"Under the decree of His Majesty, I order the arrest of the prime offender. Everyone, surrender now!
Anyone who resists will be killed on sight!"
The booming voice of Lin Qingyi could be heard all around.
This was the process of the Brocade Guards. Regardless of the situation, an act of aggression within Tiandu had to be announced with an official title.
However, the people inside the residence were well aware of their exposed position and paid no heed to Lin Qingyi's words.
"Climb over the walls."
As soon as the order was given, many prepared to flee over the walls.
But as soon as a figure appeared, the Brocade Guards stationed around the perimeter showered them with bolts from their prepped crossbows, forcing them back and even hitting a few unlucky ones.
A crossbow might not be that effective in a one-on-one martial artist combat as most are capable of dodging with their sharp reflexes.
However, when faced with a barrage of arrows, even a second-class martial artist like Pei Xuanjing must retreat.
It's not that their True Qi couldn't deflect the barrage, rather doing so would rapidly deplete the martial artist's True Qi. The cost of such a clash would be high and could lead to a disadvantageous situation.
"We're surrounded by crossbowmen, our only chance is to cut our way out from the front!" The group inside quickly altered their tactics.
Almost instantaneously, a man charged forth, surprisingly a third-grade pseudo grandmaster. He ignored others and made a beeline for Lin Qingyi as if intending to capture him as a hostage.
"Hmph!" Lin Qingyi was unperturbed by the thunderous strike of a pseudo grandmaster, standing calmly at his position and simply scoffed.
It wasn't because Lin Qingyi considered himself strong enough to ignore a third-grade pseudo grandmaster, but because Pei Xuanjing was standing beside him.
With the presence of a second-class martial artist like Pei Xuanjing at his side, he had no worries about being captured under their watch.
Not only Lin Qingyi thought so, but Qinglong and the others too, who ignored the pseudo grandmaster's action.
Seeing his plan of capturing the ringleader to subdue his followers almost succeed, a smile broke onto the pseudo grandmaster's face.
Unfortunately, that smile froze on his face before it fully blossomed.
Boom!
Pei Xuanjing did not draw his sword. A sweep of his sleeve struck the pseudo grandmaster's chest forcing him to retreat, airborne by the pressurized wave.
He turned to the others and said, "Leave them to you all. I will deal with that second-class martial artist."
"There's actually a second-class martial artist." Hearing Pei Xuanjing's remark, the others blurted out.
But they did not get a reply from Pei Xuanjing, who was seen leaping into the sky over the front gate and descending into the residence.
"Quick, take action. We can't let Brother Pei get besieged." The sight of Pei Xuanjing's leap startled Lin Qingyi, who quickly instructed for their engagement.
He was well aware that beyond the second-class martial artist mentioned by Pei Xuanjing, there were several third-grade grandmasters and pseudo grandmasters. What if they decided to surround him?
Upon hearing this, Qinglong and the others didn't hesitate, each wielding their weapon and charging forth.
Contrary to Lin Qingyi's assumption, Pei Xuanjing was not besieged.
Although some wanted to take advantage of Pei Xuanjing's audacious act of jumping alone into the courtyard from the sky, they were stopped by a middle-aged man dressed in black silk attire.
"So you're Pei Xuanjing?" The middle-aged man looked at Pei Xuanjing with interest.
Pei Xuanjing stood in the courtyard, unfazed even while surrounded. He gently rested his hand on the hilt of his sword and nodded.
"Did you send the MO Bei Three wolves?" Pei Xuanjing's gaze fell on the middle-aged man. He ignored the fierce killing intent on the faces of the others and audibly questioned.
"Correct." The middle-aged man took his time answering, his eyes on Pei Xuanjing, "Seems like I underestimated you. Should've invited you to join us."
Pei Xuanjing scoffed, "Join you?"
The middle-aged man smiled, "Allow me to introduce myself. You may call me the King of Equanimity, one of the Ten Kings of Hell."
The middle-aged man, the King of Equanimity, began, "As long as you join us, we can settle the issue of the MO Bei Three Wolves.
If he could trade the MO Bei Three Wolves for someone as promising as a second-class martial artist, it would be a huge profit.
Pei Xuanjing shook his head dismissively, "Not interested."
He asked, "Looking at you, do you think you can get away?"
The King of Equanimity calmly nodded, his words overflowed with confidence, "As long there is no first-class martial artist, no one in Tiandu can keep me here."
Such was his confidence, it was also the reason why he could remain calm even when surrounded.
"Is that so? I don't think so. " Pei Xuanjing retorted icily.
The King of Equanimity looked at the indignant and youthful Pei Xuanjing, reminiscing, "Twenty-odd years old and already a second-class martial artist, seeing you now reminds me of Tie Qianshan twenty-odd years ago."
Tie Qianshan.
Pei Xuanjing slightly furrowed his brows, he didn't expect to hear this name from his opponent.
"You know Tie Qianshan?" He asked.
Could it be that Tie Qianshan also has a connection with the Underworld?
The King of Equanimity nodded, "Of course, I invited him back then, just like I did with you."
When he said this, a smile flickered on his lips, "But, back then, Tie Qianshan had someone to save him. Who would save you today?"
"Save me?" Pei Xuanjing was taken aback, then he shook his head, "I don't need anyone to save me."
At this point, Qinglong and others with their reinforcements rushed in. The King of Equanimity signalled the person next to him to meet the threat.
"We don't have much time." The smile on his face gradually disappeared, "I originally didn't plan to engage you again today, but to think you'd walk right into my trap… So today, you will…"
Seeing that he couldn't get more information out of the man, an impatient expression surfaced on Pei Xuanjing's face. He interrupted, "Has anyone ever told you before?"
"What?" The King of Equanimity was taken aback by the interruption and instinctively questioned. "Your high and mighty attitude makes people sick to their stomach! "Bellowed Pei Xuanjing!
As soon as his voice sounded, the long sword at his waist was unsheathed.
Clang!
True Qi circulated within Pei Xuanjing's body, his Blood Qi boiling. With a heavy stomp, he stepped forward.
The boiling Blood Qi triggered a fierce gust of wind. It lifted from the ground, whirling the atmosphere and stirring dust. His Flowing Flame Sword swept down from above towards the King of Equanimity.
"Arrogant pup!" The King of Equanimity snapped, his True Qi erupted, his Blood Qi overflowing.
It was unclear whether he was angry because of Pei Xuanjing's abrupt offensive or his provocative words.
A steel whip appeared in his hand, unsurprisingly a Thousand Refinement Divine Weapon.
While Pei Xuanjing made the first move, the King of Equanimity wasn't slow to react. He swung his steel whip, his True Qi and Blood Qi intertwined, invoking a killing move. With the momentum of smashing everything in its path, it seemed like it would crush Pei Xuanjing to a pulp..
Clang!
The sound of a metallic clash echoed out.
Pei Xuanjing stood motionless at his original spot, but King Pingdeng was forced to retreat several steps under the massive impact, the stone slab underneath his feet being crushed.
King Pingdeng looked at Pei Xuanjing as if looking at a monster. He couldn't comprehend how such an apparently weak body could exert such a brutal force.
But before he could think more, Pei Xuanjing's piercing sword energy rushed towards him.
The King'S reaction was incredibly swift. Almost instantly, he swung the steel whip in his hand, striving to fend off Pei Xuanjing's long sword.
Clang!
The long sword and the steel whip clashed again. The visible energy wave radiated out in circles centred on the two of them, the intense blood qi almost pervading the entire yard.
Qinglong and others who were initially fighting couldn't help but dodge away from Pei Xuanjing's and King Pingdeng's formidable momentum, unconsciously shifting the battlefield to avoid their collateral damage.
Pei Xuanjing held his long sword, his face icy cold, his clothes rustling and dancing in the wind.
The confident and arrogant expression on the King's face faded away, replaced by total seriousness and astonishment.
"You truly shocked me," A thick murderous intent emerged in King Pingdeng's eyes.
He hadn't expected that a young man, whom he had initially disregarded, could demonstrate such incredible strength, making him appear so disgruntled with just two moves.
This time, he completely abandoned any contempt he had.
As soon as he finished speaking, his footsteps became profound. His body moved like a ghost, and his steel whip operated like a poisonous snake, appearing unpredictably.
Yinsu was an assassin organization. These assassins might have shortcomings in other aspects, but they all excelled at agility. King Pingdeng's agility was among the top in the martial arts world.
Pei Xuanjing sneered, his whole body rose with the might of the wind and thunder, and the energy wave stirred up a cloud of dust.
The agility aspect of the Dharma Sword Skill had made up for his agility inadequacy. Facing King Pingdeng's ghost-like agility, he showed no fear.
His agility was as swift as a startled swan and flexible as a dragon. Just like fleeting light and passing shadows, he wielded the Flowing Flame Sword effortlessly. Sword moves from the Dharma Sword Skill were casually displayed by him.
The long sword pointed in multiple directions, seemingly without a pattern but exceptionally marvelous. The sword came and retreated swiftly, truly reaching the supreme realm of having intention before the sword, moving as fast as a frightened rabbit, and standing silently like a maiden.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh…
The wild wind swept through. When the two of them fought, their True Qi overflowed. The resonating sound from their muscles and bones was comparable to that of roaring tigers and leopards. The blood qi was as tumultuous as the crashing waves.
One's long sword was like a dragon, representing fleeting light and passing shadows; the other's steel whip was like a snake, appearing and disappearing mysteriously.
In the blink of an eye, they had fought for several rounds.
However, the longer they fought, the more frightened King Pingdeng got, and he could no longer maintain his initial confidence.
He had been in the Second-Class Realm for nearly thirty years. Soaked in this realm for a long time, his True Qi was profound, and his blood qi was pure. He believed that even in the whole of the Great Ming, he was among the top tier martial artists in the Second-Class Realm.
The current Pei Xuanjing was just over twenty, less than twenty-four years old at best. Even if he had extraordinary talent and accidentally broke through to the Second -Class Realm, compared with him, he would be inferior in terms of True Qi accumulation and the purity of blood qi.
However, more than ten rounds of fighting made King Pingdeng realize, he was wrong.
The young man before him was a monster. Perhaps the latter's True Qi accumulation was slightly inferior to his, but that wouldn't be much of a difference. As for the purity of blood qi, it was even more abundant than his.
"Could it be possible, am I really going to fall here, today?" Such a thought crossed King Pingdeng•s mind.
However, King Pingdeng quickly suppressed that idea. How could he come up with such a thought?
Thinking about this, he swung the steel whip in his hand faster, seemingly to prove his fearlessness.
Pei Xuanjing was unaware of his opponent's thoughts. His previous engagement with King Pingdeng was just to habituate himself with the Second -Class martial artist's fighting experience and adapt to the rhythm.
After more than ten rounds, he had adjusted to this rhythm and was unwilling to continue following the opponent's pace.
He stabbed out with his sword, then fully activated the Dragon Elephant Art. The full activation of the
seventh level of the Dragon Elephant Art made his muscular body even more robust. The stretching of muscle fibers under his skin was like pulling the strings of a strong bow.
Under the stimulation of True Qi and blood qi, his internal organs started rhythmically throbbing. Every single inch of his muscles, bones, and skin was filled with the most masculine and assertive energy, producing subtle crackling noises.
Giant Spirit Surpasses Mountains.
He released a palm strike, with the weight of all his strength, seemingly powerful enough to destroy mountains.
He launched his strongest palm attack thus far.
Whoosh!
At this very moment, the boiling blood qi exploded.
A fierce, domineering palm strike was aimed at King Pingdeng.
"This move!"
King Pingdeng was shocked by Pei Xuanjing's sudden burst of such a violent palm strike. In a daze, it seemed as if he saw a strikingly similar palm strike from more than twenty years ago.
In his stupor, he felt a severe danger and the undisguised, almost tangible, murderous intent from Pei
Xuanjing.
His first reaction was to dodge!
However, he found that this seemingly straightforward palm strike had blocked all his escape routes.
He had nowhere to hide.
A trace of determination flashed in his eyes.
Even if I die, I will not let you off the hook.
Having no choice, King Pingdeng stimulated his True Qi, boiling the blood qi around his body.
Netherworld Death Palm! A supreme martial art and one of Yinsu's superb skills.
Cultivated with the Netherworld Death Qi, it was incredibly powerful. Once hit by the palm, the Netherworld Death Qi would invade the body. If one could not expel the Death Qi, they would experience excruciating pain and even get their inner True Qi, blood qi, and body continuously corroded by the Death Qi. It was extremely malicious.
Retreat!
Quickly retreat!
In the courtyard, the people involved in the fight, whether they were from Brocade Guards or Yinsu, almost everyone quickly moved back, unwilling to be swept into this fight.
Boom!
In an instant, a thunderous attack descended.
The surging blood qi engulfed King Pingdeng, and their palms collided, causing a thunderous bang.
The friction and collision of True Qi and blood qi reached their peak at this moment, causing the entire mansion to shake, halls to collapse, and rooms to crumble or crack as if hit by a thunderous earthquake.
With the two of them at the center, everything within a radius of more than ten feet was virtually destroyed. The walls in the garden were completely shattered, and the Qing Shi pavement was turned into powder. The ground under their feet sank by several feet.
Pei Xuanjing was standing on the spot with his left hand behind him and his right hand holding the long sword, his clothes torn and his long hair loose, dancing in the wind.
But other than the several foot deep pit under his feet, he didn't seem to have many injuries.
Seeing this, everybody in the room fell silent..