Chapter 266 - 241: The Rank of the Martial Spirit_1

Phew!

Lu Yan let out a long breath.

Finally, he has killed this Martial Spirit.

It was truly difficult to kill.

Among all the Martial Spirits Lu Yan had encountered, this one was the most troublesome. Moreover, the opponent was injured. He didn’t dare to imagine what it would be like if it was not injured.

Chu Hongye retracted the Ice Dragon and Ice Phoenix, her face pale. She staggered back a few steps, her chest heaving, appearing to have consumed a lot of energy in the recent battle.

"Are you alright?"

Lu Yan looked at Chu Hongye.

"I’m fine, just consumed too much energy."

Chu Hongye said, then looked at Lu Yan curiously. Her eyes flickered as if she was thinking about something. After a moment, she added, "Chu Chenzhou really has found a good disciple."

"Um, I’ve heard that Chu Chenzhou is your grandfather. Isn’t it a bit inappropriate to address him by his name directly?"

Lu Yan said.

"In the past, he abandoned his wife and child for other women. Did he think it was inappropriate then? My grandmother passed away in depression because of this, my parents were subjected to scorn. Did he ever think his actions were inappropriate?"

Chu Hongye retorted coldly.

Lu Yan stuttered for a moment and was ultimately unable to rebut.

Though he held a favorable impression of Chu Chenzhou, he couldn’t deny the wrongness of such an incident. It was a family matter and interfering wasn’t his place.

"If I recall correctly, when you first joined Hidden Dragon Camp, you had mastered only eleven inner strengths. Now, you’ve surpassed twenty, and in just three-and-a-half years, cultivated the Thunder Nine Sounds to the realm of Unity of Man and Martial Arts. With this comprehension, you are not even fit to lick Wang Tianyu’s boots."

Chu Hongye said.

"Miss, you misunderstood something."

Lu Yan muttered to himself, but awkwardly forced a smile and said, "Hongye, it’s just that I’m quite compatible with Thunder Nine Sounds which expedited my cultivation rate. I beg you to keep this a secret."

"What did you call me? Don’t address me by my name. Technically, I’m older than you by three years."

Chu Hongye responded sternly.

"I’m your grandfather’s disciple. If we consider generation, I’d be your uncle or your Martial Uncle. It’s not inappropriate for me to call you by your name..."

Lu Yan muttered.

"Don’t call..."

Chu Hongye’s voice rose sharply.

"Okay, I won’t call you by your name. Um... my dear niece... I mean, Miss Chu... it’s acceptable to call you Miss Chu, right?"

Just as Lu Yan tried to take advantage, Chu Hongye’s eyes widened, her body emitting a cold aura, frost spreading across the ground below her feet. Hence, he hurriedly corrected himself.

Once he referred to her as Miss Chu, Chu Hongye’s aura receded.

"Miss Chu, can you keep my secret?"

Lu Yan asked again.

The revelation of his Nine Echoes Technique was unavoidable, but reaching the Unity of Man and Martial Arts in three years was so astoundingly fast he didn’t want to catch the attention of the various feudal princes.

"Rest assured, I’m not one to gossip."

Chu Hongye nonchalantly commented. But after a moments pause added, "Normally, I wouldn’t utter a word. But if I drink too much...I might end up talking, though the chances are slim, so don’t worry."

Lu Yan’s face turned sour, "Miss Chu, what would it take for you to keep my secret?"

He seriously suspected that Chu Hongye was taking out her resentment for Chu Chenzhou on him.

"Practice swordsmanship with me."

Chu Hongye stated.

"Practice with you? But I don’t understand swordsmanship at all."

Lu Yan responded in dismay.

"Isn’t learning possible if we don’t know? You managed to cultivate Thunder Nine Sounds to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts in three years, which despite being a result of compatibility, proves your comprehension ability."

"If you begin to cultivate the Four-pole Divine Sword, you too can quickly embrace the profound realm, even if it takes a few more years to cultivate to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts, won’t you be able to practice with me then?"

Chu Hongye said.

Four-pole Divine Sword, a top martial art, was also one of the eight top martial arts that can be chosen upon joining Hidden Dragon Camp.

Well, she was keen to use Lu Yan to help her improve her swordsmanship. Her desires were worn plainly on her face.

Lu Yan wouldn’t yield easily, he said, "I don’t have enough Meritorious Points to exchange for the Four-pole Divine Sword manual and Divine Intent Diagram."

"I’ve a way to get them."

Chu Hongye replied.

"This... um..."

Lu Yan stalled.

"I can keep today’s matter a secret, not mentioning a single word. Besides, I can take credit for today’s victory, but all the Meritorious Points that are rightfully yours, will be given to you, without a single one missing."

"In addition, when you practice swordsmanship with me, as my swordsmanship improves, there will be compensation in Meritorious Points."

Chu Hongye added.

"Alright, deal."

This time, Lu Yan agreed readily.

Having free access to the top martial arts, who wouldn’t agree? His earlier hesitation was merely him hoping to get more benefits.

"Oh right, you mentioned high-level Martial Spirits. What was that about? Are there different levels for Martial Spirits?"

Lu Yan’s heart moved, expressing his suspicion.

"Of course, there is."

Chu Hongye explained: "Ordinary people, those who communicate with Martial Spirits through special rituals, most are ordinary Martial Spirits, low-level Martial Spirits. Only a few with extremely high talent, such as those with an Innate Martial Body, or those particularly compatible with certain Martial Spirits, can communicate with high-level Martial Spirits. Such individuals are often very formidable, their Martial Spirit strength or personal combat power far surpasses ordinary Martial Spirits."

"Like the Blood Bat before, it is a high-level Martial Spirit. Among the Martial Cultivators, it is akin to a person possessing the potential of an Upper True Body. Fortunately, it was wounded and greatly reduced in strength. Otherwise, let alone killing it, we would not even escape today."

Lu Yan was taken aback in his heart.

Comparable to possessing the potential of an Upper True Body, meaning an existence with ten to twenty strands of inner strength. How terrifying such a figure reaching the Sixth-level Master would be, Lu Yan was very clear.

Those among the top ten on the Hidden Dragon List were of this level.

"I have heard that above high-level Martial Spirits, there are King’s Martial Spirits. But the number of people who can communicate with King’s Martial Spirits is even rarer, extremely uncommon. They are equivalent to those possessing the potential of a King’s True Body."

Chu Hongye added.

"It seems that my understanding of Martial Spirits is still insufficient. Martial Spirits are even more terrifying than I imagined."

Lu Yan mused to himself.

While speaking, the two quickly returned to the previous battlefield.

Without the Martial Spirit, only some demons left are not opponents to Li Chengkong, Zhang Ling’er, and others. At this time, the remaining demons had been nearly wiped out by them.

The remaining ones were also conveniently killed by Chu Hongye and Lu Yan.

Excluding Li Chengkong, Zhang Ling’er, and Wang Guangyao, there were four Golden Martial Hunters left.

Three weaker Golden Martial Hunters also arrived.

The four Golden Martial Hunters huddled together, their faces somewhat uneasy.

"Liu Yan, Tu Yu betrayed the Mansion of King Ming and joined the Spirit Sect. Did you know?"

Chu Hongye’s gaze was cutting, looking at the four Golden Martial Hunters.

"Sir, we genuinely did not know. Tu Yu has served the Mansion of King Ming for a hundred years, who would know he would join the Spirit Sect? We were also kept in the dark about this matter, so please, sir, discern the truth."

The Fourth-level Master among the Golden Martial Hunters bowed and said.

"Looking back now, we also became pawns of Tu Yu, feeling ashamed. Please investigate, sirs."

Another older hunter sighed, also bowing.

Chu Hongye ignored them, instead walked to the frozen body of Tu Yu, and with a pat of his hand, the ice layer on Tu Yu melted.

Huff huff huff...

Tu Yu gasping heavily, slumped on the ground, it turned out he was not yet dead.

From this, one could see Chu Hongye’s meticulous thinking. When he took action earlier, he held back, leaving a survivor.

"Tu Yu, you served the Mansion of King Ming for a hundred years. Why betray the Mansion of King Ming to join the Spirit Sect?"

Chu Hongye said coldly.

"Isn’t it fear of death, to prolong life, the victor is king, the loser is the villain, I have nothing to say."

Tu Yu’s face was pale, he smiled grievously, knowing he could not survive.

"You wanted to save your life? Did you ever think about your family, your descendants?"

Chu Hongye said.

Tu Yu sighed without replying.

"This time, it was you and Liu Boguang conspiring together, right? Tell me, how many people has the Spirit Sect planted in the three states of the Mansion of King Ming, and how many people from the Mansion of King Ming betrayed and joined the Spirit Sect? Tell it all. I can plead with King Ming to spare your family."

Chu Hongye said.

"At this point, there’s nothing to hide. I can tell you all, but what I know is very limited. I’m not clear about how many people the Spirit Sect has in the three states of the Mansion of King Ming, or who they are."

"I only know that those who are active in the three states of the Mansion of King Ming are mainly from one of the thirty-six halls under the Spirit Sect, the Xueshen Hall. Their hall leader is also hiding within the three states."

"The Mansion of King Ming’s attitude towards the Spirit Sect is to completely eradicate them. Over the years, as long as a Martial Spirit has shown itself, it would be wiped out, causing heavy losses to the Xueshen Hall. Therefore, they want to retaliate and draw out the bodyguards of King Ming to kill."

Tu Yu said.

"So, you and Liu Boguang cooperated and staged a drama?"

Chu Hongye questioned further.

Tu Yu nodded, saying: "Just so happens that the Bloodshura was previously injured by a powerful True Body Realm expert, and the wounds were hard to heal, needing to suck the fresh blood from a martial arts expert for healing. So he came up with this scheme, intending to lure some of King Ming’s bodyguards to come, without expecting to lure people from the Hidden Dragon Camp. Seeing that you are all safe and sound, it seems that the Bloodshura must have died in your hands. Chu Hongye, you’re indeed a heaven’s favored daughter, a descendant of King Ming. I admire you."

Bloodshura, clearly was the Blood Bat.

"I’ve said all I should say, please give me a quick death."

Tu Yu braced for the execution.

With a flash of sword light, Tu Yu’s head flew out, and the Martial Spirit in his body rushed out, which was also killed by Chu Hongye’s sword light.

"The four of you, pack up the Martial Spirit’s body and come back with us to the Mansion of King Ming."

Chu Hongye instructed the four Golden Martial Hunters.

"Yes."

The four Golden Martial Hunters dared not refuse. They must undergo questioning by the upper management of the Mansion of King Ming to clear their suspicions.

As for packing up the Martial Spirit’s body, of course, it was to bring it back for examination, and there must also be extra rewards.

Killing a Martial Spirit comparable to possessing the potential of an Upper True Body will undoubtedly bring significant rewards.

Soon, after they were all packed, they quickly headed towards the Mansion of King Ming.

After returning to the Mansion of King Ming, Lu Yan, following Chu Hongye and the others, reported the incident.

Of course, most of the credit was pushed onto Chu Hongye.

As for the Blood Bat Martial Spirit, Lu Yan and Chu Hongye agreed on a consistent statement without revealing Lu Yan’s twenty-one strands of Inner Strength and the Unity of Man and Martial Arts’ Thunder Nine Sounds. They only said that the Blood Bat Martial Spirit was severely injured and was killed by Chu Hongye.

Lu Yan merely assisted.

Back in his residence, Lu Yan quietly waited for the reward to be issued.