Chapter 28

(Chapter 1 is released early, please give me recommendations on Monday, and add to your favorites. If today's recommendations reach a thousand, I will update three times during the holiday on Saturday.)

The ancient osmanthus tree twisted and curved, its branches and leaves lush. In the cold winter month, a chill mist gradually rose.

Just as the miscellaneous duty Daoist was about to make a move, Su Qignian took a step back, lifted one foot, and placed it above the wild ginseng.

"What are you trying to do!" The miscellaneous duty Daoist raised his eyebrows and shouted in surprise.

"I don't want to do anything. I just want to know who in Wudang Mountain is colluding with the court. I don't care which official you are, but you need to tell me who in Wudang Mountain is involved. Otherwise, even if I destroy this wild ginseng, I won't let you have your way." Su Qignian gritted his teeth and growled.

"You have the nerve!"

The miscellaneous duty Daoist scolded. This middle-aged man did not expect that Su Qignian, who seemed so weak, would dare to fight to the death with him. However, he was genuinely worried. A thirty-year-old, sixth-grade wild ginseng was too important for him, a miscellaneous duty Daoist. It could even be exchanged for an Open Heaven Pill. With his years of savings, he might be able to ask an uncle or aunt from the outer court to guide him in the seventh level of the Turtle Snake Skill, helping him reach the pinnacle.

Foundation Building, Foundation Building. Once he reached Foundation Building, his current situation would change. He could return to the outer court and no longer be just an ordinary outer court disciple. He would be a formal disciple with a nameplate, listed in the ancestral hall, and ranked. He could enter the Wudang outer court's Xuanwu Tower to inherit Wudang's internal martial arts, waiting for the selection of the twenty-seven meridians.

"Either way, I will die, but I want to die with clarity!"

Su Qignian did not back down. His eyes were bloodshot, his anger reaching its peak, and his face flushed red.

Damn!

The miscellaneous duty Daoist cursed inwardly but could not really make a move. A dying person had no reservations, and he could not take the risk. He believed that if he made a move, Su Qignian would definitely crush the wild ginseng.

But to reveal that person's name made him feel uneasy. However, thinking that Su Qignian was a dying man, his emotions gradually calmed down.

Shaking his head, the miscellaneous duty Daoist looked at Su Qignian, a faint bitter smile on his lips. "Knowing it will only make you more desperate, but since you insist, I'll tell you. But you must promise to retract your foot. I'll even give you three breaths to escape. I believe you understand that you can't push your luck. Otherwise, even without this wild ginseng, you won't have a chance."

"Alright, I agree!" Su Qignian said.

After a brief hesitation, the miscellaneous duty Daoist said in a deep voice, "It's the only one of our Wudang's younger generation on the Dragon Tiger List."

What!

Even though he was prepared, Su Qignian's pupils contracted. He didn't expect it to be this person. Apart from the masters of the various peaks of Wudang, it was almost more troublesome than any other enforcer or guardian.

The Dragon Tiger List, one of the martial arts rankings issued by the imperial court, records the eighty-one strongest young people within the empire.

In the vast Han Empire, with millions of people, countless martial arts sects, noble families, and royal academies, how many young people could stand out among so many young martial artists and become one of the eighty-one strongest? This shows the difficulty and the significance of the Dragon Tiger List.

"Alright, now you have three breaths."

The miscellaneous duty Daoist spoke again, his face grim. Being forced to reveal this information by Su Qignian made him lose face. Moreover, he was genuinely wary. As a miscellaneous duty Daoist, he had not truly entered the sect or been listed in the ancestral hall. If he displeased that person, his future in Wudang Mountain would be difficult.

Under the ancient osmanthus tree.

Su Qignian retracted his foot and took two steps forward, stopping nine feet in front of the miscellaneous duty Daoist, assuming a starting stance.

The miscellaneous duty Daoist immediately showed a strange expression. He looked up and down at Su Qignian, whose back was hunched and whose demeanor was dejected, and sneered, "Do you still want to fight me? Don't think I don't know that you go to Chief Jingdu every morning to seek guidance. You aim too high, asking about the seventh level of the skill on your first visit. I'm sure Chief Jingdu dislikes you a lot. Even though you've completed your herb-gathering quota, you were still punished to enter the Yin Cave to suffer from the Yin wind. Now I'm giving you three breaths, and you don't cherish it, but still want to fight. Do you think you can achieve anything in less than a month, or do you think I, a miscellaneous duty Daoist, have no skills? Let me tell you clearly, my Turtle Snake Skill is already at the sixth level, and I am currently studying the seventh level!"

Hearing this, Su Qignian showed a look of fear but still gritted his teeth and stopped, not retreating. He stared at the miscellaneous duty Daoist, his arms trembling slightly, and his legs shaking.

"Su Qignian is Su Qignian, not even begging for mercy, not even running away," the miscellaneous duty Daoist sneered, "What a pity. Killing someone like you makes me feel ashamed. If it were a fifth-level or even a sixth-level Turtle Snake Skill practitioner, it would at least arouse some fighting spirit. Now, killing you is no different from crushing an ant."

The miscellaneous duty Daoist approached, his fist slightly raised, and took one last look at Su Qignian's tattered clothes. Cold light flashed in his eyes, and he shouted, "A martial artist's blood is hot, remember to die with dignity in your next life!"

Whoosh!

A fist loomed large in front of Su Qignian. The miscellaneous duty Daoist made his move. His body was like an old turtle, awakening after a thousand years of slumber, and an ancient aura flowed from his fist.

Buzz!

At the same time, the air behind him distorted, and a fiery red horse tore through the void, emerging halfway.

Even against Su Qignian, the miscellaneous duty Daoist used at least the third level of the Turtle Snake Skill. The first move, "Turtle Snake for Ten Thousand Years," was a technique he had studied for years, long reaching the second realm of martial arts, where it was thoroughly integrated.

As his fist approached Su Qignian's face, the miscellaneous duty Daoist could even see the pores on Su Qignian's forehead. The disheveled hair was lifted by the wind of his fist, fluttering backward.

However, this last inch seemed to stretch into eternity, as a strong hand suddenly pressed on his arm.

In an instant, a gentle breeze arose, and an invisible field enveloped him.

Tai Chi rotates, wind and water sit!

His eyes widened in disbelief. In that moment, behind Su Qignian, the air distorted, and a fiery red horse stepped through the void, descending into the world, its powerful aura radiating heat.

At that moment, the hunched figure before him was no longer the same. Though still tattered, his back was now straight like a bamboo pole, standing tall and firm.

The dejected demeanor was gone, replaced by a sharp, righteous, and unyielding aura.

This was no longer the Su Qignian despised by all the suspended death row inmates, nor the one known in the outer court. The power surging from this young man was enough to shock the heart.

Most importantly, at this moment, the miscellaneous duty Daoist felt his arms stuck, unable to break free. The leaves around them formed a three-foot-wide Tai Chi diagram, floating and sinking.

"Wind and water sit, entering the divine essence!"

He cried out in shock. In that instant, a sharp sword cry echoed, and in the moonlight, a cold sword light split into two, tearing through the air with a sharp whistling sound.

"One breath transforms into three!"

Along with the sword, a deep boxing sound came from behind. The aura in the air was unmistakable. Even without turning around, the miscellaneous duty Daoist could clearly feel it was the third move of the Turtle Snake Skill, "Turtle Snake Collides with the Mountain," the most powerful and righteous punch among the seven moves.

His hair stood on end, his back chilled, and he was suddenly terrified.

A decisive kill!

A trap set for him!

The miscellaneous duty Daoist's face turned pale, and most of his strength was redirected by Su Qignian's Tai Chi rotation in an instant.

Sigh!

The fiery red horse neighed, its hooves like bowls, its mane flying, and its body rising a foot higher.

A blood-sweating treasure horse!

The power belonging to the seventh level of the Turtle Snake Skill, gathered from both the miscellaneous duty Daoist and Su Qignian, briefly manifested in the world. (Chapter 1 is released early, please give me recommendations on Monday, and add to your favorites. If today's recommendations reach a thousand, I will update three times during the holiday on Saturday.)