Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 489 Mysterious Sword Master

"Thank you so much, Brother Fang, for saving my life!"

After killing Xu Siyuan, Lu Feng once again bowed solemnly to Lin Chen. Without waiting for Lin Chen's response, he solemnly said, "To thank Brother Fang for saving my life, this box of a hundred items on my person belongs to Brother Fang. I hope Brother Fang will accept it."

Lin Chen looked at Lu Feng and handed him the box of a hundred items, which meant that Lu Feng had given him all his possessions.

Lu Feng believed that his decision was influenced by Xu Siyuan's enticing words to him.

As for whether it would be excessive for me to accept this box of a hundred items?
Of course not!

If it weren't for me, Lu Feng would already be dead, and everything he owned would fall into Xu Siyuan's hands. Moreover, according to the plan revealed by Xu Siyuan, the Lu family would also be targeted.

“I am truly grateful to Brother Fang. I heard what Xu Siyuan said. Without you, I would not only have lost my life here, but my Lu family would have been plotted against by that villain Xu Siyuan. You are not only my savior, but also the benefactor of my Lu family. I must accept this box of a hundred items.”

Lin Chen accepted the Box of a Hundred Treasures. He was certain that Lu Feng was genuinely grateful for the gift, rather than it being a desperate measure to save his own life because he was afraid that if he killed Xu Siyuan, he would also kill Lu Feng.

"it is good."

Upon hearing that Lin Chen was willing to accept it, Lu Feng finally smiled and then looked at the statue.

“Brother Fang, the sword sheath held by this statue contains a perfect level of sword intent. Xu Siyuan’s elaborate scheme to assassinate me was for the Jade Slip of Inheritance in my possession. This jade slip is kept in the Hundred Treasures Box.”

Lin Chen held the Hundred Treasures Box and focused his divine sense into it, gaining a clear view of all the items inside, including the special jade slip.

"Is this the one Brother Lu is referring to?"

The jade slip appeared in Lin Chen's hand. The texture of this jade slip was different from the other jade slips Lin Chen had seen. It looked like jade, but it felt softer to the touch, more like some kind of animal fur.

"This is it."

Lu Feng nodded: "Brother Fang may not know much about weapon crafting. My Lu family runs an auction house and pays close attention to weapon crafting. A jade slip that can carry the martial will of a perfect level requires extremely high strength from the crafter. Only a master craftsman can craft it. But even a master craftsman cannot continue without suitable materials."

"To some extent, it's easy to find a master craftsman, but materials are hard to come by. Moreover, the materials used to craft this jade slip can also be used to craft other treasures, which are more profitable and practical. Very few people use them to craft perfect-grade Dao Inheritance Jade Slips. After all, there aren't that many perfect-grade martial wills. Even if there are, they can be comprehended on the spot. This has led to the scarcity of perfect-grade Dao Inheritance Jade Slips in the Yan Dynasty. When my grandfather bought this jade slip, he was precisely looking at its rarity, thinking that if some great person ever needed it, he could make a fortune."

Lin Chen understood what Lu Feng meant. The materials needed to refine a perfect-grade Dao Inheritance Jade Slip are very rare and precious, and have a wide range of uses. Once someone discovers the material, they will maximize its benefits by using it to refine other items.

Is a perfect level of martial arts will rare?

Very precious!
The key issue is that there aren't that many perfect martial arts wills scattered around the world; most breakthroughs still rely on martial artists' own comprehension and understanding.

Even if a fully formed, perfect martial will exists, it is controlled by top sects and families, or in some secret realms. Martial artists who come into contact with it can try to comprehend it on the spot. Even if they cannot comprehend it this time, they can hide it and come back later. There is no need to record it and take it away.

The low probability of use and high cost make this perfect-grade Chengdao Jade Slip extremely rare.

The Lu family wasn't fantasizing about discovering that a perfect-level martial arts will could be used with this item; rather, they were hoarding it with the intention of making it a rare commodity. If someone really needed it, they would buy it for 200,000 or even 100,000 Flame Coins.

A perfect martial arts will, regardless of its type, is priceless.

"How can I inscribe my martial will into a jade slip?"

Lin Chen didn't stand on ceremony. His perfect martial will, especially in the sword style, would likely be enough to entice even experts at the Myriad Manifestations Realm.

Even if those experts at the Myriad Manifestations Realm can't use it, it can still be used to train disciples. If martial artists who cultivate the sword path find out, they will probably go crazy.

However, Lin Chen didn't care. The identity he was using was fake. Even if Lu Feng betrayed him in the end and leaked the information, those powerful figures wouldn't be able to find him.

Once this matter is resolved and I leave Guangwu City, I will discard this face.

Of course, the safest way would be to kill Lu Feng as well, so that the secret here would not be revealed.

However, he is not capable of such utter depravity.

For the sake of a secret, even if the other party has no grudge against them, they will choose to kill to silence them.

"Brother Fang, as long as you place this jade slip on the sword sheath, the jade slip will actively sense the martial will and inscribe it into it."

Lu Feng provided the answer. Lin Chen stepped towards the statue. When he was still a foot away from the sword sheath, the jade slip in his hand began to emit a faint light. When this light fell on the sword sheath, the hairs on Lin Chen's body stood on end.

Ding!
A clear, crisp sword cry rang out, accompanied by terrifying sword energy. At that moment, Lin Chen sensed danger. His intuition told him that if he didn't dodge, his life would be in peril.

Just as Lin Chen was about to retreat, the jade slip in his hand suddenly shone brightly, enveloping the entire sword sheath.

A stunning sword strike, a terrifying sword aura, and pervasive sword energy...

Everything from this sword strike was instantly drawn into the jade slip along with the light. Lin Chen felt the jade slip in his hand tremble, as if it couldn't withstand the pressure, and the temperature was rising rapidly. Even with his cultivation level, it felt scalding hot.

One breath, two breaths...

Ten breaths later, the jade slip finally stopped trembling, and its temperature began to drop. In the end, it returned to its original state. The only difference was that on the surface of the jade slip, there was a long sword swimming like a fish.

Congratulations, Brother Fang.

Seeing that Lin Chen had successfully inscribed this perfect-level martial will, Lu Feng smiled, without the slightest jealousy or resentment, but genuine joy.

This is the way of the sword; even the Jade Slip of Inheritance might not be able to withstand it and shatter.

If it were to truly shatter, it would mean that this sword intent would dissipate, which would be a tremendous regret.

Just as Lu Feng finished congratulating them, cracks began to appear in the scabbard of the sword held by the statue whose face was not clearly visible. The cracks continued to widen and spread to the entire statue within a few breaths, eventually shattering into a pile of rubble.

The statue's purpose was to preserve this swordsmanship spirit. Now that the swordsmanship spirit has been taken away, the statue has lost its purpose.

"Thank you for passing on your knowledge, senior."

Although unsure if he could learn the Sword Dao Will, Lin Chen still bowed to the statue. His only regret was not knowing the origin of this senior; to leave behind a perfect-level Sword Dao Will, he was undoubtedly a sword master at the Myriad Manifestations Realm.

"Brother Lu, here's your box of a hundred items back."

After putting away the jade slip, Lin Chen returned the Hundred Items Box to Lu Feng.

"Brother Fang, I am truly grateful..."

"Brother Lu, rest assured, I've taken the Flame Coins from the Hundred Treasures Box. As for the other items, they're not of much use to me."

Hearing this, Lu Feng stopped making excuses. He understood that Fang Zhan was probably someone with a powerful background. He had never heard of such a powerful innate expert in Jiushan Island or even the East Sea Region. There was only one possibility: Fang Zhan came from another region and was probably traveling in the East Sea Region.

The items in his treasure box were valuable to ordinary innate martial artists, but they were nothing special to disciples of large families or sects.

"Thank you very much, Brother Fang."

Lu Feng took back the Hundred Treasures Box without even putting his divine sense into it. No matter how much Fang Zhan left him, he only felt grateful.

"Did Xu Siyuan mention anything about the origin of this place?"

Lin Chen looked at Lu Feng. The tempering sand could be naturally formed in the rocks on the seabed, but there must be a reason why the statue of this powerful figure appeared here.

Is this the cave dwelling of a powerful expert at the Myriad Manifestations Realm?

To say that it's a cave dwelling would be to underestimate a powerhouse at the Myriad Manifestations Realm.

"No, I'm afraid Xu Siyuan doesn't know much either. This statue doesn't even have a face, and there's nothing else around it that can reveal its identity."

Lu Feng shook his head, then walked over to Xu Siyuan's body and searched for a while, but found no clues. As for the storage box, there was none on Xu Siyuan's body.

"Brother Fang, it must be that this sword master once came to the seabed here and left his martial will here because of his feeling."

My heart is connected to yours!

Lin Chen understood the meaning of the word Lu Feng used.

Upon reaching the Myriad Manifestations Realm, in his master's words, one has achieved harmony with heaven and earth, and can often sense future events related to oneself in the unseen realm.

"However, this is the first time I have ever seen a perfect level of martial arts will, especially in the swordsmanship. I have never heard of it before."

Lu Feng added that the entire sword path of the Yan Dynasty originated from the Guixu Sword Tomb, and those sword masters who left behind their martial will remained in the Yan Dynasty.

Those who are left outside are mostly of ordinary or refined level, used to select outstanding swordsmanship talents.

"A powerhouse of this caliber is no nobody; we'll investigate further when the opportunity arises."

Seeing that Lu Feng also had no useful information about this powerful figure, Lin Chen didn't continue the topic. After the two came out of the secret passage, they continued along the passage.

Three hours later, Lin Chen and Lu Feng walked out of the passage and arrived at a spacious underground plaza, where Shao Chaozong, Zhang Sheng, and Zhu Ru were also present.

Although the three were in the square, they maintained a sufficient distance from each other and exchanged wary glances. When Lin Chen and Lu Feng appeared, all three immediately looked over.

When Zhu Ru and the other two saw Lin Chen and Lu Feng appear together, there was a hint of surprise in their eyes, but only a hint. The three of them entered the passage first and did not know that Lin Chen and Lu Feng had chosen different passages after them.

As for Lin Chen and Lu Feng choosing a passage, it's not unacceptable. Each person having their own passage allows them to monopolize all the tempering sand, but they also have to face the pursuit of the Blood Mist Beasts. The three of them couldn't just give up a large section of tempering sand in the passage and only start collecting it after completely shaking off the Blood Mist Beasts.

"Now all that's missing is Xu Siyuan."

Shao Chaozong spoke slowly, and Zhang Sheng chimed in, "Xu Siyuan was already injured, and he hasn't come out for so long. I'm afraid he's in grave danger."

"We all came out together, so I hope Brother Xu is safe and sound," Zhu Ru whispered.

None of the three asked Lin Chen and Lu Feng how much tempering sand they had obtained in the passage. Although it was originally agreed that they would share it equally, since each of them had chosen a passage, their respective gains would naturally belong to them. The three of them understood this without saying a word.

Lin Chen also had an estimate of the amount of quenching sand obtained by these three. The reason why these three did not mention this matter was that they were very satisfied with the amount of quenching sand they obtained.

Even the smallest amount, Zhang Sheng, had over sixty liters of quenching sand, worth 20,000 Flame Coins, which was a considerable sum for him. Zhu Ru had over ninety liters, while Shao Chaozong had nearly one hundred and twenty liters, far exceeding their original expectations.

"I believe Brother Xu will return safely. I will wait here a little longer."

Lu Feng spoke in a deep voice, but Zhang Sheng curled his lips upon hearing this: "I'm just afraid that those blood mist beasts will come chasing after us. What if we end up putting ourselves in danger instead of finding the person?"

People are willing to take risks when they have no gains, but when they have a lot to gain, they want to play it safe.

The three of them had only been out of the passage for a short time, and now that they had obtained the crystal-tempering sand that satisfied them, they naturally did not want any further trouble and only wanted to return to Jiushan Island safely.

"Wait another half hour. If Xu Siyuan hasn't come out by then, we'll leave."

Seeing that Lu Feng was about to speak, Lin Chen directly offered his opinion, which was a scene he and Lu Feng had discussed before coming out.

"Since Brother Fang has spoken, then let's make it half an hour. If Brother Xu hasn't come out after half an hour, we'll leave."

Lu Feng looked at Lin Chen with fear in his eyes, which made Zhu Ru and the other two look at Lin Chen with curiosity. What exactly happened in the passage that made Lu Feng seem a little afraid of Fang Zhan?
Was it because Fang Zhan concealed his strength and exposed his true power in the passage that Lu Feng was so afraid?

For a moment, Zhu Ru and the other two were lost in thought, wondering what would happen in the passage. Little did they know that this was exactly what Lin Chen had planned.

Let the three of them guess what happened between him and Lu Feng, so they won't have the mind to guess about Xu Siyuan.

Half an hour later, Xu Siyuan still hadn't appeared. Zhang Sheng couldn't wait any longer and was about to leave. After Lu Feng delayed him several times, another quarter of an hour passed before Lu Feng, with a regretful expression, accepted the fact that his friend had died here and left the underwater cave with the others, returning to the ship.

(End of this chapter)