Chapter 17

The crowd of big men immediately surrounded them, all wielding long knives that glinted coldly, their bald heads reflecting the light, creating a formidable intimidation.

Zhao Ying's confidence had risen, but she still felt uncertain about the encirclement and whispered, "Senior Brother, let's run!"

Chu Li shook his head: "Let's kill them first!"

If these scoundrels were left behind, they would harm countless people!

"...Alright." Zhao Ying nodded gently.

She also felt that these guys deserved to die. If her martial arts were weak today, she would have been violated by them, making life worse than death. Just thinking about it made her scalp tingle and her body break out in goosebumps; she didn't even dare to imagine it!

A flash of knife light, and four knives swung over at once.

Chu Li snorted lightly, and the sword light suddenly brightened, instantly piercing the wrists of two men. He then twisted his waist and stabbed another, leaving Zhao Ying to deal with just one.

"Ahh! Ahh!" The three men screamed almost simultaneously, their wrists pierced, and their long knives fell to the ground.

Zhao Ying engaged the last man, the sword and knife lights intertwining.

This man's knife technique was fierce and flexible, not inferior to Zhao Ying's Swallow Sword Technique. Chu Li didn't rush to help, letting Zhao Ying gain some experience.

He followed with a long sword thrust, piercing the throats of three men, who spurted blood and convulsed, glaring viciously at Chu Li until their last breath without showing any fear.

Chu Li lightly shook his long sword, withdrew it, and stood aside to watch: "Junior Sister, the longer the night, the more dreams. Finish him off!"

"Alright!" Zhao Ying shouted, her sword movements becoming even more graceful and agile, making it hard to guard against.

"The old man will take one down with him!" The big man roared, his body suddenly swelling, his face turning purple. He ignored Zhao Ying's sword and took a hit on his shoulder, swinging his knife in a move that would result in mutual destruction.

Zhao Ying snorted and dodged.

Chu Li sensed the danger and thrust his sword forcefully, hitting the big man right in the heart.

The big man's eyes widened as he looked down at the sword in his chest, pointing at Chu Li, blood gushing from his mouth. He then tilted his head and fell to the ground with a thud.

Chu Li sighed in relief.

Zhao Ying turned to look at him, puzzled.

Chu Li lifted the big man's shirt, revealing a whistle arrow he was holding. If Chu Li's sword had been a bit slower, the arrow would have been shot into the sky.

Chu Li said, "Junior Sister Zhao, next time you encounter this situation, you can't retreat."

Zhao Ying nodded awkwardly.

She had almost caused a big disaster. If the big man had shot the whistle arrow, she and Senior Brother Chu would have been in grave danger. If innate experts were mobilized, they would have been doomed!

Chu Li nodded: "Your retreat just now was a human instinct, so experience is very important."

"Um." Zhao Ying nodded and suddenly said, "Senior Brother Chu, is this your first time leaving the mansion?"

"It's in the books." Chu Li pointed to his head and smiled, "So you should read more. Sometimes it can save your life!"

"Um!" Zhao Ying nodded vigorously.

She had previously thought that martial arts were everything, that only with strong martial arts could one deal with danger. Reading was useless and would only waste time for cultivation. Even if one knew a lot, it was useless without strong martial arts.

Now, she realized her thinking was too shallow. She should still read more books in her spare time from cultivation.

Chu Li bent down, picked up a knife, and cleanly cut off the heads of the seven men, as if he were cutting pork, calm and composed.

Zhao Ying's face turned pale. She could kill, but she couldn't bear to watch the decapitation, thinking Chu Li was too cruel. Once they were dead, no matter how great the hatred, it should be over.

Chu Li threw the knife, patted his hands, and saw Zhao Ying's gaze darting around. He shook his head and laughed, "Do you think I'm cruel?"

"They're already dead, why bother?"

"From what I know, some people have their hearts on the right side, and some have practiced strange techniques that can feign death to deceive others."

"Really?"

"Junior Sister Zhao, you've become foolish from being with that idiot Zhuo Feiyang, only knowing to practice and practice, thinking that once your martial arts are strong, you can be invincible and solve any problem."

"Isn't that true?"

"This guy's heart is on the right side!" Chu Li pointed to a corpse, and with a flick of his sword, he cut open the skin, revealing a heart.

Zhao Ying waved her hand, not wanting to look, but she caught a glimpse of the heart, which was indeed on the right side!

Chu Li said, "Also, Zhuo Feiyang thinks he's a genius and will become invincible, right?"

Zhao Ying nodded, "Senior Brother Zhuo is indeed a genius."

Chu Li laughed, "Naive!... No matter how much you practice in the mansion, you can't become invincible!"

"Why?" Zhao Ying asked in surprise, "Is there something wrong with the techniques?"

Chu Li said, "To become invincible, having good techniques is not enough!"

"You also need talent, and Senior Brother Zhuo has very good talent."

"Besides talent, you need other things... To reach the realm beyond the heavens, you need to go to a sect. This is a secret, Junior Sister Zhao, don't spread it!"

"Why is that?" Zhao Ying's attention was drawn, and the two left the bloody scene, mounting their horses and continuing forward.

While riding, Chu Li said, "Imagery. To reach the innate realm and beyond, it's not about hard practice, but about the state of mind and imagery. The major sects that have lasted for over a hundred years often have secret realms of imagery. The mansion has martial arts manuals but lacks these secret realms, so you can't reach the realm beyond the heavens."

"Imagery..." Zhao Ying pondered.

Chu Li said, "This is a secret that only reaches the sixth rank. You'll know in the future. I'm telling you now to prevent you from taking a detour. Focus on accumulating knowledge. Just burying yourself in practice will limit your achievements."

"Senior Brother Chu, according to you, can we only practice to the innate realm in the mansion?"

"Um."

"That's not right. There must be experts beyond the heavens in the mansion, right?"

"Of course."

"How do they practice?"

"That's another secret."

"Senior Brother Chu—!"

"Alright, I'll tell you, but you must promise not to tell anyone else!"

"I swear, I won't tell a soul!"

"Um," Chu Li nodded, "Actually, there's a system in the mansion. After reaching the innate realm, you will enter a sect for cultivation."

"A sect?"

"That's also a secret," Chu Li pondered, "The mansion suppresses sects, but it also collaborates with some. Innate experts will enter these sects for cultivation."

Zhao Ying's eyes widened.

This was truly a secret. As far as she knew, the mansion helped the court suppress the martial world. When martial experts went berserk, the court couldn't handle them and needed the mansion's help.

To outsiders, the mansion and the martial sects were bitter enemies, but who would have thought they had secret collaborations?

Chu Li looked at her, "If this leaks out, you know how serious the consequences will be, right?"

"I'd rather die than say it!" Zhao Ying nodded vigorously.

If the martial sects knew about this, they would certainly try to assassinate these people, leading to a decline in the mansion's talent and strength, making it unable to suppress the martial world, causing chaos!

Chu Li nodded in satisfaction, "So choosing your martial arts is crucial, as it determines the sect you will join. The Delusion-Breaking Sword Technique has no future, as the sect has already perished. The Swallow Sword Technique can lead you to the Surprised Swallow Sect. You're lucky!"

"Delusion-Breaking Sword Technique..." Zhao Ying's eyes widened.

Chu Li said, "You won't go and warn Zhuo Feiyang, will you?"

"But..." Zhao Ying hesitated.

Chu Li snorted, "How will you say it?"

"Should I just watch Senior Brother Zhuo take a detour?!"

"Hmph, don't worry. I'll use the Delusion-Breaking Sword Technique to deal with him, and he won't practice it anymore."

"Senior Brother Zhuo might go mad and practice the Delusion-Breaking Sword Technique even harder!"

"Ah..." Chu Li shook his head and sighed.

Zhao Ying quickly said, "Senior Brother Chu, I'm not favoring Senior Brother Zhuo, it's just that..."

"Whatever!" Chu Li shook his head, "He's just a fool, with limited potential."

Zhao Ying glared at him.

Chu Li smiled, "You think I'm deliberately belittling him, right?"

"You two are really..."

"He has good physical endowments and practices quickly, which is fine, but the key is that he lacks knowledge. Once he passes the innate realm, he will struggle."

Zhao Ying frowned. Getting Senior Brother Zhuo to read was like killing him.