Chapter 91: World Three [5]

The unique formula from the hidden sect proved extremely effective. Emerging from her bath, all the discomfort in Luo Yuezhu’s body had vanished.

She even felt her strength had increased slightly. It was as if she hadn’t just spent several sleepless days and nights but had instead eaten well and slept soundly every single day.

The recovery of her physical state boosted Luo Yuezhu’s confidence in practicing the horse stance for two shichen every day. After eating, she briefly checked the account books, then went to the courtyard to begin her horse stance practice.

At this time, Jing Ke was in her room, writing out the martial arts manuals stored in her memory. After picking and choosing, she decided to have Luo Yuezhu cultivate both internal and external arts simultaneously from the very beginning.

For internal energy, she would practice the Heavenly Derivation Heart Method passed down within the sect. For external martial arts, they would start with Basic Sword Art, allowing Luo Yuezhu to progress step by step.

Thus, a relatively quiet ten days passed at the Luo Residence.

Every morning without fail, Jing Ke applied the medicinal ointment for Luo Yuezhu, simultaneously using her inner strength to activate its properties.

As time passed, Luo Yuezhu’s entire state changed. Her gait became much steadier. Although her appetite doubled, her five senses also sharpened. Now, she could clearly distinguish who was approaching her room just from their footsteps.

Why did I say it was a relatively quiet ten days? Because after ten days, another group from the Martial Arts Alliance arrived.

The person leading the way was still Yu Buduo, but the one following behind him wasn’t his tactless junior brother. Instead, it was a certain senior brother he addressed as Deputy Hall Master.

Having been here once before, Yu Buduo directly led his senior brother to the gate of the Luo Residence and stated their identities to the new gatekeeper.

“We are from the Martial Arts Alliance, here to see Miss Luo. Please inform her of our arrival.” Yu Buduo said very politely.

The gatekeeper was someone Luo Yuezhu had Little Mu hire after Squire Luo’s funeral, so the new gatekeeper didn’t recognize Yu Buduo. He scrutinized them for a long time before leaving them with a “Wait a moment” and trotting off to report the news.

Luo Yuezhu was still practicing her horse stance at that moment. Where before she would be drenched in sweat after just an incense stick’s time, now, even after half a shichen, only a fine layer of perspiration appeared on her forehead. Her physical constitution had undergone a qualitative leap.

“People from the Martial Arts Alliance? Do they have news regarding the Devil Sect?” Luo Yuezhu asked instinctively.

The gatekeeper shook his head. “Replying to Miss, they only said they are from the Martial Arts Alliance and asked me to announce them. I carefully observed their attire; both were riding horses and carrying swords. They are definitely martial artists.”

“People from the Martial Arts Alliance?” The conversation in the courtyard was as clear to Jing Ke as if spoken right beside her ear. Hearing the key words, she opened her door and walked out.

“Yes. Two men came, wishing to see the Miss.” The gatekeeper said.

“Miss Luo, you stay here in the courtyard. I’ll go ask their intentions.” Jing Ke said, turning to take the sword hanging on her wall. Holding it, she followed the gatekeeper out.

Little Mu watched their departing backs with worry. “Miss, do you think the Martial Arts Alliance still hasn’t given up their previous plan? Do they want to take you to their own territory?”

Luo Yuezhu shook her head. “I don’t know. Little Mu, guard the entrance for me. Don’t let any outsiders into my courtyard.”

“Alright, Miss, rest assured. I absolutely won’t let those two from the Martial Arts Alliance come in and bully you.” Little Mu immediately agreed, going to stand guard at the entrance.

Luo Yuezhu was naturally worried as well, but she understood there was little she could do. Going out now would be worse than obediently staying put.

After all, it was the Martial Arts Alliance at the door, not the local merchant guild. If it were the latter, she could step forward and negotiate.

–

Meanwhile, on the other side, seeing that after waiting for roughly half a tea’s time only someone completely unrelated to Luo Yuezhu appeared, the Deputy Hall Master furrowed his brows slightly.

“May I ask who you are?” the Deputy Hall Master inquired, his tone not particularly friendly.

Unsure whether Jing Ke or his senior brother was stronger, Yu Buduo simply acted as a backdrop, standing obediently behind his senior brother.

Jing Ke didn’t answer immediately. Because the instant she saw this person in the azure cross-collar robe, she sensed the presence of a Fragment of her Origin Body.

In other words, the Fragment of her Origin Body in this world was likely on this very person.

Since it was part of her Origin Body, it was her own possession. Seeing the thief and striking to reclaim what was rightfully hers—that shouldn’t be too excessive, right?

And so, after staring at the Deputy Hall Master before her for a moment, Jing Ke directly unsheathed the sword in her hand and, without a word, thrust it towards the visitor.

Yu Buduo’s pupils contracted. He knew this Senior Jing Ke didn’t have the best temper, seeming like the type who would kill without a second thought at the slightest provocation.

But just now, he hadn’t said a single word, and Senior Brother Lin had only asked a very normal question. Why had Jing Ke suddenly drawn her sword? Wasn’t this too sudden?

Yu Buduo couldn’t help but grumble internally. However, he was also very aware that his strength couldn’t compare to either of the two now fighting. So he quickly channeled his inner energy and retreated backward, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.

“What is the meaning of this? Why draw your sword against me? I am from the Martial Arts Alliance, a former friend of Miss Luo.” Lin Yuxiu also hadn’t expected someone to draw a sword without a word. Caught off guard, he quickly fell to a disadvantage.

“You stole my possession. Return it to me, or I will kill you.” Jing Ke deigned to reply during a rare lull, but her sword didn’t stop, moving even faster.

Within less than fifty exchanges, Lin Yuxiu had gained five or six bleeding wounds on his body—either on his chest or wrists, each one looking extremely perilous.

“Are you perhaps mistaken? I just emerged from seclusion. I haven’t traveled the Central Plains for three or four years. How could I be the thief who stole your item?” Lin Yuxiu said. His tone sounded very polite.

He had no choice. Lin Yuxiu was currently on the losing end of this fight. If his attitude were too aggressive, the number of wounds on his body would likely increase.

Having already sensed her Origin Body’s presence, Jing Ke naturally wouldn’t believe such rhetoric. More importantly, she had already realized that those chosen by the System were no good people. Therefore, she didn’t hold back much when striking.

If she weren’t worried about damaging nearby buildings, her Sword Qi potentially harming innocent bystanders, Jing Ke would have long since unleashed a major attack and finished this person off.

“Senior, my senior brother truly just came out of seclusion. Senior, could you be mistaken? Or perhaps someone deliberately impersonated my senior brother to frame him?”

Seeing his senior brother beginning to spurt blood, Yu Buduo, who had wished to stay out of it, was forced to draw his sword and join the fray. He wanted to act as a mediator, to make the two stop fighting.

Jing Ke held no goodwill towards this person who had stolen part of her Origin Body. But seeing Yu Buduo join, and to avoid accidentally lopping his head off too, she temporarily halted her offensive.

“Hero Yu, I’ll give you a chance. Step away now, and I won’t attack you. If you insist on blocking my path like just now, I’ll assume you’re here courting death.”

Jing Ke felt she had thoroughly grasped the survival law of this world: if you were strong enough, you could do whatever you wanted. Anyone you disliked, you could just run them through with your sword.

Jing Ke neither approved nor disapproved of this law of the jungle, but she adapted to it extremely well. She perfectly portrayed the image of a martial artist with clear-cut love and hate.

“Honored guest, I am Lin Yuxiu, Deputy Hall Master of the Martial Arts Alliance’s Azure Dragon Hall. I spent the previous four years in closed-door cultivation to comprehend martial arts. Honored guest, could you have mistaken some other villain for me?” Lin Yuxiu said.

Simultaneously, he didn’t forget to pull a small porcelain bottle from his chest and quickly swallow two pills.

“You carry something that doesn’t belong to you. So long as you bring it out and return it, I won’t kill you today.” Jing Ke said, glancing at the gatekeeper cowering silently in a corner.

Considering that an ordinary person was present, Jing Ke exercised a bit more patience. “You should know what I’m talking about. It has brought you numerous opportunities. Perhaps you obtained it unintentionally from someone else.”

“But I am telling you clearly now: that item originally belonged to me. Either return it, or I kill you now and take back what is rightfully mine.” Jing Ke said, flicking her sword to shake off the blood droplets clinging to the blade.

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuxiu’s pupils constricted. With such a clear reminder, he naturally realized the object Jing Ke spoke of.

But that object was his reliance, the reason he could become stronger and rise to become the Deputy Hall Master of the Azure Dragon Hall in under four years. If he handed it over so easily, he would never be able to advance a single step further in his lifetime.

“Honored guest, are you sure you aren’t mistaken? I’ve been in seclusion for several years. I am unaware of what you lost, let alone having acquired some lost item of yours from elsewhere.” Lin Yuxiu said, beginning to ponder how he could make a clean escape.

Recalling that, out of excessive pride, he had only brought Yu Buduo as a guide, regret flooded Lin Yuxiu’s heart. If only he’d brought more people! Then he wouldn’t be in this situation.

“Mistaken? It seems you’ve chosen the latter option.” Jing Ke snorted coldly, charging forward with her sword at Lin Yuxiu once again.

When Yu Buduo fearlessly charged up, Jing Ke didn’t hold back either. With a single stroke, she sliced a chunk of flesh from his arm, then delivered a kick to his abdomen, sending him heavily injured to the ground.

With Yu Buduo no longer in the way, Jing Ke quickly added many more wounds to Lin Yuxiu’s body.

With another stroke of her sword, Jing Ke directly slashed through Lin Yuxiu’s collar. A semi-transparent jade pendant, its red cord severed, flew out.

Seeing the jade pendant that had originally hung around his neck fly out, Lin Yuxiu’s expression instantly changed. No longer caring about injury, he directly reached out, desperate to snatch the pendant.

How could Jing Ke give him that opportunity? Performing a clean mid-air turn, she unceremoniously kicked Lin Yuxiu right in the face, then steadily caught the Fragment of her Origin Body in her hand.

Thinking that the Origin Body fragment had been worn intimately by Lin Yuxiu, Jing Ke frowned with distaste. She immediately absorbed the energy belonging to the Origin Body, then directly crushed the jade into powder.

This thing was already sullied. Keeping it was utterly pointless.

“And you still deny it? You were wearing it. Still won’t admit it?” Jing Ke said, shaking her hand with disgust.

“How dare you!” Seeing the jade pendant that had brought him countless fortunes crushed so easily, Lin Yuxiu’s mentality collapsed. Without considering whether he could beat Jing Ke, he lunged forward, intent on fighting to the death.

“Stop! Stop right now! Brawling is forbidden in the residential district!” The patrol Yamen Runners, who usually had little presence, rushed over upon hearing the commotion.

Their martial skills were average at best. They relied entirely on their official uniform to deter martial artists who liked causing trouble.

After all, injuring a commoner could be explained away as an accident. But if someone injured or killed a Yamen Runner wearing an official robe, it involved the Imperial Court’s dignity.

The Four Seas Pavilion usually didn’t act much, but if the killer of government personnel was a martial artist from some minor sect or faction, they would occasionally make an example of someone, reminding everyone of their existence.

Clearly, in the eyes of the patrol Yamen Runners, both Jing Ke and the man she was beating, Lin Yuxiu, were just unruly martial artists. That was why they dared to step forward like this.

Having achieved her goal, Jing Ke was quite willing to give them face and stopped. But Lin Yuxiu completely ignored the Yamen Runner’s presence, raising his sword to cleave at Jing Ke.

Tch. The System really does favor some useless, scumbag individuals, linking them to my Origin Body and sending them skyrocketing on a silver platter.

Jing Ke sighed internally. Sidestepping Lin Yuxiu’s now-disordered thrust, she clenched her fist into a solid uppercut.

This punch wasn’t a skill inherent to her current body. It was something Jing Ke had learned in the last world while serving as a professional sparring partner for a certain girlfriend who had earned the title of Best Actress twice domestically.

Augmented by the strength of a martial arts master and inner strength, the seemingly ordinary uppercut could unleash tremendous power.

For example, it could shatter someone’s jaw and, incidentally, send them flying five meters away, causing them to crash to the ground with a loud bang, capable only of spitting blood and unable to speak.

“As you can see, I am not someone who enjoys violence. He was the one who drew his sword on me first, shouting about killing. I merely retaliated in self-defense.” Jing Ke stated.

Having successfully retrieved her Origin Body’s energy, her mood was considerably better, and her patience had also increased.

The Yamen Runners stared at Jing Ke, wanting to speak but hesitating. What they had just witnessed was indeed Lin Yuxiu actively attacking her. But the problem was, the two now lying on the ground looked far more like victims.

“By the way, they immediately claimed to be from the Martial Arts Alliance. I don’t know if that’s true or false. If you gentlemen need, why not take them for treatment and casually inquire about the specifics?” Jing Ke offered her suggestion quite amiably.

The Imperial Court, which desired control over all under heaven, and the free-spirited, law-disregarding martial artists were destined to be in opposition. Given a suitable excuse, the Yamen certainly wouldn’t mind extracting something useful from members of the Martial Arts Alliance.

Especially since Lin Yuxiu and Yu Buduo had both been severely wounded by Jing Ke. In such a state, they seemed exceptionally weak in the Yamen Runners’ eyes.

So, after a brief hesitation, the Yamen Runners chose to abandon questioning the obviously powerful Jing Ke, selecting Lin Yuxiu and Yu Buduo—who had no resistance left—as the soft persimmons to squeeze.

After the Yamen Runners summoned help and carried the two away, Jing Ke cleaned the blood from her long sword and returned it to its sheath.

“The matter is handled. If Miss Luo asks, you should know what to say, yes?” Jing Ke asked calmly.

The gatekeeper trembled pathetically and said, his voice rising and falling erratically, “Understood! This humble one understands! Those two, who called themselves members of the Martial Arts Alliance, stole an heirloom treasure from you, Heroine, and refused to return it. So you, Heroine, dealt with them. Then the authorities arrived, understood the situation, and took them away.”

“Good. Please fetch a basin of water. I’d like to wash my hands.” Jing Ke said politely.

This gatekeeper is quite sensible. He saw at a glance exactly what just happened. Barring any accidents, he should be able to hold the position of gatekeeper for a very long time.

–

After briefly dealing with the smell of blood on her person, Jing Ke put a faint smile back on her face. Under Little Mu’s pleasantly surprised eyes, she entered the small courtyard.

“Heroine Jing, what about those Martial Arts Alliance people? I heard a bit of commotion from here.” Luo Yuezhu asked with a trace of concern, her eyes continuously scanning Jing Ke.

Only after confirming there were no wounds on Jing Ke did she finally let out a slow breath.

“One was Yu Buduo. The other was a thief. I beat him up, and then the authorities took him away.” Jing Ke summarized in one sentence.

“A thief? Someone from the Martial Arts Alliance is a thief?” Hearing this, Little Mu was first stunned, then blurted out her confusion without thinking.

“Yes. He was stubborn at first, claimed it was all a misunderstanding. But that item is a treasure related to my sect’s legacy. Every disciple can resonate with the treasure; there is absolutely no possibility of mistaken identity.” Jing Ke said matter-of-factly.

The so-called ‘fated chances’ in this world were probably shortcuts to increasing inner strength and near-lost, supreme martial arts techniques.

Whether it was pills that enhanced cultivation base or countless top-tier martial arts techniques, the Treasure Vault of Jing Ke’s sect contained quite a few. By extension, the jade pendant could be considered a key to a treasure trove and, naturally, a treasure of Jing Ke’s sect.

“And what about the item? Did you retrieve it, Heroine Jing?” Little Mu asked.

“I retrieved it, but that item had been worn intimately by that thief for so long. I found it disgusting, so I destroyed it.” Jing Ke said.

“Ah? But then, what about your sect’s legacy, Heroine Jing? Won’t your elders blame you for this?” Little Mu began to worry earnestly.

“It’s fine. I’ve already completed my training. I destroyed the lost treasure merely to prevent the sect’s legacy from falling into an outsider’s hands.” Jing Ke explained briefly.

Little Mu nodded with partial understanding. Anyway, if Heroine Jing said it was fine, then it was fine. She didn’t need to worry anymore.

Luo Yuezhu, having crammed some common Jianghu knowledge in recent days, was the one who grew worried. “Heroine Jing, the Martial Arts Alliance has always been fiercely protective of its own. If you injured their people, they might… bring more people to avenge the wounded.”

“It’s nothing. I do not fear the Martial Arts Alliance. Unless every single expert in the Alliance comes to besiege me at once, no matter how many they send, they won’t be able to defeat me.” Jing Ke said with a smile.

Though the words were utterly preposterous, coming from the seemingly ever-reliable Jing Ke, they suddenly sounded exceptionally believable.