Robbed and Plundered

"Heh heh, young master, are you sure you don't want a few of us from the Mercenary Group to accompany you up the mountain to gather herbs? As long as you can pay the price, your safety is guaranteed!"

At a storefront run by a Mercenary Group, a man dressed like an errand boy was patting his chest and boasting about his group's services to Xiao Han, clearly a seasoned salesman.

"No thanks, I appreciate the map. Here's three Gold Coins."

Tossing down a few coins, Xiao Han smiled and shook his head, then turned and left.

He had been in Green Mountain Town for two days, but the journey itself had taken four days of travel.

After all, he was just a Dou Practitioner relying on his own two legs—completely on a different level from those "terrifying Dou Ancestor Experts" who could soar through the sky.

The road hadn't been too eventful, but the closer he got to Magical Beast Mountain Range, the more magical beasts he encountered. Fortunately, they were all around the first rank (Dou Practitioner level), which was nothing but free experience for Xiao Han, who could easily crush low-level Dou Masters (second-rank magical beasts).

Still, Xiao Han's goal in coming out wasn't just to Obtain Treasure—it was more about training.

So along the way, he set aside all other techniques and focused solely on swordsmanship. Thanks to the boost from Kai's powerful Sword Dao talent, Xiao Han quickly cultivated this Yellow Rank Dou Technique to Great Accomplishment.

And since killing enemies earned him Energy Value, Xiao Han had quickly accumulated 30 Energy Value.

Although he could use Energy Value to upgrade techniques, Xiao Han felt it was better to study lower-level techniques on his own first. He could save the Energy Value for emergencies.

After four battles with magical beasts, Xiao Han's sword skill proficiency skyrocketed. It proved the saying that traveling ten thousand miles is better than reading ten thousand books—staying cooped up and working in isolation would never lead to great success.

Of course, those four battles weren't all smooth sailing. During one confrontation with a Demon Wolf, he underestimated it, and his Right Arm—the one holding his sword—was clawed. Amid the tearing pain, Xiao Han gritted his teeth and struck with a left-handed Eight Extremes Collapse, blasting the wolf's head apart in an instant!

Fortunately, the injury was light. Before he could even take medicine, Kai's passive—recovering 1% of mana and health per second out of combat—kicked in. In less than ten seconds, Xiao Han was fully healed.

Out of combat, Xiao Han was practically an unkillable cockroach. That was why he'd been so shocked the first time he saw Kai's template.

After a few battles, Xiao Han smoothly broke through to 7-Star Dou Practitioner. There was no helping it—the Swallowing Spirit Technique, a Heaven Rank mid-grade technique, was just that domineering.

Now that he had the map, it was time to head up the mountain.

As soon as he stepped onto the narrow path leading up, Xiao Han frowned slightly, then acted as if nothing had happened and continued onto the only route up.

Fire Attribute Dou Qi flowed slowly through his body. As he walked, the Dou Qi gathered steadily.

Suddenly, he accelerated underfoot, bursting with Dou Qi from head to toe, and activated his already perfected Body Movement technique, dashing swiftly toward the Depths of Magical Beast Mountain Range.

"Extreme Shadow Steps!"

With a low shout, Xiao Han's figure seemed to split into multiple shadows, leaping and weaving through the forest until he vanished without a trace.

"Damn it! How did that fat sheep get away so fast?!"

Right after Xiao Han left, four big men in black night clothes and face masks burst out from the Dense Forest.

One of them, slightly shorter, angrily ripped off his mask and spat viciously on the ground: "Heh—tui! That kid's sharp—he spotted us tailing him that quickly!"

The man who pulled off his mask was none other than the errand boy who had just sold Xiao Han the map. Who would've thought that after Xiao Han left, he'd gathered a few brothers from the Mercenary Group to ambush and kill this generous rich kid?

But Xiao Han, though young, was surprisingly skilled. He easily shook off all four of them.

"Heh heh—Tian Suo, you bastard, you said everything was ready before you called us. How did you let that fat sheep slip right under your nose?"

One of the big men crossed his arms and sneered at the man called Tian Suo, mocking him for the failed robbery.

Tian Suo, hearing this, didn't give the taunting man a good look either. He waved his hand: "Watch your tone! Li Haoer, I don't owe you anything!

Have I ever shortchanged you three in these 'fat sheep' jobs before? Haven't you always walked away loaded?

Last time, it was an emergency and I didn't call you. What's with the cold words today? If this is how it's going to be, let's just disband!"

Tian Suo's blunt words chilled the atmosphere instantly.

The other two big men, sensing the tension, quickly tried to soothe both Tian Suo and Li Haoer. If they really disbanded, they'd never find such easy money again.

It was precisely through years of robbery and murder that they'd scraped together enough resources from stolen goods to push their mediocre talents all the way to 7-Star Dou Practitioner. Just imagine how many rich kids had fallen to their hands!

"Come on, Brother Tian, you know Old Li's temper."

"Yeah, yeah, we're all brothers. No need to fight over something this small. Too bad lately it's all been 'rams,' no 'ewes.' Last time we caught a fat sheep, she was a top-notch girl—struggled for days and nights under us.

I wanted to cut her tendons and play a little longer, but she killed herself as soon as she woke up. What a waste."

"Hmph! That's because you got drunk and let her grab a broken chopstick to kill herself." Mentioning women finally softened Tian Suo's expression. Though he talked about disbanding, finding new partners on a whim wasn't worth it over a moment's anger.

"Hey! That black-clothed kid just now wasn't bad either—smooth skin, a face that could rival any woman's. I've screwed plenty of women, but never a Little Boy like that. Wonder how tight his asshole is." Li Haoer chimed in as the conversation picked up.

"Pfft! Disgusting or what?"

Tian Suo was revolted and cursed with a laugh.

After a few rounds of crude banter, the four of them were back to their usual brotherly camaraderie, the earlier hostility gone.

"Forget it, Brother Tian. I was out of line today."

Once his temper cooled, Li Haoer cupped his hands apologetically to Tian Suo: "As an apology, drinks are on me tonight!"

"That's more like it. Let's drop today's matter. We're all brothers."

Since Li Haoer was willing to back down, Tian Suo let it go. "Let's head back..."

Suddenly, the sound of a sword rang out—

Buzz!!!!!!!

Just as Tian Suo was about to turn and head down the mountain, a fiery red sword light shot out from the Dense Forest behind him. With a single stroke, it sliced through Tian Suo's neck, and his head tumbled to the ground with a dull thud.

With a wet thud, Tian Suo's headless corpse collapsed to the ground, blood gushing like a spring.

The sudden turn of events sent the remaining three's faces pale. They looked toward the direction of the sword light and saw a scorching Fire Attribute Dou Qi coiling around a slightly slender youth.

"Damn it! When did he circle back?!"

Alarm bells clanged in their hearts as they instantly snapped into combat stance.

The prey they had intended to hunt had suddenly become the hunter!

The youth, black-haired and black-robed, gripped a Crimson Longsword as he stepped out from the shadows of the dense forest, walking slowly toward them.

A pair of dark blue eyes, seemingly devoid of any emotion, looked eerily beautiful and strange.

Though young and inexperienced, the Black-Haired Youth was strikingly handsome, yet to the three men, he appeared like a reaper of death, sending terror pounding through their hearts.

One step, two steps, three steps—the youth advanced step by step, and the three men retreated step by step.

Although the sword strike that had just killed Tian Suo was indeed a sneak attack, even a 7-Star Dou Practitioner could not have been killed in an instant by a sneak attack from someone of the same rank!

This could only mean that the Black-Haired Youth before them was far stronger than they had imagined!

Death! Death! Death! Death! Death!

If they didn't flee, they would die!

Yet the remaining three were frozen in fear, not daring to move. It wasn't that they didn't want to run, but the youth's killing intent had locked onto their vital energy. Any rash move would be torn apart by his sword light.

Facing this unprecedented pressure, Li Haoer erupted with golden Dou Qi all over his body, leaped high into the air, drew a curved blade from his waist, and slashed at the returning Black-Haired Youth, shouting to the other two: "If we scatter and flee, we're dead for sure. If we strike together, there's still a sliver of hope!"

But even without Li Haoer's reminder, the unspoken understanding forged from years of cooperative "hunting" caused the two men beside him to spring up like wild beasts, charging at the Black-Haired Youth from left and right.

One man erupted with earthy yellow Dou Qi, the other with cyan Dou Qi.

"Earth Xuan Palm!"

"Green Wood Fist!"

Veins bulged on their faces as their Dou Qi surged, the aftermath of unleashing their full power in an instant.

Any one of these three all-out attacks—if a regular 7-Star Dou Practitioner took it, they would either die on the spot or be severely crippled, their cultivation ruined.

Yet, facing the fist, palm, and blade coming from three directions, the Black-Haired Youth exploded with Dou Qi under his feet and, relying on his Reach the Pinnacle Body Movement, deftly dodged the trio's encirclement.

Clang!!!

A sound of metal clashing rang out as the youth's sword swept aside the three attacks.

Shifting his steps, the youth's longsword danced like a butterfly, the Sword Body carrying Fire Attribute Dou Qi as he thrust three times in rapid succession, instantly breaking the three big men's full-force strikes.

"What?!"

"Not good!"

"Fall back!"

Seeing their killing moves so easily dismantled, the three turned pale and immediately retreated at top speed!

At their vain hope of escape, the Black-Haired Youth sneered and pressed forward!

With a light tap of his toe, the youth shot forward ten meters in an instant, closing the distance between them. His longsword swung twice, and with a flash of crimson sword light, he instantly slew the two big men on the left and right who were trying to flee.

Pfft!

Pfft! Pfft!

Two heads flew into the air, and two more corpses hit the ground.

Only Li Haoer remained. Seeing the fate of the other two, he didn't dare move a muscle.

"Please, spare me! No, milord! I beg you, spare me! If you let this humble one live, I will serve you like an ox or a horse for life! I'll be your slave, your servant!"

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Terror painted on his face, he dropped his blade, knelt, and kowtowed repeatedly to the Black-Haired Youth. Under the relentless force of his bows, Li Haoer's forehead soon split open, blood streaming down.

"Alright—"

"Thank you, milord, for sparing—"

The youth's voice, tinged with laughter, reached his ears. Li Haoer, overjoyed, quickly looked up to express his gratitude, but before he could finish his sentence, he saw his own body kneeling on the ground, and his consciousness blurred.

Clang!!!

A sword's cry rang out—

Pfft—!!!

Li Haoer's head was severed, flying through the air before rolling to the youth's feet.

With a disgusted kick, the Black-Haired Youth sent the vile head away. The fiery red longsword in his hand was covered in liquid, making it impossible to tell if it was the color of blood or the sword itself.

The scarlet of blood and the crimson of the blade mingled together, as if the sword body was endlessly drinking its fill of blood...

Tearing a strip of cloth from the dead man's clothes, the Black-Haired Youth gently wiped the longsword that had just claimed four lives, muttering something under his breath.

"The Blood-Drinking Blade grows ever emptier..."

After cleaning the blade, the youth sheathed his sword and strode toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range, like a solitary and aloof Swordsman.

But after a few steps, he slapped his forehead: "Damn, too busy showing off—forgot to check if those guys' Storage Rings have anything good!"