Chapter 128: Success! (Two-in-One)

"So, there are indeed quite a few fourth-grade experts in the main Shi clan."

Faced with the pincer attack from the old man and the old woman, Su Jingxing remained calm, feeling neither panic nor fear. As he pondered, he decisively channeled one hundred years of True Energy cultivation.

*Swish!*

He first slashed his blade toward the old man.

*Three Origins Blade Technique, Human Origin Chapter: Rampaging Dragon Overlord Slash!*

"Whoosh-boom!"

The energy of one hundred years of Heaven-Treading True Energy erupted with the blade technique, manifesting as a massive blade aura in mid-air. It surged forward, carrying an unstoppable momentum.

Before it even drew near, astonishment washed over the old man's face. In his haste, he dared not hold back, pouring all his True Energy into his palms and then into the precious weapon in his hand.

As he swung his long sword, a chilly, sinister sword aura instantly formed, manifesting as tangible, venomous snakes to intercept the violent blade aura.

*Boom!*

"Boom!"

The moment the sword aura and blade aura collided, Su Jingxing had already turned to engage the old woman in a head-on confrontation.

Instead of brandishing his weapon, he unleashed the *Hundred-Step King Fist*. Bursting with the same century of cultivation, he threw a punch directly at her.

A silvery-black fist imprint formed almost instantly, rushing toward the iron-faced woman.

The old woman swung her sword, the aura cutting through the air in an attempt to shatter the fist imprint.

But alas—

"Pow!"

*Boom!*

A dull thud, followed by an explosion, rang out.

The surging shockwave swept through the air, creating visible ripples of kinetic energy that rampaged throughout the corridor.

The old man and the old woman were sent flying backward, one after the other, by the blade aura and the fist imprint. While still in mid-air, they vomited blood.

Before they could even hit the ground, the faster, more powerful shockwave engulfed them, churning their protective True Energy while slamming them toward the rear with even greater force.

With two thunderous bangs, the immense impact carried them into the metal wall.

The terrifying force smashed a crater into the metal, causing the entire wall to buckle and deform.

The two were embedded in the crater. Though still alive, they were unable to move. Their faces were deathly pale, their eyes filled with disbelief, and blood continued to pour from the corners of their mouths.

One strike!

One punch?

Both were "fourth-grade" experts, yet Su Jingxing had defeated them with just one blade strike and one punch. This result was impossible for them to accept.

Even though they had felt the terrifying power contained within those attacks—power that clearly surpassed that of an ordinary fourth-grade expert—it was precisely that fact that made it so hard for them to swallow.

They could not fathom how Su Jingxing had trained, or why the True Energy cultivation of a single person could be so monstrous.

That strike and that punch—it was at least eighty... no, ninety years of cultivation!

Or perhaps, one hundred years?

A fourth-grade expert with one hundred years of cultivation?

As this thought crossed their minds, the old man and the old woman were filled with terror.

"You..."

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Piercing sounds of air being torn apart suddenly erupted.

The old man, struggling to speak, only had time to see a streak of white light flash before his eyes before he lost consciousness.

*Puchi!*

A flying dagger pierced through his skull.

*Puchi!*

Another dagger pierced the old woman's head.

Fourth-grade?

Under the weight of one hundred years of Heaven-Treading True Energy, an ordinary fourth-grade expert is nothing more than this!

*Swish! Swish!*

Retrieving his two precious flying daggers, Su Jingxing walked toward the bodies and picked up a card from each.

Holding them in his palm, he scanned his surroundings while reading the information on them.

As expected, both were Bloodline Cards.

Storing the cards in his palm space, Su Jingxing gripped his blade and continued deeper into the base.

Behind him—

"Kill! Slaughter every last member of the Shi clan!"

"Haha, good thing we arrived in time, otherwise there would be nothing left for us."

"Old Man Shi, get out here!"

...

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"

Roars, shouts, and explosions echoed incessantly.

The rest of the convoy had arrived, storming the base to wreak havoc and scavenge for spoils.

In the previous secret base, Su Jingxing had been in such a hurry to save people that he hadn't had the chance to search, missing out on the loot.

He had only grabbed a few barrels of corpse-dissolving fluid from the storage room to dispose of the bodies, and two barrels remained in his palm space.

This time, he was in no rush; he had plenty of time to loot.

Of course, before that, he had to find the people.

The Shi clan had captured Yi Yunru, Cai Gongxian, and Ye Jiuzhong but hadn't killed them—why?

Driven by curiosity, Su Jingxing searched along the way, slaughtering every guard and death-soldier he encountered and collecting their cards.

However, once he had penetrated deep into the base and searched every corner, he still couldn't find the detention area.

He hadn't even encountered any more Shi clan experts on the path.

It seemed as if the old man and old woman were the only two fourth-grade experts responsible for this base.

There was no sign of Yi Yunru, Cai Gongxian, or Ye Jiuzhong at all. It was as if they weren't here.

Su Jingxing refused to believe it. He left two guards alive and interrogated them about where the captives were held, but they both claimed they didn't know.

"Don't know? How could you not know?"

Su Jingxing applied pressure, the blade at the guard's throat slicing through skin and drawing blood.

"I really don't know, boss, sir, grandpa, I really don't know!"

The guard stiffened, begging desperately. "We’re just ordinary guards; we aren't responsible for this area. Whenever there’s something important, like storing treasures, the Shi clan members always keep us away."

"That’s right! Every ordinary guard is assigned to a different zone," the other guard chimed in, trembling. "Sir, even if you kill us, we don't know where the base's secrets are. There is a secret area here, it’s true, but only the Shi clan members know where it is."

"What about those death-soldiers?" Su Jingxing pressed.

"Death-soldiers?" The guard paused, then realized who Su Jingxing meant. "Sir, you mean the 'Shi King Guard,' right? They do know more than we do, but those people are all brainwashed. They only listen to the Shi clan’s orders. Trying to make them spill secrets is impossible because they’ll commit suicide at the first opportunity."

"It's not suicide, it's self-detonation!" the other guard added. "Every member of the 'Shi King Guard' has mastered a secret technique to explode their body. Once captured or if they know they are going to die, they choose to detonate. It wounds the enemy while protecting the Shi clan's secrets."

"They're psychopaths! They aren't human!"

"Sir, you must be careful if you run into them. Those guys are single-minded; they won't give you a chance to react. Even a fourth-grade expert can be injured by their self-detonation."

Su Jingxing fell silent.

Clearly, the methods of these "Shi King Guards" were unexpected.

When he had destroyed the Shi clan's secret base at Turtleback Mountain, it seemed he had simply been too fast.

Those death-soldiers must have intended to intercept him, but they hadn't detonated in time.

Otherwise, had they been prepared, his rescue mission last time would certainly not have been so easy.

Of course, these two guards might have been holding back some information, but it was likely mostly accurate.

With his increased Soul Power, Su Jingxing could tell if they were lying.

Therefore, since the "Shi King Guard" couldn't be interrogated, things were becoming troublesome.

There was a secret area in the base, but almost no one knew where it was.

What now?

"B-boss... no, sir, look, I've told you everything, can you..."

The guard offered a fawning smile, begging for mercy.

"Want to leave?"

A low shout suddenly rang out.

Su Jingxing turned to see five people approaching, weapons in hand, radiating killing intent.

The burly man leading them had a cold gaze and an overbearing presence.

As the group walked toward Su Jingxing, he shouted, "You member of the Shi clan, you want to leave? You're dreaming! And you... and you..."

The words died in his throat.

The look in the burly man's eyes as he stared at Su Jingxing shifted from shock to fear, filled with caution.

"What about me?" Su Jingxing asked in a deep voice.

"N-nothing," the burly man forced a laugh, waving his hand. "We were just passing by, yes, just passing by. Big Boss, please continue, we'll be heading off now."

He turned to flee as soon as he finished speaking.

"Yan, who scared you like this?"

An elderly voice rang out, and another group of people approached from behind the burly man.

The old man leading them squinted, staring at the burly man with a cryptic smile.

"Fourth Master Li, you've come at just the right time!"

The burly man was delighted. His face brightened as he turned to the side, pointing at Su Jingxing. "Fourth Master Li, this big boss is here too. Didn't you say you wanted to meet him? I didn't expect you two would actually run into each other."

At these words, the old man's expression changed. Once he recognized Su Jingxing's attire, the corners of his eyes twitched violently.

He wanted to retreat, but realized Su Jingxing was already looking at him. He hurriedly stopped, forced a stiff smile, and bowed from a distance. "So it is Guest Elder Lin. What a coincidence, I didn't expect you to be here."

"What? Guest Elder Lin is here too?"

Another voice sounded from behind the old man.

This time, it was a man with a booming, deep voice. Hearing the old man, his footsteps quickened as he walked over heavily.

Moments later, a sturdy man with a resolute face and sharp eyes appeared before Su Jingxing.

As soon as he saw Su Jingxing, his eyes lit up. He bowed from afar, "It really is Guest Elder Lin. What a pleasant surprise to meet you here. I am Zhou Wencen of the Zhou family. Nice to meet you, Guest Elder Lin."

"Hehe, I am Li Lilou of the Li family. A pleasure, Guest Elder Lin," the old man hurriedly added, introducing himself.

"And, uh, my name is Yan Yuanfeng," the burly man added, following suit. "I am the Deputy Sect Leader of the Iron Thread Sect. If you ever have a chance to visit, Guest Elder Lin, I will definitely treat you to the finest tea."

"Is that all? Just tea?" Zhou Wencen glanced at him and chuckled lightly. "Are you really so stingy that you wouldn't bring out your Iron Thread Silver Blossom?"

"Of course I’d bring it out, I was just waiting for Guest Elder Lin to visit!" Yan Yuanfeng glared at Zhou Wencen.

Turning back to Su Jingxing with a fawning smile, he said, "Guest Elder Lin, don't listen to this guy's attempt to sow discord."

"Hey, how did I..."

"Enough." Su Jingxing interrupted the three of them with a low voice. "You came here to rescue people, I assume?"

Su Jingxing had realized his earlier mistake.

He had forgotten that, according to the information provided by Shen Qian and others, the major powers in Qinghe City had sent many people to investigate the Shi clan's residential area at night, but not one of them had ever returned.

These people, unsurprisingly, had been captured and brought here, just like Yi Yunru, Cai Gongxian, and Ye Jiuzhong.

Zhou Wencen, Li Lilou, and Yan Yuanfeng had likely brought their men here for two reasons: to seize an opportunity for loot, and to rescue those who had been captured.

As for why they called him "Guest Elder Lin," they clearly still identified him as a guest elder of the Lin family where Lin Tuotian resided.

They were unaware that after the martial arts tournament, Su Jingxing had severed all ties with Lin Tuotian.

Of course, Su Jingxing didn't bother to correct their misunderstanding.

Once his question was out, the three men dropped their bickering.

Zhou Wencen composed himself and answered first, "That's correct. According to the intelligence we received, our people were all brought here, but we don't know where they are being held."

"They don't know either?" Yan Yuanfeng looked at the two guards Su Jingxing had subdued.

"I just interrogated them. They only know that there is a secret area in this base, but not where it is," Su Jingxing said in a low voice.

"I searched the area as well and found no sign of a detention site," Li Lilou added.

"Then what do we do?" Yan Yuanfeng frowned. "Could there be an underground chamber?"

"Most likely," Zhou Wencen nodded, analyzing. "An underground chamber is inevitable; the question is, where is it?"

"It's a pity that Shi Zhirun and Shi Zhiyun are already dead," Li Lilou sighed.

"Indeed, those two definitely would have known," Yan Yuanfeng sighed along with him. "No idea who killed them."

"If you are talking about an old man and an old woman, then I'm afraid that would be me," Su Jingxing said calmly.

*Ugh.*

Yan Yuanfeng's eye twitched. He stood there awkwardly, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Li Lilou and Zhou Wencen weren't particularly surprised.

Su Jingxing had even killed Helian Xuezhen and Ji Min; what were Shi Zhirun and Shi Zhiyun compared to them?

If it weren't for Su Jingxing's immense strength, why would these two fourth-grade experts be acting so polite and conversational?

It was simply because they knew how powerful he was and were looking for a chance to recruit him into their families.

Li Lilou and Zhou Wencen each had their own calculations.

They just didn't speak of them, nor did they let them show on their faces.

"If we don't know the location, this is going to be trouble..."

*Rumble!*

A loud noise suddenly came from a corridor to the right of the corner where the group was standing.

The floor and the ceiling shook along with the sound.

A thick, pungent scent of blood followed immediately.

Li Lilou and Zhou Wencen’s expressions changed drastically upon smelling it.

"Oh no!"

As soon as he spoke, the two leaped toward the corridor where the sound originated.

Their followers quickly rushed after them.

"What's going on?"

Yan Yuanfeng was baffled.

Su Jingxing ignored him and simply flashed away, following them.

"Hey, wait for me!"

Yan Yuanfeng shouted, chasing after them, followed by his own men.

Just as the group rushed into the corridor—

*Rumble!*

Another loud crash shook the ceiling and the floor.

This time, after the sound died down, a triumphant, manic laugh echoed from deep within the corridor.

"Hahaha, it's a success, it's a suc..."

*Puchi!*

A strange noise cut the laughter short.

Li Lilou, Zhou Wencen, and Su Jingxing were the fastest.

When they reached the source of the sound, they saw a large hole broken into the floor.

A tall, blood-soaked figure reached out, grabbed a man with thick, straight eyebrows, and pierced a sharp claw through his heart!