"No!!!"
Facing the massive hammer plummeting directly toward her, no matter how powerful the woman's cultivation might be, she couldn't help but let out a shrill scream.
Because that hammer was not only enormous, but also contained a terrifying pressure. If it struck her, she would be hammered into a bloody, mangled mess — something she absolutely could not accept.
"It's time."
But what the woman didn't know was that, at the moment she faced certain death, someone had been hiding in the shadows the entire time, watching and waiting for this exact opportunity. And that person was none other than Chu Feng.
From the old couple, Chu Feng had already learned a rough idea of what was going on. So since he had chosen to save the woman, he naturally picked the most critical moment to act — because only then would she remember his debt of gratitude all the more.
"Whoosh"
With the moment arrived, Chu Feng held nothing back. His figure shot forward like a flood dragon soaring through the air, lightning flickering in his eyes as his aura surged to the eighth level of Heaven Martial.
Chu Feng descended from the sky, planting himself directly in front of the woman. Then, clenching his fist with one hand, he threw a single punch straight at the oncoming hammer.
"Boom!" The punch landed, and heavenly force surged outward. The terrifying hammer was utterly pulverized by Chu Feng's fist.
"Roar!" At the same time, the demon beast let out a miserable howl, forced back repeatedly by the residual force of Chu Feng's strike.
Having succeeded with his first blow, Chu Feng attacked once more. His overwhelming eighth-level Heaven Martial pressure exploded outward, transforming into an invisible net that enveloped the demon beast.
"Whimper, whimper~~~"
Chu Feng's pressure was simply too powerful — far beyond what even a ninth-level Heaven Martial cultivator could muster. Under this crushing aura, the demon beast, which was only at the seventh level of Heaven Martial, became like a mouse cornered by a cat, squealing in panic and scrambling to flee in every direction.
But Chu Feng wouldn't give it the chance. With a slight shift of his will, the intensity of his pressure instantly increased, continuously compressing against the demon beast, penetrating through flesh and bone, reaching all the way to its very soul.
Under this terrifying suppression, the beast's eyes flickered, and its wild thrashing gave way to sluggish movements. Its body began to shrink — from the size of a small mountain down to that of a tiger, and in the end, it obediently lay flat on the ground, completely deflated.
In this moment, this demon beast bore none of its former imposing aura. It lay before Chu Feng like a terrified little creature, not daring to move a muscle. With just a single thought, Chu Feng had thoroughly subdued it.
"This..."
Seeing this scene, the woman was utterly astonished. She had been certain she was going to die, yet she never could have imagined that a figure would suddenly appear before her and subdue this berserk beast with such overwhelming power.
"Whoosh whoosh"
Just as Chu Feng finished subduing the beast, two figures erupted from the distance at breakneck speed. The pair was none other than the old couple.
"How dare you, you reckless brute, harm our young miss!!"
The couple never expected someone to appear out of nowhere and interfere. But regardless, Chu Feng had clearly ruined their plans. So the moment they appeared, they launched a surprise attack, intent on killing Chu Feng on the spot.
"Hmph." Although the old couple were also at the eighth level of Heaven Martial, in Chu Feng's eyes, they were utterly insignificant. He didn't even spare them a glance — just let out a cold snort and waved his sleeve, releasing a wave of heavenly force.
The force appeared gentle on the surface, but concealed a brutal power within. Caught completely off guard, the old couple took a severe blow and were sent flying hundreds of meters before they managed to stabilize themselves, barely avoiding serious injury.
What they didn't realize was that Chu Feng had shown them mercy. Had he not held back, he could have easily killed them both in that instant.
Yet the couple still hadn't grasped this, assuming they had simply been careless. So after being repelled by Chu Feng, instead of retreating, they let out a fierce shout, gathering strength within their bodies, preparing to launch an even more powerful assault.
"Uncle Sha, Aunt Bi, don't touch him. He just saved me — he's my benefactor." Just then, the middle-aged woman spoke up.
Hearing these words, the old couple froze. Though unwilling, they couldn't very well attack again at this point, so they hurried over to the woman and put on expressions of worry and self-reproach: "Miss, are you all right? This is our fault — we shouldn't have left you here by yourself."
"Thanks to this gentleman's intervention, or my fate would truly have been uncertain." The woman glanced at them without any real reproach, then walked over to Chu Feng.
She first cast a meaningful look at the demon beast — which had tried to kill her moments ago but now lay docilely on the ground — and then bowed to Chu Feng, saying with deep gratitude: "I am Li Chan. Thank you, sir, for saving my life. May I ask your name?"
"Merciless." Chu Feng didn't even look at the woman properly. He simply crouched down and stroked the demon beast.
Although the beast had been completely subdued by Chu Feng's pressure and was as docile as a sheep, Chu Feng could still sense the killing intent within it.
So as he stroked the beast, he was actually channeling his mental power into its body, probing for the root of its problem. And now he had his answer — this demon beast had been given a special drug, which was why it had lost its reason and developed a thirst for blood.
"So your name is Merciless. What a rather unusual name."
"Still, I truly have you to thank for stepping in just now, or I might well have perished here. If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to invite you to my Li residence for a brief rest, as a small way of repaying my debt of gratitude." Li Chan wasn't put off by Chu Feng's cold demeanor at all. Instead, she continued to look at him with an expression of heartfelt appreciation.
Seeing Li Chan's genuinely courteous attitude, Chu Feng finally turned to face her, giving her another once-over. He noticed that although Li Chan was already middle-aged, her appearance was remarkably well-preserved, and her figure was quite admirable — not only alluring, but carrying an air of mature elegance. If not for the fact that Chu Feng had used his mental power to determine her actual age, one would never have guessed she was a middle-aged woman just by looking at her.
It had to be said that Li Chan's mature, alluring beauty could certainly captivate plenty of men.
But unfortunately, she wasn't Chu Feng's type. In truth, very few women could meet Chu Feng's standards these days, let alone a woman past her prime.
So Chu Feng simply gave Li Chan a brief look before speaking: "There's no need for repayment. I didn't save you — I just noticed something strange about this beast. I was afraid that after killing you, it would go on to hunt others. If it killed cultivators, that would be one thing, but if innocent civilians fell victim to it, that would be far too unfair."