Ding Longyun grabbed Xu Xuehui, who had retreated to the side, and called out, "Su Li, what now? Can we take it on together?"
He watched the monster, utterly terrifying, and had no confidence at all, but he couldn't just flee either, so he had to ask Su Li's opinion.
Su Li's recent performance had stunned them as well; he didn't know if Su Li could handle this fearsome creature.
"Stay back!" Su Li replied, stepping forward as he gripped the cleaver in both hands and swung it at the claw of the Dragon-Rhino Fish lunging toward him.
With a sharp *clang*, the cleaver in Su Li's hand was blocked by the Dragon-Rhino Fish's claw, unable to cut through.
The Dragon-Rhino Fish lifted its body slightly, and its other claw immediately swiped down at his head.
Su Li withdrew the blade and retreated, activating "Spider Walk." Every muscle in his body came alive, pulsing with heat and swelling...
This Level 6 rare-class Dragon-Rhino Fish was far more powerful than the Level 5 undead he had just slain. Su Li was finally going all out, unleashing the "Demon Muscles" he had just mastered.
As he had guessed, "Demon Muscles" was an offensive type of spirit source technique. Once activated, his entire musculature, fueled by spirit source energy, became fully animated, continuously boosting his strength, speed, and reflexes to insane levels.
After the battle with the Level 5 undead, most of Su Li's shirt had been torn off. As "Demon Muscles" kicked in, his muscles swelled and shifted. Finding the tattered garment a hindrance, Su Li tore it off with his left hand, revealing his bare upper body completely.
With his torso fully exposed, Ding Longyun and the others in the distance watched as the muscles on Su Li's surface visibly expanded. Each muscle seemed to pulse and rearrange itself like living things. The most striking change was on his chest and abdomen—his pectorals and abs swelled and contorted, vaguely forming a grotesque, demonic face.
The two pectoral muscles morphed into massive, terrifying demonic eyes, while the rows of abdominal muscles sharpened into jagged fangs.
It looked like a demon crawling out of hell, its gaping maw open wide, fangs bared, and a pair of horrific eyes staring, sending chills down anyone's spine.
With this demonic face emerging, Su Li's "Demon Muscles" were fully unleashed—this was the true origin of the technique's name.
It was a set of muscles that only a demon from legend could possess.
The Dragon-Rhino Fish let out a long roar, its claws striking out repeatedly, its horn-like protrusion unstoppable as it charged forward. Its speed and power reached astonishing levels. Ding Longyun and the others, retreating further back, felt they couldn't withstand even a single blow, but what was even more shocking was that Su Li was faster, dodging every charge.
In the "Demon Muscles" state, Su Li's attack power, speed, and reaction time continuously increased, burning through his muscles and spirit source energy at double the cost. He had previously mastered "Super Heart," allowing him to sustain maximum power attacks for up to five minutes, but now, in the "Demon Muscles" state, he could only last at most two and a half minutes before exhausting all his strength.
It was a breathtaking battle. The group watched as the Dragon-Rhino Fish charged at Su Li, who leaped into the air, vaulting over the creature and slashing down with his blade with all his might.
Though protected by scales as hard as steel, the fish let out a pained roar.
The cut didn't break the scales, but the force behind it caused the Dragon-Rhino Fish agony.
Su Li sprinted around the Dragon-Rhino Fish, continuously striking with his cleaver, each blow packed with full power. In a short time, he landed at least forty to fifty hits. The well-crafted blade couldn't withstand the escalating force, gradually deforming, its edge curling and cracking.
The most terrifying aspect of "Demon Muscles" was its ever-increasing strength and speed, an amplification that seemed limitless. Suddenly, with a *clang*, Su Li's blade struck the Dragon-Rhino Fish's back once more, shattering into several pieces that flew in all directions.
With a few *hiss* sounds, fragments hit the ground, sparking and leaving deep white marks on the concrete.
The Dragon-Rhino Fish roared in pain, then abruptly spun around and charged toward Ding Longyun and the others, who had retreated far away.
It realized Su Li was a tough opponent and abandoned him to attack the others instead.
Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Xu Haishui's faces turned pale. How could they possibly handle such a terrifying monster?
The Dragon-Rhino Fish was too fast. By the time they reacted, it was already upon them.
"We're done for!" Ding Longyun thought grimly, staring at the Dragon-Rhino Fish looming before him, filled with despair.
His blade destroyed, Su Li tossed the broken handle aside, planted his feet, and took a massive stride to catch up to the Dragon-Rhino Fish. Just as it was about to crash into the four, Su Li wrapped his arms around its tail, unleashing all his strength to halt the massive creature.
The Dragon-Rhino Fish stopped right in front of Ding Longyun, its razor-sharp horn mere half a foot from him.
Sweat trickled down Ding Longyun's forehead.
The restrained Dragon-Rhino Fish tensed its body, claws digging into the ground, and swung its tail to shake Su Li off.
Su Li let out a long roar, his arm muscles bulging, the demonic face on his chest and abdomen seeming to come alive. With an explosive burst of power, he lifted the Dragon-Rhino Fish by its tail and hurled it into the air.
His original maximum strength was 2,300 jin, but now, in the "Demon Muscles" state, his power surged to an incalculable level. Even the several-thousand-jin Dragon-Rhino Fish was lifted off the ground and slammed down hard.
With a thunderous crash, the Dragon-Rhino Fish hit the ground, its tough scales mixed with blood flying everywhere. Its gaping maw, once roaring, now let out a shriek of agony.
"Again!" Su Li bellowed, hoisting the Dragon-Rhino Fish once more and smashing it down again.
The concrete couldn't withstand the immense force, cracking into a dense web of spider-like fissures with a series of *crack* sounds.
Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Xu Haishui stood frozen, staring at the scene in disbelief.
Who could have imagined that Su Li, like some kind of monster, was gripping the tail of a six-meter-long giant fish and repeatedly slamming it into the ground?