Boom! Boom! Bang! Crash!
All kinds of sound could be heard from buildings falling and structures breaking. Where there used to be a long array of buildings, only rubbles could be seen.
A handsome and dashing man, wearing sparkling white hanfu, pulled out a half dead man in black from within the rubbles.
"Where is the Head of your organization?" The handsome man asked in a vicious tone.
Fwoosh...
With a sharp sound of cutting wind, the head of the man in black flew off in the air, spurting blood. With a shake of his hand, the handsome man pushed the splattered blood away from him, keeping his attire clean.
"Why bother asking? We have already traveled so far to the south of the continent. According to the information, their base is guaranteed to be located somewhere nearby." A beautiful woman wearing white hanfu walked behind the handsome man with a thin sword in her hand. Fresh blood could be seen dripping from the end of the blade.
The handsome man showed a troubled smile. "You, my lady, are more vicious than me. You really scare me sometimes."
"Humph! Like the man was going to tell you where their base is. Haven't we already tried this tactic? It's just wasting our time." The woman complained.
"But still, it's worth a try... Sigh! Well whatever, let's go to the next location." The handsome man shook his head. "Where is Ming Lan?" He asked while throwing away the man in black's corpse and dusting his hands.
It seems this handsome man and the beauty is none other than Second Prince Ming Zen and his fiancee Zhu Ling.
From the day of their Coming of Age ceremony, Ming Zen has revealed his prowess to the world. And to assert his dominance, he is on a journey to wipe out the Nighthawk Assassins Organization from its roots.
"Little Flower? She was fighting some men towards that side, which should be done by now." Zhu Ling pointed a certain direction.
"Ah, Sister-in-law, you can't call me Little Flower. I am not little anymore." A cute, charming girl, covered in bright red blood, wearing yellow hanfu with purple belt, shouted while walking from the pointed direction.
Ming Lan has grown quite a lot in these years, both in height and Cultivation. Surprisingly, she is now at the early Foundation Establishment rank, similar to Zhu Furong. If Zhu Furong knew this he would be shocked enough to go unconscious. A twelve year old at early Foundation Establishment rank, what? How?
Well, having a one in a million brother is always a blessing, isn't it? With Ming Zen's care, the little girl is climbing through Cultivation ranks as if climbing a staircase.
Ming Zen's talent could be said to be the heavens showing partiality. Good fortune and great destiny are the trademarks of a protagonist. Ming Zen, the heaven's chosen child. That's what the people of the Bayang continent call him. And soon the whole planet Shendong will sing his praises.
...
With short steps, Ming Lan walked up to Zhu Ling and Ming Zen. The couples couldn't help but have a cold sweat, looking at the condition of the little girl.
Ming Lan's long black hair which reaches to her waist is stuck to her body due to being drenched in blood. Her yellow hanfu is all red now. Her face, arms, legs, there isn't a place that is clearly visible. Blood keeps dripping off her body forming a tiny blood pool at her feet.
Ming Lan is practicing Body Cultivation due to having a physique well suited for it. The Meteorite Flower Body. Well, it's not like there aren't any successful Body Cultivators out there, it may be hard to achieve higher ranks in Body Cultivation, but it's not impossible. With proper guidance and resources, one can easily stand equal to any great Cultivator out there.
Ming Zen wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Little Sister, you are not proficient in the usage of Qi yet, so you always end up bathing in your opponent's blood. At least change your weapon to a sword or spear so you can maintain some distance while fighting. Why do you insist on using knuckle gloves? You look like a female gorilla while fighting you know? How will you get married like this? No man likes a brute woman." Ming Zen suggested.
Zhu Ling slapped Ming Zen's upper arm. "How can you call a girl 'gorilla'. How insensitive." Zhu Ling glared at Ming Zen.
Ming Zen shrunk his neck. "Ah, where do you think you are running?" He yelled and with a woosh, he disappeared behind some trees.
"Rascal! Running away after causing trouble." Zhu Ling called out. She gnashed her teeth. "Wait till I get my hand on you."
She looked at Ming Lan, who had hung her head with gloom.
"Ah, little Sister-in-law, don't mind his words. He was just pulling your leg." Zhu Ling coaxed.
"Boohoo..." Ming Lan suddenly burst into tears. "Sister-in-law, am I really a brute? Elder Brother always calls me that. Boohoo..."
"What rubbish! You are as gentle as the water and as beautiful as a fairy. I will break Ming Zen's leg, if he makes fun of you again, humph!" Zhu Ling threatened.
Hidden behind the tree, Ming Zen shivered with fear.
"But-But, mother also called me unladylike. She said, women should show grace in their every move, and definitely not fight brutally like men. Sniff... Sniff..." Ming Lan showed worry.
"Who cares about such things in the Martial World? Is your image more important than your life? Also, it works better if you fight this way thanks to your special physique, doesn't it?" Zhu Ling consoled.
"But-But, what if Furong doesn't like me because of this?... Boohoo..." Ming Lan broke into tears again.
"Ah, you are worried about this? Don't worry. If there is love, people will accept each other for who they are." Zhu Ling patted Ming Lan's head gently. She could feel her hand getting sticky from blood. Her face instantly turned sour.
"Boohoo... Sniff... Sniff... Sister-in-law..." Ming Lan stepped forward to hug Zhu Ling.
With lightning speed, Zhu Ling took a step back and held Ming Lan at bay with her sticky hand on Ming Lan's forehead. She cried in alarm. "Stop! Stop! You are all covered in blood. Don't hug me like that."
"Boohoo... Sister-in-law..." Ming Lan deliberately used all of her strength to push on to Zhu Ling.
"Ah! No! Little Sister-in-law you can't! Don't do this to me. I will get angry. Hey..." Within all these cries Zhu Ling couldn't stop Ming Lan from hugging her tightly. Zhu Ling's clean white hanfu instantly bloomed with red flowers.
"Ah! I hate you." Zhu Ling yelled.
"Ok, ok that's enough, you two. Stop fooling around and go clean yourselves up. We should not waste more time and not let the enemy give any chance to escape." Ming Zen walked to the two ladies with a troubled face.
Zhu Ling threw an intense glare at Ming Zen, like she wanted to rip his flesh off. Ming Zen subconsciously took a step back, gulping his saliva and bowing his head.
"Let's go little Sister-in-law law, let's find a place to clean ourselves. It would be hard to get the blood off if it dries off." Zhu Ling grabbed Ming Lan's hand and walked to a secluded place nearby.
In the meantime, Ming Zen took the chance to scavenge the place for any useful items.
After an hour the girls returned and the three continued their journey in search of the base of Nighthawk Assassins Organization.
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...
Meanwhile, Zhu Furong, who is at the early Foundation Establishment rank right now, has accepted his first task from the Mission Hall of Sunlight Sect. The task is to hunt 10 rank 3 spiritual beasts and 1 rank 4 spiritual beast in the Forest of Gehna, near the Yujin Kingdom.
The Forest of Gehna is located between Sunlight Sect and Yujin Kingdom. It's a place used to train the disciples of Sunlight Sect and the army of Yujin Kingdom.
The strongest spiritual beast in the Forest of Gehna is of Rank 5. The forest is quite large, having an area of about 7 million square kilometers with quite a few hills inside with the tallest hill being about 1200 feet in height. The forest has been explored many times but there are still some spots which remain untouched.
Just like Ming Lan, our protagonist also likes fighting with his fists. But rather than using knuckle gloves, he fights with bare fists. Using punches, kicks, headbutt, elbow strike, knee strike, sometimes he even swings his butt to hit the enemies. Zhu Furong's whole body is a weapon.
Today to complete his quest, Zhu Furong hunted three Rank 3 Giant Boars and seven Rank 3 Mad Dogs. Now all that's left is to hunt a Rank 4 spiritual beast.
The target arrived in front of Zhu Furong on its own. A Rank 4 Cane Viper with corrosive poison. Even if the poison touches your skin, it will rot away in an instant. No Cultivator under Open Ascension is immune to its poison. That's why the poison of Cane Viper is highly sought after by the wicked people.
Hiss... Without any warning the 3 feet long viper with color and patterns similar to the tree bark, jumped at Zhu Furong to bite his neck.
With a fluid movement, Zhu Furong twisted his body and dodged the snake. The snake landed on a tree branch, using it as a leverage the Cane Viper zoomed towards Zhu Furong.
Zhu Furong performed a few back flips, picking up a thick dry wood. The wood is as thick as a baseball club and about 2 feet in length.
With all his force concentrated in his arm, Zhu Furong swung the wooden stick with all his might. With precise aim and timing he hit the crown of the Cane Viper.
With a pat sound, the Cane Viper landed hard and flat on the ground, making the dry leaves fly away. It slithered on the spot, twisting and turning in pain. Zhu Furong took off his shoes then beat the snake continuously on the head like he was killing a fish. Soon the snake stopped moving.
"Phew!" Zhu Furong wiped off the sweat from his forehead with the sleeves. "All done. Now we can look for our own stuff."
"I noticed a Chameleon Flower back there, let's collect it first. Then we can look for other materials." Zhu Xingzuo pointed out.
"Ah, I also have to play Robinhood again later, I got no money on me. Sigh! Life is so hard." Zhu Furong shook his head. And walked away to pick the Chameleon Flower.
"I don't think we will have time for that today." Zhu Xingzuo reminded.
"I know. This forest is quite large, it is impossible to find everything in a short time. It will probably take a few months going here and there. We can also look at the market and maybe visit some auction houses?" "Well, there's a lot to do, and not much time in hand." "Also, I am worried I am getting somewhat affected by the Demon Qi. I feel over excited when I see blood." Zhu Furong sighed.
"Well that's the main issue right now. The purity of your Demon Bloodline is higher than the other three bloodlines. We have to do something about it. We have to purify the other three bloodlines to the same level, so the four different bloodlines balance each other." Zhu Xingzuo suggested.
"But how to do that? The two Masters should have thought about this issue right? Didn't they pass on to you some kind of solution for this?" Zhu Furong asked.
"Yes they did. But the method is inscribed in a jade slip, kept inside the Nine-Layers Pagoda. You have to take a look at it by yourself." Zhu Xingzuo replied.
"What the fuck! Why didn't you tell me before? What are we waiting for?" Zhu Furong rubbed his hands with excitement. He dashed a bit deeper into the forest.
Standing at a well hidden place, Zhu Furong closed his eyes to stimulate his Soul Energy to use as a catalyst to pull out the Nine-Layers Pagoda out of his dantian.
"Hey, I won't faint after just pulling out the Nine-Layers Pagoda will I?" Zhu Furong asked with worry.
"Don't worry, your Spiritual Body is at early Revolving Core rank right now, it's enough to take out the Nine-Layers Pagoda then put it back inside for once. You will only feel a bit tired at the end." Zhu Xingzuo explained.
"Why don't you help me take out the items kept inside? You can do it too, right?" Zhu Furong asked.
"I am already wasting a lot of my precious Qi by supplementing your body, asking me for more is just day-dreaming. Also don't you want to take a look inside the pagoda?" Zhu Xingzuo complained.
"Ah I do, I do. Hehe..." Zhu Furong smirked.
"Shameless." Zhu Xingzuo cussed.
Zhu Furong concentrated on his lower dantian, slowly leading his Soul Energy towards it. His empty dantian is dark, similar to a void. The Nine-Layers Pagoda is silently floating in the void. Zhu Furong enveloped the Nine-Layers Pagoda in his Soul Energy, then pulled it out of his dantian.
Within a few blinks of eyes, a tall, pitch black, nine storied pagoda appeared inside the Forest of Gehna. Due to the surrounding trees being quite tall, the pagoda couldn't be seen from the outside.
Though the pagoda looks like a simple building, it exudes an aura strong enough to scare the surrounding beasts far away from it.
Channeling a little bit of his Soul Energy into the door, Zhu Furong entered the Nine-Layers Pagoda for the first time.
...
Back in Dafan City, capital of the Ming Dynasty, at the city square, a middle aged man in ragged black clothes is crucified on a wooden pole. A flat and wide wooden plank is inserted under the wooden pole, with words written on it with blood.
'Chai Lok(firewood), peak Revolving Core, Head of Nighthawk Assassins Organization. Crime, Messing with the wrong person. Punishment, Death. Trial by, Ming Zen. If you have any issues with my judgment, you are free to visit.'
The Nighthawk Assassins Organization is no more in this world. This scenery at the center of Dafan City is a statement passed by Ming Zen of what would happen if someone messes with him.
...
In the private courtyard of Ming Zen's residence, Ming Zen, Zhu Ling and Ming Lan are sitting together enjoying evening tea.
"What now?" Zhu Ling asked.
"The things inside Dafan City will be taken care of by the Royal Family. But... Though the eradication of the Nighthawk Assassins Organization was not that hard to accomplish... It will be a different case for our next target." Ming Zen commented while sipping tea.
"Next target? Isn't it all over? Is there still a bigger fish than Chai Lok? He has a superior?" Zhu Ling asked with surprise.
"Yes and no." "From the documents I procured at the base of Nighthawk Assassins Organization, the organization is a subsidiary branch of Thousand Arms Sect. One of the top ten sects on the planet." Ming Zen made a thoughtful look while sipping his tea.
"Thousand Arms Sect? The Ninth ranked sect? Isn't that sect located far to the north? How can that sect and Nighthawk Assassins Organization which is located far to the south be connected? Isn't this a bit too far away to open a subsidiary branch?" Zhu Ling asked with shock.
"That's what you think, that's also what people think. Isn't this a good way to keep things hidden from the watchful eyes? People will get less suspicious due to the far distance between the sect and the organization. They will think it's impossible to keep an eye on your servants if they are too far away from you. Heh." Ming Zen mocked.
"Sigh! Now that we have taken care of the Nighthawk Assassins Organization, it is the same as making the Thousand Arms Sect our enemies. Trouble goes and trouble comes." Zhu Ling made a woeful look.
"What are you looking sad for? We took care of the organization, we will take care of this too. Don't worry." Ming Zen placed his hand on Zhu Ling's head.
"I am not worried about the Thousand Arms Sect. I am sad for Little Flower." Zhu Ling pouted.
"Little Flower? What about her? Isn't it just more Martial World experience for her? The female gorilla will just do fine, don't worry." Ming Zen joked.
On the other side Ming Lan who was quite eating her biscuits flared up with rage. She pounced at Ming Zen without any warning and bit his arm.
"Ah, ooh, you monkey, why are you biting me, ooh, ah..." Ming Zen cried in alarm.
"Humph! I am not talking about this Little Flower, I am talking about my Little Flower." Zhu Ling looked sad.
"That little boy left the house four years ago and hasn't returned yet. I don't know how he is living. Even when the fourth Uncle came back for our Coming of Age ceremony, Little Flower stayed back in the battlefield. Uncle said, he is working in the office so there's nothing to fear, but still... Poor boy." Zhu Ling's eyes turned misty.
Ming Lan let go of Ming Zen's arm after hearing Zhu Ling, her eyes too turned misty.
Seems, like except Zhu Bohai and Zhu Da no one else knows that Zhu Furong has entered the Sunlight Sect as a disciple.
"Well it's still dangerous for him to come back right now. When we fight with the Thousand Arms Sect, things will get quite disturbing. It's safe for him to stay at the borders, since the sects are not allowed to intervene in matters involving national affairs." Ming Zen held Zhu Ling by the shoulder to console her.
"Hmm..." Zhu Ling nodded hesitantly.
"Well before everything, I should take care of the Zhu family. Let me visit your uncles tomorrow, let me see what they have to say." "After that we will focus on increasing our strengths, without current strength it will be quite tough if not impossible to fight against one of the top ten sects." "There was only one Revolving Core Cultivator in the Nighthawk Assassins Organization, but there are Open Ascension rank Cultivators in the Thousand Arms Sect. Our strength is nowhere near enough." Ming Zen said with a serious face.
He stood up and walked a few steps, with his back towards the two ladies. His eyes gazing far into the skies with his hands locked behind his back.
"For now my goal is to reach the early stage of Open Ascension rank by the end of this year." Ming Zen turned back and looked at Zhu Ling. "Within this year I will raise your Cultivation from Core Formation to mid Revolving Core rank. And for Ming Lan..." Ming Zen rubbed his forehead. "It's quite hard to find a Body Cultivation technique for females. Even in the Upper Realms it's quite rare." "For now let's focus on improving your foundation, reaching mid Foundation Establishment rank within this year would be enough. By then I will find a better Body Cultivation technique for you." Ming Zen suggested.
Ming Lan nodded in agreement.
"Good. After wrapping the things at Zhu Family tomorrow, we will head to the Tartarus Forest for practice. Be prepared." Saying this Ming Zen sat back in his chair to enjoy the tea.
With all the serious talk over, the three giggled and laughed to lighten their mood.