Martial Ancestor, Martial Venerable

Lu Ming slowly turned around, his robes stirring without any wind.

"Wuji Sect?"

Yu Yuan's heart tightened when he heard that. These sect disciples were not easy to deal with, but he still pretended to be disdainful.

"Haha, it's you sect disciples who don't know when to stop courting death again. Some time ago, an inner disciple from the Eighth-Rank Sect, Nine Tripod Sect, took on a mission and came looking for me. In the end, I kicked him into a pile of minced flesh."

"In the past few days, an inner disciple from the Seventh-Rank Sect, Nine Heavens Sect, also came courting death. He died by my hand as well."

He seemed to be boasting about his battle record, but in truth, he was disturbing his opponent's state of mind.

This trick worked especially well against young sect disciples who had not experienced much of the world. For instance, that Nine Tripod Sect disciple had immediately panicked after hearing it.

As a result, he had made mistake after mistake during the battle and had been easily killed.

However, the person before him was different. Although Yu Yuan could not see his expression, he could sense his calmness.

And it was not ordinary calmness. It was as if the surface of a lake were silent and tranquil, while beneath it lurked surging killing intent.

It made him feel as though his hair were standing on end.

Lu Ming truly remained unmoved. When he had been at the eighth layer of Inner Qi, he had already dared to fight a Martial Artist of the Zhen Qi Realm head-on. At the ninth layer, he had slain two Martial Artists of the Zhen Qi Realm in succession.

Was he afraid of death?

When he was alone, he might have hesitated if he asked himself that question. Yet whenever he faced an enemy, he was always unnaturally calm.

He did not know why. That was simply how he was.

Thus, he did not waste words and drew his saber directly.

Swish!

This time, even the Saber Light and his figure vanished together.

Yu Yuan's expression changed drastically. Acting on instinct, he shoved the woman in his arms in front of him, then circulated his Zhen Qi with all his strength. Without even knowing where to attack, he retreated at once.

It was as if a gentle breeze had blown past. He only felt a chill at his neck, followed by an extremely sharp cutting sensation rampaging through his body.

Pfft! Pfft!

The sounds of a saber blade slicing through paper rang out one after another.

In an instant, he lost all his strength and collapsed helplessly.

Before dying, he could see his enemy from the corner of his eye, standing behind him and watching him while holding his long saber, as though he had never struck at all.

He could not understand how the other party had been so fast.

The sect disciples he had encountered before had clearly not been like this.

"Ah..."

Suddenly splashed by something warm, the kidnapped woman screamed in terror, while the old man, who had witnessed the entire scene, had already run over.

"Thank you, Young Hero Lu, for drawing your saber to help us."

He hurriedly saluted.

"Father."

As though she had found someone to rely on, the woman threw herself into the old man's arms and began to cry.

The old man hurriedly comforted her a few times before urging her, "Quickly kneel and thank Young Hero Lu for saving your life."

The woman did so while sobbing, but Lu Ming stopped her. "There's no need. I merely accepted a sect mission."

As he spoke, he waved his hand and collected Yu Yuan's corpse, then prepared to leave.

However, the old man stopped him. "Young Hero, please wait. Although this was merely a simple gesture for you, it was a great kindness to my Liu Family. We cannot fail to repay it. Since you have come from afar, at the very least, allow me to show you some hospitality."

"That's right, Young Hero Lu."

At this moment, the Plum Ridge Twin Swords also came over. After saluting, they said, "The Plum Ridge Twin Swords, Qi Shaobin and Jiang Mulan, greet Young Hero."

"Greetings to you both."

Lu Ming also cupped his fists toward them before saying, "There's no need for your hospitality. Everyone, until we meet again by fate."

With that, he lightly tapped the ground with his toes and swept backward. After gliding some distance, he suddenly turned around and changed to striding forward, disappearing gradually into the long street.

"What exquisite movement skills. As expected of an inner disciple of a Seventh-Rank Sect."

Qi Shaobin of the Plum Ridge Twin Swords exclaimed in admiration, then spoke with incomparable envy.

Compared to loose cultivators like them, the resources and martial arts enjoyed by these sect disciples were truly enviable.

But there was nothing they could do. Who could blame them for having ordinary talents? They were already in their thirties, yet had only reached the Early Zhen Qi Realm.

"It's more than just movement skills. Both he and we are at the Early Zhen Qi Realm. Yu Yuan, whom we couldn't withstand for even one move, was likewise unable to withstand one move from him. The gap between us is simply too great."

The female swordswoman Jiang Mulan sighed emotionally.

"Father, I'll definitely work hard to learn martial arts from now on."

The woman who had nearly been kidnapped was still somewhat shaken. Watching Lu Ming's departing back, she suddenly spoke.

The old man immediately looked gratified. "After this experience, you've finally understood. I told you long ago: in this world, weakness itself is a crime."

"Look at how a random bandit can leave you unable to control your own fate."

"You like those arts of the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Once your strength is formidable, won't you be able to enjoy them however you wish?"

He immediately launched into a lecture. "Now that you've figured it out, it's not too late."

The woman lowered her head. She knew that she had been too naïve in the past.

"Congratulations, Old Patriarch Liu, on having someone to carry on your legacy. In truth, Miss Liu is naturally intelligent. If she works hard at her cultivation, her future achievements will certainly be considerable."

The Plum Ridge Twin Swords immediately offered their congratulations.

"I dare not speak of achievements. I only hope that she can protect herself in the future."

The old man waved his hand, then formally bowed. "Thank you both for helping us just now. In the future, our Liu Family will certainly publicize the righteous deed of the two heroes."

"Not at all, not at all."

The two appeared indifferent on the surface, but were delighted inwardly.

Why had they helped out of righteousness? Wasn't it all for the sake of making a name for themselves?

"You two were dragged into this earlier. Please return to my residence with me and recuperate for a few days," the old man invited again.

"Then we'll trouble you."

Afterward, the group headed toward the residence. As Miss Liu walked, she could not help glancing once more toward the direction in which Lu Ming had left.

That figure, holding a long saber in his arms, wearing a bamboo hat, and standing there with an airy elegance, left a deep impression on her.

Thinking about it, she suddenly felt a strong urge to draw him.

The only pity was that his features, hidden behind the black veil, were somewhat blurred.

After leaving, Lu Ming arrived at a restaurant at the end of the street called Fuyun Tower.

He came there, took his horse, nodded toward the restaurant owner, and rode away in a cloud of dust.

The owner of Fuyun Tower had once been an inner disciple of Wuji Sect. Because he had been unable to break through for a long time, he had regretfully left and returned to his hometown.

However, he had not completely severed ties with Wuji Sect. He could be considered the sect's informant in this area.

All kinds of intelligence would be sent back, and naturally, he would receive payment as well.

The reason Lu Ming had been able to find Yu Yuan so quickly was precisely this.

There were many such people as the owner of Fuyun Tower throughout the entire Zhao Kingdom, and even in neighboring countries.

The vastness of a sect did not consist solely of the people within its mountain gate.

Without thinking further, Lu Ming began counting his spoils as he rode.

Usually, outlaws like Yu Yuan carried their wealth and belongings with them, so his harvest this time would certainly not be small.

Of course, outlaws who lived with their heads on the chopping block also believed in indulging while they could, and generally spent money lavishly.

He only hoped that Yu Yuan had managed to save more.

With excitement in his heart, he immediately began searching the corpse.

He started with the fingers, but found no Storage Ring. After searching the body thoroughly, he finally found it on the necklace around Yu Yuan's neck.

It turned out that the other party had made it into a pendant.

He took it out and began examining it.

He discovered that the space inside this Storage Ring was slightly smaller than his own, but it was still quite valuable.

Next came the contents. Aside from some clothes and other miscellaneous items, there were not many useful things.

First was money: more than one hundred and thirty thousand silver notes, along with more than twenty thousand gold notes.

To his surprise, there were also thirty-six and a half Low-grade Yuan Stones. That half stone was probably what the other party had used for cultivation.

After counting everything, he moved it all into his own Storage Ring.

Next were the martial arts. Inside was one leg technique that the other party had used and one palm technique, but he did not find any inner cultivation method.

The leg technique was called [Whirlwind Sweeping Leaves Leg], and its grade was Human-grade, high stage.

The palm technique was slightly higher in grade. It was Human-grade, peak stage, and was called [Great Demon Execution Palm].

"I didn't expect this Yu Yuan to cultivate the Demon Execution Palm technique while engaging in murder and arson. I wonder whether, with a state of mind like that, he had already cultivated this palm technique to mastery."

Lu Ming felt somewhat speechless after seeing the name [Great Demon Execution Palm].

Afterward, he began to hesitate. One was a palm technique, and the other was a leg technique. Should he learn them or not? He understood the principle that biting off more than one could chew.

However, he soon made up his mind. Biting off more than one could chew applied to other people, who feared that learning too many disparate things would scatter their energy.

But he possessed the Jade Pendant. There were no martial arts in the world that he could not understand, so naturally, he did not have that problem.

Besides, he was determined to reach the end of the martial path. Naturally, he could not rely solely on saber techniques and become some Saber Venerable or Fist Ancestor.

He wanted to become a Martial Ancestor and Martial Venerable.

Therefore, whenever he had the chance to learn a martial art, he would naturally learn it.

Collecting his thoughts, Lu Ming put away the two martial arts manuals first, then looked toward the remaining items.