Getting Rich

An unmatched blood-red saber light tore through the night, its terrifying aura forcing the Black Tiger Gang members back again and again.

"External release of qi and blood—Body Tempering Level Four."

Ye Xiaofan's eyes burned. He sheathed his sword, tapped lightly off the ground, and swept back three zhang.

The blood-red saber light crashed heavily into the ground, sending shattered stones flying and raising a cloud of dust.

Some of those standing too close were struck by the flying stones, immediately screaming as bloody holes opened across their bodies. Several unlucky ones even had their foreheads pierced through.

The crowd recoiled in terror, leaving dozens of zhang of open ground.

A breeze passed by, dispersing the dust.

A saber mark over a chi deep and half a zhang long had been left in the ground.

"Truly powerful."

Ye Xiaofan narrowed his eyes. He could not yet achieve such destructive force. A Body Tempering Level Four cultivator capable of releasing qi and blood externally truly could not be underestimated.

But Ye Xiaofan's heart grew even hotter.

Tonight, could he slay a Body Tempering Level Four cultivator across realms?

"Who are you?"

Wang Meng's expression turned grave. This mysterious man had just swept three zhang away with ease without using the power of qi and blood.

Setting aside his cultivation, just how profound was his movement technique?

"The one who'll kill you."

"You don't know the height of heaven or depth of earth."

Wang Meng grinned viciously and charged at Ye Xiaofan.

Bluestone floor tiles shattered everywhere he passed.

Ye Xiaofan did not meet him head-on. He brought the Wind God Steps to the point of perfection, circling Wang Meng like a light breeze.

"If you've got the guts, stop dodging!"

After attacking for so long without even touching the corner of Ye Xiaofan's clothes, Wang Meng was suddenly seized by a bad premonition. Though the man before him had been evading all along, an indistinct but ever-present dangerous presence had been locking onto his openings.

If his saber technique had not long since reached the subtle level, Wang Meng suspected he would not be a match for this man even in a single move.

At that thought, Wang Meng's heart trembled.

But then he remembered that he had already sent someone to notify the gang leader. As long as he remained cautious and kept this man tied down, that would be enough.

Ye Xiaofan said nothing, merely circling Wang Meng over and over.

He was searching for the right moment to draw his sword.

The next instant, Wang Meng's saber momentum changed, and he no longer attacked with blind ferocity.

"Stalling for time?"

Ye Xiaofan instantly saw through Wang Meng's intentions. At once, he mobilized thirty percent of the qi and blood in his body, and the Wind God Steps became even more wondrous.

Qi and blood stirred—Body Tempering Level Three.

Wang Meng's pupils constricted sharply. This man was only at Body Tempering Level Three?

"Impossible!"

Wang Meng immediately dismissed the thought. How could a Body Tempering Level Three cultivator possibly train a movement technique to such a profound realm?

This man had to be concealing his identity and holding back his true strength.

Wang Meng had never felt time pass so slowly. Though his opponent had yet to draw his sword, he had a premonition that if he made a single careless mistake, the other man's blade would slice across his throat the very next moment.

At this moment, Ye Xiaofan was growing anxious as well.

The remaining poison in his body needed to be suppressed with qi and blood, so he did not dare strike with his full strength.

After failing for so long to seize Wang Meng's opening, he was already thinking of retreating.

"Damn it, I'm already here. I'll gamble on it. Boys who love to smile don't have bad luck. Three Pure Ones, Jade Emperor, Buddha, bless me."

Ye Xiaofan gritted his teeth and directly unleashed ninety percent of his qi and blood.

In an instant, all Wang Meng could see were afterimages. His gaze could no longer keep up with Ye Xiaofan's speed.

"Not good!"

Wang Meng's face changed drastically. He was about to retreat, intending to use the Black Tiger Gang members as cover.

How could Ye Xiaofan let him have his way? At this moment, multiple flaws had already appeared in Wang Meng's saber technique in his eyes.

The treasured sword gave a soft ring, as pleasing as heavenly music.

Yet to Wang Meng's ears, it was the death knell tolling from hell.

Sword Drawing Technique—when the sword leaves its sheath, blood must be seen!

The next moment, Wang Meng felt a stabbing pain in his heart. Immediately afterward, the qi and blood within his body spiraled out of control, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"The gang leader won't let you off."

Wang Meng lowered his head and glanced at the wound in his chest, smiling miserably. His broadsword slipped from his hand and crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Phew!"

Ye Xiaofan sheathed his sword and immediately circulated his cultivation method to calm his blood qi. The moment he had struck, his heart had suddenly jolted.

He knew it was a sign that the residual poison in his body was flaring up.

"Looks like I can't use more than half my blood qi until the residual poison is cleared."

After settling his blood qi, Ye Xiaofan looked toward the stunned members of the Black Tiger Gang.

In a flash, he appeared before a Black Tiger Gang member whose pants were soaked through.

"Hello. Could you tell me where you keep your silver?"

With a demon standing before him, Li Erwa pointed toward the main hall before fainting on the spot.

If you can't find the book title, try searching for the author—it may have simply been renamed!

Ye Xiaofan furrowed his brow slightly and picked another lucky fellow.

"D-Don't kill me! The silver is inside the main hall!"

"Thank you!"

Ye Xiaofan ignored the Black Tiger Gang member who had been scared out of his wits and flashed into the council hall.

Ye Xiaofan's eyes instantly turned bloodshot, and he nearly lost control of his aura.

Dozens of chests stood inside, each one filled with gleaming silver.

"How much silver is this? Now I won't be short on money for simplifying cultivation methods or buying Blood Qi Pills."

Ye Xiaofan muttered to himself.

He counted them—there were thirty-three chests in total.

"I'm rich. I'm rich!"

Ye Xiaofan walked to the nearest chest, his eyes seemingly turning into silver ingots.

"But how am I supposed to take all this silver away?"

Calming down, Ye Xiaofan stared at the thirty-three chests in dismay.

Each chest was roughly three feet square and held one thousand taels of silver, weighing about seventy-five jin. He could not carry so many chests by himself.

Just then, the silver ingot he had been idly playing with suddenly vanished, and a message surfaced in his mind.

Balance: 10 taels

Ye Xiaofan froze for a moment. This system was damn considerate.

Afterward, Ye Xiaofan left behind three thousand taels to buy cultivation methods and Blood Qi Pills, storing all the rest in his balance.

Balance: 30,000 taels

After putting away the silver, Ye Xiaofan left directly through the roof. In the distance, he could vaguely see a group of people holding torches and rushing toward the External Affairs Hall.

One figure among them caught Ye Xiaofan's attention.

"He's faster than I am even when I use Wind God Steps at full force. The Black Tiger Gang truly can't be underestimated."

Zhang Dahu, who was rushing along at top speed, seemed to sense something and looked up toward the External Affairs Hall. There, he saw a blurry figure standing atop the highest roof of the hall with three chests on his back.

It was as though the figure were silently mocking him.

"Courting death!"

Zhang Dahu's face twisted savagely, and his speed increased by several more degrees.

In Qingyang County, someone actually dared to raid and kill members of the Black Tiger Gang.

They clearly did not regard him with the slightest respect.

Ye Xiaofan did not dare delay any longer. He leaped down from the roof and melted into the darkness.

"Stop!"

Zhang Dahu's furious roar exploded like spring thunder. By the time he reached the spot where Ye Xiaofan had been standing, Ye Xiaofan was nowhere to be seen.

Unwilling to accept it, Zhang Dahu pursued in one direction for a while before finally having no choice but to give up.

Inside the council hall, Zhang Dahu sat in the seat of honor, staring silently at the corpses of Wang Meng and Ma Dazhi, as well as the thirty empty chests.

The many Black Tiger Gang experts who had come with him kept their heads lowered, not daring to look at him.

Tap, tap, tap!

Faint, nearly inaudible footsteps broke the deathly silence in the hall.

Everyone's gazes shot toward the newcomer.

Tian Guyi's heart trembled. He forced himself to step forward, bowed, and said:

"Gang Leader, this subordinate led men to thoroughly search the entire External Affairs Hall. The killer should have been alone, and his swordsmanship was beyond imagination. Every brother died with a single slash to the throat. He killed his way in from the main gate."

"You're saying one man killed so many of my brothers and made off with over thirty thousand taels of silver?"

Zhang Dahu's voice, devoid of the slightest warmth, rang through the main hall.

"Yes, Gang Leader."

Zhang Dahu fell into thought at those words, his long fingers unconsciously tapping against the armrest.

Combining what he had just seen with Tian Guyi's investigation, the killer really was very likely just one person.

But how had the other party carried away thirty thousand taels of silver?

He had clearly only carried three chests on his back.

"Could it be!"

As though he had thought of something, two terrifying gleams shot from Zhang Dahu's eyes.

An immortal treasure!

Zhang Dahu had once read in a fragmentary book that there was a kind of immortal treasure containing space within it, capable of storing items.

At once, Zhang Dahu's heart burned with excitement.

He had to find this person and seize that immortal treasure.

"When the County Yamen constables come to question us, tell them the Black Tiger Gang has produced a traitor and ask them to help seal the city gates. Also, mobilize everyone and search the entire city in the name of hunting down the traitor. Bring back anyone suspicious. Within three days, I want to see the killer."

"Gang Leader, could it have been the person who sold our gang's martial arts manuals at Sihai Pavilion in the Black Market a few days ago?"

Tian Guyi hesitated for a moment before forcing himself to raise his head and look at Zhang Dahu.

Zhang Dahu frowned slightly at this. He did not believe it had been that person. He had already investigated how those two martial arts manuals had been lost, but neither did he wish to let even the slightest clue slip by.

After a moment of silence.

"Hall Master Tian, you will be responsible for this matter. Investigate this person thoroughly."

"Yes!"

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