Encounter

"Congratulations to Master Ling on obtaining such a supreme treasure!"

The moment they left the auction house, Zhang Mu congratulated him with a broad smile, showing none of the concern the other three wore on their faces.

Ling Yun paid no attention to his fawning. He swept his gaze around and seemed to notice something, a faint sneer curling at his lips.

But he said nothing more. He simply climbed into the carriage, flipped his right hand, and toyed with the spirit artifact he had just acquired.

It was unknown what material the spirit artifact had been forged from. It felt icy cold in his hand, and its surface was smooth as a mirror, without the slightest seam in sight.

Its weight was equally astonishing. Such a small lump weighed several hundred jin by his estimate!

As blood and qi flowed into it, a complex pattern lit up across the artifact's surface. It was presumably the Spirit Inscription Ge Xu had mentioned before.

When he fed in even more blood and qi, another five different Spirit Inscriptions lit up one after another.

Though Ling Yun had never come into contact with Spirit Inscriptions before, the meanings represented by these inscriptions clearly surfaced in his mind at that moment.

Aside from the initial Thousand Transformations, the others were Strength, Sharpness, Speed, Sturdiness, and Spirit Cleansing.

The first few were easy enough to understand. As for Spirit Cleansing, it was a Spirit Inscription capable of inflicting special damage upon Evil Spirits.

For a spirit artifact, these Spirit Inscriptions could be considered standard equipment.

Watching the spirit artifact continually change shape in his hand, Ling Yun stirred his thoughts and tried imagining a long saber.

The next moment, the spirit artifact rapidly extended, ultimately transforming into a long saber exactly as he had envisioned.

He curled his finger and flicked it hard. The blade trembled slightly, releasing waves of metallic hums.

"Impressive!"

Even though he had already witnessed it once before, Ling Yun could not help but praise this world's forging craftsmanship.

It was brimming with technological flair. Even if someone claimed it was a creation from a science-fiction world, he would not have doubted it in the slightest.

As for the consumption of blood and qi—

Ling Yun silently calculated that, with his current reserves of blood and qi, he could probably sustain this spirit artifact for half an hour.

That was neither a particularly long nor short amount of time, but it was enough to last through a battle.

Besides, if necessary, he could shut down some unnecessary Spirit Inscriptions.

While he was carefully studying the spirit artifact, Zhang Mu and the others outside the carriage were chatting idly.

"Brother Zhang, are we really going to swagger back like this? Won't there be a problem?"

"I've heard the elders in my family mention that Old Bloodrot before. He kills like flies and has a bloodthirsty nature. Anyone who provokes him ends up dying a terribly miserable death!"

Xue Liu's eyes darted around in all directions, and he looked rather worried.

Zhang Mu snorted disdainfully. "Why are you such a coward, kid?"

"Who cares if he's Old Bloodrot? With Master Ling here, what are you afraid of?"

"If that old bastard really dares to show himself, then I'll—"

Before he could finish, however, he saw the terror in the other men's eyes.

No way...

Zhang Mu swallowed, then stiffly turned his head back. His pupils instantly shrank.

At the end of the road stood a figure clad in blood-red robes. Was it not the very Old Bloodrot they had been discussing?

A man's reputation was like a tree's shadow. Even though Old Bloodrot had made no move, his terrifying aura alone left them struggling to breathe.

"Whoa!"

Zhang Mu fiercely yanked the reins, bringing the carriage to a halt.

Though fear churned wildly in his heart, he still forced himself to ask, "Senior, why have you stopped us?"

Old Bloodrot merely glanced at him, then disdainfully looked away and stared straight at the carriage. His cold, sinister gaze seemed capable of piercing through the thick wooden boards.

"You little beast, after offending this old man, do you truly think you can leave here alive?"

His tone was grim, brimming with dense Killing Intent.

At that moment, the carriage curtain was slowly lifted. Ling Yun stepped down from within, his expression cold and indifferent.

"Master Ling."

Zhang Mu and the others seemed to have found their backbone. They all bowed in greeting.

Ling Yun ignored them. He gave Old Bloodrot a faint glance, then turned his gaze toward the surroundings. "Why don't the few of you hiding nearby show yourselves as well? That would save Ling from having to seek you out one by one."

As his words fell, several soft chuckles rang out in succession.

"Heh heh, it seems we truly have grown old, to be looked down upon so by a junior."

"Young man, you should learn to know your own limits. Don't think that having a little strength means you no longer know how high the sky is or how deep the earth is."

"Hee hee, this concubine rather likes that unruly look of his."

Three figures emerged upon the previously empty street.

Walking at the forefront was none other than Xu Hu, the master of Black Tiger Martial Hall.

Tie Shi, the master of Copper Skin Martial Hall, followed close behind. He stood a full two meters tall, and his exaggerated muscles were actually colored like iron and stone.

"Copper Skin Martial Hall Master—Tie Shi!"

"Black Tiger Martial Hall Master—Xu Hu!"

"Joyful Union Martial Hall Master—Miao Yin!"

With every person who appeared, Xue Liu and the others' faces turned another shade paler.

These lofty figures, who normally stood high above everyone else, had actually appeared together as though they had arranged it beforehand.

Yet Zhang Mu remained utterly calm. Seeing how frightened the others were, he curled his lip and said disdainfully, "Relax. Those stinking fish and rotten shrimp aren't even enough for Master Ling to beat with one hand!"

Xue Liu and the others nearly wept without tears.

They knew Ling Yun might be strong, but they had never witnessed it for themselves. Besides, which one of those people across from them was not a famous veteran powerhouse? Where did he get such confidence from?!

Before they could recover their senses, another three men stepped out from the shadows.

"Kekeke, it's quite lively here! You all don't mind if we three brothers come and take a share of the spoils, do you?"

Seeing the looks Xue Liu and the other two cast his way, Zhang Mu remained unmoved and said stiffly, "Master Ling is invincible!"

It's over. This guy has definitely gone mad from despair.

Xue Liu and the other two wailed inwardly, falling into complete despair.

"Blood Butcher, Human Butcher, Ghost Butcher—you three brothers have quite the nerve. The authorities only just issued wanted notices for you, and yet you still dare show yourselves here." Xu Hu's expression was grave, as though he was deeply wary of the three.

The Butcher Brothers were each more savage and violent than the last, notorious criminals throughout all of Cloud City.

Though their individual strength was not particularly great, the three were as one body with three heads, and they had specially cultivated a combined attack secret art. They absolutely could not be underestimated.

At that moment, Blood Butcher, the eldest of the three brothers, gave a disdainful laugh. "There's no need for Hall Master Xu to worry about us. We never put those pieces of trash in our eyes!"

"Boss, stop wasting words with them. Hurry up and deal with this kid, then let's find somewhere to have some fun!" Human Butcher, the second brother, licked his lips and looked at Ling Yun with ill intent.

"Kekeke, Boss, Second Brother, it's been so long since I've tasted the flavor of a human heart. Let me have this one!" Ghost Butcher, the third brother, wiped the drool dripping from the corner of his mouth, his gaze as savage as a wild beast's.

Seeing the three ignore them and prepare to strike directly, Old Bloodrot at the rear finally could not hold himself back. He stepped forward, his face dark and cold.

"I say, you three, are you treating me as if I don't exist?"

Xu Hu and Tie Shi also closed in at the same time, their eyes fixed firmly on the three brothers.

The situation shifted in an instant. Ironically, Ling Yun—the main target—was the one no one cared about anymore.