Chapter 3516: The Boarkin’s Challenge

With the way the beastkin had surrounded them and the clear expectation in their eyes, Lin Mu knew there was no room to maneuver out of this.

This was their land.

And on their land, their customs ruled.

Lin Mu raised a hand calmly, his gaze fixed on the boar beastkin hovering ahead. "Before we proceed," he said evenly, "clarify the rules of this challenge."

The boar beastkin threw his head back and laughed, the sound rough and grating, like stone grinding against stone.

"What rules?" he said. "A challenge is a challenge. A fight. Me versus the beast."

His tusks glinted as he grinned viciously. "Until one of us cannot stand."

Lin Mu’s eyes narrowed slightly as he released his immortal sense and examined the man more closely. The boar beastkin’s aura was thick and heavy, dense with accumulated power. There was no mistaking it.

Fourth Tribulation Stage of the Immortal Realm.

Strong, even among beastkin.

Lin Mu then shifted his attention to Little Shrubby.

Third Tribulation Stage.

On paper, the boar beastkin had the advantage.

But Lin Mu knew better.

Little Shrubby’s lineage, his lightning and flame affinities, and most importantly his speed, placed him far above ordinary beasts or cultivators at the same stage. Shrubby had fought opponents stronger than this boar kin before and had lived to boast about it afterward.

There was no real danger.

Only pride was on the line.

Lin Mu nodded. "Very well. We accept."

At his signal, he stepped down from Little Shrubby’s back. Cattaleya landed beside him with a heavy thud, her expression openly entertained. Meng Bai followed more cautiously, while Daoist Chu floated down with his hands tucked into his sleeves.

The surrounding beastkin watched every movement with sharp eyes, muscles tense.

The boar beastkin turned and barked something in a guttural language. Immediately, the ring of beastkin widened, retreating several hundred meters to give space. None of them protested.

This was his fight.

Little Shrubby lowered his massive head and glanced back at Lin Mu. "How much should I hold back?"

Lin Mu considered it for a moment, then said calmly, "Do not cripple him. A decisive defeat is enough."

Shrubby nodded. "Got it."

The boar beastkin clearly understood the exchange, even if he did not grasp the meaning behind Lin Mu’s calm confidence. He snorted loudly, stomping one hoofed foot in midair.

"Talking already?" he sneered. "You should worry about surviving."

"Begin," Lin Mu said.

The boar beastkin roared and exploded forward, Qi erupting from his body like a shockwave. The air around him twisted under the force of his charge, his massive fists drawn back as he aimed straight for Little Shrubby’s head.

But before he even crossed ten meters—

WHOOSH

Little Shrubby vanished.

All that remained was a trail of fire and crackling lightning ripping through the air.

The boar beastkin’s eyes widened.

ROAR!

A thunderous roar erupted from behind him.

Little Shrubby reappeared in an instant, his massive body materializing with terrifying precision. His paw came down in a brutal arc, claws half a meter long gleaming with lightning and flame as they tore through the air.

The boar beastkin barely managed to react.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest, Qi surging defensively and forming a thick, shimmering barrier over his forearms.

The impact was catastrophic.

BOOM!

The shockwave rippled outward, flattening trees and blasting apart branches. The boar beastkin was hurled backward like a meteor, smashing through the canopy and flying nearly a full kilometer before crashing into the forest floor.

The ground cratered where he landed.

He groaned, coughing up a mouthful of blood as he staggered to his feet. Smoke rose from his arms, his bristled fur blackened and smoldering. Burn marks ran across his forearms where Little Shrubby’s claws had struck.

He stared at them in disbelief.

"...You burned me?" he muttered hoarsely.

Among the watching beastkin, murmurs broke out.

"That fur is like steel..."

"He blocked it and still took damage?"

"That speed..."

The boar beastkin let out an enraged bellow, his aura flaring violently. "Again!"

He launched himself forward, this time slamming both fists together as he charged, Qi condensing around his body like a battering ram.

Little Shrubby disappeared again.

The boar beastkin snarled, spinning in place, but it was too late.

A vortex of flames erupted around him, spiraling upward in a blazing column. Lightning crackled within the inferno, arcs snapping against his body and disrupting his Qi.

"AARRGH!"

The boar beastkin screamed as his defenses faltered. He burst out of the flames a moment later, his body scorched, patches of fur burned completely away. Half of his mohawk was gone, reduced to smoldering ash.

He panted heavily, eyes wide now with shock rather than arrogance.

The watching beastkin fell silent.

No one had expected this.

Little Shrubby did not pause.

He became a blur once more.

He struck from every direction, claws flashing, jaws snapping, lightning bolts hammering down and fire washing over the boar beastkin again and again. Each hit came before the man could even fully recover from the last.

The boar beastkin swung wildly, his attacks powerful enough to shatter trees and split the ground, but they struck nothing but afterimages.

CRACK!

A bolt of lightning slammed into his back, locking his muscles.

WHAM!

A flaming paw smashed into his side, sending him tumbling.

He tried to roar again, to summon his will and muster his Qi, but another strike knocked the air from his lungs.

Five minutes passed like this.

Five brutal, humiliating minutes.

By the end, the boar beastkin’s aura had dimmed significantly. His breathing was ragged, his movements sluggish. His once pristine battle form was now covered in scorch marks, torn fur, and deep bruises.

Lin Mu watched calmly, then raised his hand. "That is enough."

Little Shrubby heard him immediately.

He vanished one final time.

WHOOSH

The boar beastkin barely had time to register the sudden pressure before Little Shrubby appeared directly in front of him. Massive jaws closed around his torso, carefully but firmly.

Then Shrubby ran.

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