Chapter 87: Chapter 87: 5 System Tasks
Mountain Luyan, Cloud Sea Cliff.
With a powerful leap, Shi Xiaole soared a dozen feet into the air, then pushed off the emptiness, ascending another foot before landing steadily onto the ground.
"With the increase of Internal Power, the Golden Goose Skill can finally ascend an extra foot in the air."
Returning to Mountain Luyan seven days ago, Shi Xiaole’s days were no different from before.
If there were any differences, it would probably be that disciples within the sect had become even more fanatic, not allowing him to have a peaceful meal.
It really wasn’t their fault.
Rather, one could say, for many young people in the Cloud Triangle region, the Cloud Sky Conference was their dream stage, where everyone wanted to make a name for themselves.
Someone like Shi Xiaole, who defeated Ba Renxiong right after debuting and rose to the ranks of top young talents of the second level, was rare in the Cloud Triangle region.
Not to mention, later he indirectly suppressed Zuo Feiyang in the Piaoxu Building.
It would be strange if it did not cause a sensation.
As for the praises and admiration from the crowd, if Shi Xiaole said it didn’t affect him, he would be lying.
However, he forced himself not to feel it, for indulging too much in past glories would only deplete his will and hinder his future cultivation.
After elevating the Golden Goose Skill to a new level, Shi Xiaole began to refine his other martial arts.
Inspired by the experience of the thread of life, his plan was to refine the Battle Blade Skill, unify it, then try to create a blade skill strike!
The importance of strikes to martial artists need not be overstated.
Using an inappropriate analogy, if people were compared to nations, regular strength would be the nation’s comprehensive power, while strikes would be nuclear weapons.
A nation with strong comprehensive power but without nuclear weapons would inevitably lack deterrence. If the situation was reversed, others would hesitate to bully them at will.
Of course, there are significant differences within this.
If a martial artist’s regular strength is weak, nine out of ten times, they will not be able to create powerful strikes. A powerful martial artist without strikes isn’t likely either.
Therefore, if one wants to improve their strength, strikes are definitely a crucial aspect.
Thread of Life is merely a strike created by combining low-level third-rate sword techniques and the Huashan Sword Technique.
Chaotic One Slash is, strictly speaking, more violent and simpler than Thread of Life, being just a crude blending of the Draw Sword Skill and the Chaotic Intent Realm.
As a middle-tier third-rate blade skill, the starting point of the Battle Blade Skill is higher than the Huashan Sword Technique. Once it is refined into a strike and integrated with the Chaotic Intent Realm, no one knows how strong it will become.
Although the prospect is promising, the difficulties are also immense.
After pondering for several days, Shi Xiaole was still clueless and could not find a point of integration.
Days were passing in a flash, and another three days went by.
Before he had the chance to create a strike, Shi Xiaole’s Chaotic Intent Realm suddenly improved by ten percent.
This was a pleasant surprise.
On second thought, it made sense: wasn’t he understanding the Chaotic Intent Realm while refining the Battle Blade Skill? It would be strange if there was not a breakthrough after a long time.
Swish.
With the increase of the Chaotic Intent Realm, the power of Shi Xiaole’s Cloud Mist Thirteen Styles, Battle Blade Skill, and Chaotic One Slash all increased significantly.
Especially the Chaotic One Slash, which had a lower destructive power than the Thread of Life, but was even more terrifying when confronting someone with an unstable mindset.
"In the short term, I’m afraid I can’t create a third strike."
On the fifth day, Shi Xiaole shook his head and sighed, calming his turbulent heart.
Creating strikes is not a day-to-day matter. Besides the understanding on the moves, it also requires a large amount of martial arts foundation, which simply can’t be rushed.
In fact, being able to create two strikes at the age of fifteen was already quite remarkable.
Ding.
Seeing that it was getting late, Shi Xiaole was about to return to his courtyard when the mechanical voice in his brain suddenly rang out.
"Cultivate martial arts to improve oneself, manage injustice! Mission five released: order the host to exterminate the Black Evil Gang, a malign force in Emerald Feather City, within five days. From the four Protectors to the seven Evil Gods, leave no one alive!"
"Mission difficulty: Two stars."
"Mission reward: Randomly draw one second-rate martial arts skill, and receive 600 reward points."
"Mission punishment: Erase one of the host’s Intent Realm powers, which must not be used for life."
"Does the host accept the mission?"
Stopping in his tracks, Shi Xiaole furrowed his brows.
If he remembered correctly, ever since the leader of the Black Evil Gang, Kong Zijian, was killed by him last time, the Golden Phoenix Tower had sent people to take over the Black Evil Gang.
According to the style of the Golden Phoenix Tower, the current Black Evil Gang should be different from before.
But, the system could not be wrong, which meant that behind the scenes, the Black Evil Gang was still doing evil deeds.
"Accept the mission!"
Though Shi Xiaole wasn’t a crusader, if he could earn mission values and eliminate evil forces at the same time, he didn’t mind doing it.
...
Emerald Feather City, Black Evil Gang.
"Young Master Xu, this time we have sold a total of fifty human chattels, thirty-six of whom have been sent to brothels in various places, eleven sold to merchants with peculiar tastes, and three were not willing to comply and have been disposed of on the spot."
A bald man with a large scar on his head bowed and handed a large stack of silver bills to the elegantly-dressed man across from him.
Xu Tianliang nodded, grinning as he pocketed the money, and asked in high spirits: "Scarface, Zhang Yuan, you both seem troubled. Is there a problem you wish to discuss?"
The bald man with the scar is none other than the Scar-faced Evil God, one of the seven major villains of the Black Evil Gang.
It was this man who strongly urged Kong Zijian to kill Shi Xiaole when the latter’s true identity was still unknown.
As for Zhang Yuan, if the men from the Golden Phoenix Tower were here, they would certainly recognize him as a minor leader of the Golden Phoenix Tower, who was just sent here a few months ago to assist in managing the Black Evil Gang.
"Young Master Xu, we have secretly imprisoned the treacherous dogs of the Golden Phoenix Tower and concealed our human trafficking business from them. If the Golden Phoenix Tower were to find out about this, I’m afraid..."
The one speaking this time is Zhang Yuan. However, it is shocking that he referred to his companions from the Golden Phoenix Tower as treacherous dogs.
"Hahaha, is that what you’re worried about?"
Xu Tianliang looked at him, amused, and chuckled: "Although the Golden Phoenix Tower is powerful, my Green Bamboo Gang isn’t to be trifled with either. Even a mighty dragon can’t supress a local snake. If they dare come here, my Green Bamboo Gang will be ready to confront them."
The Green Bamboo Gang is the most powerful gang in Emerald Feather City and is slightly superior to the Black Evil Gang in terms of overall strength.
As the Young Master of the Green Bamboo Gang, Xu Tianliang controls about thirty percent of the territory and industries under the gang. However, due to poor management, he is gradually finding it difficult to maintain his thousands of members beneath him.
On top of the competition with his younger brother, Xu Tianliang did not dare to tell his father about this situation. After considering this, he decided to exploit the Black Evil Gang.
The Black Evil Gang has always had a bad reputation, but their power is indeed considerable in Emerald Feather City.
In order to quickly amass wealth, Xu Tianliang secretly collaborated with the Black Evil Gang, imprisoning members of the Golden Phoenix Tower. Then, under the guise of the Black Evil Gang’s name, they stole, deceived, and seized young beautiful girls from all over, ultimately selling them to brothels and wealthy merchants.
The wealth accumulated from this disgraceful trade has greatly benefited Xu Tianliang. It has not only relieved him from his predicament but also greatly exhilarated his spirit.
The significant profit from this business has made Xu Tianliang reluctant to give it up.
In his view, although the Golden Phoenix Tower has become stronger since absorbing the Spring and Autumn Hall, it still doesn’t measure up to the Green Bamboo Gang, especially because it doesn’t operate in Emerald Feather City. What could they possibly do to him?
The fact that he didn’t kill all the men that the Golden Phoenix Tower sent is already being lenient.
Seeing Zhang Yuan and the Scar-faced Evil God bow their heads, not believing his verbal assurances, Xu Tianliang suppressed his anger. For the moment, he still needed these dogs, so he had no choice but to say: "In a few days, I will send some knowledgeable members of the Green Bamboo Gang here to assist in your scavenging operation."
"Great, with such assurance from Young Master Xu, we, the Black Evil Gang, can rest assured."
Upon hearing this, the Scar-faced Evil God heaved a sigh of relief.
With members of the Green Bamboo Gang mixed into the Black Evil Gang, when trouble arises, they couldn’t be able to shirk their responsibility.
As for Zhang Yuan, he was secretly rejoiced.
His own defection to the Green Bamboo Gang, which was brought about by unbearable torture, would certainly lead to serious consequences if discovered by the Golden Phoenix Tower. Now, he could only rely on the protection of the Green Bamboo Gang.
"By the way, did that acting gang leader talk?"
Xu Tianliang suddenly asked.
"That guy is really tough, but don’t worry, Young Master Xu. If torture three times a day doesn’t work, I will increase it to five times a day. No matter how hard his bones are, I will break them and turn him into a loyal dog to infiltrate the Golden Phoenix Tower for you."
Zhang Yuan sneered, implying his contribution. His face displayed an utterly vicious expression.
Since he himself had betrayed the Golden Phoenix Tower, of course, he wished others would do the same. Therefore, when torturing his former companions, Zhang Yuan acted more ruthlessly than the members of the Black Evil Gang.
Xu Tianliang nodded approvingly, about to speak when hurried footsteps sounded.
"Sir Scar-faced Evil God, we’re in trouble."
A Black Evil Gang member rushed in, his face filled with panic.
"What’s the rush? Can’t you see Young Master Xu is here?"
The Scar-faced Evil God first slapped the man, then asked, "What’s the matter?"
"There’s a young man who has forced his way into our Black Evil Gang, and in one fell swoop, he’s disabled a dozen of our brothers who were trying to get him. He’s demanded that all of us leave the Black Evil Gang. From today onwards, the Black Evil Gang is to be disbanded..."
As he finished his sentence, the Black Evil Gang member’s voice grew lower and lower.
"What did you say?"
The Scar-faced Evil God, agitated, slammed his palm, instantly killing the gang member, and gritted his teeth, "I would like to see which brazen kid dares to challenge my Black Evil Gang all by himself."
As he spoke, his feet remained stationary.
Xu Tianliang suppressed his anger, knowing that he was observing his reaction. He had no choice but to suppress his murderous intent and said, "Right now, the Black Evil Gang is under my protection. Let’s go and take a look."
The Scar-faced Evil God laughed and said, "With Young Master Xu taking action, even if that brat has three heads and six arms, he wouldn’t be able to escape."
When the three of them arrived in the front courtyard of the Black Evil Gang, it was already crowded with people.
Apart from the ordinary members, the four Protectors who were in seclusion, and the other six gods, were all present.
In the middle of the encirclement stood a slender young man in a green robe, equipped with a sword and a knife.
Upon seeing this man, Zhang Yuan’s face turned pale, and his body trembled.
As a minor leader of the Golden Phoenix Tower, how could he not recognize Shi Xiaole?
"Young Master Shi, what are you doing here causing havoc and disabling people as soon as you arrive?"
Perhaps due to the incident involving the death of Kong Zijian, several high-ranking members of the Black Evil Gang had seen a portrait of Shi Xiaole. One of the Gods could barely contain his anger as he questioned.
