Li Muzhan chuckled, "Senior has seen my throwing knife?" "Vaguely familiar," the old man in grey replied slowly. Li Muzhan said, "I forged this knife myself.
Does it still meet with Senior's discerning eye?" "Mmm, very good." The old man in grey nodded. "I like it!
...How about this: give me the knife, and tell me what you want in exchange?" Li Muzhan laughed, shaking his head. "My sincerest apologies, but this knife is my personal possession; my life hinges on it.
I cannot part with it." The old man in grey frowned at him, his gaze flickering with cold, sharp lightning. Sensing the shifting thoughts, Li Muzhan's heart tightened, the sense of danger growing more intense.
A moment later, the old man in grey frowned again. "Whatever you want, speak it.
Let's see if this old man can deliver!" Li Muzhan replied, "I seek nothing else. Senior need not say more." "You are forcing my hand, then," the old man in grey stated gravely.
"I truly do not wish to engage in such a display of seniority bullying a junior, but this knife is of great importance!" Li Muzhan said, "This knife was merely forged from an extraterrestrial meteorite I chanced upon. While it possesses the ability to turn invisible, it is otherwise unremarkable." The knife’s invisibility was of little consequence to a Grandmaster; within a Grandmaster’s domain, perception relied not on sight, but on feeling.
The true power of this throwing knife in Li Muzhan's hands stemmed from its invisibility merging with his Void-Piercing Sword Intent, rendering it inescapable. However, Spirit Beasts and Grandmasters with exceptional cultivation could still sense it, meaning his strikes usually only succeeded when they were entirely unexpected.
The old man in grey said gravely, "What you obtained must be Star-Concealment Stone, a world-class treasure. You truly are lucky, boy.
No wonder you reached the Grandmaster level so young! ...I once heard word of a remarkably gifted young man named Li Wuji arriving in the city.
That must be you?" Li Muzhan nodded. "I am Li Wuji.
May I ask Senior's esteemed name?" "This old man is merely an initiate of the Hidden Sect. My name is not worth mentioning!" the old man in grey stated solemnly.
"I suggest you hand over the throwing knife honestly. I really do not wish to bully a junior!" Li Muzhan smiled faintly.
"I beg to be excused from that command!" Li Muzhan could sense that the old man in grey was a ruthless killer. The fact that he hesitated so long was not out of a desire to avoid bullying a junior, but because he must have some serious reservations.
Whatever gave him pause had to be a truly supreme cultivation level. Given the desolate location, his hesitation clearly indicated that someone else’s deterrent power was immense.
Li Muzhan immediately guessed it was the City Lord. "Li Wuji, I really don't want to fight you.
Don't force my hand!" the old man in grey grumbled heavily. Li Muzhan asked, "What does Senior require this throwing knife for?" "I have my uses!" the old man in grey retorted irritably.
Li Muzhan smiled. "Since that is the case, Senior, please make your move!" "Hmph, such arrogance from a boy.
I'd like to see!" The old man in grey strode forward, a massive palm instantly reaching Li Muzhan's chest, giving him no time to react. Li Muzhan recoiled as if struck by lightning, barely evading the giant palm.
This hand was twice the size of an ordinary person's, silent yet radiating a dangerous chill. Li Muzhan dared not meet it head-on.
The old man in grey moved like electricity. Li Muzhan relied on the Minor Teleportation technique just to stay afloat.
After a dozen exchanges, the old man seemed omnipresent; his movements blurred into a sheet of shadow, and Li Muzhan felt that every shadow was solid, not an illusion. The old man in grey sneered, "I hear you have a companion, is that right?" Li Muzhan's expression darkened.
"What are you implying?" The old man in grey said, "Li Wuji, Li Yubing, hehe. I hear that little girl is quite beautiful.
I wonder if she sleeps comfortably!" Li Muzhan sneered back, "I never realized you were so despicable!" The old man in grey smiled thinly. "As a Grandmaster, one cannot allow oneself to be bound by worldly morals; one's achievements will ultimately be limited.
What difference is there between baseness and nobility?" Li Muzhan said, "Very well. I shall not flee.
Let us see which of us dies!" The old man in grey smiled. "You are being sensible.
If you die, I won't bother Li Yubing! ...But if you run, I will capture Li Yubing and enjoy myself thoroughly!" Li Muzhan coldly laughed, "She is also a Grandmaster!" "So what if she's a Grandmaster!" The old man in grey shook his head and laughed.
"I have killed no fewer than eight or ten Grandmasters in my lifetime!" Li Muzhan asked, "Aren't you afraid of inciting public outrage?" "Fighting here, as long as no one else sees, who would ever know?!" The old man in grey shook his head dismissively. "Even the City Lord, powerful as he is, cannot penetrate the North Pole Sacred Realm!
...See? I'm still alive and well!
Just give up hope!" Li Muzhan stated gravely, "He who kills shall be killed. I believe you will one day die by someone else's hand!" The old man in grey roared with laughter.
"If I die, I die! Living intensely, dying intensely—that is true freedom, a hundred times more exhilarating than living like a coward!" Li Muzhan snorted, suddenly accelerating, and met the giant palm head-on.
With a dull peng, he was launched backward like a cannonball fired from its muzzle. Li Muzhan spat a jet of blood into the air to expel the internal force, using that momentum to accelerate further.
The old man in grey sneered and shook his head. "I've seen that move a thousand times.
Mere parlor tricks!" He dissolved into a shadow and reappeared instantly before Li Muzhan, bringing down another palm strike. The massive palm seemed to cover the sky and earth, generating astonishing force.
Li Muzhan twisted his body, gliding away like a small boat riding the swell, his speed undiminished. "Hmph!" The old man in grey snorted lightly, flashed forward again to catch up with Li Muzhan, and brought down another strike, faster this time.
Li Muzhan drifted and swayed away once more, light and smooth, successfully avoiding it. The old man in grey laughed coldly and flicked his hand, instantly sending a barrage of silver glints—chi, chi, chi, chi—enveloping Li Muzhan.
Just then, Li Muzhan flicked his own hand, and a flash of white light vanished. Li Muzhan suddenly disappeared.
The rain of silver glints struck empty air. He reappeared behind the old man in grey and brought down a palm strike.
The old man twisted, meeting it with his own palm. With a dull peng, a gout of blood erupted from his chest.
He had failed to dodge the throwing knife; it had pierced his heart, but he forced his blood flow to stop, meeting Li Muzhan’s palm head-on. Though not outwardly wounded, his vital energy surged, the previously contained Qi exploding outward.
Li Muzhan followed up with another palm strike, instantly appearing at the old man's back. The old man twisted to meet it, sealing the wound in his chest once more.
Peng! Li Muzhan was flung far away, and he took the opportunity to retreat into the distance.
"Hmph!" The old man in grey stared fixedly in the direction Li Muzhan vanished, letting out a cold laugh, but he did not pursue. He stood perfectly still on the spot.
Time passed, yet he remained motionless, like a statue. After an hour, as the sky began to change, he slowly sat down; the blood in his chest had long since congealed.
Li Muzhan stood five miles away. The two could sense each other.
Even though Li Muzhan had not shown himself, the old man in grey knew he was hiding, biding his time, waiting for an opportunity to strike while he healed. But after an hour, he could wait no longer.
Lingering meant risking his life. He had to risk it all and immediately sat cross-legged to circulate his energy.
Fifteen minutes later, white vapor steamed from his head, enveloping his body so he became indistinct. Li Muzhan floated into appearance, a flash of white light in his hand.
With a soft chi, the old man in grey roared furiously, his massive palm already shooting toward Li Muzhan's chest: "Boy, I was waiting for you!" Bang! Li Muzhan met the incoming strike with his own palm.
Both were forced back. The white light in Li Muzhan's hand flashed again, piercing through the old man in grey.
"Oh..." The old man in grey's eyes widened in disbelief. Li Muzhan shook his head and laughed, "I never said I only had one throwing knife!" Bang!
The old man in grey clutched his chest and slowly collapsed with a muffled thud. Li Muzhan made a gesture, and two beams of white light flew into his palm, resolving into two crystal-clear throwing knives before vanishing in a flash.
Li Muzhan looked at the old man in grey, not rushing forward. With a movement of his hand, a flash of white light shot into the old man's forehead.
Amidst a furious roar of "Ah...", the old man in grey burst upward and charged at Li Muzhan, crossing the distance in a single stride, his palm striking down. Li Muzhan vanished from his spot, reappearing thirty feet away, watching with a slight smile.
The cold light in the old man's eyes flared, then slowly dissipated. He then fell backward, looking up at the sky.
Only then could Li Muzhan confirm he was truly dead—his life force utterly extinguished, no chance of survival. This old man's cultivation was nearly on par with Tong Tianshu's, but this time, with his own significantly advanced power, while he wasn't superior, he managed to secure victory alone, largely thanks to his throwing knives.
In the past, those knives were his ultimate trump card; now, he had to rely on them entirely. He walked up to the old man in grey and carefully searched him.
In his robes were several pills and a thin booklet. He set the pills aside, uncertain of their use, fearing they might be poison.
He examined the booklet. Two large characters adorned the cover: "Hidden Blade." Frowning, he opened it.
The thin booklet contained only three pages. The internal method was simple yet arduous to cultivate; it described a unique, unorthodox knife technique: the Hidden Blade.
This Hidden Blade technique could only be fully utilized on a pitch-black night, allowing the user to guide the blade through intent, concealing it within the darkness to create a fatal strike. The peculiarity of the Hidden Blade lay in two aspects: first, it allowed for extended manipulation of the blade, letting it hover motionless in the air or follow the body's movements; second, the blade’s intent was internalized, rendering it formless, traceless, and utterly undetectable as it approached the target.
Li Muzhan now understood why the old man in grey was so desperate to seize his throwing knife. If his knife could be merged with this Hidden Blade technique, the resulting power would truly be peerless.
His own knife was crystal clear; even under moonlight, it could seamlessly blend with the night, remaining unknown. Furthermore, the blade was incredibly sharp; once it struck, it was nearly impossible to block.
Perhaps it was useless during the day, but even one night of use would be astonishing. The best approach would be to conceal it somewhere—like a trap—and lure the opponent near the blade before striking suddenly.
It would indeed be a guaranteed kill, possessing frightening power. He sat cross-legged, spun his hands, and the small booklet disintegrated into powder, scattering on the breeze, ceasing to exist in the world.
Li Muzhan carefully pondered the mental cultivation of the Hidden Blade. It was ingenious, yet without a specific blade to complement it, its power was quite limited.
But combined with his throwing knife, it was like adding wings to a tiger. He considered merging the Hidden Blade technique with his Void-Piercing Sword Intent.
If he succeeded, the knife would not need to remain on his person; it could be hidden in the void, with life and death resting entirely on his will. However, merging it with the Void-Piercing Sword Intent would not be easy.
That Sword Intent had been achieved through an unexpected flash of inspiration, achieving a state of seamless perfection. Altering it would be extremely difficult, requiring secluded contemplation.
After a moment of thought, he dismissed the idea of immediate seclusion. He stood up and continued moving forward, practicing the Hidden Blade incantation as he walked, keeping the long knife concealed within his sleeve.
If he could incorporate the Void-Piercing Sword Intent, he could conceal it in the void where no one could see it, positioning it behind his opponent for a killing blow at the critical moment. He encountered another massive serpent, thirty feet long and as thick as a child's arm, moving with incredible, frightening speed.
It nearly managed to coil around and crush him, but at the crucial moment, he employed the Hidden Blade technique, slaying the serpent. His gains were considerable; his spirit strengthened further, marking a huge leap in progress.
These two encounters were equivalent to several years of arduous cultivation—truly a beneficial place for training. "Hmm—?" Li Muzhan frowned in surprise, vanished from the spot in a flash, and reappeared next to Li Yubing.
"What's going on?" he asked solemnly. Li Yubing was locked in fierce combat with an old man in a black robe.
The elder was short and thin, looking as if a gust of wind could blow him away, yet he was surrounded by a tempest of wind and rain that enveloped Li Yubing. As Li Muzhan suddenly appeared, he too was caught in the maelstrom.
Now that his cultivation was greatly increased, with a mere thought, the space around Li Yubing and himself became clear, and the violent winds and snow could no longer penetrate. Li Yubing breathed a sigh of relief, clutching the small deer in her arms.
"This old man wants to steal my deer!" Li Muzhan asked, "Did he say anything else?" "He only said he wanted the deer, and if I refused, he would kill me," Li Yubing huffed, her cherry lips tightly pressed in anger. Li Muzhan shook his head.
"It seems we truly must be cautious." "Wuji, I won't abandon Little Deer!" Li Yubing insisted. Li Muzhan sighed.
"Fine, we won't abandon it! ...He struck with lethal intent; this is a fight to the death.
I must use my ultimate technique!" "Killing him would be best!" Li Yubing asserted. Li Muzhan nodded.
"Then we must go for the kill!" With a thought, he charged out violently. The old man in the black robe was surprised by the sudden appearance of another person.
Seeing Li Muzhan charge, he let out a cold laugh and shot a beam of white light from his hand. Li Muzhan tilted his head to evade the ice shard, flashed in front of the black-robed elder, and struck down with his palm.
The elder scoffed, refusing to believe it, and countered with a palm strike. Peng!
Li Muzhan was sent flying backward. The black-robed elder stared at his chest, where a throwing knife, trailing blood-red light, shot out and landed in Li Muzhan's palm.
Li Yubing watched from the side, cradling the deer. The black-robed elder roared and lunged at Li Muzhan with lightning speed.
Li Muzhan flashed and vanished, reappearing in front of Li Yubing. He grabbed her, flashed away, and with a dull peng, snowflakes fluttered down, and ice shards crunched.
Li Muzhan and Li Yubing reappeared a hundred meters away, hearts still pounding. A large crater, ten feet deep and thirty feet wide, was left in the distance.
Li Yubing snorted. "That trick again!" Li Muzhan shook his head.
"This fellow's cultivation is not trivial... What a shame!" "For such a wicked villain, dead is dead!" Li Yubing sniffed.
"Trying to forcibly take the little deer—he wasn't a good man... and he seemed quite lecherous, too!" Fearing Li Muzhan might feel guilty, she explained the real reason for her killing intent.
Li Muzhan realized the truth with a cold expression. "Damnable!
...Perhaps we should travel together for now!" "Look at this!" Li Yubing took out a small jade box from her embrace. Inside lay a snow-white ginseng root, shaped like an infant, plump and perfectly formed.
"Is this ginseng?" Li Muzhan asked, surprised. Li Yubing replied, "Little Deer found it!" Li Muzhan exclaimed admiringly, "The Palace Mistress is truly blessed!...
Why not consume it directly, to prevent others from coveting it?" Li Yubing said, "This time, we must part ways!" Li Muzhan pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Very well, I won't be polite then!" He urgently needed to raise his cultivation, and spiritual objects were far more effective for this than killing spirit beasts, much like the Daoist concept of the Heavenly Origin Golden Elixir.
Li Yubing took a jade knife, carefully sliced the ginseng in half, and they each ate one piece before sitting cross-legged to circulate their energy. After fifteen minutes, Li Muzhan emerged from his meditation, his spirit calm, even more inwardly focused than before; he looked less like a Grandmaster.
Li Yubing also opened her eyes, but her aura was surging, her cultivation greatly enhanced. Seeing his state, she laughed.
"Wuji, it seems your cultivation has advanced greatly; you are close to breaking through to the next realm!" Li Muzhan shook his head. "It's just an illusion.
Who knows how long it will take to reach the City Lord's level! ...The spiritual ginseng's power is even greater!" "Mmm," Li Yubing nodded.
"If I encounter that old man again now, I can definitely defeat him without needing your help!" Li Muzhan laughed. "At this rate, the Palace Mistress will soon surpass me!" "Surpassing you is useless; when it comes to killing, I am still far behind!" Li Yubing replied with a smile.
Li Muzhan chuckled. "That is not a good thing!
...Palace Mistress, let's exit this place first. I want to return home for a bit before coming back to cultivate peacefully." "Yes, that's fine." Li Yubing agreed.
"I need to go back and check things over as well." Li Muzhan's cultivation had doubled, estimating his power had increased twofold. His Great Teleportation divine ability was stronger, allowing him to carry Li Yubing with ease and cover greater distances effortlessly.
Li Yubing still had the little deer, which Li Muzhan allowed. He put an arm around her waist, flashed away, and after several shifts, they arrived at the Moli Palace.
As soon as they reached the main hall of the Moli Palace, Xu Suxin appeared, dressed in a white silk robe. Upon seeing Li Yubing, she rushed over joyfully, only stopping when Li Yubing chided her good-naturedly.
She then noticed the little deer and reached out to touch it. The little deer hopped back, hiding behind Li Yubing.
Li Yubing shook her head. "Alright, Xin'er, has everything been quiet lately?" "Oh, the Lu family sent people over!" Xu Suxin said regretfully, withdrawing her hand, then smiled.
"Mistress, where did you find this little deer? It's truly beautiful!" Li Yubing asked, "The Lu family?" Xu Suxin shook her head.
"I don't know what the Lu family has been up to, but they sent over a large pile of gifts, claiming it was an apology—it was all very strange!" Li Yubing and Li Muzhan exchanged a glance. Li Muzhan smiled.
"The Lu family is indeed sensible." "Oh, and Young Master Li, your Cloud Heaven Sect has become famous again!" Xu Suxin glanced sidelong at Li Muzhan. Li Muzhan paused.
"How so?" "Hmph, another Grandmaster has emerged from your Cloud Heaven Sect!" Xu Suxin said with a pout. Li Muzhan was surprised, then laughed.
"A Grandmaster? Is it Senior Sister Feng?" "Exactly!" Xu Suxin huffed.
"It happened about ten days ago!" Li Yubing was also surprised. "Miss Feng has also advanced to Grandmaster?
...What exactly happened?" Xu Suxin explained, "It seems Senior Sister Feng entered closed-door cultivation and had an epiphany during her training, achieving the rank of Grandmaster. The news shocked the world!"