Rainy Night, Knife, Umbrella

Chu Huai Xu put on the gaming helmet and opened his eyes.

The environment before him shifted in an instant, and he felt the scene ahead grow slightly dim.

It was a night of torrential rain.

At this very moment, he was standing on a small forest path, a short blade at his waist and an oil-paper umbrella in his hand.

The scent of rain mixed with damp earth flooded his nostrils, making him feel all the more clear-headed.

Dark clouds blanketed the night sky, obscuring even the slightest trace of moonlight.

Chu Huai Xu frowned, raised his free right hand, pressed his index and middle fingers together, and made a stroke Suspended in mid-air.

The next moment, the entire world brightened significantly!

Everything before him suddenly became much clearer to his eyes.

Just as Chu Huai Xu prepared to survey his surroundings, a figure darted out from the dense woods ahead.

The stranger also held an oil-paper umbrella and wore a black martial outfit; the only difference was the long blade hanging at his waist.

Oh, right—he held his umbrella so low that from Chu Huai Xu's angle, he could only see the lower half of the man's face, looking exactly like a close-up shot in a movie.

Consequently, Chu Huai Xu silently lowered his own oil-paper umbrella as well.

The man who had darted from the woods already had his right hand resting on the hilt of his long blade.

His voice was slightly hoarse, sounding as if he had a glob of phlegm stuck in his throat:

"I advise you not to do anything. Come back with me now and be thrown into the Heavenly Prison."

After the bearded man finished speaking, he added:

"Of course, you have a second option."

"Give me fifty Ten Taels of Silver."

With that, he stepped aside to signal he would let him pass.

Upon hearing this, Chu Huai Xu raised his oil-paper umbrella even lower.

The night rain pattered incessantly against the surface of the umbrella, and amidst the darkness, his expression remained obscured.

Fifty taels... the purchasing power is roughly equivalent to over 50,000 yuan on Earth, Chu Huai Xu calculated to himself.

Spending fifty thousand to avoid prison—or perhaps to buy his own life—didn't seem too expensive.

However, he wasn't certain if his current "self" could actually produce such a sum.

And so, he began to search his person for money.

To his surprise, he actually found a one-hundred-tael banknote tucked inside his robes.

Huh? It seems the start of this run isn't so simple, he thought.

Chu Huai Xu lifted his oil-paper umbrella, raised an eyebrow at the man, and holding up the one-hundred-tael note, asked earnestly:

"Wait. Do you even have change for this?"

The bearded man opposite him also raised his umbrella, his gaze suddenly turning sharp.

His original plan had been to gauge the boy's total assets.

Most people wouldn't carry their entire fortune on their person.

If he only took the silver on him, wouldn't that be a letdown?

Essentially, he wasn't just looking to rob a wallet; he wanted the balance in the bank account, too.

But who would have thought this kid would carry such a large denomination of banknote!

The bearded man licked his dry lips and said in that wretched, phlegm-filled voice: "I was suspicious of your identity before, but now..."

"Clang—!" The bearded man drew the long blade from his waist!

He looked at Chu Huai Xu with a savage grin, holding the umbrella in his left hand and the blade in his right, and took two steps forward.

"I'm just a bit puzzled—what is the point of sending a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus mortal like you?"

The situation was special now; with a great catastrophe looming, the era of universal cultivation had long since begun.

Anyone with even a shred of talent for a spirit fetus could step through the gates of cultivation and become a cultivator.

This man looked to be of a certain age, yet he hadn't stepped through those gates; he was undoubtedly a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus.

Listening to the bearded man, Chu Huai Xu tilted his head slightly and looked at him askance:

"Aren't you the same, buddy?"

Hilarious. You're a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus yourself, so why the condescension?

Hearing this, the malice in the bearded man's eyes deepened, and his face flushed with anger.

In earlier years, the right to cultivate was monopolized by sects, dynasties, and noble clans to ensure the hierarchy remained intact.

Commoners, unless they possessed truly exceptional talent, had no chance to cultivate at all.

Now, because the great catastrophe was approaching, the era of universal cultivation had finally begun.

In such an environment, for someone like him with a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus, it was truly cruel.

Apart from body tempering, there was no other choice.

However, trying to break through the first barrier of cultivation by relying on body tempering was as difficult as ascending to heaven!

The effort required for this was a hundred, or even a thousand or ten thousand times that of someone possessing a Spirit Fetus!

Therefore, for the stubbled man, a Spirit Fetus was the thing he envied most.

He dreamed of becoming a cultivator.

His anger surged in an instant, and his right hand gripping the blade tightened.

But before cutting him down, the stubbled man also wanted to continue mocking him.

After all, cutting someone was one thing, and trash-talking was another.

"Yeah, I'm a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus, that's right."

"But I never thought about relying on a mere Pseudo-Spirit Fetus to sneak into the Dao Sect."

"You piece of trash really don't know How capable one is! Don't tell me you're counting on your soft, delicate skin to try and pull some strings?" He licked his upper lip.

Chu Huai Xu listened to his words, digesting the information within.

"Sneak into the Dao Sect?" He caught this keyword.

Strictly speaking, a Pseudo-Spirit Fetus could indeed never be admitted into the Dao Sect.

However, a smile appeared on Chu Huai Xu's face, and he spoke words that the stubbled man could not understand at all:

"Don't ask."

"I'm a sports major."

The rain kept falling.

The stubbled man wondered if his own brain had water in it, or if the other guy's brain had water in it.

He was completely bewildered.

But, the other party moved!

Chu Huai Xu was seen taking the short blade from his waist as well.

"A rainy night, a blade, and an umbrella?" He began to Mutter to oneself.

Immediately after, he tossed the umbrella aside.

The short blade was Drawn out!

The heavy rain lashed against his body. Chu Huai Xu drew his blade and lunged forward, his first step landing in a puddle, splashing up sprays of water mixed with mud.

"Bold!" The stubbled man roared, likewise throwing away the oil-paper umbrella in his hand.

He swung his long blade forward; the strike was fierce, following a style of wide, sweeping movements.

As the two blades met, Chu Huai Xu felt his web between thumb and forefinger jolt.

Clearly, the other man's strength was far greater than his!

If nothing else, this stubbled man was someone who had undergone body tempering.

It was just that he hadn't broken through the first barrier of cultivation yet.

An interesting start, Chu Huai Xu thought.

But, you're at this age, your mouth still stinks, and this is all your body tempering amounts to?

"Is that it?"

The short blade flicked violently upward!

The stubbled man was secretly alarmed.

He couldn't understand why the young man in front of him, who didn't have much strength, speed, or a strong physical body, was impossible to hit.

If it were just one narrow escape, he would have thought the other guy was lucky.

But what about every single time?

Moreover, the angles of his strikes and his grasp of distance had reached a terrifying level.

It was as if his control over his own body had reached a truly perverted standard!

"Why?" The stubbled man was utterly perplexed.

A very bad premonition began to emerge in his heart.

Once, I only need to be hit by him once, it will definitely be a vital spot, I will definitely die!

And the facts proved he was right.

Because just as that thought surfaced, the short blade traced a line of blood across his throat.

--You are correct, are you happy?

After slitting his throat with one strike, Chu Huai Xu kicked the stubbled man hard in the abdomen, sending him flying far away to maintain a safe distance, lest any close-quarters accidents occur before he was completely dead.

The opponent lay prone on the ground, body convulsing, hands clutching their throat in a death grip, yet the blood continued to flow unabated.

--The situation was settled.

As the rain washed over his body, Chu Huai Xu lowered his head slightly, sheathed his blade, and spoke calmly:

"If you're trash, practice more."

Chu Huai Xu walked forward a few steps, picked up the oil-paper umbrella he had discarded earlier, and gave it a flick to shake off the accumulated water.

He felt he had looked incredibly cool just now.

However, it wasn't long before he fell into a state of bewilderment, followed immediately by a complex mix of annoyance, confusion, and alarm.

"No way! Where the hell is the button to log out of this game!"

(PS: New book setting sail, Request monthly votes~)