Chapter 72

The horse was gone, and the carriage driver was nowhere to be seen.

The entire carriage was left with only its rear half.

As Han Guang approached and examined it, the break showed a jagged, sawtooth shape, giving the impression that some massive beast had swallowed the horse, the driver, and half the carriage in one bite.

"It's definitely not Xu Yi—surely not him." Han Guang said, Xu Yi doesn't have that capability.

"It seems the disappearances in Anshan City were indeed the work of the little matchstick girl." Tang Luo walked over and said.

The marks on the break matched exactly the notch on the broken sword Lu Zhi had shown him.

Clearly coming from the same "person's" mouth.

The little matchstick girl!

Tang Luo looked at the skull hanging from Han Guang's waist and said: "Give this to me. The little matchstick girl is probably after this thing."

"Oh, alright."

Han Guang hurriedly took it off and handed it to Tang Luo.

Is this thing still a time bomb?

"Let's go." Tang Luo said.

After the three of them left.

Behind a large tree by the roadside, a thin, small figure appeared abruptly yet naturally, giving a sense of eerie dislocation and disparity.

It was impossible to tell whether she had been there all along or had just arrived at that spot.

The figure stared in the direction where Tang Luo's trio had disappeared, tightly clutching several matches in hand.

Her body slightly crouched, she emitted muffled, unclear sounds from her mouth, somewhat like a beast's threat.

Beneath her helmet-like hair, her eyes glowed with a dim red light.

After paying for a ride part of the way, Tang Luo and his two companions returned to Anshan City as night fell in full force.

At that moment, another faint trace of merit power arose, absorbed by the Merit Jade Lotus.

"Someone else got into trouble again?" Tang Luo thought to himself.

Each time he "unintentionally" gained merit power, it proved his enlightenment had saved someone.

At least it had lessened their injuries.

Upon returning to the Lu family, Tang Luo immediately knew who he had saved.

It turned out to be the head of the Lu family, Lu Zhi's father, who had encountered trouble while out today.

But this incident had nothing to do with the little matchstick girl; it was an enemy of the Lu family seeking to take advantage of the situation to kill the family patriarch.

Tang Luo's Enlightenment Peace Talisman happened to take effect, saving Lu Zhi's father.

However, from the perspective of merit power gain alone, Tang Luo was at a loss.

Because the merit power he gained was less than what he consumed when activating the Enlightenment "Peace Talisman."

Even if he still had one more use left, it would be the same.

Next time he saves the Lu family patriarch, he will likely gain only a trace of merit power.

Setting aside the gains and losses of merit power.

Tang Luo instantly shifted from being "the monk invited by the Lu family" to "Master Xuanzang," leaping to become an honored guest of the Lu family.

The agreed-upon payment was handed over to him in full, without hesitation.

The family head, who had not appeared earlier and had delegated full authority to his eldest son, who could now handle matters independently, also came out to thank Tang Luo profusely.

Regarding Tang Luo's statement about the "missing carriage driver," he also took full responsibility, assuring that no trouble would be caused to Master Xuanzang.

Tang Luo himself remained calm and composed.

Han Guang and the other four, however, were grinning from ear to ear.

As attendants, all four were given a substantial amount of money, enough to cover their expenses for a period of time.

Especially Du Shun and Han Guang.

As the parties involved in discovering the fake skull, they undoubtedly made contributions.

For the two of them, the mission was nearly complete at this point.

Next came Master Xuanzang's affairs.

Clinging to a powerful patron—just that easy.

The other two had it much harder, still needing to prioritize the mission; they could indulge tonight, but tomorrow morning they'd still have to continue investigating.

Dual approach, huh.

The exact function of the fake skull and what effect it could ultimately produce remained unclear to everyone.

At night, Tang Luo stood in the private courtyard specially prepared for him by the Lu family.

No one was around.

He raised his head, his hands blurring into afterimages, and unleashed five punches in an instant.

It looked as if he were using the skill "Consecutive Ordinary Punch."

But in reality, this was merely Tang Luo, relying on his own immense strength, throwing five punches in a flash—having nothing to do with the skill "Consecutive Ordinary Punch."

Thus, for Tang Luo, the "Consecutive Ordinary Punch" skill served no purpose beyond occupying a skill slot.

However...

Tang Luo's hands again blurred into two afterimages.

Three strikes on the left, two on the right.

"Indeed—"

A flash of sudden realization appeared in Tang Luo's eyes.

The first time, he simply threw five punches. The second time, he used the skill.

They look the same at first glance.

But Tang Luo, the user, can feel it firsthand: the latter is far more "comfortable" than the former.

The former's five punches were thrown by Tang Luo "sheer force."

But with the skill, those five punches flow like clouds and water—throw, retract, throw again, with no hesitation.

This "technique" is something Tang Luo, who always relied on overwhelming force to overcome tenfold opposition, never mastered.

Back when he fought the copper-armored corpse, Tang Luo had already thought about improving this so-called "technique," so he could unleash greater combat power within his limited strength.

The skill of consecutive ordinary punches is like opening a door directly for Tang Luo.

If Tang Luo normally throws punches quickly and exhausts his strength after a thousand punches,

then with the skill, he estimates he could throw 1,500 punches or even more before tiring.

Tang Luo closed his eyes, recalling the sensation of using the skill just moments ago.

After a moment, he struck again.

Unrelated to the skill, this was a punch he threw himself.

As he made this motion, the information for the skill "Consecutive Ordinary Punches" surfaced in his mind.

Its level jumped directly from Level 1 to Level 2.

The cooldown time it originally had was also instantly reduced, finishing cooldown in an instant.

"Again."

Tang Luo used the skill once more.

This time, it was the Level 2 skill.

His punches were three more than before.

But don't underestimate these three punches—just like advancing beyond a hundred-foot pole, improving this is actually extremely difficult.

And this most difficult part, that single step at the critical point, was helped by the skill; the rest depends on Tang Luo's own effort and talent in the demonic martial path.

Tang Luo once again savored the feeling of throwing those punches.

Then, he threw eight punches in succession, holding the last one with his right hand extended, slightly bent.

"Wrong."

Tang Luo shook his head, retracted his hand, and threw a punch again.

Third time!

Fourth time!

Tang Luo kept practicing.

By the tenth time, he retracted his fist and nodded in satisfaction.

The skill information in his mind changed again, rising from Level 2 to Level 3.

The speed of this upgrade was unprecedented.

You know, even Tang Luo's frequently used Empty Palm and Blocking techniques are still stuck at Level 1.

It can only be said that Tang Luo has exceptional talent for this "close-combat martial art," and with his strong foundation, his upgrade speed is astonishingly fast.

"Qin Menglan said that above Level 3, there is still a stage where one truly integrates and masters the 'skill.'" Tang Luo "gazed" at the third level, without stopping there.

He exhaled slightly, lifted his head, and used "Consecutive Ordinary Punches."

This time, it was ten attacks.

Five left punches, five right punches.

When the skill ended and cooldown began, Tang Luo did not stop.

He kept throwing punches.

He stood still, the speed of his punches gradually increasing, the range gradually expanding.

Even as he tried to suppress his strength, the leaking power gradually intensified, stirring up wind.

With Tang Luo at the center, a strong wind began blowing in all directions, growing stronger.

Even trees farther away began to "rustle loudly."

The originally withered, nearly falling leaves were blown into midair by the gale.

Around Tang Luo, fist shadows filled the sky, as if a thousand hands were throwing punches.

Ola ola ola!

The note in the skill seemed to have become a tangible sound, and it kept intensifying.

As Tang Luo threw punches, his eyes narrowed; the previously shifting fist shadows seemed to pause for a moment, then became lively again in the next instant.

However, the fists had already turned into palms.

The sky-full of fist shadows instantly became palm shadows.

Looking at it fiercely, it resembled a Thousand-Armed Guanyin.

"Pa!"

A crisp sound.

Tang Luo clasped his hands before his chest, a gust of wind surged upward, then dissipated.

But the sky-full of palm shadows did not vanish; instead, they retracted one by one, "merging" into Tang Luo's hands before his chest.

As the last illusory palm "retracted,"

Tang Luo exhaled a long, soft breath.

The skill "Consecutive Ordinary Punches" had already disappeared.

Having been truly integrated and mastered by Tang Luo—no, rather, taken a step further, completely becoming his own "martial art of attack."

Without cooldown limits, and without the requirement to clench fists.

As long as Tang Luo is willing, whether he throws a punch or strikes with a palm, he can do so.

"Should give it a name." Tang Luo stroked his chin, thinking to himself. Just now, the palm shadows filling the sky, the fist shadows, and so on, were very similar to Guanyin's thousand-armed form.

"Just call it Thousand Hands Cannot Defend."

After thinking it over, Tang Luo came up with a name he felt was very fitting.

Whether it's fist, palm, claw, or finger, all can be executed in this move, and they can also be combined.

Calling it something like "Thousand Hands Divine Fist" or "Thousand Hands Divine Palm" and such is not quite suitable.

Since it's purely an offensive technique, might as well just call it Thousand Hands Cannot Defend.

Even if holding a weapon, it can still be used.

Elder Tang is none other than the Fighting Victory Buddha, decisive in killing, so it's quite normal for opponents to be unable to defend against him.

After spending about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Tang Luo, who had created his "divine skill," returned to his room and looked at the skull placed on the table.

This skull, viewed from the outside, shows no wounds whatsoever—it's completely ordinary.

From the moment Tang Luo took hold of it until now, there has been no special change.

The Little Match Girl has not appeared yet.

But Tang Luo believes that this fake skull will most likely lure out the Little Match Girl.

According to Han Guang's description.

What he saw at the time confirms that the Little Match Girl is in Anshan City.

The sole reason that lured her to the small village was this skull, and she also fought Xu Yi.

Only, for some unknown reason, she suddenly stopped and left.

Seeing Xu Yi's anxious demeanor as he wanted to leave, it's certain he wasn't driven back by him.

"Let's continue tonight." Tang Luo reached out.

Continuing to fish at night, the bait is this well-preserved skull.