Unsheathed

No longer concealed by the illusion technique, Chen Ping’an’s Dao robe, Golden Sweet Wine, had transformed from snow-white back to its original golden color.

The expression in Li Li’s eyes became dark after Chen Ping’an channeled the Deity Drumming Technique and threw ten punches again. However, he still chose to ignore Chen Ping’an, allowing the young boy’s punches to accumulate and grow stronger.

The yin soul with three arms, six heads, and the disposition of a martial sage dispersed like clouds and smoke, causing spiritual energy to flow into the surroundings.

At the same time, several gashes appeared on Golden Sweet Wine, signs of damage that couldn’t be fixed during the battle.

Li Li ripped off his bright red official garb that was already in tatters. He looked over at Chen Ping’an, whose chest was rising and falling in an exaggerated manner, and saw that the young boy’s hands were now bloody and mangled. Chen Ping’an tried his best to keep his eyes open, and it was indeed only his eyes that remained bright and clear on his blood-caked face.

Li Li smiled and said, “It’s a shame that you’re a pure martial artist. This implies that you have absolutely no relationship with Parasol Leaf Sect and Jade Tablet Sect. Otherwise, I genuinely wouldn’t have dared to kill you.”

Chen Ping’an closed one eye and replied in a hoarse voice, “Your two souls are quite weak, and they shattered after just seventeen or eighteen punches from me. They’re nowhere near as powerful as Ding Ying’s souls.”

“So what?” Li Li asked with a faint smile.

“So I can exchange lives with you if I use my fist technique for the third time,” Chen Ping’an replied in a muffled voice. “Are you afraid?”

Li Li responded with a cold chuckle, clearly not convinced by the young boy’s words.

Moreover, as the imperial guardian of the Great Quan Empire with a pseudo-golden core, how could he not have a trump card up his sleeves? It was just that the price was too high.

In fact, the price was even higher than that of his life and death.

The two of them fell silent. After a while, Li Li suddenly furrowed his brows and asked, “You’re a pure martial artist, so why are you going against the tenet of martial arts and secretly absorbing spiritual energy?!”

Li Li retreated several steps, thinking that the young boy was purposely opening his acupoints and absorbing spiritual energy in order to win an opportunity to launch an explosive attack and kill both of them.

This brat had truly lost his mind.

The impoverished scholar with the surname Zhong nodded lightly before shaking his head.

It was very courageous for a pure martial artist to temper their soul with spiritual energy. However, it was also incredibly risky and dangerous.

Chen Ping’an had a chance to unleash that fist technique for a third time, and Li Li would still suffer greatly if he became too complacent.

Chen Ping’an hadn’t fought this battle for nothing. As a fifth tier martial artist, this was the time for him to search hard for a Hero’s Gall Pill. Imperial Guardian Li Li’s yin soul was extremely strange, and he had cultivated it by observing and visualizing three martial sages from the martial sage temple during meditation.

However, his visualization was heretical, and he was potentially guilty of blasphemy against the martial deities. This would damage the empire’s martial fortune, and it was a case of Li Li using the empire’s fortune for private gain. It was entirely possible that no one in the imperial court of the Great Quan Empire was aware of this matter.

In any case, if Chen Ping’an defeated and shattered Li Li’s yin soul, the three martial sages from the Great Quan Empire would sense this through imperceptible and undetectable means. If Chen Ping’an had the opportunity to visit the capital of the Great Quan Empire and enter the martial sage temple in the future, it was logical to assume that he would receive a generous reward.

Of course, the prerequisite was that Chen Ping’an and his strange subordinates could leave this inn alive.

The impoverished scholar with the surname Zhong had offered to clean up the mess and bury the victims; he hadn’t offered to protect Chen Ping’an.

Eunuch Li Li looked around for a moment, then walked to a table. He grabbed a wine bowl and took a gulp of wine, after which he lightly placed the wine bowl back on the table and looked at the young subordinates standing near the stairway. There was a young noble, the disciple of a general, and elite imperial guards with bright futures.

Meanwhile, the piece of trash, Xu Qingzhou, had failed to defeat the person wielding a saber. In fact, he was oblivious to the fact that he was now nothing more than a sparring partner for that person.

Flora Convent’s Xu Tong was still intoxicated by the bullshit power of his heretical lightning technique, convinced that victory was firmly in his grasp. Yet, he was completely unaware of the sword intent flourishing in his opponent’s heart. She wasn’t a mere sword expert at all, but a supremely talented sword prodigy who could eventually become a powerful sword immortal.

As for the person standing outside the inn, he was engaged in a flashy and vigorous battle with the elite cavalry, with both sides unleashing a flurry of spectacular attacks. However, their battle was nothing more than just that—flashy and vigorous.

Finally, Li Li looked toward Jiu Niang and Third Grandpa with a complete lack of interest. As for the impoverished scholar, he felt slightly unsure of his abilities. However, this didn’t matter.

Everyone inside the inn had to die, regardless of whether they were friend or foe.

Li Li waved his hand, causing the door of the inn to slam shut.

“Be careful,” Zhu Lian warned.

Li Li placed his hand on his abdomen near his dantian and started to breathe heavily.

Sanguinary air would suffuse the surroundings each time he exhaled.

Chen Ping’an silently charged forward.

He unleashed the Deity Drumming Technique for the third time.

His fist smashed into the back of the eunuch’s hand that was placed on his abdomen.

Li Li also threw a punch, smashing Chen Ping’an’s chest.

There was nothing flashy about Chen Ping’an’s second punch as it struck Li Li.

Li Li was incredibly irritated, as if he were no longer a composed eunuch and earth immortal who resided deep in the imperial palace and was responsible for looking after the imperial horses. His face became twisted and his eyes became bloodshot as he launched a palm strike at Chen Ping’an’s temple.

Chen Ping’an’s upper body swayed back and forth, yet his feet remained firmly planted to the spot. This was so that he could throw the next punch.

His punches became quicker and quicker.

Similarly, Li Li’s punches also became increasingly loud and explosive.

After piercing into his body, it was as if First and Fifteenth had entered a maze and become trapped. The two flying swords randomly crashed around in his acupoints, yet they failed to find an exit no matter what they did.

The sound of shattering bones traveled out from Chen Ping’an’s body.

Numerous threads appeared on Li Li’s face that was so well-kept that he looked like a middle-aged man. Some threads were raised and some threads were sunken, causing his face to look like it was fake.

His pseudo-golden core fractured with a loud crack.

The outer layer of the pseudo-golden core shattered, similar to how Li Li had removed his tattered official garb just then.

Zhu Lian sighed in his mind as the railing under his feet crumbled. The floor also collapsed, causing him to fall to the first floor. However, he moved as swiftly as wind and lightning, and had already arrived beside Li Li in just two or three strides. He tapped his foot and leaped up, striking the old eunuch in the head with his elbow. At the same time, he straightened his other hand and rapidly stabbed it through Li Li’s neck.

Li Li should have been killed by these fatal strikes, yet he continued to swing his fists at Chen Ping’an as if he weren’t affected at all. His attacks caused blood to pour from Chen Ping’an’s ears.

Meanwhile, Zhu Lian was sent flying back, directly crashing through the wall in the distance and landing outside.

Li Li, who only had half his neck remaining, appeared apathetic as he focused his attention on killing the young boy in front of him. The other people inside the inn wouldn’t be able to withstand a single attack from him once he revealed his true form.

Zhu Lian landed among the group of elite cavalry outside, causing their hearts to jolt in fear. They were just about to rush over to kill him, yet Zhu Lian had already spat out a mouthful of blood and rolled backward, jumping up as nimbly as a monkey swinging through trees.

At the same time, he started to show why had the title of Martial Arts Maniac. He reached over with both hands to grab the arms of a cavalryman who had dismounted his horse. With a violent tug, he then directly ripped the cavalryman’s arms from his body.

He forcefully smacked another cavalryman’s head, causing it to explode into pieces.

He threw a punch, directly smashing through a cavalryman’s body. However, thinking that this corpse was an eyesore, he slashed down with his palm and severed the corpse into two from the shoulder to the abdomen. Blood and intestines spilled all over the ground in front of the hunchbacked old man.

Inside the inn…

As if in tacit understanding, Xu Tong, Xu Qingzhou, Sui Youbian, and Lu Baixiang all stopped their fights.

This was because the eunuch’s transformation was simply inconceivable.

Their intuition subtly warned them that Li Li was their biggest enemy.

It was also at this moment that Jiu Niang, the hunchbacked Third Grandpa, the lame young boy, and Yao Lingzhi on the second floor mysteriously collapsed to the ground.

Zhong Kui, the impoverished scholar, appeared behind Li Li at some unknown time, holding one hand behind his back as he used his other hand to pinch the bloody golden core with two fingers. He looked down and examined it, musing to himself, “No wonder…”

The impoverished scholar exerted slightly more force and crushed the genuine golden core.

At the same time, he heard Chen Ping’an smash his fist into the deceased eunuch’s chest. However, this also caused the bones in Chen Ping’an’s hand to completely shatter. The scholar looked toward Chen Ping’an, but Li Li’s corpse coincidentally blocked his vision because it was yet to collapse to the floor. As a result, he could only lean to the side and grin at Chen Ping’an, asking with an expression of admiration, “Little Brother, do you not feel pain?”

However, Chen Ping’an was completely absorbed in his fist intent.

In reality, his final punch had was indeed limp and possessed no destructive ability. One had to realize that the Deity Drumming Technique was the fist technique that Cui Chan’s grandfather, a martial artist at the peak stage of the tenth tier, was the most proud of. He had wanted to use this fist technique to challenge the Dao Ancestor.

Chen Ping’an’s body swayed back and forth as his vision also became blurry. He could vaguely see the eunuch whose neck was a mangled mess — his head drooped, then he fell to his knees with a loud smack. Chen Ping’an couldn’t sense any vitality from him anymore.

Chen Ping’an stood in the same spot, still maintaining his final fist stance with his fist outstretched. There was only a single thought in his mind at this moment. He was thankful that the barefoot old man wasn’t here to witness his final punch. Otherwise, the barefoot old man would have definitely flared up in rage and let loose a torrent of abuse.

Zhong Kui looked at Xu Tong and Xu Qingzhou before winking and asking, “A noble person never resorts to violence… Do you people genuinely believe this nonsense?”

Xu Tong and Xu Qingzhou both gulped upon hearing this.

Chen Ping’an’s arms fell limply to his sides, and he plonked down to the floor and sat with his legs crossed.

He then summoned his last remaining strength to clench his hands into fists and lightly place them on his knees. He could only open a single eye.

Golden Sweet Wine was severely damaged and almost devoid of spiritual energy, rendering it ineffective for the moment. It was drenched in blood, making Chen Ping’an even more eye-catching than Li Li’s bright red official garb from just then.

The impoverished scholar turned to Chen Ping’an and asked, “Do you know who you’re fighting?”

There were still many people inside the inn, so Zhong Kui didn’t ask this question aloud. Chen Ping’an’s aura had transformed the moment before he had stepped forward to kill Li Li, and he knew that the young boy had been preparing either a concealed defensive technique or a formidably powerful destructive ability. However, the impoverished scholar could only make a rough guess.

Chen Ping’an slowly raised his head and smiled faintly with one eye open. “I’m fighting to have no one in front.”

Zhong Kui squatted down and asked with a smile, “What’s your name?”

Chen Ping’an shut his eye.

The impoverished scholar rolled his eyes.

After hesitating for a moment, he extended a finger and started to draw in the air as if he were a little child creating graffiti.

After Li Li’s body and golden core collapsed inside the inn, the spiritual energy that they released slowly flowed toward the young martial artist, coincidentally gathering at the acupoints that the Eighteen Stops Technique utilized.

Afterward, Zhong Kui waved his hand, causing Li Li’s corpse to vanish. First and Fifteenth appeared in the air and rapidly flew to Chen Ping’an’s side, with their tips pointing at the impoverished scholar.

Zhong Kui paid no heed to them. He looked up at the second floor and shouted, “Stop reading, little girl. Hurry up and come downstairs to check on your dad!”

Pei Qian had already run out of energy to keep reading, so she immediately ran out of her room, taking a glance at the impoverished scholar first. She then purposely played dumb and asked, “What? Check on your dad?”

Zhong Kui clicked his tongue and remarked, “Oh? You’re quite good at picking on the weak, aren’t you?”

Pei Qian quickly ran downstairs, stomping down loudly on the steps.

Squatting beside the impoverished scholar in azure, she looked at Chen Ping’an and asked quietly, “He’s not dead, is he?”

“He’s died too young. This is a true tragedy,” Zhong Kui replied with a nod.

Pei Qian looked left and right, wanting to say something but feeling hesitant to do so.

Chen Ping’an opened his eyes.

Pei Qian turned around to glower at the impoverished scholar, fuming. “Why did you curse my dad to have an early death? Your dad is bloody dead!”

“My dad did indeed die a long time ago. I visit his tomb to pay my respects every Tomb Sweeping Festival,” Zhong Kui replied with an innocent expression.

Chen Ping’an grabbed the wine gourd from his waist and took a small sip of green plum wine. His hand was mangled and bloody, and Pei Qian couldn’t help but sweat in apprehension. Her thoughts were exactly the same as that of the impoverished scholar. There was someone in the world who was this immune to pain?

Zhong Kui smiled and asked, “You almost died for the sake of the Yao Clan here, so do you not feel a sense of lingering fear?”

“It wasn’t for the Yao Clan,” Chen Ping’an replied.

Zhong Kui chuckled mischievously and revealed, “Part of the reason why the Yao Clan suffered this disaster was because of a beautiful woman. In fact, even a staunch and loyal man like me was almost enraptured by her beauty. You can just imagine how beautiful she is.”

With one leaning on his saber and one carrying a sword on her back, Lu Baixiang and Sui Youbian walked over and stood beside Chen Ping’an.

One had cost him two grain rain coins, and one had surprisingly cost him just a single grain rain coin.

The four people from the picture scrolls had cost just enough grain rain coins to exhaust Chen Ping’an’s entire savings.

The old Daoist priest was truly screwing with him.

“You didn’t treat this battle of life and death as an opportunity to temper your Martial Dao because you were aware of my presence and abilities, did you?” Zhong Kui suddenly asked.

Chen Ping’an wiped the blood from his face and didn’t answer the impoverished scholar’s question. Instead, he smiled and asked, “And you are?”

Zhong Kui shook his hand and replied, “I’m not worth a mention.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t ask anything else.

Zhong Kui turned around to glance at the wide-eyed Pei Qian, looking at her eyes that were like the sun rising above the eastern seas and the moon hanging above the western mountains. Her eyes were truly very beautiful.

However, her personality was truly unlikeable.

Zhong Kui looked toward the front door of the inn and said, “Yao Zhen, as well as the other prince and his group of subordinates, are also about to arrive.”

In the end, he smiled and said to Chen Ping’an, “You can rest assured and recuperate here. Leave the rest to me.”

Chen Ping’an struggled to stand up, cupping his fist to thank the impoverished scholar. However, just looking at his mangled hands caused Zhong Kui’s skin to crawl.

In the end, Chen Ping’an turned to Lu Baixiang and said, “Thank you. If I had known this earlier, then I would have brought you out of the picture scroll first.”

Lu Baixiang responded with a calm smile.

Chen Ping’an glanced at Sui Youbian, who also looked at him. Her expression was calm and undisturbed.

Chen Ping’an walked upstairs, and Pei Qian followed after him.

The young subordinates from the Great Quan Empire were all as pale as ghosts.

Zhong Kui scratched his head as he looked at the young boy and the little girl, unable to make heads or tails of the situation. In the end, he decided not to waste his brain cells on this.

In fact, he started to feel a little angry after realizing that he would no longer be able to get free food and free drinks from the inn in the future.

And thus, one scholar sat down and drank in a sulky mood while another scholar with a jade pendant hanging by his waist walked out of the inn. The door was closed, yet it was as if it didn’t exist in the eyes of this scholar. He threw a slap and sent the prince spinning through the air.

At the same time, a scholar holding a sword directly transformed into a streak of white light that shot into the distance, arriving before the other prince of the Great Quan Empire and kicking him to the ground. He then furiously stomped on the prince’s face.

After Zhong Kui’s yin soul and yang soul left his body, all of the yin entities and ghosts within a five-hundred-kilometer radius involuntarily fell to the ground and prostrated themselves, shaking in fear as they did so. In fact, even the deities from the illegal temples weren’t spared from this fate.

All of the myriad ghosts and yin entities in the world had to prostrate themselves and kowtow when they saw Zhong Kui.