Sword Dance Technique, the Old Daoist Priest Who Took the Peachwood Sword

"Qian Family?"

Shen Bai frowned slightly.

Normally, if someone asked for directions, Shen Bai wouldn't mind, but asking about the Qian Family now reminded him of Old Master Qian.

Not long ago, Old Master Qian had suddenly died from a terrible illness. It was said that before he died, he bit people like a mad dog.

Several house servants and maids had been bitten.

After Old Master Qian was subdued, he died not long after, eyes wide open.

In recent days, rumors had circulated that Old Master Qian's figure could often be seen in the Qian Family's kitchen and other areas, smiling at them.

But Old Master Qian had been buried for many days already.

Shen Bai felt confused, so he didn't speak.

The Old Daoist Priest explained, "The shopkeeper misunderstands. I was invited by the Qian Family to perform rituals."

Shen Bai came back to his senses and casually pointed in the direction of the Qian Family, saying, "Head that way, and after a few more streets, you'll reach the Qian Family residence."

The Old Daoist Priest cupped his hands, performed a Daoist salute, and turned to leave.

By this time, it was already late.

Since Shen Bai had acquired the Sword Dance Technique, his mind was set on grinding its proficiency, so he closed the shop early.

As for the Qian Family matter, though curious, he didn't dwell on it.

"I'm just a pawnshop keeper; what does it have to do with me?"

Shen Bai lit the oil lamp on the table and resumed practicing the Sword Dance Technique.

After reaching level two, each time Shen Bai performed the Sword Dance Technique, it produced a faint ringing sound.

Not only that, Shen Bai's swordplay also carried a majestic, righteous aura, as if it could vanquish all evil.

With each of Shen Bai's sword dances, the Sword Dance Technique's proficiency increased.

When Shen Bai danced his three hundredth sword, a stick of incense had passed.

"The more I dance, the more the airflow is consumed."

The airflow in Shen Bai's dantian was depleted, and the proficiency stopped increasing.

Each sword dance used airflow, so Shen Bai had to rest.

Inside his body, the depleted airflow gradually began to recover.

Once Shen Bai had fully recovered, the soreness in his arms also gradually dissipated with the transition of airflow.

Afterward, Shen Bai continued to practice the Sword Dance.

[Sword Dance Technique +1+1+1…]

As usual, each time Shen Bai performed the Sword Dance, it deepened his understanding of the technique.

Shen Bai discovered that proficiency wasn't as simple as he thought.

The further he progressed, the slower the proficiency increased, often requiring several sword dances to gain even a single point.

But as long as it was increasing, it wasn't a big problem.

The night quickly passed.

When the next day arrived, Shen Bai stretched and moved his sore arms.

His right arm was aching, being constantly flushed by a warm airflow, slowly recovering.

A wisp of smoke appeared before Shen Bai's eyes, gradually forming text.

[Sword Dance Technique lv.2 (Swordsmanship +2, Demonbane +2): 1000/1000]
[Can undergo qualitative change, requires one wisp of Malevolent Qi]

This was the result of a night's work; the Sword Dance Technique had reached level two completion, but subsequent problems arose.

Qualitative change appeared after reaching level two completion, but the condition for it was one wisp of Malevolent Qi.

Shen Bai didn't know what Malevolent Qi was, so he was temporarily stuck.

"I'll open for business first. Life has to go on."

After thinking for a long time about how to obtain Malevolent Qi without success, Shen Bai decided to open for business.

Even great heroes who righted wrongs needed to eat. In the current world, there weren't many people like Shen Bai who owned a shop, so Shen Bai naturally had to take care of business first.

Moreover, his Sword Dance Technique seemed to be in a bottleneck now; he could do business while thinking about the Sword Dance Technique.

After eating at a street stall outside, Shen Bai returned to the pawnshop.

"Old Zhang isn't here yet?"

Shen Bai poured himself a cup of tea and took a slow sip.

Normally, Zhang Chaofeng should have arrived already, and Shen Bai didn't know why he hadn't come to work at the pawnshop for so long.

However, business at the pawnshop was always hit or miss; sometimes, pawning one item could guarantee several months of living, so Shen Bai didn't mind.

Lying in his chair, Shen Bai waited for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn before Zhang Chaofeng walked in, looking full of gossip.

Shen Bai took one look at Zhang Chaofeng and figured he must have heard some interesting news somewhere again.

Shen Bai knew Zhang Chaofeng well; he was an incredibly nosy person.

Sure enough, before Shen Bai could even speak, Zhang Chaofeng blurted out, "Boss, big news! Someone else died in the Qian Family."

Shen Bai set down his tea, asking curiously, "Who died in the Qian Family this time? Are they cursed or something lately?"

The death of Old Master Qian had been a huge blow to the Qian Family, and they were probably all thinking about dividing the family assets now.

With another death, Shen Bai figured the family assets would be even harder to sort out.

"It wasn't someone from the Qian Family," Zhang Chaofeng said mysteriously. "It was an Old Daoist Priest. They say the Qian Family hired him to exorcise demons. He was performing a ritual when he suddenly went mad, biting anyone he could get his hands on. After he was caught, he died shortly after."

An Old Daoist Priest?

Hearing those three words, Shen Bai immediately sat upright. "Was he carrying a Peachwood Sword?"

Zhang Chaofeng nodded. "Yes, that Peachwood Sword looked quite familiar to me, like... hiss... Boss, it couldn't be from our pawnshop, could it?"

Shen Bai's lip twitched. "It probably is."

Zhang Chaofeng was first startled, then became fearful. "Boss, everyone's saying the Qian Family is haunted. The Old Daoist Priest died, and he took a Peachwood Sword from our pawnshop. He won't turn into a ghost and come looking for us, will he?"

Shen Bai waved his hand. "What are you thinking? Just focus on your work. Don't mention this again."

Zhang Chaofeng, hearing Shen Bai say that, really didn't dare to continue, but he was somewhat distracted.

Shen Bai didn't pay much mind to it. Situations like this were similar to how one felt after watching a horror movie in his previous life—suspicious and paranoid for a few days, but it would pass.

What Shen Bai found strange, though, was that the Old Daoist Priest would suddenly die.

It seems there's a big problem with this Qian Family, Shen Bai thought to himself.

However, none of this concerned him. What he was thinking about now was how to get some Malevolent Qi, or find something similar to the Sword Dance Technique painting, to see if he could develop another ability.

The entire day passed with Zhang Chaofeng in a state of paranoia. During this time, some people came to pawn things, but they were all worthless items.

It wasn't until Zhang Chaofeng left in the evening that Shen Bai closed the shop door.

The oil lamp on the table cast a dim, yellowish light.

"This can't go on. Tomorrow morning, I'll wander the streets and see if I can find anything related to Malevolent Qi."

Shen Bai made up his mind.

Since he intended to qualitatively transform the Sword Dance Technique, Shen Bai naturally planned to acquire some Malevolent Qi. He decided to try his luck tomorrow.

With a plan in mind and no abilities to grind, Shen Bai prepared to rest early.

Just then, a knock suddenly sounded at the door.

Shen Bai frowned. "Who is it?"

Outside the pawnshop, a hoarse voice filtered through the door crack.

"Boss, I've come for the Peachwood Sword..."