Assassinating an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master

"Clan Elder, here it is!"

Standing about a meter away from Xu Zhiji, Xia Daoming held out the bundle with both hands.

Xu Zhiji impatiently reached out and snatched the bundle.

At that very moment, a surge of blood and force erupted from Xia Daoming like an exploding volcano.

The hands that had just been holding the bundle struck out like lightning in an instant.

One hand formed Serpent Head Fist, driving straight at Xu Zhiji's heart, while a Snake Tongue Blade jabbed directly at his throat.

Even though Xu Zhiji was an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master, with an exceptionally keen sense for danger,

with his attention almost entirely captured by the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma and the distance between them so short, he was still caught completely off guard.

In his haste, Xu Zhiji threw away the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma. His uninjured right hand barely blocked Xia Daoming's Snake Tongue Blade aimed at his throat, but his injured left arm reacted a moment too slowly and failed to stop Xia Daoming's Serpent Head Fist.

Still, Xu Zhiji was an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master after all. His reaction was swift, and his upper body instinctively tilted and leaned back slightly, avoiding the vital point at his heart.

Bang!

Though Xu Zhiji had avoided the vital point, his chest still took the punch solidly.

Terrifying Hidden Strength, like a mountain flood bursting forth, surged into his body.

Xu Zhiji was sent flying backward, his chest caving in. Blood burst uncontrollably from his mouth, scattering in crimson droplets beneath the sunlight.

As Xu Zhiji flew backward, Xia Daoming followed like a shadow.

His hands attacked in rapid succession—palm blades one moment, Dragon Claws the next, then serpent fists.

Xu Zhiji was formidable indeed. Despite his grave injuries, he retreated while repeatedly swinging his hands, somehow blocking Xia Daoming's storm-like onslaught.

One retreated while the other advanced; one defended with all his might, while the other attacked with everything he had.

In the blink of an eye, no one knew how many blows they had exchanged.

The fierce battle whipped up gusts that sent sand, dust, and fallen leaves swirling across the ground.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Fist met flesh, and Hidden Strength penetrated their bodies, crashing against itself within.

Blood kept spilling from Xu Zhiji's mouth. The longer he fought, the further his heart sank, his eyes filled with horror.

When his moment of carelessness had allowed Xia Daoming to grievously wound him, Xu Zhiji had not yet despaired.

He was an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master. A starving camel was still bigger than a horse. Even if he had no chance of turning the tables, there was still hope of escaping alive.

But in that brief span of fiercely intense exchanges, Xu Zhiji discovered in terror that Xia Daoming was not only cunning, sinister, and profoundly calculating—his force was frighteningly powerful.

Though Xia Daoming was clearly only at the Sixth-Rank Great Martial Master Realm, the force he unleashed could actually rival that of the Eighth-Rank Realm.

Even had he not been injured, he would have needed to rely on his Eighth-Rank Realm and rich combat experience to end the fight quickly for even a few chances at victory.

Otherwise, at his advanced age, if the battle dragged on, he would inevitably be the one defeated!

But now, he had taken a heavy blow to the chest at close range. His breastbone was broken, his heart and lungs injured, and every breath brought waves of agony through his chest, as though the next breath might fail to come.

If he could not escape quickly, continuing this fight meant certain death.

But Xia Daoming's attacks were a raging tempest. There was simply no chance for him to turn and flee.

Turning to run would only make him die faster!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sounds of fists and kicks colliding rang out almost without pause.

From afar, only two figures could be seen weaving rapidly through the flying sand and leaves.

Bang!

Suddenly, one figure was sent flying and crashed heavily onto the ground.

It was Xu Zhiji.

He panted heavily and tried to rise, only to collapse back onto the ground on his backside.

Both his arms trembled uncontrollably.

"Damn it, old bastard! I told you to keep acting so arrogant! You used my master and me as cannon fodder! Come on, get up and fight me again!" Seeing that Xu Zhiji had fallen and could not get up, Xia Daoming naturally gave him no chance to catch his breath. He rushed over and began hammering both sides of Xu Zhiji's head.

After only a few blows, Xu Zhiji—who had lorded it over them and barked orders all the way—had his head beaten into a pig's head by Xia Daoming, his old teeth scattering all over the ground.

Bang!

At last, Xu Zhiji's body toppled sideways, and his head slammed heavily against a rock.

Blood stained the rock red.

"Never did I imagine it, never did I imagine it! I, who was wise and brilliant all my life, would actually fall into the hands of a young brat like you!" Xu Zhiji forced his swollen, bloodshot eyes open and stared fixedly at Xia Daoming, his face full of unwillingness.

"That's why, old bastard, you can't be too arrogant in life. Spare others when you can! Your Xu family is too arrogant, too brutal. You're like this, and that Xu Shixiong is the same. One day, I'll slaughter him too!" Xia Daoming said with a cold sneer.

With that, he stepped forward and jabbed the tip of his foot into Xu Zhiji's heart.

Xu Zhiji's body convulsed violently. His eyes bulged, rolled back, and he died instantly.

"Great-Uncle!"

Not far away, Xu Shisen was being forced back step by step by Liang Jingtang, his robes stained with blood. Catching sight of Xu Zhiji's miserable death from the corner of his eye, he was so terrified that his soul nearly flew out of his body.

Xu Shisen might have been young, but he had only just entered the Sixth-Rank Realm. He had only opened the first few acupoint barriers of his sixth meridian, so his strength had already been inferior to Liang Jingtang's.

Just now, he too had been captivated by the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma.

The moment Xia Daoming suddenly attacked, Liang Jingtang had also launched a sudden attack against him.

Xu Shisen hastily defended himself and was injured in an instant.

However, Liang Jingtang had been somewhat farther away from him, and Xu Shisen had reacted relatively promptly, so his injury was not severe.

Even so, under Liang Jingtang's full-force assault, Xu Shisen could only defend and had no strength to strike back.

"Master, let me handle him!"

Just as Xu Shisen was frightened nearly out of his wits, Xia Daoming had already leaped forward and unleashed a Flood Dragon Sweeps Its Tail. His right leg lashed out like an iron whip, smashing viciously into Xu Shisen's ribs.

Crack!

Bang!

The sound of ribs breaking was followed by the crash of a heavy body hitting the ground.

Pfft!

Xu Shisen struggled to climb up from the ground, but a mouthful of blood sprayed wildly from him, and his whole body collapsed limply back onto the ground.

"Young Master Xu, weren't you so impressive? So arrogant? Come on, keep going!" Xia Daoming walked over and planted a foot on his head.

"Spare me! Spare me! I won't dare again. Everything I have is yours—no, no, after I return, I'll bring all the silver from my home to pay tribute to Lord Xia!" Xu Shisen babbled incoherently in utter terror.

"Spare you? You severed Senior Brother Gu's path in martial arts, humiliated my senior sister, and insulted my master and me all the way here. And now you still expect me to spare your life? Don't you think that's ridiculous?" Xia Daoming said mockingly.

"I'm still young! I don't want to die yet!" Xu Shisen cried.

"If you had shown a little backbone, I might have respected you as a man. But you and Shi Yingdeng are both such pathetic cowards. He begged me like this before he died too!" Xia Daoming said disdainfully.

"You killed Shi Yingdeng!" Xu Shisen's eyes went wide.

"Heh, surprised?" Xia Daoming gave a cold laugh, then suddenly lifted his foot and viciously drove his toe into Xu Shisen's temple.

Xu Shisen's head tilted to one side, and he breathed his last.

Beside them, Liang Jingtang stared at the corpses of Xu Shisen and Xu Zhiji, standing there as though carved from clay.

Before acting, he had already prepared himself for the worst.

Yet Xia Daoming's performance had surpassed even his expectations by a great margin.

He had actually beaten an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master to death with his bare hands!

Only when Liang Jingtang saw Xia Daoming begin skillfully searching the corpses did he suddenly snap back to his senses.

Once he recovered, two streams of old tears rolled uncontrollably down his face.

Taking a deep breath, Liang Jingtang strode forward and picked up the bag containing the Ice Rabbit's heart and the Ice-Cold Purple Ganoderma.

And, of course, that bundle as well.

Liang Jingtang had just picked up the bundle Xu Zhiji had thrown aside when he heard Xia Daoming muttering to himself nearby.

"Tch, he was an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master, yet he was this poor? Not even half a silver note!"

"This..." Liang Jingtang was speechless.

"Huh, it's this stuff again!" While Liang Jingtang was at a loss for words, Xia Daoming pulled the stopper from a jade bottle and took a sniff, surprise flickering across his face.

"What is it?" Liang Jingtang asked curiously.

"Master, do you recognize this?" Xia Daoming casually handed it to him.

"This... this is Longevity Jade Liquid!" Liang Jingtang's entire body shook, and excitement filled his eyes.

"What is Longevity Jade Liquid used for?" Xia Daoming asked, slightly startled.

"It increases vitality and slows the decline of one's blood and force! This bottle of Longevity Jade Liquid is worth at least seventy thousand taels of silver, and you can't even buy it in Li City," Liang Jingtang said.

"This one bottle is worth seventy thousand taels? What a sin, what a sin. Looks like I wronged Clan Elder Xu!" Xia Daoming said in shock.

"Er..." Liang Jingtang was rendered speechless again by the latter half of Xia Daoming's words.

"Since it can increase vitality and slow the decline of blood and force, it's just right for Master to keep and use," Xia Daoming said.

"How could I possibly accept that?" Liang Jingtang was greatly alarmed.

This was Longevity Jade Liquid worth at least seventy thousand taels of silver. Even as the master of the Hidden Dragon Martial Arts School, Liang Jingtang could not afford it even if he sold off everything he owned.

Besides, Longevity Jade Liquid was currently something with a price but no market in Li City!

Today's update is complete.