Chapter 270 - 269: Mysterious Woman, Silent Assassination

Upon arriving in front of the blonde woman’s tent, Li Jing halted three steps away from her.

Western mages are generally frail, even vulnerable to ordinary weapons, and very disadvantaged in close combat.

Unlike other cultivation systems, even if the body is not emphasized in their cultivation, the support of internal power can still provide them with strong endurance.

Conversely, the spells in their hands are extremely violent, even low-level magic spells possess enormous destructive power.

In this regard, Eastern magic can’t compare.

However, at the high level, there is little difference between magic spells and magic, they’re mostly of the kind that can destroy heaven and earth.

Setting these digressions aside.

What Western mages fear most is close contact with others.

Considering that the woman unaffected by Silent Shadow had noticed him and yet remained silent, Li Jing felt obliged to demonstrate the appropriate courtesy.

Of course.

To him, with his formidable physical body, a three steps distance means nothing.

If he wishes.

Within these three steps, he doesn’t even need to use any magic skills or draw out the Flying Sword Blue Edge, just a single punch could make the blonde woman perish.

Speaking of which, this blonde woman is quite bold, leaning her head to watch Li Jing approach and stop, showing no signs of wanting to be on guard.

Staring at Li Jing standing there, the blonde woman glanced at him and said.

"Hello, could you please withdraw your spiritual interference method? It makes me feel uncomfortable and I can’t meditate in peace."

Li Jing was stunned.

Silent Shadow affects everyone in the vicinity regardless of whether it works or not.

The blonde woman was quite direct, letting him know right away why she had him come over.

He was disturbing her meditation...

But then again.

Isn’t this woman wondering why a member of the Longyu Management Bureau would appear in the White Hawk’s camp, especially one using a spiritual interference method?

Just as he was puzzled by this, the blonde woman suddenly pulled out a pair of glasses from her pocket and put them on, her azure eyes opening wide instantly.

"You, are you from Longyu?"

"..."

Li Jing.

Seriously speaking, he was a bit flustered by this.

What exactly is going on here?

Is she severely nearsighted?

No, that can’t be!

In the Six Realm, even a mage wouldn’t be nearsighted.

Even though the mages are weak, it doesn’t mean that they are inferior to ordinary people.

The enormous magic power within them does not provide much of a boost to their bodies, but the enhancement that their level should grant to their self is there.

There’s no way a mage would be extremely nearsighted.

Upon reflection.

It’s not so much that this woman is nearsighted, as it is her being blind even with her eyes open.

He came so close, yet she had to put on a pair of glasses before she could see clearly...

That’s equivalent to not being able to tell people apart without her glasses!

Looking at the blonde woman with her gem-like wide eyes full of surprise, Li Jing feel disheveled.

However, he soon noticed something wasn’t right.

The woman’s glasses are not ordinary objects.

The glasses perched on her delicate nose emit a powerful fluctuation that seems similar to a high-grade spiritual weapon.

Not a spiritual weapon, but no less than a spiritual weapon.

A high-grade alchemical product?

Li Jing frowned.

Alchemical products come from the unique alchemy of the West.

Alchemy and Artifact Refinement Skills differ significantly.

Artifact Refinement emphasizes transforming materials into specific shapes with their properties bestowing special powers.

Alchemy, on the other hand, shapes things as well.

But what distinguishes alchemy from Artifact Refinement is that it transmutes materials into other properties, so that the resulting object takes on the form and functions that the alchemist wants.

Within it, the principle of equivalent exchange is emphasized.

Whatever grade of material, the result of the transformation will be the same grade.

The outcome of alchemy is always constant in quality, unlike Artifact Refinement, where the grade of the finished product can surpass the grade of the materials with good luck or drop if the refinement fails.

Furthermore, alchemy cannot endow things with spirituality.

All objects refined by alchemy lack any growth potential, there is no possibility of transformation.

Even if something as powerful as a spiritual weapon is produced, no spirit weapon will be generated.

Compared with Artifact Refinement, alchemy has significant drawbacks.

But at the same time, as long as an alchemist has material and sufficient alchemical proficiency, they can convert any available material into something of equal value and desired by them.

In the West, high-level alchemists are highly sought after.

After all, as long as they are willing, they can turn any useless object into something useful within their capabilities.

Realizing that the woman’s glasses were the result of alchemy, Li Jing immediately became aware that their function was not to let nearsighted people see clearly like ordinary glasses.

Having this awareness, he couldn’t help but pay attention to the woman’s deep blue eyes that were like gems.

Blond hair with green eyes, a typical characteristic of the West.

Blue eyes in Westerners are not uncommon.

But usually, it’s light blue or sky blue.

The woman in front of him had deep blue eyes.

There seems to be a problem with her eyes...

Just as he was speculating, the blonde woman nervously adjusted the glasses on the bridge of her nose and leaned back slightly.

"Could you stop staring at my eyes?"

"Ah, I’m sorry."

Li Jing apologised, wearing a strange expression.

The woman’s eyes were flawed; she hadn’t seen him clearly at first.

Now that she had, and recognised him as a Longyu person, she didn’t make a fuss and seemed rather shy.

Initially, Li Jing thought the woman might be a high-ranking official from the White Hawk’s Six Realm, but that seemed unlikely now.

Even the White Hawk wouldn’t let someone who couldn’t distinguish between people and animals without glasses hold an important position.

However, the woman’s status seemed high, that much he could confirm.

Being a Six Realm individual who had an independent tent at the centre of the White Hawk camp was indicative of her significant status.

The woman looked at Li Jing, feeling strangely about it too.

Her eyesight was indeed an issue, she usually relied on her spiritual power to sense people and things.

Having not recognised him properly at first, once she saw him clearly and realised he was in the uniform of the Longyu Management Bureau, she felt rather jittery.

She had originally assumed Li Jing was an ally of the White Hawk. She could not have been more wrong.

Although the White Hawk and Longyu were not outright enemies, during this Big Secret Realm journey, they were in completely opposing factions. Li Jing’s bold approach, combined with his widespread influence, hinted at ulterior motives.

The woman was surprised that after she had caught him and his intentions, he seemingly just stood there, chatting with her amicably.

This was highly unusual!

Under normal circumstances, shouldn’t he either kill to silence her or run away...?

Allowing her to recognize him so clearly was also very strange!

After staring at each other for a while, the blonde woman, still hesitant, motioned him in.

"Let’s talk inside, it’s inconvenient out here."

"This..."

Li Jing hesitated.

Thinking about it, accepting her invitation didn’t seem to be a problem. The blonde woman didn’t show any malice, so he nodded.

"Sorry to intrude."

...

Once inside the tent, Li Jing looked around.

The blonde woman’s tent was filled with many objects related to alchemy, including various equipment and books.

The large tent was adorned like a workshop.

After briefly glancing at the furnishings in the tent, Li Jing turned back to ask a question.

"Are you an alchemist?"

"Just a bit of a personal hobby, my main profession is combat mage."

The blonde woman casually responded.

"..."

Li Jing remained silent.

Combat mage, different from regular mages, but still a mage nonetheless, was an anomalous type.

The difference between combat mages and orthodox mages was like the divergent sects of the Immortal Path in the God Kingdom and the orthodox Immortal Path of Longyu.

They, are close combat types...

Honestly, this was a surprise to Li Jing.

Having witnessed the wild fighting abilities of Yulian and Jiu Li, two seemingly fragile women from the Six Realm, he was careful not to underestimate any "frail woman".

But this one...

A blind fighter in close combat?

He didn’t know what to make of it.

The fact that the blonde woman was unaffected by the Charming Shadow made it clear that her defenses against spiritual level abilities exceeded standard Six Realm individuals.

Compared to a combat mage, Li Jing thought she was more likely to be a spiritual mage.

But she wasn’t...

When he found out that the blonde woman was a combat mage, Li Jing could see why she, as a mage, was so carefree, not guarding against him even when he got so close.

The combat mages, often seen as freaks among mages, mainly practiced close-combat magic.

What were weaknesses to regular mages were strengths for them.

Correspondingly, their offensive magic was less potent.

The blonde woman had surprised him so many times that Li Jing couldn’t help but reassess her anew.

The blonde woman invited Li Jing into her tent very casually and gave a light smile, extending a hand as smooth as white jade.

"Serlina, lecturer at the White Hawk College of War Magic, 18 years old this year."

Li Jing, amused by her introduction, smirked slightly.

He was certain that Serlina was not any older than he was.

But 18? Unlikely.

An 18-year-old Six Realm individual, this claim might be bigger than his own!

Without a word, He reached for Serlina’s hand and held it loosely, without missing a beat.

"Li Jing, Strategic Advisor for the Jianghai Management Bureau of Longyu."

"Strategic Advisor?"

Serlina was surprised, and asked.

"You’re sneaking around our White Hawk camp at your level. Aren’t you afraid something might go wrong?"

Not waiting for Li Jing’s response, she answered her own question.

"Well, you’re right. Your understanding of spiritual magic is at least at the level of the Sixth Realm. If you were in Longyu, you wouldn’t just be a lowly soldier, a tactical adviser role would be... "

Halfway through the conversation, Serlina suddenly faltered, staring with unbelieving eyes.

"Wait a minute! What did you say your name was? Li Jing? So... you’re the Longyu man who robbed one of our White Hawk’s exploration teams?"

"That’s right."

Li Jing shrugged nonchalantly.

He’d already introduced himself and there was nothing else worth hiding.

After doing so much, his personal information had long been figured out by various factions, so it wasn’t surprising that Serlina knew about him.

On receiving confirmation from him, Serlina looked at him closely and unexpectedly smiled.

"Good job!"

"..."

Li Jing.

By revealing his identity, he intended to see what Serlina’s reaction would be.

But her bright demeanor and sudden "Good job!" completely took him by surprise.

Seeing his strange expression, Serlina said,

"I’ve been disliking the White Hawk’s higher-ups for a long time, and it pleases me to see them get what they deserve."

With that, she laughed.

"If the Supreme Church gets involved, it will be even more enjoyable for me. Those bastards from the Church have been doing nothing but leeching off their believers for centuries, acting like holy men, but they contribute nothing of substance. They always pick fights with our magic system, and they’re bound to get their comeuppance sooner or later!"

Hearing Serlina’s tirade, Li Jing silently grinned.

Her admission of being an instructor at the White Hawk Battle Academy already revealed that she was not an official figure.

In Longyu, the academies of Immortal Learning were mostly public and rarely private.

However, the mage academies of White Hawk were the complete opposite.

They were privately owned, with no state-run institutions.

As for the God academies, those were all run by the Supreme Church.

Members of these institutionally divergent academies generally had no connection with the White Hawk officialdom.

In White Hawk, it wasn’t rare for commoners to be displeased with the authorities.

That’s just how the people in the Western World are.

Every now and then, people would even stand up and confront the officials.

The discord between the magic system and the faith system needed no explanation.

The Church had been scheming for years to obliterate the magic system and let the faith system dominate the Western World.

However, Li Jing was still puzzled.

This woman, summoned by White Hawk to guard the Secret Realm, was unlikely to be a problematic figure.

So why did she not only have a problem with the Church, but also so much dissatisfaction with the White Hawk high-ranking officials that she actually enjoyed seeing them fail?

As though sensing his thoughts, Serlina said,

"Don’t misunderstand, I’m just unhappy with the various actions of the White Hawk’s upper ranks, not particularly critical of my own country," she said indifferently.

"Now that we’ve met, we can consider ourselves friends. There’s one thing I need to make clear, the power struggles among the upper ranks have nothing to do with me, and I don’t care why you have infiltrated the White Hawk’s camp alone. But if you do anything to harm the White Hawk, I’m afraid I’ll have no choice but to be your enemy."

Faced with Serlina’s words, Li Jing raised his eyebrows slightly and nodded silently.

Serlina was very straightforward, clearly expressing her position and attitude.

She indeed belonged to the White Hawk’s camp, but she stayed away from the power core and refused to pay for the actions of the upper ranks.

As long as the White Hawk is not harmed, she would not be an enemy to anyone.

To a certain extent, the two are quite alike.

After a brief thought, Li Jing spoke frankly.

"I didn’t come here to be an enemy of the White Hawk, I just wanted to understand some things related to Alien Civilization. According to the information we currently have in Longyu, Alien Civilization could break the seal and come out of the spatial passage at any time, which will affect all scouting teams in the Secret Realm."

As he spoke, Li Jing said indifferently.

"Various signs show that the Western Union, led by the White Hawk and the church, has been in contact with the Alien Civilization and may have even reached some kind of cooperation. Therefore, I personally speculate that the key to Alien Civilization breaking the seal is related to the Western Union, and I want to understand the situation."

When faced with someone’s frank words, Serlina frowned slightly and shook her head.

"I don’t know much about this aspect. I was invited from my home country purely to replace a friend who couldn’t make it, to safeguard the White Hawk’s rear. I didn’t participate in matters related to Alien Civilization, and the White Hawk Official also forbids me, a non-official, to participate."

She then murmured.

"However, the situation you mentioned is indeed true, the Western Union has indeed had contact with Alien Civilization a long time ago, even earlier than the God Kingdom who first discovered the ruins and entered the spatial passage. It’s confirmed that there’s cooperation, but I don’t know what Alien Civilization promised to the Western Union."

"Assisting Alien Civilization to break the seal is a stupid thing that our White Hawk’s high ranks would not normally do, as it is like courting disaster. But if there is enough interest, it is not necessarily impossible. Also, with the church getting involved, assisting in breaking the seal is probably a fact. I personally can’t provide you useful information on this matter, and I can only apologize to you."

After speaking twice, Serlina sighed lightly and showed a slightly difficult expression.

"I knew that coming to the Big Secret Realm wouldn’t be peaceful, and it seems inevitably there will be a lot of trouble. It looks like I should prepare in advance."

Muttering to herself, she looked up and warned him.

"You better not stay long in our White Hawk’s camp. Your tactics are quite good. If I were not sensitive to the spiritual level due to my unique physique, I really wouldn’t be able to detect you. Since I can find you, others will too upon meeting. There are quite a few top-notch powerhouses in our White Hawk’s camp this time, at least two of whom are Six-Realm Mages who I know have mastered the spiritual system. They are temporarily stationed at the entrance of the Secret Realm, and it is uncertain when they will come over."

Li Jing nodded.

After being discovered by Serlina, he did not intend to linger for long, only the situation was somewhat awkward.

Fortunately, Serlina had no intention of publicizing it from the beginning.

At this moment, confirming that there were two other Six-Realm Mages who had mastered the spiritual system in the White Hawk’s camp, he had even less reason to stay.

At first, he still wanted to visit the White Hawk here and then go to the church for a look, but now he has no such thoughts.

A painful truth told him.

The world is vast, and there are many oddities and unexpected events.

With his current primordial soul strength, he can deceive most of the Six Realms with Silent Shadow, but he is far from being safe. It is better for him to return quietly and watch the changes, lest a disturbance arise.

Without much thought, Li Jing said.

"Thank you for your advice, if there’s nothing more, I’ll take my leave first."

"Okay."

Serlina replied, saying,

"I will try to learn more about the Alien Civilization. If I get any news you need, I will come as a guest and find you in Longyu."

Li Jing was slightly taken aback by these words and asked in surprise.

"Wouldn’t the higher-ups of White Hawk have any objections if you visited our Longyu camp directly?"

"No."

Serlina waved her hand dismissively, stating.

"If an Alien Civilization emerges from the spatial passage, it will likely clash with us, the Present World People. At that time, we, the Six Realm people, might be the ones to confront them head-on. We could even end up fighting side by side."

With a casual air, she continued.

"There are some things that I personally cannot influence and can only let them happen. But before trouble arises, I see no harm in finding a few reliable comrades. If the higher-ups of White Hawk talk too much, I’ll shut them up. As long as you, the Longyu, don’t refuse to host me."

Li Jing blinked at her words.

Serlina was quite an interesting person, to be honest.

After a brief silence, Li Jing said.

"Alright, I look forward to your visit."

...

After saying goodbye to Serlina and leaving her tent, Li Jing looked longingly at Jing Rong’s tent not far away.

What a pity, he was originally planning to "resolve difficulties and relieve worries" for Imai Xiang while Jing Rong was acting alone.

But it seemed unfeasible considering the present circumstances that called for a quick departure.

He would have to find another opportunity later.

Just as he was thinking about this, a shadow with a Health Bar close to the ground emerged from the tent, disappearing as quickly as it appeared, flying rapidly towards the Daohe side.

Li Jing was taken aback when he saw this, his eyes lighting up immediately.

Without any hesitation, he turned into a thunder and followed the shadow before it left the range of the White Hawk camp. He took out the Boundary Stone and kept it handy.

When he saw the shadow pass through a broken wall of the ruins and climb up following the wall, Li Jing decisively infused Spiritual Power into the Boundary Stone.

The next moment.

The Boundary Stone glowed, simultaneously isolating the shadow and the wall.

Once in Subspace, Li Jing looked sharply and took out the Flying Sword Blue Edge, swinging a backhand slash.

"Puff!"

Blood splattered.

The shadow and the wall that were both isolated into the Subspace were sliced in half.

"Experience +8326."

Jing Rong, deceased.

Transformed into a shadow, he was abruptly dragged into Subspace and died on the spot before he even had time to react.

He certainly didn’t expect to die so pointlessly as a Sixth Realm Great Demon.

Li Jing himself also found it rather unexpected.

His original intention was to force Jing Rong out of his shadow form and proceed with a "preparation" causing minimal injury.

In essence, he had only used half of his power.

Who would’ve thought he would be so useless...

Being useless isn’t the point.

Jing Rong’s ability to transform into a shadow didn’t seem very strong, even inferior to the Special Escape Method of human cultivators.

The Special Escape Method of human cultivators involves changing their own form.

During this period, those who have changed form are very vulnerable.

To avoid dying instantly, the Special Escape Method often has a unique self-defense mechanism.

For example, the Cloud Thunder Movement integrated into Li Jing’s surprise charge can induce thunderclouds to confuse the senses and make it impossible to catch any clues.

Jing Rong’s ability to transform into a shadow seemed to lack any self-defense mechanism...

Seeing a giant bat with a wingspan of nearly seven to eight meters being split in half horizontally, with blood and guts spilling all over the ground like worthless debris, Li Jing felt a great deal of angst.

Dammit!

What a loss!

All the internal organs are destroyed!

Even the wings are ruined!

This must have cost a few hundred million at least!

On further inspection, Jing Rong’s original form was a bat. Despite having a wingspan of seven to eight meters, its body wasn’t very large, comparable to a husky man. Given that, it weighed at most two hundred pounds in flesh and blood. Li Jing felt disappointed.

Without a doubt, Jing Rong was the least valuable Great Demon of the Sixth Realm that he had ever killed.

Now with the internal organs destroyed and the wings ruined.

It’s probably worth nothing...

By now, Li Jing was skilled in killing demons and selling them for experience.

He didn’t know how to appraise their value.

But he could tell at a glance which parts of a demon’s body might be more valuable.

For example, the most expensive part of Jing Rong was obviously his irised wings.

But now the wings have been split in half...

Sighing silently, Li Jing waved his hand to pack up Jing Rong’s corpse and put out the Flying Sword Blue Edge.

Ten Thousand Remnants Absolute Shadow!

Thousands of sword shadows appeared and then fell abruptly, turning the ruined wall divided in half into ashes.

He couldn’t just leave this split wall of the ruins as is, as that would easily reveal traces.

In the ruins, broken walls were everywhere.

With the existence of an Alien Civilization in the spatial passage, the focus of the Western Union was not on the archaeological sites in the ruins. No one would care about the loss of a wall.

Although it wouldn’t cause any significant harm if discovered, Li Jing felt it was better to clean everything up.

After destroying the wall, Li Jing put away the Flying Sword Blue Edge and naturally dismissed the Subspace.

Returning to the Big Secret Realm, he glanced playfully in the direction of Daohe Alliance Camp. Transforming into a shockwave, he left.

...