Chapter 294: Wood-Chopping Saber Technique

Duan Rong's gaze was cold and sharp as he pulled the Minghong Saber from the back of the fortune teller's head.

The tip of the Minghong Saber was smeared with a layer of sticky brain matter; Duan Rong channeled his Internal Breath, gave the blade a shake, and flicked the brain matter onto the ground.

Duan Rong sheathed his saber and cast his gaze around.

He had already devised a plan beforehand, so he felt no hesitation and immediately began to carry it out.

This dilapidated temple actually had two entrances; besides the temple gate, there was a collapsed corner, though it was just a pile of bricks and rubble, making the hole narrow and inconvenient for coming and going.

Duan Rong suddenly bent down, reached out to tear off the pant leg of his right trouser, and then, with a flash of movement, hung the scrap of cloth onto a jagged wooden splinter protruding from a broken pillar in the collapsed hole.

The mountain wind blew in, and the scrap of cloth fluttered in the breeze...

Duan Rong was doing this to create the illusion that he had killed the fortune teller in the temple and then escaped through the collapsed hole...

As for his true hiding place, Duan Rong's gaze had already settled on a dust-covered jar beside the temple's idol...

Duan Rong felt that the jar was too conspicuous sitting next to the idol, so he strode over, reached his large hand into the jar, lifted it by the inner wall, and placed it in a dim corner in the shade of the temple.

That spot was out of the light, and without looking closely, one would never see that there was a dust-covered jar placed in that corner.

After placing the jar, Duan Rong stuck one foot inside, and then his whole body began to crackle and pop; his frame shrank circle by circle, and after two breaths, he twisted his entire body bit by bit until he was inside the jar.

This was the plan Duan Rong had decided on: use the Bone Shrinking Technique to hide inside the jar in this dilapidated temple. This way, even if someone searched the temple, they would never notice him.

Duan Rong did not choose to flee immediately; for one, he feared he would not be able to escape. The Filthy Blood Sect had cast such a massive net, and who knew if they had people waiting in reserve.

Secondly, he did not want to just leave like this; what if his side ended up winning? Although the people from the Filthy Blood Sect were formidable, those Sect Emissaries were no pushovers either.

Hiding in this jar, he could use Divine Sense Projection to scout the situation outside.

Not only could he ensure his own safety, but he could also adapt to changes at any time, able to advance or retreat.

If their side won, he would come out of the jar; killing the fortune teller could count as a meritorious deed, and for such a major case, the Sect might even grant him a reward.

If the Filthy Blood Sect wiped them all out, Duan Rong would stay hidden in the jar and wait until everyone had dispersed before coming out.

If the second scenario occurred, Duan Rong did not intend to return to Xiangu County.

With such a major case and everyone dead, he would have no way to explain how he survived. Whether it was the Sect or the government, they would both focus their investigations on him.

How could he withstand such an investigation?

If the second scenario occurred, Duan Rong planned to run away, change locations, live under an assumed name, and lay low for a while.

Once the heat died down, he would use the silver from the Wild Boar Mountain stronghold to find a way to get himself a new identity.

Three years later, he would use his new identity to participate in the selection for Sect Registered Disciples once again.

He did not believe that if he tried again, he would be this unlucky!

Hiding in the jar in the dilapidated temple, the only thing Duan Rong was worried about was Xiao Yu and Ximen Kankan, but his Divine Sense scan had failed to pick them up at all.

Around him, there were only Tao Rong and Lv Qingzhu.

Xiao Yu and Ximen Kankan were likely in the wild fields on the other side of the Official Road. Duan Rong had no idea what the situation was like over there, and with strong enemies everywhere, in truth, the True Qi Realm experts were the main force in this chaotic battle; someone like him was basically cannon fodder.

Duan Rong knew very well that he only had the ability to save himself, not others. If he lost his head now and tried to force his way across the smoke-filled Official Road to save Xiao Yu on the other side, he would likely fail to save Xiao Yu and end up dead himself!

It was too chaotic outside, and he had no idea how many people the Filthy Blood Sect had actually deployed this time...

Tao Rong leaped out from the thick black smoke and landed in the wild fields beside the Official Road.

He was panting heavily, snot and tears streaming down his face; the black smoke was mixed with Poison Powder, and because his reaction had been a split second too slow, he had inhaled a little...

Tao Rong wiped his nose, and just as he looked up, he saw a person flash out from behind a large tree not far from him.

The man was about forty-something years old, with a resolute face and bright eyes; he wore coarse cloth garments and his hands were empty. The wrinkles on his face were deep, and his hands were covered in calluses.

This person walked over slowly, his demeanor just like that of an honest, inarticulate old farmer from a nearby village.

He stood not far from Tao Rong, fixed his eyes on him, and said in a deep voice, "You are Tao Rong?"

Tao Rong was shocked; in this desolate wilderness, how could an ordinary farmer call him by his name the moment he opened his mouth?

Moreover, with black smoke billowing here and such a huge commotion, this person was calm and showed no panic—how could he be an ordinary farmer?

Tao Rong did not answer, but instead drew his weapon, held the blade horizontally in front of him, and rolled his eyes around, for he could already hear the faint sound of metal clashing coming from all directions; clearly, the fighting was not limited to his location...

The old farmer saw Tao Rong's reaction and chuckled, "Still being careful? Your face is quite fair, but it's a pity you aren't a woman; what's the use of being so pretty?"

As the old farmer spoke, he pulled a wood-chopping saber from his back waist.

This wood-chopping saber was the blade he usually used to chop wood in his courtyard, or one could say it was a farm tool.

He had been using this blade for nearly thirty years; every time he gripped it, it felt like an extension of his own hand, perfectly in tune with his thoughts, without any obstruction.

The old farmer gripped the wood-chopping saber, suddenly took swift, short steps, and with a flash of black light, the Blade Shadow descended like a silk ribbon, hacking straight at Tao Rong's head.

Tao Rong had fought a bitter battle against Duan Rong at the Selection of Heroes, and after returning to contemplate for several days, he had already broken through to the Entering Micro realm.

Seeing the old farmer's overhead strike, he was shocked!

The old farmer was using strange, short steps, yet his speed was astonishingly fast, and this overhead strike was simple, steady, and devoid of any flair—clearly, he was a seasoned fighter with considerable attainment.

Both were in the Entering Micro realm, and they instantly began to fight.

As soon as they exchanged blows, the old farmer clicked his tongue. The information Ge Qingchuan provided was wrong; how could this Tao Rong be at the Great Accomplishment realm? He had clearly already reached Entering Micro!

Although both were at Entering Micro, the old farmer clearly still had the upper hand over Tao Rong.

The old farmer had been immersed in that wood-chopping saber technique for many years, and it had already reached a level of near-perfection.

In truth, this was originally just a few labor-saving movements he had realized from chopping wood for a long time.

But later, after joining the Filthy Blood Sect and practicing the Filthy Blood Divine Art, he also received some martial arts heritage from within the sect.

As he practiced, he integrated those wood-chopping movements into it, forming a bizarre saber technique.

Later, after achieving the Great Accomplishment realm, he discarded the complex martial techniques and kept only those few wood-chopping movements, using them in rotation, which greatly increased their power. From then on, he called this saber technique the Wood-Chopping Saber Technique and practiced it daily!

Seeing that he was at a disadvantage, Tao Rong realized that the old farmer's saber technique, while appearing clumsy, was actually filled with powerful force and immense lethality; he knew that if the battle dragged on, he would surely die!

Tao Rong suddenly flicked his sleeve, and three slender throwing darts shot out abruptly!

The old farmer flipped his wood-chopping saber, intending to knock down the three slender darts shooting toward him, but just then, the middle dart suddenly exploded, and three even thinner darts burst out from within, shooting straight at the old farmer's face!

The old farmer's expression turned dark instantly, his scalp felt like it had been electrocuted, and the Tainted Blood lines all over his body surged up suddenly!

Those blood threads burst out from the pores all over the old farmer's body, as if his hair were standing on end!

Once the blood threads emerged, they were like living creatures, instantly gathering at the old farmer's face to block the three slender flying darts that had been shot at him!

The old farmer pulled a dark face and glared at Tao Rong.

Tao Rong looked at the old farmer before him, who had eerie blood threads floating all over his body, looking like a red-haired ghost...

Those blood threads floated and squirmed, their color even more dark red and dripping, like leeches that had sucked their fill of blood...

"Tainted Blood... Demon..."

In this instant, Tao Rong's speech even became a bit stuttered.

He was a scion of a noble family and naturally knew many secrets of the Filthy Blood Sect, but this was his first time seeing a real Tainted Blood Demon. Seeing those dense, floating, eerie, terrifying, and nauseating blood threads...

Tao Rong's complexion turned extremely ugly at once.

The moment the explosion occurred on the Official Road, he was still wondering which band of thieves was so bold as to dare attack even a Sect Emissary?

Now he finally understood that this was an ambush organized by the Filthy Blood Sect!

It was all to wipe them out!

All around were faint sounds of iron clashing, showing that their group had fallen into a great melee...

Moreover, he was already no match for the person before him, and now with those eerie blood threads that could instantly protect his body, his chances of winning were even more slim!

Tao Rong instantly figured out a strategy; he could only guard his position now and drag things out, hoping that after the other battlefields were decided, perhaps a Sect Emissary would come to save him.

After all, the mission of the Sect Emissary was to protect this batch of Registered Disciples!

But Tao Rong was clearly overthinking; after the blood threads surged, the old farmer was as fierce as a wild beast. Because of the protection of the blood threads erupted by the Filthy Blood Divine Art, he had no scruples, truly fighting as if chopping firewood, completely letting loose!

He jumped up and slashed down at Tao Rong's head!

Seeing him covered in floating and squirming blood threads, Tao Rong was about to dodge, but the old farmer slashed down with his blade and then followed through with a swipe, slicing off a large piece of flesh from the crotch of Tao Rong, who was turning to dodge.

Seeing blood, the old farmer's eyes shot out a light; with a leap, he slashed horizontally toward Tao Rong!

Tao Rong dodged the blade edge, but the old farmer simply turned his body to the side and rammed horizontally into Tao Rong's chest!

The two rolled to the ground, and that large patch of blood threads covered Tao Rong's face, squirming in a sticky and slippery way...

Tao Rong was disgusted and terrified, panicked, and drew his blade to hack, but his blade edge was blocked by the blood threads!

Almost at the same time as they hit the ground, the old farmer rolled his arm and turned back with a slash toward Tao Rong!

Seeing the Blade Shadow slashing over, Tao Rong kicked the ground hard with his right leg, tilted his body, and rose backward, wanting to avoid this blade!

But the old farmer seemed to have anticipated his move; he also kicked the ground with his right leg, jumped up instantly, and drifted backward with his body tilted!

The two's movements were as if carved from the same mold, uniform and synchronized, but the old farmer's blade edge was already pressing in!

Tao Rong's momentum was spent and he could not change in time; seeing he could not avoid this blade, he had no choice but to tilt his body, sacrificing his arm to save his life!

The old farmer's blade technique was seasoned; with one slash, he severed Tao Rong's entire left arm. Amidst a spray of blood, the two landed almost simultaneously!

A severed arm fell onto the grass between the two...

Tao Rong stood holding his blade, covered in cold sweat, his face pale, his eyes filled with terror. He begged for mercy with a trembling voice: "Sir, could you spare my life! My Tao family has quite a few properties in Xiangu County, and I am willing to offer them all to you!"

"What properties? Can they compare to the cultivation method of the Filthy Blood Divine Art!"

The old farmer did not want to waste words with him at all and pressed in to attack again!

Tao Rong was heavily injured and unable to hold on; in one exchange, his weapon was knocked away by the old farmer, and his head was severed!

The flesh at his severed neck trembled, and fresh blood sprayed onto the old farmer's face; some blood splashed onto the blood threads floating around the old farmer's body. Those blood threads squirmed, like murky water in sandy ground, and instantly swallowed the fresh blood clean...

The old farmer jumped up, grabbed Tao Rong's head in mid-air, and landed gracefully.

With a thought, the blood threads floating and squirming around his body, like startled living creatures, instantly retracted into his body.

The old farmer did not use the blood threads to suck dry the fresh blood from Tao Rong's body.

He was different from the fortune teller; the fortune teller's Filthy Blood Divine Art had not even achieved the first level, but his Filthy Blood Divine Art had already achieved the second level!

Therefore, in the battle with Tao Rong just now, the fresh blood in his body had not been consumed at all. Because every time the Filthy Blood Divine Art achieved a level, it required blood refining, which was equivalent to the quality of the blood in one's body being improved.

The old farmer grabbed Tao Rong's head and let out a series of strange, cackling laughs.

Tao Rong was not yet completely dead; his eyelids were opening and closing, and his lips were pale and trembling...

The old farmer looked at Tao Rong's severed head, and his lower abdomen felt a burst of heat.

Slaughter often stimulated his desires; Ge Qingchuan's slender waist and smiling, flower-like tender face flashed through his mind.

He really wanted to know the answer to the question Fan Hanzhou had asked Ge Qingchuan.

Was she really a virgin?

The old farmer licked his lips with a ferocious look in his eyes; at this moment, he felt as if he had returned to those crazy nights in the Black Night Mountain...

Because of a chance encounter, he had joined the Filthy Blood Sect for exactly nine years.

He was originally a Wandering Physician passing through the village who, while treating his illness, said he had an incurable disease but there was a way to save him, and wondered if he dared to try.

At that time, his life was hanging by a thread, so naturally, he had no taboos.

From then on, he unconsciously joined the Filthy Blood Sect, and it was not until a year later that he gradually realized he had joined the Filthy Blood Sect and was practicing the Filthy Blood Divine Art.

He was originally an unremarkable farmer in the village. Ever since he started practicing the Filthy Blood Divine Art, he would often go to abduct young farm girls from nearby villages in the dead of night.

Once successful, he would dash into the nearby mountains to practice on the spot. After the blood refining was completed, he would suck the girl into a dried corpse, bury her on the mountain, and burn her clothes, shoes, and socks...

Relying on the cover of his farmer identity and his methods of destroying the evidence, he had succeeded repeatedly, and in a few years' time, he achieved the second level of the Filthy Blood Divine Art.

One must know that Wei Yutian was a True Qi Realm Martial Artist, and with a family fortune worth millions, he had only just barely achieved the second level of the Filthy Blood Divine Art.

The old farmer carried Tao Rong's severed head and walked toward the edge of the dense forest.

The severed head was the proof of his battle record; he wanted to hand it to Ge Qingchuan in exchange for the cultivation method of the next level of the Filthy Blood Divine Art.

Ever since achieving the second level, he had not practiced for these two or three years because he had not yet obtained the third-level cultivation method.

Therefore, for these past few years, he had not abducted any girls from nearby villages. There were a few lasses whose bodies had already matured and who had grown up to be very tempting; he had already been unable to restrain himself for a long time.

But once he thought that without the cultivation method, abducting them would just be a waste and he couldn't practice, he had to forcefully suppress his restless desires...

Now, he could finally eat meat again; thinking of this, his heart surged with a wave of wild fervor...

(End of chapter)