Turmoil Within the Sect — Chapter 11: How Could It Be Her?
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The alley once again fell into deathly silence.
The disciples peering through the cracks in the doors did not dare breathe. They stared at the scene before them, feeling as though they were caught in a dream.
For three years, Chu Xing had been treated as a useless cripple and bullied at will. Yet today, he had turned the tables—not only defeating Zhao Hu, the tyrant of the outer sect, and his two lackeys, but also demanding the spoils of victory in full view of everyone, showing not the slightest mercy.
The stark contrast was so overwhelming that their minds could scarcely process it.
Looking down at Zhao Hu beneath his feet, Chu Xing’s smile deepened.
“Brother Hu, as you can see, we’ve fulfilled our wager. Now, let’s discuss the interest.”
“You... what else do you want?” Zhao Hu asked, both shocked and furious. The Chu Xing of today seemed like a demon wearing human skin.
“Don’t be nervous.”
“I told you, I’m a very fair man. You robbed me one hundred and eight times, so I won’t ask for more. Just make it another one hundred and eight times, and we’ll call it even.”
Zhao Hu’s eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.
One hundred and eight times? Five contribution points each—that came to five hundred and forty points!
Even if he sold himself, he could never produce that much!
“You... this is extortion! The sect forbids it!” Zhao Hu roared through clenched teeth. “Chu Xing! My cousin is Zhou Yuan! Zhou Yuan, an inner-sect disciple! If you dare lay a finger on me today, he will never let you off!”
He had assumed that invoking the words “inner-sect disciple” would at least put a trace of fear on Chu Xing’s face.
Instead, upon hearing the name, the smile slowly faded from Chu Xing’s features.
He lifted the foot that had been planted on Zhao Hu’s chest. Then, under Zhao Hu’s horrified gaze, he brought it down with brutal force.
Crack!
The sound of breaking bone rang clearly through the alley.
“Ah!”
Zhao Hu let out a bloodcurdling scream. His entire body curled into a ball, cold sweat instantly soaking through his back.
Trembling from the pain, he glared at Chu Xing with venomous hatred. “You dare... How dare you...”
Chu Xing crouched down and stared at his twisted face, his voice cold and indifferent.
“I don’t like being threatened.”
“Starting today, come to my courtyard at the Chen hour. Five contribution points each time, until the debt is paid. Don’t be late. I have no patience.”
With that, he rose, dusted off his hands, and walked toward his courtyard without sparing Zhao Hu, sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, another glance.
The lackey sent to transfer the contribution points had just returned. His legs gave way in fright, and he nearly fell to his knees.
As Chu Xing passed him, he did not slow down. He simply took his token and tucked it into his robe.
Bang.
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The courtyard gate closed softly.
The alley was left in deathly silence, with only Zhao Hu lying on the ground, eyes burning with the flames of revenge.
Chu Xing leaned against the door and let out a long breath.
Only then did he feel a chill along his back. He realized that he had long since been drenched in sweat.
A trace of weariness appeared on his face, but excitement far outweighed it.
His battle against Zhao Hu and his lackeys had appeared effortless, yet in truth it had been fraught with danger. If not for the physique and endurance granted by the stone pearl—allowing him to wear down Zhao Hu, who was at the eighth level of Body Tempering—the victor might well have been someone else.
This was his first true victory in three years!
Chu Xing sat cross-legged on the bed, closed his eyes, sank his consciousness into his body, and began reviewing the battle.
Scene after scene of his clash with Zhao Hu flashed through his mind.
At first, he had been unpracticed in controlling the power of the sixth level of Body Tempering, and several times Zhao Hu’s fists had nearly torn open his defenses.
Even now, recalling that suffocating feeling of being beaten down, he still felt a lingering fear.
But as the battle progressed, the black stone pearl within his dantian seemed to be stirred by the violent flow of his vital energy. It began to grow faintly warm.
That warmth!
Chu Xing remembered clearly that when his blood and energy had surged and his strength was nearly exhausted, it was the pure, warm current that flowed from the stone pearl which had rapidly repaired his fatigue, allowing him to recover his breath in an instant.
Not only that, the warm current seemed to sharpen his senses as well. The angle of Zhao Hu’s every punch and the instant he exerted his strength had become crystal clear in Chu Xing’s eyes.
He had been able to predict faster and react faster.
That was precisely why he had been able to grow rapidly in actual combat, gradually reclaim the advantage, and ultimately seize the openings in Zhao Hu and his companions’ defenses to win with a single strike.
“This stone pearl...” Chu Xing was shaken. “It can not only purify energy, but also assist me in battle?”
The discovery set his heart ablaze.
It was practically a divine treasure born for combat!
Suppressing his excitement, Chu Xing withdrew his consciousness.
He took from his robe the small porcelain bottle he had obtained from Zhao Hu. When he pulled out the stopper, a rich medicinal fragrance immediately filled his nose.
“Yellow-grade, low-tier Body Tempering Pill.”
A fervent light flashed in his eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, he tossed the longan-sized pill directly into his mouth.
The pill dissolved the moment it entered his mouth, transforming into a scorching torrent that surged down his throat and into his abdomen before suddenly spreading outward.
A savage medicinal force rampaged through his body, sending waves of stabbing pain through his meridians.
Chu Xing grunted and immediately guided the force while simultaneously activating the black stone pearl within his dantian.
The stone pearl trembled faintly, as though it were a bottomless vortex, and began frantically devouring the violent medicinal power.
After only a few breaths, a warm current far more immense than any before surged from the stone pearl, coursing through his muscles, bones, and meridians.
Chu Xing felt his entire body tremble. The elemental energy within him, belonging to the sixth level of Body Tempering, rapidly expanded and condensed under the infusion of that vast power.
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His cultivation, which had only just entered the sixth level, began rising steadily!
Only when that energy had been completely exhausted did his cultivation finally stop—barely at the peak of the sixth level of Body Tempering. He was just one step away from crossing the threshold into the seventh level!
Chu Xing abruptly opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing within them and vanishing just as quickly. Feeling the power filling his body to the point of nearly overflowing, he revealed an uncontrollable expression of joy.
The peak of the sixth level of Body Tempering!
He had only just broken through to the sixth level of Body Tempering!
In a matter of days, he had gone from being a bottom-ranked disciple at the third level of Body Tempering to someone capable of defeating the likes of Zhao Hu!
All of it was thanks to that mysterious black stone pearl.
Chu Xing carefully put away the porcelain bottle, which still contained two Body Tempering Pills. They were precious treasures capable of saving his life at a critical moment.
The sky gradually darkened, and night enveloped the entire Xuanxing Pavilion.
After consolidating his cultivation, Chu Xing was preparing to rest when his ears suddenly twitched.
An almost inaudible sound of something slicing through the air flashed past outside the courtyard. Its direction...
The rear mountain!
Chu Xing’s heart tightened.
At this hour, who would be sneaking toward the rear mountain?
An idea rose irresistibly from the depths of his mind.
Hundred Herb Ravine! That mysterious cave!
Could the cave’s original owner have returned?
Chu Xing’s gaze instantly sharpened. Without the slightest hesitation, he silently pushed open the courtyard gate and followed from a distance.
He concealed his presence to the utmost. After several leaps, he reached the vicinity of Hundred Herb Ravine.
Suppressing his aura, he hid behind a dense thicket and fixed his eyes on the cave entrance concealed beneath the vines.
Under the moonlight, the vines around the entrance bore signs of having been disturbed.
Chu Xing’s pupils contracted, and his heart leaped into his throat.
Holding his breath, he cautiously crept closer and brushed aside a small section of vines, peering into the cave through the gap.
The next moment, his entire body stiffened.
Inside the cave, a slender figure knelt with her back to him before the medicinal herb garden he had cultivated with his own hands.
Soft moonlight streamed through a crack in the ceiling and fell upon her familiar pale violet dress.
It was her!
Mu Wanqing!
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