Chapter 59

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Chapter 59: Shaking the Peaks

Yu Ping’s eyes widened to their limit, staring at the Dream Emperor Spear embedded in his chest, an expression of disbelief spreading across his face. He slowly toppled backward. Clearly, even in death, he couldn’t comprehend why, despite blocking what was unmistakably a sword, it had transformed into a spear!

Lou Yun looked down at Yu Ping’s lifeless body sprawled on the rooftop. Reaching out, he withdrew his Dream Emperor Spear. Though his face remained impassive, this was his first real kill, stirring an unavoidable sense of strangeness within him. However, the sound of another bandit, Yue Qing’s voice, rising from below instantly erased that sensation.

Just as Lou Yun turned to leave, his brow abruptly furrowed. He spun around sharply, his gaze locking onto Yu Ping’s corpse on the ground. His spiritual perception had captured an extremely faint energy seeping out of Yu Ping’s body before vanishing without a trace.

"Kid, stop searching. It’s already remarkable you sensed that energy, but finding it is impossible!" Chang Xiang’s voice rang out.

"Brother Chang, what was that energy?"

After a pause, Chang Xiang offered two words: "Soul!"

"The soul’s energy?" Lou Yun repeated the phrase, though its meaning eluded him.

"The soul determines all of a living being and possesses a powerful force. Things like your natural talent, your six senses—especially your spiritual perception—all stem from its influence. Enough, don’t dwell on this now. Remember your task!"

Chang Xiang’s reminder jolted Lou Yun back to his mission. He swiftly leaped through the open window, plunging directly into the bandits’ room.

Yue Qing stood by the window, waiting anxiously for Yu Ping’s return. Suddenly, a shadow blotted his vision. A figure plummeted from above, startling him into stumbling back several paces. Focusing his eyes, he saw a young man standing before him, expressionless.

"Who are you? Where’s Yu Ping?" Despite his timid nature, Yue Qing reacted swiftly. Even as he spoke, his magical weapon materialized in his grasp—a large broadsword.

Lou Yun ignored him. His eyes scanned the room, landing on the small figure lying on the bed—rich man Liu’s son.

Then he glanced at the Dream Emperor Spear in his hand, inwardly cursing: "Sloppy! Forgot to revert it!"

The spear’s length had been key. Lou Yun had exploited it, abruptly transforming the Dream Emperor Sword into the Dream Emperor Spear, catching Yu Ping off guard with the fatal strike.

But it mattered little. Yue Qing was merely an intermediate one-star magical weapons master; he posed no match. If not for the fear that Boss Zhao might return any moment, Lou Yun might have even considered fighting him without using his magical weapon.

Seeing Lou Yun remain silent, Yue Qing deduced something terrible had likely happened to Yu Ping. Yet it struck him as bizarre—how could this young man, clearly only a primary three-star magical weapons master, have possibly killed Yu Ping?

Thoughts raced through Lou Yun’s mind: Kill Yue Qing now or secure the child and escape?

After a brief hesitation, Lou Yun made his decision. Power surged through his legs as he lunged toward the bed. Yue Qing, caught off guard by Lou Yun’s move toward the child, froze momentarily before hastily throwing himself forward.

That moment’s inaction was enough. Lou Yun scooped the child from the bed without a glance at Yue Qing, leaping straight back through the window. Yue Qing had no choice but to give chase; if Boss Zhao returned to find the child gone, Yue Qing’s life would be forfeit.

Lou Yun’s physical prowess far surpassed that of other magical weapons masters. Even burdened with the child, his speed remained unaffected. Under the moonlight, he moved like a swift panther, darting across rooftops toward the outskirts of the county town.

Lou Yun’s decision to temporarily bypass Yue Qing stemmed from three considerations. First, the constant threat of Boss Zhao’s return. Fighting both would be insurmountable. Second, Han Tianxiao’s repeated emphasis on teamwork: taking care of Yue Qing and rescuing the child unaided would render Nie Jiu and Xia Zhilan’s involvement meaningless. Third, Lou Yun still harbored hope of extracting information about the mastermind behind the kidnapping from Yue Qing. Balancing these factors, Lou Yun chose to retrieve the child and lure Yue Qing toward Nie Jiu. Once together, the three of them could dispatch him.

Lou Yun ran, periodically glancing back to ensure Yue Qing followed. Aware he might be walking into a trap, Yue Qing gritted his teeth and persisted, having no better alternative.

Thus, one chasing the other, they left the county town, arriving where Han Tianxiao and the other two waited.

Two figures emerged from the darkness—Nie Jiu and Xia Zhilan. Their eyes widened in surprise at the child in Lou Yun’s arms.

"Take the child!" Lou Yun thrust the boy toward Xia Zhilan. "Find a safe place to hide him!"

He turned to Nie Jiu. "There’s another bandit behind me. Intermediate one-star magical weapons master. We’ll handle him together."

Nie Jiu grinned broadly, his large hammer already in his grip. "No problem!"

Xia Zhilan took the child and immediately crouched, disappearing into the woods. Cleverly, she hid near Han Tianxiao, who merely smiled faintly without comment.

Yue Qing finally caught up, spotting Lou Yun and Nie Jiu. He skidded to a halt, scanning his surroundings warily.

Lou Yun offered a faint smile. "Yue Qing, no need to look. Your opponents are just the two of us."

Yue Qing’s spiritual perception clearly gauged both their cultivation levels. His eyes darted around. "Just who are you people?"

"We are people who were paid by others to kill you! A Jiu, let’s go!"

Nie Jiu had long been prepared. Upon hearing Lou Yun’s words, he chuckled and swung his giant hammer as he charged forward.

"Low-tier moon-grade technique, Earth-Shaking Hammer’s Shake Mountain!"

Nie Jiu’s magical weapon was named Earth-Shaking Hammer, and the name of this weapon technique he practiced perfectly matched his magical weapon. When he wielded it, the force was awe-inspiring!

Nie Jiu raised his Earth-Shaking Hammer high with both hands, bringing it down from above with a thousand-jin force, smashing toward Yue Qing.

Though Yue Qing saw that Nie Jiu was only a beginner four-star magical weapons master, the sheer momentum of the Earth-Shaking Hammer made him dare not block it directly. He hastily dodged to the side.

However, Nie Jiu did not pursue him. Instead, he still raised the hammer and slammed it down forcefully.

"Boom!"

A deafening roar echoed. The Earth-Shaking Hammer struck the ground viciously. Under the immense impact, the ground within a ten-meter radius suddenly sank. Immediately after, a ring of powerful shockwaves visible to the naked eye rapidly spread outward from the center of Earth-Shaking Hammer.

Yue Qing had dodged the direct attack of the Earth-Shaking Hammer but clearly hadn’t anticipated that the power of Nie Jiu’s Shake Mountain technique lay in the expanding shockwaves.

The shockwaves struck like a solid mass against both of Yue Qing’s lower legs.

Yue Qing felt a sharp pain in his calves and let out a shrill scream. His entire body toppled backward along the direction of the shockwaves, landing face-up.

At the moment he hit the ground, Lou Yun, who was extremely familiar with Nie Jiu’s Shake Mountain feature and had been waiting nearby, leaped forward. He aimed his Stone Sword directly at Yue Qing’s dantian area and stabbed it in slightly.

"No, please don’t, spare me!" Yue Qing begged, trembling, his hands waving frantically.

Lou Yun sneered coldly, "I can spare your life. But I need to ask you a few questions. Answer them truthfully, and I’ll let you go. Otherwise, you’ll go accompany Yu Ping!"

Hearing Lou Yun mention Yu Ping, Yue Qing’s face paled. He quickly nodded, "I’ll talk, I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything!"

At that moment, Han Tianxiao and Xia Zhilan also appeared, emerging behind Lou Yun.

Han Tianxiao wore a thoughtful expression as he stared at Yue Qing lying on the ground. Then he lifted his head to look at Lou Yun, who gave him a subtle nod meaning this matter wasn’t over yet and had further developments.

"I ask you, why did you kidnap that child?"

Yue Qing answered hastily, "The three of us were unintentionally passing through Tianrang City that day and resting outside the city when suddenly a man in black appeared. He wore an evil ghost mask on his face…"

Hearing this, Xia Zhilan gasped "Ah," clearly reminded of the person who tried to kill her. Lou Yun gave her a comforting smile and said, "I guessed it was him."

Yue Qing sounded confused, "How? Do you know him?"

Lou Yun scowled, "Am I asking you, or are you asking me?"

"Yes, yes, I’ll continue. That person’s skills were definitely above ours, and he radiated an evil aura all over. Seeing him, I broke out in a cold sweat. We thought he was going to kill us, but he just asked us to do him a favor—to kidnap this little boy. He promised that as long as we completed the task, he’d give us some benefits."

Lou Yun interjected, "Did he specifically ask for this child?"

"En, it was specified—a six-year-old boy. But I truly don’t know why he wanted this little boy!"

Lou Yun had already overheard this point earlier at the inn and knew Yue Qing wasn’t lying. He nodded and said, "Go on!"

"We then kidnapped the boy. He had arranged with us to meet within Pingdu County after it was done, within five days. He was sure to come, and it was already the fourth day now, so he might have already arrived."

After Yue Qing finished, Lou Yun lifted the sword hilt and knocked him unconscious. Then he looked toward Han Tianxiao and said, "Teacher Han, this mission is completed, but there should still be follow-up. Should we keep investigating or report back to the academy first?"

Han Tianxiao pondered, "Little Lan, was that man in black he mentioned the same one who tried to kill you before?"

Xia Zhilan thought for a moment, "I’m not sure if it’s him, but the characteristics he described for the man in black mostly match the one I saw."

"En, since the mission is complete, we shouldn’t linger here. Besides, that man in black—none of you are likely a match for him, and even I probably couldn’t defeat him. So we must leave here immediately and rush back to the academy!" Han Tianxiao, as the responsible teacher, gave the order.

Lou Yun was now almost certain that the man in black Yue Qing spoke of was the same evil weapons master who wanted to kill him and Xia Zhilan!

Though Lou Yun somewhat wished to see this man in black, he recalled Chang Xiang’s warning to him and gave up on the idea.

At this point, Nie Jiu pointed at the unconscious Yue Qing, "What about him?"

"Leave him here! Let’s go!"

The group of four leaped onto their horses and galloped off toward Ancient Weapon Academy.

However, after they’d only run about ten li, Han Tianxiao suddenly pulled on the reins and shouted, "Stop!"

Without his warning, the other three had also reined in their horses because, at that very moment, a tall figure stood before them with arms crossed, seeming to have been waiting for the four of them.

Although they didn’t know who it was, someone blocking their path so late at night made Lou Yun speculate instantly. He faintly guessed the identity—it must be the Boss Zhao mentioned by Yue Qing and his companions, an intermediate three-star magical weapons master!