A Trifling Trick, Yet You Dare Flaunt Your Skills Before Me

Su Fei's heart stirred.

"I had a good friend who recently passed away. His name was Li Yan, and he was once a clerk in the Qingzhou Army. I'd like to buy a good coffin from your estate, keep his body for a few days before burial. Might you have any ready-made coffins here, sir?"

The moment the words "Li Yan" left his mouth, a flicker of surprise flashed through the old man's cloudy eyes. Though it vanished in an instant, Su Fei's God-tier Insight Technique caught it clearly.

The old man paused, forcing a stiff smile onto his face.

"If that is the case, we do have ready-made coffins. Please come in, gentlemen, and choose whichever you like."

As he spoke, he stepped aside to clear the way.

The charity burial house's courtyard was more spacious than expected. Rain shelters stood on either side, beneath which more than a dozen coffins had been neatly arranged. Some were covered in white cloth, while others had their lids open. The air was thick with the mingled scent of camphorwood and incense candles.

An offering table stood before the main hall, its incense burner still sending up wisps of blue smoke.

"These are all fine cypress coffins."

The old man led them toward the shelter on the left, his voice carrying a trace of deliberate enthusiasm.

"Clerk Li was an official. This century-old cypress coffin suits his status best. It keeps out dampness, resists decay, and will serve well."

Su Fei did not listen to his chatter. His gaze fell upon a large black coffin at the very back. It was a foot wider than an ordinary coffin, and beneath the hanging curtain, a metallic gleam could faintly be seen. It was clearly not made of ordinary wood.

And as the old man made his introductions, he deliberately—or seemingly deliberately—positioned himself in front of that large black coffin.

Su Fei suddenly pointed at it.

"I'll take that one. It looks sturdy enough. Open it for me to see."

The old man's expression suddenly stiffened.

"That one was reserved long ago. Sir, you should look at another."

Su Fei raised an eyebrow and pressed forward step by step.

"Oh? Someone reserved it? I am Imperial Guard. I'll pay double the price."

As he spoke, he made as if to take out silver.

Captain Li found it somewhat strange. The Su Fei he knew was not someone who bullied others with his power.

What was going on with him today?

Sweat beaded on the old man's forehead. His hand quietly pressed against his waist, where something bulged beneath his robe as though it were concealing an object.

He forced a smile.

"It was ordered by an out-of-town merchant. Sir, please do not make things difficult for this old man."

At that moment, Captain Li noticed the old man's small movement.

He immediately realized that this man was likely suspicious.

Stepping forward, he said in a deep voice,

"Take your hand away."

Seeing that he could not evade them, a vicious glint flashed in the old man's eyes. He suddenly flung open his black robe, revealing fitted martial clothes beneath. A short blade was in his right hand, wrapped in a surge of true qi as it stabbed straight toward Su Fei's heart.

He moved as swiftly as a civet cat, without a trace of old age. He was actually a formidable martial artist who had entered the Xiantian Realm.

Su Fei had long been prepared. The Dragon Catching Skill erupted into action.

An invisible suction force burst from his palm. The short blade in the old man's hand seemed to be firmly drawn by a magnet, wrenching free from his grip.

With a sharp whoosh, it tore through the air and spun toward Su Fei's palm.

He caught it.

At the sight of him catching a blade barehanded,

the old man's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. His right hand remained frozen in the stabbing posture.

He had painstakingly trained in blade techniques for years, yet he had not even touched the corner of his opponent's robes before being disarmed. Such a method was simply unheard of.

Seeing his short blade taken away, the old man's vicious glare intensified.

His palms crossed, and strange gray qi rose from them as he unleashed a sinister palm technique.

"Courting death! Taste this old man's White Lotus Extinguishing Life Palm!"

Xiantian True Essence condensed into a gray-white lotus.

The white lotus emitted an aura of decay and death.

It spun round and round in the air.

Then it drifted down toward Su Fei.

Su Fei's gaze sharpened. Nine Yang True Qi circulated within his dantian, and his right hand formed a palm. Golden dragon-shaped qi gathered in his palm.

"A trifling trick, yet you dare flaunt your skills before me."

Dragon Fights in the Wild swept forward.

A dragon's roar rang out.

Palm wind howled, as though a golden dragon were roaring within it. Fiercely masculine qi surged out like raging waves, colliding with the gray-white lotus.

Bang!

The two currents of qi clashed, and the gray-white lotus was instantly torn apart by the golden dragon.

The old man only felt a vast, overwhelming force crashing into him, as though he had been struck by a real golden dragon. His arms were wracked with unbearable pain, while his chest felt as if it had been smashed by a heavy hammer. He flew backward like a kite with its string cut.

He slammed heavily into the black coffin, fell to the ground, and spat out blood.

His eyes were filled with terror as he looked at Su Fei.

"What palm technique is that? How can it be so tyrannical? You are so young, yet your cultivation is so formidable. Who exactly are you?"

What the old man did not know was—

Su Fei had already shown mercy with that strike. Otherwise, that one palm would have sent him west to see the Tathagata.

Just as Su Fei was about to question the old man, a staggering sound suddenly came from behind him.

He whirled around and saw Captain Li's face had turned deathly pale. Clutching his chest with tightly furrowed brows, he opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of black blood.

"Lord Li, what's wrong?"

Su Fei hurried forward to support him.

Captain Li's lips had turned purple, his breath instantly weakening, while his eyes were filled with horror.

"Hahahaha!"

Seeing this, the old man who had been sent flying suddenly burst into wild laughter. Struggling to sit up, his face was full of smug delight.

"I recognize your uniform. So what if you are an Imperial Guard Hundred Households Officer? Bone Corrosion Powder does not feel so good, does it? This is poison I made myself. Within half an hour, it will eat through your entire body. Not even immortals can save you."

"Does the incense in the burner smell pleasant? This old man took the antidote beforehand. Hahaha!"

"You want the antidote? Then let this old man go. Otherwise, this old man will perish together with you."

Su Fei frowned deeply and lowered his head to inspect Captain Li's condition. The black blood carried a foul stench. He had clearly been poisoned badly.

Yet Su Fei himself was completely unaffected.

He circulated his true qi to investigate. Remembering his Nine Yang Divine Art, he instinctively looked inward at his dantian. His true essence still blazed fiercely, circulating throughout his body without the slightest obstruction. There was not even a trace of poisoning.

Su Fei's Nine Yang Divine Art was the bane of all poisons under heaven.

This little poison meant shit to him.

The old man's laughter stopped abruptly, the smugness frozen on his face as he stared at Su Fei, who looked utterly unharmed.

Dumbfounded, he asked,

"You clearly smelled the incense too. Why are you unharmed?"

Su Fei had no time to heed his shock and confusion. He pressed his left hand against Captain Li's back and slowly transferred Nine Yang True Qi into him.

The golden qi, supremely yang and supremely fierce, poured into Captain Li's body like warm sunlight. Wherever it passed, the black poisonous qi lodged within his meridians melted away like ice and snow meeting fire.

Captain Li's purple lips gradually regained their color. He gave a muffled groan, then coughed out a mouthful of phlegm tainted with black qi. His breathing immediately became much smoother.

"Su Fei, I owe you for this. If it weren't for you, old Li would have truly fallen this time."

The old man was completely dumbstruck. Slumped on the ground, he muttered to himself.

"What internal art do you cultivate? It can actually help another person expel poison."

"You can even cure Bone Corrosion Powder?"

Su Fei helped Captain Li stand steadily, then turned to the old man with icy eyes.

"What does this little poison amount to? Now it is your turn to talk. What exactly is this place? What exactly is inside this coffin? Are there military weapons in there?"