C15 Qing Shi Town

War Cloud Sect was located just a few miles outside of Heavenly Cloud City. With Ye Chen's current level at the second stage of the Martial Soul, even with a good horse, it would take him at least three days to reach the War Cloud Sect.

After bidding farewell to his father, Ye Chen left Heavenly Cloud City and headed toward the War Cloud Sect.

...

Bluestone Town.

A small, secluded town near the War Cloud Sect. The town wasn't large, lacking any luxurious inns, and not even a branch of the Treasure Pavilion was established there. This showed how impoverished the town was, with few warriors or influential forces present.

On the road not far from Bluestone Town, Ye Chen began to slow his horse's pace.

"Since leaving Heavenly Cloud City, I haven't had a proper rest, and my food supplies are nearly depleted. I should stock up in this town and rest for a day before continuing to the War Cloud Sect," Ye Chen muttered to himself as he noticed his horse, Wuchong, starting to tire and struggle with the journey.

It had been two full days since he left Heavenly Cloud City, and during that time, he had traveled non-stop, now arriving near Bluestone Town, close to the War Cloud Sect.

"Let's head in and rest for a bit," he decided.

Leading his horse into Bluestone Town, Ye Chen began to take in his surroundings. The town's environment was far from ideal, bordering on terrible. The autumn rain had left the roads exceptionally muddy, and many of the shops appeared quite rundown, clearly neglected for a long time. Compared to Heavenly Cloud City, this place was significantly underdeveloped, not even on the same level.

However, Ye Chen wasn't bothered by the poor conditions. He only planned to rest for one night and would leave early the next morning.

The liveliest spot in Bluestone Town was a tavern called Drunken Immortal Lodge. Perhaps due to its location at a crossroads, many travelers, including warriors and merchants, chose to stop and rest there.

Upon entering the tavern, Ye Chen booked a premium room and ordered some demon beast meat and a pot of wine at a window seat on the second floor. Compared to the dry rations and the exposure to the elements over the past couple of days, the Drunken Immortal Lodge felt quite comfortable, and Ye Chen was content.

However, his peace didn't last long. Just as Ye Chen was beginning to relax, a burly man approached his table, sat down uninvited, and began to devour the demon beast meat and wine with gusto.

"Interesting... I suppose you're the assassin sent by either the Shen family or the Qin family, right? But don't you know that interrupting someone's fun is a deadly mistake?"

Seeing the burly man exuding a menacing aura, Ye Chen narrowed his eyes slightly. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke. Throughout his journey, Ye Chen had sensed someone tailing him from a distance. The warrior following him had been emanating a subtle yet unmistakable killing intent, something Ye Chen, with his keen instincts, had already detected clearly.

"You little punk, you're about to meet your end here. If you waste this fine wine and meat, wouldn't that be a shame? But since I'm in a good mood, do you want to do it yourself, or should I take you down and claim the bounty on your head?"

Upon hearing this, the burly man burst into laughter, looking at Ye Chen with a mix of amusement and disdain. The Shen and Qin families had offered half a million silver pieces for the life of this kid named Ye Chen. If someone could bring back his limbs and head, they'd even throw in an extra two hundred thousand!

"Since you picked some decent wine and meat, I'll let you in on something. The Shen and Qin families have paid our Blood Hand Hall half a million silver pieces to take your life. As for me, I'm called Blood Nine, and I'm the one who's going to claim the reward for your head!"

Seeing that Ye Chen remained silent, Blood Nine let out a cold laugh, a murderous aura suddenly erupting from him, locking onto Ye Chen.

"Blood Hand Hall?"

Upon hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in Ye Chen's eyes as he muttered to himself. If he remembered correctly, Blood Hand Hall was a terrifying assassination force in the Low Martial Field, rivaling the War Cloud Sect and other powerful factions.

Blood Hand Hall was divided into three levels: the strongest were the Butcher Guards, followed by the Dark Guards, and the weakest were the Blood Guards. Clearly, Blood Nine in front of him was a Blood Guard, the weakest of the lot.

"I didn't expect Blood Hand Hall to send just a lowly Blood Guard. That's a bit underwhelming... and with your strength, I doubt you can keep me here today."

Ye Chen looked at Blood Nine with a cold smile, his expression playful.

"You little punk, your strength might not be much, but you sure have a big mouth. Lightning Sword Art!"

Hearing Ye Chen's words, Blood Nine sneered, his Martial Soul Stage power bursting forth. He summoned a massive sword, glowing with five yellow lights, and slashed fiercely at Ye Chen.

Suddenly, a beam of electric light, as thick as a barrel, shot down from the sword, streaking toward Ye Chen with lightning speed, so fast it was terrifying!

Suddenly!

"Boom!"

A tremendous explosion erupted with a deafening roar. Inside the Drunken Immortal Tavern, countless wooden splinters flew in all directions. The spot where Ye Chen had been sitting was now a gaping hole several feet wide, offering a clear view of the shocked expressions on the faces of those below.

Clearly, neither the fighters nor the merchants in the tavern had expected anyone to make a move here. As for Ye Chen, everyone assumed he was dead beyond a doubt, with not even a trace of his remains left behind. The power of that lightning sword strike was simply terrifying.

"Haha... Daring to offend the Blood Hand Hall, how arrogant can you get? But this kid was so weak he couldn't even withstand a single blow from me, reduced to nothing but a puddle of mush!" Blood Nine chuckled coldly after seeing that Ye Chen's body had been obliterated without a trace.

Yet, despite his laughter, there was a twinge of regret in his heart. Now that Ye Chen was reduced to nothing, not even a body to show, he feared that when he returned to report, he'd only receive half the bounty at best. It was a total loss.

Meanwhile, the numerous fighters and merchants upstairs and downstairs were left in utter shock.

I never expected the assassins from Blood Hand Hall to be so terrifying. Even a warrior with a Level Two Cultivation in the Martial Soul Stage couldn't withstand a single move from this assassin named Blood Nine!