From their previous clash, Zuo Wumei had already gauged his opponent’s strength: Qi Blood Sixth Layer, with impressive sword skills. He was a rare master in the Qi Blood Realm, but to Zuo Wumei, that was all he was.

At this moment, killing intent surged in Zuo Wumei. In his eyes, the man before him was already dead.

SWISH!

A dense flurry of blade flashes erupted in front of Zuo Wumei, resembling a whirlwind dragon as it slashed down toward Chen Ping’an’s head.

Driven by his killing intent, Zuo Wumei held nothing back.

Eighty-one Paths of Gale Saber!

Every strike was meant to kill!

In that instant, his eyes saw only the man before him.

Zuo Wumei’s movements were fast.

But Chen Ping’an was no slower, drawing his Sharp Blade Hundred Pattern Saber and unleashing a flurry of slashes.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

The sound of clashing blades rang out continuously.

"Die!"

A cruel smile spread across Zuo Wumei’s face.

His saber twisted in mid-air, suddenly changing its pattern and accelerating violently as it chopped toward Chen Ping’an’s neck.

Before the blade even reached him, Chen Ping’an could feel its sharp intent on his neck.

’What fast sword skills!’

The Qi Blood throughout Chen Ping’an’s body surged, activated to its absolute limit, and the sword technique in his hands grew even more ferocious.

CLANG!

With a sharp ring of metal on metal, Chen Ping’an’s saber met Zuo Wumei’s just in time, parrying the blow.

"Qi Blood Six Layers Perfection!"

Zuo Wumei’s eyes flew wide in stunned disbelief.

’He was actually holding back!’

SWISH!

With a single block, Zuo Wumei’s saber was flung aside.

Chen Ping’an’s Qi Blood flared. Having gained the upper hand, he pressed his advantage, each slash aimed to kill.

Though Zuo Wumei’s saber was fast, he was suppressed by Chen Ping’an’s Qi Blood and quickly fell into a disadvantage.

Compared to Chen Ping’an, Zuo Wumei had a fatal weakness: his injuries had not yet healed. If he was dragged into a prolonged battle, his Qi Blood would only continue to weaken.

’I can’t fight him head-on! I have to retreat!’

A flicker of panic crossed Zuo Wumei’s face. He wanted to escape, but in his haste, he left his center wide open, revealing a flaw.

SWISH!

A blade flashed. Chen Ping’an seized the opening and slashed straight for it.

In order to seize this fleeting opening, Chen Ping’an’s Saber Momentum lunged forward, and his center of gravity inevitably shifted.

’He took the bait!’

A mocking sneer flashed across Zuo Wumei’s face.

’He had only feigned a small opening, and his opponent had impatiently taken the bait. What good was strength like that? How could his combat experience compare to Zuo Wumei’s own cunning?’

The saber in Zuo Wumei’s hand traced a bizarre arc, accelerating violently in an instant. This burst of speed far surpassed his previous one.

Gale Swift Blade Slash!

This was a trump card he had comprehended back when he was in the Inner Qi Realm, and now, Zuo Wumei was finally unleashing it.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Saber afterimages seemed to fill the sky, radiating an intensely sharp aura.

"Die!"

Zuo Wumei laughed with wild abandon.

As the Gale Swift Blade Slash descended, his Saber Momentum was incredibly fast, far surpassing Chen Ping’an’s own blade.

There was no escaping this strike.

As the swift slash came down, Chen Ping’an’s body fell forward with his shifting center of gravity. The blade, originally aimed for his neck, landed on his shoulder instead.

’Such a fast reaction!’

A hint of surprise flashed in Zuo Wumei’s eyes.

’I’ll take it!’

THUNK!

When Zuo Wumei’s saber struck Chen Ping’an’s shoulder, the expected spray of blood never came. Instead, the blow was simply stopped cold.

"A Hard Skills master!"

Zuo Wumei’s expression changed dramatically. He tried to pull his saber back to defend himself.

But Chen Ping’an wasn’t about to give him that chance.

The Qi Blood in his body seemed to boil over as he pushed his physical strength to the absolute limit.

SWISH!

His blade flashed, slashing out viciously.

Zuo Wumei shifted his footing and dodged, trying to evade Chen Ping’an’s strike, but he was a step too slow.

SQUELCH!

Chen Ping’an’s saber struck Zuo Wumei in the chest.

At the critical moment, Zuo Wumei had managed to avoid a fatal blow.

’If I can just endure this and pull my saber back, I still have a chance.’

But before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, a sharp pain shot through his wrist. Years of Cultivation had made his grip steady, and though the intense pain wasn’t enough to make him drop his saber, it disrupted his attempt to pull it back and defend.

Zuo Wumei felt a heart-stopping aura, and in that moment, he truly felt the chill of a life-or-death crisis.

SQUELCH!

Another slash!

This one struck a vital point.

Zuo Wumei saw only a flash of a blade, and then his vision suddenly flipped upside down as he tumbled through the air.

The next thing he saw was a bloody, headless corpse.

’I weathered great storms and torrential rains, only to have my ship capsize in a gutter.’

"I..."

Zuo Wumei’s expression was one of terror as his consciousness fell into infinite darkness.

Zuo Wumei, abandoned disciple of the Shadowless Blade Sect and a former master of the Second Stage of Inner Qi, was now dead, his head separated from his body!

Tomb Digger’s Land!?

"Sorry, but you should keep it for yourself!" 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Chen Ping’an sheathed his saber, standing and gazing at Zuo Wumei’s headless corpse with a smirk.

His profound and mysterious act didn’t last long. Chen Ping’an’s composure broke, and he began to grimace in pain.

"That really, really hurts!"

Chen Ping’an glanced at his shoulder, which was already completely swollen.

Iron Cloth Shirt Perfection, Thirteen Grand Protectors Cross Training Perfect, and Minor Achievement in Golden Bell Shield—only by stacking these three skills had he been able to barely withstand Zuo Wumei’s saber.

Zuo Wumei’s sword technique really was ferocious!

Had it been an ordinary person’s strike, Chen Ping’an was certain he could have taken it.

’I can’t pull a stunt like that again! If my opponent’s attack had been any stronger than I’d imagined, I would’ve been completely done for.’

At that very moment, Chen Ping’an made a firm resolution: until his Golden Bell Shield reached Perfection, he would never actively do something like that again.

To be honest, that Zuo Wumei was truly cunning. If he hadn’t tanked that hit, killing Zuo Wumei would have been extremely difficult. There was even a good chance Zuo Wumei would have escaped.

’Let’s see what goodies you have.’

Looking at Zuo Wumei’s corpse, Chen Ping’an couldn’t resist the urge to loot it. He quickly went over and thoroughly searched the body, inside and out.

Zuo Wumei’s chest pouch was bulging with quite a few things, which Chen Ping’an took without a second glance. He also found a few silver notes hidden in the sole of Zuo Wumei’s shoe.

After a final check to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, Chen Ping’an walked out of the corner to call over the night patrol constables.

Times were different now!

He could now openly display his strength and take credit for killing Zuo Wumei.

This was a deed worthy of a two-rank promotion and a thousand taels of reward silver, and he was claiming it.

...

The next day, news of Zuo Wumei’s death spread like wildfire through the Nanquan Alley Town Patrol Office.

"Did you hear?"

"What?"

"Zuo Wumei is dead!"

"Who killed him?"

"Lord Chen. Last night, Zuo Wumei ran into Lord Chen and was slain by him on the spot."

"Lord Chen killed him? Was Zuo Wumei really that badly injured?"

"I’m not clear on the details. I just heard it from Erhu and the others."

"..."

While the rumors were flying, Chen Ping’an himself had already gone to the South Town Garrison Command to report the previous night’s events to Mu Wanjun.