Ghost Face Martial Artist

Lu Xuan wasn't in a hurry to snatch the Earth Dragon Egg.

He pulled the meat from the flames, chewing as he mulled over the other details in the email.

The Bronze Gourd had other effects.

Opportunities big and small scattered across Ruins City.

And Xu Xin's identity wasn't simple—if things got dicey, revealing it could save his life.

As for the lottery number left behind...

Could that thing really hit the jackpot?

Lu Xuan had his doubts. Last time, he'd added five bets and only scraped together a little over ten thousand.

A drop in the bucket.

"Bronze Gourd..." Lu Xuan shook off his thoughts and pulled the Bronze Gourd from his Storage Ring.

The gourd was a bronze-green, threaded with golden veins, its stopper carved into a dragon's head.

He'd never really studied it since getting his hands on it.

"A Heaven and Earth Spiritual Item that can nurture someone into breaking through to the Martial realm—it's got to be extraordinary. If the email's right, the Bronze Gourd is likely what that Beast Lord level monster was hunting."

Lu Xuan brought the gourd close to the fire and examined it carefully.

Nothing special about it.

He popped the stopper. Inside, a faint, refreshing aura seeped out—like the relief of drawing a deep breath of fresh air after being cooped up too long.

"Could there be something inside?"

Lu Xuan pondered. "In all those novels, anything stored in a container usually has something going on inside. And that Heaven and Earth Spiritual Item grew out of it back then..."

As he thought it over, he tossed a chunk of monster meat into the Bronze Gourd.

Strangely, a flash of golden light shot from the mouth, and the meat vanished instantly.

"Huh?"

Lu Xuan leaned in, peering into the opening. Nothing inside.

Under his Mental Power's perception, a single drop of liquid seemed to slosh around.

"Something's in there?"

He tipped the gourd upright and gave it a firm tap.

A drop of spiritual liquid appeared at the mouth, shimmering emerald green in the firelight.

Lu Xuan had no idea what it was, but he could feel it—this drop was packed with incredibly dense Spiritual Energy. Just being near it calmed his mind and body.

Good stuff!

Without a second thought, Lu Xuan downed it in one gulp.

Hum!

The liquid hit his throat, and Spiritual Energy erupted. Every limb and bone trembled, his blood surging. The injured parts slowly mended under that power.

A moment later, the energy was fully absorbed. Lu Xuan clenched his fist, sensing his Spiritual Energy and blood vitality had grown thicker.

"What a potent effect!"

He carefully scanned the changes in his body.

Not only had his injuries healed, but his strength had jumped a notch.

Grabbing the Bronze Gourd, Lu Xuan burst into laughter. "Hahaha, what a treasure!"

"A rare treasure indeed!"

In his excitement, he tossed more flesh and blood into the gourd.

Different this time.

After the meat vanished, no spiritual liquid appeared.

"Could it be that this liquid isn't produced by devouring spiritual items? Instead, it generates one drop at set intervals?"

That was possible.

Lu Xuan wasn't discouraged. He consoled himself, "Makes sense. If it could just convert whatever it eats into liquid, that'd be too broken. One drop at regular intervals is enough."

After all, the treasure was in his hands.

He could use it anytime.

"Now that my injuries are healed, I should plan to find Xu Long and the others."

The Earth Dragon Egg—he was determined to have it.

But before that, he had to plan carefully.

His past self in the Future Mail had been too hasty, leaving behind too many traces.

With that lesson as a warning, Lu Xuan would not walk that path again.

He put away the Bronze Gourd.

Staring at the blazing flames, his thoughts scattered: "Now that I have future intel—especially the locations of certain opportunities in Ruins City—I can find those first to boost my strength, clean up the traces I left behind, and after taking out Xu Long, regroup with Jiangnan Martial University and leave the Wilderness."

Find opportunities.

Kill Xu Long and seize the Earth Dragon Egg.

Then disguise himself as logistics personnel again.

Return to Jinling City.

The plan took shape in his mind. Lu Xuan swallowed the last piece of monster meat, stamped out the fire, gripped his long blade, and vanished into the night.

The Wilderness night was always lively.

In Ruins City, there was a lake where lotuses swayed under the moonlight.

After the Cataclysm, the vegetation here had mutated—and started eating meat.

"Boss, this is the place!"

By the lake, a middle-aged man in combat gear pointed at the water, speaking to a squad of four or five behind him:

"I've already scouted with the drone. The mutated lotus has nurtured a Moon Gazing Lotus—that's a spiritual herb worth tens of thousands. If we dig it up, we can take the whole year off!"

This was an adventure squad.

They took on corporate or official commissions.

And if they stumbled across something good, they found a way to claim it.

"Since ancient times, every heavenly treasure has its guardian beast."

The leader, a middle-aged man, looked grim: "The Moon Gazing Lotus is an Intermediate Spiritual Herb. There's likely an Intermediate Monster guarding it. Digging it up will take careful planning."

Bang!

Without warning, the moment his words fell—

A dazzling burst of fire exploded from the center of the lake.

Water splashed up in layered petals, the shockwave so violent it shook the entire lake, sending fish belly-up.

The group on the shore froze, then turned to look.

"Boss, someone's there!"

In their field of vision, A tall, imposing figure, long blade in hand, struck down on the head of a Mutant Crocodile Turtle.

As if noticing their stares, he glanced sideways.

A face masked by a Ghost Face appeared.

Beneath the mask, a bone-chilling murderous intent radiated.

"Gh-ghost!"

One man stumbled back in terror and fell.

"Shut up!"

The leader steadied his breath, kicked off the ground, and lunged at the masked figure, shouting:

"You there—the Moon Gazing Lotus was ours to claim first!"

The Ghost Face Martial Artist sneered, waved a hand, and the lotus vanished into his Storage Ring.

He glanced back at the charging man and said flatly: "Heavenly treasures go to those with the skill to take them."

"Bold words!"

The leader was furious.

He was a Sixth-order Intermediate Martial Artist, just one step away from the Advanced rank. In this Wilderness, few dared to talk back to him.

Shame.

Bare-faced humiliation!

He held nothing back. Blood energy surged within him, coiling into a dragon as he struck at Lu Xuan.

Facing a punch that could shake mountains and crack the earth, Lu Xuan didn't budge.

When the distance between them closed to five meters—

"You should be grateful I'm not taking it by force."

Ghost Face Martial Artist raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

The next moment, Boom--!

The lake water boiled, every droplet turning into arrow blades that shot toward the middle-aged man.

Bang bang bang!

A rain of arrows pierced his chest. The man screamed a few times before flying back several zhang.

"Boss!?"

"Shit, what are you standing around for? Attack together!"

"Boss, he's gone!"

When they looked back at the lake, Ghost Face Martial Artist had vanished without a trace.

"What Martial Skill was that? How could it attack in a wide area?"

"No, it didn't seem like a Martial Skill at all—he was directly controlling the water. What kind of monster is this?"

"Not sure, but his strength is definitely no joke. He didn't even touch the boss and still sent him flying. He's probably an Advanced Martial Artist."

A martial artist team had been robbed.

But it wouldn't be the last.

The same thing was happening elsewhere.

A martial artist squad had just finished off a monster when, in the blink of an eye, the spirit item was taken by Ghost Face Martial Artist.

Another squad was celebrating with singing, dancing, and rap when Ghost Face Martial Artist appeared and snatched their loot in an instant.

In no time, Ghost Face Martial Artist became a hot topic among the martial artist circles in Ruins City.

Someone uploaded a photo of his back to the forum, drawing countless calls for retribution.

Retribution?

Lu Xuan couldn't care less.

He wasn't registered as a martial artist, nor did he have a Martial Artist Forum account.

Standing atop a broken, abandoned Ferris wheel, he watched a team moving through the night in the distance, a flicker of thought passing through his eyes.

"Monster Potion Company."

Lu Xuan murmured to himself, "The first and second times I failed to save my parents—it was all because of you."

Selling substandard medicine.

Swindling people out of Qi and Blood Golden Elixirs with empty promises.

These weren't made-up stories. They had truly happened in another future.

The grudge between Lu Xuan and them—

It was already a fight to the death.

"A high-grade spirit medicine, worth millions..."

A greedy smile curled at the corner of Lu Xuan's mouth as he swept his Mental Power over the martial artist team.

One Seventh-order Advanced Martial Artist.

Three Fourth-order Intermediate Martial Artists.

Ten low-level Martial Artists.

This was the standard setup for exploring the Wilderness in Ruins City.

"Three Fifth-order fighters. With my Psychic Power, I can take them by surprise and kill them."

"But I can't rush. Near a high-grade spirit medicine, there's bound to be a more dangerous monster."

Lu Xuan leaped up and disappeared into the buildings.