“Sir Gong, your business is truly eating us out of house and home. Won’t you consider betting on the other side?” the head bookkeeper suggested.
“Stop looking so innocent. You lowered the odds so much only three days after she showed up! There’s no way you’re not swimming in spirit stones after these past two months,” Sir Gong replied.
“But it’s not the same,” she replied softly. “I want to swim in your spirit stones. I want them all over me. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” As she leaned forward, her ample cleavage became partially uncovered in the process.
“Let me get that for you,” Sir Gong said, leaning in and fixing her problem. The woman blushed. She wasn’t there for touching, but he was a rich man. She had no choice but to smile at his cheeky grin.
“You know, Yi Bing, we did compromise this time. Her current opponent is at the sixth level of qi condensation, a whole level higher! I’m sure a lot more people will bet on him this time. And if they don’t, you’ll be swimming in my spirit stones. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
After their teasing exchange, Sir Gong went to take his seat near the front of the cage arena. A few high rollers were there as well. They had personal boxes, and topless women sat on their laps as they spectated, satisfying their every need.
He disliked places like the arena. Especially the smoky, unventilated air. He was used to it, of course. Back when he fought here, he was known as the Blood King. It was where he made a name for himself and where he’d built up enough funds to bankroll his mercenary group in Green Leaf City.
The reason he had returned was for his sister’s sake. She had finally grown up and had a desire to get stronger. Her original half-hearted, squeamish attitude was why he’d previously been reluctant to include her in the mercenary business. The last two months had completely obliterated his previous assumptions. She would do just fine out in the real world now.
The two fighters in the cage were currently walking in circles, occasionally making probing moves. Of course, the Blood Queen did most of the probing. She was nimble and could quickly recover from any mistakes. The large hammer-wielding brute did not have that luxury. While he was a whole level stronger than her, he had personally witnessed her vicious techniques and strong killing intent.
After probing for a hundred breaths, the Blood Queen finally started her dance, quickly building momentum with her twin blood-red sabers. She spun in rapid circles like a dervish, striking with a steady rhythm that contained very few gaps. As her dance intensified, so did her strikes.
The brute’s defenses were very hard, however. He was what they called a “buffer”. In addition to some level of body refining, the brute utilized his qi to cover himself in an iron skin. He didn’t use any qi at all for attacks. As a result, he was able to avoid taking damage from the attacks that snuck through.
Every once in a while, when he saw an opening, he would lash out with all his power, swinging out in large arcs at the agile demoness. Every time he lashed out, however, she would leap over each strike, taking advantage of his momentum to land some heavy blows. While she hadn’t injured him yet, his qi was rapidly depleting. If things continued this way, his iron skin would be as effective as wet paper and he’d truly be in trouble.
There were only two ways out of this death match—winners got to live, and the losers would die. No mercy was allowed. The rewards for these fights were very steep, and the admission fees were correspondingly high. The arena guaranteed at least three of these battles. If no fighters were available, they kept a large stock of demonic beasts that could take the place of human contestants. Of course, the arena preferred people fighting—people didn’t cost them anything.
The Blood Queen’s attacking frequency had now reached its peak, putting the brute in a tricky position. It was now or never! He had kept a trump card this whole time, but he was experienced and had patiently waited for the time to strike.
Clank, clank, clank, clank, clank, clank.
After six strikes, the brute stepped in quickly, using his hammer to deflect the blows. The blow occurred at a moment where there was a very slight pause in her movements. The pause only lasted for a fraction of a second, but for the experienced brute, it was enough.
The charge surprised the Blood Queen, who couldn’t help but interrupt her rhythm and step back. She had lost the initiative, which was very dangerous due to the large gap in cultivation level. As she twisted to attack at the large man’s waist and regain the initiative, she shivered slightly as a tremor traveled up her leg through her foot.
Shit, she thought, he’s not a pure buffer! The brute had used a stomping battle technique, which utilized earth qi to create tremors and paralyze his opponents. Unfortunately, this was the Blood Queen’s Achilles heel. If her dance was interrupted, she would be nothing but a sitting duck.
A feeling of pure dread invaded her subconscious as she eyed the large hammer, which swung downward toward her exposed shoulder. That single strike would surely kill her if it landed.
I can’t let my brother down! I can’t let him down like I did Cha Ming!
These thoughts instantly converted to courage. To survive, she would have to break her limits. With a roar, her dantian trembled, and she angrily slashed at an invisible membrane using her qi pool. She channeled her anger—at the situation that led to Cha Ming’s death; at her brother for getting her into this cage match; and most importantly, at herself for failing them both.
Her righteous anger made her qi lake shudder, but to no avail.
Again! Another fierce impact on her dantian had her coughing out blood.
Again! Finally, the third attempt managed to crash the invisible membrane that had caused her to be caught in a bottleneck. Instantly, qi at the sixth level of qi condensation rushed toward her and cleared her mind.
She quickly exercised her movement technique, which had improved after her breakthrough. The tremors in her legs were quickly neutralized by the surging qi. Having shaken off the tremor, she quickly danced forward toward the brute, using one of her sabers to slightly shift the smashing hammer. The hammer barely avoided her, but she took advantage of her closed-in position to swing both sabers upward toward the brute’s neck.
Blood Saber Art—Twin Decapitation!
The vicious blow, powered by her increased cultivation, smashed through the remainder of the brute’s iron skin. His previous attacks had exhausted most of his remaining qi, leaving him open to an attack. The crowd cheered as the underdog of the fight, the reigning champion, Blood Queen, lifted both of her blood-red sabers above her head to announce her victory.
Blood dripped from the sabers onto her sexy, slender figure.
As the reigning champion, the Blood Queen had her own changing room. The changing room was filled with three baths. The first bath was to rinse her swords and leather outfit. She unceremoniously dumped them into the tub and jumped into the second one, the pre-bath wash. The water instantly turned crimson as the dried blood was rinsed off her perfect slender frame. She also gave her hair a quick wash, as it had been doused with a couple cups of hot blood as she decapitated her opponent.
After the initial rinse was completed, she dunked herself into a scented bath. It had been treated with various perfumes ideal for countering the bloody smell. Initially, the smell had disgusted her. The more she fought, however, the more she yearned for that smell. Was she perhaps changing too much?
As she relaxed in the bath, a familiar figure walked in.
“Elder Brother, you know it’s inappropriate to enter a girl’s room while she’s taking a bath, right?”
The man shrugged as he heard the comment.
“It’s not like I haven’t seen it all. Plus, you’re my younger sister. I used to give you baths when you were little, and I’ve already seen you naked countless times.”
“That’s different!” she said, blushing and sinking deeper into the bath, ensuring that the foaming soap properly covered anything inappropriate. He took the hi
nt and sat down, facing away from the bathtub.
“Congratulations on your breakthrough. It’s been a hard two months, but you’ve already broken through two whole levels. If I didn’t know any better, I would have guessed that you were a fourth-grade talent!” He was truly happy at her sister’s progress. This was much faster than his initial training. Perhaps she was better to suited to the Blood World Scripture than he was?
“It’s all thanks to the Blood World Scripture. What an amazing cultivation method! It channels killing intent into offensive power, killing intent into cultivation, and life-and-death struggles into breakthrough opportunities. There’s also no chance of having an unstable foundation, since the user’s qi is constantly stabilized through combat.”
“Lan Er, I think it’s more to do with your compatibility with the technique,” Sir Gong said blandly. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you were a sadist.”
“Wuling, you know better than I do that that’s not the case. I’m just much too disappointed in myself. Cha Ming died because of me, and I never want the same situation to repeat itself.”
She wore a cold expression. The sweet Gong Lan no longer existed. Only by being cold to herself would she never let down anyone ever again. This saddened her brother greatly.
“Speaking of which, a messenger from the Jade Bamboo Conglomerate came by this afternoon. I didn’t want to interrupt your focus before the match. Do you want me to read the message to you now, or do you want to wait until after your bath?”
Gong Lan perked up when she heard the words Jade Bamboo. What could Brother Jun possibly need?
“Open it now and read it to me!” Gong Lan instructed.
Gong Wuling chuckled as he ripped open the letter. After opening it, he read it out loud using a sensual voice.
“My Dearest Lan Er, I can’t hold it in any longer. I’ve decided that it’s now or never, and that I need to confess my love for you. I—”
“The hell? Read the real letter!” she shouted, lashing out furiously, throwing a bar of soap at her brother’s head.
“If you keep throwing things, I’ll have to turn around and teach you a lesson,” he teased. “Ahem, where was I? Gong Lan, I’m happy to inform you that one month ago, Cha Ming returned from the spirit woods safe and sound. I’m sorry I didn’t inform you earlier, however, it took a while for our intelligence agency to track you down. The underground gambling arena is not strictly legal, so information on it is quite hard to come by. I hope you’re well, and that you’ll come for a visit soon. Xin Er misses you dearly, and Cha Ming inquires about your whereabouts every few days. Sincerely, Your Dearest Brother Wang.”
Wuling lifted his eyebrows as he recalled the tragic story of the young man falling off Greatwood Bridge after an explosion destroyed it. Their portion of the group had only survived since it was close to the edge. They had managed to keep hold of the bridge because the portion supporting them slammed against the cliff wall.
This guy Cha Ming has some dogshit good luck, he thought.
“Elder Brother, you’re not joking, are you?”
He looked back at his teary-eyed sister and handed her the letter. The paper quickly started falling apart as she held it in her soapy wet hands.
“Let’s go back to Green Leaf City, brother. We’ll keep training after I go for a visit, okay?”
Wuling chuckled as he stood up and ruffled her wet hair. “Anything for you, little sister. You know that.”
Chapter 5: Murder Most Fowl
In a courtyard within Green Leaf Academy, the constant sound of metal on wood echoed throughout the entire residential district. Birds avoided this courtyard like the plague. There were two reasons for this, the first one being the constant hammering noises that started at dawn and ended at sunset. At least the person who caused the disturbance had a minimum level of decency, the nearby residents said. This was reassuring small talk, of course. These were trying times, and they wanted nothing more than to rip the perpetrator apart limb by limb.
The second reason caused the birds to shiver in fear. Noise they could deal with; death they could not. A vicious predator had appeared near the student courtyards. A strange demonic fox now lurked between the stone houses. It took great pleasure in capturing the birds that wandered around the premises.
In a courtyard ten rows away from Cha Ming’s, a cultivator was indulging in his favorite hobby: feeding his chickens and collecting their eggs. The cultivator had previously been a commoner, one who had expected to spend the rest of his life raising farm animals. Little did he know that he would have talent in cultivation. As a fourth-grade talent, his rate of growth was very rapid. After a mere three years, he was now an eighth-level student.
Despite being a cultivator, he was still very fond of his farming lifestyle. In his courtyard, he had several plots of land, which he used to grow various medicinal herbs. In addition, he also had a chicken coop and a few milk cows. This young man was very particular about the quality of his milk and eggs. As such, he always fed the chickens and cows special spirit grain, which he also cultivated within his courtyard.
While he might have been indulging in his favorite hobby, his demeanor was not in the least bit relaxed. He had a dreadful problem he needed to resolve—the looming threat of the chicken thief. At present, he only had fifteen chickens, two less than the original number. Another kindred spirit within Green Leaf Academy had reported a similar matter. In this case, the poor student had lost one of his geese, two of his ducks, and three of his carrier pigeons!
In addition, they had both noticed a peculiar lack of wild birds in the surrounding area. The only logical conclusion was that a voracious predator had started living in the area. Despite their suspicions, they had no hard evidence or eye-witness testimony on the matter. Even if they wanted to find the thief, they didn’t know what it looked like.
Sighing heavily, the cultivator continued feeding his chickens spirit grain and collected their eggs. He then started installing various upgrades to fortify the chicken coop. The first thing he did was replace the wire around the chicken coop; the old wire did not provide adequate protection against predators and had only been useful in preventing the chickens themselves from escaping. The predator had changed everything. In addition to replacing the wire, he also ensured that it completely enclosed the pen. This rendered it impossible for a predator to approach from above.
Protecting the coop from an underground assault was also a tricky task. What if the thief was a ferret or a fox? He dug up all the soil inside the chicken coop to install a deep brick foundation, which connected to the fence wire. He covered up the foundation with soil, something the chickens enjoyed while they walked outdoors.
Following this major renovation, he then focused on the building itself. The windows were potential points of entry, so he installed iron bars on each one. He also installed locks on all the doors for good measure. Perhaps this chicken thief was a student?
This massive project took three days. Fortunately, he finished the project before any of his chickens were stolen. Despite the greatly strengthened chicken coop, he was still a little nervous. During the entire construction, he experienced a tingling in the back of his neck, the kind that only happened when one was being watched. As a martial cultivator, he had developed a sixth sense for things like these. It was hardly ever wrong. Or perhaps the hammering noises from the nearby courtyard had unnerved him, causing him to imagine enemies that didn’t exist.
It was now late at night. The consistent pounding of metal on metal had stopped, as it always did at sunset. This granted the occupants of nearby courtyards a temporary reprieve and ideally a good night’s sleep. Despite the absence of the rhythmic clanking, some of the residents were still profoundly affected. They now heard these sounds in their dreams. Hammering aside, the night was very quiet, almost too quiet. If one observed carefully, they might have noticed a large absence of birds or other small animals near a specific courtyard.
The owner
of the courtyard was fast asleep, and so were his chickens. Huxian had been observing them for the past few days. Despite his ability to steal the chickens over the past three days, the actions of the cultivator in this courtyard had intrigued him. It was as though the cultivator thought he could prevent Huxian from taking the chickens that rightfully belonged to him!
His curiosity piqued, Huxian’s observations had continued for three days. When the cultivator finally finished, the renovated chicken coop emanated a special aura, an aura of challenge toward the chicken thief.
Challenge accepted, Huxian decided.
His small and agile figure vanished as he jumped over the courtyard wall, careful not to make any noises that might alert the cultivator or the chickens. Once inside the courtyard, Huxian merged with the shadows near the edge of the wall. While the entire courtyard was well lit, it was impossible for there to be a complete absence of shadows. The shadows were his home.
After observing the front of the chicken coop for a short while, Huxian decided to give up on sneaking through the metal wires or digging through the brick. While this was a simple task for the baby fox demon, it didn’t suit his style; he wanted the cultivator to be completely baffled by the theft!
Since accessing through the front of the coop was physically impossible, he opted for the next option—the back. The back of the coop was now only twelve inches away from the courtyard wall, enough to allow air circulation through the tightly barred window. Huxian ignored the small gap and also ignored the bars for good measure. He blended into the shadows and immediately found himself inside the chicken coop.
The chickens were sleeping soundly and hadn’t noticed his approach. The juvenile fox sneakily approached a chicken’s bed, but just before approaching, his instincts told him something was off. After observing carefully, he noticed that there were several snares set up. He quickly bypassed these snares and approached the sleeping chicken from the side. He made short work of it.
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