A flash of white light!
When Zhao Xuan's vision cleared, he found himself standing in the middle of a barren desert.
Yellow sand danced wildly in the air.
Sweeping his gaze around, he immediately spotted a creature atop a nearby dune—a Ironhide Boar, chomping away with great enthusiasm.
He didn't even need to think to know what it was eating.
What else could it be?
Of course—it was a spiritual fruit!
"Beast! Stop eating that!"
Zhao Xuan's fury ignited in an instant.
Damn it!
You're just a wild boar! What do you need all those spiritual fruits for?!
And you're about to die anyway!
What a damn waste!
Most importantly—
That spiritual herb is mine!!!
With a roar,
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Zhao Xuan charged forward, his steps thundering across the sand.
"Oink! Oink-oink! Oink-oink-oink!"
The Ironhide Boar clearly hadn't expected Zhao Xuan to follow it here.
It froze in shock, squealing in panic as it scrambled to its feet to fight back—
—but before it could do anything, Zhao Xuan's furious kick slammed hard into its belly.
"Wheeee!"
The boar's shriek split the air.
It flew through the sky in a wide arc before crashing heavily into the dunes dozens of meters away, sending sand flying everywhere and leaving behind a massive crater.
Zhao Xuan didn't rush to finish it off.
Instead, he turned to inspect what exactly the boar had been eating.
Only now did he clearly see it.
A cactus!!!
Yes—you read that right. A cactus.
The Ironhide Boar hadn't been eating any kind of spiritual fruit or herb, but a massive cactus covered in sharp spines.
Of course, it wasn't an ordinary cactus.
Even though Zhao Xuan hadn't tasted it, he could clearly sense the dense spiritual energy emanating from the half-devoured plant.
"Damn it! A perfectly good major spiritual herb, ruined by a damn boar!"
The more Zhao Xuan thought about it, the angrier he got.
Meanwhile, the Ironhide Boar that had been kicked away was now staggering to its feet in the distance.
When it saw Zhao Xuan standing beside its treasure, its eyes went blood-red.
"Oink! Oink-oink! Oink-oink-oink!"
It howled, digging its hind hooves furiously into the sand.
Its cries were so loud and wretched that they reminded Zhao Xuan of the time he'd once walked past a pig farm and heard the screams of a boar being castrated.
Then—
With a powerful snort, it charged again, carrying terrifying force as it barreled straight toward Zhao Xuan.
"Yell all you want, you dumb pig!"
"You think you're wronged? I'm the one who's wronged here!"
"That was a first-rate spiritual herb! If it were intact, I could've sold it for millions!"
"Now look at it—chewed up by you! Who's going to buy it now?!"
The more he thought about the lost fortune—just because he'd arrived a few seconds too late—the more Zhao Xuan's heart ached.
As the boar lunged toward him, Zhao Xuan lashed out with a Tempest Kick, infused with Armament Haki.
Boom!
The Ironhide Boar was sent flying once more.
But then—
It staggered up again, squealing as it charged at Zhao Xuan yet another time.
Another kick. Another flight.
Finally, after several rounds of this abuse, the boar seemed to realize the obvious truth—
It was no match for Zhao Xuan.
With a few defeated snorts, it turned tail and stumbled off into the depths of the desert.
Zhao Xuan didn't chase it right away.
He crouched down instead, face full of pain, trying to salvage what was left of the half-ruined Spiritual Cactus.
But suddenly—
From the direction the boar had fled, a chorus of angry squeals echoed through the desert.
Zhao Xuan froze.
Then, a bold and terrible thought struck him.
"Don't tell me… that damn Ironhide Boar's gone off to ruin another Spiritual Cactus!?"
His face instantly darkened.
He sprang to his feet and dashed off at full speed.
Sure enough—his guess was right.
When he arrived, he saw the Ironhide Boar in the middle of a fierce battle—with a Desert Statue!
And behind that stone guardian, atop a sand dune, stood another giant cactus.
At that moment—
With one final collision, the boar shattered the Desert Statue into rubble.
It stumbled forward, drooling as it approached the giant cactus.
It opened its mouth, ready to take a huge bite—
"Whoosh!"
A sharp gust of wind swept in from its left rear flank.
Before the boar could react, a massive force struck its body.
"Oiiink!"
It screamed as it was flung through the air, hitting the sand hard and lying motionless.
"Phew… thank goodness! I made it just in time. If I'd been a second later, this one would've been ruined too!"
Zhao Xuan exhaled in relief, staring at the intact Spiritual Cactus before him, heart pounding with satisfaction.
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