Chu Ming carefully searched Huai Kui, the notorious bandit, leaving no area untouched.
After a moment, when Chu Ming touched the middle of Huai Kui's belt, his eyes lit up.
In the middle of the belt, there was a small bump shaped like a ring. As Chu Ming's hand moved across it, a faint spiritual power was transmitted.
This is... a storage ring!
"This bandit is truly cunning! If it were an ordinary disciple, they probably wouldn't obtain his wealth even after killing him. After all, who would think to hide a storage ring in a belt."
However, with so many people around and the storage ring being so precious, to avoid being seen, a hint of sword qi emitted from the tip of Chu Ming's right hand finger, cutting a small slit in the belt and taking out the storage ring, quietly placing it at his own waist.
Then, Chu Ming's gaze fell on Huai Kui's head. To complete the task, he had to cut off his head.
His finger burst out with a swift stroke of sword qi, causing blood to splatter instantly. He took out a black bag from his waist, placed the head inside, and was ready to leave, eager to find out what treasures were inside the storage ring.
"Young hero, you can't just leave like this. Look at what has become of my inn, with so many people dead, how can I explain this?"
A slightly chubby middle-aged man, resembling a shopkeeper, grabbed Chu Ming's arm. He dared to do so because Chu Ming didn't look like a bad person.
Chu Ming glanced around. Everywhere was rubble with many corpses.
"Here is ten thousand taels of silver. Remember, only two thousand is for you. The rest is for the families of the deceased! If I find out you took more, you know the consequences."
Chu Ming was taken aback for a moment, then took out two silver notes from Huai Kui's storage ring and handed them to the shopkeeper, saying.
"Yes, yes!" The shopkeeper was overjoyed. Renovating the inn would probably cost one thousand taels of silver, and the remaining thousand taels naturally went into his pocket.
Chu Ming, carrying the black bag, got on the Qingzhi Horse and headed towards Cyan Yang Sect, feeling a sudden sadness in his heart.
In the Great Yan Kingdom, human life could be traded. Commoners were like grass, who would care about their life and death? One life, five hundred taels of patterned silver, at most.
Moreover, families of the deceased held no grudge but were quite delighted; five hundred taels of patterned silver was enough for them to live comfortably for a lifetime.
The Qingzhi Horse was incredibly fast. Within minutes, Chu Ming arrived at the Cyan Yang Sect, handed over the horse, and walked towards the Task Hall with the black bag in hand.
"Didn't expect you to complete the task so quickly!" The Task Elder's eyes showed some surprise, although he wasn't particularly astonished by Chu Ming's ability to complete the task, having witnessed Chu Ming's battle with Li An.
The first time Chu Ming used Starfire Swordsmanship, he was utterly shocked. With his keen eyesight, he could easily tell that Chu Ming had mastered Starfire Swordsmanship to the point of mastery. Achieving such a level in a Profound Level martial technique at the Postnatal Realm was nothing short of monstrous.
"Here's 800 Contribution Points and 40 Spirit Stones." The Task Elder took out several small black pieces of paper from a box, representing the value of Contribution Points.
Chu Ming nodded, took the items, and left, returning to his own courtyard.
Back in his courtyard, Chu Ming took out Huai Kui's storage ring. The ring had engraved patterns and looked almost like an ordinary ring.
Opening the storage ring, even though Chu Ming was mentally prepared, he was still taken aback by Huai Kui's riches.
The ring's space was small, only one cubic meter. On the left side, a stack of gold notes neatly arranged, each worth ten thousand, totalling ten notes—amounting to a hundred thousand gold or a million silver.
On the right side, there were seven or eight Spirit Stones and an ancient yellowed book with three traditional Chinese characters "Concealing Breath Technique" on it.
Chu Ming put all his belongings into the storage ring, then took out Concealing Breath Technique.
Although this storage ring was of lower grade, it was still extremely precious, so Chu Ming didn't dare to wear it on his hand and had to hang it around his neck with a string.
The Concealing Breath Technique had three layers, only useful for Martial Artists below the Guiyuan Realm. The first layer could conceal one's cultivation by one small realm, the second layer by two small realms, and the third layer by three small realms.
After reading it, Chu Ming was overjoyed. He felt that his Martial Arts Cultivation had advanced too quickly and might arouse suspicion, but the Concealing Breath Technique solved this problem perfectly.
Chu Ming cultivated the Concealing Breath Technique by silently circulating his inner Spiritual Power. Insights into the Concealing Breath Technique poured out from the white light plate and were absorbed by Chu Ming.
The first day, the first layer reached perfection!
The third day, the second layer reached perfection!
The sixth day, the third layer reached perfection!
In just six days, Chu Ming thoroughly comprehended the Concealing Breath Technique. Meanwhile, the forty Spirit Stones from the task reward were all used, and his cultivation broke through to the Ninth Layer of the Postnatal Realm, with his inner Spiritual Power becoming purer.
On this day, Chu Ming came to the Martial Arts Pavilion, preparing to select two martial techniques. The Tyrant Fist and Mysterious Step were somewhat outdated for him now, and only top-tier Yellow Level techniques could significantly enhance his strength.
This time, Chu Ming came to the Martial Arts Pavilion to choose two top-tier Yellow Level fist and body techniques.
"Elder!"
Chu Ming handed his Identity Token to the Guardian Elder and stepped into the first floor to select martial techniques.
The first floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion was much larger than the second floor and naturally had a more extensive and diverse collection of martial techniques. Just the body techniques alone had dozens of types.
Chu Ming went straight to the shelves of body techniques and fist techniques, where several martial techniques were displayed.
Divine Travel Step, Inch Step, Canghe Step, Snake Step...
Thunderbolt Fist, Five Elements Fist, Howling Fist, Tyrant Fist...
Although these were all Yellow Level techniques, they were undoubtedly the best within that level, each with its unique excellence.
Take the Divine Travel Step, for example. Once executed, it seemed like a travel beyond the heavens, elusive and unpredictable. Mastery of it could allow stepping thirty meters away in an instant. Even though Chu Ming had reached mastery in Mysterious Step, it fell short compared to the thirty-meter range of Divine Travel Step.
Inch Step, once mastered, was ever-changing and unpredictable. Mastery allowed one to take ten steps in an instant, with the enemy unable to track. At perfection, it could even create illusions to confuse the enemy.
Canghe Step was said to be created by a predecessor of Cyan Yang Sect inspired by the soaring of cranes. Its use was like the white crane's flight, vast and unfathomable.
The Snake Step was the most peculiar. If one consumed snake gall daily during training, it could expedite the cultivation of this technique. Once mastered, it allowed for snake-like winding movements, not the fastest but definitely the most unpredictable among them.
Considering all aspects, Chu Ming chose Divine Travel Step because, although not the strongest, its speed was unbeatable, and for Chu Ming, speed was paramount.
As for the fist technique, Chu Ming chose Tyrant Fist. Like Tyrant Fist, it focused on strength, but at its highest cultivation, it balanced both strength and softness, allowing flexibility within its power. It even enabled deflection of some enemy attacks during combat.
The main reason Chu Ming chose Tyrant Fist was that it was an advanced version of Tyrant Fist, making it easier for him to master.
"Are you Chu Ming?"
Just as Chu Ming finished copying the two secret manuals and was about to leave, a soft voice sounded to his left. Chu Ming paused, turned around to see two young men.
The man on the left had a mole at the corner of his mouth, a sallow complexion, and wore a green robe. The man on the right had a robust body, flowing hair, and wore a yellow robe, looking rather handsome.
The sallow-faced man on the left had spoken, while the handsome man on the right seemed too aloof to talk to Chu Ming.
"Are you Zhao Hu?" Seeing the sallow-faced man, numerous thoughts flashed through Chu Ming's mind. Despite the 'Hu' in his name, Zhao Hu's physique and personality were far from tiger-like.
His body was somewhat slender, and due to the sect's Side Door Technique he cultivated, his voice had a rather feminine quality.
"I heard my brother mention you!" Zhao Hu said softly, his tone unquestionable, his Transcendence Realm Third Layer cultivation pressing towards Chu Ming.
However, faced with Zhao Hu's imposing manner, Chu Ming emanated a sharp aura, shattering Zhao Hu's momentum into nothingness.
"Well, well, although my brother is mischievous, he's still my brother. You dare to bully him, let's see if you have the guts to fight me!"
Feeling his shattered aura, Zhao Hu was first astonished, then furious, angrily challenging Chu Ming.
"A Transcendence Realm Third Layer martial artist challenging me, a Postnatal martial artist? Senior brother, you have some nerve!"
Chu Ming replied mockingly, his expression unchanged, contemplating his options. He was now at the Early Stage of Postnatal Ninth Layer, his strength formidable but not quite a match for Zhao Hu.
"I've heard you were the best in Wooden Man Alley this year, is that all the courage you have?" The man in the yellow robe spoke calmly.