Chapter 69 - 69: Uprooting Towering Trees! (2)
If Zhuang Shisan truly died, he would probably have to consider resigning from his position as an official. Otherwise, when the Thirteen Riders of the Great Desert incited a rebellion under the influence of the White Lotus Sect, he would be doomed.
Lu Changsheng rode a fast horse out of the city and galloped north along the official road. After approximately an hour, he came to a stop.
The whereabouts of the Thirteen Riders of the Great Desert were not a secret, and he didn’t need a map to find them. Since the Thirteen Riders had blocked the official road, all he had to do was follow it, and they would naturally intercept him.
Sure enough, Lu Changsheng saw a group of bandits ahead, brandishing large knives with menacing expressions.
“It’s not a merchant caravan, just an individual? It seems to be someone from the martial world again. Could it be another attempt to assassinate the thirteen leaders?”
“Most likely. That dog official in Nanyang City has been posting ‘Righteous Heroes Lists,’ and many martial artists have come to assassinate the thirteen leaders one after another, hoping to gain fame. But they were all killed by the leaders.”
“This kid is alone, yet he comes so confidently. He’s practically seeking death! Catch him and offer him to the leaders!”
Lu Changsheng gazed at the bandits calmly, as though he were looking at a group of dead men. These bandits were all subordinates of the Thirteen Riders of the Great Desert. The few villages that were slaughtered in Nanyang Prefecture were actually attacked by these bandits, and none of them were innocent.
Lu Changsheng didn’t feel like wasting words. His thoughts were not clear, and his mind was turbulent, the perfect moment to take a life.
Since these bandits were willingly approaching their own demise, Lu Changsheng had no intention of showing mercy. Facing dozens of bandits, he leaped down from the horse, landing right in their midst.
“Silk Thread Sword, strike!”
His blood and qi burst forth within his body. In an instant, the blood and qi transformed into silk threads, and these threads became like swords.
“Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish.”
The threads of silk swords rained down like a storm, swiftly shooting in all directions.
“What?”
“What kind of technique is this?”
“My hands…”
Many bandits were filled with fear.
In just a breath’s time, dozens of bandits fell to the ground.
Most of them turned into lifeless corpses.
Even those who didn’t die were wounded and writhing on the ground, howling in agony.
Lu Changsheng still stood in place.
He had landed in the midst of the bandits without moving.
His blood and qi had transformed into the “Silk Thread Sword,” and it had already killed dozens of bandits.
Such a method was truly extraordinary.
However, at this moment, Lu Changsheng seemed to have noticed something and a look of astonishment appeared on his face.
“My blood and qi weren’t consumed much?”
Lu Changsheng was extremely surprised.
The wave of “Silk Thread Sword” he had just used should have consumed a significant amount of blood and qi.
After all, releasing blood and qi externally would result in substantial depletion.
However, his blood and qi within his body were surging, and it didn’t look like they had been depleted at all.
“No, it’s not that there was no consumption, but the recovery of blood and qi is too fast.”
“It’s the marrow! The bone marrow after the Bone Marrow Exchange has greatly improved blood production capabilities. Although blood is not the same as qi and blood, the massive amount of blood undoubtedly helps to quickly restore qi and blood.”
“Once the Bone Marrow Exchange is done, the ability to recover blood and qi greatly increases. Especially since I’ve not only done the Bone Marrow Exchange but also a Blood Exchange, the two combined enhance my endurance, recovery ability, and more.”
“Although there’s no such thing as a ‘Half-Step Divine Power Realm,’ in my current state, it’s essentially equivalent to a Half-Step Divine Power Realm…” Lu Changsheng could clearly feel that his strength had improved significantly.
His current state was much stronger than a Martial Artist at the Soul Refinement Realm.
Even facing a Soul Refinement Peak Martial Artist wouldn’t be a problem for him.
Far stronger than a Martial Artist at the Soul Refinement Peak level, but not quite at the Divine Power Realm level, he was a unique existence that was in between the two.
What else would you call it if not a “Half-Step Divine Power Realm”?
Originally, Lu Changsheng was worried about the numerous bandits under the Thirteen Riders of the Great Desert. While his Silk Thread Sword was formidable and could attack in groups, the depletion of his blood and qi was significant, and it would run out after just a couple of uses.
Now, it seemed that his blood and qi were recovering rapidly, and there was no need to worry about blood and qi consumption.
Lu Changsheng walked up to one of the wounded bandits. The bandit’s arm had been pierced by the Silk Thread Sword, and blood had stained his clothing, but he probably wouldn’t die immediately.
Lu Changsheng grabbed the bandit and lifted him up, asking coldly, “Where are the Thirteen Riders of the Great Desert?”
“They’re in the mountain stronghold.”
“Show me the way.”
Lu Changsheng didn’t bother with the bandit’s injuries and simply hoisted the bandit up, then plunged into the forest.
In the forest, Lu Changsheng could see an abandoned temple halfway up the mountain.
The temple had been surrounded and makeshift fences had been erected. Faint cries and clamor of many bandits could still be heard inside.
Clearly, this abandoned temple had been turned into a makeshift mountain stronghold by the bandits.
“Who’s there?”
Lu Changsheng hadn’t even approached the stronghold when he was discovered.
Vaguely, two bandits who had been hiding in the grass screamed in agony.
It turned out they were scouts!
The bandit that Lu Changsheng was holding onto certainly knew about the scouts but hadn’t warned Lu Changsheng.
“Bandits can’t be trusted!”
With the Silk Thread Sword in his hand, Lu Changsheng immediately pierced the wounded bandit’s heart.
Then, he exerted his strength to throw the bandit’s lifeless body toward the two scouts.
With a loud “thud,” the bandit’s corpse struck the two scouts.
“Ah…”
Instantly, the two scouts let out a miserable scream and were literally crushed to death by the impact.
With his current physical attributes, even a casual toss was incredibly powerful, so killing two scouts with it was quite normal.
However, the wails of the two scouts had alerted the bandits in the stronghold..