"Speak."
Xu Qing walked over and rested his Iron Sword on the last assassin's neck. His gaze was calm, tinged with a cold indifference toward life. "Who are you? Where are you from? What is your affiliation? Why are you trying to kill me?"
"Hahaha..."
"Xu Qing, we'll be waiting for you in Hell..."
PTHOO!
The next moment, after his burst of laughter, the assassin's face darkened and he spat out a mouthful of black blood. At some point, he had bitten through a poison sac hidden under his tongue and committed suicide.
"!!!"
Xu Qing frowned as he looked at the corpse slumped on the ground. 'Death Warriors? There aren't many factions in Qingbei Town capable of training Death Warriors.'
'I originally didn't want to get any more involved in this, but you just had to come knocking. This really pisses me off! It really, really pisses me off!'
Xu Qing let out a deep breath, sheathed his Iron Sword, and left. His face was grim as he arrived at the Chunfeng Tower. Seeing his foul mood, Hu Gongquan and the others didn't dare to provoke him, doing their best to stay on his good side.
In fact, as soon as Xu Qing had been put in charge of the Chunfeng Tower, he had recovered all the kickbacks Hu Gongquan and the others had taken over the past year. In their hearts, they undoubtedly hated Xu Qing to the bone.
After all, that was a full ten thousand taels of silver.
However, Xu Qing was an Official Disciple of the Cangying Martial Arts Hall and a Mingjin Martial Artist. No matter how resentful Hu Gongquan and the others were, they wouldn't dare show any disrespect.
"What happened? Who pissed this master off?"
Hu Gongquan called over Lu Xiao'Er and the others to ask.
"I don't know either!"
Lu Xiao'Er shook his head.
"I don't know."
Sister Chunlan shook her head.
"..."
Wang Dali remained silent.
「Meanwhile, at the Kaiyuan Tower.」
Inside a room on the top floor.
"My Lady."
A young man lowered his head and reported, "The Government Office has investigated and found that the person who killed our Corpse Ghosts that night was most likely Xu Qing."
"Xu Qing?"
The seductive voice asked, "Who?"
"He was originally a beggar, but he has some Talent. He's now an Official Disciple of the Cangying Martial Arts Hall. I've already dispatched three Death Warriors at the Peak of Ming Jin to kill him," the young man said.
"The Cangying Martial Arts Hall."
The seductive voice paused, then let out a sudden laugh. "You're quite bold, daring to send people to kill an Official Disciple of the Cangying Martial Arts Hall."
"I am merely following My Lady's instructions and commands."
The young man kept his head bowed.
"Is that so?"
The seductive, playful laugh came again. "Come to my bed."
"..."
Cold sweat beaded on the young man's forehead. "I... I wouldn't dare offend you, My Lady..."
「The next morning.」
Xu Qing woke early. After a night's rest, his mood had improved considerably. He ate breakfast at the Chunfeng Tower before heading to the Cangying Martial Arts Hall.
This time, Xu Qing bought a full thirty catties of Tai Sui Spirit Meat from the Cangying Martial Arts Hall.
For the time being, Xu Qing didn't plan to go out carelessly.
「At his residence, inside his room.」
'I don't know who the mastermind is or who wants me dead, but after failing yesterday, they definitely won't let this go.'
Xu Qing mused. 'I just need to focus on improving my own strength.'
'Baji Fist.'
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Xu Qing practiced his Baji Fist. His movements were swift, his punches creating powerful gusts of wind. The display was impressive, with each move flowing seamlessly into the next. His Fist Force was fierce and powerful, yet he moved with perfect ease.
...
[Experience +1]
...
[Experience +1]
...
[Experience +1]
...
Time flew by.
His Experience in Baji Fist increased bit by bit.
「Meanwhile, inside the Ye Family Mansion.」
In the room of Ye Yi, the eldest son of the Ye Family.
"What?"
That morning, Ye Yi received news that the three Death Warriors at the Peak of Ming Jin he had dispatched the day before were all dead. Moreover, they had been killed by an expert of the Sword Dao with exceptionally high Swordsmanship.
"How could this be?"
Ye Yi's expression was incredibly grim. "A swordsmanship expert... How could the Death Warriors I sent have provoked a swordsmanship expert of unknown origin?"
In fact, just a few days ago, an incredibly powerful swordsmanship expert had indeed appeared on Red Leaf Street. This person had single-handedly slain a Black-haired Zombie and three enhanced Corpse Ghosts.
"Young Master,"
Elder Weng, the old steward of the Ye Mansion, stood before Ye Yi with his head bowed. "The Master has ordered you to keep a low profile for the next few days and not cause any more trouble."
"That Hall Master of the Cangying Martial Arts Hall is not someone we can afford to provoke. It's a good thing Xu Qing didn't die last night. If he had, and Du Cangying went berserk, our Ye Family would have paid a heavy price."
"Yes."
Ye Yi nodded.
"Also, the Third Young Master has already joined the Cangying Martial Arts Hall and become an Official Disciple. So we have even less reason to antagonize them."
Elder Weng added, "This was also the Master's order."
"Mm."
Ye Yi nodded again.
Then, Elder Weng left.
「At noon.」
Ye Yi went to the top floor of the Kaiyuan Tower. The Kaiyuan Tower was a Ye Family property, managed by Ye Yi himself. There, he once again met with that lady.
"My Lady."
Ye Yi lowered his head. "Last night, the three Death Warriors I sent out failed. They were unable to kill Xu Qing and were instead killed by a swordsmanship expert."
"The swordsmanship expert from Red Leaf Street?" the lady's voice rose.
"It's possible," Ye Yi said. "Also, my father told me not to provoke Xu Qing anymore. Since Xu Qing is now an Official Disciple of the Cangying Martial Arts Hall, he doesn't want to offend them."
"I understand."
The lady pondered for a moment before saying, "Go and find out who that swordsmanship expert is."
"Yes."
Ye Yi nodded.
「By evening.」
Haaa...
Xu Qing stopped, exhaling a turbid breath. White steam, formed from evaporating sweat, faintly rose from the top of his head, creating a rather striking visual.
[Baji Fist LV6: 165/320.]
"Mm."
Xu Qing nodded in satisfaction.
A few minutes later, Xu Qing ate dinner—one catty of Tai Sui Spirit Meat. Then, Yu Chen brought Yu Hu to his residence, and Xu Qing taught the boy Baji Fist for an hour.
At seven in the evening, also known as the first watch of the night, Yu Chen took Yu Hu home.
Xu Qing returned to his room, picked up his Fine Iron Sword, and began practicing the Life-taking Thirteen Swords. The Sword Light was profound and the Sword Techniques were swift as he practiced his Swordsmanship.
Time flew by.
Around ten o'clock at night, Xu Qing stopped practicing his sword. The Sword Techniques of the Life-taking Thirteen Swords were exquisite and complex, requiring half an hour to perform a single set. In three hours, he could only practice it six times.
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV1: 7/30.]
"Mm."
Xu Qing nodded in satisfaction, washed up, then put on the Evil Ghost Mask and lay down on his bed to sleep.
The night passed uneventfully.
At six the next morning, Xu Qing woke up.
He took off the Evil Ghost Mask.
[Evil Ghost Mask LV6: 722/320 (Upgradeable!)]
"Not bad."
Xu Qing nodded in satisfaction and took off the Evil Ghost Mask. 'Upgrade.'
BUZZ!
The Encyclopedia of All Things flashed with a fluorescent light.
At the same time, the Evil Ghost Mask in Xu Qing's hand flashed with a white light.
SWOOSH!
The next moment, Xu Qing witnessed the same scene again: a deep and dark environment, a murmuring Divine Woman, and animal skins and flesh, all as she single-mindedly crafted a mask.
Finally, the mask was complete.
Upgrade successful.
[Evil Ghost Mask LV7: 402/640 (This is a mask made from animal skin and flesh by a Divine Woman who sacrificed to a Ghost God. It has the ability to change one's appearance and aura. Because the creation process was painstaking, she poured all her effort into it, even infusing it with her own heart's blood at the end, making it extremely difficult to see through.)]
"Not bad."
Xu Qing nodded.
Over the next few days, Xu Qing continued his routine: practicing Baji Fist during the day, the Life-taking Thirteen Swords at night, and wearing the Evil Ghost Mask while he slept, thus pursuing the Cultivation of two Martial Arts simultaneously.
Day One.
...
[Baji Fist LV6: 215/320.]
...
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV1: 13/30.]
...
[Evil Ghost Mask LV7: 882/640.]
...
'Upgrade.'
With a thought, Xu Qing upgraded the Evil Ghost Mask again.
BUZZ!
Faintly, Xu Qing once again saw the scene of the Evil Ghost Mask being reforged. This time, after its creation was complete, the mask gained a strange ability—at the very end, it actually devoured the Divine Woman's soul.
[Evil Ghost Mask LV8: 242/1280 (This is a mask made from animal skin and flesh by a Divine Woman who sacrificed to a Ghost God. The mask devoured the Divine Woman's soul, granting it a bizarre Spirituality. Not only can it change one's appearance and aura, but it can also summon the Divine Woman's ghost.)]
'This is definitely different.'
Xu Qing looked at the Evil Ghost Mask in his hand. It had changed. A special, strange symbol had appeared on its forehead.
Day Two.
...
[Baji Fist LV6: 265/320.]
...
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV1: 19/30.]
...
[Evil Ghost Mask LV8: 722/1280.]
...
Day Three.
...
[Baji Fist LV6: 315/320.]
...
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV1: 25/30.]
...
[Evil Ghost Mask LV8: 1202/1280.]
...
Day Four.
...
[Baji Fist LV6: 365/320.]
...
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV1: 31/30.]
...
[Evil Ghost Mask LV8: 1682/1280.]
...
「On the morning of the fifth day.」
Xu Qing awoke.
'Upgrade Baji Fist.'
First, with a thought, he upgraded his Baji Fist. The moment he did, countless small figures seemed to appear before his eyes, endlessly practicing Baji Fist, all of their movements flooding into his mind.
BOOM!
Xu Qing's consciousness trembled as if he had entered a mystical space. Within this space, he was constantly practicing Baji Fist, endlessly deducing its principles, and unraveling its increasingly profound mysteries.
Unconsciously, Xu Qing entered a special state.
His mind became clear and empty.
[Baji Fist LV7: 45/640 (This is a profound Fist Technique that combines fighting and Training Techniques. Its movements are fierce, simple, and unadorned. It allows for swift power generation and has extremely strong explosive force. It refines the bones and flesh, allowing Power to penetrate the sinews and bones. At Great Success in An Jin, one can reach the 'Peak of Dark Force'.)]
BUZZ!
An epiphany washed over him.
Xu Qing opened his eyes and exhaled a turbid breath. Power surged throughout his body, penetrating his sinews and bones as he began practicing Baji Fist inside his room.
And just like that, Xu Qing had reached the Peak of Dark Force.