After treating Kong Yuan to dinner in the city, Su Xinghe returned home. Only late that night did he activate First Insight into Light and Darkness and slip out.
He had not originally been in such a hurry.
But thinking of the ranking battle early next month, there was not only that Yi Thirty-Eight, but another challenger as well.
He could not let Gong Hao lose face, and he needed this fight to secure his own footing.
Since he could not advance his martial cultivation for now, he could only rely on another breakthrough in the Head-Cleaving Technique. With a hundred thousand jin of strength, he should have no trouble at the Sixth-Rank True Force Realm.
As for the Grandmaster lurking in the shadows...
He could only avoid that sharp edge for now.
He had not kept the appointment in the west of the city, so they probably still did not know where he lived. Besides, First Insight into Light and Darkness had reached minor mastery. Ordinary Martial Warriors could not spot him at night.
Eighty li outside Qingzhou City.
Beneath the hazy moonlight, a pitch-black river flowed quietly.
An endless line of small, straw-canopied boats lay moored along the bank.
The Ghost Market had plenty of customers, speaking to one another in hushed voices.
Some wore masks of various kinds, while others concealed themselves with veils and bamboo hats. Still others were like him, their entire bodies covered in black cloaks.
Only a handful of the boldest had made no attempt to disguise themselves.
Su Xinghe mingled with them, pretending to browse the stalls while gathering information about the passersby. He was in no hurry to act. First, he wanted to assess the Ghost Market's overall strength.
Fortunately, after making a circuit, the strongest people he found were