Qin Anwu's advance was too swift; every opponent he encountered couldn't withstand a single blow, preventing them from finding him, leaving them no choice but to hold the courtyard. Three mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators, seven early-stage Qi Refining cultivators, and a dozen Spirit Nurturing cultivators all gathered by the lake, beneath the willow trees.
Are these the people who attacked the provincial army?
But it has nothing to do with me; I just want to get some information.
Seeing him approach slowly, carrying his sword and drinking from a wine jug as he walked, those people felt their blood surge with anger and their hearts swell with rage. As he drew a little closer, an Eighth Realm Spirit Nurturing cultivator exclaimed in surprise, "It's Qin Anwu!"
Qin Anwu shifted his gaze to the source of the cry, clearly seeing the Eighth Realm cultivator, and sighed internally: Another simple, honest face.
This man was Qi San, the one who had ambushed him on the way to Death Cliff. Later, he had obtained his family's address from the Mang Mountain bandits. When he sought them out, he found that Qi San had elderly parents and young children, and his attitude was sincere, so Qin Anwu had spared his life. He hadn't expected to meet him again here. It seems honest people's words can't be fully trusted after all.
"Are you still a Tiger Remembers business person?" Although he was just an insignificant, nameless soldier, and Qin Anwu didn't hate him, he had already decided that he would be among those to be killed this time.
Qi San's face showed bitterness. "Yes."
Qin Anwu asked again, "Did you participate in the attack on the provincial army?"
Before he could answer, an early-stage Qi Refining cultivator bellowed, "Qin Anwu, I didn't expect you to be so murderous. Don't you think, if you continue to oppose us like this, what will become of your parents?"
Qin Anwu asked, "Who are you people, and why did you capture my parents?"
That early-stage Qi Refining cultivator immediately replied, "That's none of your business. This lord just wants to tell you, if you surrender, Qin Zhuan and Mang Liuxue will have a better time."
Qin Anwu finished a gulp of wine, then placed the jug into his storage ring, stating indifferently, "Listen, if my parents lose even a single hair, this young master will wipe out your entire families."
That Eighth Realm cultivator's face instantly turned ashen.
But the early-stage Qi Refining cultivator, enraged, laughed instead, "This lord thought you'd become smart, but you're still a fool. If you dare, fight us!"
A mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator sneered, "Qin Zhuan and Mang Liuxue are both Qi Refining cultivators, and we captured them. What gives you, a mere Spirit Nurturing cultivator, the guts to spout nonsense?"
Loud laughter erupted: "Utterly foolish."
Qin Anwu mentally noted those who had laughed, continued to walk forward, and said indifferently, "Those who can escape, just deliver the message back, this young master doesn't want rivers of blood. If no one can escape, then there's nothing to be done."
A thought suddenly flashed through his mind: I must let one or two escape to deliver the message, otherwise this warning will be useless.
When he completely left the forest, and was only about ten zhang from the lakeside, a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator roared, "Capture him!" This fellow had no small ambition, and was quite shameless, daring to say such a thing. After roaring, this mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator leaped up, making a "great roc spreading its wings" motion in the air. It was very showy, very flamboyant, a beautiful flourish. Seeing his momentum like a rainbow, everyone else also moved out. The Qi Refining cultivators took a step and all rose into the air; the Spirit Nurturing cultivators all began to run, their shouts rising into the air.
Qin Anwu stopped his advance, a look of disdain in his eyes. "Is that all?"
He gripped his Clumsy Sword, turned and took a step, sweeping his sword towards the mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator who had rushed ahead to seek death. This fellow had intended to block his retreat, so he flew behind him. Just as Qin Anwu turned, he saw a sword gleam sweeping towards him, chillingly bright, frightening him into hastily drawing his long spear.
The Clumsy Sword swept across the long spear, "Shatter..."
The long spear broke into two.
The Clumsy Sword's momentum didn't diminish, sweeping across his right arm, "Ah..."
The right hand holding a section of the spear shaft separated from his body. Qin Anwu moved lightly, kicking out a leg. The mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator flew into the forest, continuously hitting several small trees before being stopped by the trunk of a large tree.
This sudden drastic change instantly ignited the Qi Refining cultivators' fury. Damn it, he succeeded in his sneak attack! We must kill him, and we must get that very strange sword.
As they landed, they all had weapons in hand, but their initial objective was not achieved. Qin Anwu stormed out, attacking his opponents until they had no power to retaliate, and seized the opportunity to break out of the encirclement. But he didn't take the chance to escape; instead, he turned back and charged towards the nearest early-stage Qi Refining cultivator. With one swing of his sword, he knocked away his twin short rods and shattered his right shoulder. Then, with a kick, he sent him flying towards an early-stage cultivator who was pulling out a halberd.
That early-stage cultivator saw his companion flying towards him and quickly dodged sideways in fear, moving just in front of Qin Anwu, who then kicked him. "Bang..." This early-stage cultivator fell to the ground, sliding three or five meters before stopping, blood spraying everywhere, frightening the rushing Spirit Nurturing cultivators into leaping continuously, afraid of stepping on him.
In five breaths' time, one mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator and two early-stage cultivators lost their combat ability, their lives unknown, calming those fervent hearts and chilling those calm hearts. This Qin Anwu was truly extraordinary; his combat power needed to be re-evaluated.
Hu Ze and the other mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator exchanged glances. The two quickly drew closer, shouting, "Don't separate, attack together!" The failure of the previous three was because they had fought one-on-one, which led to their defeat. They hadn't suffered such heavy casualties ambushing those 300 provincial soldiers, yet encountering just him, they were already suffering grievous losses. They were unconvinced and wanted to try again. They wouldn't have guessed that Qin Anwu hadn't killed instantly because he feared no one would be left to question after the battle, so he held back.
Seeing the two of them charge side by side, Qin Anwu sighed inwardly: Although they're both flawed, they are mid-stage after all. I can't pin my hopes on their mistakes... I can only forcefully use my old footwork.
Until now, the combat techniques he used were the thirteen basic movements of swordsmanship: point, thrust, chop, sweep, draw, pull, sever, wipe, lift, strike, hook, parry, block. As for footwork... he had no specific footwork. He always found his most comfortable steps according to the opponent's attack routes. Footwork combat techniques were also summarized by people; practicing existing techniques could appropriately speed up one's agility, but ultimately it couldn't unleash one's full potential. This is the origin of the saying, "Learning brings life, imitating brings death."
Previously, the "No-Self Immortal Emperor" had extraordinary talent and a unique physique. Now, Qin Anwu's body was clumsy, and his cultivation method was too different. Most of his previous cultivation methods and combat techniques were no longer suitable and needed to be re-summarized and deduced. Therefore, he had always been trying to forget his past life's combat techniques, and in every battle, he sought his most comfortable, most efficient, and least wasteful method, all for the sake of quickly adapting to this body.
Now, with the two of them charging in deadly earnest side by side, and him unwilling to retreat or even dodge, he could only use his former combat techniques. Just as he lifted his right leg, preparing to flash to the right, a voice boomed in his mind: "No, you must persevere!"
His eyes instantly glowed brightly. His right leg stamped heavily on the ground, his body forming a bow stance, the tip of his Clumsy Sword pointing to the lower left corner, his elbow joint bent inward, both hands gripping the sword hilt. Seeing them charge and their weapons strike, he gripped the sword with both hands and swept upwards to the right. In an instant, light burst forth in all directions, shining like the sun.