Free Web NovelChapter 52: Chapter 52: Total Annihilation
The deep rumble from above Liang Cheng’s head quickly became the deafening roar of a collapse!
It wasn’t that the fight had been too violent. Rather, the supports for this section of the tunnel had already been tampered with by Liu Meng and his men.
Liu Meng had originally planned to kill Liang Cheng and then trigger the cave-in to fake an accidental death. He never expected the sheer force of Liang Cheng’s three punches to be so violent that it set off the collapse prematurely.
"Get back!"
Xu Qi yelled hoarsely, struggling to his feet to escape.
Huge rocks rained down from the ceiling, filling the air with dust. Liang Cheng moved through the darkness, his senses on high alert. With his Iron Armor Realm at full power, he braced himself against several falling stones, a dull ache spreading across his back.
BOOM!
With a final, tremendous crash, the tunnel behind them was completely sealed.
Now, the passage was plunged into darkness, illuminated only by the faint, fluorescent glow of the cavern walls. Loose stones trickled down from time to time.
Liang Cheng held his breath, focusing his senses. His Qi Blood surged as he gripped his long saber, remaining on high alert.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Just then, a stifled cough came from the left. It was Wu Gang.
With a light push of his feet, Liang Cheng shot forward without a sound. Wu Gang was struggling to crawl out from under a pile of rubble, having lost his Copper Hammer in the collapse.
Suddenly, he heard the hiss of a blade cutting through the air. He looked up in horror, and a moment later, a saber’s edge pierced his throat.
"Urk..."
Wu Gang clutched his neck and collapsed, blood pouring from the wound.
Liang Cheng retracted his saber and quickly searched the man’s robes. He found some silver banknotes, a few pieces of broken silver, and an Identity Jade Token.
He immediately pressed the man’s Jade Token to his own. A faint light flickered. Wu Gang had 1,500 Contribution Points, but Liang Cheng only transferred 1,200 to himself. He left the other items untouched and continued his hunt.
"Brother Wu?"
Just then, Xu Qi’s cautious whisper came from the right.
Liang Cheng didn’t answer, holding his breath as he crept closer.
But Xu Qi was also incredibly cautious and fell silent. In the darkness, only the dripping of water could be heard. Both men were waiting for the other to make a mistake.
Ten breaths passed.
Twenty.
Suddenly, Liang Cheng grabbed a loose stone and threw it against the opposite wall.
CLACK!
Almost simultaneously, three Bone Penetration Nails shot through the air toward the sound. Pinpointing Xu Qi’s position from the noise, Liang Cheng burst into action, his long saber slashing straight for him!
CLANG!
The saber was parried by a set of blackened finger guards, sending sparks flying. Xu Qi cried out sharply and threw a cloud of Poisonous Powder with his left hand. Liang Cheng instantly held his breath and sidestepped, his right leg whipping out to strike Xu Qi squarely in the abdomen.
PFFT!
Xu Qi was sent flying back into the cavern wall. Before his body even hit the ground, Liang Cheng’s second strike was upon him.
The strike was as fast as lightning.
The saber slashed upward in a diagonal arc. Xu Qi barely managed to twist away, but the tip of the blade still carved a gash beneath his ribs, deep enough to reveal bone. He let out an agonized grunt and tried to strike back, but Liang Cheng gave him no opportunity.
The third strike followed like a shadow—a direct thrust for the heart.
SHLICK.
The blade sank deep, and Xu Qi’s movements froze. A crimson pellet rolled from his hand and fell to the floor. Liang Cheng wrenched his saber free in a spray of blood, and the corpse slumped to the ground.
He quickly searched this body as well.
Xu Qi had more on him: over a dozen vials of assorted poisons, three hundred-tael silver banknotes, and an Iron Token identifying him as a guard of the Xu Family.
Liang Cheng knew nothing about poisons, so he certainly wasn’t going to take them. He put all the physical items back on the corpse.
All that remained was Liu Meng.
Liang Cheng peered into the depths of the darkness. Liu Meng hadn’t made a sound since escaping the initial collapse. If he wasn’t dead, he had to be hiding nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
He advanced slowly, each step incredibly light. A damp mist filled the deeper part of the mine. Inside Liang Cheng’s body, the Broken Wave Technique began to circulate on its own, seeming to resonate faintly with the rhythm of flowing water.
He closed his eyes and focused, feeling this unique rhythm. In the darkness, the sound of the underground Dark River and the dripping water wove together into a web of sound. And thirty paces away, from behind a fissure in the rock, he could hear the sound of someone breathing, trying their utmost to remain silent.
Liang Cheng moved in silently.
Twenty paces. Ten. Five!
A savage roar suddenly erupted from behind the fissure. "Die!"
With the sharp twang of a mechanism, three Crossbow Arrows shot out in a triangular pattern!
But Liang Cheng was prepared. With an unnatural twist, his body slipped between the arrows like a fish through water as he thrust his long saber straight into the fissure!
CLANG!
The blade struck something hard—Liu Meng had blocked with the bracer on his left arm. But Liang Cheng’s strike contained the full power of his Fierce Bull Force. It shattered the bracer outright, and the tip of the saber plunged three inches into flesh.
Liu Meng screamed in pain and instinctively tried to counter-stab with a short blade in his right hand, but Liang Cheng caught his wrist with his left hand and twisted hard.
CRACK!
The bones in his wrist shattered, and the short blade fell to the floor.
"Liang Cheng! Spare me!"
Liu Meng pleaded, his voice a hoarse rasp.
Liang Cheng didn’t say a word. He drove his right knee into Liu Meng’s torso. Liu Meng coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed limply to the ground as Liang Cheng stepped closer.
"Wait... I have something to say..." Liu Meng struggled to get out.
A moment later, a fist smashed down on his heart.
Liu Meng’s eyes flew wide open as his chest caved in. A gurgle rattled in his throat. He seemed unable to believe that Liang Cheng wouldn’t even give him a chance to speak as the life drained out of him.
Liang Cheng immediately searched the body.
He found Liu Meng’s Jade Token, which held 1,300 Contribution Points. He transferred 1,100 of them to his own Token. With that, all three assassins were dead.
Liang Cheng sat down cross-legged and regulated his breathing for a moment to recover. Then he stood and dragged the three bodies close together.
Next, using his Fierce Bull Force, he knocked loose more rocks from the ceiling, burying the bodies completely. He was staging a scene: they had killed each other, and their fight had triggered the fatal cave-in.
This was why he had only transferred most of their Contribution Points, leaving their other possessions virtually untouched.
Even if someone grew suspicious, without direct evidence, no one could accuse him of anything.
He stood, glanced at the tunnel sealed by fallen rock, and then walked back to his own side chamber, ready to pretend he knew nothing at all.
Cave-ins were common in the deep mines. By the time anyone cleared the rubble, he would be long gone, back at the Martial Arts Academy.
His Jade Token now held 2,400 Contribution Points. ’An unexpected windfall!’
...
「The next morning」
As if nothing had happened, Liang Cheng finished his assigned task and left his chamber. He went straight to the Foreign Affairs Hall to return the mine’s Token.
The Steward Disciple on duty was once again Zhao Ming.
Zhao Ming took the Token, his eyes sweeping over Liang Cheng. "Junior Brother Liang. Did your mission go smoothly this time?"
"There was a cave-in. I was almost buried alive," Liang Cheng said, his expression placid. "But the Rock Rat King has been dealt with. The tunnel supports are severely damaged. I recommend the Martial Arts Academy send someone for repairs as soon as possible."
Zhao Ming’s fingertips trembled almost imperceptibly. "There was a lot of illegal mining in the deeper tunnels back in the day. Cave-ins are a common occurrence. You’re very fortunate to have made it back safely, Junior Brother."
"Yes," Liang Cheng said, looking straight at him. "Very fortunate."
Once the 760 Contribution Points for the mission were in his account, Liang Cheng spent three hundred of them on a bottle of Qi Blood Pills and left without another word.
He now had 2,860 Contribution Points remaining.
Zhao Ming stared at Liang Cheng’s back until he disappeared through the doorway. Only then did he slowly unclench his white-knuckled fists, a sheen of cold sweat on his brow.
...
「The Xu Family Estate」
A butler reported in a low voice, "Master, Xu Qi’s body was found in the Martial Arts Academy’s mine. His face was mutilated beyond recognition, but we had someone secretly retrieve his Identity Token."
Xu Zhang paused, the teacup in his hand hovering. "Understood. The official story is that Xu Qi left on a mission half a month ago and has yet to return."
"Yes, sir," the butler’s voice dropped even lower. "However, Liang Cheng has returned safely. He completed the mining mission and is now in closed-door cultivation."
Xu Zhang remained silent for a long moment before gently setting down his teacup.
"Master, should we...?" The butler made a sharp, cutting motion with his hand.
"No." Xu Zhang shook his head. "We cannot provoke the Martial Arts Academy any further. Striking again would be crossing a line. We’ll wait for the academy’s autumn grand tournament. When the prodigies clash, blades have no eyes. Injuries and deaths are to be expected."
The butler understood immediately. "I understand, Master."
...
In his Quiet Chamber, Liang Cheng sat cross-legged. Aided by the Qi Blood Pill, he was once again making significant progress.
[Broken Wave Technique: Layer One, Beginner Level (362/600)]
[Stone Armor Skill (Iron Armor): Minor Success (416/1000)]
[Gale Saber Technique: Great Success (90/2000)]
Liang Cheng slowly concluded his practice and looked out the window. With plenty of Contribution Points, he could finally relax, trade for the Elixirs he needed, and focus on his cultivation.
’After all, the Xu Family still has its eyes on me.’
’Safety first.’
