The Poison Lingers

"What?! He's not dead?!"

"The gate commandant of Yucheng County is this lowly one's fellow townsman. He saw it with his own eyes. It was only that the man had a scar on his face."

In a fit of rage, Zhu Xun snatched up a precious seal from the table and hurled it at the kneeling soldier below!

The soldier did not dare dodge. His helmet rang with a thunderous crash, leaving his head buzzing and stars dancing before his eyes!

Zhu Xun laughed loudly. "Look at you, you cowardly bastard!"

"Yes! Yes! This subordinate deserves death!" The soldier was about to continue pleading when a money pouch suddenly dropped before him. He grabbed it and opened it, finding a hundred taels of silver inside. Overcome with excitement, he shuffled forward on his knees. "Thank you, Young Master! This subordinate will go investigate further."

"Remember, don't let the news leak! If you bring me further reports, there will still be rewards!"

"This subordinate swears loyalty unto death to Young Master!"

Zhu Xun watched his henchman depart, grumbling inwardly, I said the brat had a tough life, but Master simply wouldn't believe me. Looks like only the cabbage I grow knows how to obey!

"Cabbage obey! Cabbage obey!" the mynah parrot echoed from the side. Zhu Xun cursed with a laugh, "You dog thing, shut up!"

"Dog thing! Dog thing!"

"Someone! Summon Sword Slave!"

Before long, a delicate-featured woman standing eight feet tall entered and dropped to one knee. "Master!"

"Sword Slave, what level of strength is needed to guarantee the killing of a Qi Refinement First Realm, First Stage expert?"

"Master, against an ordinary First Realm, First Stage cultivator, the Third Stage would be enough to suppress them utterly and decide their life or death at will. But if they possess an unmatched secret art, then even someone five stages higher could not forcibly kill them!"

Sword Slave's expression was icy, yet her features were exceedingly alluring. Still, Zhu Xun had never dared entertain designs on her; even his gaze held a measure of respect. "What if it were like my master's attack—one strand of Sword Qi?"

"Venerable Chang Yi wields an immortal artifact, and his strength is ten times greater. If he fought barehanded, even an ordinary Qi Refinement Second Realm cultivator would surely die!"

"Could a Qi Refinement First Realm cultivator possibly evade that strand of Sword Qi?"

"Yes! As long as they possess a manual above the Human-grade Codex level, avoiding vital areas would not be difficult! However, Venerable Chang Yi's Sword Qi contains the Six Desires Demon Poison. Unless one drinks a maiden's fresh blood within twelve hours, it is exceedingly difficult to neutralize!"

"That villain is even more ruthless than I am. Killing a woman is no trouble for him at all!" Zhu Xun's face grew increasingly grave. "Sword Slave, come closer!"

Sword Slave hesitated slightly, but still stepped forward. Yet she bent her back a little, drawing in her full bosom, while her arms shifted subtly to shield her chest, whether deliberately or not.

"Even if I set my sights on anyone, I'd never dare touch you! You really think too highly of me!" Zhu Xun said with a bitter smile, rising onto his toes to whisper in her ear.

Sword Slave frowned. "Master, you want me to kill a Qi Refinement First Realm cultivator?"

"Is that possible?"

"Master will not permit it, and this subordinate also has an urgent mission these next few days. However, this subordinate can send Jie Xiao. He is currently at the Fifth Stage of the Qi Refinement Second Realm. He works cleanly and efficiently, and he has never suffered a defeat in any mission thus far!"

"Ah Xiao, then. Go arrange it at once. Here is that man's information." Zhu Xun nodded and handed over the portrait.

Sword Slave accepted the letter, a flush rising to her cheeks. "What a handsome man!"

"Whores love money, girls love pretty faces—truly an eternal truth!" Zhu Xun sneered as he turned away.

Sword Slave put away the letter, bowed in acknowledgment, and hurried from the Grand Tutor's Residence. With one leap, she soared a thousand feet, seeming to tread empty air, and in the blink of an eye had reached beyond the city.

Thousands upon thousands of birds roamed the heavens. Sword Slave landed upon the back of a goshawk.

The eagle instantly spread its iron feathers, transforming into a monstrous beast more than eight zhang wide and over one zhang long. It even spoke human words, tilting its head to ask, "Are we seeing the Palace Master?"

"Not yet. Zhu Xun has assigned me a mission first!"

"Hmph. The Sect Master sent you here to get close to the target, yet after so long you have made no progress! Every day, you do nothing but wipe this useless young master's ass and eliminate his rivals!"

"This target is somewhat different. I am interested as well."

"Don't make excuses!" The eagle was thoroughly enraged. "The next time the Sect Master presses you, I will not cover for your lies! This is..."

The eagle had been furious, but Sword Slave took a fiery-red pill from her robes and tossed it out. The eagle caught it in its beak. A vast surge of demonic essence flowed into its meridians and gathered in its dantian, and a gentle delight appeared on its face.

"Let this matter go, then! You must have your own difficulties! I will explain it to the Sect Master."

"Good." Sword Slave sneered inwardly. With money, even ghosts can be made to turn millstones.

The eagle flew at astonishing speed. In moments, dozens of li had fallen behind them. Ahead stood a mountain peak, as if carved by knives and axes. At its base, a gigantic mouth appeared, as though it could swallow all things. Sword Slave leaped down and plunged into it. The mouth shut.

Not long afterward, the great mouth opened a crack, and a paper kite flew toward the ruined Yucheng County. Luoyi, the capital of the Great Zhou Kingdom, lay a thousand li away. The paper kite did not follow the official road. After flying several hundred li, it slowly descended outside Shangdu Commandery.

"By Sword Slave's order, kill this man!"

The paper kite unfolded into a sheet of letter paper, revealing countless words and an image.

Jie Xiao stood seven feet seven inches tall, lean and wiry beneath a black robe, with a mask covering his face. After reading the letter, he loosened his fingers slightly. The paper floated up and was ignited by a nameless flame, instantly turning to ashes.

"Liu Yunshen? Qi Refinement First Realm? Interesting!" Jie Xiao stared coldly toward Python Mountain, several hundred li away.

Having bid farewell to Blacksmith Tan and his family, Liu Yunshen was strolling through Python Mountain north of Yucheng County. Gazing at the bright moon overhead, he could not help stroking the treasured sword at his waist again. "Where exactly are you, or was all of this merely an illusion within my heart?"

He had always been a decisive man. With the hard edge in his hand, that fleeting tenderness turned to Sword Qi, whirling fiercely through the mountain forest.

A thousand layers of chill pierced the water moon; a hundred feet of frost swept the Milky Way! With the treasured sword in hand and the sword art taught by his master in motion, he could truly split rocks and sever streams, unstoppable in his valor!

He extended his sword slightly. Several breaths later, the trees before him remained unharmed! He gave one a gentle push with his hand, and the tree, as thick as a bowl's mouth, snapped with a crash!

"This sword is so sharp!" Liu Yunshen was greatly astonished. He immediately sheathed it and used his fingers in its place, pondering the mysteries of footwork. Half an hour later, he had gained much. He had straightened out a little more of the three-tenths of the chaotic, muddled footwork taught by the black-robed Daoist, and the knot in his heart eased, while his lustful desires also diminished.

"This place is quite secluded. Why not practice the Sleep Skill Teacher taught me? I only fear wild beasts might disturb me, which would be somewhat troublesome!" Liu Yunshen frowned slightly, then leaped up onto the treetop, utterly startled. "This tree is not particularly tall, but it is still over a zhang high. How did I get up here with such a light jump?"

Liu Yunshen drew back his fist slightly and struck down with a thunderous palm. His palm force penetrated more than a foot through his body, nearly twice as powerful as yesterday!

"According to the Divine Bear Manual and the Swift Leopard Codex, with every stage advanced in the Qi Refinement First Realm, one's cultivation increases by twenty percent. Only at the Ninth Stage does it more than double! Judging by what I feel now, I should not possess such power! Could it be the cultivation Blacksmith Tan injected into me while treating my wounds?"

Liu Yunshen did not know that yesterday, at the very brink between life and death, the immense Six Desires Demon Poison within the Sword Qi that had struck him also possessed the marvelous effect of increasing one's cultivation. Under his will of gold and jade, though he had suffered grievously through the night, the demonic poison had been completely dissolved. Thus, his cultivation had surged, and he had entered the Second Stage!

"If I cannot understand it, I will stop thinking about it!" Liu Yunshen lay on his side, grasped his ankle with one hand, and activated the Sleep Skill. Before long, he entered stillness. That night, the full moon hung high in the sky, and threads of moonlight streamed down, winding around his body.

Tigers, leopards, snakes, and foxes emerged from the forest one after another and gathered beneath the tree, opening their mouths wide to breathe in wisps of moonlight!

"This..." Liu Yunshen rose in alarm and slowly looked below. The drawing force of the moonlight ceased, and the beasts all stood, looking up at the man in the tree.

"What is going on?"

"Disciple, have you been well?"

A strange laugh rang out. The black-robed Daoist stood in the air, grinning as he looked at his precious disciple.