The Spy

Thirty zhang outside the courtyard wall.

In a narrow alley, a figure was curled up in the corner.

He wore gray-black clothes that nearly blended into the color of the wall. His breathing was exceedingly faint, and his heartbeat had slowed to the extreme, as though his entire body had entered some state of hibernation.

If one had not seen it with their own eyes, they would never have believed that someone was hiding here.

He was a spy from the Blood Wolf Gang's Shadow Hall, and one of Shadow Hall's finest spies at that—Ma Wen.

His cultivation was not high, only at the Seventh Stage of Body Tempering, but he had cultivated an exceptionally special technique.

He could suppress his own aura until it was nearly zero, lurking anywhere without being detected. With this ability, he had gathered countless pieces of intelligence for the Blood Wolf Gang and had never failed.

Tonight, under Qin Sihai's orders, he had lurked outside the Baishui Town Branch to observe Chen Xuan's every move.

Qin Sihai's exact words had been, "Don't make a move, don't get close. Just watch. Someone will act tonight, and I want to know exactly how strong Chen Xuan is."

Ma Wen had done so. He had been lurking here since dusk, motionless, controlling even his breathing to the utmost. He watched Chen Xuan's every movement, and the other man had never discovered him.

Until just now.

When Chen Xuan killed Lei Hu with a single sword strike.

Ma Wen, who had concealed himself flawlessly, had let out the slightest fluctuation of aura.

It was not intentional.

It was instinct.

Forty-five sword shadows bloomed at once, like golden lotuses flowering. That scene, where beauty and killing intent intertwined, made even Ma Wen, an old spy accustomed to life and death, tremble in his heart.

That single tremor exposed him.

Not good.

Ma Wen cursed inwardly and immediately suppressed his aura to the limit.

But he knew it was already too late.

He saw Chen Xuan halt his steps. He saw Chen Xuan turn and dash swiftly toward the southeast. He saw Chen Xuan's gaze pass over the courtyard wall and precisely lock onto his position.

"Run!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Ma Wen sprang from the corner and sprinted madly toward the depths of the alley.

His movement technique was extremely fast. He darted left and right through the narrow alley like a startled wild rabbit.

There was only one thought in his mind.

Escape back.

Tell the gang leader the news.

Chen Xuan's cultivation had not only reached the Zhuqi Realm, but he had also cultivated Zhuqi Realm martial skills and attained no small level of mastery.

That sword strike—forty-five sword shadows. Every one of them had been real, and they had effortlessly killed Lei Hu, who was at the First Layer of Qi Casting.

Even a Qi Casting Realm Third Layer martial artist might not have been able to achieve such strength.

And Chen Xuan's physical body.

Lei Hu's all-out blade strike had been caught between two fingers.

That was a strike infused with the true qi of a Superior Technique, yet it had still failed to break through Chen Xuan's flesh.

If this boy is not removed, he will surely become a great calamity.

That thought flashed through Ma Wen's mind, and his feet moved even faster.

No.

Chen Xuan was already a grave threat.

With that impervious body and superb swordsmanship, no one in the entire Blood Wolf Gang could be Chen Xuan's match unless Qin Sihai acted personally.

However, just as Ma Wen ran out of the alley, he felt a gust of wind tearing through the air behind him.

When Ma Wen looked back, his face instantly turned deathly pale.

Chen Xuan had already caught up.

Although he had cultivated a movement technique, the gap in cultivation between them was too vast. With Chen Xuan's Zhuqi Realm cultivation, he did not need any movement technique at all; in a single breath, he could cover dozens of meters.

This was not a matter of movement techniques, but a crushing disparity in cultivation. Zhuqi Realm martial artists possessed true qi enhancement, and their speed far surpassed that of the Body Tempering Realm.

"You watched me from the shadows for so long, and now you want to leave without even saying hello?"

Chen Xuan's voice was neither hurried nor slow, yet it carried an oppressive force.

Ma Wen did not answer.

He knew he could not escape, but he could not stop.

The moment he stopped, only death awaited him.

Chen Xuan stared at the black figure racing ahead. This man's cultivation was not high, merely in the Body Tempering Realm, but his ability to conceal his aura was truly remarkable.

If not for that tiny fluctuation in aura, Chen Xuan might not have discovered someone spying on him in the dark even now.

"Interesting."

Chen Xuan exerted force beneath his feet. His body shot forward like an arrow, instantly closing the distance.

Ten zhang.

Five zhang.

Three zhang.

Hearing the sound of wind tearing through the air drawing ever closer behind him, Ma Wen was overcome by despair.

He suddenly spun around and flung both hands up. A handful of silver needles as thin as cow hairs shot toward Chen Xuan.

This was his life-saving measure. The needles had been steeped in deadly poison; once they drew blood, they sealed the throat. Yet this was merely his final struggle.

Even Qi Casting Realm attacks could not break Chen Xuan's defense, much less mere concealed silver needles.

Chen Xuan merely raised a hand and swept it.

Those silver needles immediately flew back, all of them piercing Ma Wen's body.

"Not good!"

Ma Wen's face turned pale. He immediately pulled out an antidote from his robes and swallowed it.

Right after that, a strand of true qi struck his waist. His body went limp at once, and he crashed heavily onto the ground. The intense pain erupting from his waist instantly covered his forehead in beads of sweat the size of soybeans.

He tried to struggle to his feet, but his lower body refused to obey him. His legs lay limply on the ground as though their bones had been pulled out.

Chen Xuan's true qi had struck his lumbar vertebrae, shattering his entire spine. Even if he survived, he would be permanently paralyzed for the rest of his days.

"You..."

Ma Wen raised his head and looked at Chen Xuan, who was walking over slowly. His eyes were filled with terror.

He wanted to say something, but found that his throat seemed blocked by something. He could not utter a single word.

He was one of the Blood Wolf Gang Shadow Hall's finest spies. Lurking, gathering intelligence, escaping—those were the skills he had built his reputation on.

But frontal combat had never been his strength.

His cultivation was only at the Seventh Stage of Body Tempering. The Breath Concealment Technique he cultivated was not a combat technique, and those concealed silver needles were his only means of self-defense. But in Chen Xuan's hands, they were child's play.

"You're from the Blood Wolf Gang?" Chen Xuan walked up before him and looked down at him. "Qin Sihai sent you?"

Ma Wen gritted his teeth and said nothing.

"Not talking?"

Chen Xuan raised his foot and stepped on his right wrist.

Crack—

The crisp sound of breaking bone echoed through the night sky.

"Ah—"

Ma Wen let out a miserable scream as the bones in his right hand were crushed to powder.

"When I ask you something, you answer." Chen Xuan's voice remained calm, but that invisible pressure made Ma Wen tremble all over. "If you do not answer, or if you try to play tricks, I'll crush your other hand. Then your shoulders, your ribs... I'll crush your bones one by one until you are willing to speak."

Ma Wen's face was deathly pale, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans ran down his cheeks.

He knew Chen Xuan was not trying to frighten him.

He truly would do it.

"I'll talk... I'll talk." Ma Wen's voice trembled. "The gang leader sent me. He said someone would make a move tonight and told me to lurk here and observe your strength, to see clearly how you won, then return and report."

"The one who acted tonight was Lei Hu of the Tyrant Blade Sect?"

Chen Xuan asked.

"Y-yes..." Ma Wen nodded like a pounding pestle. "The gang leader had someone send Lei Hu a letter, saying that you cultivated the Vajra Technique and had reached the Ninth Layer of Body Tempering. Lei Hu was suspicious by nature, so..."

Chen Xuan nodded.

Qin Sihai was certainly adept at borrowing a knife to kill.

He did not act himself, instead having Lei Hu of the Tyrant Blade Sect take action. If Lei Hu won, Qin Sihai would reap the benefits like a fisherman watching clams and snipe fight.

If Lei Hu died, he could still use the spy to see Chen Xuan's strength clearly and prepare for his next move.

Whether he won or lost, Qin Sihai would not suffer.

"What about Liu Feng?" Chen Xuan asked. "Did Qin Sihai contact Liu Feng, the Inner Disciple of the Blood Fiend Devil Sect?"

"Yes..." Ma Wen said. "The gang leader had someone send a letter to the Blood Fiend Devil Sect. Liu Feng is an Inner Disciple of the Blood Fiend Devil Sect, at the peak of the Qi Casting Realm Second Layer. His younger brother, Liu Lie, died at your hands, so Liu Feng should have been the one to act. But Liu Feng was in seclusion, attempting to break through to the Third Layer, so he asked another Outer Disciple at the Ninth Layer of Body Tempering to act instead... Counting the time, he should have already emerged from seclusion."

"Qi Casting Realm Third Layer..."

Chen Xuan murmured.

He was now at the Qi Casting Realm Second Layer.

From Lianshan City, a letter had to be delivered to the Blood Fiend Devil Sect, and then Liu Feng had to travel from the Blood Fiend Devil Sect to get here. A round trip would take at least ten days.

Ten days later.

Liu Feng at the Qi Casting Realm Third Layer would no longer pose much of a threat to him.

"What else?" Chen Xuan asked. "What else did Qin Sihai arrange?"

"N-no more..." Ma Wen shook his head. "The gang leader only arranged for Lei Hu of the Tyrant Blade Sect and Inner Disciple Liu Feng."

"Thank you for cooperating. I'll let you die without pain."

Chen Xuan drew the longsword in his hand.

Seeing Chen Xuan draw his sword, Ma Wen immediately said, "W-wait, I have something that can buy my life!"

"What is it?"

Chen Xuan paused, then asked.