Swordsmanship Coach: Kill with One Slash

"That’s right."

The others all chimed in to agree.

Hearing this, Su Xing realized he probably wasn’t going to get any more information out of them. Just as he was about to leave, an old woman who had been washing clothes nearby suddenly spoke up.

"A lot of people have come to the mountains recently. When I was down by the river washing clothes, I happened to see a group of people head into the mountains. They seemed to be looking for something."

"A group of people?"

Su Xing stopped in his tracks and turned to the old woman, asking quizzically, "Were they together?"

"That... I couldn’t tell. But many people have come into these mountains, and they all seem to be searching for the same thing,"

the old woman said.

...

Su Xing realized this wasn’t going to be as simple as finding a flower. There were other people here, just like him, who were also looking for it. This was going to be troublesome.

He didn’t know the enemy’s strength, identity, or affiliations. The only thing he could be sure of was that they weren’t from the special organization, but for Su Xing, that was just bad news.

"Ma’am, where did you see them, and which direction did they go?"

Su Xing asked.

"Just by the stream up ahead. They seemed to be heading north. There are usually wild beasts in the north, so we never go there. If you’re planning to go, young man, you must be extra careful,"

the old woman said worriedly.

"Don’t worry."

As soon as he spoke, Su Xing’s figure vanished. The next second, he reappeared in the same spot and dropped a large pile of daily necessities. He had used spatial teleportation to return to Luocheng and buy them as compensation for the old woman’s help.

Gold and silver were of little use to these elderly people living here, and they probably couldn’t consume most kinds of food and drink. So, Su Xing brought them daily necessities that would make their lives more comfortable.

However, the old men and women’s eyes weren’t quick enough. They only saw bundles of supplies rolling onto the ground; they didn’t see Su Xing vanish once more.

"Is... is that a god?"

the old woman said in astonishment.

The others were also startled by Su Xing’s display. But in the end, he hadn’t harmed them; in fact, he had shown them some kindness. After calming down, they divided the goods among themselves.

...

’It seems like something is about to happen here.’

the old woman who had given Su Xing directions murmured, a dawning realization on her face. She understood now that Su Xing wasn’t some god, and that the people who entered the mountains were likely beings just like him.

...

Su Xing headed north and soon arrived at a valley that resembled a withered wasteland. He was simply unfamiliar with the area; otherwise, he would have known this place was called Desperate Gorge.

All the Extraordinary Beings in Luocheng knew the name.

The Spiritual Qi around Pudu Mountain was exceptionally dense, but the moment one entered Desperate Gorge, all of it vanished completely. All that remained was a desolate, withered landscape, devoid of any living creatures, let alone wild beasts.

And yet... in such a dangerous place, Su Xing saw people. Not just one, but several, all standing at the entrance to the gorge as if waiting for something.

...

Su Xing didn’t make a rash move. Unsure of their identities, he simply enhanced his hearing, trying to catch what they were saying.

"What does the boss want us to do, just standing guard here?"

one of them said, bored.

"How should I know? Ever since our Jue Dao Sect got a new Sect Leader, he’s always been doing strange things,"

another chimed in.

’Jue Dao Sect...’

Su Xing frowned when he heard the name. It sounded like a sect, similar to the Cyan Cloud Sect, but he’d never heard the people from Luocheng’s special organization mention it. He had no idea what relationship the Jue Dao Sect had with the special organization.

Su Xing was beginning to realize how complex Luocheng was. This region wasn’t like Cang City, where all remnant factions had been cleared out—either destroyed or absorbed into Cang City’s special organization. That was only possible because of Li Longxuan’s forceful promotion of the policy.

However, the branch chief in Luocheng didn’t seem to care about these things, allowing the sects and factions of these Extraordinary Being organizations, and even ancient sects revived from the past, to survive.

’Perhaps...’

’Other factions will come too.’

If the Jue Dao Sect could get news of the Spirit Flower here, then other sects certainly could as well. After all, Su Xing had no idea how many sects even existed in Luocheng.

’As expected...’

Just as Su Xing was thinking this, another group appeared at the pass. When their leader saw that the entrance to Desperate Gorge was already guarded, he frowned. His voice boomed like a great bell, ringing in everyone’s ears.

"The Jue Dao Sect has such nerve?!"

"Do you really think you can devour this opportunity all for yourselves?"

the man said sharply.

He stood there like a black iron pillar. Su Xing didn’t even need to sense his energy fluctuations; he could tell from his appearance alone that he was definitely a Martial Artist.

’He must be one who primarily cultivates the body.’

At this thought, Su Xing couldn’t help but want to test whose body was tougher. Ever since he had stepped into the Extraordinary realm, no one at his level—not even other Martial Artists—had been able to compete with his physical resilience.

"Sect Leader Yue, that’s quite a bold statement."

"Right now, both Luocheng’s special organization and the Cyan Cloud Sect are tied up with that Yin Crow. With a divine object appearing in such a remote area, it would be strange if we from the Jue Dao Sect *didn’t* show up."

From the mouth of the gorge, a white-haired old man suddenly emerged. He held a massive blade with a wavy, blood-red edge. Su Xing was no master smith, so he naturally couldn’t tell what metal the blade was forged from, but it didn’t seem to exude the same sharp, revealing aura as Li Longxuan’s slender sword.

"Sect Leader Tang."

"Don’t tell me you from the Jue Dao Sect were the first ones here?"

"Haha, indeed we were,"

The man called Sect Leader Tang laughed heartily.

"Dragon Gate has sent people too. We obviously can’t grab the lion’s share, so we can only follow along and drink some of the soup. In that case, I naturally can’t let anyone else in."

’Dragon Gate...?’

Su Xing frowned. Another faction he’d never heard of. And these people seemed to be quite wary of this Dragon Gate. ’Could it be that Dragon Gate is highly regarded in the Luocheng region?’

Su Xing complained internally, baffled. How could Luocheng’s special organization tolerate a faction like this, one that acted like a local overlord?

In reality,

this was due to Su Xing being an outsider.

The emergence of Extraordinary events in Luocheng was completely different from Cang City. In Cang City, aside from the Spirit Realm, most Extraordinary events were purely destructive; as long as you destroyed them, the problem was solved.

But Luocheng was entirely different. For some reason, this region had hidden contingencies for the revival of many factions. Ultimately, these people were still human. Even if generations separated them, they were still people of the same land.

Moreover,

the Luocheng special organization needed manpower.

Therefore, as long as these factions agreed to abide by the laws and regulations of the Xia Country, Luocheng’s special organization generally left them alone. This was what led to the current situation in Luocheng, where numerous sects coexisted.

It had even reached the point where they were difficult for the Luocheng special organization to manage, because both the Cyan Cloud Sect and Dragon Gate had eighth-rank supreme masters within their ranks.

The Cyan Cloud Sect had never had any ulterior motives, or perhaps they were too bogged down by their own internal affairs to have any. Dragon Gate, however, was completely different. Since its revival, it had developed steadily and had now become one of the most powerful factions in Luocheng.

On the surface,

Dragon Gate answered to the Luocheng special organization.

But if a real fight broke out, it was impossible to say who would win or lose.

"Tsk, Dragon Gate."

Sect Leader Yue clicked his tongue, apparently also realizing how troublesome Dragon Gate was. But just then, a heroic laugh rang out.

"Dragon Gate? Dragon Gate ain’t shit!"