"That one tael of silver! Your prices are too high here. How could that little bit of money be enough to feed me? I'd better go buy some flatbread outside to fill my stomach."
Wang Hao spoke as though it were only natural. Although it was only an excuse, it left her nothing to fault.
"..."
A Lan, however, was utterly speechless. She remembered that before Master Zhao left last night, he had specifically instructed her not to serve this fellow food and wine, but simply to get him some cheap flatbread.
She hadn't expected this fellow to be thinking along the same lines as Master Zhao, though she still couldn't bring herself to repeat Master Zhao's exact words.
"Young Master Wang, you're the first man to take money from me!"
With a sigh, A Lan motioned for the young maid beside her to take out a tael of silver and hand it to Wang Hao, her expression strange and complicated.
"You can leave now!"
Wang Hao tossed the silver in his hand and prepared to send his guests away. After all, he needed to get dressed next, and it wouldn't do to have outsiders present.
"I'd better stay here. If the clothes don't fit, I can alter them for you, Young Master!"
A Lan showed no intention of leaving. Her beautiful eyes held a heated look as she studied Wang Hao's extraordinarily sturdy body, the blush on her face deepening.
Men with such fine bodies were hard to find, and she could tell this fellow was still a virgin. If she took his first blood today, she'd be the one coming out ahead!
"Sorry, I don't like women without breasts!"
How could Wang Hao fail to see what A Lan was really getting at? He refused without a second thought, throwing her a look of contempt for good measure.
What a joke. He was already tangled up in troubles; how could he have the mind for this nonsense?
More importantly, he understood all too well how important virginity was to cultivation. Leaving aside the Smiling Proud Wanderer World, the Nine Li Tribe in the Primordial Main World had a clear rule: no one was allowed to marry and lose their virginity before reaching the Earth Realm.
This was to preserve their virginity and speed up cultivation. Some cultivators even remained unmarried for life because of it, which showed just how important virginity was.
He had no desire to break this thing that could speed up his cultivation.
Most importantly, although the girl before him was attractive and had above-average looks, You Lian and Dongfang Bai had spoiled his tastes. He really couldn't work up much interest in her.
A Lan's eyes had been heated and her pretty face flushed, but when she heard those words again, her expression instantly froze. Then her almond-shaped eyes widened as she glared at Wang Hao, her breathing quickening.
For a woman, her breasts were a taboo subject, just like telling a man he was small and couldn't perform. Those words cut straight to the heart.
And last night he had only said her breasts were small. Today he had gone straight to calling her a woman without breasts!
How could she not be furious when this fellow had said such heart-piercing things again and again?
What frustrated her even more was that she couldn't even argue back. Compared with his palm-leaf-fan-sized hands, what she had really did fall far short.
"You stinking man, go die!"
Unable to contain her anger, A Lan grabbed the teapot from the table beside her and hurled it at him. Then she shot Wang Hao a vicious glare after he dodged it, and finally left in a huff with the young maid.
She truly didn't want to see this hateful fellow ever again!
If I'd had this body before I transmigrated, those lonely, neglected wives and young girls would surely have offered themselves to me, and I could have become a glorious great stallion. Sigh! What a pity!
Looking back at the House of Red Delights' signboard, Wang Hao shook his head with considerable regret.
He sighed, got his bearings, and turned into a secluded alley nearby, striding due east.
His body was simply too conspicuous. To avoid revealing his movements, it was best to keep as low a profile as possible.
Wang Hao had visited Chaoyang City several times and was fairly familiar with it. Before long, he arrived outside the back wall of a martial arts hall.
As soon as he reached the wall, he heard blades cutting through the air and waves of cheering from within.
The place was called the Qingfeng Martial Arts Hall. Its master was a swordsman who counted as a second-rate expert in the martial world.
He knew this because his predecessor had visited the Qingfeng Martial Arts Hall before. In fact, the incomplete Iron Cloth Shirt hardening technique his predecessor cultivated had been purchased here.
From his predecessor's memories, he knew that the master of the Qingfeng Martial Arts Hall demonstrated a sword technique ten times for his disciples every morning.
The sound of a blade cutting through the air had come from the master demonstrating the technique, while the cheers naturally came from the hall's disciples.
Not daring to waste time, Wang Hao hurriedly climbed the wall in secret and peeked over it, watching the sword technique Master Qingfeng was demonstrating inside.
That was right-he had come to steal the technique!
He urgently needed to cultivate a sword technique: first, to increase his strength, and second, to show his value to Leader Zhao and even the Blood Robe Tower as soon as possible, lest those fellows really kill him without a word.
"Huh? Something seems different?"
Wang Hao had been ready to activate the Dao Comprehension Function to speed up his theft of the technique, but before he could do so, he noticed something unusual.
He found that he had an extraordinary ability to comprehend the sword technique Master Qingfeng was using, as if he could quickly memorize and learn it.
Could it be because of my Sword Intent?
Wang Hao quickly thought of the Sword Intent he had condensed last night. He knew very well that he hadn't possessed this ability before. For instance, he had felt nothing unusual when Leader Zhao used that sword move with the violet soft sword last night.
But now something had changed, and compared with last night, the only thing he had gained was Sword Intent. Clearly, this was one of its effects.
"Uncle, you guessed right. Sword Intent does strengthen your talent in the Sword Dao to a certain extent, mainly in your comprehension. From now on, cultivating Sword Dao-related cultivation methods and martial techniques will be considerably easier for you.
"With your current ninety points of True Spirit Sword Intent, your ability to comprehend sword techniques can be raised to a level comparable to that of a sword cultivator at the Late Second Layer of the Mortal Realm."
Xiao Mengmeng spoke up at the right moment, clearing up Wang Hao's doubts.
"In other words, I can save some Fortune Points!"
Wang Hao's eyes lit up as he quickly understood the benefit of this ability.
He had been worried that he didn't have enough Fortune Points, and that the time he could keep the function active would be too short for him to steal the entire sword technique.
After all, performing a complete sword technique took at least three or four minutes, and that was for a relatively simple, low-level one. Profound sword techniques took at least ten-odd minutes to perform.
He had only seventy Fortune Points left, enough to keep it active for seventy seconds, nowhere near enough time to steal an entire sword technique.
The ability provided by True Spirit Sword Intent had solved his pressing problem. Although its effect was far weaker than the Dao Comprehension Function, at least it cost nothing.
Most importantly, it was only a low-level sword technique, not worth spending precious Fortune Points to learn.
In fact, even Master Qingfeng's strongest sword technique amounted to no more than a First Tier of the Mortal Realm technique. With comprehension comparable to that of a Mortal Realm Second Layer Sword Dao expert, Wang Hao could learn it quickly enough.
Realizing this, Wang Hao hurriedly focused all his attention on the sword technique Master Qingfeng was performing, intent on forcing himself to memorize it before slowly studying and cultivating it afterward.
In the martial arts hall's backyard training ground, Master Qingfeng, Li Qingfeng, performed the complete set of basic sword techniques a full ten times before stopping. He accepted a towel from a female disciple and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
His gaze swept over the many disciples around him, and he said gravely, "You must practice this Ten Stances of Bloody Battle sword technique diligently. Although it is only an introductory sword technique of the Mount Song Sword Sect, if you can cultivate it to the transformation realm as I have, I will be able to recommend you to the Mount Song Sect one day. Then you will truly rise to glory!"
"Yes, Hall Master! We will certainly train diligently!"
The disciples shouted their agreement one after another, their eyes burning with excitement.
That was the Mount Song Sword Sect, one of the Five Mountains Sword Sect!
Seeing the eagerness in his disciples, Li Qingfeng gave a slight, satisfied nod.
He himself was an outer disciple of the Mount Song Sword Sect. Unfortunately, his aptitude was limited, and after barely breaking through to the second-rate level, he could advance no further. So, at the sect's arrangement, he established the Qingfeng Martial Arts Hall in Chaoyang City.
The first purpose was to handle the Mount Song Sword Sect's business in Chaoyang City, and the second was to select qualified disciples for the Mount Song Sect.
"Ridiculous. With skills like those, you have the nerve to claim you've cultivated the Ten Stances of Bloody Battle to the transformation realm!"
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out across the vast training ground, instantly silencing everyone present. Li Qingfeng's face abruptly darkened, and he shouted sternly, "What rat dares run wild on my turf? Come out and die!"
But as soon as the words left his mouth, Li Qingfeng felt a terrifying murderous intent lock onto him, as though he would be killed on the spot the very next instant.
An old man had appeared before him at some point. More frightening still, the longsword in his hand had somehow ended up in the other man's grasp, and he hadn't noticed a thing.
Leaving aside that ghostlike movement technique, the skill it took to snatch his sword alone proved this was an expert-one far, far above him.
"Boy, if not for Fu Wuxiu's sake, you would be a dead man already!"
The old man stared coldly at Li Qingfeng, who felt immense pressure. The back of his shirt was already soaked with sweat.
"Senior, I have offended you. Please forgive me!"
Li Qingfeng was horrified. The Fu Wuxiu this old man spoke of was the previous leader of the Mount Song Sword Sect, who had died ten years ago.
Judging by the old man's tone, he had clearly known the sect's former leader. A figure of such stature was not someone Li Qingfeng could afford to offend.
"Hmph! Watch carefully. This is the Ten Stances of Bloody Battle at the transformation realm!"
With a cold snort, the old man paid Li Qingfeng no further attention and began performing a sword technique. It was the very Ten Stances of Bloody Battle Li Qingfeng had demonstrated earlier, but far subtler than his version, and... far more brutal!
That was right-brutal!
Although Li Qingfeng's Ten Stances of Bloody Battle had seemed vicious and formidable, it was nowhere near as terrifying as the old man's. Everyone present felt as though they had been plunged into a battlefield where two armies clashed, and their faces went pale with horror.
Just before the old man began performing the Ten Stances of Bloody Battle, Xiao Mengmeng's urgent voice rang out in Wang Hao's mind.
"Uncle, that old man is Dugu Qiubai! He's using this to teach you a sword technique. Hurry and activate the Dao Comprehension Function."
"What?"
Wang Hao was shocked, but he had no time to think it over. He hurriedly activated the Dao Comprehension Function, his eyes fixed on Dugu Qiubai in the training ground.
Whatever the reason the man was teaching him a sword technique this way, this was a great fortuitous opportunity he could not afford to miss.
That was right, the old man was Dugu Qiubai. He had taken an interest in Wang Hao earlier and considered the boy's character not bad.
Now, seeing him lying outside the martial arts hall to steal someone else's sword technique-and a third-rate one at that-he could no longer bear to watch. Thus, he appeared and used the pretext of instructing Li Qingfeng to demonstrate a sword technique for Wang Hao.
This Ten Stances of Bloody Battle was different from the one Li Qingfeng had performed earlier, and even differed greatly from the Mount Song Sword Sect's version. Using it as a foundation, Dugu Qiubai had specially devised it with his grandmaster-level attainment in the Sword Dao and Wang Hao's physical condition in mind.
Although this Ten Stances of Bloody Battle was still a basic First Tier of the Mortal Realm sword technique, it was the most perfect basic sword technique, and it even came with a matching footwork technique.
In terms of value, it was no worse than the Nine Swords of Dugu. That was why Xiao Mengmeng had told Wang Hao to spend Fortune Points to activate the Dao Comprehension Function, so he could learn the entire sword technique without missing a thing.
It was extremely important for Wang Hao to forge a perfect foundation in the Sword Dao. Even if he spent all seventy Fortune Points, it would be worth it!