27-A Terrifying Skill, Slaying a Gold-Rank Powerhouse!
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Bending his legs, Su Mo launched himself forward to close the distance, then immediately activated the skill [Mountain Collapse, Earth Shatter].
In an instant, a yellowish-brown light enveloped Su Mo's entire body. With the Zhanmadao in hand, he swung it forward, unleashing a conical ripple that spread outward.
Wherever the ripple passed, the ground collapsed entirely. The two speed-type awakened individuals trying to escape, along with their nearby companions, had their bodies explode in an instant.
A thick mist of blood filled the air, the pungent smell of gore drifting into the distance.
To achieve such a result with a single strike was something even Su Mo hadn't anticipated.
According to the skill description, it dealt massive damage to enemies within a forward cone, along with stun and knockdown effects.
When he tested it in the Wild Boar Forest dungeon, he had only used it in empty air, never in actual combat.
He hadn't expected this "massive damage" to be so overwhelming.
Silver-rank awakened individuals, whose levels were generally 30 or more above his own, were instantly killed by a single skill.
Su Mo hadn't fully considered just how terrifying his strength attribute, which exceeded a thousand points, truly was.
Let alone these ordinary awakened individuals—even true geniuses rarely managed to break a single attribute past a thousand points at the Silver rank.
Don't be fooled by the bosses Su Mo fought, with health pools of 10,000 or single attributes exceeding a thousand.
Those were bosses, after all!
In reality, if a boss's attributes were on par with humans, there'd be no need to risk life and limb forming teams to take them down.
Of course, that's assuming equal levels.
If the Gold-rank powerhouses of the real world fought the Tusk Duke or the Fear Scarecrow, it'd likely be over in just a few moves.
After all, even though they were all Gold-rank, those powerhouses were at least Level 60, while the Furious Tusk Duke was only Level 20, and the Fear Scarecrow a mere Level 10.
No matter how large the gap in attributes or stats, the level difference alone would be enough to bridge it.
On the other side, seven people had initially planned to flee as well, but witnessing Su Mo wipe out a six-man squad with a single slash left them utterly terrified.
"Big brother, big brother, don't kill us! We surrender!"
"Big brother, we surrender…"
In an instant, two of them dropped to their knees, kowtowing repeatedly in Su Mo's direction, begging for mercy.
Seeing this, the others quickly followed suit, kneeling as well.
However, from the moment Su Mo made his move, he had no intention of letting them live.
Raising the Zhanmadao once more, the yellowish-brown light flashed briefly across his body. In their despairing gazes, the saber came crashing down.
"Stop!"
**Boom!**
Before the saber could fully descend, Su Mo was sent flying back hundreds of meters.
Before he could even climb to his feet, another beam of golden light struck him.
This time, it blasted him more than 80 meters into the ground.
"You dared to kill my son! Today, I don't care which family you're from—you'll pay with your life!"
The aged voice carried a hint of madness as beams of golden light continued to rain down on Su Mo relentlessly.
Since awakening, Su Mo had never been beaten like this. Even with his absolute defense, he never dodged attacks.
Typically, his enemies could only land a single hit before he cut them down.
But now, his body was still being smashed deeper into the ground, and he hadn't even caught a glimpse of his assailant's face.
After more than ten seconds of relentless bombardment, Su Mo had lost count of how many times he'd been struck.
By now, he had been driven 300 meters into the earth.
As the last flicker of golden light faded, Su Mo pushed off with his feet, leaping over 200 meters upward.
"You're still not dead? What kind of monster are you?!
But I don't care what kind of monster you are—today, you die!"
An aged face appeared at the edge of the crater. In his hand, a fireball radiating intense heat rapidly took shape.
Su Mo narrowed his eyes, locking onto his opponent. With a powerful push from his legs, he leaped again, raising the Zhanmadao high as a brilliant white light erupted from his body.
The skill [Devastating Strike] activated instantly, tripling his strength attribute to a terrifying 3,024 points.
A fearsome wave of saber energy surged forward, slicing the blazing fireball in two the moment they collided.
The saber's momentum didn't waver, streaking straight toward the old man.
The old man's pupils dilated sharply before contracting in panic. Dozens of golden lights flashed rapidly across his body.
**Boom!**
The terrifying saber energy struck the old man, accompanied by a series of sharp crack crack sounds as his defensive gear shattered into dust.
When the final shield-type equipment broke apart, a thunderous explosion rang out, kicking up a massive cloud of dust on the surface.
Only then did Su Mo land on the ground. Glancing at his clothes, now tattered beyond recognition, he tightened his grip on the Zhanmadao and hurried toward the explosion site.
Even with an attack like that, Su Mo wasn't certain he could one-shot a Level 20 Gold-rank boss, let alone a Gold-rank powerhouse above Level 60.
He was well aware of the difference between a Level 20 Gold-rank boss and a Level 60 Gold-rank awakened individual.
From what he'd seen, his opponent was a mage—mages typically had fragile defenses and were weak in close combat.
So naturally, Su Mo aimed to finish him off while he was vulnerable. If you don't uproot the weed, it grows back with the spring breeze.
If this old man didn't die, Su Mo wouldn't feel at ease.
Besides, his thirst for killing wasn't limited to monsters—it also earned him attribute points.
Earlier, he had killed 16 Silver-rank awakened individuals above Level 40, each granting him 3 free attribute points each.
It wasn't much, but it added up to nearly 50 points.
If he could take down this Level 60 Gold-rank awakened individual as well, his attributes might break through another 200 points.
[Mountain Collapse, Earth Shatter]
As he closed the distance slightly, Su Mo activated [Mountain Collapse, Earth Shatter] once more.
**Boom!**
The ground fractured inch by inch, stretching into the distance. As the dust settled, the old man's figure came into view.
The old man gripped a fiery red staff with both hands, his eyes practically spitting fire as he glared at Su Mo.
A ghastly wound across his chest, nearly severing him in half, was shocking to behold.
He's gravely injured? In that case, you'll become my attribute points!
The thought flashed through Su Mo's mind, and without a shred of hesitation, he charged forward again.
Golden fireballs, white telekinetic waves, green poison gas, lightning—various energies flew at him in an attempt to stop his approach.
Yet Su Mo had no intention of dodging. He barreled straight ahead, determined to strike while the old man was weak.
**Boom!**
The Zhanmadao clashed fiercely with the fiery red staff. The immense force sent the old man flying back over 20 meters.
Had his opponent not been a mage but a defense-type or even a strength-type awakened individual, Su Mo's 1,000-point strength might not have been enough.
**Pfft!**
The old man spat out another mouthful of blood. Before he could stand, Su Mo was already in front of him.
"Stop!"
A frantic voice called out from the sky.
Without that voice, Su Mo might have paused to ask something. But the moment he heard the "Stop!" he didn't hesitate—veins bulging on his hand, he swung the saber, and an aged head rolled to the ground.
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