Chapter 286: Chapter 285: Ghost Fortress (Extra update as a reward for ’Humming Your Tenderness’! )
Shi Xiaole had rented the most luxurious inn in town. After taking a comfortable bath, he changed into a brand new, light-colored shirt and sat cross-legged on the bed.
For the past two months, he did not slack off in his martial arts practice. Although his cultivation level showed no signs of breakthrough, it had still improved by a significant margin.
In terms of martial arts skills, his progress was even more pronounced.
As for the Death Claiming Fifteen-Sword Technique, he had mastered seventy percent of the first thirteen moves, fifty percent of the fourteenth move, and he even seemed to have grasped the essence of the seemingly impossible fifteenth move.
The current Shi Xiaole, apart from defeating a seventh tier Xuan Qi practitioner, could even take down a practitioner of the eighth tier with ease. If he were to spar with Guan Qingying, who was at the same cultivation level, he would easily defeat her within ten moves.
Late into the night,
The lamplight on the streets flickered on and off, casting an air of desolation over the small town.
A young man entered the inn, covered in dust from his travels. He ordered two roast chickens, a roast goose, and three catties of bamboo leaf liquor without a second thought.
While waiting for his order to arrive, he began devouring his food in earnest, cleaning his plate in no time.
"Fellows, we’ve got a glutton in town."
A few burly men at the neighboring table, one of them jeered, prompting a round of laughter from the other customers.
The young fellow was completely undeterred.
After a while, there was a sound of hesitant footsteps outside the inn, and a few more people walked in.
"Brother Lin, sorry to keep you waiting."
The man leading the others, wearing splendid attire, approached the young man apologetically.
The young man shrugged: "It’s alright, I just arrived too."
"In that case, we’d like to invite you to join us, Brother Lin. My father has prepared a feast in your honor."
Seeing the remnants of food on the table, the elegantly-dressed man was even more polite, extending an invitation with his hand.
"Great. I was just worrying about not getting enough to eat."
Once they had left, the burly men who had ridiculed the young man earlier were trembling in fear.
"Who is that guy? Why would the young master of the Purple Beauty Gang personally invite him?"
"Whoever he is, he’s not someone we can afford to offend. Luckily, he didn’t take offense at us earlier, or we’d have been in trouble."
The Purple Beauty Gang was one of the three biggest martial arts factions in Xuanfeng Town. The young master, Ying Bituo, was at the sixth tier of Xuan Qi and one of the top powerhouses in town.
The burly men seemed quite scared, they left the inn in a rush after settling the bill.
From his spot by the window, Shi Xiaole had a clear view of everything that had transpired. He smiled and signaled the waiter.
"Young man, do you know of a place nearby called the Half Moon Pond?"
Shi Xiaole handed over a silver nugget, while not holding out hope. After all these years, the place mentioned by the nameless monk might not exist anymore.
The waiter beamed at the sight of the silver. He quickly accepted it and said, "Young Master, I know the place you speak of. It’s just three miles west of our town, at the base of Wanggui Slope. However, I must urge you not to go there."
When Shi Xiaole heard that the place really did exist, he felt relieved. Seeing the waiter’s anxious expression, he couldn’t help but ask, "Why not?"
"Young Master might not be aware, but it’s within the territory of a ghost fortress. Anyone who enters it meets only death."
Thanks to the waiter’s explanation, Shi Xiaole learned that, five years ago, a strange event began to occur in Xuanfeng Town. Anyone who ventured within a hundred meters of Wanggui Slope would inexplicably disappear, without a single exception.
Several witnesses later claimed to have seen a stone fortress shrouded in darkness, with a long-haired apparition floating within, thus giving rise to the legend of the ghost fortress.
It’s not that no martial art experts have tried to explore it.
But first, the existence of the ghost fortress is still in question. Secondly, Xuanfeng Town is too remote, making it rare for experts at the Spiritual-Passage Realm to venture here. Consequently, nothing could be ascertained about the place.
"Young Master, you really mustn’t go there."
Seeing Shi Xiaole’s friendly disposition, the waiter implored him again and again.
Unfortunately for him, Shi Xiaole had come to Xuanfeng Town expressly to search for the rumored Exotic Fruit. After finishing his meal, he made his way out of the town alone.
It wasn’t long before he saw a lonely cliff bathed in moonlight.
Using all his strength, Shi Xiaole cautiously approached the edge of the cliff and quickly found a dry, crescent-shaped pool.
According to the nameless monk, there was a hidden world within this pool which extended around 400 meters underground. It was said to house a seed of the Exotic Fruit.
So many years had passed. It was very likely that the Exotic Fruit had already been picked, but Shi Xiaole wanted to go down and check anyway.
To his surprise, he found that he couldn’t get near the Half Moon Pond. Every time he thought he was there, he would find that he was still quite a distance away.
"There’s an array system placed here."
Shi Xiaole didn’t panic. Remembering the waiter’s words, he calmly closed his eyes. He believed that what he needed would appear before him.
Whoosh...
As expected, a ghostly sound suddenly rang out, seeming to be from the left.
Shi Xiaole unsheathed his sword and aimed for the right. His sword pierced a cloud of black mist, which dissipated and reformed behind him to create a claw.
However, Shi Xiaole had anticipated this. His right arm lightly moved, his sword easily deflected the black claw.
Swish!
The black claw dissipated, revealing it to be a feint, as an odd smell entered Shi Xiaole’s nose. But his movements were not delayed, and this time, he finally stabbed something solid.
"You’re not afraid of poison?"
The black mist cleared, revealing a slightly malevolent face. The left hand held the sword, blood gushing from it.
"Are you the one from the ghost fortress?"
Shi Xiaole ignored the question, instead asking his own.
"Heh heh, if you want to know, just go ask the king of the underworld."
With that, the face opened its mouth, and a black stream of blood shot out at an incredible speed. Since the distance between them was less than three feet and the stream was fueled by his internal power at the tier of Xuan Qi four, even a the practitioner at the sixth tier wouldn’t be able to dodge it.
He believed that Shi Xiaole would be no exception.
Whoosh.
A streak of green Sword Qi sliced the black blood arrow right in the center. In a blink, the man was startled to find that the sword was positioned right above his head.
Such a fast sword!
The eyes of the young man opposite him flashed with a peculiar glow, making it seem like the man’s soul had been hooked away.
"Where is the Ghost Fortress?"
"It’s right above Half Moon Pond."
The man’s answer left Shi Xiaole taken aback.
"How can I get in?"
"I don’t know, Ghost Granny doesn’t trust anyone. I’m just responsible for surveillance and eliminating any minor ghosts who intrude. When there is something to be done, someone will take me into the Ghost Fortress."
After asking a series of questions and finding out that the other party knew very little, the only useful information was that the three gangs in Xuanfeng Town seemed to have some involvement with the Ghost Fortress, supplying it with medicinal materials and other supplies regularly.
Shi Xiaole didn’t waste any more time, he swiftly killed the man and left. Since he couldn’t enter the Array System, he decided to return and study it first.
A quarter of an hour later, two dark figures emerged from the Array System. To the outsider’s eyes, they seemed to have appeared out of thin air.
"Ghost number six has been killed, killed with one sword."
"To kill Ghost number six with one sword, the newcomer must at least be at the Seventh Tier of Xuan Qi. It seems that only the leader of the Purple Beauty Gang in Xuanfeng Town can do this."
"He wouldn’t dare! It must be an outsider. Let’s go and report this to Granny quickly."
The two lifted the body of Ghost number six and returned to the Array System.
The next day.
Shi Xiaole returned to Xuanfeng Town and directly headed towards the largest of the three gangs, the Purple Beauty Gang.
"May I know the purpose of the Young Master’s visit?"
In the hall, Ying Xiong, the leader of the Purple Beauty Gang, covertly surveyed Shi Xiaole.
Although Xuanfeng Town is remote, Ying Xiong in his early years had also roamed the Martial World. His discerning eyes assessed that Shi Xiaole looked like an outstanding individual amongst the younger generation.
"May I ask Leader Ying, do you know Ghost Granny’s real strength?"
Ying Xiong’s eyes noticeably narrowed, then returned to normal. He laughed and said, "I wonder why the Young Master is asking this?"
"I heard that the Ghost Fortress has killed many innocent people over the years, so I want to eliminate it."
Shi Xiaole stated, nonchalantly.
On his way here, he had found out that Ying Xiong was forty-nine, with a Xuan Qi level of seven. His power had better not be very strong. Upon meeting him, there was indeed no sense of threat.
So, Shi Xiaole didn’t bother pretending.
If Ying Xiong is an accomplice of the Ghost Fortress, he would just capture and interrogate him. If not, then he would make other calculations.
"Young Master, one should know one’s limits. It’s best not to invite trouble. Take back what you just said, and I can pretend I didn’t hear it."
Ying Xiong replied, his smile not reaching his eyes.
"Sorry, I never take back what I say."
Shi Xiaole remained unmoved.
Clap clap.
With a clap from Ying Xiong, ten skilled fighters immediately rushed in from outside the hall. Without needing instruction, they went straight for Shi Xiaole.
All ten men were skilled fighters at the Fifth Tier of Xuan Qi, and their coordination was superb. Killing two or three experts at the Sixth Tier of Xuan Qi would be effortless for them.
As the overwhelming aura, akin to a mountain, pressed onto Shi Xiaole who was sitting on the side, it was only when the ten men got close did Shi Xiaole strike.
With a streak of his sword, he sheathed it back.
Thud thud thud...
The weapons in the hands of the ten men split in two, they all froze right on the spot.
"What?"
Ying Xiong too froze, his eyes widened.
"So, how did I do, Leader Ying?"
Shi Xiaole sat motionless at his original spot, leisurely sipping tea.
Ying Xiong waved everyone out and said something astonishing: "I won’t hide from the Young Master, I have long been disgusted with the Ghost Fortress’s actions. Over the years, I have been plotting to eliminate Ghost Granny. Just now, I just wanted to test your strength."
Shi Xiaole didn’t show any surprise, as Ying Xiong had no murderous intent from start to end. He only asked, "Aren’t you scared that I’m a spy sent by Ghost Granny to test you?"
Ying Xiong laughed: "Firstly, the Young Master just arrived in Xuanfeng Town last evening. Secondly, Ghost Granny doesn’t need to send a spy, because she used a powerful Gu (bewitchment) technique on us, the leaders of the three gangs. This made us succumb to her."
"However, recently, by some lucky chance, we were rescued by a Gu technique master and were freed from the Gu poison. These past few years Ghost Granny has been refining her Gu technique, using us, the three gangs, to collect supplies and constantly taking our subordinates to experiment on. We have tolerated her for long enough!"
At the end, Ying Xiong’s laughter ceased, his face was filled with a murderous aura.
"Are you confident of killing her?"
Shi Xiaole asked.
"Ghost Granny’s Xuan Qi has reached the Seventh Tier, and coupled with her Gu technique, even a Ninth Tier Xuan Qi expert would not be her match. However, we have also found many experts. Plus, if you, Young Master, would join us, with many people working together, we will definitely capture her and break the Ghost Fortress."
In Ying Xiong’s eyes, Shi Xiaole’s ability was at least at the Seventh Tier Xuan Qi. If he was willing to join them, although he couldn’t be considered the main force, he would add strength to the team, increasing the chances of victory.
Thinking about it this way, Ying Xiong was a little helpless.
In fact, if it wasn’t for the fact that with the level of their three major gangs, they couldn’t come into contact with experts at the Spiritual-Passage Realm, nor could they afford to give too much reward, where would they be in this difficulty?
