Another Expert

Throughout the entire following day, Zhuang Xun methodically controlled his two clones to cultivate, not bothering with anything else.

It wasn't until that evening in the dining hall, when he overheard several disciples chatting about the wanted poster for the Debt-Lending Bladesman.

He knew then that Shen Zhi had been captured. Thus, he controlled Bai Yujing to cultivate by the cliffside while secretly observing the movements of the Law Enforcement Hall.

At midnight, the moon shone brightly, and the stars were sparse.

A line of torchlight rushed out of the Law Enforcement Hall, quickly moving toward the exit of the academy.

The corners of Zhuang Xun's mouth curled up. He opened the Character Creation Panel and spent thirty-nine points to create the new Debt-Lending Bladesman.

He controlled the Debt-Lending Bladesman to change into a blue-and-silver armored scholar-martial robe and don an iron-cast bamboo hat. After posing in front of a bronze mirror for a moment, pretending he was Li Xingyun, he leaped off the cliff. Using a grappling hook, he landed lightly on a treetop and swiftly bounded toward the Zhong Manor.

Before long, he silently bypassed the Law Enforcement Hall's perimeter and arrived on a rooftop about a hundred meters away from the Zhong Manor.

By now, the battle between the Law Enforcement Hall and the Zhong family had already begun.

He could even hear the sounds of infighting and cursing from the Zhong family's side.

“Zhong Bieli, fuck your mother! Is this the ambush for the Debt-Lending Bladesman you told me about? Don't tell me this entire circle of people outside are all the Debt-Lending Bladesman!”

“Brother Wu, Brother Wu, let me explain! I was also fooled by that beast Shen Zhi! He betrayed Qushe Ridge and sided with the Wanxing Martial Academy. This must be a trap he set to harm us!”

“Shen Zhi, my ass! Isn't that guy long dead? Keep your lies to explain to the third leader!”

“No, he...”

“Stop arguing! Let's join forces and fight our way out first! Otherwise, we're all going to die here tonight!”

“Heh, you think you can leave after stepping onto the territory of our Wanxing Martial Academy? Ah—!” The dark-skinned, burly man, Li Zhong, stood commandingly at the entrance. Veins bulged on his forehead as he violently swung a hammer larger than a brass gong, sending over a dozen bandits and guards flying as they tried to rush out.

“Kill them all! Leave none alive!!” He slammed his great hammer heavily onto the stone tiles and roared with immense vigor.

“Ten taels of silver for every enemy killed!”

The pale, effeminate man, Lin Wudu, echoed coldly as he slipped into the enemy crowd like a phantom. Every twist of his thin sword drew a spray of blood.

“Kill!” The elite Law Enforcement disciples behind him charged into the Zhong Manor, blocking the members of the Zhong family who were trying to flee.

“It's the Black and White Fiends of the Wanxing Martial Academy. It's over, it's completely over...” A Zhong family consecrated expert hid in the back, trembling all over, unable to muster any will to resist.

Suddenly, his pupils dilated and his breathing grew rapid, as if he had seen something terrifying.

“That's... That's the Wanxing Martial Academy's true disciple, the Silent Blade—Yang Ling!!!”

Accompanied by his piercing scream.

Yang Ling shot into the backyard like a javelin, blocking the path of the Zhong Family Head, Zhong Bieli, and two bandit leaders who were trying to escape through the back door.

Without a word, he drew his blade and slashed at Zhong Bieli, who was about to speak.

With his strength alone, he took on the three strongest of the enemy forces and firmly held the upper hand.

“Holy crap, three Sixth Ranks.”

Standing on the roof, Zhuang Xun observed the blood qi within Zhong Bieli and the two bandit leaders through his Spiritual Sight, determining their cultivation realms.

He felt extremely fortunate that he had been cautious. Otherwise, he really would have been done in by Shen Zhi's scheme.

After testing the waters from the periphery for a moment, Zhuang Xun realized that none of the four seemed to notice him while his Heart Hibernation Technique was active. Feeling reassured, he drew closer to watch the fight.

“Who's there?”

Yang Ling inexplicably felt that someone was watching him. After repelling Zhong Bieli and the other two with a single slash, he immediately spun around to search.

However, he could not find a single trace of anyone.

His heart grew heavy. Suddenly, he thought of the true culprit behind this conflict—the Debt-Lending Bladesman.

This morning had been just as bizarre. In the brief time he spent practicing his blade techniques, a letter had mysteriously appeared on his desk.

Just who on earth was this person?

And what kind of motive was he hiding?

Yang Ling blocked Zhong Bieli and the other two from seizing the opportunity to escape, using his peripheral vision to continue searching for the source of that gaze.

“Stop looking, kid. I'm the king of hide-and-seek; there's no way you'll find me.” Zhuang Xun lay on his side behind the roof ridge, blending seamlessly into the night.

Resting his head on his hand, he idly picked at the roof tiles out of sheer boredom.

He had been a bit tense when Yang Ling first became alert. However, after the other man looked in his direction several times only to quickly sweep past, he completely relaxed.

Zhuang Xun sighed inwardly. Having mastered the Heart Hibernation Technique, facing those who could not use Spiritual Sight was truly a complete dimensional strike.

Yang Ling, constantly wary of the Debt-Lending Bladesman lurking in the shadows, gave up on trying to capture them alive.

Unleashing his full power, it took only a few exchanges for him to slay Zhong Bieli and the two bandit leaders one by one.

Seeing that the fight was over, Zhuang Xun slipped over to the front yard to watch the team battle.

Thus, only Yang Ling was left in the backyard, searching everywhere for the Debt-Lending Bladesman—and in the completely wrong direction at that...

The strength of the Zhong family's side was vastly inferior to that of the elite disciples from the Wanxing Martial Academy's Law Enforcement Hall.

By the time Zhuang Xun arrived, it was already a completely one-sided slaughter.

More than half of the Zhong family's forces were dead or injured, while only a handful on the academy's side had sustained minor wounds.

However, after paying a devastating price, about a dozen people from the Zhong family's side still managed to escape the Zhong Manor.

Yet before they could run very far, they were intercepted by the Law Enforcement Hall's pre-arranged forces waiting outside.

Zhuang Xun followed them to enjoy the show. But as he leaped onto the next roof, a figure standing on another rooftop suddenly appeared within the perception range of his Spiritual Sight.

“Another expert?” Zhuang Xun looked toward the figure.

The person was dressed in night-traveling attire and stood in a well-concealed spot. After observing for just a brief moment, they quickly departed.

“A Seventh Rank.” Zhuang Xun judged the person's realm as he watched their retreating figure.

Thinking that there shouldn't be any faction in the Wanxing Market that he wasn't aware of, he decided to follow them.

The shops along the way were all closed, and the houses on both sides had their lights extinguished, making the surroundings exceptionally quiet.

Zhuang Xun followed far behind the person until they reached a secluded alley entrance.

Seeing the other party slip into a tavern, he leaped onto the roof of the establishment to eavesdrop on the activity inside.

“What happened outside?”

“One of those Qushe Ridge bandits' strongholds was wiped out by the Wanxing Martial Academy.”

“These are truly turbulent times. We must reduce our movements from now on, focus mainly on intelligence gathering, and quietly await instructions from above. By the way, you weren't spotted, were you?”

“How is that possible? Do you still not trust my lightness technique?”

Which faction could this be?

He could only guess they weren't on the same side as Qushe Ridge, otherwise their reaction wouldn't have been so indifferent.

After some thought, Zhuang Xun decided to act as if nothing had happened.

He had just managed to resolve the trouble with the Zhong family; he had no desire to immediately invite the next headache.

Besides, his ultimate goal was to join all the factions in Mount Dazhou and indirectly take control of the entire region.

Perhaps if he wanted to join them in the future, he could start from right here.

“I'll come back and take a look when I have time later. That's enough for tonight. Controlling three clones simultaneously is truly exhausting. Yawn~ Time to go back and sleep.” Zhuang Xun committed the location to memory and leaped back toward the direction of the academy.