Chapter 258 - 135: The 9 Great Dukes, Like the Midday Sun; A Rootless Drifter in Jiangyin Prefecture Must Ask the Power Fist

Chapter 258: Chapter 135: The 9 Great Dukes, Like the Midday Sun; A Rootless Drifter in Jiangyin Prefecture Must Ask the Power Fist

In an instant, the entire Ji Residence felt like a raging furnace.

Watching the scorching Gang Qi, like a cloud of fire, shoot from the boy’s pores.

The grief on Qin Zhuo’s face had not yet faded, but his body’s instinctual alarm made him unconsciously take two steps back.

He then came to his senses, his brow raised in disbelief as he looked at the black-clad youth before him.

"This is... Outer Gang!?"

’The last time I saw him at the Celestial Blade Style school, Junior Martial Brother had only just reached the shore and was merely at the Jade Skin level. How has it only been a little over a month, and he’s already formed his Gang Qi?!’

’Turning Inner Force into Gang Qi takes at least ten years of hard work! And... the quality of his Outer Gang... just a slight overflow from his emotional turmoil is already stronger than mine.’

’Could it be... one of the necessary conditions for reaching the Peak Qi Sea—the Purest Gang?’

’Legend has it that the Purest Gang can carry a Martial Stance. It allows a Secret Martial art, whose Traits can normally only be unleashed by a Qi Cultivation Grandmaster, to manifest its might even in the Outer Gang Realm.’

’When an ordinary Outer Gang Martial Artist summons their Gang Qi, it is typically formless and invisible.’

’But Junior Martial Brother’s Outer Gang... the moment it burst from his pores, it was as fiery red as the setting sun, filled with a searing heat. It gave me the chilling thrill of snatching something from a blazing fire...’

’This feeling...’

’It’s the Great Five Decline Celestial Saber from the Ancestral Hall! The one that, aside from the Ancestral Master himself, no one in three generations has successfully cultivated! Is this the Tribulation Fire Burning Robe, the First Decline that incinerates the very foundation of the body!?’

’Junior Martial Brother... he actually mastered the Great Five Decline Celestial Saber!?’

A white sash was tied around Qin Zhuo’s forehead, and a storm raged in his heart.

As for Ji Xiu.

Upon hearing these words, his brow grew cold and stern, as if covered in winter frost.

"Senior Martial Brother, you’re saying... Master Duan has fallen?"

Ji Xiu mulled over those few short words, then closed his eyes. The Outer Gang that had been erupting from his pores instantly and slowly receded, causing the temperature to drop abruptly.

This was the power of a Martial Artist who had cultivated a True Sect Level Secret Martial art and refined the Purest Gang. A mere leakage of emotion could stir such a massive commotion!

It could be said.

Ji Xiu had already surpassed the peak of the Power Barrier. For any Mortal, unless they surpassed him by one or two realms... they wouldn’t even be qualified to be his opponent!

"This past month, after Master entered the prefecture, what all happened?"

"Senior Martial Brother, sit."

"Tell me slowly. Be detailed. Don’t leave out a single word."

After retracting his entire Qi Mechanism, Ji Xiu’s tone was calm and his aura solidified. There was no trace of emotional fluctuation.

But in Qin Zhuo’s eyes...

The Ji Xiu of this moment was even more fearsome than before!

’To reach such a state with a single motion and a moment of stillness... if Junior Martial Brother’s talent isn’t cut short, then one day, Riding the Dragon Head and Dividing the Land and Granting Titles will probably be a simple matter for him!’

But when Qin Zhuo thought of Duan Chenzhou and the recent turmoil, his eyes couldn’t help but dim.

Extraordinary talent was a good thing, but it was also a bad thing.

Take Junior Martial Uncle Duan, for example. Even if his Innate Talent was not as great as his Junior Martial Brother’s, he was still the champion of One Mansion. But now that the fierce winds and churning waves have come crashing down, isn’t he also...

He sighed, then spoke in a low, heavy voice:

"After you returned on the flood dragon, Junior Martial Brother, Junior Martial Uncle Duan removed his name from the registry and entered Jiangyin Prefecture all by himself."

"The first thing he did was to raise up the plaque of the Celestial Blade Daoist School that had been taken down."

"Years ago, he represented Ancestral Master Wang Xuanyang and suppressed many other Schools to establish our Daoist School. On the Daoist School Street in Anning, where masters ’open schools and take on disciples,’ he established the name of the Celestial Blade Style as No. 1."

"But after the Ancestral Master and Junior Martial Uncle Duan left, those people became aggressive, forcefully removing the plaque and seizing the building, forcing Master to announce the closure of the Celestial Blade Style. That gilded plaque has gathered dust ever since."

"This time..."

"Junior Martial Uncle Duan returned and personally shattered the ’Grandmaster Plaques’ of six other Daoist Schools, and he rehung our plaque."

"Junior Martial Uncle also declared that from now on, this place would be the ’root’ of his lineage. It had nothing to do with the Celestial Blade Style, but was tied to him alone. If anyone dared to take it down again, it would be a fight to the death!"

"Originally, this one act was enough to stir up endless trouble. But not long ago... Junior Martial Uncle, with you, rode the flood dragon to the mansion gates, shot down the Fishing Trade’s ceremonial flag, and captured several Grand Lineage Members."

"On that day, several of the big shots from the Jiangyin Thirty-Six Professions, those who rank among the Nine Lords, happened to be respectfully waiting for a ’Young Lord’ from the One State’s Prefecture Cangdu."

"That Young Lord, I heard his family holds a fiefdom in Great Xuan County. Even one who holds a fiefdom over a mere County is qualified to privately raise a Personal Guard, to have them wear armor and bear arms. They are a behemoth that trains forces like the Outer Dao’s Buddhist Soldiers and Magic Soldiers!"

"A family of that stature could flatten a trade or a school with almost no effort."

"The Great Lineage Masters of the Fishing Trade and Medicine Shop had just established a connection with them. When they returned home to hear this terrible news, they instantly erupted in fury and sought to settle the score with Junior Martial Uncle."

"On the surface, with General Luo Daocheng of the Garrison Mansion watching over him, and with Junior Martial Uncle having become a Qi Cultivation Grandmaster and gaining a foothold, it wasn’t easy for them to make a move."

"But in the shadows... they used every trick in the book. First, the Great Lineage Masters of the Fishing, Medicine, and Firewood trades ordered people to challenge him to a series of matches in the Battle Array, forcing him to fight constantly and spreading him thin."

"After that, they spread rumors, colluded with the Chaotic Heaven Thieves and the Central Yellow Fiend, issued a kill order on the Black Market’s bounty list, the Gold-Selling Cave, and even hired a Celestial Spirit Level Assassin from the ranks of the Earth Fiend and Celestial Spirit—the Celestial Killing Star!"

"Even though I’ve never heard of this ’Celestial Killing Star’ before..."

"Anyone who can be ranked at the Celestial Spirit Level and be recognized by the leaders of the Black Market has to be, at the very least, a ’Sect Leader’ level Martial Artist who has reached the Leakless state!"