Chapter 172: No Match

“Go down now, and I will not kill you!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng flapped its wings and hovered in the air as it spoke.

“How could that be? The treasure is right before my eyes. Expecting me to return empty-handed is just a dream!” Xu Feng sneered.

Others might fear the Golden-Winged Great Peng, but Xu Feng did not. In his previous life, he had seen all kinds of beast-like monsters. If he could fight, he fought; if he could not, he ran. If he could not run, at worst, it meant death. The Golden-Winged Great Peng had only just reached Four Stars—even if it was an ancient creature, what was so remarkable about it?

The apocalypse was an era of great struggle. If you did not fight or seize opportunities, you would be trampled underfoot like mud.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng was filled with rage. Its body gleamed with golden light as it stood majestically in the sky. Usually, when it encountered other beastkin, even those of higher levels, they would show it respect and not dare to defy it. Now, this human—the fact that it was sparing his life was already giving him immense face, doing him a favor. Yet, he had rejected it.

“If not for the High Priest’s order, and the need for your blood to open the Celestial Garden, how could I let you act so arrogantly!” the Golden-Winged Great Peng thought resentfully.

“Since you do not know what’s good for you, do not blame me. Even if I cannot kill you today, I will seriously injure you to vent my hatred,” the Golden-Winged Great Peng muttered under its breath.

“If you want to fight, then fight. Stop wasting words!” Xu Feng gripped his Flying Sword tightly and shouted loudly.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng laughed heartily, its face full of mockery, and said, “Since you seek death, I will grant your wish!”

With a wave of its right hand, the Trident flew back into its grasp. With a whoosh, it flapped its wings slightly and charged toward Xu Feng.

The Trident gleamed with a silvery light, radiating a dazzling brilliance like a full moon, emanating a mysterious energy.

Boom~

The Trident and the Flying Sword collided, producing a deafening sound. The Golden-Winged Great Peng somersaulted in the air and was thrown backward. Xu Feng retreated repeatedly until he stepped on the edge of the mountain cliff. One more step back, and he would fall.

“What immense strength!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng’s gaze grew colder, and killing intent gradually rose in its heart. Originally, it had only planned to seriously injure Xu Feng, but now it wanted to kill him.

The Great Peng spread its wings and dove forward, its eyes turning blood-red as it glared furiously, wishing it could sever Xu Feng’s head immediately.

“Haha, the Golden-Winged Great Peng is nothing special after all. There’s nothing remarkable about it,” Xu Feng laughed heartily.

“The dignity of the Golden-winged Roc clan cannot be insulted by you!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng was enraged. It swung the Trident, cleaving toward Xu Feng with force enough to split mountains and shatter rocks. A powerful wave of energy surged toward Xu Feng.

Though he spoke dismissively of the Golden-Winged Great Peng, in his heart, Xu Feng regarded it as the most powerful enemy he had faced so far. Even the Three-Star Lord Rank Flood Dragon from the Village of Sacrifice would likely be inferior to the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

After all, the Golden-Winged Great Peng was a legendary ancient creature. Unless the Flood Dragon evolved into a true divine dragon, it would stand no chance against the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

For a moment, Xu Feng felt immense pressure.

“Flying Sword, strike!” The long sword left his hand and shot toward the Great Peng.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng roared, and the Trident emitted an inexplicable divine glow, releasing an energy wave that instilled fear and trembling.

Boom~

Another earth-shattering collision shattered the surrounding clouds. The beastkin climbing the mountain looked up and saw a golden light and a silver light chasing and clashing in the air, producing thunderous noises. The suddenly risen mountain seemed unable to withstand the powerful energy impacts and began to tremble slightly. Rocks fell continuously, and the climbing monsters and beastkin were terrified, fearing the mountain would collapse. Having climbed three to four hundred meters high, falling now would mean death or severe injury.

“That’s the Golden-Winged Great Peng, Kuwa. I once attended his Awakening Ceremony…”

“Xu Feng can actually fight the Golden-Winged Great Peng. He is truly powerful!”

“He’s a fierce one, able to contend evenly with the Golden-Winged Great Peng. There’s no way we can get the treasure if we go up. We might as well retreat…”

…

For a moment, many of the beastkin climbing the mountain lost heart and gave up upon seeing Xu Feng fighting the Golden-Winged Great Peng in the sky. They stopped climbing and began descending instead.

The Flying Sword was extremely fast. Although the Trident in the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s hand was no ordinary item, it was slightly inferior to the Flying Sword. After countless collisions, two tips of the Trident had shattered, and the blade was full of gaps. It seemed a Gold Quality weapon was about to be rendered useless.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng felt as though its heart was bleeding. This Trident was a Gold Grade item it had worked hard to obtain, yet it was being ruined by Xu Feng.

“Xu Feng, today you will die here!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng’s eyes blazed with fury, and with each flap of its wings, there was a faint sound of Thunder.

Xu Feng clasped his hands together and raised them above his head.

“Flying Sword, strike!”

The three-foot-long sword shot skyward and then slashed down fiercely toward the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

Like a bolt of lightning descending from the heavens, a massive sword shadow blotted out the sky. Before this strike, even heaven and earth seemed to lose their color.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng felt a tremor in its heart. Looking at the enormous sword shadow, the feathers on its neck stood on end. It trusted its intuition—this strike posed too great a threat.

For the first time, the Golden-Winged Great Peng began to retreat before Xu Feng. This retreat filled it with humiliation from the depths of its soul. It had retreated before a human—was it even inferior to a human?

In the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s heart, humans were merely food, whether in ancient times before the apocalypse or after. Its proud self-esteem was shattered before Xu Feng.

“Xu Feng!” the Golden-Winged Great Peng snarled, its voice filled with resentment.

The sword shadow grazed past, cutting off a few of its flight feathers. In the air, the Golden-Winged Great Peng was the true king. Even with the Flying Sword Technique, Xu Feng could not match it.

“Leave! Today, I spare your life. If you dare trespass again, I will surely cut you down with my sword!” Xu Feng’s voice was loud, echoing throughout the mountain. The three-foot Flying Sword was firmly gripped in his hand. Under the fierce wind, he looked heroic and spirited, his eyes bright as he stared at the disheveled Golden-Winged Great Peng in mid-air.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng did not know how many times Xu Feng could unleash that strike, but it could not and dared not take the risk. That sword strike could kill it. As a being that existed only in ancient myths, how could it possibly perish here?

“Human, just you wait. Sooner or later…” The Golden-Winged Great Peng’s eyes blazed with angry flames. If looks could kill, Xu Feng would have been slain over a hundred times by now.

“Are you leaving or not?” Xu Feng took a step forward, his face full of killing intent. The Flying Sword in his hand buzled and vibrated slightly, as if eager for action.

If the Golden-Winged Great Peng did not leave, Xu Feng dared not open the Treasure Chest. Opening it would require a few seconds of immobility, leaving him vulnerable to sneak attacks.

“Hmph, I’m leaving. Remember today!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng turned and flew away. At the foot of the mountain, everyone was shocked. The Golden-Winged Great Peng was actually no match for Xu Feng and had been driven away.