Chapter 72: Teng Xiaofan Meets Sikong Jue
Right before Lu Changfeng’s eyes.
The Thief Saint began his wondrous transformation.
CRACK, CRUNCH. His bones began to shift.
SQUISH, SQUELCH. His skin and muscles started to flow like liquid.
In the blink of an eye, the Thief Saint transformed from a dark-skinned, wrinkled old farmer into a fair-skinned pretty boy with delicate features and hair that cascaded like a waterfall.
Lu Changfeng reached out and pinched the Thief Saint’s cheek. "Is this your real face?"
"Absolutely genuine," the Thief Saint said with a straight face.
Lu Changfeng nodded thoughtfully. "The stunningly beautiful woman who toasted me in the tavern earlier... that was you too, wasn’t it?"
The Thief Saint wasn’t the least bit embarrassed. Instead, he nodded proudly. "So? Were you smitten?"
Lu Changfeng pretended to gag.
"From now on, don’t change into a woman without my permission."
The Thief Saint shrugged. "Well, I’m under your command for the next year. You’re the boss."
Lu Changfeng nodded slightly. ’At least this kid follows the rules.’ "Tell me your name."
"Teng Xiaofan," the Thief Saint replied.
"Your surname is Teng, too? Don’t tell me you’re the old Thief Saint’s biological son?" Lu Changfeng asked, surprised.
Teng Xiaofan shook his head. "I’m an orphan. My master adopted me and gave me this name."
"I see," Lu Changfeng said with a nod. ’So he’s practically his son, then.’
"Let’s go." Lu Changfeng started walking, but not back toward the tavern.
Teng Xiaofan hurried to catch up, asking curiously, "What’s wrong? Aren’t we going back to the tavern to eat and drink?"
Lu Changfeng shook his head. "They’re probably about to consummate the marriage over there. The matter is settled, so there’s no need for us to go back."
"Let’s go to the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall to see an old acquaintance of mine."
Teng Xiaofan’s eyes darted about. "You’re going to see Sikong Jue, aren’t you? I heard you challenged him to a second match."
"If you ask me, that kid passed out last time while you were still standing. You already won. Why have a second match and give him a chance to beat you?" Teng Xiaofan asked, looking completely baffled.
’I’m not fighting Sikong Jue for the sake of the competition,’ Lu Changfeng thought. ’It’s because only he has what I need to copy!’
"If you don’t know what you’re talking about, then shut up!"
Teng Xiaofan pursed his lips. "Fine."
"Wait, that Sikong Jue... he awakened *that thing*. If nothing goes wrong, the Sikong Family is about to rise among the Eight Great Families."
Lu Changfeng’s heart skipped a beat. ’Could this kid know about the Bloodline Talent?’
"’That thing’... what is it? Do you know the secret behind Sikong Jue’s transformation that day?"
"Didn’t you just tell me to shut up?"
"Shit! Just talk when I tell you to. One more wisecrack and I’ll drag you straight to the Mansion Master!"
Lu Changfeng was finally getting a real taste of what a smart mouth this Teng Xiaofan fellow had.
Hearing Lu Changfeng’s threat, Teng Xiaofan immediately became serious. "Ahem, I know a little."
"My master told me some things. In the Ancient Era, the Human Race was originally very weak. Demon Fiends ran rampant back then, and humans were merely their food."
"Later, as the Human Race and the Demon Race interbred more frequently, the bloodline of the Demon Race gradually appeared within humans. It was on this foundation that the Human Race slowly grew powerful."
"Later still, the Human Race developed Martial Arts, and the Demon Fiends became even less of a match for them."
"After the great cataclysm in Ancient Times, the Demon Fiends vanished tracelessly, and the Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy began to wane. The Human Race then truly took center stage."
"But because the Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy waned, not only were the Martial Arts constrained, but it also became very difficult to awaken the Demon Fiend Bloodline within humans. Cases like Sikong Jue, who managed to awaken his, are now exceedingly rare."
These were ancient secrets Lu Changfeng had never heard before. He felt he had truly learned something new.
’Looks like I picked a good era to transmigrate into.’
’If it had been the era of rampant Demon Fiends, I might not have even survived.’
"In Ancient Times, the Demon Fiend Bloodline was very common. Almost everyone had it."
"But in this day and age, it holds a different significance."
"My master said that with the current decline in Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy, it’s very difficult for a Martial Artist to even reach the Fifth Heaven of the Bone Refining Realm."
"As for the Rebirth Realm that follows Bone Refining, it’s virtually impossible to break through in one’s lifetime without external assistance. And the Demon Fiend Bloodline is the key to breaking through to the Rebirth Realm," Teng Xiaofan revealed another secret.
’No wonder the Patriarch of the Sima Family, Sima Tuxiong, was so agitated that day and tried to snatch Sikong Jue on the spot.’
"So the Demon Fiend Bloodline is the key to breaking through to the Rebirth Realm," Lu Changfeng muttered. ’I absolutely have to copy that Bloodline Talent from Sikong Jue.’
’For now, at least, Sikong Jue is the only person I’ve seen with a Bloodline Talent.’
As they spoke, the two arrived in front of the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall on Five Horses Street.
There were still six days until his copy ability was off cooldown, but Lu Changfeng decided to come and check on Sikong Jue’s condition in the meantime.
As one of the three great Martial Arts Halls on Five Horses Street, the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall covered a vast area. From the street, one could see the enormous training grounds within.
It was already dark, but disciples could still be seen practicing their Martial Arts on the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall’s training grounds.
Lu Changfeng led Teng Xiaofan inside.
"Who goes there? Huh? Master Lu!" A disciple from the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall recognized Lu Changfeng.
After all, on the tournament stage that day, Lu Changfeng had fairly and squarely defeated Sikong Jue, the pride of the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall and its True Disciple.
"Master Lu, you must be here to see Senior Brother Sikong. Please wait a moment, I’ll go inform him."
The gate-keeping disciple of the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall was extremely polite as he hurried off to announce Lu Changfeng.
Another disciple led Lu Changfeng and his companion across the training grounds to a guest pavilion and invited them to sit.
Not long after Lu Changfeng sat down, Sikong Jue entered the guest pavilion with slow steps.
His face was blank, betraying no emotion, until he saw Lu Changfeng, at which point a faint smile appeared.
"Brother Lu, I can’t fight you today. My injuries haven’t healed yet."
"I’ll probably need about five more days. By then, I should be mostly recovered."
Using 0.5% of his Bloodline Power had come with severe negative effects.
Sikong Jue still hadn’t recovered from the serious aftereffects of using his Bloodline Power.
"There’s no rush. We’ll fight again after your injuries have healed," Lu Changfeng said.
After a pause, Lu Changfeng asked, "Brother Sikong, what are your plans regarding your family?"
Lu Changfeng was fishing for information for his second copy attempt.
Sikong Jue, of course, didn’t know this. From his perspective, he thought his rival, Lu Changfeng, felt a sense of mutual admiration and was genuinely concerned for him.
Furthermore, because Lu Changfeng had insisted, he hadn’t been immediately dragged back to his family, so he already felt a degree of gratitude.
"Regarding my family... I’ll just let things take their course."
"Even if I do return to the family, I won’t let Sikong Tuxiong off easily." Sikong Jue spoke his own maternal uncle’s full name, his eyes filled with hatred.
Lu Changfeng obviously couldn’t press further on family matters, so he changed the subject. "Brother Sikong, if you do return to your family, will I still be able to find you to spar and exchange pointers on our Martial Skills?"
"You know how it is. It’s hard for a good Swordsman to find a worthy opponent," Lu Changfeng said.
Sikong Jue cupped his fists. "Of course. When the time comes, you are always welcome to find me to practice our Sword Skills, Brother Lu."
Receiving this affirmative answer, Lu Changfeng felt a little more at ease.
However, Lu Changfeng still knew very little about the Demon Fiend Bloodline.
’How the Sikong Family will handle Sikong Jue is another matter. He might not be able to make his own decisions then.’
’What if he gets locked up for breeding purposes or something? Then I might not be able to see him at all.’
’I need to find time to visit the pavilion of the Thousand Knowledge Sect and investigate the Sikong Family’s true attitude.’