Taking the Initiative, Killing Zhang Long in Seconds!

"Finding Zhang Long shouldn't be difficult. The hardest part is, once I find him, how to kill him without exposing myself, leaving no trace behind." Chen Huai'an looked into the distance. He was not some bloodthirsty fiend; he had only one purpose in doing this. He wanted to stay alive.

"It seems I should spend the next two days practicing the art of killing—how to achieve a one-hit kill. And I need to start cultivating the Elephant Armor Technique as well. A spear in the open is easy to dodge, but an arrow in the dark is hard to guard against. Strong defense can save my life."

While the Zhang Family investigated Zhang Hu's disappearance, Chen Huai'an did not remain idle. He secretly gathered information about Zhang Long, while desperately cultivating whenever he carried water.

Chen Huai'an did not lack resources. Taking medicinal pills orally and absorbing their effects while exercising was much faster than meditating at night to absorb them. It also had another benefit: it tempered his body perfectly.

Body Tempering, whether opening meridians, tempering the five viscera and six bowels, or refining bones, flesh, and blood, was all about expelling impurities from the body. Only then could one draw upon the spiritual energy drifting between heaven and earth to temper the fleshly body.

As he carried water, he also continuously studied concealed weapon techniques, using pebbles to strike down leaves along the road as assassination targets.

This time, Chen Huai'an would not sit and wait for death. He would take the initiative and get rid of Zhang Long without anyone noticing.

After analyzing the situation, he concluded that the Zhang Family had not come to question him because he had not yet been exposed. Once someone from the Zhang Family came to ask him about it, it would mean Zhang Long had told the family something.

To be reasonable, the Zhang Family stood high above everyone else. They would never reason with Chen Huai'an.

One wrong step led to countless wrong steps. Chen Huai'an had already made a wrong move, leaving himself in a very passive position. What he needed to do now was turn passivity into initiative.

Servant disciples had two days of rest each month.

Chen Huai'an planned to ask Steward Wu for a day off. He intended to find a way to visit the market at the foot of the mountain. Though he had some cultivation resources on hand, given his current cultivation speed, they would not last him long.

Moreover, the Zhang Family crisis had yet to be resolved. If he wanted to protect himself, he had to raise his strength to heights they could not imagine before they realized what was happening. Only by exploiting this information gap could he survive.

Chen Huai'an did not have much time. He could not even manage to learn where Zhang Long lived, much less openly ask about it. He could only observe in secret and slowly gather information.

It was precisely Chen Huai'an's cautious and prudent mindset that allowed him to avoid crisis after crisis.

At such a critical juncture, if he asked around about Zhang Long, he would certainly attract the Zhang Family's attention.

Over the past few days, Chen Huai'an's cultivation had also made a breakthrough. He had advanced from the First Stage of the Body Tempering Realm to the Body Tempering Realm, Second Layer.

The reason he had broken through so quickly was that the Spirit Spring Water in the Purple-Skinned Gourd's space had helped him tremendously.

He had low-grade Spirit Spring Water. If he could obtain enough medicinal herbs, he could use the Spirit Spring Water to prepare medicinal baths and cultivate the Elephant Armor Technique.

"What did you say? Zhang Hu once caused trouble for some worthless bastard with a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root?" The person responsible for investigating Zhang Hu's disappearance was an Outer Sect Servant Disciple of the Zhang Family. He had joined Qingyun Sect's Servant Peak many years ago and was now in the Late Body Tempering Realm. As long as he broke through to the Qi Refining Realm, the Zhang Family could pull some strings and help him complete his trial mission, allowing him to enter the Outer Sect.

At this moment, Zhang Hu's disappearance had placed the investigation in his hands. Over the past two days, he had searched everywhere and gathered information.

Zhang Hu had been a wastrel who had done plenty of things like bullying men and tyrannizing women. He had not made too many enemies on Servant Peak, but neither had he made few. After investigating them one by one, he still had no leads.

But today, he received word that Zhang Hu had bullied a disciple named Chen Huai'an. The information he learned was that Chen Huai'an not only possessed a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root, but had entered the sect because of Senior Sister Qin from the Inner Sect. Because of this, Chen Huai'an had been placed on the list of key suspects.

However, because of Chen Huai'an's connection to an Inner Sect disciple, Zhang Mu did not immediately investigate or approach him. Instead, he eliminated the other suspicious targets one by one.

"A Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root, yet he opened thirty meridians in seven days. This fellow must be hiding some secret. Zhang Hu's death is most likely connected to him." Zhang Mu ultimately determined that Zhang Hu's disappearance was related to Chen Huai'an.

But because the matter involved an Inner Sect disciple, he did not act rashly. Instead, he reported it to the Zhang Family's higher-ups and let them deal with the headache.

Chen Huai'an knew nothing of this. He only believed that the Zhang Family had not yet noticed him.

After three days of effort, he found where Zhang Long lived.

Having scoped out the location, all Chen Huai'an had to do next was take the initiative and deal with Zhang Long.

In the past, Chen Huai'an had been passively beaten. He had been a lamb awaiting slaughter.

But things were different now. He had to take the initiative.

When he made his move, he also had to plan things carefully. He had to create proof that he had not been at the scene.

Chen Huai'an had already thought of a way: he would use his water-carrying duties as cover.

That day, after completing his water-carrying task, he deliberately claimed that he had accidentally twisted his ankle on the way up the mountain. His pace in carrying water immediately slowed by a great deal.

Old Li and the other old hands were unwilling to help him. Old Li even made a harsh threat: if Chen Huai'an did not fill his two water vats today, he would have to work through the night.

Chen Huai'an pretended to plead with him, but the old bastard would not listen to his explanation at all. Instead, he put even more pressure on him.

Chen Huai'an dawdled until nightfall, each trip taking longer than the last.

Zhang Long's courtyard.

"Who is it? Who's outside?" Zhang Long had just finished his secluded cultivation and smoothly broken through to the First Stage of the Body Tempering Realm. The moment he finished cultivating, he sensed a shadow moving outside the room, sneaking about in a furtive manner.

Zhang Long called out, but there was no movement outside. He stretched his limbs and pushed open the door.

Whoosh!

The instant Zhang Long pushed open his door, a dagger shot toward him. Before he could even react, the dagger had struck him.

Zhang Long's corpse fell with a thud. Chen Huai'an did not linger where he was. After succeeding with a single strike, he lightly leaped into the courtyard and searched Zhang Long's body, taking the cloth bundle from his robes and erasing every trace of his presence before disappearing from the courtyard.

This time, Chen Huai'an did not take Zhang Long's corpse away. He wanted to create the illusion of a revenge killing.

The Zhang Family had been too arrogant and domineering among the many servant disciples of Servant Peak. Someone wanted revenge.

By doing this, he would make the matter bigger and divert attention.

At the same time, Chen Huai'an realized another problem: his breakthrough speed was too fast. This had to be dealt with, or someone would definitely grow suspicious of him.

But how should he conceal his cultivation? Ideally, he needed to hide his realm and make others believe he had not yet broken through to the First Stage of the Body Tempering Realm.

Chen Huai'an sent the spoils into the Purple-Skinned Gourd's space, then ran down the mountain.

Now, he had to create an alibi. Steward Wu from the dining hall and Old Li could testify that he had been carrying water the entire time and had not gone out.

Zhang Long had died silently. He had not even had time to let out a single scream before someone silenced him forever. Before dawn the next morning, someone discovered Zhang Long lying in a pool of blood.

Zhang Long's brutal death immediately caused quite a commotion on Servant Peak.

Who had such audacity as to dare murder someone on Servant Peak?