In This Jianghu, Fists Are the Only Hard Truth!

"Here already?"

Before long, Zhou Qing sensed a concealed aura nearby.

That aura was extremely hidden, as though it had melded into the mountains and forest. If he had not raised the Profound Ice Heart Method to the ninth level of perfection, boosting his spiritual power more than tenfold, it would have been difficult for him to detect its presence.

Although this person could conceal himself almost perfectly, his aura was not particularly strong. He was probably not a First-rate Martial Artist among the Eagle Wolf Guard, but more likely a scout skilled at tracking.

Zhou Qing gave no sign of noticing and continued strolling leisurely through the forest, though he slowly closed in on the aura's location.

But the man was extremely cautious. He seemed to sense something, and the moment Zhou Qing changed direction, that concealed aura swiftly retreated.

"Trying to run? No chance."

Zhou Qing's gaze sharpened. He immediately unleashed the lightness skill Floating Crossing, his body flying like the wind as he covered dozens of zhang in a single breath.

At the same time, he raised his right hand and slashed out with the Mysterious Iron Saber. Saber radiance burst forth, transforming into more than a dozen incomparably sharp saber energies that hacked toward the front.

The saber energy contained the Golden Edge Characteristic. Wherever it passed, grass and trees were severed. Even hard stones were split in two like tofu.

"Spare me!"

The figure cried out loudly for mercy.

But it was useless. The saber energies crisscrossed, cutting through everything.

Pfft!

Even though the figure possessed exceptional movement techniques, he still could not evade all the rapidly descending saber energies. One of them struck his body, instantly cutting him into two. Blood sprayed out, dyeing the surrounding grass and trees red.

Zhou Qing halted and sheathed the Mysterious Iron Saber, staring coldly at the figure already severed in two. "Speak. Who are you, and why were you following me?"

But that figure no longer had any chance to answer. The saber energy had not only cut his body in half; a strand of Golden Edge Internal Energy had instantly shredded his organs into countless pieces. His life force had been completely extinguished.

Zhou Qing frowned and stepped forward to search the corpse.

"This is a Wind Full Tower scout."

From the body that had been cut in two, Zhou Qing found a token.

Although he had been in the jianghu for barely over a month, he did not know much about many of its sects and factions.

But Wind Full Tower happened to be one of the exceptions.

This was an organization that specialized in selling intelligence. Every county had a Wind Full Tower outpost, and the Three Rankings of Heaven, Earth, and Man in the jianghu were all published by Wind Full Tower.

Zhou Qing was now a figure of blazing prominence in the jianghu. Everyone wanted to find him and uncover the secrets he carried.

Therefore, intelligence concerning Zhou Qing was highly valuable.

After Zhou Qing killed Blood Hand Butcher Li Baichuan at the foot of Cold Moon Villa, he had drawn the attention of Wind Full Tower's hidden agents, who had followed him in secret.

Wind Full Tower's hidden agents generally cultivated techniques focused on lightness skills and aura concealment. Not only could they track their targets, they were also difficult to detect.

"Wind Full Tower!"

Zhou Qing revealed a contemplative expression.

Since this was an organization centered on selling intelligence, it surely possessed information on how to enter the Innate Realm.

However, once he entered Wind Full Tower, his whereabouts would also be exposed.

After pondering for a while, Zhou Qing made his decision. He would first see whether he could obtain information from the Eagle Wolf Guard about entering the Innate Realm.

If that failed, he would cultivate several more first-rate Internal Arts and first-rate body-tempering martial arts, drawing on each other's strengths to further reinforce his foundation. He would make his body even more formidable, his internal energy and spiritual power even more abundant, and see whether he could break through the limit and enter the Innate Realm.

For other martial artists, cultivating a first-rate technique to perfection—whether an Internal Art or a body-tempering technique—was not something they could even dream of accomplishing without several decades. Even Peak First-rate Martial Artists would need at least ten years.

But for Zhou Qing, a few days were enough to cultivate a first-rate technique to perfection. Still, he was not sure whether that alone could blast open the Gate of Heaven and Earth and allow him to enter the Innate Realm.

Therefore, if he could obtain a specific method for entering the Innate Realm, that would naturally be best. It would save him from taking many detours.

Aside from the Wind Full Tower token, Zhou Qing found nothing of value on the man.

He rose and left.

Before long.

Zhou Qing found an abandoned, dilapidated temple.

He remained in the ruined temple, waiting for the Eagle Wolf Guard to arrive.

Time passed bit by bit.

About two ke later.

Whoosh!

Zhou Qing opened his eyes.

Three martial artists clad in Red Wolf uniforms appeared before the ruined temple.

In the Great Xuan Dynasty, Eagle Wolf Guard offices were established at the prefectural level. There was only one Red Wolf Commander in the chief position, while the number of Red Wolf Deputy Commanders was not fixed, generally ranging from three to five.

The three Eagle Wolf Guard members before him all wore Red Wolf uniforms. However, the Red Wolf uniform worn by the one in the middle differed somewhat from the other two. Besides being a darker color, its cuffs were embroidered with wolf heads.

"Finally, you're here!"

Seeing the Eagle Wolf Guard arrive, Zhou Qing slowly rose to his feet.

At that moment, the eyes of the three Eagle Wolf Guard members standing outside the ruined temple were sharp as eagles as they stared at Zhou Qing within. Their gazes seemed to pierce through the veil of his conical hat and see his true face.

"So it really is you—Mad Blade Zhou Qing!"

The Red Wolf Commander in the middle spoke coldly. There was a trace of surprise in his tone, yet it was also as expected, because while tracking him, they had already guessed that Zhou Qing was the one who had killed Blood Hand Butcher Li Baichuan.

What surprised him was that Zhou Qing had not chosen to flee. Instead, he had remained in this ruined temple and waited for them to come.

Could there be some trap?

"I've been waiting for you for quite some time."

Zhou Qing's voice was calm and indifferent.

"You deliberately waited for us to arrive."

The Red Wolf Commander narrowed his eyes slightly. The two deputy commanders beside him also looked grave. They had not expected this Mad Blade Zhou Qing to be so arrogant. Knowing he would be pursued, he had actually dared remain here, utterly unafraid of their arrival.

"That's right. I was indeed waiting for you." Zhou Qing nodded, then said, "Because I've encountered a problem that requires you to answer for me."

"Oh? What problem?"

Hearing this, Red Wolf Commander Fang Yuan frowned slightly. The two deputy commanders beside him also showed puzzled expressions. Clearly, they had not expected Zhou Qing not to flee because he had a question for them to answer.

"How can one enter the Innate Realm?"

Zhou Qing asked.

"Hmph. You want to enter the Innate Realm? What a fool's dream!"

Fang Yuan sneered, his tone full of contempt.

The Innate Realm was a state countless martial artists dreamed of, yet how many spent their entire lives unable to so much as touch it?

They had not expected Zhou Qing to ask such a question. It seemed he had cultivated the Power of Momentum to perfection and seen the Gate of Heaven and Earth.

But seeing the Gate of Heaven and Earth merely meant one was qualified to glimpse the path to the Innate Realm. He was still far from blasting open that gate and achieving Innateness.

"Looks like in this jianghu, fists are the only hard truth." Zhou Qing said lightly. "Since speaking nicely to you gets me no answer, I can only use force to persuade you."

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