IMMORTALITY STARTS WITH A GUN

Far from Water Tower City, near the camp where Liu Xing and his friends had stayed, lay the gigantic, severed head of a golden fish. Its eyes were dark and lifeless, and blood still gushed from the wound at its neck. Had the spirit beast still been alive, it would have witnessed the fierce battle raging before it.

Liu Xing's body was enhanced by the Lightning Cloak technique. He willed the invisibility to swallow the telltale signs of the crackling electricity around him. Although black smoke still gushed from his gut, revealing his location and movements, it did not shroud him completely. This meant his attacks, while not fully concealed, were slightly harder to predict. With sharp eyes focused wholly on his enemy, Liu Xing used his shield as a foothold to maneuver behind Ye Xuanhan. In a swift movement, he aimed his gun and fired six Exploding Fist bullets at once. The six bolts whistled through the air as his opponent kicked the ground hard, causing the blood pooling there to splash. When the bullets struck the ground, it exploded, turning the ground to mud and flinging blood everywhere. Not stopping, Liu Xing summoned his shield, kicked off it in midair, and launched himself to where Ye Xuanhan was landing.

Seeing him coming, Ye Xuanhan, his eyes sharp and shaded with fury, swung his red sword made purely of qi at him while Liu Xing brought his stone blade down. When the two weapons met, a spark ignited, and a ringing sound reverberated as the air rippled. With his body enhanced to its peak, Liu Xing pushed the red sword back, and a crack began to form on its blade.

Realizing his sword was inferior to Liu Xing's, Ye Xuanhan snarled and pulled it back, allowing Liu Xing's slash to pass him. He rotated his body and unleashed a horizontal slash aimed at Liu Xing's torso. The rotten, red qi construct overlapped with him, as if they were swinging the sword at the same time and doubling their power. When he saw the attack, Liu Xing took a step back, letting the red blade pass just centimeters from his chest. He then aimed his gun and pulled the trigger six times, unleashing six normal bullets at Ye Xuanhan's head. Ye Xuanhan saw them coming, and the left hand of the qi construct swept at the projectiles. But whether by luck or Ye Xuanhan's miscalculation, one bullet passed between the construct's index finger and thumb and struck Ye Xuanhan's forehead. The bullet didn't have enough power to pierce his skull, but the force snapped his head back as if he had been punched.

"If that had been an exploding bullet, you would be dead," taunted Liu Xing as he channeled potent qi into his stone blade. He knew that even an Exploding Fist bullet wouldn't kill him in one shot. However, his taunt worked as Ye Xuanhan snarled, kicked the ground, and swung his red sword like a beast.

Without wasting any more time, Liu Xing sent a crescent of purple qi forward. Instead of dodging, Ye Xuanhan slashed at the qi with his sword. The slash destroyed the attack, splitting the crescent of purple qi in two. However, the force pushed Ye Xuanhan back, and his feet dragged on the ground for a second.

Liu Xing seized the moment to activate his Exploding Lightning Missiles Technique and fired six curving bullets at Ye Xuanhan. Ye Xuanhan snarled angrily as he was forced to deflect the bullets, each of which successfully pushed him back upon impact. Liu Xing did not stop his assault. As he moved, slashing and shooting, he observed Ye Xuanhan, trying to discern his opponent's patterns and formulate a plan.

Ye Xuanhan was undoubtedly strong. His attacks were heavy, his speed was tremendous, and his technique was powerful. However, Liu Xing's power and speed were slightly better. His stone blade was superior to the red sword, and his bullets were a troublesome adversary for Ye Xuanhan. If this were a normal fight without a time constraint, Liu Xing would have opted to chip away at his opponent's defense until he inevitably triumphed. After all, he had immense qi reserves and could fight at this intensity for days. But since he had to end this quickly, his mind raced to find a way to achieve his goal.

As Ye Xuanhan launched a mighty thrust—one that tore a trail in the ground even though the sword moved through the air—Liu Xing summoned his turtle statue to block the attack and conceal himself. He realized that Ye Xuanhan was a close-combat specialist. Sure, his qi construct had considerable reach, and he could project a heavy and menacing aura, but the only attacks that truly threatened Liu Xing were his punches, kicks, and his red sword. In terms of range and firepower, Liu Xing was superior. Defensively, however, Ye Xuanhan was better, which meant that while Liu Xing's attacks landed more often, Ye Xuanhan needed fewer hits to defeat him.

Liu Xing slashed three times, sending three crescent waves of purple qi toward Ye Xuanhan in rapid succession. Ye Xuanhan punched the first one with his left hand, which was enhanced by a red aura and the overlapping fist of his qi construct. He dodged the second and jumped over the third, actually using it as a foothold to launch himself toward Liu Xing. He shouted and cursed, but Liu Xing ignored it, instead he jumped backward and sprayed Ye Xuanhan with Exploding Fist bullets.

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Since he had the range advantage, it was wise for him to keep his distance and observe Ye Xuanhan more closely. All he needed was one opportunity to turn the tide of the battle. Unfortunately, he released his control of the Eyes of Lightning just before killing the black snake; otherwise, he could have observed Ye Xuanhan more thoroughly.

Liu Xing attacked continuously, leaving no moment of idleness between them. Exploding bullets detonated repeatedly, creating a cloud of dust under the night sky, tearing up the ground, and destroying the few trees still standing. His bullets even landed on the severed fish head that witnessed their fight, making it explode and scatter chunks of meat and blood.

Throughout the fight, Liu Xing maintained his focus and tried to find the perfect opportunity, yet anxiety began to creep into his heart. While he was holding Ye Xuanhan back, he had left his friends alone and out of his sight. The black snake had been a technique from the man with the brush, but no such person was here. He feared that this fight was merely a distraction to allow another enemy to kidnap his friends. However, he could not let Ye Xuanhan catch his breath for even a moment. It was a fight to the death and killing him would ensure his and his friends' safety.

With eyes that shone with renewed focus and both hands gripping his weapons tightly, Liu Xing fought and observed. When he used the ground to launch himself, it shattered. When he summoned his turtle statue as a shield, it was blasted away, destroying trees or tearing a trench in the earth. His bullets either created craters or upturned the ground, transforming the battlefield into a pockmarked wasteland of deep, blood-filled holes.

Liu Xing was currently maneuvering in the air with his shield, moving in a rough circle and bombarding Ye Xuanhan below. His individual attacks weren't strong enough to kill Ye Xuanhan in one shot, but they couldn't be ignored. They forced Ye Xuanhan to slash, dodge, or deflect each one. When he had a spare moment, Liu Xing sent a giant crescent of purple qi at his opponent. This attack required considerably more effort from Ye Xuanhan to fend off. Liu Xing knew he was wearing the man down, but he needed a quick victory.

"Enough!" Ye Xuanhan shouted as he punched an Exploding Fist bullet. The explosion pushed him a single step back. "You're an annoying opponent! You're no fun to fight!" he snarled.

As he slashed another crescent of purple qi, Liu Xing decided to open his mouth. "For you, it seems a fun fight is one where you're winning. Seeing you now, dirty and caked with blood and mud, I understand why you think so," he snorted, just to taunt him. "It seems you're a loser who has never fought a stronger opponent."

The man's face twisted into a fury. He gathered all his qi into his left fist until the red energy swirling around it became almost black. The qi construct hovering near him fended off all of Liu Xing's attacks.

"It's because before fighting you, I fought ten spirit beasts!" Ye Xuanhan shouted.

Seeing that fist, Liu Xing knew it was an attack to be wary of. However, he didn't stop moving and sprayed him with bullets. He decided to taunt him more, hoping his emotions would create an opening. "And so did I. Do you think you're fighting me at my peak?" he snorted. "You're dead wrong."

Ye Xuanhan took a stance, but instead of aiming his charged fist at Liu Xing in the air, he pointed it at the ground. Then, with a mighty shout, he punched the earth where he stood, making it erupt high into the air like a volcano. Liu Xing jumped backward and landed on his shield tens of meters away, wondering what the hell Ye Xuanhan was doing. The attack did nothing aside from creating a gigantic cloud of dust.

At this thought, Liu Xing's eyes widened in surprise. "He's trying to conceal himself!"

With a hint of panic, Liu Xing focused his qi sense and tried to locate the man. He was afraid this was a diversion so Ye Xuanhan could speed toward his friends. He should have continued his attack despite the massive eruption.

For a single moment, before he could even locate him, he intended to rush to his friends' side. But then, he felt a huge amount of qi gush out from the center of the eruption. As the dust, dirt, and earth began to rain down, two giant, glowing eyes appeared inside the cloud.

"Liu Xing!" a deep and loud voice reverberated. Then, with a swipe of two giant hands, the figure cleared the dust around it, making its shape visible. "I'll kill you!"

It was a giant construct, made entirely of red qi. Between the glowing eyes of this massive, rotting form stood Ye Xuanhan, his face twisted in fury. "Die!" he shouted, as a giant red sword formed in his right hand. The sword was enormous. The sight reminded him of his fight with the white giant in the Twelve Sun Empire. Pressing his lips, Liu Xing held his weapons more tightly. His eyes narrowed. This technique was strong and terrifying, but it was not impossible to beat.