167: The third condition is completed

Night fell.

Inside the Prosperous Land, lights shone brightly.

But as soon as one left the outermost ring of lanterns and torches by a certain distance, they would immediately plunge into complete darkness.

In the darkness:

Bandits, Thugs, thieves, and other bad people roamed.

They sought suitable targets, preparing to plunder.

Chu Qing was naturally their best target.

Screech!

Screech!

In the darkness, the sound of knives being sharpened could be heard.

There was the clang of weapons.

There was the clatter of armor.

In the darkness, Killing Intent lurked everywhere.

Chu Qing ignored these, stepping straight into the darkness.

The next moment:

The sharpening of knives, the gnashing of teeth, and the clanging of armor in the darkness all instantly vanished.

In their place were hurried breaths and greedy gulps.

The group of bloodthirsty Thugs bared their teeth, like hungry wolves, scrambling to rush into the darkness.

They shouted, “Brothers inside, hold your hands! Share some with us!”

At this moment:

From a distance, a Thug came rushing.

This Thug yelled with aHeart-wrenching, “The Cloth-Clad Saber Master has ordered: No one is allowed to pursue the one who exchanged the black gold!”

“He is the ruthless man who killed Sky-Touching Vajra last time!”

A roar echoed.

It reached into the darkness.

However:

It was all too late.

Because at the exact same time, in the darkness, sounds of swords clashing and armor colliding could be heard.

The next second:

Screams!

Wails!

Sounds of despair—unending.

“Kill!”

From the darkness, Chu Qing’s low growl emerged.

Thud!

Thud!

Dull thuds continuously sounded.

Those were the sounds of bodies falling to the ground.

Screams rose and fell.

The Thugs were terrified.

There were too many screams.

They were terrified, scared, screaming; then, they threw their long sabers and ran away.

However:

As soon as they turned around, Chu Qing’s killing Move appeared from behind them.

His fingers slid across the spines of these people.

The next second, they discovered in horror:

They couldn't control their bodies anymore.

Their spines were twisted.

It was over.

They were crippled.

Then:

They fell to the ground, joining the chorus of screams.

Only a few lucky ones rushed out of the darkness and stood under the lights of the Prosperous Land.

They cried tears of joy.

They even hugged each other, patted shoulders, and reveled in the joy of escaping death.

As a result:

A six-to-seven-meter long Chain Spear suddenly shot out from the darkness.

Whoosh!

The Chain Spear wrapped around their legs, dragging them into the darkness like dead dogs.

Ah... accompanied by screams.

Those who arrived later were terrified, retreating frantically, no longer daring to step into the darkness.

At the same time:

In the darkness, there was no more fighting.

But, the screams, one after another, were endless.

One minute... ten minutes... the screams grew more distorted, as if they had seen the greatest horror in the world.

One hour... both the Thugs and the bandits were all terrified.

“What is that ruthless man who killed Sky-Touching Vajra doing?”

Someone suddenly said, “He couldn't have eaten them, could he?!”

At these words, The Crowd grew even more horrified.

The timid ones ran away.

The remaining people, listening to the horrifying screams in the darkness, also subconsciously retreated.

At this moment:

A gust of wind swept through.

Whoosh!

The torches were extinguished by the wind.

The illuminated area shrank, and darkness expanded.

At this moment:

Those Thugs and bandits completely collapsed.

They screamed, threw their weapons, and fled frantically.

At this moment, they had only one thought:

“Escape the Prosperous Land, escape to Zhou City; there are so many strong individuals in Zhou City, so many young Prodigies, they will definitely be able to protect us; they can suppress this ruthless man.”

...Crack!

Crack!

In the darkness;

Chu Qing was busy.

Amidst the screams, he disassembled the bones of the Thugs and bandits.

Then, he reset their bones using bone-setting methods.

[Bone Setting +1]

[Bone Setting +1]

To achieve speed, his methods became increasingly brutal.

For a time, the pain caused these people to roll on the ground, wishing Chu Qing would just kill them with a single saber strike.

But:

To rack up bone-setting counts, Chu Qing was reluctant to kill them.

One hour... three hours... five hours... the screams grew weaker and weaker.

[You have completed the third condition of the Black Water Bone Refining Method!]

The information refreshed.

Chu Qing smiled.

After several hours of hard work, he finally completed the bone-setting condition.

Now, only black gold was left.

He still had four thousand taels of black gold notes on him.

Adding the four thousand taels already used.

Now, only two thousand taels were missing.

This amount was not large.

Chu Qing felt that he could gather enough by dealing with a few more Zhou City Martial Academy students.

“Indeed, a place like Zhou City is good.”

“Whether it’s collecting resources or fulfilling promotion conditions, it’s easier than in Shiji County.”

As dawn approached, Chu Qing, under the fading night, hurried towards Shiji County.

Behind him:

That group of Thugs and bandits lay motionless.

Most of them had died from the pain of repeated bone-setting.

The few who hadn't died were barely clinging to life.

At dawn:

The people of the Prosperous Land were terrified when they saw this scene.

“That ruthless man is too terrifying.”

“Fortunately, we didn’t provoke him.”

“Why is this ruthless man here again?”

The Crowd was puzzled.

By noon, the Prosperous Land finally figured out the reason:

Chu Qing had somehow obtained thousands of taels of black gold notes for exchange, which then attracted fierce and shameless Thugs and bandits.

The result was obvious:

The Thugs and bandits encountered an even more terrifying Chu Qing.

And then they needlessly lost their lives... “Black gold!”

“Second Miss Wang, that ruthless man came for the black gold.”

Zhou City:

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master knelt respectfully at Second Miss Wang’s feet, relaying the information he had gathered.

Second Miss Wang’s delicate brows furrowed slightly.

After a long while, she said to the Cloth-Clad Saber Master, “Don’t mind him.”

“The situation is chaotic now; minding fewer affairs allows one to live a little longer.”

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master indicated his obedience.

Second Miss Wang then said, “You may go back!”

“Yes!”

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master kowtowed, preparing to leave.

However, Second Miss Wang suddenly said:

“Hey... you... if someone comes looking for you and asks you to do something for him.”

“You... just agree, and honestly do what he asks!”

“You don’t need to ask for my permission anymore!”

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master’s face changed drastically, and he fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing and saying:

“Second Miss, I owe everything I am today to your grace.”

“I will never betray you.”

Second Miss Wang chuckled, “I know!”

“But, the Imperial Star is wavering, and this city is becoming increasingly chaotic.”

“Many times, even I, even the Wang Noble families behind me, are powerless and can only go with the flow, or even act as someone’s lackey.”

“One misstep, and it’s eternal damnation.”

“You must find a way to survive.”

“If one day I fall on hard times and come to you for help, just save my life!”

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master was horrified.

The Wang Noble families were a famous Noble families in Zhou City.

If they couldn’t hold on... how bad must the situation be?

Second Miss Wang waved her hand, signaling him to leave.

The Cloth-Clad Saber Master kowtowed again and quietly withdrew... Zhou City Martial Academy:

A young girl was sparring with a Martial Instructor in the training room.

The girl wielded a long sword.

The Martial Instructor wielded a Chain Spear.

The two moved about, dodging and weaving.

Their Moves were exactly the same as when Chu Qing had fought her.

After repeated adjustments, even the subtle angles were identical.

Clang, clang!

A few minutes later:

The Martial Instructor threw his Chain Spear and attacked the girl by rolling up his sleeves.

The girl met his attack with a punch.

Boom!

With a dull thud, the girl’s sleeves tore inch by inch, the torn locations exactly matching where Chu Qing had struck her.

Whew!

The Martial Instructor let out a long breath and said:

“Your opponent is not simple!”

The girl’s eyes lit up, and she said, “Tell me quickly, what makes him so unusual?”