Sending a Profound Qi Sixth Level expert flying with a single palm strike—this was no ordinary person.
"Profound Qi Seventh Level!"
Cui Buping stared at Ning Xiaochuan in astonishment. To reach the Profound Qi Seventh Level at such a young age, he had to be a genius disciple from some great family. Extraordinary—perhaps a great disaster would break out today! Cui Buping could not afford to provoke a genius from a great family, but he was already riding a tiger and could not get off. Asking him to abandon the Blood Toad Wood that was practically in his grasp was even more impossible.
This had become rather troublesome. This youth had actually reached the Profound Qi Seventh Level; he would not be easy to deal with!
Cui Buping was at the Profound Qi Eighth Level, but he knew that disciples from great families trained in swordsmanship and Martial Skills from childhood. Even with only Profound Qi Seventh Level cultivation, their combat power could not be underestimated. If his opponent chose to flee, he was not certain he could kill him.
"All of you, heed my command! Surround this place. Do not let either of them escape! I'll kill this brat." Cui Buping drew the Black Magnetic Ancient Sword from his waist. With a sweep of his arm, Profound Qi wrapped around the ancient sword, spitting out eight feet of black radiance and displaying powerful Profound Qi fluctuations.
"Profound Qi Eighth Level cultivation."
Ning Xiaochuan had never fought a Profound Qi Eighth Level martial artist before, so he immediately became cautious.
A single level of difference meant a vast gap in strength.
If not for Profound Qi Sword, his trump card, Ning Xiaochuan truly would not have been confident of defeating a Profound Qi Eighth Level martial artist. Now, he had to risk his life.
"Boom!"
Cui Buping stomped fiercely against the ground, crushing the stone pavement into a depression. With a flick of his arm, his battle sword swept out, slashing out nine sword shadows that stabbed toward Ning Xiaochuan's nine vital points.
Naturally, Ning Xiaochuan did not dare clash head-on with Cui Buping. He could only use Profound Qi Sword once. If he failed to kill his enemy with it, then he would certainly be killed instead.
Caution. He had to be cautious.
He had to find the most suitable opportunity.
"Swoosh!"
A sharp stream of Profound Qi brushed past Ning Xiaochuan's neck, severing a lock of his hair. It had nearly cut off his head.
Naturally, Cui Buping would not let this opportunity pass. The Profound Qi within his body circulated even faster as he sought to end the battle swiftly and seize Ning Xiaochuan in one stroke.
When Cui Buping's Profound Qi reached its peak, Ning Xiaochuan suddenly halted, killing intent surfacing in his eyes.
Now!
When Profound Qi reached its peak, Cui Buping would inevitably pause for an instant to catch his breath! That instant of delay was enough time for Ning Xiaochuan to condense a Profound Qi Sword.
That single instant would decide who lived and who died.
"Profound Qi Sword!"
Profound Qi condensed in both Ning Xiaochuan's hands, merging into a crimson Profound Qi Sword. He swept it horizontally, drawing forth a vast wave of red sword light.
Cui Buping's eyes filled with terror. He had never dreamed that a Profound Qi Seventh Level martial artist could actually condense a Profound Qi Sword.
"Bang!"
The Black Magnetic Ancient Sword in Cui Buping's hand was severed into two by the Profound Qi Sword. This kind of Common Weapon, a Common Soldier Weapon, simply could not withstand a Profound Qi Sword.
"Pfft!"
The Profound Qi Sword cleanly sliced off both of Cui Buping's legs. The upper half of his body toppled into a pool of blood. He wailed endlessly, his eyes filled with profound despair.
With both legs severed, his fate today was already sealed.
"I refuse to accept this! I refuse to accept this..." Cui Buping muttered without cease.
While Ning Xiaochuan had been fighting Cui Buping, Murong Wushuang had already killed the more than ten martial artists from Profound Leaf Abode and thrown all their corpses off the cliff.
In this world where the weak were prey to the strong, whoever showed mercy was destined to remain weak for life.
Both Ning Xiaochuan and Murong Wushuang knew that the people from Profound Leaf Abode had to die—and they had to be wiped out completely. If even one escaped, news of the Blood Toad Wood would spread.
Once those powerful martial artists came to Nanyue Mountain, they would certainly be unable to protect the Blood Toad Wood against their strength. In the end, both of them would die because of the Blood Toad Wood.
Therefore, everyone who knew about the Blood Toad Wood had to die. There was no second possibility.
Cui Buping stared at Murong Wushuang, his face bleak. "So you're also a martial arts expert, with Profound Qi Seventh Level cultivation, aren't you? Had I known your cultivation was so high, I should have brought more experts."
Murong Wushuang raised his woodcutting knife. "Unfortunately, regret medicine isn't easy to buy!"
"Wait! I'm not the only one who deceived you."
Pointing at Ning Xiaochuan, Cui Buping sneered. "Isn't he also coveting the Blood Toad Wood? If you kill me, he'll definitely kill you too. He has already cultivated Profound Qi Sword. You won't be his match."
Murong Wushuang's hand paused, and he glanced at Ning Xiaochuan.
Ning Xiaochuan still appeared calm. "I'm not like you. He asked me to buy it, so I bought that leaf."
Murong Wushuang thought it over and immediately felt his face flush.
Ning Xiaochuan said, "Besides, I used fifty thousand Small Coin to buy news about the Blood Toad Wood. That was already a fairly just price."
Knowing he had no hope of surviving today, Cui Buping wanted someone to accompany him in death. He deliberately tried to stir conflict between Ning Xiaochuan and Murong Wushuang, saying with a mocking smile, "Fifty thousand Small Coin for a Blood Toad Wood Tree, and you call that a fair price? A single Blood Toad Wood Tree is definitely worth more than a hundred million Small Coin."
Ning Xiaochuan shook his head. "I could only offer fifty thousand Small Coin, no more. For an ordinary person, giving him too much money may not be a good thing. It might even bring him a fatal disaster."
Cui Buping said sinisterly, "But he isn't an ordinary person."
Ning Xiaochuan answered frankly, "Before entering Nanyue Mountain, I did not know he had cultivated Profound Qi."
Cui Buping fell silent. That was right! Before entering Nanyue Mountain, even he, an old hand at the Profound Qi Eighth Level, had not seen that Murong Wushuang had cultivated Profound Qi. This meant Murong Wushuang surely possessed some method or Profound Artifact capable of concealing his cultivation.
Ning Xiaochuan had treated him as an ordinary person and given him fifty thousand Small Coin for news of the Blood Toad Wood. This truly counted as showing considerable thought for him.
This sum was not small; it was enough for an ordinary family to live on for three years. Of course, it was not too much either, so it would not bring him a fatal disaster.
This was Ning Xiaochuan's most admirable quality: he did not wish to take advantage of others, while also considering their safety.
Cui Buping remained unwilling. Refusing to believe there was anyone in the world without greed, he said, "Lies, all lies... urgh..."
"Pfft!"
With a sweep of his arm, Murong Wushuang chopped off Cui Buping's head, then threw his corpse off the cliff. "This fellow had far too much nonsense to say. Brother Chuan, you're a good person."
Ning Xiaochuan said, "How could you tell that I'm a good person?"
Murong Wushuang said, "I, Murong Wushuang, am a little hooligan born in the marketplace. I've done plenty of stealing, swindling, and cheating. Though I'm not as clever as you, Brother Chuan, I can still tell good people from bad ones. I've decided to be your friend. Of course, if you look down on a child from a poor family like me, then pretend I never said any of this."
Ning Xiaochuan placed a hand on Murong Wushuang's shoulder and smiled. "To be ashamed, compared to a Blood Toad Wood Tree, fifty thousand Small Coin truly is nothing. The Blood Toad Wood is of great use to me. It can help me raise my cultivation quickly. I must obtain it, and I must reach the Divine Body Realm within three months. How about this? I have a piece of Gold Thread Purple Wood containing Earth Martial Essence Qi stored by a Martial Venerable. Its value is not much lower than that of a Blood Toad Wood Tree. I'll give it to you in exchange. What do you say?"
Murong Wushuang shook his head. "I already said I wanted to be your friend. Consider the Blood Toad Wood my gift when we first met. As for that Gold Thread Purple Wood, you should keep it yourself! I'm a child from a poor family. If people found out I possessed such a treasure, I'd surely end up lying dead in the street the very next day."
"That works too. Then I'll teach you a cultivation manual," Ning Xiaochuan said.
Murong Wushuang's eyes instantly lit up. He grabbed Ning Xiaochuan's shoulders with both hands and shook him excitedly. "Brother Chuan, don't lie to me! The cultivation manuals of great families cannot be passed outside the family. They are the foundation upon which a family stands. If you pass a cultivation manual to an outsider and the elders of your family learn of it, they'll surely send people to kill both you and me."
Ning Xiaochuan shook his head. "My family is very large—not ordinarily large. It has many cultivation manuals. Apart from that most supreme divine cultivation art, I should be able to pass the others on to you."
The Sword Pavilion Marquis's Mansion possessed vast wealth and influence. Over the centuries, it had conquered many religious sects and clans; it had even slaughtered a vicious dragon. Naturally, it had collected many cultivation manuals. Ning Xiaochuan had seen several fairly decent manuals in the Scripture Pavilion.
His memory was excellent. Even now, he could recall seventy or eighty percent of the contents of those manuals.
Since they had already reached the location of the Blood Toad Wood, Ning Xiaochuan was no longer in a hurry to retrieve it. Instead, he found a stone slab and swiftly began writing upon it, copying down a cultivation manual from memory.
"Scratch, scratch!"
He used his finger as a pen, moving it rapidly as stone dust continuously fell to the ground.
In less than half an hour, he had carved an entire martial cultivation manual onto the stone slab.
"Turtle Breath Immovable Skill." Murong Wushuang stared at the contents on the slab, rubbing his hands together in immense excitement. He had never expected Ning Xiaochuan to truly give him a cultivation manual.
This was a cultivation manual!
Many great families possessed only one cultivation manual. It was the root upon which the family stood and a treasure of inheritance, something that could never be spread outside. Even if it were leaked, everyone who knew of it would be exterminated.
For instance, the largest family in Nanshan Village, the Ye Family, possessed only one cultivation manual: Azure Leaf Divine Skill.
Only direct descendants of the Ye Family, or those who had sold themselves to the Ye Family, could learn Azure Leaf Divine Skill.
Yet Ning Xiaochuan had copied out a cultivation manual without even blinking. Judging from the cultivation methods recorded within, this was no ordinary manual. It was definitely more profound than Azure Leaf Divine Skill.
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