Chapter 35

In the dense forest of Yatsumi Mountain, two figures moved swiftly, darting through the trees.

As they drew closer, the swords on their backs trembled more violently.

Luo Xiu always sensed the surroundings with his life perception. Suddenly, he detected the aura of a human warrior, and soon a figure appeared in his line of sight, rushing towards him at high speed.

"It's him!"

Focusing his gaze, Luo Xiu saw that the figure was carrying a sword on his back. The trembling of the Shadow Sword indicated that the source of the vibration was the sword on the other's back.

"Boom!"

When the two were about ten meters apart, the young man with dark, shiny skin suddenly emitted a yellowish-brown light. With a crack, he broke off a large branch from a tree and hurled it at Luo Xiu.

The branch was quite thick, whistling through the air with great force, showing the astonishing strength of the other.

"Slap!"

The Shadow Sword was drawn from its sheath, and with a flurry of wood chips, Luo Xiu landed gracefully, slicing the branch in mid-air.

The Shadow Sword in his hand trembled violently, as if it were out of control, causing Luo Xiu to frown.

About five meters away, the dark-skinned young man, with his sharp eyes, stared intently at the Shadow Sword in Luo Xiu's hand.

"Boy, give me the sword in your hand." The young man looked at Luo Xiu, his tone harsh.

"Why should I give it to you?" Luo Xiu sheathed the sword, as the violent trembling would affect his performance.

The dark-skinned young man had attacked him directly, and the intense resonance between the two swords suggested something was amiss. Luo Xiu would not hand over the sword.

"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" The young man stared at Luo Xiu, his voice cold.

"You can try." Luo Xiu was not afraid. Through his life perception, he sensed that the young man's strength was roughly equal to that of the white-robed youth he had killed earlier.

"Since that's the case, I'll just have to take action."

The dark-skinned young man narrowed his eyes, clenching his fists, which made a crisp sound as his knuckles cracked.

"Bang!"

The dark-skinned young man took a step forward, causing the ground to tremble as if a fierce tiger had pounced. He appeared in front of Luo Xiu, his fist glowing with yellowish-brown true qi, the wind from his punch fierce and powerful.

Luo Xiu's eyes narrowed, and he immediately performed the Dragon Tiger Fist, his fist enveloped in black death flames.

He knew that to face a Seventh Sea Realm expert, he had to give it his all.

"Boom!"

The two fists, each containing true qi, collided, and an invisible shockwave exploded, causing the air to ripple visibly. The withered branches and leaves on the forest floor were all blown away, showing the intensity of the impact.

"Thud, thud, thud!" Luo Xiu took three steps back, while the dark-skinned young man stood firm like a rock, unmoving.

"Black flames, you've actually mastered elemental power!" The dark-skinned young man's eyes showed a hint of surprise.

"Also?" Luo Xiu was equally surprised, recalling the yellowish-brown light on the other's fist. The force was extremely powerful, and he had thought that one punch would damage the other's life meridians, but the dark-skinned young man was unharmed...

"I have a special constitution, and when I was in the Body Tempering Realm, the inner qi I cultivated contained earth attributes. It seems you also have a special constitution; otherwise, you wouldn't be able to cultivate elemental power without reaching the Innate Realm."

The dark-skinned young man spoke solemnly, unaware that Luo Xiu's special constitution was due to absorbing the Fire Yang Absolute Pulse, which gave him the power of flames.

Moreover, Luo Xiu had mastered more than just one elemental power!

Life, death, and fire attributes, as well as the fusion of life and death to form life white flames, death black flames, and the dual extremes of life and death qi...

Focusing his gaze, Luo Xiu saw the life meridians of the dark-skinned young man, which, like other Sea Qi Realm warriors, emitted a greenish glow. However, the dark-skinned young man's life meridians also had a layer of yellowish-brown light.

The reason the previous punch did not damage the other's life meridians was because of this layer of yellowish-brown light.

This was something Luo Xiu had never seen in other warriors.

Clearly, this was all due to the dark-skinned young man's special constitution.

At that moment, the dark-skinned young man attacked again, his fingers curling into a claw, the yellowish-brown light flashing between his fingers.

Luo Xiu braced himself, the All-Heaven Life and Death Wheel in his dantian spinning rapidly, and black death flames gathering in his hands.

"Bang!"

The two clashed again, and Luo Xiu felt the other's true qi was very heavy, the force of the punch causing his fist to ache intensely.

This time, he took three more steps back, while the dark-skinned young man did not pursue, but looked at his palm, his face dark.

"What strange black flames." After two exchanges, he could feel the black flame true qi invading his body, burning his meridians and flesh. Even with earth attribute true qi, it was hard to resist.

Taking advantage of the dark-skinned young man's distraction, Luo Xiu flipped his hand and drew the mid-grade human rank battle sword he had obtained from the white-robed youth from his storage ring.

"Nine Thunder Swords!"

The sword light flashed like lightning, tearing through the air, carrying black flames. It was so fast that it reached the dark-skinned young man in an instant.

"Hmph, my true qi is good at defense; you can't hurt me."

The dark-skinned young man remained calm, directly blocking the sword with his fist. However, the next moment, his face changed.

"Spurt!"

Blood splattered, and the dark-skinned young man quickly retreated, his expression uncertain.

"So that's it!" Luo Xiu's eyes lit up. Although the other's life meridians were protected by the yellowish-brown light, with enough force, they could still be broken and damaged.

Using a mid-grade human rank battle sword to perform the Nine Thunder Swords was much more powerful than Luo Xiu's fists.

"Stop!"

Just as Luo Xiu was about to attack again, the dark-skinned young man shouted loudly.

"What? You started the fight, and now you want to stop?"

Luo Xiu sneered, his sword technique forming a black curtain, enveloping the dark-skinned young man.

"Spurt! Spurt! Spurt!..."

Bloody flowers bloomed, and the dark-skinned young man was forced to retreat, his body covered in cuts and blood. His pride in his earth attribute true qi was shattered, unable to withstand Luo Xiu's sword.

However, Luo Xiu did not deliver a fatal blow, and the dark-skinned young man's injuries were only superficial, though he looked disheveled.

Swinging the sword in a flower, he sheathed it with a clang and smiled, "Alright, you can speak now."

"You..." The dark-skinned young man was so angry he almost spat blood, his face dark, but it was hard to tell because his face was already dark.

"What do you mean? You attacked me first, so I gave you a small punishment. Otherwise, with your words about killing me, do you think you'd still be alive?" Luo Xiu coldly said.

"Hmph!" The dark-skinned young man knew Luo Xiu was right; otherwise, the previous sword strikes would have hit vital points, not just minor injuries.

"Clang!"

The dark-skinned young man drew the long sword from his back, a completely white sword that also trembled violently.

Luo Xiu's gaze fell on the junction of the hilt and blade, where he saw a carved 'Light' character.

"The sword in my hand is called the Light Sword, and yours is the Dark Sword," the dark-skinned young man said.

"What's the connection between these two swords?" Luo Xiu asked.

The dark-skinned young man looked at Luo Xiu, "These two swords are called the Light and Dark Twin Swords, forged by a Fifth Rank Sword Master seven hundred years ago."

"Fifth Rank Sword Master?" Luo Xiu's face showed surprise, but then he frowned, "Are you making this up? A Fifth Rank Sword Master can forge Earth Rank battle weapons, but these two swords are clearly just ordinary low-grade human rank battle weapons."

Battle weapons are divided into Heaven, Earth, and Human ranks, each with lower, middle, upper, and supreme grades.

Only a Fifth Rank Master skilled in forging could create Earth Rank battle weapons. As for Heaven Rank battle weapons, they were mostly legendary, even the top Ninth Rank Masters could not forge them.

According to Luo Xiu's knowledge, the highest-ranked Master in the Qingyun City Forging Guild was only Third Rank. A Fifth Rank Master would be among the top in the entire Yunlong County.

"You don't understand. The Fifth Rank Master I'm talking about is not just any forger, but a Fifth Rank Master specializing in sword forging!" the dark-skinned young man coldly said.

Warriors use a variety of weapons, and some forgers specialize in a particular type, highly regarded by warriors who use those weapons.

"The Light and Dark Twin Swords he forged are not ordinary weapons, but keys!" the dark-skinned young man said, applying medicine to his wounds.

"Keys? What kind of keys?" Luo Xiu asked, sensing that the dark-skinned young man might not be lying.

"Keys to a treasure vault! And it's a vault left by a Martial King!"

"Martial King's vault?" Luo Xiu's eyes sparkled.

He was no longer a naive novice. He had received guidance from the Lord of the Martial Hall and knew that above Body Tempering Warriors, Sea Qi Warriors, and Innate Masters, there were even more powerful beings.

Above Innate Masters were Spirit Forging Masters, known as Martial Ancestors, capable of flying and crossing the sky!

Above Spirit Forging Masters were the King Realm, known as Martial Kings!

The reason the Free and Easy Sect was the dominant force in Yunlong County and a regional power in Tianwu Kingdom was because they had a Martial King as their guardian!

If one could reach such a realm, they could speak on equal terms with powerful forces like the Free and Easy Sect.

"The vault was left by my ancestor, and to open it, both the Light and Dark Swords are needed. I have the Light Sword, and you have the Dark Sword. I can take you with me," the dark-skinned young man said.

He naturally wouldn't reveal the location of the vault right away.

"Which Martial King was your ancestor?" Luo Xiu asked.

"Step Chen Martial King! He was also a Fifth Rank Sword Master, and I am his descendant, Bu Fei."

"Why should I believe you?" Luo Xiu stared at Bu Fei, "If it's a vault left by your ancestor, why would you share it with me?"

Feeling Luo Xiu's distrust, Bu Fei coldly said, "Believe it or not, if not for the Dark Sword in your hand, and the fact that I'm not your match, would I tell you this?"

Luo Xiu considered the credibility of Bu Fei's words. A vault left by a Martial King was very tempting, even a powerful force like the Free and Easy Sect would be interested. How much more so for a First Sea Qi Warrior like Luo Xiu?

However, he also knew that there were no free lunches in the world. Bu Fei must have an ulterior motive for telling him this.

"How long will it take to reach the vault?" Luo Xiu asked, not wanting to miss the Free and Easy Sect's assessment.

"A month will be enough," Bu Fei said.

"Alright, I'll go with you. I hope you don't play any tricks, or I'll kill you. I don't think you'd risk your life, would you?" Luo Xiu made his decision, deciding to be cautious and retreat if anything went wrong.