Chapter 8

Even those born with innate abilities have their ranks.

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They are respectively referred to as "Kunlun," "Yuxu," and "Gui Zhen," corresponding to the three stages of those born with innate abilities.

The Kunlun stage, also known as "Visible Kunlun," symbolizes that seeing Kunlun is the first step in climbing the long ladder to heaven, just beginning to glimpse the path.

Li Sanshen is a Qi Practitioner at the Visible Kunlun stage.

At this level, a Qi Practitioner cultivates a mouthful of innate true qi, which rises from the Sea of Qi to the Snow Mountain, passes through the twenty-four vertebrae, breaks through the Fengchi acupoint, and reaches the Jade Cauldron's mysterious aperture. Then, it circulates through the entire body, making the internal qi flow continuously day and night, and finally returns to the dantian, entering the acupoint and returning to the origin. This cycle makes the body feel as if it is being infused with sweet dew, with the true qi in the dantian's Sea of Qi swirling and enveloping.

At this stage, one can control a flying sword, but while cultivation is easy, obtaining a flying sword is difficult. It requires nurturing a sword embryo and cultivating its spirit. Even the most common flying sword is hard to come by, which shows that Li Sanshen has some background.

Li Sanshen extended his right index and middle fingers as a sword finger, pointed at Qi Xuansu, and silently said the word "Go."

The green small sword, suspended in the air, responded and shot towards Qi Xuansu again.

A cluster of glaring blood blossomed on Qi Xuansu's shoulder, as he failed to block the sword and was injured by the flying sword. The green small sword, as if seeking credit, flew back to its owner and circled incessantly.

Qi Xuansu's eyes were calm, and he smiled without a hint of sarcasm: "A flying sword from the East Sea."

Li Sanshen was slightly surprised and said with a smile: "Good discernment. Using it to kill you would not be a waste of your skills."

Qi Xuansu raised the still intact "Xi Hu Dao" in his hand and said: "If you want to kill me, ask my weapon first."

"Good spirit." Li Sanshen praised insincerely, and the green small sword, which had been circling around him, shot out again.

Qi Xuansu was stabbed in the calf again, blood flowing, but fortunately, it did not hit the bone, only causing a flesh wound, which was not a major issue for someone with innate abilities.

Li Sanshen's eyes were full of coldness, and he pointed his sword finger repeatedly, making the green small sword jump and turn, moving extremely fast and difficult to guard against.

Qi Xuansu's face was calm, and as long as it was not a fatal wound, he did not try to block it. Li Sanshen seemed to want to slowly torture Qi Xuansu, his equally strong opponent, and did not rush to kill him. After all, he had almost been defeated by Qi Xuansu, and with his vengeful nature, he could not help but bear a grudge.

After six consecutive sword strikes, Qi Xuansu had six more superficial wounds. Li Sanshen finally found it boring and decided to kill him with one strike.

The green sword qi surged.

The already swift green flying sword, after being infused with more true qi by its owner, became even faster, piercing directly towards Qi Xuansu's forehead.

At this critical moment, Qi Xuansu raised his knife and barely blocked the sword.

Li Sanshen's brows furrowed, slightly surprised. However, since Qi Xuansu had already blocked one of his swords earlier, it was not entirely unexpected, and he thought it was just a lucky coincidence, and he would need to put in more effort.

Li Sanshen again made the sword gesture with his hand.

However, with a "ding" sound, the flying sword was deflected by Qi Xuansu's knife.

The green small sword flew back, trembling and circling around Li Sanshen, as if a child who had been bullied outside and was crying to their parents.

Li Sanshen's face changed drastically.

Qi Xuansu said calmly: "The Qi Practitioner's 'Sword Control Technique' is ultimately about projecting true qi, which has its own patterns and rules. It just takes some time to find these patterns, so the few times I was stabbed earlier were not entirely in vain."

Even Li Sanshen, with his firm resolve, was thrown into chaos at this moment, gritting his teeth and saying: "How is that possible? How could you figure out my 'Sword Control Technique' in such a short time?"

Qi Xuansu did not say more, only advancing with his knife.

Li Sanshen, hardening his resolve, urged the flying sword, but as Qi Xuansu had said, no matter how the flying sword darted and dazzled, it could not injure Qi Xuansu at all.

Qi Xuansu, with an ordinary knife, blocked what the world considered a "divine sword."

The green small sword wailed, and each time it touched Qi Xuansu's knife, the green sword qi on its body became fainter. After more than ten strikes, it could no longer bear the strain and fell to the ground with a "clang," losing all its sword qi.

At this moment, Qi Xuansu took a step forward, and a knife like a thunderclap in spring struck.

In the heavy rain in the courtyard, a brilliant streak of light flashed.

White like the moon, it flowed past.

Li Sanshen's "Qiu Niu Jia" was torn apart, and a dense cloud of blood mist burst from his chest.

However, Qi Xuansu's "Xi Hu Dao" finally could not bear the strain and shattered into pieces.

Li Sanshen's courage was lost, and he no longer had the intention to kill or capture Qi Xuansu. He directly broke through the wall and fled, and the remaining surviving Qingluan Guards scattered and fled as well.

At this time, in the county office, all that could be seen were dead bodies.

There were Qingluan Guards and Li Hongwen's family members.

Qi Xuansu stood under the eaves, silently circulating his true qi to stop the bleeding from his wounds. He turned his head to look at the large hole in the wall where Li Sanshen had broken through, feeling somewhat regretful.

If he ignored his injuries and pursued Li Sanshen, he could certainly kill him, but it would leave some hidden dangers. As the saying goes, the way in is short, but the way out is long. When he came to Fengtai County, everything went smoothly, but after provoking the Qingluan Guards, it would not be easy to leave Fengtai County, so Qi Xuansu ultimately decided to act cautiously and did not pursue Li Sanshen.

However, Li Sanshen, who was responsible for capturing Li Hongwen, was indeed somewhat unexpected. Knowing the East Sea Sword Control Technique was not unusual, but Li Sanshen actually had a flying sword of the spirit item grade, which was quite rare.

To forge a flying sword, the first step is to select materials. Ordinary gold, silver, copper, and iron would not do; it must be rare materials like refined gold, meteoric iron, and cold jade. Then, the sword-forging technique is crucial, with many details to consider, like the timing and intensity of the fire, whether to use stone fire, wood fire, or air fire, all of which are extremely important. After forging the sword, patterns must be engraved on the blade, a process as difficult as drawing talismans and writing incantations, requiring complete focus and precision. The amount of qi used, the weight, and the tools for different materials are all carefully considered.

The effort required to forge a flying sword capable of taking a life is considerable, and it is not something a sixth-rank probationary hundred-householder could afford.

Qi Xuansu picked up the flying sword Li Sanshen had dropped and examined it for a moment.

The foundation of the flying sword was still intact, and if it could be nurtured with the right method for some time, it could be restored. If not, it could only be sold through some underhanded channels.

Qi Xuansu put away the flying sword and began to check each room.

First, he entered the bedroom, where there was only one woman with elegant attire lying on the bed, her clothes neat, with a thin line of a wound on her throat, which, if not examined closely, might be mistaken for a red thread.

This must be Li Hongwen's wife, killed with a single swift strike, with no excess blood, showing the killer's expertise and skill.

Since the Qingluan Guards had already thoroughly searched the room, Qi Xuansu did not touch anything and slowly retreated.

The next few rooms were similar, filled with dead bodies and the mess left by the Qingluan Guards' search.

Finally, he entered Li Hongwen's study. After the Qingluan Guards captured Li Hongwen, they immediately searched his study but found nothing. Later, they imprisoned Li Hongwen in the study, and it seemed that Li Hongwen had tidied up the study himself, so it was relatively neat.

Now, the magistrate of Fengtai County was still sitting in the chair behind the desk, but he had been dead for some time, with only one knife wound on his chest. The killer's strike was swift, and he was killed with one blow, showing the killer's expertise.

Qi Xuansu couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow. The current emperor's high ancestor had once abolished the Qingluan Guards, but after the second emperor ascended the throne, he reinstated the Qingluan Guards and heavily relied on them, allowing them to act with impunity and commit various illegal acts. Even today, they still wield great power, and both the heroes of the江湖 and the officials of the government fear them. Today, he had killed so many Qingluan Guards, and it was certain that he would not be able to escape unscathed.