Encountering Vajra Sect Disciples Again

"Now it's your turn."

Chen Xuan stood amid the Blood Wolf Gang members sprawled across the ground, groaning in agony, and looked up at Liu Lie.

"Y-you're not at the seventh level of Body Tempering."

Liu Lie's voice was dry, and his face had turned utterly ghastly.

The hand gripping his ghost-headed saber trembled slightly. Chen Xuan had taken down thirty or forty Blood Wolf Gang members in just a few moves, breaking bones and tearing flesh with every strike. Such strength was absolutely not something a seventh-level Body Tempering martial artist could possess.

Chen Xuan did not answer. He simply walked toward him.

One step.

Two steps.

Each step seemed to land squarely on Liu Lie's chest.

"Ah—"

At last, Liu Lie could no longer bear the pressure. With a furious roar, he swung his ghost-headed saber at Chen Xuan.

Chaotic Cloak Blade Technique!

Blade shadows layered upon blade shadows in the air, so dense that not even water could seep through.

Yet Chen Xuan remained utterly calm. If he had only been at the eighth level of Body Tempering, his physical body might have been powerful, but he still could not have taken a sharp weapon head-on.

The eighth level of Body Tempering, the Shenyong Realm, surpassed the limits of the human body, but it was still flesh and blood in the end. But he was not at the eighth level of Body Tempering. He was at the ninth.

With a thought from Chen Xuan, surging inner force gathered over his fists, instantly enveloping both hands and forming invisible fist aura. Then he rushed forward in three strides, his fists raining down like a dense storm.

Clang! Clang! Clang—

After several collisions, the blade shadows that had been impenetrable as a curtain of water were easily torn apart like fragile paper under the immense difference in strength.

Liu Lie felt as though his ghost-headed saber had struck an iron wall. The impact numbed the web between his thumb and forefinger, and he could barely keep hold of the hilt.

His body staggered back more than a dozen steps against his will.

"Y-you're at the Transfor—"

Liu Lie's eyes widened in utter disbelief, but before he could finish, Chen Xuan's fist came crashing toward him.

Liu Lie was so frightened that he hastily raised his ghost-headed saber before him to block the punch.

Clang!

The fist force slammed into the blade, producing a thunderous metallic crash.

Li Lie felt a mountain-toppling, sea-overturning force surge through the blade. The web between his thumb and forefinger instantly split open, the ghost-headed saber flew from his hand, and he staggered back several more steps.

The other fist followed immediately after.

This punch smashed viciously toward Li Lie's face.

Li Lie's face went deathly pale. He wanted to dodge, but his body could not react in time. He could only cross his arms before him as force poured out wildly, trying to block the blow.

Crack—

A crisp sound of snapping bones rang out. Li Lie's arms bent at grotesque angles, and his body flew backward once more, slamming heavily into the wall behind him. Spiderweb-like cracks instantly spread across it.

Li Lie slid down onto the ground, blood gushing wildly from his mouth. His arms hung limply at his sides, utterly ruined.

Pfft!

Chen Xuan appeared before Li Lie and struck the crown of his head with one palm.

Li Lie's eyes instantly lost their focus, and his body crumpled softly to the ground, completely silent.

Silence!

At the crossroads.

A deathly silence!

The Blood Wolf Gang members lying on the ground trembled in terror. Several had even wet themselves.

Li Lie, at the seventh level of Body Tempering, had been beaten to death just like that by this young man who looked under twenty?

At that moment, Chen Xuan turned to look at the twenty Red Sun Gang members behind him and said calmly, "Clean up the battlefield. Drive every Blood Wolf Gang member out of town."

"Y-yes, Branch Master!"

Only then did the twenty gang members come back to their senses and hurriedly respond.

They immediately drew their blades and rushed forward, slitting the throats of every Blood Wolf Gang member lying on the ground who had lost the ability to fight.

Less than half an hour later.

The Blood Wolf Gang members left behind in Qingshi Town had all been thoroughly wiped out. Another small earthen mound appeared on the hill behind the town.

When the townspeople saw that the Red Sun Gang had regained control, they emerged from their homes one after another.

They had long since grown accustomed to such things.

"Branch Master, the shopkeepers from several stores in town wish to see you. They say they want to welcome you and wash the dust from your journey."

A gang member ran over to report.

"No need. Just find somewhere to eat."

Chen Xuan waved a hand.

"There is a restaurant at the eastern end of town. The food is quite good. The previous Branch Master used to go there often."

One of the gang members replied.

"Lead the way."

Chen Xuan followed the gang member to a restaurant at the eastern end of town.

A sign reading "Qingshi Restaurant" hung over the entrance. It was not large, but it was kept spotlessly clean.

The restaurant owner was surnamed Wang, a middle-aged man in his forties.

When he saw Chen Xuan enter, he hurried over with a broad smile. "You must be the new Branch Master, sir. Please come in, please come in! Today's meal is on this humble one. Let me welcome you, Branch Master!"

Qingshi Town was only so big.

Chen Xuan had killed Liu Lie, the Blood Wolf Gang branch master, and reclaimed control of Qingshi Town. Half an hour was more than enough time for the news to spread across the entire town.

"There's no need. Yours is a small business too. If more than twenty martial artists like us eat here for free, I'm afraid you'll be working for nothing for ten days or half a month. Charge us according to the price."

Chen Xuan waved his hand.

"Branch Master, you truly are righteous. I'll make the arrangements right away."

At those words, Shopkeeper Wang's smile deepened. He quickly turned and instructed the attendants to prepare food and wine.

Chen Xuan led his men up to the second floor.

Before long.

The food and wine arrived.

The twenty gang members split between two tables and devoured the food ravenously.

As Chen Xuan ate, he considered his next course of action.

Taking Qingshi Town.

He could earn one Great Merit.

But to exchange for a Zhuqi Realm martial art, he needed two Great Merits. A Marrow Cleansing Pill that could improve one's innate potential also required two Great Merits.

However, if he had enough silver, he could purchase Zhuqi Realm martial arts and Marrow Cleansing Pills from certain large merchant associations.

Lianshan City was merely a small city and did not have such resources.

But Tiannan Prefecture City certainly did.

Just then, a burst of noisy shouting came from downstairs, mixed with the sound of tables and chairs being knocked over and several cries of pain.

"What's going on?"

Chen Xuan frowned and looked toward the first-floor hall.

He saw a young man covered in blood rush into the restaurant, stumbling and overturning tables and chairs before collapsing to the ground. Seven or eight black-clad men wielding sharp weapons pursued him, silver characters reading "Tyrant Blade" embroidered on their cuffs.

"Vajra Sect remnant, let's see where you can run to now."

The leading black-clad man stepped into the restaurant with a cold sneer.

The young man struggled to rise from the floor, but his injuries were too severe. His back, shoulders, and arms were covered in saber wounds. The deepest slash ran from his left shoulder all the way to his lower back, leaving flesh curled open in a horrifying sight.

Chen Xuan recognized him.

He was the Vajra Sect disciple whom the Tyrant Blade Sect had been pursuing at Drunken Immortal Restaurant when Chen Xuan entered the city yesterday.

He had used the Blood Burning Secret Technique to escape that day. Chen Xuan had not expected him to be caught up with again today.

"Run, then. Keep running for me."

The leading Tyrant Blade Sect disciple walked up to the young man and looked down at him, a cruel smile at the corner of his mouth. Blood still dripped from the Goose Feather Saber in his hand.

The young man ignored him. Instead, he laboriously raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the few diners in the restaurant before finally settling on Chen Xuan by the second-floor window.

A flash of despair passed through his eyes, followed by a flash of unwillingness.

"Whoever can save me... I will reward them with a Zhuqi Realm cultivation technique!"

The Vajra Sect disciple spoke hoarsely. His breath was weak, but every word was clear.