Dugu Mingri

"Big brother, we're lucky to have run into a little lamb."

Lu Ming was blocked by two men. One was stouter, at the eighth level of Inner Qi.

The other was the one who spoke. He had a ferocious scar on his face, a fierce expression, and was one level lower, at the seventh level of Inner Qi.

Each held a large saber, broad and thick, clearly designed for powerful, heavy strikes.

"What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Lu Ming calmly assessed the situation. Although there were two of them, and both were stronger than him, one even two levels higher, he didn't feel panicked at all.

This was the confidence he had gained from his recent battles.

"We can't say we have any 'advice' for you, but we've taken a liking to the contents of your sack. Hand it over if you know what's good for you."

"Oh, and your cultivation techniques and martial arts, you'll have to leave those too."

The scarred man spoke again. He saw that Lu Ming looked only thirteen or fourteen years old, yet he had already reached the sixth level of the Inner Qi Realm.

Besides his exceptional talent, his cultivation technique must be excellent.

If they were out in the open, he might not dare to provoke him, but here in the deep mountains, who would know if they were quick and clean?

"I'm afraid I cannot comply."

Lu Ming's expression was calm. He dropped the sack from his shoulder and placed his hand on his saber's hilt. Since a peaceful resolution was impossible, he would have to fight.

"What courage!"

Seeing Lu Ming's composed demeanor, the stouter man finally spoke. Compared to the leaner, scarred man, he seemed more steady.

"Big brother, let me handle him."

The scarred man saw Lu Ming preparing to fight and slowly raised his broad saber, taking a step forward with some excitement.

The stouter man nodded. "Be careful. His clothes are covered in blood; he's someone who knows how to kill."

"Don't worry, big brother. Having a lot of blood on him just means his saber skills aren't... clean enough!"

The scarred man was quite cunning. As he spoke, he suddenly flashed forward, attacking first.

By the time he finished the word "clean," he was already in front of Lu Ming, slashing his saber down at him from the air.

Honestly, the setup was quite good, and the speed of the strike was indeed fast.

But he had picked the wrong opponent.

Lu Ming had been on high alert, and with his keen senses, he knew the opponent's intentions the moment they made a move.

However, he didn't react immediately. Instead, as the saber strike descended, he suddenly drew his blade and made a horizontal slash, letting the bright saber light cut across the opponent's abdomen.

Splat!

With a spurt of blood, the scarred man's saber strike missed. He looked down at his abdomen in disbelief. When he saw the blood, his eyes widened in terror.

"So fast!"

He managed to utter two words before collapsing.

"What?"

Although this all sounds long, it happened in the blink of an eye.

This caused the stouter man, who was raising his saber to flank, to freeze. His and his brother's method of attacking people had always been effective: the scarred man would go first, making the opponent think it was a one-on-one fight, and then he would launch a surprise attack from the side.

But their usually foolproof plan had gone awry today.

His brother hadn't lasted even a breath before being instantly killed by Lu Ming.

However, as the stouter man hesitated, Lu Ming attacked him proactively, launching his fastest move, Gale Style.

Swish!

The speed was so great that only a flash of saber light could be seen.

The stouter man's face paled in shock. He hastily raised his saber to block. With a "clang," his broad saber narrowly intercepted the saber light, but he didn't feel any significant force.

Years of combat experience told him immediately that it was a feint and his opponent would change tactics.

Yet, he was still a step too late. The bright saber light had already sliced across his abdomen.

"So fast!"

This time, the stouter man finally understood what the scarred man had felt. He collapsed.

"As expected, people are much easier to deal with than Demonic Beasts."

Easily defeating the two men didn't give Lu Ming much sense of accomplishment.

Compared to Demonic Beasts, these two had strong offense but weak defense. Unlike Demonic Beasts, which had tough hides, some even with scales harder than steel.

No matter how fast he was, if he couldn't find a weak spot, it was difficult to kill them in one blow.

These two were different; they didn't have the thick scales and skin of Demonic Beasts.

One hit would cost him his life.

However, speaking of which, he had the same problem. Fortunately, the second stance of the Heavenly Saber Saber Art, the Pouring Rain Style, could be used for defense.

It was a move that could be used for both offense and defense. Offensively, it was continuous, making the opponent exhausted from parrying. Defensively, when the saber was swung, it was incredibly dense, impenetrable to even a needle or a splash of water.

Extremely powerful.

Without overthinking, Lu Ming sheathed his saber, showing respect to his enemies, and began to clear the battlefield.

The results were somewhat disappointing. He only found over two hundred taels of silver notes on the two bodies. Perhaps they had money but didn't bring it with them.

As for martial arts manuals or anything similar, he found none.

However, the two broad sabers were quite good. Their quality was visibly better than his own, but they weren't suitable for him.

Still, he wouldn't waste them and took them along.

After cleaning up, Lu Ming slung his cloth bag over his shoulder and was about to leave when his ears twitched. He glanced towards a large tree in the distance to his side.

He shouted sternly, "Who's there?"

"No ill intentions."

A boy of about fifteen or sixteen, holding a long sword, emerged from behind the tree. Though his clothes were somewhat tattered, the material indicated he was from a wealthy or noble family.

His realm was also quite high, having reached the ninth layer of Inner Qi.

And by the looks of it, he had already reached the peak of the ninth layer.

"Ruan Twin Heroes, I didn't expect you to die by my hand today, but it seems you got what you deserved."

The boy stepped out and glanced at the corpses on the ground.

"What should I call you?"

Seeing that the other party had no intention of attacking, Lu Ming felt slightly relieved but remained vigilant. He placed his cloth bag on the ground again, ready to draw his saber at any moment.

"From the Dugu Family of Shuofeng City, Dugu Mingri."

The boy was very forthright and revealed his identity.

Lu Ming was somewhat surprised. He knew of the Dugu Family; they were one of the three major families, just like the Yang Family, to which the young master he met at the blacksmith shop belonged.

"And what should I call you?"

Dugu Mingri asked.

"Lu Ming, also from Shuofeng City," Lu Ming replied, stating his name.

"I guessed as much."

Dugu Mingri looked understanding and then said, "Your saber techniques are good, and your speed is very fast. The Ruan Twin Heroes, despite their high realm, were no match for you at all."

Lu Ming didn't argue. Instead, he asked, "How long have you been here?"

"From the moment you drew your saber on the first person."

Dugu Mingri didn't hide anything. "Don't worry, I was planning to head back and just happened to pass by. You also seem to be heading back, so why don't we go together?"

Lu Ming looked at the boy; he didn't seem like someone with ulterior motives. After some thought, he didn't refuse, but he didn't let his guard down either.

Thus, the two set off together.

The journey back was naturally much faster. Even when they encountered Demonic Beasts, Dugu Mingri would strike first and resolve them.

This also allowed Lu Ming to witness the boy's strength. Honestly, compared to the Ruan Twin Heroes, Dugu Mingri was more than just a little stronger.

Just the speed of his sword strikes was comparable to Lu Ming's saber speed.

It was likely that he practiced cultivation techniques that focused on speed.

However, even though the boy was powerful, Lu Ming was confident he could handle him.

"Brother Dugu, at only fifteen years old, you've already reached the peak of the ninth layer of the Inner Qi Realm. Your talent is truly exceptional. Why don't you join a sect?"

As they grew more familiar with each other, Lu Ming curiously asked.

It was known that although the Dugu Family was a dominant force in Shuofeng City, they were nothing compared to the sects.

And with Dugu Mingri's talent, it shouldn't be difficult for him to join a sect.

Facing this question, Dugu Mingri didn't answer. Instead, he asked, "You think my talent is very good?"