*Roar! Roar!*

Seeing two early-stage Lord-level Fire-Scaled Three-Trident Boars and dozens of mid-to-high-level beast-soldier-level guards protecting the nest, Luo Feng’s eyes were cold. He didn't hold back against these monsters. The four flying blades swished through the air, cutting through the beasts like wheat in a harvest. Even the two Fire-Scaled Three-Trident Boars stood no chance, their brains turned to pulp by the blades before they could react.

Baichen simply had to handle the collection.

Monster carcasses, dragon eggs, and the iron-clad dragon’s collection of spoils—combat suits, weapons, and other relics of the martial artists the dragon had slain. Anything the dragon deemed worthy of keeping as a trophy had belonged to a Warlord-level powerhouse. This was a testament to the iron-clad dragon's terrifying strength.

"If this dragon hadn't just given birth and suffered a decline in strength, I doubt I could have used it to practice my blade and footwork," Luo Feng reflected. Without the boost from the Mammoth Particles, his martial artist strength was merely that of a decent mid-level Warlord. Even with the boost, he was only a strong high-level Warlord, not quite at the pinnacle.

A prime iron-clad dragon could go toe-to-toe with a top-tier Warlord in single combat. To engage in close-quarters combat with one at its peak—even with a flying blade for support—was a risk Luo Feng wouldn't dare take. While the blades were fast, the dragon’s tail strikes were just as lethal. Movement speed and attack speed were different things. One wrong move, and the impact of that tail would be disastrous.

"Hm? They're here?" Luo Feng’s expression tightened.

Nengliangduo, who had been monitoring the exterior, sent a telepathic warning. The human and the beast had reached the vicinity of the Carrefour supermarket.