Renxin Hall

As the Golden Crow set and the Jade Rabbit rose, it was another dark and windy night!

Bi Changsheng altered his build, put on a human-skin mask, and once again disguised himself as the Middle-aged Man from the day. At the same time, he donned the black nightwear from last time and carried the family heirloom sword he had named "Clear Wind."

The moment he left the courtyard, Bi Changsheng sped toward the eastern district like wind and lightning. Compared to half a month ago, his speed had undergone another qualitative leap.

In less than half the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Bi Changsheng had arrived on the most prosperous street in Lin'an City's eastern district. At this hour, nearly all the shops along the street had closed, with only a few pleasure houses at the end of the street still brightly lit.

However, Bi Changsheng had not come here to listen to music. Familiar with the route, he arrived before a closed shop. The signboard above its door bore three words: Renxin Hall.

It was clearly a pharmacy, and it was precisely Bi Changsheng's target for the night.

Renxin Hall had originally been a Bi Family property, but after the Bi Family was wiped out, it had been seized by the Zhao Family.

Furthermore, in order to solve his inability to cultivate, the original owner had painstakingly studied medicine. During that time, he had often come to Renxin Hall to put what he learned into practice. In the end, relying on his extraordinary comprehension, he had attained considerable accomplishments in medicine.

Having inherited the original owner's memories, Bi Changsheng had not only gained his profound medical expertise, but also knew the entire layout of Renxin Hall like the back of his hand.

Following his memories, Bi Changsheng entered through a narrow passage beside Renxin Hall's main entrance. Reaching a high wall, he leaped lightly over it and landed on the other side without making a sound.

Bi Changsheng had now entered Renxin Hall's rear courtyard. Though the storefront out front was not particularly large, the courtyard behind it was quite spacious.

Through prior investigation, Bi Changsheng had already learned of the Zhao Family's arrangements at Renxin Hall. Aside from the resident physician, apprentices, and menial workers, a ten-man martial artist guard squad was stationed here.

Now that the shop had closed, everyone else had gone home. Only the martial artist guard squad remained behind at Renxin Hall.

After half a month of bitter cultivation, Bi Changsheng's strength had advanced tremendously once more. His Cultivation Level had broken through from the Late Bone Forging Realm all the way to the Late Inner Strength Realm, achieving a leap across an entire major realm. Judging by his apparent Cultivation Level alone, Bi Changsheng was already among the strongest in all of Lin'an City.

One had to know that many people could not even break through the Skin Refining Realm and become formal martial artists in their entire lives. The Inner Strength Realm was an realm countless people dreamed of reaching. In Great Gan, Inner Strength Realm martial artists could barely be considered local powerhouses.

Yet in just one short month, Bi Changsheng had consecutively broken through from the initial Skin Refining Realm to the Late Inner Strength Realm. Moreover, compared to martial artists of the same realm, the resources he consumed in cultivation were scarcely worth mentioning.

Life-Spending Cultivation was truly a great path leading to the heavens.

Bi Changsheng had not neglected martial skills during this period either, and had likewise achieved enormous breakthroughs. Both the Thirteen Swords of Qingfeng and Qingfeng Sword Steps had entered the Perfection Realm. He had even relied on his astonishing comprehension to create an immensely powerful sword move based on the perfected Thirteen Swords of Qingfeng, keeping it as his trump card.

Renxin Hall's martial artist guard squad was led by a Late Bone Forging Realm martial artist, while the rest were all in the Skin Refining Realm. With Bi Changsheng's current strength, this guard squad no longer posed much of a threat to him.

Still, for the sake of caution, Bi Changsheng had carefully gathered information before beginning his operation.

Just as Bi Changsheng had established when he first arrived in this world, he would grow stronger as quickly as possible while ensuring his own survival. When facing enemies, if he could crush them with a superior realm, then he would do so. Unless absolutely necessary, he would never put himself in danger.

Of course, if it truly came to that point, Bi Changsheng did not lack the courage to smash the cauldrons and sink the boats.

In the end, it was still a matter of strength. Only with formidable strength could one often seize the initiative. That was what Bi Changsheng had come here for tonight.

After learning Renxin Hall's circumstances, Bi Changsheng had formed a rough plan. He would first deal with that Late Bone Forging Realm martial artist, then slowly take care of the rest.

After entering Renxin Hall's rear courtyard, Bi Changsheng rushed straight toward a room on the eastern side. Stopping before a room noticeably larger than the others, he was not impeded by its tightly shut door. With a backhand slap, the wooden door instantly shattered.

"Who?"

The instant Bi Changsheng burst through the door, the person inside jolted awake and instinctively grabbed the longsword beside the bed.

A closer look revealed that the man inside was the cold-tempered Middle-aged Man who had listened to storytelling alongside Bi Changsheng at Jingming Teahouse earlier that day. This Middle-aged Man was named Zhu Shi, a retainer of the Zhao Family.

Bi Changsheng had set his sights on Renxin Hall more than half a month ago, so he had deliberately gathered information on its martial artist guard squad. After learning that Zhu Shi enjoyed listening to storytelling at Jingming Teahouse, he had deliberately waited at the teahouse these past two days. Today, he had finally encountered Zhu Shi.

Only after Bi Changsheng had verified the information and confirmed his target did he launch tonight's operation.

"The man who will kill you."

Bi Changsheng did not stop advancing. He merely replied coldly to Zhu Shi. He wanted a swift battle and a swift resolution.

"You're courting death!"

Hearing Bi Changsheng's answer, Zhu Shi flew into a rage. Rising with his sword in hand, he charged forward. In all of Lin'an City, there were not many who dared speak to him like that.

His earlier reply had only been meant to provoke Zhu Shi. Now that his goal had been achieved, Bi Changsheng said no more. He advanced while adjusting his own condition.

He drew in a deep breath, then exhaled. Between each breath, faint rumbling sounds echoed from within his body. They were not merely the sounds of his heart beating, but the roar of his five viscera and six bowels operating together.

The moment the two met, Bi Changsheng swung the Qingfeng Sword in his hand, and thirteen Sword Shadow Storms bloomed in an instant.

As Zhu Shi saw the storm of Sword Qi before him, he also sensed the rumbling emanating from Bi Changsheng's body. The fury in his mind vanished at once, replaced by boundless terror that swept over him.

From everything he sensed, Zhu Shi knew that Bi Changsheng was an existence he could not contend with.

Yet although his heart was full of fear, his desire to survive still drove his body into instinctive action. The longsword in his hand flashed out swiftly like a bolt of lightning, seeking to intercept Bi Changsheng's Sword Shadow Storm.

This was the Thunderclap Sword Technique Zhu Shi cultivated.

Unfortunately, the gap in strength between them was simply too vast. The instant their weapons met, Zhu Shi's tiger's mouth split open from the tremendous force of Bi Changsheng's strike, and the longsword in his hand nearly flew free.

Zhu Shi's sword had already been far slower than Bi Changsheng's. With this setback, he only had time to intercept four of Bi Changsheng's sword shadows. The other nine fell upon his body, leaving bloody wounds across him.

With Bi Changsheng's casual strike, Zhu Shi—one of the Zhao Family's strongest retainers and a Late Bone Forging Realm martial artist—was severely wounded!