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Liu Hong looked at the jade ruyi in his hand as if he had just understood something. Ordinary items are white, but magical items with special effects are green, which is a higher level.
"Why are you here again? I've already told you I don't need any more apprentices."
The blacksmith shop owner frowned, glanced at Liu Hong, and said helplessly.
"I want that knife! How much?!"
Liu Hong pointed to the best steel knife, completely ignoring what the boss was saying.
The blacksmith shop owner was stunned for a moment, looking at Liu Hong's face, which was full of anger and determination. At this moment, a gossipy apprentice also came over and told the owner about Wu Dalang being beaten. The blacksmith shop owner frowned and sighed as he listened.
"Alright, alright, this is the best knife in my shop, one tael of silver!"
The blacksmith scratched his head helplessly. Oh well, Master Zhang only said I couldn't give him a job, he didn't say I couldn't sell him a knife. Damn it, I'd be a fool not to make money!
Without saying a word, Liu Hong took out the one or two taels of silver from Zhang Zhao and handed it over. Seeing how readily Liu Hong agreed and didn't even haggle, the shopkeeper felt a little bad. He first closed the door, and then mysteriously took out a 1.5-meter-long whistle stick.
This stick has a hole at the tip, so when it's swung, a gust of wind blows through the hole, producing a sharp whistling sound, like a whistle, hence the name "whistle stick"—the sound of it is so loud that even a blind person could avoid it.
【Sentry Stick】(White): 150 cm long, deals 1-6 points of physical damage, cannot be used to ambush.
However, this weapon with obvious flaws was the only club-type weapon that was legally allowed to be possessed in the Song Dynasty. The clubs of the Northern Song soldiers not only did not crack, but they would even add several iron hoops to increase the damage. Bandits would also wrap strips of cloth around the wooden clubs to make them silent clubs when swung.
However, under the extremely strict weapon restrictions in the Northern Song Dynasty, it was illegal for ordinary people to use blunt clubs or iron rods; they could only use whistle sticks, which even a blind person could avoid.
Liu Hong was a little puzzled. Why would you buy a knife and get a whistle stick as a free gift?
“Brother, I’m so sorry about what happened this morning! I just heard about your brother’s situation. Wu Dalang is a good man, and I’m very saddened that his leg was broken. But Master Zhang, I really can’t afford to offend you! This is all I can do to help you.”
The shopkeeper sighed and reluctantly took down the fine steel knife. The knife was 60 centimeters long, which was the maximum length allowed by law. There was a hollow part of about 10 centimeters at the end of the handle, and a transparent hole was cut in it.
The boss picked up the hollow steel knife and slipped it onto the tip of the whistle stick. The transparent hole at the end of the knife perfectly overlapped with the transparent hole in the whistle stick.
The shopkeeper then brought over three more blades, stuffed them into the hole, and secured the thing, locking it in place. This transformed the 60-centimeter steel knife into a 1.5-meter-long staff, turning it into a 2-meter-long broadsword! The damage increased dramatically from 2-6 for a single-handed steel knife to 3-13 for a two-handed broadsword!
[Refined Broadsword] (White): 200 cm long, deals 3-13 physical damage per attack. (Can be disassembled into a steel blade and a whistle stick)
"Take this! If you encounter danger, swing the broadsword and chop him on the head! But you must disassemble it when walking on the street. This kind of two-handed polearm is illegal, and you will be arrested by the soldiers if you see it."
Liu Hong took the broadsword. The 3-13 points of physical damage were just the basic attributes. After taking the broadsword, the weapon's base damage immediately received a 3-point strength adjustment bonus, increasing its power to 6-16.
If one wields the broadsword with both hands, the power adjustment is increased by 1.5 times, causing the power of the broadsword to surge again to 7~17.
This is a real killing weapon!
Liu Hong glanced gratefully at the blacksmith shop owner, who was just a businessman who had been oppressed. After bowing and thanking him, he disassembled the broadsword into a steel knife and a whistle stick, and quickly went home. At home, he secretly reassembled the two weapons into a heavy broadsword.
With this long-handled two-handed weapon, I felt a little safer.
Next, I'll see what my third psionic ability, [Summon Demon], is for. Can I summon a demon to become my companion? If it can enhance my combat power even a little, then so be it.
Guided by his intuition, Liu Hong attempted to unleash this spiritual power and discovered that the floor in front of him was burning with eerie blue demonic flames, like a burning pool of water or a dark blue mirror. The world inside the mirror was upside down and reversed from the real world, with everything in chaos and madness! His reflection in the mirror was a ball of eerie blue burning flames; the boiling and twisting flame tips were like eerie flame tentacles.
Liu Hong shook his head, no longer watching the chaos, but instead threw a bit of spiritual energy into the mirror world, waiting for the demon's response.
I feel like this is a hole drilled in a frozen lake, and people are fishing here... no, fishing for demons?
Liu Hong stood in the real world, anxiously waiting for the demon to take the bait through the dark blue hole. However, he waited for a full sixty seconds without any response. The dark blue burning rift seemed to have closed automatically after a certain time.
Air Force? This is fishing for demons and it's an air force operation???
Liu Hong refused to believe in such superstitions, thinking that a fisherman could never go home empty-handed, so he tried again, only to go home empty-handed once more. The probability of this spell was truly mysterious; he didn't know what kind of demon it could summon, or even if it could summon a demon at all.
You just used up two of my psionic points like that?
After failing twice in a row, Liu Hong could no longer try. He only had 3 points of spiritual energy a day. He used one point to defeat Zhang Zhao, and the remaining two points were completely wasted here. His spiritual energy was now completely depleted, and his mind was groggy. He needed to sleep to recover.
But in the current situation, Liu Hong has to sleep with one eye open, and Master Zhang has become completely ruthless in his pursuit of Pan Jinlian.
My specialty is psychic abilities, which are specifically designed to counter similar psychic users. If the person Zhang Yuanwai sent this time wasn't the psychic Zhang Zhao, but a reckless berserker, I might not have won so easily. I bought this broadsword to enhance my close-combat ability, just in case.
Chapter Eight: Master Zhang Drives Away Officials and Slaves
On the other side of Qinghe County, Master Zhang was also unhappy. He writhed his fat body and paced restlessly in his room. Lately, nothing had gone smoothly for him. Pan Jinlian refused to have sex with him, so he married her off to a fool, hoping to force her to the brink of despair, until she finally knelt at his feet, weeping and wailing, willingly offering herself to him.
Tsk, my wife is such a hassle. If it weren't for her forbidding me from taking a concubine and her strict control over the household, I would have already pinned that little vixen down! Why all the secrecy and fuss?
To expedite this process, Master Zhang had no choice but to bribe the officials to impose the corvée labor quota on Pan Jinlian's household, draining her purse. "Hmph, you think you can take the money you earned from the Zhang household with you? Dream on!"
He just didn't expect that the fool Pan Jinlian married would actually recover and start looking for a job. He even invited Wu Dalang for drinks, seemingly wanting to live a harmonious life with Pan Jinlian.
Left with no other option, Master Zhang sent thugs overnight to tell the workshop owners not to let him find work, forcing him to be penniless and destitute. This plan succeeded, but unexpectedly, Wu Dalang took a liking to the boy so much that he sold pancakes with him and they did quite well.
Well, if smashing one is the same as beating two, then let's smash their jobs at the same time! And while we're at it, break one of their legs, so that Pan Jinlian goes from taking care of one idiot to taking care of two cripples.
Unfortunately, this tactic only succeeded halfway. Of the two groups of men sent, only Wu Dalang was crippled. The idiot was not only unharmed, but Zhang Zhao, who was sent to kill the idiot, even died, apparently from a fall.
This is really weird. Isn't Zhang Zhao, this natural-born psychic, a match for that idiot?!
Master Zhang finally got serious. If even a natural psychic couldn't beat that fool, it meant that his strength was indeed worth taking seriously. Although Zhang Zhao's martial arts skills were terrible, he had the advantage of unpredictable psychic abilities, so he ranked third in terms of combat power in my manor.
According to the neighbors, after that idiot killed Zhang Zhao, he was completely unharmed, not even a drop of blood on his clothes... Hmph, can he fight? What good is being able to fight? What can a mere commoner do to cause trouble in my Qinghe County?
Master Zhang carefully selected his second wave of thugs. There were two more thugs stronger than Zhang Zhao. Should he send Zhang Ming? This man was about two meters tall and weighed four hundred pounds. He was tall, stout, and incredibly strong. He was skilled with a thick, bowl-sized staff and was the second best man in his household.
No, no, although he is extremely strong, he is a weakling. He can't even beat a psychic who is unpredictable. He is even less likely to beat a mere warrior. Moreover, there are many things that a warrior who only knows how to brute force cannot do.
Master Zhang's mind went into a fixed thought: "That's good. I'll send the most powerful sorcerer in the manor. His Taoist magic is unpredictable and divine. No one in the manor can beat him in a one-on-one fight. Even the incredibly strong Zhang Ming couldn't last a single round against him. Besides, I've been feeding and taking good care of him for years. It's time to get him to do something for me! With his Taoist skills, crippling that idiot won't be a problem."
Subsequently, as long as one asks the government officials for help, it's worth spending some money to get Pan Jinlian.
Without further ado, Master Zhang hurriedly went to invite the sorcerer. He saw an old Taoist with a goatee, wearing a Yin-Yang Bagua robe, holding a peach wood sword in his right hand and a whisk in his left, looking every bit the otherworldly immortal.
After hearing the whole story from Master Zhang and receiving five taels of silver, he nodded decisively and went with the old steward of the Zhang family to Liu Hong's residence. The servants of the Zhang family along the way turned pale at the sight of him and were terrified. They all made way on both sides of the road until the old Taoist priest disappeared from sight, and only then did they dare to whisper among themselves.
"Is that old Taoist priest going on another mission?"
"My God, who in Qinghe County is so unlucky?! Last time he made a move, he turned the flesh of five people into blood, and their skeletons were hung in front of the door like lanterns, all lined up in a row!"
"Could it be Pan Jinlian? The master was very angry when he chased her away."
"Oh, how pitiful."
In the Zhang family, some people felt pity, some feared, and some even gloated, but no one dared to confront him.
On a dark and windy night, a time for murder and arson, a gaunt old Taoist priest and an old steward dressed in silk and satin walked like ghosts in the darkness. Their feet made no sound on the bluestone pavement. Soon, six Song soldiers joined them and they arrived at their destination.
However, the old steward and several Song soldiers did not step forward. Instead, they watched from a distance as the old Taoist priest arrived at Liu Hong's residence first.
He brandished his whisk and cast a spell, his aged, decaying pupils burning like candlelight in the darkness. Through the walls, he could clearly see everything happening inside the house—Wu Dalang, whose leg had been broken, was recuperating in bed, Pan Jinlian was asleep on another bed, while Liu Hong sat in the hall, carefully maintaining a broadsword.
Wow, this kid even knows how to make a broadsword?
After Liu Hong finished maintaining his broadsword, he casually swung it a few times. His clumsy movements clearly showed that he was a novice, and his swordsmanship was completely wrong.
The old Taoist priest snorted disdainfully. Even the burly man in the village, who was over two meters tall and weighed four hundred kilograms, was as weak as an ant in front of his unpredictable Taoist magic.
Although this man is quite burly, he doesn't know how to use a knife. How could he possibly be my match? The master sent me to kill him; it's a waste of my talent.
Forget it, you've broken a leg, huh? Let's finish this quickly and go back to sleep.
The old Taoist priest waved his whisk, and his figure suddenly collapsed into a paper doll. The night wind swirled this humanoid silhouette, dragging it along the wall, leaving black mold spots growing on the blue bricks in its wake. As he reformed his form in the hall, the offerings on the Eight Immortals table instantly rotted and became infested with maggots, as if torn apart by the hand of death, and the wax dripping from the candlesticks twisted into a chaotic and terrifying shape.
The old Taoist priest remained silent, then waved his whisk a second time, summoning a swarm of calamity insects that flew to Liu Hong's side and splashed a large amount of yellowish-green sleeping powder, attempting to hypnotize Liu Hong directly. In this way, he could tie him up, break one of his legs, and leave. The whole thing would be easy and pleasant. Even the strong man in the village who weighed four hundred pounds couldn't withstand this kind of hypnotic method.
Sure enough, Liu Hong was drowsy as he bathed in the insect powder, but his tall body shimmered with a strange silver fluorescence, vaguely outlining the shape of a fox. Then, he slumped his head and began to snore in the chair.
The old Taoist priest was a little puzzled. What was this white fluorescent light? But seeing that Liu Hong had fallen asleep, he didn't pay much attention. He simply walked up behind Liu Hong, intending to tie him up and then break one of his legs.
But, just then, the candlelight flickered violently, and Liu Hong's closed eyes snapped open! The sandalwood chair shattered under the immense force of his stomp, his bones cracking with a dragon-like sound, and his imposing body created a three-inch-thick shockwave as he leaped forward. The old Taoist's goatee was whipped straight by the gust of wind, and before he could react, the broadsword reflected in his cloudy pupils was already swung to its fullest extent, hurtling towards him!
The moment the peach wood sword hastily met the attack, the talisman affixed to its blade suddenly burst forth with golden light. The sound of the steel blade colliding with the wooden sword was like a resounding bell, shaking the surrounding area. The old Taoist's defensive talisman shattered into pieces under Liu Hong's powerful slash and the howl of the silver fox behind him! In the end, it turned into fragments wrapped in firelight, scattering in all directions and illuminating the dark house as if it were daytime!
Liu Hong cleaved through the defensive talisman with a single strike, using the momentum to continue his downward slash. The dull thud of the broadsword tearing through flesh was accompanied by the splattering sound of thick, sticky blood. The old Taoist's wrinkled skin shrank rapidly like paper exposed to fire, revealing the bluish-purple fascia beneath. As the blade pierced his left rib, a bizarre event occurred: the gushing blood plasma congealed in mid-air into the shape of a red snake, hissing as it lunged towards Liu Hong's face! It then forced out the fox-shaped silver light, enveloping Liu Hong's entire body.
"boom!!!"
The moment the raging blood serpent crashed into the spirit fox's barrier, it exploded, plunging the entire room into a crimson mist.
The old Taoist priest stared at Liu Hong in astonishment. As a sorcerer, he was well aware of the danger of being approached by a warrior and had taken numerous precautions. However, he couldn't understand why his stun spells, defensive talismans, and the Blood Serpent Counterattack that triggered immediately upon being injured all failed in the face of the silver fox's light. This person wasn't a fox demon!
In desperation, the old Taoist priest unleashed another golden bolt of lightning from his palm. Instantly, thousands of electric threads wrapped around Liu Hong's limbs and bones, paralyzing his body. He also drew a golden "fixed" character above Liu Hong's head, attempting to immobilize him with a spell before snapping his neck!
This kind of person is too dangerous. I can't hold back. I'll just kill him! Anyway, Master Zhang will handle the aftermath.
However, all the golden lightning bolts and the "定" (ding, meaning "fixed") character above their heads vanished in the face of the silver fox light that enveloped Liu Hong's skin! The terrifying fox shadows dyed the dark room with chaotic silver light, wrapped around Liu Hong's burly and magnificent body covered in blood, and roared silently at the old Taoist priest.
"You...this...how is this possible?"
The old Taoist priest was dumbfounded when he saw that his two spells had failed in a row. He coughed up blood and questioned the priest.
"My magic resistance is very high. I saw through your trick when I was hypnotizing you, so I pretended to be asleep so I could wait for you to come over and cut you down with one blow!"
Liu Hong, bathed in blood, cursed angrily as he stepped on the old Taoist's chest, pulled the broadsword from his chest, and slashed at his neck again!
This time, the gaunt old Taoist priest, having lost too much blood and being trampled underfoot, didn't even have time to resist or dodge, let alone cast a spell. He could only watch helplessly as the burly and imposing Liu Hong wielded his blood-stained steel blade, slashing through the air in a crimson arc symbolizing death. Accompanied by the deathly sound of flesh and blood splattering, the blade cleaved open his neck. Shattered flesh and bones, like a burst of blood fireworks, sprayed in all directions! Brilliant and beautiful, yet incredibly fleeting.
In his final moments, the old Taoist priest could only curse in his heart.
No wonder Zhang Zhao, that born psychic, died. This kid's magic resistance is so high! Zhang Zhao couldn't unleash all his psychic abilities, and neither could I unleash all my Taoist magic! All the Taoist arts I've learned in my life are extremely difficult to break through his magic resistance!
This guy has incredibly high magic resistance, is incredibly burly and imposing, but has never learned martial arts. That 400-pound fat guy who practices martial arts every day should have killed him using physical methods! You tricked me, sir!!! I've been a master all my life, and I've fallen here…
Having killed two people in a single day, Liu Hong, his eyes bloodshot with rage as he looked at the aging corpses at his feet, roared, "Come on! Let's see who else dares to mess with me!"
He quickly searched the corpse; the old Taoist priest had five taels of silver and two treasures on him.
【Peach Wood Sword】(Green): 60 cm long, deals 2-5 points of magic damage, can damage ghosts and ethereal creatures.
[Yin Yang Eight Trigrams Robe] (Green): Mana +5
Well, with these two items, my combat power has been further enhanced. The Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Robe is even more wonderful. My own spiritual energy is only 3 points, but this Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Robe directly increases my spiritual energy limit by 5 points, allowing me to use spiritual energy more times and greatly amplifying my combat ability.
Liu Hong draped the blood-stained robe over himself, and a faint energy instantly spread throughout his body. He also smelled a pleasant fragrance, which made his mind more relaxed. His spiritual energy points increased from zero to five-eighths, a full five points, and he regained a bit of his combat power.
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Author's Note: One extra chapter for every vote from the requester!
Chapter Nine: A Common Man's Fury Splashes Blood Three Feet High
"Sanlang? What happened!"
The fierce battle also woke Pan Jinlian from her sleep.
When she saw the old Taoist's corpse, still gushing blood, on the ground by the firelight, she screamed in terror. Her bare feet staggered backward, the soft flesh of her soles sinking into the blood with a sticky sound. In an instant, her fox tail bristled like an umbrella, and the downy hairs on her ears stood on end, damp with sweat and frosting. Suddenly, she bent over and dry heaved, vomiting up her entire dinner!
The scream also made the steward of the Zhang family, who was not far away on the street, beam with joy, thinking that the old Taoist priest had completed his task, and directly tossed twenty taels of silver to a nearby official.
"Chief Zhang! You only lost twenty taels of silver yesterday, right? Don't be so gloomy all day. I'll make it up to you! You're from the Zhang family too, you should know that as long as you help the master with this matter, he'll give you as much silver as you want!"
"Thank you, old steward! Thank you, Master Zhang!"
Zhang, the head constable, repeatedly clasped his hands in thanks to the steward, his eyes filled with flattery and respect—this man was the same official who had forcibly conscripted Liu Hong into labor service, only to have his purse stolen by the spirit.
"Old steward, let me repeat the plan: the Taoist priest will sneak in through the wall and cripple the man. Then we'll go in and arrest him. I've already fabricated the charges: Pan Jinlian and Wu Sanlang had a fight over a trivial matter, and she broke her husband's leg. We'll arrest the couple for fighting and disturbing the peace and throw them in jail! Then we'll see if Master Zhang wants to enjoy that little fox in the prison cell or play the hero and keep her in a gilded cage."
Zhang, the head constable, stroked the gleaming silver in his hand and fawned over the old steward.
"Okay, I didn't spoil you for nothing when you were little, go ahead."
The old steward nodded, agreeing verbally, but inwardly he also felt troubled. On one hand, the master wanted to have an affair with Pan Jinlian, and on the other hand, the madam strictly forbade the master from having an affair. The two of them were making me feel like a little wife, trying to please both my husband and mother and keeping it a secret from both sides. I couldn't even bring some of the thugs who were on good terms with Madam Zhang, and I couldn't just bring Pan Jinlian back to the Zhang family. It was really troublesome.
Seeing that the steward agreed, Zhang Dutou waved his hand without hesitation, and the five Song soldiers who had also received money drew their swords and shields and rushed towards Liu Hong's house! One of them even shouted it out.
"This is an official case! All irrelevant personnel, please get out of the way!"
Hearing the shouts and curses of the government troops outside the door, as well as the noisy footsteps, Liu Hong knew something was wrong. He immediately drew the three prongs from his broadsword and disassembled this illegal contraption into a legal short sword and a whistle stick.
As soon as the door was opened, a Song soldier kicked the bolt off and arrogantly stormed into the room.
"Open the door! This is a police investigation! Someone reported you and your spouse for fighting! Come with us... Huh???"
The arrogant words of the Song soldiers came to an abrupt halt as they stared incredulously at the Taoist's corpse on the ground and Liu Hong, who was covered in blood and looked as terrifying as a vengeful ghost.
The dim candlelight illuminated his towering, 1.9-meter-tall frame, casting a terrifying shadow of his imposing figure onto Song Jun's lean body, creating a stark contrast.
What the hell? Didn't the boss say that after the old Taoist priest broke Sanlang's leg, he would leave on his own? We were only responsible for catching the two of them and putting them in jail. How did he die here?
Wait a minute, this burly and imposing Sanlang actually managed to kill that old Taoist priest from the Zhang family?! How strong must he be in combat?!
For a moment, the Song soldiers who had rushed in froze on the spot, too afraid to go forward. Liu Hong was also thinking rapidly, but did not move.
This old Taoist priest just came in trying to harm me, and then Song soldiers rushed over, saying that my husband and I were fighting each other and wanted to arrest us and put us in jail.