Chapter 47 - 47 47 Three Steps Three Kills

47: Chapter 47: Three Steps, Three Kills 47: Chapter 47: Three Steps, Three Kills The vessel instrument was none other than the Fate Preserving Tray displayed on Master of the Medicine Manor’s desk! And what these Demon Sect disciples were doing was quite simple. No matter whether the elixirs were prepared or not, under the onslaught of the Red Armored Guards, they had to recover the Blood Pills as quickly as possible to minimize losses. Stay calm. An Jing channeled the Tranquil Sword Manual, took a deep breath, and calmed himself, “These people… are considerably strong!” Guns were not an option, for they were too noisy. Besides, if he couldn’t resolve the battle quickly, it might attract more people from the Demon Sect, and then it would be impossible to rescue the other children in the dungeon. Among the three disciples, An Jing recognized one: Han Jiaoxi, the martial instructor, whose strength was second only to Instructor Li. The other two were new faces, perhaps ones the children had never met. An Jing frowned slightly; Han Jiaoguan’s strength was formidable, his Inner Breath as Vast as a River at its peak, naturally a notch above him. Moreover, he practiced Horizontal Training, his body strong and sturdy, his skin a matte brass color, appearing extremely tough. The other two’s aura was weaker, but one had Inner Breath as Vast as a River and the other, Inner Breath like Silk, both Martial Artists. Alone, he could easily sneak up and kill one, but with two, it was nearly impossible to prevent them from sending out a warning. And with three, it was definitely impossible. “Alive people are ultimately more important… My goal is to rescue those children locked in the cells; these instructors… forget it.” At this moment, An Jing calmed himself down. His feelings toward the Demon Sect were complex, even more so toward these instructors he had spent a great deal of time with. If these instructors took the Blood Pill Great Medicine and left, then he could simply take the children and part ways with them forever, hoping to never meet again. But if… An Jing was grave, and so were the disciples. “Damn it, why so slow?” Han Jiaoxi’s face was still smeared with blood, and he furrowed his brows, continuously spewing curses, “It’s a lifesaving pill, being slow by even a minute means an earlier death for a brother!” “Isn’t this Life-Nourishing Tray usually quick at condensing Blood Qi? How come it’s this damn slow now?” “Master, the fate weapon requires a person of corresponding Fate Pattern to operate normally,” explained the younger voice, “Only the Manor Master, who lends Spirit to Revive Fate, has such a fate in our manor; we can only go slowly…” “Damn it!” Han Jiaoxi spat to the side, looking westward with hatred in his voice, “Damn Red Armored Guards! Damn internal traitors!” “Even the Northern Patrol Envoy was blocked; we can’t keep fighting, once we finish gathering the Blood Pills and heal our brothers, we must leave immediately!” An Jing watched the scene intently. The Northern Patrol Envoy was a big shot within the Heaven’s Will Cult, also one of the Divine Repository True Persons who was previously fighting someone afar. Such a high-ranking figure’s visit to the Hanging Fate Manor was surely because of the Ritual Sacrifice. If he hadn’t rebelled and there were no Red Armored Guards, it would have probably been the Northern Patrol Envoy taking him and Bai Qinghan, along with the other children who had awakened their Fate Patterns, to the main mountain of the Heaven’s Will Cult. The three were still absorbing Blood Qi, condensing Blood Pills, and during this process, the youngest disciple pondered, “Although it’s bad luck, those injured brothers are indeed blessed by this misfortune… Blood Pills, I only received one when I joined the cult, but after this, surely their powers will greatly increase.” “Who knows when I’ll have enough military merits to receive such a reward.” “It should have been so.” Han Jiaoxi glanced toward the direction of the Fate Valley, his expression gloomy, “I saw two soaring starlights in the valley just now, there must be two Strange Mandates born—In the past, we Martial Artists would receive a Blood Pill as a reward!” “If it involves the Star Mansion Celestial Officer, Blood Fiend Divine Generals, Mysterious Yin Goddess, or even the Saint Heir of the Seven Fiend, it wouldn’t be just a reward of Flesh and Blood Great Medicine… Our entire northwest district of the cult could ascend to heaven!” Caught in his reverie, but fantasy always ends; Han Jiaoxi soon bowed his head and impatiently waved his hand, “Work, work… the Fate Bones in those several vats haven’t dissolved yet, the conversion rate is too slow.” “Right, there are some little things in the dungeon.” Thinking of this, Han Jiaoxi looked towards the dungeon, his eyes showing a fierce light, “Though they are materials we don’t need, we can’t leave them for the dog emperor… You, continue gathering the Blood Pills. You, go to the storeroom and take out all the top-grade fate weapons, then destroy the storeroom!” “What we can’t keep, we can’t leave for the dog emperor!” “Yes, captain!” With that, he placed his hand on the hilt of his blade and stepped toward the dungeon. His steps sounded on the ground like the clash of metal on stone. Clearly, in the previous fight with the Red Armored Guards, Han Jiaoxi had fully activated his Inner Breath, his entire body as tough as metal. When he accidentally grazed a stone railing near the dungeon, the railing, built of mountain bluestone, was easily chunked off like tofu, and Han Jiaoxi seemed not to notice. Copper skin and iron bones! An Jing, who had been clenching his fists tightly, had his pupils constrict. Han Jiaoxi’s Horizontal Training ability possibly stems from his awakened ‘Fate Pattern’, surpassing his Inner Breath realm in defensive power; even the Master of the Medicine Manor was no match for him! Could his Fiend Sword break through Han Jiaoxi’s copper skin and iron bones? Even if it could, how much Inner Breath would it consume, and could he take on three people? Based on the Master of the Medicine Manor’s performance, bullets might not be effective against a prepared Martial Artist; even if they could kill, the noise was too loud and would definitely be discovered. But… upon hearing the opponents’ plan to ‘dispose of the little things in the dungeon’, An Jing’s heart calmed down, all other thoughts and tension dissolving. So that’s how it is, isn’t it? Even letting them be burned to death without giving them a chance to ‘Let Heaven Decide’? An Jing wasn’t angry. He just found it amusing, “It seems I also need to take care of some old fixtures.” It was time to fight. Having just received three Qi Boosting Pills from the Master of the Medicine Manor, An Jing didn’t hesitate and immediately consumed one. This was not the time to be frugal—the time to use them was now! Han Jiaoxi chose to clean up the dungeon’s young men and women, which was the easiest task, but the two young cult disciples took it for granted and, after acknowledging his order, set about their tasks. One continued to extract medicinal strength using the Life-Nourishing Tray, while the other headed toward another courtyard. With their three-person team now down to two, a gap appeared, ripe for a surprise attack. “That jade dagger is after all a Magic Artifact and can serve as a foundation to condense a sharper Blood Qi Fiend Sword.” The Sword Spirit advised, “Using blood as the source and the blade as the support, you can condense the ‘Blood Fiend Law Sword,’ which is tougher and more powerful than ordinary fiend swords.” Alright. An Jing didn’t hesitate at all, immediately pulled out the jade dagger, cut open his palm, smeared the blood on the blade and, using the method taught by the Sword Spirit, condensed the Blood Fiend. Threads of crimson aura rose from An Jing’s blood, originating from the blade of the jade dagger, and condensed into an ethereal and hazy Blood Fiend Sword. Not only that, but as the Qi Boosting Pill melted in his stomach, An Jing felt a blazing flame ignite within him. This flame of Essence Qi expanded within An Jing, spreading throughout his body, causing his blood to boil and red blood vessels to emerge on his face, and he felt a surge of the urge to roar out loud from his chest and abdomen. The medicinal strength mixed with Yuan Qi, and strands of Inner Breath condensed from his meridians, from his flesh and blood, and from his organs, filling An Jing’s somewhat depleted Qi Sea! “Huh?!” The hulking Han Jiaoxi had been considering how to kill the children in the dungeon to refine more of the Blood Pill Great Medicine, but suddenly, he smelled a faint scent of blood and his eyes widened in alarm, “Something’s odd!” Han Jiaoxi wanted to turn and face the enemy, but just as he turned around, he smelled a whiff of medicinal fragrance—the Meridian Interruption Powder carried by the air. Even though it hadn’t taken effect yet, it momentarily slowed his reflexes, “The Vice Envoy of Medicine’s concoction?!” And in that instant, a figure emitting intense heat descended from above, and with a piercing stab, carried the sound of a whistle! The force of the strike blew Han Jiaoxi’s hair back as, before his eyes, a sword shadow rapidly enlarged, completely filling his field of vision, piercing straight at his one vital point—his eyeball! Han Jiaoxi hurriedly raised his hand to block his face; he was made of iron and copper, ordinary weapons couldn’t possibly break through his Horizontal Training, at most causing him a headache. —Survive this strike, and there might be a… Before he could finish the thought, the silver-glittering Blood Fiend Sword pierced through his palm, penetrated his eyeball, and plunged into his brain. Gurgle. The blade churned, the figure withdrew the sword, bringing up a spray of fresh blood and grayish brain matter. “What?” The young disciple, who was still absorbing blood qi, finally realized something was wrong. He turned around only to see a figure with blood-red eyes charging towards him. The Demon Disciple instinctively crossed his arms to block, but in the next moment, to his shock, he discovered his arms had been cleanly severed at the elbows, and a youth wielding a sword stood before him, his pupils streaming with crimson ferocity. Crack. Spinning, spinning. As he spun, he saw his own neck, his own back, his legs, and then the rocky ground… and the darkness. “Captain, what happened?” The young Demon Disciple who had been ordered to fetch the ‘precious fated weapon’ heard the commotion and had now returned. He stepped into the courtyard puzzled, not having time to see anything before smelling the overwhelming blood. He heard a loud boom! Thump! An Jing stomped on the ground, violently leaping forward like a hawk pouncing on its prey, thrusting his sword fiercely into the man’s chest! S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Splat! Thump! The sound of the collision with the ground echoed, and two figures fell; only one figure stood up. The young disciple’s chest and abdomen had been cleaved open, his ribs cleanly severed, his organs spilling out; blue rib cartilage, green organs, and red blood pooled around him, while his rapidly fading eyes stared at An Jing with an incredulous and horrified expression. Hum. A sound of sword humming, and the Blood Fiend Sword in An Jing’s hand, from its initial threads, had now become almost solid, flowing with a blood-flame like a river. In less than ten breaths, having drunk the blood of three men, the fiend sword radiated a crimson light, illuminating the entire courtyard. And An Jing, his face shrouded in shadows, silently watched everything and slowly let out a breath tinted with the color of blood.