8: Chapter 8: The Sneak Attack Proves Effective

Late in the Wei period of the afternoon, Liang Shoushan arrived at Blacksmith Wang's shop on time.

Blacksmith Wang handed a small leather pouch to Liang Shoushan.

"Customer, the items you wanted, all thirty of them, are inside. As you requested, they are primarily made of hundred-refined essence iron, mixed with thirty percent black-patterned steel to increase hardness, and have been repeatedly forged to ensure durability."

He added.

"No runes were inscribed, nor was any other treatment done. They're just solid lumps, with no special features other than being hard. Care to inspect them?"

Liang Shoushan poured a few bullet heads into his palm.

The bullet heads shimmered with a dull metallic luster, feeling cold and heavy in his hand. Their shape matched the blueprints, and the surfaces bore rough forging marks.

He scratched one hard with his fingernail but couldn't leave a single mark.

Liang Shoushan nodded in satisfaction and paid the remaining balance in spirit stones.

Thirty of these specially made bullet heads of such hardness had only cost three Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

If he really had to refine thirty low-rank Magical Artifact flying needles with sharpness or armor-piercing effects, it wouldn't cost less than a hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

He thanked Blacksmith Wang, tucked the leather pouch into his robe, and turned to leave the shop.

-

As the sky grew dark, the lights in the market began to flicker on here and there.

Liang Shoushan looked at the sky and then glanced at a few suspicious figures near the market's entrance and exit.

In a gathering place for rogue cultivators like this, the risk of leaving the city at night was too high.

He found a low-priced inn to stay in, set up his own simple warning restriction, and sat cross-legged in his room to regulate his breathing.

After confirming it was safe, Liang Shoushan took out the complete bullets for several types of live-ammunition firearms he had brought back from Blue Winter Star, as well as the thirty specially made bullet heads he had just received that afternoon.

He needed to replace the original bullet heads with the harder, specially made ones.

He locked onto a bullet with his divine sense, infused his fingers with a trace of mana, and carefully unscrewed the bullet head from the brass casing.

He set the original bullet head aside.

He took out a specially made bullet head of the corresponding size, aligned its threaded end with the mouth of the casing, and slowly tightened it.

To ensure good airtightness at the joint and to prevent the bullet head from loosening during firing, Liang Shoushan extended his right index finger and circulated the fire-attribute mana within his body.

A cluster of extremely high-temperature but tiny and stable flame emerged from his fingertip.

He precisely controlled this flame at the gap where the bullet head met the casing, quickly sweeping it around once.

The high temperature instantly melted the metal surfaces slightly and fused them, forming a minute weld.

Removing the flame, he used his divine sense to carefully check if the weld was uniform and firm, and if the bullet head was tilted.

Liang Shoushan patiently modified them one by one. For the thirty bullet heads, he modified thirty bullets accordingly.

Once finished, he sorted and stored the modified bullets.

-

Just as dawn broke the next day, Liang Shoushan settled the room bill, put on a gray cloak, pulled down his hood, and quickly left the inn, walking toward the direction of Green Mist Valley from the market.

Shortly after leaving the market crowds and entering a relatively secluded mountain path, Liang Shoushan sensed a faint, flickering feeling of being followed.

Without showing any emotion, he swept his divine sense backward slightly and confirmed that the trackers were Hou San and Zhu Wu.

With a thought, his hand brushed over his Storage Pouch, and the heavy bolt pistol, already loaded with the specially made bullets, slid silently into his hand.

The pistol had no spiritual energy fluctuations at all, making it difficult to detect.

His finger rested lightly outside the trigger guard, the muzzle pointing naturally downward, hidden within his voluminous cloak.

They reached a narrow section where the trees were dense and the road curved.

A sudden gust of wind rose from behind.

A ribbon-like blade light suddenly slashed toward the back of Liang Shoushan's neck from behind a large tree.

At the moment the blade light flashed, Liang Shoushan's thoughts moved rapidly.

That azure flying sword turned into a streak of light, shooting out from the Storage Pouch at his waist to meet the blade light.

Clang!

The flying sword collided with the long sword, and Mars splashed everywhere.

Hou San's long sword was knocked aside, and Liang Shoushan's flying sword also stalled slightly before nimbly flying back to hover by his side.

Hou San leaped out from behind the tree, holding a long sword, his expression grim.

From the bushes on the other side, Zhu Wu also stepped out, blocking Liang Shoushan's path.

Liang Shoushan slowly turned around to face the two, his eyes cold under the hood.

"Hou San, Zhu Wu. We haven't met for several years, and yet you strike to kill as soon as we meet. What, are you here specifically to rob me today?"

Hou San grinned savagely.

"Old Man Liang, don't make it sound so ugly. The brothers are short on cash and want to borrow some spirit stones from you. I heard you made a small fortune yesterday?"

Zhu Wu added with a sinister laugh.

"That's right. If you're smart, hand over all the spirit stones and valuables on you. Maybe we'll be in a good mood and spare your old life. If the spirit stones aren't enough... Hehe, we wouldn't mind visiting that broken valley of yours to see if you have any stock left at home."

Hou San and Zhu Wu exchanged looks and acted simultaneously.

Hou San held his long sword and infused it with mana again; the blade light flickered as it flew toward the azure flying sword.

Zhu Wu quickly stepped back a few paces, his hands forming seals as he chanted under his breath, and the mana fluctuations on his body began to intensify.

Liang Shoushan's expression was grave as he controlled his flying sword to struggle against Hou San's long sword, his body constantly moving as if dodging a spell that Zhu Wu might cast.

In reality, he was secretly delighted. The opponent was so overconfident that Zhu Wu actually dared to cast a spell in front of him without any defense.

Using the cloak as cover, his right arm rose quietly, and the heavy bolt pistol held tightly in his hand pointed through the fabric at Zhu Wu, who was concentrating on his spell.

Liang Shoushan didn't hesitate and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

A muffled, deafening explosion erupted in the mountain forest.

Zhu Wu was hit in the chest. His body jolted violently, his hand seals froze, and he looked down at his chest.

A blood hole appeared, and blood quickly soaked his robes.

He gave a muffled groan and fell backward.

Seeing his brother suddenly fall, Hou San roared in horror.

"Zhu Wu!"

He immediately realized there was an unknown danger.

While continuing to control his long sword to entangle the flying sword, he hurriedly slapped the Storage Pouch at his waist with his left hand and summoned a palm-sized black iron shield.

The small shield instantly expanded to the size of a washbasin, hovering in front of him.

He had no idea what had just attacked Zhu Wu; he only heard a loud bang, and his brother was down.

Seeing Hou San summon a shield, Liang Shoushan did not hesitate. He turned the muzzle, aimed at the small black shield, and pulled the trigger again.

Another gunshot.

The specially made bullet head slammed hard into the center of the small shield.

A clear dent was smashed into the surface of the small shield, its body vibrated violently, and the spiritual light flickered wildly.

Hou San felt his arm holding the shield go numb, and he was horrified.

"What the hell is this thing?!"

Taking advantage of Hou San's distraction, Liang Shoushan intensified the flying sword's offensive, the azure sword light tightly entangling Hou San's long sword.

While distracted by controlling the large sword to parry the flying sword, Hou San looked at Liang Shoushan in terror.

"Liang... Brother Liang! A mistake! It's all a misunderstanding! We brothers were momentarily confused! We don't want the spirit stones anymore, give me a break! I'll leave right now!"

Liang Shoushan's eyes were cold and unmoved.

Liang Shoushan aimed at the already dented small shield and pulled the trigger repeatedly.

Bang! Bang! Bang!