This Is All It Took to Die?

Peng Dongcheng's eyes were split wide with fury, disbelief written all over his face.

He had never imagined that a mere Appraiser Apprentice could block his sword.

Much less use a ruler to smash his blade in two.

But no matter how shocked he was, it was useless now.

Because in the next instant, after snapping his longsword, that ruler swept up with the momentum and smashed down toward his head.

The crucial thing was, he had no time to react at all.

The other party was simply too fast.

His thoughts had only just risen, and the terror in his eyes and on his face had only just surfaced, when the ruler was already hanging above his head.

Bang!

A horrifying force he had never felt before crashed down like a thunderclap.

It shattered his skull, pulverized his brain, and sent him collapsing to the ground without another movement.

"Did he just die?"

Chen Shaojun stopped moving, somewhat puzzled.

In truth, from the instant he recognized Peng Dongcheng, he had been in an incomparably tense state.

The scene from his memories was still vivid before his eyes.

With one sword sweeping through the air, Peng Dongcheng had slaughtered all seven members of Zhao Quan's family. Chen Shaojun knew very well that this man was absolutely a martial arts expert who killed without blinking.

Therefore, Chen Shaojun had not hesitated in the slightest.

At the first opportunity, he had taken out the only weapon he could use—the Baleful Severing Ruler—and smashed it down with all his strength.

He did not know whether the other man's longsword had been too brittle, or whether his own strength was simply too great.

Chen Shaojun only felt that the Baleful Severing Ruler in his hand was exceptionally handy.

With one clang, it snapped the other man's longsword.

Then, following through, he delivered another smash.

The heavy, dull sensation that traveled back through his hand made him uncomfortable.

The battle was over.

It had been too fast, and too unexpected.

This man's fighting strength was worlds apart from the martial arts expert Chen Shaojun had imagined.

"He must have been too weak.

The Zhao Quan family he killed were all ordinary people without the strength to truss a chicken, so of course it had been easy for him.

Against a true Martial Warrior, he probably would have been useless. That was why I was able to kill him so easily."

Chen Shaojun muttered, quickly convincing himself.

He would not believe that he was strong.

How many days had he even been practicing martial arts?

Even if his martial arts realm had risen quickly, he only had strength and no technique, only martial skill and no mastery. Naturally, he could not compare to true experts.

For this man to be beaten to death so easily by him, he definitely could not have been an expert.

"This assassin had clearly come for me. Since it was a fight to the death, it was naturally better that he died.

But what should I do next?

A man had died. I had to deal with the body somehow, right?"

Chen Shaojun muttered to himself, and soon found himself in a difficult position.

This man had died in the courtyard. It would definitely alert the authorities.

Although he had come looking for trouble himself, and it would at most count as excessive self-defense if Chen Shaojun told the truth, how was he supposed to explain it?

How could an Appraiser Apprentice possess the ability to kill an assassin like this?

Dump the body?

That was one option.

But he needed somewhere to dump it, didn't he?

Chen Shaojun's head began to ache.

"Of all the people you could have troubled, why did you have to come after me?"

He spoke through gritted teeth. The body definitely could not remain in the pawnshop.

After thinking it over, he grabbed the corpse and dragged it to a corner of the courtyard.

Then he tossed it over the wall.

Next came the other man's longsword, broken into two pieces.

He remembered that on the other side of this wall was a narrow alley.

Dumping the body in the alley would not completely remove suspicion from himself.

But it was still better than leaving it in the pawnshop courtyard, wasn't it?

So long as he refused to admit anything, no one would suspect an Appraiser Apprentice like him anyway.

As for dumping it farther away?

He did not want to die.

After night fell, Shengjing City was under curfew. Even martial arts experts did not dare wander about recklessly.

Besides, if you walked the night roads often enough, sooner or later you would meet a ghost.

Not to mention that this truly was a world with ghosts.

He also had to guard against soldiers patrolling the streets.

Running around while carrying a corpse was simply asking to be exposed sooner.

The pawnshop was exceptionally quiet in the early morning.

But with a scream ringing out, the surroundings instantly became lively.

Someone was dead.

Curious onlookers surged into the alley beside the pawnshop.

A group of servants and apprentices also gathered their courage and stepped out of the pawnshop to watch.

"This person looks somewhat familiar."

One servant spoke, then quickly shut his mouth.

But it was too late.

Two constables with sabers hanging from their waists had already approached. One of them was Constable Ye, who had appeared yesterday. Looking at the servant, he asked, "What is going on? You know this man?"

"N-No, I don't.

But a few days ago, I saw him buy something from our pawnshop."

The servant panicked and hurriedly explained.

"Aren't pawnshops for pawning goods? This man specifically came to a pawnshop to buy something?"

Chief Constable Xing, who was older and had been preparing to examine the corpse, could not help raising his head to ask.

"He said it was his mother-in-law's birthday, and he could not find anything suitable elsewhere.

Then he picked out a Jade Ruyi from our pawnshop."

The servant explained, regretting more and more that he had opened his mouth.

"Go ask around in the pawnshop."

Chief Constable Xing gave a slight gesture at those words.

However, most of the pawnshop staff were already outside watching, so he soon turned back.

When he questioned Chen Shaojun, Chen merely shook his head and said, "I don't know. I'm only an Appraiser Apprentice, and I usually see very few people.

I only discovered that someone had died nearby after hearing people shouting this morning.

As for whether there was any commotion last night, you know how it is, sir. We Appraiser Apprentices expend our minds appraising items, so we sleep like the dead at night. How could we hear anything?"

Naturally, Chen Shaojun could not admit to anything, and he pushed the matter away completely.

He looked young, and the constables also knew that Appraiser Apprentices like him lived pitiful lives. A moment's carelessness could allow Killing Intent to enter their bodies, leaving them terminally ill and dead, so they only asked a few simple questions before letting him go.

"My lord, who was this man? Why did he die here?"

Seeing this, Chen Shaojun instead asked an extra question.

"Aren't we investigating that? Don't ask what you shouldn't ask."

Constable Ye reprimanded him, then turned to question the others.

"Judging from the hardness of his skin, flesh, and bones, this man should have been a Martial Warrior at the Seventh Stage of Body Tempering, skilled with a longsword and not weak in strength.

Combined with the testimonies of those nearby, if I am not mistaken, he was very likely the culprit who slaughtered Shen Lang's family yesterday."

Chief Constable Xing had also heard Constable Ye's question. Combining the many pieces of information, he quickly made his judgment.

"That is more or less what I guessed as well.

But who killed him?

Someone capable of killing a Martial Warrior at the Seventh Stage of Body Tempering in one move was absolutely no simple person."

While questioning the witnesses, Constable Ye had actually reached the same conclusion. What made him even more curious, however, was the identity and strength of the person who had struck.

"It should have been two moves.

One move broke this man's longsword, and only the second struck his head.

Take a look at this sword. It was forged from Hundred-Forged Steel, its blade a deep blue, clearly quenched with spirit water, with extraordinary resilience.

To break this sword in one move, one would need at least an expert of the Qi Sea Realm or above, using True Qi to strike with a vibration.

In other words, the person who acted was definitely a great expert at the Qi Sea Realm or higher."

As he spoke, Chief Constable Xing's face was solemn.

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