Chapter 68: Chapter 65: Letter of Credence_1
In the critical moment, Lu Yan made his move. His palm glowing like a golden fan caught the sword tip of the clan member from the He Family.
"You..."
The He Family clan member churned his Qi-blood, crazily infusing it into the sword body, stabbing vigorously, but he could not move the sword an inch, as if a piece of metal was jammed in it.
Lu Yan’s arm muscles bulged, and with a sudden twist, the sword shattered with a clang. Holding the broken sword edge, he lunged, piercing the He Family member’s throat.
Without stopping, he slightly bent his legs, and bounded towards the He Family member who had killed Huo Tian.
The scene happened too fast; from Lu Yan’s intervention to the kill, it only took two breaths.
The Fifth Breakthrough expert from the He Family didn’t react in time.
It wasn’t until Lu Yan charged at him that he came to his senses.
"You, courting death."
With a low growl, the He Family man thrust his longsword like a tempest.
Lu Yan, suspended in mid-air, couldn’t dodge, but he didn’t consider avoiding. In mid-air, his Hundred Refined Steel Knife came out of its sheath and slashed through the sky with a Broken Sky Blade strike.
This was a culmination of the Broken Sky Blade technique, merging fifty-four forms into one, seeking simplicity, speed, precision, and ruthlessness. A single strike that cuts through gold, a single strike that breaks the sky, a single strike that kills.
The He Family member’s Wind Chasing Life-taking Sword also sought speed, precision, and ruthlessness. But unfortunately, his cultivation was not deep enough.
Clang!
The two crossed paths. Lu Yan stood holding his blade, a few drops of blood dripping from it.
The He Family man’s eyes widened in disbelief. Then, a line of blood appeared on his throat, and with a gurgling sound, his head rolled onto the ground.
His longsword, too, was broken into two.
A strike to break the gold, a strike to behead.
Thud!
Lu Yan pushed hard with his legs, the ground beneath him exploding into pieces of stone, while his robust body rushed towards Liu Xingming.
"Good, hahaha!"
Liu Xingming burst into laughter, overcome with joy.
What he originally thought was a death trap, unexpectedly turned around in the blink of an eye, thanks to Lu Yan’s incredible combat power.
"Run!"
The gaunt middle-aged man from the He Family was terrified, he stabbed out repeatedly, forcing Liu Xingming back, and then turned to run.
He knew very well how strong the other Fifth Breakthrough expert from the He Family was. Although he was slightly inferior, the gap was small.
If Lu Yan could cut him down with a single strike, even if he was caught off guard, it was enough to prove how terrifying Lu Yan was. Killing him wouldn’t be difficult.
If they don’t run, they die.
The Fourth Breakthrough expert from the He Family also turned to run.
But Liu Xingming immediately attacked with a palm strike, blocking the Fourth Breakthrough expert from the He Family.
And Lu Yan continued without pause, pursuing the Fifth Breakthrough.
With Lu Yan’s speed, his legs sprung like springs, covering tens of meters in a leap. After just a few leaps, he was close to the Fifth Breakthrough from the He Family, then he threw the Hundred Refinements Vajra Sword.
The Hundred Refinements Vajra Sword flew like a bolt of lightning towards the back of the He Family clan member.
The He Family clan member turned and swung his sword, knocking the Hundred Refinements Vajra Sword away. Instead of running any further, he held his sword and charged at Lu Yan.
With Lu Yan’s speed, he knew he couldn’t escape.
"A swordsman, throws his own blade, foolish."
The gaunt middle-aged man from the He Family executed his Wind Chasing Life-taking Sword to its extreme. He had practiced it to the point of mastery for many years, and its power was extraordinary.
Lu Yan had abandoned his blade, and it seemed to him like a chance to turn the situation around.
As a swordsman, he knew the importance of weapons very well. A weapon was a second life to them, and he had devoted a lifetime of effort to it.
Once he lost his sword, he would be like an eagle without wings, a tiger without teeth, and his combat power would be greatly reduced.
The same went for a blade master.
He would not miss this opportunity.
The sword light shot straight towards Lu Yan’s throat.
Lu Yan sidestepped dodging the attack, he kicked off the ground, and the power sprang up from his feet, through his waist, and poured into his hands.
Gale Hand!
Lu Yan threw a punch, the resulting torrentpalm wind whistling, making the gaunt middle-aged man’s face change dramatically. He hastily retreated, flicking his wrist, the longsword hummed and stabbed towards Lu Yan’s wrist.
Lu Yan suddenly changed his move halfway, his palm slanting sideways and chopping onto the opponent’s sword. The powerful palm force instantly erupted, causing the opponent’s longsword to tremble excessively and ripple like a long snake, which almost made the thin middle-aged opponent lose his grip on his sword.
Although the opponent cultivated top-notch martial arts and had a sharp concentration of Qi-blood, Lu Yan’s Qi-blood was too thick now, with a capacity five times that of an ordinary person.
Even though he was not yet overflowing with Qi-blood, he was several times stronger than the typical Fourth Breakthrough martial artist, and much thicker than a martial artist who had achieved the Fifth Breakthrough.
In a head-to-head confrontation, Lu Yan was a clear winner.
After gaining the upper hand with one move, Lu Yan didn’t give his opponent any chance to breathe. He charged forward and launched a series of attacks, variably fists and palms, ever-changing.
The opponent barely parried a few moves, but was surprised by Lu Yan’s sudden advance and got punched in the chest.
This was a full-powered punch from Lu Yan. The opponent could not resist at all. His protective Qi-blood was scattered, his chest was pierced through, and Lu Yan’s whole fist sank into his chest cavity.
"You..."
Fresh blood continuously surged from the mouth of the thin middle-aged man, frustration written all over his face.
"Sorry, the knife technique is newly acquired."
Lu Yan drew back his fist, leaving the opponent to collapse onto the ground lifelessly.
On the other hand, Liu Xingming was also dominating his opponent. When Lu Yan killed the thin middle-aged man, the clansman from the He Family got flustered and was killed instantly by Liu Xingming’s palm to the forehead.
Standing aside, Wang Lin was stunned as he looked at Lu Yan. It was as if he had met Lu Yan for the first time. His heart was in turmoil which he was struggling to calm.
Only then did he realize the young man, who had always been following behind him, had concealed so much.
"Young Master Liu, everything is taken care of."
Lu Yan balled his hand into a fist as he walked towards Liu Xingming.
"Hahaha, good! I had no idea there would be someone like you among the Red-clad Guards. When we’re back in Changfeng City, I will make sure to report to our Clan Elder, there will be a handsome reward for you. With your strength, it’s more than sufficient to be the captain of the Red-clad Guards. After an evaluation period, I’ll recommend you for the Guesthouse."
Liu Xingming laughed effortlessly, looking at Lu Yan with admiration. However, what he thought was, "This boy seems to be called Lu Yan, a refugee background, just eighteen or nineteen years old. Yet, he could easily kill a Fifth Breakthrough martial artist from the legitimate line of a Feudal Lord, he must be hiding a big secret. Once we get back to the city, I must tell the Clan Elder to apprehend him and squeeze every secret out of him."
There were rarely any good-for-nothings among the lineal descendants of the Feudal Lords. And even if there were, they would never get promoted.
As for the Red-clad Guards, the elite of Liu Family had some understanding of them. They had an impression of each guard and Liu Xingming had also seen Lu Yan’s profile. If he thought about it carefully, he could gradually recall it. Hence, he increasingly found Lu Yan abnormal.
To have the strength to kill a Five-time Limit Breaking martial artist, yet only willing to disclose the strength of a Two-time Limit Breaking martial artist.
If it weren’t for today’s incident, no one would have known his true strength.
He hid it so deep!
"Then, thank you in advance, Young Master Liu!"
Thump!
Lu Yan’s palm struck Liu Xingming’s chest, sinking it in, and sending him flying over ten meters backward as he coughed up blood profusely.
"Lu Yan, what... what are you trying to do?"
Liu Xingming shouted out of anger, panic, and fear.
Things were just fine the second before, yet he suddenly attacked them the next second. He was quicker to turn against them than flipping a book.
Wang Lin was also taken aback. Unconsciously, his muscles tensed and his hands tightly gripped his cherished blade.
"After knowing my true strength, there’s no need for you to continue living."
Lu Yan coldly stated. Although his words were intended for Liu Xingming, his gaze was fixed on Wang Lin. His eyes were calm, devoid of any emotion.
"You dare, I am the legitimate member of the Liu Family. If you dare to kill me, the Liu Family will definitely tear you apart....."
Liu Xingming shouted in terror.
"Kill!"
At a sharp command, Wang Lin suddenly made his move. The long knife slashed through the air, and Liu Xingming’s head flew high, rolling over seven or eight meters away.
"Lu... Sir Lu, please spare my life. From now on, I’ll serve only you. If you say go east, I will never go west."
Wang Lin sheathed his knife, bowed and made his obeisance towards Lu Yan.
A smile appeared on Lu Yan’s face. He quickly stepped forward to help Wang Lin up, saying, "Brother Wang, there’s no need for this. Just call me Lu Yan, don’t call me ’Sir’ as it sounds very distant. You even thought of saving me just now, why would I kill you?"
Lu Yan’s words were heartfelt. He had never thought of killing Wang Lin.
He had only one reason for sparing Liu Xingming just now—to force Wang Lin to kill Liu Xingming to clarify his stand and to be on the same side as him. This way, Wang Lin would never ever divulge the secret of Lu Yan’s hidden strength.
Unexpectedly, Wang Lin had already figured out the situation and made a decision before Lu Yan even had the chance to voice it out. He was smarter and more decisive than Lu Yan had anticipated— it was simply neat and clean.
The speed of his rise had been too fast. He had only been a refugee here for over four years. He had morphed from an ordinary refugee into a highly skilled martial artist capable of killing a Fifth Breakthrough martial artist. Once word about this spread, it would cause a sensation.
Not just Liu Family, even the other Feudal Lords would capture him for interrogation.
So, until he is strong enough to protect himself, he could not expose himself.
