My Cultivation Techniques Upgrade Automatically

Chapter 47: Chapter 47: If You’re a Friend, Come Help Me Dig...

The young woman faced death calmly, her eyes betraying no fear as she looked at the cold blade.

To her surprise, however, the young man before her gave the blade a casual flourish and slid it back into its sheath.

”We’re not enemies. If you have a grudge against the Blood Slaughter Sect...”

Wu Chen extended a hand to the young woman, who was slumped on the ground. ”Then we could even be considered friends.”

”Friends?”

Staring at the fair-skinned hand with its well-defined knuckles, the young woman hesitated for a moment before finally taking it.

”So you’re a traitor to the Blood Slaughter Sect, too?” the young woman asked, looking at Wu Chen in confusion.

Wu Chen: ”???”

’How did I, a young hero dedicated to upholding justice, get labeled a traitor to the Blood Slaughter Sect?’

Wu Chen’s mind filled with question marks. He had no idea how to answer that question.

He also didn’t understand why this young woman had such a bone to pick with the Blood Slaughter Sect.

”First of all, I’m not from the Blood Slaughter Sect. Secondly, I’m not the traitor you’re talking about. I don’t have a single copper coin’s worth of connection to the Blood Slaughter Sect.”

Wu Chen emphasized his identity again. ”I’m a good, common citizen who punishes evil, promotes good, and upholds justice.”

The young woman’s delicate brows furrowed. She walked over to her sword, which was buried halfway in the dirt, pulled it out, and asked again:

”But I was watching clearly from the top of the wall just now. You were about to use your saber to carve out a heart. If you’re not from the Blood Slaughter Sect, why would you do something like that?”

”First, I was carving out the heart to frame the Blood Slaughter Sect.”

Wu Chen thought the girl was a bit dense. He had no choice but to point at the corpses on the ground and patiently explain:

”Second, these people can’t be called human!”

”Can’t be called human?” The young woman looked at the corpses, confused.

This time, Wu Chen didn’t answer. Instead, he’d picked up on something from her earlier phrase, ”you’re a traitor to the Blood Slaughter Sect, too.”

He asked:

”So you’re from the Blood Slaughter Sect, and you’ve just escaped?”

”Yes.”

”And now, you’re hunting down members of the Blood Slaughter Sect?”

”Yes.”

”In your eyes, there are only two kinds of people: the demons of the Blood Slaughter Sect and ordinary common folk.”

”Yes.”

”...”

After this exchange, Wu Chen finally understood the key point.

This young woman had likely been abducted by the Blood Slaughter Sect as a child. They had raised her all the way to the Meridian Passage Realm before she finally gained the ability to escape the Demon Sect’s control and regain her freedom.

Having witnessed the Demon Sect’s various cruel methods since childhood, she had simplified the world into two categories.

Blood Slaughter Sect: bad people.

Everyone else: good people.

She couldn’t understand, or rather, no one had ever told her, that people in this world were complex and varied.

For example, when she was with the Blood Slaughter Sect, she would have been seen by others as a ruthless, cold-blooded demon who committed all kinds of atrocities.

Now that she had escaped the Blood Slaughter Sect and made it her mission to kill its demonic members, she could be considered a good person.

Still, Wu Chen felt that for someone who had spent over a decade in the Blood Slaughter Sect without becoming a bloodthirsty psychopath, her inner character was remarkably strong.

’Also, was she able to escape the Blood Slaughter Sect because she learned this Qinggong technique?’

’I have to find a way to get my hands on this martial art.’

With that in mind, he patiently began to explain to her:

”The Blood Slaughter Sect consists of demonic cultivators who lurk in the wilderness outside the various cities. You definitely know this, there’s no mistake about that.”

”And these gang members are demonic people who hide within the cities and commit all sorts of evil. This is also true.”

”The harm they cause to ordinary people is no less than that of the Blood Slaughter Sect—in fact, it might even be worse.”

”Given Black Stone City’s current lifeless state, it’s hard to argue that these people aren’t the primary cause.”

After speaking, Wu Chen looked at the young woman, waiting to see what she would say.

The young woman listened in silence for a while before saying, ”Then you’ve never seen the Blood Slaughter Sect’s true methods.”

Wu Chen shrugged. He knew he couldn’t change her mind in such a short time with just a few words.

He dropped the topic of the Blood Slaughter Sect and changed his tune:

”I remember saying we were friends earlier, and you didn’t object, right?”

”What’s this about?” The young woman wasn’t stupid. Seeing him bring this up, a hint of wariness appeared in her eyes.

”If we’re friends, then of course you’ll help me carve out some hearts.”

Wu Chen said with righteous conviction, ”Besides, you’re from the Blood Slaughter Sect yourself. You must be much more skilled at it.”

”No!”

The young woman’s red lips parted as she forcefully uttered the single, simple word, rejecting Wu Chen.

She then rolled her eyes, too lazy to say anything more to him.

’I finally managed to escape the Demon Sect precisely so I wouldn’t have to carve out hearts and commit such unconscionable acts anymore.’

She walked over to a clean, corpse-free corner of the wall and stood still. She just stared intently at Wu Chen, but this time, she didn’t try to stop him.

Despite her refusal, Wu Chen was cheerful.

He knew this was all part of the process of getting familiar with each other.

’See? It was only their third meeting, and I can already see expressions of helplessness and anger on her face.’

SQUELCH! SQUELCH!

He got busy with his own task, slicing through skin and flesh with his saber, carving out the hearts as if no one was watching. His movements were practiced, and he didn’t even get a speck of dirt on his clothes.

The young woman watched this from the corner, her fingers gripping her scabbard so tightly it creaked.

Even she, an elite disciple of the Meridian Passage Realm, wouldn’t dare claim to have such fine saber skills or such clean movements when it came to carving out hearts.

’And he still dares to say he’s not a demon from the Blood Slaughter Sect!’

But she shook her head helplessly. She knew full well that even if he was a demonic person, she had absolutely no chance of killing him with her current strength.

She followed behind Wu Chen, watching as he wrapped up a large, bloody bundle of hearts and tossed it into a dry latrine.

Only then did she let out a sigh of relief.

’It seems he really is framing the Blood Slaughter Sect.’

”I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Wu Chen.”

Having finished his work, Wu Chen strode over to the young woman with an overly familiar air, hoping to get closer:

”And you, miss?”

”Xue Hongling,” Xue Hongling said flatly.

”Xue? A strange surname. Sounds like one the Blood Slaughter Sect gave you, right?” Wu Chen said, rubbing his chin.

Xue Hongling nodded. She had forgotten her original surname and given name long ago.

Her current name was given to her by her demonic master.

”Since you’ve already left the Blood Slaughter Sect, it’s really not appropriate to keep using ’Xue’ as your surname.”

Wu Chen shook his head. ”We hit it off right away, like we’re brother and sister. Why don’t you take my surname, Wu!”

He offered a ”reasonable” suggestion.

Of course, getting closer to her was all for the sake of her martial arts.

Xue Hongling was confused. ”The surname Wu?”

She didn’t care what her surname was, but out of all the surnames, why did it have to be Wu? Couldn’t they be like siblings with a different one?

’Pah! Who wants to be like a sibling to you anyway!’

Just as she was deep in thought, Wu Chen asked her:

”Do you think I’m strong?”

Xue Hongling recalled their earlier exchange. Wu Chen had broken her Ghost Howl Saber Technique in a single move.

She shook her head. ”You’re not weak.”

”My two fists open the path of life and death! Remember that the ’Wu’ in Martial Arts is my surname!”

Wu Chen said, quite proudly, ”This is why I’m strong—because I have a natural affinity for Martial Arts!”

”So you can’t go wrong with the surname Wu!”

”...”

Xue Hongling thought for a moment, understood what he meant, and a faint smile touched her lips:

”So according to you, if someone practicing martial arts wants to get stronger, the first thing they should do is change their surname to Wu?”

”That’s not it!”

But as she spoke, she realized the implication and her beautiful eyes widened:

”An affinity for Martial Arts? Aren’t you a little too full of yourself!”

Wu Chen didn’t answer. Seeing the young woman’s crescent-moon eyes and her smile like melting spring snow, he simply nodded and said:

”See? You look so much better when you smile. You should smile more often.”

Xue Hongling: ”...”

He shouldn’t have said anything. The moment he spoke, the smile on Xue Hongling’s face vanished, and her icy expression returned.

Wu Chen shrugged.

’But her smile is so beautiful, she really should smile more!’

’And besides, there was nothing wrong with what I said...’

’Why aren’t you happy when I compliment you?!’

Seeing that Xue Hongling was ignoring him, Wu Chen turned and walked deeper into the alley, in the direction of the Black Scorpion Gang’s headquarters.

After walking a dozen or so steps and hearing only silence behind him, he turned his head to look at Xue Hongling, who was still standing in the same spot.

He said:

”You don’t believe the gangs are evil, do you?”

”Perfect. I’ll take you to see for yourself.”