Martial Arts Master

As compared to the young Amon and newly-promoted Constantine, Sathah was way more seasoned as a Physical Invulnerability Mighty One. If he was based in China, even if he couldn’t win a title, he would certainly be a First-Pin. Dextrous and agile, he took on both of them without showing any signs of defeat. Still, he was at a disadvantage.

Flames spurted from his fists and disturbed the air around him. Even the environment had been affected, with scarlet rain falling like a meteor shower. While hindering his enemy’s movement, six even wings rapidly formed on his back. The wings, scorching and steaming, were made up of tumbling flames. He looked like an angel walking on Earth.

When all six wings had fully taken shape, Sathah violently jerked his back without hesitation. The scarlet feathers whooshed towards Constantine and Amon like arrows.

The feather arrows glowed red and exploded instantly on contact. The ceaseless explosions were similar to hundreds of RPG being fired at once. It wasn’t as powerful due to the scattering, but certainly spectacular.

Sathah’s signature ability— Fire Angel’s Rage!

Boom, boom, boom!

Clustered beams shot out and torched the air in a tempestuous sea of flames. Neither Amon nor Constantine dared to take it head-on. They backed off, evading and defending.

Right now! Sathah stepped into the floor, shattering the cement ground, and bolted forward like a phantom.

Suddenly, a gloomy light flashed, then turned scarlet. In a breath’s time, Constantine was tailing Sathah. His full-speed sprint was like man-made lightning, faster than even a senior Demigod!

Suddenly, Sathah drove his feet into the ground and stopped in his tracks, as though he wasn’t actually running away.

Ka-ka-ka-ka-ka! All of his joints crack at once. He suddenly turned and punched at the nearing Constantine. All of his inertia was converted to accelerate that punch.

In a whoom, his fist was enveloped by a white-hot flame.

The inertia gave Constantine only one option. He threw a right palm, grabbing for the enemy’s fist with dark-glowing fingers.

Boom! The white-hot flames on Sathah’s fist exploded prematurely and diverted his wrist. In a phantom-like motion, he avoided Constantine’s grab and caught his enemy in the abdomen!

He was feigning to flee for the counterattack!

Earlier, he had realized Constantine’s horrifying speed. Thus he knew he would be caught up to and delayed if he focused solely on escaping. Then, it would all over when Amon and the Mummy engaged him in a pincer attack.

If he wanted to retreat, he had to first attack! He had to seriously wound Dark Night Bat to stop him from chasing!

For that, Sathah was willing to use the Hassan-e Sabbāh’s Assassination Technique!

In a moment, the senior Demigod had demonstrated his wits, determination, and power!

Every Physical Invulnerability Mighty One lived up to their name!

Bam!

Flesh and blood burst apart, revealing his intestines that wriggled like snakes. Constantine looked incredulously at his gaping wound. Sathah, without even looking at him, delivered a back-kick at his crotch with legs taut like steel.

If the kick connected, he would borrow strength and run forward to flee for real!

Pomph! Sathah’s right foot missed. His heart tightened. A milky white light burst forth and dazzled him.

He sensed that the flaming rain around him had been fully smothered, as though it had been put out by powder or ice water.

Sh*t! Before his right foot was fully withdrawn, a white-hot jet stream erupted from his left foot and hit the ground.

Borrowing strength from that, he went forward and leapt far away.

A figure flashed past. Constantine had cut him off. He was regenerating at a staggering speed, his fractured intestines automatically wriggling and reconnecting. Flesh and blood were growing and gathering at his gaping wound. It seemed like he would be good as new in a few seconds, but for his clothes.

“You dare harm the Savior!” he shrieked in rage. His shrilling voice echoed. He grabbed at Sathah with bulging palms.

Constantine, shrouded in a white, holy glow, was a stark contrast from his evil and sinister appearance. His eyes that had a natural rueful look were presently dripping with scorn.

Damn it, thought Sathah. He knew he had to go out. The pores on his right arm expanded, from which spurted white-hot flames with hints of blue. It gave his punch incredible speed and power.

At the same time, it caused his surroundings to burst into flames, weaving a fiery web.

The fiery web shrunk quickly, condensing into a brutal, palm-sized fireball. It struck Constantine from the side.

Constantine, ignoring the fireball, clenched his outstretched hand into a fist. Gouts of blood seeped out of his pores, flowing as if it contained life, and turned into an eldritch glove. His fist collided into Sathah’s.

Boom!

The flames dimmed, the blood glove scattered. Constantine took a few steps back from the impact. His shoulders were mangled in flesh and blood after getting hit by the brutal fireball.

Sathah stood firmly. He wanted to finish things off by striking again, but a shapeless force that came out of nowhere pushed him back. The air around his shoulders exploded eerily, ripping his general uniform apart and damaging his skin, muscles, and fascias.

What’s going on? It was the first time Sathah encountered something this odd, and for a moment he was startled.

“Those who harm incur retribution!” shrilled Constantine. He moved to entangle Sathah again, only the milky glow around him had dimmed considerably.

That was when Amon caught up as well. Sathah could only give up on the thought of escaping, holding a tough defense against the two Demigods.

…

On the building’s rooftop, Ren Li’s eyes were sparkling. She was raring to go with her hand on the hilt of her sword.

“It’s 3 on 3!” she suggested softly, turning to Lou Cheng.

Lou Cheng thought about it, then shook his head gravely.

“Forget it, there will be other chances. That’s most likely Dark Night Bat, the American. If I can’t finish him off here, I fear that he might take revenge on Ke Ke, eh, my girlfriend. Plus, there isn’t bad blood between us. Sparring is fine, but I have qualms about killing him. Well, in the situation Nile’s in, it’s hard for us outsiders to judge who’s on the right side. It might come back to bite us if we act rashly.”

It would be a pain in the ass to be mortal enemies with a Physical Invulnerability One. For them, if they are prepared to lose everything, killing weak martial artists and the defenseless is a walk in the park. At most, they would pay blood for blood if they fail to escape afterward.

Earlier, when Lou Cheng thwarted the Mummy, they were both acting for their own causes, so it didn’t leave too much animosity. Had his enemy sworn revenge on him, he would not only have to worry about Ke Ke, but also his kiths and kins. After all, he couldn’t be by their sides protecting them at all times.

On the same note, the enemy would also have to consider these things when dealing with Lou Cheng.

Ren Li was momentarily silent. Then, pursing her lips tightly, she nodded.

“Fine.” She looked reluctantly at the battlefield. “Then let’s watch a little longer.”

“Sure,” agreed Lou Cheng readily.

…

The fight was at its climax. The Mummy was fighting his last opponent. Trapped in a reactive position, Sathah was boiling with rage. His hair stood on its ends.

“Die with me!” he roared, as though a fuse was blown within him.

Boom!

A massive fireball rose from where they fought, expanding into a mushroom cloud and silencing the white noise. It was loud yet quiet.

Self-sacrifice! He was planning to take the opponent down with him!

Booom!

The accumulated noises shook the building. Cracks formed on the walls. Pieces of the ceiling peeled off.

Sathah’s executing a killer move by self-detonating? Lou Cheng and Ren Li exchanged a glance. From the edge of the flames emerged two bolting figures. One was Constantine, the other Lieutenant General Amon. Covered in dust and dirt, they were both gravely wounded. Scorch marks and dents matted their skin, their arms drooping unnaturally. The former couldn’t recover in time even with his incredible self-regenerative ability. The milky glow around him had fully dissipated.

A third figure sprang out and fled into the distance. It was no other than General Sathah.

It was hard to tell that he was a person with his burnt skin mixed with blood and dirt. He avoided death by controlling the power of his Self-sacrifice, escaping with mortal wounds. Right as the injured Constantine and Amon let their guards down thinking it’s over, he broke through the encirclement and made a run. The sly move of an experienced one.

Thud, thud, thud! He ran at top speed, paying no attention to his grave injuries.

Suddenly, a hand in yellowed bandage shot out from the ground and grabbed his left ankle. Then came another hand clamping his right foot.

The Mummy had caught up after finishing off his last opponent!

Under normal circumstances, the friction in the sand would prevent him from catching up to Sathah. However, his opponent, presently gravely wounded and thoroughly weakened, failed to outrun him.

Sathah jerked his feet, but his opponent didn’t budge at all, as though he was forged with metal.

Constantine approached at top speed. He finally gave up. Closing his eyes, he looked up and shouted the holy name.

He then began burning.

Boom!

The explosion was even more intense than the one before. Sathah was reduced to mincemeat at once. His fingers, flesh, and blood flew and landed in every direction. Below him, the Mummy was nearly killed along with him. His bandages had been reduced to ashes, revealing burnt skin and a hand with only one finger. The bones in his arms were shattered completely.

After the second impact, Constantine’s clothes were in tatters. A third of his hair (but not a tinge of his grace) remained.

“I wouldn’t expect less from General Sathah,” puffed Amon, looking around.

The three Demigods almost let their opponent escape!

His wounds were the lightest out of the three, and he had troops to command. Knowing Constantine’s incredible regeneration, he nonchalantly excused himself and left for his military base.

The Mummy emerged from the ground and hobbled to the nearest plaza. Constantine ambled by his side, stretching his neck.

“What a dangerous fella! The Pharaoh should have dealt with him himself!” he complained.

“Relax, he will take care of the last target himself,” gasped the Mummy.

Lou Cheng and Ren Li retracted their gazes and squatted down with their backs towards the parapet. They eavesdropped on the conversation between them with their superhuman senses and amplifying techniques.

The building was, after all, only twelve stories!

“That’s good to hear,” said Constantine, massaging his temples. “I need a good break.”

The Mummy’s ‘lifeless’ nature made it possible for him to talk normally despite his injuries.

“Didn’t you want to take on Lou and Peng for their blood?”

Constantine didn’t simply suck blood. With a dying opponent’s energy, he could better steal their abilities. If he relied on blood alone, he would have a high chance of failing. Even if he did succeed, the effects wouldn’t be optimal.

It was different for the Savior’s blood on the Holy Grail. As someone who created a system of martial arts without referencing to his antecedents, he was by far too powerful. That’s why what remained of him remained fresh after two thousand years. If not for that, Constantine wouldn’t have succeeded. Still, he got much less out of it than expected.

Constantine smiled at his question.

“I have a lot more opportunities to deal with them. Take Lou for example. He frequently visits his girlfriend in Connecticut, so I’m not missing the chance. His girlfriend is granddaughter to two Terror Grades, I can make do with her blood too.”

“Aren’t you afraid of them taking revenge?” asked the Mummy, puzzled.

“My kith and kin are better off dead,” replied Constantine indifferently.

On the rooftop, Ren Li suddenly felt a piercing presence from Lou Cheng.

Her eyes twinkled. She clenched her fist and communicated through telepathy.

“Shall we do it?”

“Mhm!” said Lou Cheng, narrowing his eyes. He had made up his mind to hunt down the Dark Night Bat, even if he had to go to the ends of Earth.

“We take one each?” asked Ren Li through telepathy.

Lou Cheng pondered and shook his head.

“The Mummy’s heavily wounded. We will first take him down with a surprise attack!”

Things would be easy afterward!