Uproot the Weeds and Destroy the Roots!!

As the saying went, killing was easy; disposing of the bodies was hard.

But for Wang Lang, it was not much of a problem.

The twelve Changle Gang corpses came in all shapes and sizes, tall and short, fat and thin.

Yet now, like sacks carelessly piled up at a market, Wang Lang gathered them in his arms,

stacking them into an arhat tower with a rather abstract artistic flair.

His Body Refinement Second Layer strength allowed him to carry that pile of corpses along Mingyue Mountain's rugged paths with steady steps and even breathing.

The night wind swept through the forest, carrying the fresh scent of pine waves and wild grass.

Wang Lang picked a sturdy jujube tree and gently set down the arhat tower.

"This spot will do. The feng shui may be nothing special, but the view is open, it gets plenty of sun, and at least you won't have to worry about becoming zombies."

He muttered to himself as he casually grabbed the shovel that had long been prepared nearby.

Dirt flew everywhere. There was no particular technique to his movements—just speed and steadiness.

The pit was finished, square and deep enough.

He filled it with earth, packed it down, and raised a sizable burial mound.

Wang Lang planted the shovel beside it, dusted the dirt from his hands, and clasped his fists toward the freshly made mound.

"Gentlemen, travel well."

"You committed plenty of sins in this life. When you reincarnate in the next, try not to be human."

"Be a rock, or a tree. Peaceful."

By the time he returned to Listening Waves Mountain Manor, the sky had gone completely dark.

Some difficult-to-clean traces still remained on the bluestone ground before the gate.

Several splattered chunks of flesh, along with the darkened black-red-and-white mess left behind by Liu Biao—the first man whose head he had blown apart with a punch infused with his trace intent—were still glaringly conspicuous in the night.

Wang Lang frowned.

There was no helping it. He had done it himself, so he had to clean it himself.

After another round of washing and wiping, the area before the gate was barely clean again. Only water stains and a faint odor remained, needing time to fade. By then, night had completely shrouded Mingyue Mountain.

He had been busy all day. Ever since obtaining the red trait [Ageless and Undying] and the orange trait [Innate Qi] at dawn, he had not stopped for a moment.

Cultivating, accumulating trace intent, killing, burying bodies, cleaning up... he had not even managed a bite of hot food.

Strangely enough, he did not feel hungry.

The effects of [Innate Qi] seemed to include a trait called living on qi, or fasting without food.

At that moment, he could clearly feel imperceptible energy merging into his limbs and bones with every breath, nourishing his body and driving away his physical hunger.

Even the fatigue in his body was dissolved by that endless stream of qi.

"So the first step toward becoming physically sanctified is saying goodbye to eating?" Wang Lang grumbled inwardly.

But the body not growing tired did not mean the mind would not become sleepy.

As everyone knew, the body and the mind were two separate systems.

Wang Lang knew that whether it was Qi Induction or Body Refinement, the early stages mainly strengthened the body.

However, once the path of qi cultivation reached the Sixth Layer of the Qi Induction Realm, it would begin tempering the mind.

Though he felt a little sleepy, it was not serious, and he forcibly suppressed it.

Because there was still one thing left to do.

He turned and walked to Old Wang's grave.

After standing there silently for a while, he spoke.

"Old man, I killed people today."

"Twelve in one go. Changle Gang members, led by Liu Biao.

Even counting both my lives, this is the first time I've ever killed anyone."

"Strangely, I don't feel sick at all.

When I heard about all the evil things they had done, I felt they deserved to die, so... I killed them."

"You spent the latter half of your life giving away wealth and acting chivalrously. You earned a reputation, sure, but you were foolish too.

Look at this. You were barely buried, your first seven days had not even passed, and the Changle Gang already dared come to seize this manor.

Did you really think that saying, 'evil can never triumph over righteousness,' could suppress all these demons and monsters?

Did you really think they would discuss the laws of the Limitless Dynasty with you and follow the rules while plotting to take your manor?"

"Did you ever think about how strong I was before? Body Refinement First Layer!

You left behind this mess. How is that any different from throwing a fat sheep into a pack of wolves?

Were you still hoping they would suddenly see the light and become Buddhas on the spot?"

"I'm not blaming you now. I just want you to understand, old man. There are two kinds of evil in this world."

"One kind stands in plain sight—bullying men and women, running rampant through the countryside. Like the Changle Gang before, arrogant and overbearing, visible to everyone.

When you encountered them, you intervened and beat them. They shrank back then, and it looked as if you had gotten rid of them."

"But there is far more evil hiding in the dark.

Your discipline merely pressed the evil in the open temporarily into the shadows.

They did not disappear, nor did they repent. They merely learned to disguise themselves and lie dormant, waiting for chivalrous men like you to lower their guard, or... die. Then they would emerge in even more vicious ways.

You removed the branches and leaves aboveground, but never cut through the roots below. When the spring wind blew, they would only grow back thicker than before."

"I advised you before: either leave it alone, or see it through to the end—uproot the weeds and destroy the roots. But you always said my heart was too dark, that I thought too badly of the world."

Wang Lang sighed, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness.

"When I lacked ability, I would naturally protect myself wisely, tuck in my head, and live quietly. But now..."

"Now that I have power, the Changle Gang came looking for trouble in broad daylight. They offended me and threatened my peace."

"So I won't merely drive them away."

"I won't be like you. I'll solve trouble in my own way."

As he spoke, a cold killing intent flashed through Wang Lang's eyes.

The Changle Gang's headquarters was in Qinglin City, thirty li away.

Gang Leader Zhao Hu and the now-dead Liu Biao had been the gang's only two Body Refinement Second Layer martial artists.

Now that Liu Biao was dead, only Zhao Hu remained.

With trace intent empowering him, one encounter meant an instant kill.

The remaining gang members were even less worth worrying about. Not one had reached Body Refinement First Layer. They were merely ordinary thugs, fat from eating well and cowardly before the strong.

"Thirty li... not far." Wang Lang calculated.

With his Body Refinement Second Layer speed, even without cultivating any profound movement technique, running at full force would take only about two hours.

He gave Old Wang's gravestone one last look, then turned away, his figure disappearing into the manor's shadows.

Just after midnight, Qinglin City's not especially tall wall had already appeared before him.

Wang Lang slowed his pace. His Body Refinement Second Layer physique, combined with Innate Qi,

made him feel that as long as he cultivated his mind to the point where he no longer needed sleep, he could become a walking perpetual-motion machine.

The city gates were tightly shut, and scattered soldiers patrolled atop the walls with torches in hand.

Those soldiers looked sturdy, but there was no sign of surging blood and qi from their bodies. Clearly, they were not Body Refinement martial artists.

Although this world had the two great systems of qi cultivation and body cultivation, true cultivators were not as common as cabbages.

Wang Lang had no intention of stirring up unnecessary trouble. His gaze merely swept over the ancient bronze mirror hanging above the city gate—the Demon Revealing Mirror.

This was standard equipment of the Limitless Dynasty. It was said to reveal the true forms of demonic beasts that had taken human shape.

He was human, so naturally he had nothing to fear.

He circled to a secluded corner of the city wall, sensed his surroundings, and confirmed that no one was nearby.

Then, with a thought, he separated a wisp of trace intent within his body and poured it into his legs.

At once, Wang Lang's legs seemed to fill with explosive power.

He bent his knees slightly, then leaped upward with all his might!

He easily cleared the city wall and landed in a patch of shadow within the city.

"Not bad." Wang Lang nodded in satisfaction.

The trace intent granted by the Intentional Blast Punch trait truly had endless wondrous uses.

Not only could it be used to break through strong defenses and defeat enemies, but when empowered into his legs, it could make his movement technique so light and nimble.

"It's just a little unfortunate. It's still somewhat different from the skill effects of the fighter I remember.

When other people used their skills, they even got a thick shield. Mine is pure offense without defense—a berserker route with high attack and paper-thin defense...

Still, being able to accumulate trace intent without limit, and having it never dissipate over time, is stronger than what I remember. Gains and losses, I suppose."

No longer dwelling on it, he restrained his aura and moved through Qinglin City's streets and alleys.

He was no stranger to the Changle Gang's headquarters. The rear courtyard of Happy Forest, the largest gambling house in the western part of the city, was their lair.