The child reacted instantly, quickly snatching the Thunder Strike fragment back from Xu Ning's hand.
Xu Ning glared. "Let me see it!"
The child was a little embarrassed but shook his head nervously. "Senior brother, it's not what you think. I didn't steal it or anything."
Xu Ning didn't care. He snatched it away anyway and compared it with the fragment he had just bought.
Upon closer inspection, it was indeed another fragment. But when pieced together, they formed the complete Thunder Strike Technique.
He hadn't expected this kid to break the complete technique down into fragments to sell individually. It was clever but risky.
The child quickly snatched the fragment back, looked around furtively, and whispered, "Senior brother, my strength is too weak. I can't protect the complete one without getting robbed. I had no choice but to do this. It's the only way I can sell them safely."
Xu Ning nodded understandingly. "I won't tell anyone. My name is Qu Ziming. What's yours? We can cooperate long-term in the future if you're interested."
The child introduced himself. "My name is Sun Xiaowen. Senior brother, do you need anything else? I have other things too."
Xu Ning got straight to the point. "How much for the remaining fragments of Thunder Strike? The ones you haven't sold yet."
He had roughly seen the complete version of Thunder Strike in his mind. The side effects had not only not decreased with the complete version but had increased. However, the speed boost had doubled, making it even more useless for ordinary Qi Refining stage cultivators with weak bodies. Perfect for him.
Sun Xiaowen considered, then named his price. "Senior brother, I'll sell you the remaining fragments for thirty contribution points. A fair price."
Xu Ning readily agreed and transferred the contribution points directly without haggling.
Sun Xiaowen also handed the remaining fragments to Xu Ning, looking relieved to have them sold.
"See you next time," Xu Ning said, turning and leaving.
After wandering around with his purchases, Xu Ning headed out of the market. He had gotten what he came for.
However, he immediately noticed a tail following him. A group of cultivators was tracking his movements.
Had he been spotted so quickly? he wondered.
But thinking about it, it was understandable. After all, he had been carrying a bulging sack when he came out of the traveling merchants' place. It was normal to be watched by those looking for easy prey.
Xu Ning wasn't in a hurry. As he walked, he reached into the sack and took out his axe. He fed it some spirit iron, quietly upgrading it to low-grade spirit level. The axe hummed with new power.
Then he took out his armor, fed it spirit iron, and upgraded it to low-grade spirit level as well. The metal plates gleamed.
After putting on the armor under his robes, the person following him still didn't catch up. Xu Ning then took out the Thunder Strike Technique fragments to study them as he walked.
Xu Ning wanted to test his strength against cultivators, but everything should be done cautiously. It would be best to learn the Thunder Strike Technique first. That way, he could be at least sixty percent confident in a fight.
At this moment, the men following behind could no longer wait. They quickly moved forward and surrounded Xu Ning in a secluded spot.
Xu Ning had undergone a complete transformation. Heavy armor now completely covered his body beneath his outer robes, radiating a chilling, murderous aura.
This was, after all, Xu Ning's battle armor from his years of warfare. It was stained with countless drops of blood, making its aura instinctively terrifying to anyone with killing intent.
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The five who had surrounded him sensed something was wrong. Three of them already showed signs of wanting to retreat. Something was off about this target.
The leader quickly spoke up, trying to rally them. "This kid is interesting. He actually got a set of armor from the mortal realm! What's the use of that against cultivators? Brothers, it's just mortal gear. Kill him!"
Xu Ning gripped his long axe, quickly assessing the men's cultivation levels: one at the second level of Qi Refining, and four at the first level. Easy pickings.
Without further ado, he channeled his spiritual energy into his axe and armor. Then he charged forward, raising the axe to strike the man directly in front.
Thud—
The man was instantly cleaved in two by the axe, dead beyond any doubt. He didn't even have time to scream.
At the same time, the other four rushed forward, their swords and blades striking Xu Ning's armor from all sides.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Several crisp sounds rang out as the weapons struck, but the armor remained completely unscathed. Not a single scratch.
The four were instantly dumbfounded. In a flash, one was dead, and their weapons couldn't penetrate the opponent's defenses. What kind of monster was this?
Xu Ning gave them no chance to recover. He swept his axe in a wide arc, severing two of them in half at the waist. Blood sprayed.
The remaining two were filled with horror. They turned and fled in opposite directions, their courage completely shattered.
Xu Ning, however, wouldn't give them a chance. He quickly chased after the closest one and killed him with a single axe blow to the back.
Seeing his companion dead and knowing he couldn't outrun his pursuer, the remaining man lost all will to flee. He turned around and knelt before Xu Ning with a heavy thud.
"Senior, spare my life! I was wrong! Please, I'll do anything!"
Surprisingly, Xu Ning stopped his axe. "What's your name?"
"Senior, my name is Luo Xiu. Please forgive me this time! I didn't know who I was dealing with," he hurriedly kowtowed to Xu Ning, his forehead hitting the dirt.
Xu Ning nodded, taking a pill from his robes and handing it to him. "Eat this."
Without hesitation, Luo Xiu hurriedly took it and swallowed it. He knew he had no choice.
Xu Ning nodded, satisfied. "I'll give you the antidote once a month. If you miss a dose, you'll die from the poison. There's no cure."
Luo Xiu had already guessed this would happen. With a bitter expression, he quickly nodded in agreement. It was better than being dead.
Then, Xu Ning turned and went to the corpses. He took out a small porcelain bottle, opened it, and poured the contents onto the bodies.
Sizzle, sizzle—
Instantly, all the corpses began to emit blue smoke, accompanied by eerie hissing sounds. Soon, all four corpses dissolved completely, leaving only some metal debris and storage pouches.
Standing nearby, Luo Xiu felt a chill run down his spine at this sight. His face went pale. All his suspicions about the poison Xu Ning had given him vanished. This man was no ordinary cultivator.
Then, Xu Ning looked at Luo Xiu and said, "Go find a hilltop over there and wait for my orders. Don't try to run."
Luo Xiu dared not complain and quickly nodded. "Yes, Senior. I'll wait."
After Luo Xiu left, Xu Ning collected all the debris from the ground without checking it. He moved quickly, not wanting to linger. He hurried back towards the Tianbao Sect.
He found a secluded place to remove his armor, reverting to his original appearance. Then he used his sect token to return to the Tianbao Sect unnoticed.
Upon arriving at the fifth planting area, Xu Ning saw many people gathered and immediately became wary. He was carrying a lot of contraband items.
Not daring to take any chances, Xu Ning quickly hid the items in the thatched hut he was carrying inside his robes before proceeding.
Upon seeing the crowd, Xu Ning realized that so many people had come to deliver supplies to the planting area.
There were new wooden tables and beds to replace the burned ones, as well as a large quantity of timber.
The timber was specially prepared for the spirit herb planting area to combat future velvet worm outbreaks. It was not to be used under normal circumstances without approval.
The wooden tables and beds, of course, were replacements for those used for burning by the fifth planting area a few days ago.
This was actually a preferential treatment from the sect to the fifth planting area. After all, they had "discovered" a way to deal with the velvet worms, making a huge contribution to the sect's planting operations. The credit had gone to the district.
"Where have you been?" Before Xu Ning could enter his hut, Qian Zhide's shout rang out behind him.
Xu Ning turned around calmly. "Manager Qian, I went to take a look around the sect. I wanted to familiarize myself with the place."
Qian Zhide scoffed. "What's there for you to familiarize yourself with? You're just a handyman. You don't need to know anything. Your new wooden bed is over there. Go and get it yourself."
As he spoke, Qian Zhide pointed to the wooden bed placed at the end of the row.
Xu Ning didn't want to get entangled with him any longer. He quickly went to carry the wooden bed.
Wang Ergou and Li Yun quickly came over to help him.
"Brother Xu Ning, where did you go so early in the morning? Manager Qian was just angry about your absence," Wang Ergou asked in a low voice while helping him lift.
Xu Ning gave a simple answer. "Just went to the sect to take a look around. Nothing special."
Li Yun observed, "I think Manager Qian seemed to be in a good mood today. Since Brother Xu Ning helped him get credit for the insect solution, he didn't make things too difficult for you. Otherwise, you definitely wouldn't have had an easy time."
Xu Ning nodded. "Stop talking nonsense. As long as nothing else happens, that's fine. Hurry up and move it inside."
After moving the wooden bed inside, almost everyone outside went back to their own huts.
Xu Ning then took out all his purchases and began to tally the spoils from his encounter.