It had just passed.
Suddenly—
Cheng Fengxiao was struck in the back by another black-clad figure, sending him flying. The attacker seized the opportunity, stepping in quickly, relentlessly pursuing for another blow!
This man wanted to kill Cheng Fengxiao!
"Hey!"
"Watch the flying knives!"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Yan Chuang launched a barrage of throwing knives from both hands, forcing the attacker to halt the chase.
"Hm?"
"You came?"
"Then what about him?"
The attacker's hoarse voice rasped out. Seeing Yan Chuang arriving alive, his hawk-like eyes spotted the blood on the red tassel of Yan Chuang's flower spear. His expression changed.
"You—!"
A sudden shock struck his heart.
"Not good!"
He gave up chasing Cheng Fengxiao, weaving to dodge the flying knives. With a quick turn, he dashed away, attempting to escape!
"Where do you think you're going?!"
"More knives for you!"
Yan Chuang gave chase without hesitation. However, the man's movements were agile, easily dodging the flurry of flying knives. In the darkness, he quickly began to vanish from sight.
"Too bad—you can't stop me!"
"Too bad—you can't escape!"
Yan Chuang used his ultimate footwork technique, "Phantom Steps," to stay hot on his tail. At the same time, he continuously threw flying knives and channeled 100 points of Spirit into his Red Tassel Spear—
Crack!
The Red Tassel Spear shattered again!
Another failed upgrade.
But Yan Chuang felt no disappointment this time. In fact, he almost wanted to laugh. Still throwing knives, he quickly drew a random one and infused it with Spirit—
[Rare Item · Flying Knife (Lv.10): Concealed weapon. A small blade, narrow and leaf-shaped, about four inches long. Red and green silk tied to the hilt. (Attributes: Precision, Acceleration, Sharpness, Wind Piercing)]
A single flying knife!
Silent and deadly!
With unmatched precision and speed!
It cut through the wind, already flying fast—but just before reaching the black-clad figure, it accelerated again, gaining even more speed—
Ssssh!
Bang!
One of the rare flying knives, hidden among the regular ones, struck the man's neck. The force exploded through the impact—one hit, one kill!
Thud!
The black-clad man dropped dead on the spot.
Thwip thwip thwip!
Yan Chuang, cautious as ever, threw three more knives into the man's shoulder and chest. Then, using both hands, he hurled his Qiankun Rings, empowered with the Hunyuan Force—
BANG! BANG!
They broke the man's limbs and returned to Yan Chuang's hands.
No chances—he made sure the man was dead.
Only then did Yan Chuang approach and slice off the man's face mask with a flying knife. He looked closely—and his pupils shrank.
"A Ten Elder?!"
"Yuan Shicai?!"
——
"It's really him!"
"Was that why Wang Kuan gave me that warning?"
Yan Chuang grabbed Yuan Shicai's body and quickly leapt back to the martial hall. Inside, Cheng Fengxiao was unmasking the other black-clad figure, already dead from earlier. One glance was all it took:
"Wen Wu!"
Wen Wu of the Flame Fist!
Another one of the Ten Elders!
Hearing movement behind him, Cheng Fengxiao turned to see Yan Chuang returning and dropped the corpse at his feet. Looking at the face of the corpse, Cheng Fengxiao wiped blood from his mouth and twitched his lips.
"You killed two of the Ten Elders in one night?!"
"Master!"
"I didn't mean to!"
Yan Chuang forced a bitter smile.
He truly felt bitter.
The Red Tassel Spear was just too tempting. He didn't expect that the first people it would attract would be two inner court elders from Guangling Academy—absolute powerhouses in Guangling City.
But thinking about it… it made sense.
Yan Chuang had crushed Guangling Academy's forces at the Martial Arts Tournament, even killing Elder Wu Qi, one of the Ten Elders.
With that kind of strength…
That kind of fearsome reputation…
Only a few dared to come rob him at the Iron Thread Martial Hall—and among them, Guangling Academy had the most people with the skill to do it. As long as they were careful around his Red Tassel Spear, some of those Ten Elders might even be able to beat him.
Statistically speaking, it wasn't strange that two Ten Elders showed up tonight.
No surprise there.
But sadly…
Even the strongest martial arts master can't stop a kitchen knife!
The first, Wen Wu, was a master of the "Flame Fist," one of Guangling Academy's most well-known techniques. He had once merged the Flame Fist with the Fire Sect style and brought it into Guangling Academy, becoming a Ten Elder through sheer ferocity and speed.
In direct combat, he had few rivals in the city.
Among the younger generation, no one could match him.
But then he met Yan Chuang.
Yan Chuang didn't fight fair.
He deliberately revealed an opening, baiting Wen Wu to strike. But Yan had the Golden Silkworm Armor for defense and the Hunyuan Qi to protect his body. Wen Wu's blade did nothing, while Yan impaled him once, then twice, then a third time—killing him in humiliation.
And Yuan Shicai?
He was even more pitiful.
His specialty, the "Lion's Roar," was powerful but flashy and loud—unsuitable for stealth. So he used a more subtle skillset. But even so, his strength was enough to nearly beat Cheng Fengxiao to death.
When Yan Chuang appeared, though, and Yuan realized Wen Wu might've already been killed in an instant…
He panicked.
Terrified.
He didn't even dare fight—he turned and fled.
That gave Yan Chuang his chance!
Flying knife after flying knife!
One rare artifact after another!
Yan deliberately broke his Red Tassel Spear to redirect the Spirit into a flying knife. With one throw, he landed the kill.
Yuan Shicai was gone—just like that!
Two of the Ten Elders, dead.
——
"What do we do about this?" asked Cheng Fengxiao.
Yan Chuang thought for a moment, then grinned, casting all concerns aside. He pointed to the two corpses.
"Don't waste them, Master. While they're fresh."
"Hmm?"
"You're right!"
Understanding immediately, Cheng Fengxiao took out a Star Stone from his robe and tossed it onto the wounds of both men. In an instant, their blood and energy flowed in reverse, pouring into the Star Stone.
The bodies shriveled into husks.
"This Star Stone is… unsettling," Cheng Fengxiao muttered, lifting the now glowing stone from Yuan Shicai's corpse. It was smooth and untouched, sending a chill down his spine.
"Just a tool," Yan Chuang said casually.
"No good or evil in it."
What he needed was the Star Stone's ability to open star gates and connect to the Shanhai Realm. How it charged didn't matter.
"True enough."
Cheng Fengxiao nodded, sensing the energy in the stone. He smiled at Yan Chuang. "Now I can open the star gate again. This time, I'm going with you!"
A pleasant surprise!
Originally, Cheng wouldn't have had enough energy until mid-December. But with the blood and Qi of two Ten Elders, the Star Stone charged instantly.
Now the master and disciple could go together!
"Great!"
Yan Chuang was thrilled.
Don't be fooled—though Cheng Fengxiao had been instantly defeated by Wu Qi and nearly killed by Yuan Shicai, he was still strong. Against ordinary enemies, he could hold his own for several moves.
In the Shanhai Realm, if they faced a powerful enemy, Cheng could stall them—
Then Yan would strike with a rare flying knife—
Whoosh!
Dead!
Two fists can't beat four hands.
With his master's support, it was like leveling up again, or mastering a whole new martial art.
In short—
Wonderful!
They both rejoiced.
Soon after—
Cheng Fengxiao handed Wen Wu's long knife to Yan Chuang. "This is also a rare weapon."
It wasn't one Wen Wu usually used, clearly kept hidden.
But neither Yan nor Cheng used sabers, so it wasn't much use to them.
"Let's keep it for a trade."
Yan Chuang examined the knife, then checked the bodies of both elders. Besides their black outfits, they carried nothing else.
"They came in secret," Cheng Fengxiao chuckled. "No way they'd bring valuables."
Indeed!
Unlike fugitives like Du Hanfeng and Fan Defang, who carried their treasures with them, Yuan Shicai and Wen Wu had homes, identities—they wouldn't risk bringing valuables.
Yuan didn't even bring his rare weapon!
——
Cheng Fengxiao, wounded, went inside to rest.
Yan Chuang finished dealing with the corpses and followed. Inside, he helped Cheng sit up, then pointed two fingers at his acupoints—the Tianfu Point and Yongquan Point—sending internal energy flowing through him.
Then—
Thud!
Yan sat cross-legged behind him, placing both palms on his back and began transferring Hunyuan Internal Energy, carefully adjusting Cheng's circulation.
Having mastered the Hunyuan Skill, Yan could finally treat injuries this way.
Breath transfer.
Circulation guidance.
Detox and unblock.
Regulate and restore.
As the stagnant blood and trapped energy were cleared, Cheng's face regained color.
"So this is the 'Hunyuan Skill'?"
"That's the 'Hunyuan Force'?"
Cheng Fengxiao looked back at Yan in amazement. This was his first time experiencing healing like this.
Yan nodded with a smile. "Indeed. This is the 'Hunyuan Force' trained from 'Hunyuan Skill.' Hard or soft, it's perfect for treating your internal injuries. I also transferred some 'Vital Energy from Five Animal Play' into your body. You'll recover in less than three days."
"Amazing!"
Cheng Fengxiao was full of praise.
He stood up and moved around—feeling much better.
But when he saw Wen Wu's saber resting inside the room, his smile faded. Sitting down again, he sighed.
"Wu Qi trained flesh. Yuan Shicai trained bone. I couldn't even take one move from them! I thought after mastering 'Six Harmonies and Eight Methods Fist' and 'Five Forms and Eight Methods Fist,' plus five Zhu Fruits, I'd be strong enough to rival Wang Kuan and others. But now—how laughable!"
He had taken two serious hits to the ego.
First, Wu Qi slapped him away like a fly.
Then, Yuan Shicai came at him barehanded while Cheng wielded an iron staff—still beaten in a few moves.
Yuan didn't even use his signature Lion's Roar.
The gap was enormous.
Cheng Fengxiao began to doubt his whole life.
Even Yan Chuang—
He was shaken too.