Ink Shadow's Edge, Alleyway Killing Intent

Stepping out of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, the afternoon sun was a little blinding.

Chen Chen slung the newly purchased Ink Shadow Sword over his back, adjusted the bamboo hat on his head, and merged into the flow of people on the street.

His steps were neither hurried nor slow, making him look like an ordinary rogue cultivator who had just finished shopping for supplies and was preparing to leave the town.

But his Nine Nether Soul Refining Art, having reached the Minor Accomplishment stage, had already pushed his Spiritual Power to its limit.

Behind him, that malevolent divine sense, like a maggot clinging to bone, followed him persistently, neither too close nor too far.

"Second Level of Qi Condensation..."

Chen Chen clearly sensed the opponent's cultivation level.

Just like the shopkeeper at the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, they were both at the Second Level of Qi Condensation.

However, the aura emanating from this person was much colder and more condensed than that of the pampered shopkeeper.

Clearly, this was a ruthless individual who had lived a life on the edge of a blade.

"Is it because of the things I sold, or because of the Spirit Stones I took out?"

Chen Chen's thoughts raced.

Most likely, it was both.

A youngster at the Seventh Level of Body Tempering casually produced a Profound-tier martial skill and several hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones. To anyone, he would appear to be a walking, talking treasure trove.

The opponent was treating him like a lamb ready for slaughter.

A cold arc formed on the corner of Chen Chen's lips.

He didn't choose to shake off the pursuer immediately, nor did he head towards the city gates.

Instead, he deliberately chose to walk through secluded, deserted alleyways.

He was creating an opportunity for the opponent.

An opportunity... to make a move.

And also an opportunity... to send them to their death!

After passing through two long, narrow alleys, a ruined residential area appeared ahead.

The houses here were dilapidated, and weeds grew in abundance, clearly indicating that no one had lived here for a long time.

The air was filled with a scent of decay.

This was Luoyun Town's infamous "no man's land," a place where many illicit deals and killings occurred.

Chen Chen walked into a collapsed courtyard wall and stopped.

He turned around and waited quietly.

"Rustle... rustle..."

The faint sound of footsteps echoed from the alley entrance.

Three figures, arranged in a triangular formation, blocked all his escape routes.

Leading them was the gaunt, black-clothed man who had taken an interest in him at the Myriad Treasures Pavilion.

He wore a grotesque mask with green faces and bared fangs, revealing only a pair of eyes as cold and venomous as a viper's.

Behind him were two other black-clothed men, both with cultivation at the Qi Condensation First Layer.

"Kid, you've got some nerve."

The Ghost Masked Man at the front spoke, his voice hoarse, like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together.

"You knew we were following you, yet you dared to come to a place like this. Should I call you stupid, or should I say you're... too confident in your own strength?"

Chen Chen looked up, his gaze beneath the bamboo hat as calm as still water.

"Who are you people?"

"You don't need to know who we are," another masked man at the Qi Condensation First Layer sneered. "You just need to know that today, everything you possess will be ours!"

"If you're smart, hand over your Storage Bag and that new sword obediently, then cripple your own cultivation. We might consider leaving you with an intact corpse."

"Oh?" Chen Chen's voice betrayed no emotion. "Just the three of you?"

"Hahaha! Kid, you really won't shed a tear until you see the coffin!" The leading Ghost Masked Man acted as if he had heard the greatest joke. "Don't think you can hide your cultivation from us! Your little divine sense attacks might fool that cowardly shopkeeper at Myriad Treasures Pavilion, but you're too green to fool us, the 'Ghost Shadow Three Fiends'!"

"Let me guess, your cultivation is at most the Qi Condensation First Layer, and you're using some kind of secret technique to achieve Spiritual Power far exceeding your peers, right?"

"Unfortunately, in the face of absolute power, any flashy tricks are useless!"

As his voice fell, his aura erupted!

The pressure of the Second Level of Qi Condensation surged towards Chen Chen like a tide!

His two companions behind him simultaneously released their own auras. The three oppressive forces intertwined, enough to make any cultivator at the Qi Condensation First Layer lose their composure and will to fight.

They seemed to relish the feeling of crushing their opponent with sheer presence.

However, the scene they had envisioned, with Chen Chen trembling and begging for mercy, did not materialize.

Chen Chen remained standing still, as if the three oppressive forces were merely gentle breezes caressing his face.

"That's it?"

Chen Chen uttered the two words indifferently.

The aura on his body, which had been deliberately suppressed, finally stopped hiding.

BOOM!

An aura no weaker than the opponent's, and even more refined and domineering, erupted from within him and shot towards the sky!

Peak of the First Layer of Qi Condensation!

"Hm?"

The Ghost Masked Man at the head of the group's pupils contracted slightly.

He hadn't expected this kid's cultivation to actually reach the peak of the First Layer of Qi Condensation, which was even more solid than he had anticipated.

However, that was all.

There was still an insurmountable chasm between the peak of the First Layer and the Second Layer.

"Interesting. It seems I'll have another nice collectible today."

He licked his lips, his eyes filled with undisguised greed and killing intent.

"Big brother, stop wasting words with him! Let's finish this quickly, lest complications arise!"

"Let's go together! Kill him!"

His two companions behind him could no longer hold back. They let out a low growl in unison and lunged at Chen Chen from the left and right!

In their hands, they each held a poisoned dagger, which glinted with a faint green light under the sun. The angles were tricky, aiming directly for Chen Chen's ribs and the back of his heart.

Their coordination was seamless, clearly indicating they were accustomed to such acts of murder and robbery.

However, the moment they moved, Chen Chen also moved!

Seven Shadows Step!

The movement technique, at the Perfected realm, was unleashed without reservation for the first time in actual combat!

His figure suddenly became a blur.

With one step, he became seven!

Seven identical figures appeared in the arena simultaneously, each carrying a sharp killing intent, making it impossible to distinguish the real from the fake!

"What?!"

The expressions of the two cultivators at the First Layer of Qi Condensation who charged forward changed drastically!

Their attacks instantly lost their target!

They could only rely on their senses, stabbing wildly at two of the afterimages.

"Pfft!"

The daggers pierced through the afterimages without any obstruction.

And those afterimages slowly dissipated like smoke.

They had missed!

The two were greatly alarmed and, without thinking, tried to retreat.

But it was too late.

A cold voice, devoid of any emotion, seemed to sound from behind them, right by their ears.

"Too slow."

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

Two sprays of blood bloomed simultaneously!

A black sword, as dark as ink, like the scythe of the Grim Reaper, slashed across both of their necks at an unbelievable angle!

The two masked heads flew into the sky!

Blood stained the dilapidated courtyard walls.

[Ding! Killed a cultivator at the First Layer of Qi Condensation, gained +120 Cultivation Points!]

[Ding! Killed a cultivator at the First Layer of Qi Condensation, gained +120 Cultivation Points!]

Instant kill!

Two cultivators of the same realm, at the First Layer of Qi Condensation, were instantly killed in a single exchange!

All of this happened in the blink of an eye!

The Second Layer of Qi Condensation Ghost Masked Man at the head hadn't even had time to react before his two brothers had become two headless corpses!

The smile on his face froze instantly!

His pupils constricted to the extreme!

His face showed an expression of absolute horror for the first time!

"What... what kind of movement technique is this?!"

He cried out in shock.

However, the answer was an ice-cold sword edge!

After killing the two, Chen Chen's figure didn't pause at all. His seven figures merged into one, and the Ink Shadow Sword in his hand, infused with the domineering crimson True Qi from the Asura God Transformation Art, transformed into a black lightning bolt, piercing straight for his brow!

This sword strike was fast, accurate, and ruthless!

It contained all of Chen Chen's insights and killing intent since entering the Qi Condensation Realm!

"Seeking death!"

The Ghost Masked Man finally reacted to his shock.

He roared, his Second Level of Qi Condensation True Qi erupting, and the long saber in his hand whipped up a gale, blocking in front of him!

"Clang--!"

Sword and saber collided with a deafening crash!

A terrifying wave of energy, centered on the two, spread wildly in all directions!

The surrounding ruins and broken walls collapsed under the impact of this energy wave!

"Pfft!"

Chen Chen felt a tremendous force push him back several meters before he could barely stabilize himself, his chest churning with Blood Essence.

The Second Level of Qi Condensation was indeed much stronger than the first.

The Ghost Masked Man opposite him was also not faring well!

Although he blocked the sword strike, his tiger's mouth was left numb, and his entire arm ached.

What shocked him even more was that a cold, domineering, and corrosive crimson True Qi had actually followed the blade and invaded his body, frantically damaging his meridians!

"What kind of demonic True Qi is this?!"

He looked at Chen Chen in terror, his eyes no longer holding the greed and disdain from before, but replaced by deep apprehension and... a hint of fear.

This kid in front of him was definitely not an ordinary Qi Condensation First Layer!

He was a monster!

"Escape!"

A thought grew wildly in his mind.

Without thinking, he turned to flee.

However, would Chen Chen give him that chance?

"Trying to run? Too late!"

Chen Chen sneered, raising the Ink Shadow Sword in his hand again.

This time, the barely perceptible crimson glow on the sword seemed to have become even more concentrated.

As if it were craving more... blood.