Qilin Rankings

You have reached the pinnacle of mastery with both the Wind Severing Saber Technique and the Concealed Edge Saber Technique. After numerous fierce battles, you have gained new insights into saber techniques.

In the first year of secluded training, you re-enacted the Wind Severing Saber Technique and the Concealed Edge Saber Technique. Your saber moves and stances were no longer confined to fixed patterns, flowing freely as you attempted to integrate the two into one.

In the second year of secluded training, you had seamlessly integrated the two saber techniques in terms of moves, connecting them without hindrance. You began to ponder the intent and power behind the stances, attempting to refine and distill them.

In the third year of secluded training, you preliminarily fused the swift, rapid-slashing intent of the Wind Severing Saber Technique with the silent, thunderous explosiveness of the Concealed Edge Saber Technique. You created a new saber technique.

You named it: Sixfold Wind-Thunder Slash

Martial Art: Sixfold Wind-Thunder Slash

Quality: Acquired

Realm: Greater Mastery

You have incorporated the essence of Listening Wind Slash into Ghost Severing, merging the two ultimate saber skills into one, named Wind Slash Thunderclap.

Secluded training complete.

Shen Yi felt as if he had been reborn. His current system panel had undergone earth-shattering changes:

Host: Shen Yi

Cultivation: First-Rate

Martial Arts: Sixfold Wind-Thunder Slash (Greater Mastery), Bone Dislocation Hand (Perfection), Array Breaker Art Fragment (Perfection), Grass Treading Flight (Perfection), Surging Tide Art (Entry Level)

Ultimate Skills: Wind Slash Thunderclap, Water Treading Wave Step, Bone Dislocation Tendon Severing

Secluded Training: 10 months remaining

Although his cultivation was still First-Rate, he had not yet broken through.

But this First-Rate was not the same as before.

Whether it was internal energy or saber techniques, Shen Yi clearly felt that his strength had undergone a qualitative leap.

Like those geniuses from major sects, he had a deeper foundation and accumulation at the First-Rate realm.

Even.

Once he cultivated his saber technique to perfection.

And merged his internal energy arts into one.

Even with his First-Rate cultivation, if he were to face Fang Yu in the Acquired Realm again, he could defeat him in a fair and square fight.

However, Shen Yi was not arrogant.

The successful fusion of his saber techniques.

Made him even more certain of his future path.

Martial arts are endless. He must gather the strengths of all schools and forge his own path of martial arts. This was the path he should take.

With Fang Yu's death.

The Yaksha Faction was leaderless.

Under the leadership of Zhao Qiushan and a group of core elders, the Broken Blade Hall began to lead a counterattack.

In one fell swoop, they completely purged the remnants of the Yaksha Faction up and down the Clear River, and Little River Village was also recaptured.

However.

All that remained was a desolate ruin.

Shen Yi and Qin Jianghe walked on the desolate village path.

Sighing with emotion.

This place had been occupied by the Yaksha Faction, who had burned, killed, looted, and acted recklessly. Most of the villagers had fled overnight.

Those who were slow to escape became victims of the Yaksha Faction's blades, or were captured as slaves.

The two arrived at Old Jiang's doorstep.

The courtyard door was dilapidated.

The door panels were broken into several pieces on the ground.

The house was empty and deserted.

According to the Yaksha Faction members who had been captured, the people of Little River Village were killed and then randomly discarded in the mass burial ground on the back mountain.

Now it was filled with the stench of corpses.

It was impossible to tell who was who.

Shen Yi and Qin Jianghe could not determine whether Old Jiang's family was dead or had escaped.

Shen Yi only found a carved wooden hairpin in Axiu's room. This was the only thing left behind by Old Jiang's family.

Qin Jianghe ordered the brothers in the hall.

To rebury all the corpses in the mass burial ground.

Then he erected a nameless tombstone.

Consider it letting them rest in peace.

Wisps of green smoke curled upwards.

Shen Yi and Qin Jianghe stood before the graves, burning paper money in offering to the deceased villagers. Shen Yi felt a tightness in his chest.

However, this was the world of impending chaos.

Lives were as worthless as grass.

Standing on the hillside, Shen Yi gazed at the Clear River flowing leisurely in the distance, like the passing of time. He felt it was time for him to set off as well.

"Brother Shen, it's time for you to leave."

Qin Jianghe stood shoulder to shoulder with him, speaking in a calm voice.

It was strange.

Qin Jianghe didn't try to keep him this time.

No, Shen Yi's eyes narrowed slightly as he turned his head to look at Qin Jianghe:

"Brother Shen?"

The name he had given Qin Jianghe had always been Chen Yu.

Qin Jianghe smiled slightly:

"These past few days, we've been focusing on healing our injuries."

"But the jianghu of Dong Commandery has been turbulent."

"Yesterday, Heaven's Secret Pavilion released the latest Heaven's Mystery Rankings. Brother Shen, you're listed on the Qilin Rankings."

Shen Yi raised an eyebrow:

"Huh?"

To be honest, he had always felt that he was impossibly far from the rankings that only geniuses or top experts could reach.

"I didn't expect to be on the list?"

Qin Jianghe handed over a roll of cloth.

"This is the latest list of the four rankings issued by Heaven's Secret Pavilion."

"The Qilin Rankings are at the end."

"It records the outstanding potential geniuses of the Nine Provinces."

Shen Yi followed his words and flipped to the end, the Qilin Rankings. He simply started reading from the back, and quickly saw his name.

[Qilin Rankings, Eighty-Eighth Place.]
[Chen Yu (suspected alias), skilled in grappling and swordsmanship. First, he single-handedly escorted Qin Jianghe of the Raging Tide Gang's Broken Blade Hall through the Whale Gang's encirclement. Then, when surrounded, he forcefully killed the White Rakshasa, and traveled a hundred *li* at night to Broken Blade Hall, where he joined forces with the heavily injured Qin Jianghe to kill the Chaotic Sky Yaksha, Fang Yu. A hidden dragon emerges from the depths, the beginning of fame!]

Heh.

He was considered to be on the list.

"But, Brother Shen, where did you come from?"

Qin Jianghe looked troubled:

"That's the problem."

"You became famous in the jianghu on the Qilin Rankings, and then small rumors began to circulate about your true identity."

"Then it was made public this morning."

"Chen Yu's real name is Shen Yi, originally a constable of the Pacification Office, who later killed his superior with a blade and fled the city, now with a bounty of one thousand taels of silver."

Qin Jianghe shrugged:

"Now the entire jianghu knows that you are involved with my Broken Blade Hall. Although my Raging Tide Gang is not afraid of the Pacification Office, it is not good to openly take in wanted people, so you really have to leave."

Shen Yi smiled slightly:

"I was going to leave anyway."

"You don't ask me why I defected from the Pacification Office?"

Qin Jianghe smiled:

"I already understand your nature."

"Since you killed your superior, that person must have had a reason to die, so why should I ask more?"

"But I must remind you that you are now on the Qilin Rankings, and you are also a wanted man, and you killed the Whale Gang's leader. You will not only face the pursuit of the Pacification Office and the executioners, the revenge of the Whale Gang, but also be wary of those challengers who are eager to make a move."

"Who doesn't want to become famous in a single battle? As long as they defeat you, or kill you, even if the opponent can't take your place, it's enough to become famous in the jianghu."

Shen Yi clicked his tongue twice:

"I don't think this Heaven's Mystery Rankings is a good thing."

Qin Jianghe spat:

"This thing was never any good to begin with."

"The jianghu has seen so much trouble because of it."

"It's just that Heaven's Secret Pavilion is too mysterious, standing apart from the Nine Provinces, no one can find them, let alone cause them trouble."

"But..."

Qin Jianghe said solemnly:

"The rankings on the list are genuine, every single person who makes it onto the list is not mediocre, if you face them, you must be extremely careful."

Shen Yi flipped through the Qilin Rankings again:

"Just a quick glance, and this list is a gathering of demons and monsters, quite a few are wanted fugitives, there are also members of the demonic cult, Taoists, monks, overseas Japanese, tsk tsk..."

"The top of the list is actually a Northern Wilderness alien race, Flying Eagle, Dugu Ao."

Qin Jianghe silently nodded:

"This Dugu Ao is a young and fierce general of the grassland Golden Horde, many people have tried to kill him, but all died in the end, instead helping him achieve his current reputation."