Chapter 11: Morale

With a bang, Lu Shan and Li Qi collided.

Li Qi immediately felt a sour ache in his shoulder; unlike the expected crushing defeat, the opponent remained completely still!

His skin sensation was already dulled, but this impact actually made him feel weak and powerless.

Most terrifyingly, Li Qi could see that the progress bar for his Ox Strength Technique's duration suddenly accelerated from 8% to 25%!

Just this one collision shortened the Ox Strength Technique's duration by nearly twenty percent!

Li Qi was shocked. Is Lu Shan that strong?

If he really were that strong, then the Paibo Gang would have been destroyed long ago; how could they have lasted until now?

However, he immediately noticed something.

Lu Shan also had two progress bars on him.

"Formation Enhancement: 84%."

"Charging: 56%."

The "Charging" bar was increasing rapidly, almost full.

Li Qi ignored the soreness in his body, forced himself to gather another breath, and headbutted Lu Shan.

Lu Shan seemed not to have expected Li Qi to recover his mobility so quickly and was forced to change his stance, being pushed back by Li Qi's headbutt.

Li Qi, seeing the opponent's "Charging" progress bar interrupted, breathed a sigh of relief.

However, the next "Attack: 100%" progress bar filled up instantly; he had no time to react at all!

Lu Shan's punch landed directly on Li Qi's nose.

Li Qi's skin was tough and thick now, so he didn't feel any pain.

No pain, but he was bleeding.

Nosebleed flowed out, and the Boat Towmen' faces showed surprise and they cheered, their initial panic greatly reduced.

After this happened, Li Qi immediately saw "Formation Enhancement: 84%" change to 78%.

It actually regressed!

Such a thing exists?

Li Qi immediately realized it was morale!

Whether it was forming a Formation, charging together, or the various situations just now, even tonight's march, all subtly exuded the aura of a military force.

Uncle Six and the others might not recognize the military aura, but he had witnessed several military parades and understood that imposing discipline, clearly distinguishing between a disorganized mob and a military Formation.

This Formation, although Li Qi didn't know where Lu Shan learned it, was probably related to the army.

Since it's related to morale...

Then, Li Qi ignored his nosebleed and decisively rolled away, escaping Lu Shan's attack range, then grabbed a Strongmen Gang Lifter within the military Formation.

He punched hard, directly smashing the opponent's head into his chest! It made a crisp, echoing thud.

Lu Shan saw this and immediately understood what Li Qi wanted to do.

"You dare!" he cursed, rushing forward violently, wanting to stop Li Qi.

But at the same time, Lu Shan was inwardly alarmed: how could this fellow's eyesight be so astonishing, able to discern the Formation's weakness at a glance?! He was just a Lifter; where did he get such insight?

But Li Qi, relying on his tough and thick skin, took a punch from the opponent head-on. Although there was some pain and bruising, he deliberately feigned indifference, then grabbed another Lifter, lifted him up, and directly ripped off his head.

The bloody spine and the Lifter's screams, which had not yet dissipated in the darkness, spread an atmosphere of terror.

"Hehehe!" Li Qi's eyes widened, emitting strange noises, then he took another bite, getting his mouth full of blood, which dripped onto his clothes, making him look exceptionally terrifying!

Additionally, white plumes of Qi shot from his nostrils with each breath, his skin was even redder, and coupled with his strange laughter, he looked just like a demon.

In any case, he didn't look human at all.

The progress bar on Lu Shan's body directly jumped to 97%.

It was obvious that he also felt the Formation was about to end, so he became anxious.

"Bastard! Die!" He picked up a stone from the ground, grabbed it as a weapon, and ran towards Li Qi, wanting to salvage morale.

However, Li Qi did not evade as before; instead, he charged straight at him.

Li Qi did not dodge or evade and was directly hit by that stone. This was Lu Shan's full-power strike, a massive force of two thousand jin. Even with the thick skin from Ox Strength Technique, it still smashed his head, making him bleed, see stars, and almost lose consciousness.

As for the stone, it was directly shattered into fragments, piercing into his skin.

It could be said that this blow caused severe injuries.

However, he forcefully endured it, deliberately letting out a roar. Rather than avoid the blow, he chose to forcefully bite Lu Shan's nose, tearing it off fiercely!

Half of Lu Shan's nose was directly bitten off by him!

"Ah ah ah!" Even the famous Shan Dazhuang couldn't help but let out a cry of pain.

The other Boat Towmen were even more terrified by this scene, their previously stimulated morale completely gone, and some even panicked and started to flee.

"Come back! Running now is just seeking death!" He endured the pain and shouted at the Boat Towmen.

But with that shout, Li Qi seized the opportunity and punched him in the head.

Lu Shan reacted quickly, forcefully turning his head, so the punch only landed on his shoulder, causing Lu Shan to stumble and his body to stoop.

However, this also caused the Formation to completely collapse.

Li Qi watched as the opponent's buff status bar reached 100% and then immediately ended.

All the Boat Towmen felt as if the invisible thread binding them had been cut.

At this point, they completely lost their courage and scattered, each scrambling away like birds and beasts.

The Formation's enhancement on Lu Shan also directly dissipated.

He could originally barely contend with Ox Strength Technique, but once the Formation dispersed, his strength returned to its normal level, unable to even break Li Qi's defense.

However, he did not sit idly by.

Picking up a stick, he roared. Even without the military Formation, he still initiated a death match against Li Qi.

Such fighting spirit was not at all what a Lifter should possess.

Li Qi was also fearless; now that the buffs on the opponent had ended, he was certainly no match for him.

However, after they officially engaged, Li Qi's eyes widened, and he was directly thrown to the ground!

Lu Shan's attacks were swift and fierce, seemingly from proper training. And although his physical conditioning was not as good as Li Qi's, his Moves were grand and powerful, lethal!

Although Li Qi was strong and thick-skinned, he didn't understand combat techniques, so he couldn't finish the fight quickly.

He tried his best to parry the attacks, but he always struggled to hold on and was hit instead.

But just by relying on his thick skin, Lu Shan couldn't actually hurt him.

Combat techniques, after all, couldn't compare to cultivation arts.

However, the moment Lu Shan once again blocked Li Qi's attack, Li Qi suddenly changed his Move mid-way. Under the immense force, the caught-off-guard Lu Shan was slammed to the ground with a back suplex!

Li Qi immediately followed with a hand chop, aiming for his neck. If this blow could make Lu Shan lose consciousness, this farce would end.

But Lu Shan did a carp flip and immediately rolled to his feet, dodging the blow as usual.

However, Lu Shan was somewhat startled!

Li Qi had just been so clumsy; how did he suddenly start using techniques?

He, of course, didn't know why.

Only Li Qi himself knew.

He started learning to observe the progress bars on his opponent during swift combat!

As long as he could counter when the progress bar was in the middle, he could gain the upper hand.

In other words, it was called interrupting spellcasting!