“It was my oversight; I didn’t expect someone to actually discover this place.
“But no matter. I’ll just settle you right here,” Li Yong growled, his brow furrowed in anger.
“A mere Confucian Cultivator thinks he’s worthy of a sword? Kill him! Eradicate this scourge for our Master!”
At the command, seven or eight swordsmen drew their blades and charged straight for Chen Ning.
They were originally Martial Artists who practiced swordplay, far beyond the reach of ordinary people. Now, transformed into Painted Skin Slaves, their physical capabilities had multiplied, and their strength had skyrocketed along with it.
“Just you lot?”
However, the sword techniques they took such pride in appeared childish and full of holes in Chen Ning’s eyes.
Amidst the swirling shadows of blades, Chen Ning’s figure flashed past in an instant.
Crack!
Before the men could even see what happened, the blades in their hands shattered. Their hollowed-out skins, sliced clean through at the waist, collapsed stiffly to the ground.
“Heh, I didn’t expect you to actually have some skill.
“But you’ll make a perfect stepping stone for me to demonstrate my strength as a Shadow Assassin to the Young Master.”
At that moment, a voice suddenly echoed from the shadows.
“Shadow Assassin?”
During this time, Chen Ning had also learned some knowledge regarding the practitioners of this world.
Cultivation systems could be broadly categorized into the Five Paths: Martial Artists, Confucian Cultivators, Buddhists, Taoists, and Demonic Cultivators.
Among them, Sword Cultivators were a branch of the Martial Path, and Shadow Assassins were, in turn, a sub-branch of Sword Cultivators.
Shadow Assassins specialized in assassination techniques, excelling at concealing their presence and killing silently.
This person was hidden extremely well; even Chen Ning couldn’t immediately pinpoint their location.
“How is it? Have you realized you can’t even sense my presence?
“But that’s only natural, because the moment I reveal myself will be the moment of your death!
“I’ll give you one last chance. Obediently submit to the Young Manor Lord and become the Master’s Painted Skin Slave.
“If you do, I might consider sparing your life,” the Shadow Assassin taunted from the darkness.
“Who gave you the courage? Did your mother never teach you not to overestimate yourself?” Chen Ning sneered.
The Shadow Assassin gnashed his teeth in fury.
“Since you won’t cherish the chance I’ve given you, then wait for death.
“Today, I’ll show you the true meaning of a gap in strength!”
He had been observing from the shadows for a long time.
While the power of the black sword in Chen Ning’s hand was terrifying, in terms of speed, the boy was still far inferior to him.
With his movement techniques, the boy probably wouldn’t even be able to touch an inch of him!
In the next instant, the Shadow Assassin suddenly lunged from the darkness, his body almost merging with the night.
“So fast! The power the Master bestowed upon us is truly terrifying. I didn’t expect this kid to become so strong!” even Li Yong exclaimed in admiration.
This praise caused the Shadow Assassin’s confidence to swell to its peak. He unhesitatingly unleashed the killing move he had practiced for years.
“Phantom Slaughter!”
His figure darted rapidly between the rooftops and the ground, making his movements nearly impossible to track.
Suddenly, he appeared behind Chen Ning without warning, his dagger gleaming with a cold, murderous light under the moon.
“Die!”
At a speed nearly indistinguishable to the naked eye, the dagger slashed at Chen Ning’s neck over a dozen times in succession.
Crack!
However, the Shadow Assassin suddenly froze.
The sound that reached his ears wasn’t the sound of flesh being pierced. On the contrary, it was the sound of a dagger shattering.
After over a dozen strikes, the thing that broke… was his own dagger!
“Is that it? You didn’t even cut off a single hair.”
By the time he snapped back to his senses, his arm was already gripped by Chen Ning.
“You—you’re clearly cheating!”
The Shadow Assassin’s eyes widened in terror as he stared at the faint golden light shimmering on Chen Ning’s skin.
What kind of bizarre technique was this? His dagger had shattered, yet it couldn't even pierce the skin!
How could he fight if he couldn't even break the man's defense!
“What do you mean cheating? This is called ‘absolute strength crushes all techniques.’”
Chen Ning gave a cold smile and swung his sword.
The Shadow Assassin’s right arm was severed instantly.
He only managed to barely save his life by sacrificing that arm to escape.
After his narrow escape, he retreated repeatedly, the look in his eyes completely transformed.
Panic, awe, and even an unspeakable dread were buried deep within his gaze.
“Young Manor Lord, this man is far more terrifying than he appears on the surface! Be extremely careful!”
“Hmph, it’s just that you’re a useless waste. Don’t count us among your lot.”
“That’s right. With us protecting the Young Manor Lord, he won’t even be able to scratch him.”
Amidst the mocking jeers, the eight highest-ranking members of the Sword Manor took their positions in eight directions, unfolding a sword array.
The Li Family Sword Manor’s long-standing reputation was naturally not for nothing.
Furthermore, the gift from the Painted Skin Ghost had significantly bolstered their strength.
Though they felt a slight void from the lack of flesh and blood, they had long since become intoxicated by this enchanting power.
As the eight swords connected, a phantom of a giant sword suddenly manifested at the center of the array.
The sword phantom stood two to three zhang tall, its surface flowing with light and surging with Sword Qi.
However, that Sword Qi was no longer a pure energy; it was a frigid Ghost Qi condensed from pitch-black and blood-red mists.
“To think you’d make us use this much effort. You shall pay for it with your flesh and blood.”
The eight men greedily licked their lips.
They didn't realize that while their strength had exploded after becoming Painted Skin Slaves, their sanity was being eroded with every passing day.
By now, they were almost unable to resist the craving for living flesh and blood.
“Die!”
The giant sword swept across, causing the very air to tremble.
“Sorry. I may be a Confucian Cultivator, but when it comes to swords, I’ve never feared anyone.
“Besides, your sword looks big, but it’s full of openings.”
With his Poem and Wine Sword Art reaching Consummate Mastery, Chen Ning’s understanding of the Way of the Sword had long since surpassed conventional limits.
In his eyes, the Sword Qi formed by these eight signatures was riddled with flaws at every connection point.
The larger it was, the more flashy and impractical it became.
“Break!”
Chen Ning gave a sharp shout, and his sword rose like a startling swan.
A pure and sharp Sword Qi pierced straight through the giant sword, tearing through the air.
Puchi.
In the next instant, Li Yong, who was surrounded by the crowd in the center, had his neck severed by a single sword strike.
Thud, thud, thud.
Li Yong’s head rolled on the ground like a ball.
Until the moment he died, he couldn't understand—he was clearly standing in the safest position directly behind the giant sword, so how did he end up being the first to die?
Is this sword array of yours a damn decoration!
“Young Manor Lord!”
The people of the Sword Manor were completely stunned.
Li Yong had inherited his father’s talent and was a sword genius; he was supposed to be the strongest combat power in the entire Sword Manor.
In the end, he had been directly led to his death by them.
“Young Manor Lord, I have failed you!”
“We have failed the old Manor Lord’s trust! Young Manor Lord, you haven’t even eaten braised human heart yet, how could you leave like this!”
Cries and wails suddenly broke out.
“Who was it that just said they would protect him to the death?”
Chen Ning’s voice instantly shattered the mourning.
The people of the Sword Manor stopped their wailing and looked left and right.
“It wasn’t me! He’s the one who said it!”
“Bullshit! You were clearly the one shouting the loudest just now!”
“You bastard, are you intentionally looking for trouble?”
“So what if I am? I already hated your guts before I became a Painted Skin Slave!”
The crowd began to shift blame onto each other, terrified that they would become Chen Ning’s next target.
Chen Ning’s lips curled up slightly at this sight.
“I was just asking for fun. Why the sudden infighting?
“What are you thinking?
“Regardless of who said it, not a single one of you present today should even think about escaping.”
“What?”
The Sword Manor crowd was instantly aghast.
While they were still dazed, Chen Ning had already stepped forward.
【Slew ten Painted Skin Slaves, obtained Noble Qi * 18】
【Slew thirteen Painted Skin Slaves, obtained Noble Qi * 24】
In the blink of an eye, the top combatants of the Sword Manor were all decapitated. The rest were nothing to fear.
Xiao Jiu also emerged from Chen Ning’s sleeve, helping him intercept the Painted Skin Slaves that tried to flee.
Though her body was still small, she had swallowed a lot of flames recently and could finally spit them out to her heart’s content today.
Several Painted Skin Slaves attempting to scale the walls were burned to ashes by Xiao Jiu. By the end of it, she had actually taken down seven Painted Skin Slaves on her own.
【Slew forty-three Painted Skin Slaves, obtained Noble Qi * 80】
…
【Slew seventy-two Painted Skin Slaves, obtained Noble Qi * 132】
Chen Ning slaughtered to his heart’s content.
When he finished off the last Painted Skin Slave in the Sword Manor, the total count reached seventy-two.
Some of these Painted Skin Slaves were from the Sword Manor, while others were those who had been lurking in various villages.
By luring them all into one place, he had managed to eliminate all the hidden threats in the surrounding settlements in one go.
Combined with his recent rewards for sword practice and reading, Chen Ning had unknowingly accumulated over two hundred points of Noble Qi again.
【Chen Ning】
【Noble Qi: 213】
【Purple Qi Protection (Great Perfection)】
【Substitute Puppet Technique (50/200)】
【Poem and Wine Sword Art (400/400) (Great Perfection)】
【Merit Protection (200/200) (Great Perfection)】
Using this Noble Qi, Chen Ning directly infused Merit Protection and the Poem and Wine Sword Art to Great Perfection.
While there was no immediate chance to test the power of the Poem and Wine Sword Art, the change in Merit Protection after reaching Great Perfection was extremely obvious.
The moment it reached Great Perfection, the golden light covering Chen Ning’s body intensified significantly.
It was like an invisible giant bell, enveloping his entire body airtight.
He stood firm and majestic, as immovable as a mountain.
If the same situation happened now, that little Shadow Assassin’s dagger would have probably shattered into several pieces upon the very first strike.
Not only that, the golden light that could originally only cover his surface could now seep into Chen Ning’s body.
Now, the golden light of merit could merge with his physique and even his fists.
The power erupting from a single punch from Chen Ning was now several times what it had been before—it was likely already equivalent to ten thousand jin of force!
More importantly, Chen Ning also discovered a new Divine Ability at the bottom of the panel.
【Mountain-Treading Step (0/400)】
This Mountain-Treading Step was both a movement technique and a killing move.
Its state could be compared to climbing a mountain.
With every step taken, not only would his movement speed undergo a tiered explosion, but his power would also erupt with terrifying force capable of shattering mountains and crushing stones.
This movement technique happened to solve Chen Ning’s current weakness of having sufficient power but lacking speed.
Currently, the limit of the Mountain-Treading Step was seven steps. Within those seven steps, both the speed and power of the technique would reach their peak.
However, as the Divine Ability grew, the number of steps and its upper limit would also increase.
Chen Ning couldn’t help but feel overjoyed.
He hadn’t expected to find such a treasure just by taking a trip out!
Rate on N.U.
