Although the Witch Sect's secret technique was ingenious, Lu Chen knew it wasn't something he could dabble in lightly.
More than fifty people, including the round-faced witch, had practiced it.
In the end, only a handful had succeeded.
He knew his innate abilities were nothing special. If he wanted to make something of himself in this world, spending money to draw cards was safer and more reliable.
He truly didn't dare gamble on such a perilous path.
Since he couldn't trigger the quest card pool here, there was no point wasting any more time.
He didn't reject them outright, only said he needed to think it over, then took his leave.
On the way down the mountain.
It was the dead of winter, and the mountain wind cut to the bone.
A young woman was climbing the stone steps alone.
The mountain path was bitterly cold, yet she wore only a thin black dress. Her small face tapered to a pointed chin, and her lips were red against her pale skin. She was strikingly beautiful. Her skirt barely covered her thighs, and her slender, straight legs were tightly wrapped in thin black stockings, so sheer her skin showed through. They glistened with a slick sheen.
She wore no shoes. Her little feet, clad only in black stockings, stepped directly onto the rough, freezing stone steps, yet not a speck of dust clung to the toes or soles. They were as clean as if she'd only just put them on.
The sight left the rough men and villagers going up and down the mountain rooted to the spot, their lower bellies burning with heat and their gazes feverish.
A coarse-looking hunter could no longer restrain himself. He stepped in front of the young woman, baring yellow teeth as he said, "Miss, it's cold. Want your big brother here to warm up your feet?"
The young woman looked up at him and smiled. "Sure."
The hunter was beside himself with joy and hurriedly bent down to grab her jade-like feet.
No one saw how she struck.
In an instant, the hunter's head dropped off and rolled down the steps with a clatter.
His headless body swayed twice, then toppled to the ground. Warm blood gushed out, spreading across the stone.
Only then did the crowd come to their senses. Several startled cries rang out: "Murder! Run!"
The young woman seemed to have found herself a new game. Her figure flashed again, and several more people crumpled to the ground with muffled thuds. She licked the drops of blood that had splashed onto her lips. A sickly flush rose in her cheeks, and her expression turned intoxicated.
Lu Chen frowned. What a fast blade. Even with his sharp eyes, he'd caught only a fleeting shadow.
The young woman was certainly a martial artist who had entered the External Force stage.
As he pondered this, the young woman abruptly turned her head and looked at him. Her gaze was deep and inscrutable, seeming at once to size him up and to toy with him.
A chill ran down Lu Chen's back. He quickly lowered his head and hurried downhill, his steps quick and hurried.
Behind him, the young woman watched him flee and giggled.
Lu Chen ran all the way down the mountain, still feeling a chill in his heart. He had no idea who that young woman was. She killed so indiscriminately, and seemed to enjoy it. What had she gone to the Witch Sect's temple for?
He was secretly glad he'd gotten away so quickly. He glanced up at the sky; there was still plenty of time.
Since he couldn't trigger a quest at the Witch Sect, he might as well try his luck at the Red Pill Sect.
The Red Pill Sect's temple was in North City.
It was the busiest part of Wen'an County, crowded with brothels, restaurants, and gambling dens. Everything was there for amusement, food and drink, and pleasure.
As long as you had money, you'd never be short of ways to pass the time.
The temple had only just been completed. It was a brand-new building, with vermilion pillars and upturned eaves. It was grander than its neighbors, and its imposing style bore more than a passing resemblance to a Daoist temple.
But the place was quiet, with only two or three worshippers coming and going.
As Lu Chen looked around outside, a man in red came out to greet him with a smile. "Young brother, what are you looking at out here? Come on in and have a look! Our Red Pill Sect is very effective. We can ward off illness and calamity, promote health and longevity, and living to a hundred is nothing out of the question!"
Lu Chen scoffed inwardly. These cults were no different from the pyramid schemes of his previous life. One promised wealth, another boasted of curing illness. He'd never believed in any of it. He merely nodded and stepped inside.
The hall was lit with incense and candles. The moment he crossed the threshold, several lines of small text suddenly appeared before his eyes:
[Quest: Become a follower of the Red Pill Sect's North City branch] [Reward: Unlock the "Red Pill Secret Technique" card pool.]
So... it had triggered? Lu Chen wondered to himself.
He'd spent ages at the Witch Sect with nothing to show for it, but things were easy here.
He couldn't be bothered to overthink it. He'd take care of what was right in front of him first.
Lu Chen turned and asked the man in red, "Brother, what do I need to do to join?"
The man grinned. "Simple! Just donate some incense money to show your sincerity. The minimum is a hundred coins."
Lu Chen said nothing, pulled out a string of coins, and slapped them into the man's hand.
The man swiftly pocketed the money, then pulled a small yellow-paper packet from his robe and handed it over. "This is medicine blessed by Laojun. It's been offered before him for forty-nine days. If anyone in your family falls ill or hits a run of bad luck, dissolve it in water and drink it. It'll work wonders."
Lu Chen took the packet. A line of golden text suddenly appeared before his eyes:
[Quest completed] [Exclusive card pool unlocked: Red Pill Secret Technique]
The task was done. Lu Chen took off at once, slipping out of the temple and ducking into an empty dead-end alley. He rubbed his hands together, itching with anticipation, and hurried to examine the newly unlocked card pool.
Chronicles of Jianghu Heroes Basic Card Pool: Entering the Jianghu Single draw: 150 coins; ten draws: 1,350 coins. Martial Arts Card Pool: Proud Snow Cold Plum Single draw: 150 coins; ten draws: 1,350 coins. Exclusive Martial Arts Card Pool: Red Pill Secret Technique Single draw: 1 tael of silver; ten draws: 9 taels of silver.
When Lu Chen saw the draw prices, he froze.
Good heavens, one draw cost a whole tael of silver! What the hell, that was way too expensive!
But then he thought about it. Expensive prices had their reasons. Such a costly card pool might really hold some superior martial arts.
At those prices, there might be some kind of superior martial art hidden inside.
Lu Chen steeled himself, stopped mulling it over, and chose to make a single draw.
A new card-drawing animation flashed by.
When it ended, a green card appeared:
Martial Arts Fusion Effect: Combine two different martial arts to create a new technique.
"Huh?"
Lu Chen's eyes fell on the card's description. This card was somewhat similar to the one he'd drawn last time, the one that fused word modifiers.
"Ah, I thought I'd drawn a new martial art."
The excitement that had just risen in his heart instantly cooled by half.
He currently knew two martial arts: the Plum Blossom Fist and a light-footed movement technique called Treading Snow Seeking Plum.
"I wonder what new technique these two will turn into if I fuse them. Well, there's only one way to find out."
With a thought, he activated "Fusion" on the two martial arts.
The light faded, and a new martial art appeared:
[Plum Blossom Quick Fist] New effect: Double Strike. Effect: When activated, adds one swift strike, forming a rapid pair of consecutive punches.
This effect was certainly useful.
A thought stirred in Lu Chen's mind, and he could practically see himself raining punches down on someone like a shower of raindrops.
That one-tael draw didn't seem like such a bad deal after all.
He still had more than five taels of silver on him. Lu Chen didn't draw again, deciding to first find Jin Ming and collect the payment for transporting grain the other day.
He went to the martial arts school first, but Jin Ming wasn't there. Then he went to Jin Ming's house, where the old gatekeeper only said that the young master had gone out to have fun.
After asking around, Lu Chen finally found him at a brothel in North City.
Jin Ming was already in a foul mood after losing the grain and getting scolded by his father. When he saw Lu Chen, his expression didn't improve. "What do you want?"
Lu Chen explained why he'd come.
Jin Ming sneered inwardly.
He'd been drinking alone at the brothel since early morning and was already seven or eight parts drunk. Seeing Lu Chen come asking for money at a time like this, he couldn't even be bothered to keep up the pretense of friendship.
A mud-legged nobody scraping by in South City had no sense at all. Couldn't he see his lordship was already in a foul mood? What an inconsiderate bastard.
His tone was arrogant. "The bandits took all the grain, and the job fell through. You still expect me to pay you?"
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