Destroy the corpse and erase the traces

Chapter 31: Destroying the Evidence

Chu Xiaotian currently possessed only a cultivation technique but had mastered no combat maneuvers, meaning he relied entirely on instinct when facing enemies. Of course, the saying he'd learned from the Fire Cloud Evil God—"Of all the martial arts in the world, only speed is invincible"—had greatly inspired him. He found it incredibly logical; since he had no techniques to speak of, he would simply rely on speed to fight.

As for speed, the Heavenly Corpse Art contained no methods to enhance it, and a zombie's speed had never really been associated with being "fast." However, Chu Xiaotian had read his fair share of martial arts novels and knew a thing or two about cultivation methods for speed and movement techniques. Although others might dismiss those things in novels as nonsense, he had practiced running with weights bound to his legs and arms, and performed punches underwater in the same manner. When he used these methods to train his attack speed, the results were quite significant. Thus, he now felt that the things in novels weren't necessarily fake.

Facing Huang Nian's guard, Chu Xiaotian relied entirely on speed. A long spear in his hands was whipped into a gale. Though it lacked any formal structure, that speed gave Huang Nian's guard the feeling of a dog biting a hedgehog—there was simply no place to sink his teeth in. As the two remained deadlocked, Ba Dao had already crippled another Sea-Opening Realm guard of Huang Nian's. As for the other two, he had struck them unconscious directly. With their dantian shattered by his kick, they had passed out instantly. With their dantian destroyed, these men were completely finished. In truth, had they been given two more breaths of time, they could have refined the Bone-Softening Powder and recovered fully.

"Bastards, both of you go to hell! Qi-Transforming Slash!" Seeing his companion crippled, the guard fighting Chu Xiaotian roared in anger. He raised his long sword high above his head and slashed down toward Chu Xiaotian.

Swoosh. A streak of Sword Qi erupted from the long sword, cleaving toward Chu Xiaotian.

"Sword Qi!" Chu Xiaotian was genuinely startled. For someone in the Sea-Opening Realm to be able to unleash such a thing—his strength far exceeded expectations. One had to know that while those in the Pulse-Opening Realm could possess spiritual essence, it required a master of the Qi-Transforming Realm to project that essence outside the body to form something like Sword Qi. The fact that this guard, clearly only at the Sea-Opening Realm, could unleash such a strike was due entirely to the battle technique he was using.

Cultivation techniques only increased one's cultivation base and absorbed spiritual power, while battle techniques were the application of that power, allowing it to exert maximum lethality. Battle techniques were graded just like cultivation techniques; the higher the grade, the greater the power they could unleash. The Qi-Transforming Slash possessed by Huang Nian's guard was a high-grade human-tier battle technique. At the cost of half the spiritual essence in his body, it allowed him to unleash a streak of Sword Qi while still in the Sea-Opening Realm.

The Sword Qi condensed from spiritual essence was far faster than the speed at which he could swing his sword. Chu Xiaotian had only just reacted when the Sword Qi was already within a meter of him. With little hope of escape, Chu Xiaotian could only circulate the Heavenly Corpse Art, gathering all his Corpse Poison toward his chest. A layer of purple fur grew beneath his clothes, unnoticed by anyone. At the same time, instead of retreating, he lunged forward, thrusting his spear toward Huang Nian's guard.

Seeing Chu Xiaotian not only fail to dodge his Sword Qi but actually charge at him, a cold sneer appeared on the guard's face. The Qi-Transforming Slash was a high-grade human-tier technique that had drained half his spiritual essence; if someone of the same realm were struck by this Sword Qi without defensive gear, death was a certainty. In his eyes, this arrogant brat was destined to be cleaved in two.

A flash of horror crossed the faces of Ba Dao and Xia Xue. The Sword Qi was so sharp that they were truly worried Chu Xiaotian wouldn't be able to withstand it. But at this moment, it was too late for them to say anything; they could only pray that Chu Xiaotian had the confidence to block it and wasn't just foolishly trying to tank the strike.

In truth, Chu Xiaotian had no such confidence. He only knew that after transforming into a Purple Corpse, a layer of purple fur would appear on his body, and this fur possessed immense defensive capabilities. As for whether it could block this Sword Qi, he had no idea. But the situation gave him no choice; he had to face it head-on.

With a loud "Boom," Chu Xiaotian's body was struck by the Sword Qi, the immense force sending him flying backward. However, in that very instant, he had also thrown his spear with all his might, sending it hurtling toward the sneering guard. Chu Xiaotian and the guard were only three meters apart; with a spear thrown with full force at such close range, the guard had little chance to dodge. Most importantly, seeing Chu Xiaotian sent flying by the Sword Qi, his focus had wavered, believing Chu Xiaotian could no longer pose a threat.

Because of this, when Chu Xiaotian landed, the guard was pierced through by the spear. With a look of utter disbelief, his body slowly collapsed.

"Brother Xiaotian, are you alright? Little brother, how are you?" Xia Xue and Ba Dao rushed to Chu Xiaotian's side at almost the same time, asking with concern. As for the other disciples of the Mad Blade Martial Hall, they walked slowly toward the fallen Sea-Opening Realm guard with expressions of disbelief, wanting to see if the guy was truly dead.

"I seem to be fine, just a bit sore. Little Xue, help me rub it; if you rub it, it shouldn't hurt anymore." Chu Xiaotian touched his chest, having already retracted the purple fur to avoid scaring anyone. There was no horrific wound there, only a stinging, burning sensation where the Sword Qi had struck. The Heavenly Corpse Art is truly powerful. Chu Xiaotian thought with immense excitement; the defensive capability of that purple fur had exceeded his expectations. Originally, he had thought that even if the Sword Qi didn't kill him, it should have left him severely wounded.

"You're annoying, even at a time like this you're still joking." Xia Xue's pretty face flushed slightly, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes at Chu Xiaotian, spitting out a soft rebuke.

"Little brother, I'm glad you're alright. But isn't your body unable to absorb spiritual power? How did you gain such strong power in such a short time?" Ba Dao looked at Chu Xiaotian, asking with a face full of confusion. This was a significant mystery that he couldn't wrap his head around.

"I don't know what happened either. Just a while ago, I suddenly discovered a cultivation technique in my mind. I practiced according to that, and this is what happened." Chu Xiaotian didn't know how to answer, so he had to make up a lie.

Ba Dao paused. It was clear he didn't fully believe Chu Xiaotian's words. However, he didn't ask further; among cultivators, there were many things one shouldn't inquire about too closely. Cultivation techniques were one of them. Since Ba Dao didn't ask, Chu Xiaotian naturally wouldn't bring it up again. In fact, he really couldn't explain it, so it was better not to say anything at all.

Half an hour later, a carriage sped out of the Mad Blade Martial Hall. A young man sat in the driver's seat, and behind him, two middle-aged men stared at him expressionlessly, as if urging him to drive faster. The young man's face was covered in bruises and so swollen he was unrecognizable; one look told you he'd been beaten quite badly. Yet, his eyes flashed with an intense, hateful light. The carriage cabin behind him swayed as it traveled, and from time to time, bursts of mocking laughter drifted out.

Anyone who saw this scene could imagine what had happened. Bullying others with power, forcibly abducting a young woman, and even forcing her husband to drive the carriage—if he didn't comply, he'd be beaten until his own mother wouldn't recognize him. Many people in Greenwood Town saw this, but the two expressionless middle-aged men made everyone afraid to step forward. Those two were the guards of the young master of the Huang Family from Yufeng City; who would dare to stop him while he was abducting a woman? Many people merely cast a look of pity at the young man driving the carriage before turning away, fearing they might bring trouble upon themselves. Some even wore expressions of schadenfreude, leaving Chu Xiaotian, who was disguised and driving the carriage, feeling quite speechless.

Under the gaze of everyone in Greenwood Town, the carriage sped out of the town and into the endless dense forest. From that day on, no one ever saw that carriage return.

The young master of the Huang Family had left Greenwood Town; they had likely intended to explore the endless forest, but no one expected them to meet with misfortune, perhaps falling into the jaws of some demonic beast. Even the man and woman they had forcibly taken away never returned. Of course, no one in Greenwood Town knew who that man and woman were, and even if they had returned, they probably wouldn't have recognized them.

This was Chu Xiaotian's plan: to frame the Huang Family members as having perished in the jaws of beasts in the mountains, leaving not a trace of their bones. In this way, no matter what the Huang Family did, they would have no excuse to vent their anger on others. The people of Greenwood Town were all witnesses; they had seen with their own eyes that Huang Nian had gone to his own death, and there was nothing anyone could do about that.

As for the group from the Mad Blade Martial Hall who knew the truth, Chu Xiaotian wasn't worried they would speak up. No one was a fool; if this came out, everyone would be finished. Besides, in their eyes, Huang Nian deserved to die, so who would have the heart to seek justice for him?

At this moment, Chu Xiaotian, the mastermind behind the whole affair, was sitting on the grass in the valley where they lived, looking with a beaming smile at the four Qiankun Bags and one white bracelet in front of him. With Huang Nian and his four companions gone without a trace, Chu Xiaotian naturally accepted their belongings with a smile, showing no signs of politeness.