Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

Chapter 339 Ten-Year-Old Azi

The aura of the Ice Silkworm's cold poison on Moganshan's body could not be concealed at all, and the Xingxiuhai group followed the aura all the way.

As he rushed into the wooden building in Kaifeng, Chuchenzi, the leader, glanced at the signboard and found the words "Twenty-Four Towers" to be completely unfamiliar.

It was clearly not a well-known gangster force.

After the earlier shouting subsided, Chuchenzi didn't waste any more words. He waved his hand and ordered his men to smash the half-open wooden door and rush inside.

"Search the entire building and find Moganshan!"

The first floor of the Twenty-Four Building was completely empty, without even a decent piece of furniture.

A dozen or so Xingxiuhai disciples, armed with unusual weapons such as hooks and poison thorns, surged in, yet it didn't feel crowded at all. On the contrary, the quietness inside the building made their footsteps sound exceptionally clear.

Chu Chenzi followed behind, and upon seeing this, he chuckled and pointed his steel claw forward: "Go upstairs and search! He's been poisoned by the Ice Silkworm's cold poison, he can't have gone far."

The staircase leading to the second floor is narrow, allowing only three people to walk side by side at most.

The dozen or so disciples dared not delay and rushed upstairs in order.

The eight people in the first three rows had just taken a few steps up the stairs when they suddenly stopped, a bone-chilling coldness rising into their hearts without warning.

This chill was different from the Ice Silkworm Poison on Moganshan's body; it carried no toxicity whatsoever, it was simply pure and chilling to the bone.

It was late autumn in Kaifeng, and the temperature was still in the teens, but inside the building it felt like an ice cave had been plunged into, and the temperature plummeted.

The next moment, a white mist suddenly rose in the stairwell, rolling down the steps.

Although the disciples at the front had never seen such eerie mist before, they could clearly feel the almost soul-freezing temperature within it, and instinctively retreated in fright.

But the disciples behind, unaware of the changes ahead, continued to push forward.

On the narrow staircase, the eight people bumped into each other instantly, creating chaos.

The shimmering white mist rolled down incredibly fast, covering the stairs beneath their feet in the blink of an eye.

The eight people who were pushing and struggling suddenly froze in place, motionless.

"Eighth Senior Brother... save me..."

"Senior brother, it's so cold..."

"save……"

Intermittent shouts came from the crowd, but within a few breaths, the sound completely disappeared.

As the fog gradually dissipated, the scene on the stairs was revealed. The eight disciples remained in a struggling posture, some with their mouths open as if to shout, and others holding weapons. Their entire bodies became crystal clear, turning into eight ice sculptures squeezed together.

Even the look of terror on their faces was incredibly lifelike.

Chuchenzi's pupils suddenly contracted, and he subconsciously took a few steps back.

The shimmering white mist did not continue to flow outwards, but instead quickly receded upwards towards the stairs, as if it had never existed.

Just then, a figure in white lightly leaped down from the second floor and landed steadily in the center of the first floor.

Shuangjiang glanced around, her gaze first landing on Chuchenzi at the door, then sweeping over the people behind him.

Chu Chenzi's expression was solemn. As a disciple of Xingxiuhai, he was most adept at reading people's expressions. With his eight subordinates instantly turned into ice sculptures, how could he not see how powerful his opponent was?

He immediately put aside his contempt and clasped his hands, saying, "Who are you? We are disciples of Xingxiuhai and have no intention of being your enemy. However, a man named Moganshan has escaped into the building. We only need him; once we have him, we will leave without disturbing you."

Chuchenzi softened his tone, but Shuangjiang ignored him and looked past him to a girl of about ten years old behind him.

The girl was young, petite, and thin. Her only notable feature was her bright, lively eyes.

But the Frost's Descent reveals a hint of malice.

Her face was expressionless, but her eyes held a coldness beyond her years. Her cuffs were slightly bulging, and the aura of poison hidden within them was even stronger than that of the adult disciples around her.

"What's your name?" Shuangjiang's voice was still cold and clear, her gaze passing directly past Chuchenzi and landing on the girl behind him.

As soon as he finished speaking, his inner strength leaked out, and the icy mist that he had just withdrawn surged out again, instantly filling most of the first floor and lowering the temperature even further.

Chuchenzi tightened his grip on the steel claws, his knuckles turning white.

The fact that the other party ignored him didn't anger him. What really made him anxious was that Shuangjiang's attention was locked on Azi behind him the whole time.

Before he left, his master specifically instructed that Azi must not get into any trouble, otherwise even if he had ten lives, it wouldn't be enough for him to die.

"You insist on protecting Moganshan?"

Suppressing his fear, Chuchenzi's tone turned serious: "Have you thought about the consequences? In the Starry Sea, not everyone is as easy to talk to as I am."

As he spoke, he quietly took a step back, and the disciples behind him followed suit.

Shuangjiang completely ignored his threat, her gaze remaining fixed on the ten-year-old girl, and asked again:
"Tell me, what's your name?"

"go!"

Chuchenzi said no more, and shouted loudly, his tone full of determination.

Without the slightest hesitation, instead of fleeing with everyone, he suddenly raised his steel claws, exerted force with his fingertips, and pushed the two disciples beside him forward.

Caught off guard, the two flew directly towards the direction of Frostfall.

The two Xingxiuhai disciples only realized what was happening the moment they were pushed away. When Chuchenzi said "go," he only meant himself and never intended to take them with him.

The other disciples didn't hesitate either. Upon hearing the sound, they immediately turned around and ran desperately out of the building. Chuchenzi followed without looking back.

The two disciples who were used as shields were covered in frost as soon as they flew into the air, and the cold air spread rapidly along their limbs.

Before they could even scream, a series of crisp "crackling" sounds rang out as they landed.

The two had already been frozen solid, and shattered instantly upon hitting the ground.

Shuangjiang remained motionless, her ethereal figure appearing and disappearing in the mist, her cold gaze sweeping over the fleeing crowd.

The icy internal energy around him grew increasingly fierce, almost solidifying into tiny ice blades of true energy.

Just one step away from entering the Profound Realm.

The reason why Chuchenzi abandoned his disciple and fled without hesitation was precisely because he saw this.

Even Master Xingxiu Laoxian's cultivation level is nothing more than this.

At this moment, he only regretted that his lightness skill was not fast enough. Although he was only a few steps away from the door, every step felt incredibly long.

Frostfall's fingertips quickly formed a hand seal, and she softly uttered, "Peck!"

His inner strength suddenly erupted, and a thick layer of frost instantly rose from the blue bricks beneath his feet, extending towards the doorway at several times the speed of the previous mist.

The six disciples beside Chuchenzi, some had already rushed to the door, and some had just taken half a step, but their bodies suddenly froze in place, unable to move forward even an inch.

The chill crept up from their feet and enveloped their entire bodies in the blink of an eye.

The six figures froze in their fleeing posture, all turning into ice sculptures, standing side by side with the eight figures on the stairs.

In the chaos, only Chuchenzi managed to escape from the Twenty-Four Towers and staggered into Suzaku Avenue.

It was just past noon, and Zhuque Avenue was bustling with activity, with a constant stream of pedestrians.

However, the commotion caused by Chuchenzi leading his men to smash down the gates of the Twenty-Four Towers had already attracted the attention of many people.

To be able to occupy a six-story building in such a prime location as Zhuque Avenue, these twenty-four buildings are clearly not an ordinary force.

Seeing this, the surrounding businesses knew trouble was brewing, so they all closed their shops to avoid it, and the once noisy street became much quieter in an instant.

Sure enough, not long after, Chuchenzi emerged looking disheveled.

Escaping is one thing, but escaping is another.

I want to leave, but it's impossible.

Zhuque Avenue is an extension of the Imperial Street, and according to the rules of the Song Dynasty, it was strictly forbidden to fight here.

But rules are meant to be broken.

They don't follow the rules of the Twenty-Four Towers, nor do they follow them during Frost's Descent.

It's very simple. Since the Daoist Master didn't establish this rule for the building, it's permissible.

The cool, ethereal internal energy, like fine threads, emanated from within the Twenty-Four Towers, silently coiling towards Chuchenzi's back.

Chuchenzi sensed the chill approaching from behind, his expression changed drastically, and he turned around abruptly, his fingers like hooks, the tips of which gleamed with an eerie blackness.

The Starry Sea's poisonous skill, "Three Yin Centipede Claws".

However, since he has not yet reached the Innate Realm, his internal energy cannot be released externally, thus limiting the power of this poison technique.

Frostfall was completely unconcerned. Even the Ice Silkworm's poison couldn't harm her in the slightest, so what was a mere centipede claw?

She was inside the building, too lazy to even move her feet, when her thread-like internal energy instantly wrapped around Chuchenzi's wrist, freezing the poisonous gas of the Three Yin Centipede Claw along with her internal energy. The chill spread outwards, instantly covering his entire body.

With a slight flick of her fingertips, Shuangjiang unleashed her inner force, forcefully pulling Chuchenzi's figure back into the building from Zhuque Street.

There was a muffled sound of "bang".

Chuchenzi crashed heavily to the ground, and in an instant, he too turned into an ice sculpture, joining the previous fourteen ice sculptures.

Inside the first floor, besides the fifteen ice sculptures in different poses, there was only the ten-year-old girl.

While everyone else was fleeing, she stood still and didn't move. Shuangjiang also realized that this woman was quick-witted, so she didn't freeze her along with them.

"What's your name?" Frostfall asked for the third time.

"My name is Azi."

This time, the girl finally spoke, her big eyes filled with shock and fear, looking so pitiful that anyone who saw her would feel sorry for her.

But Shuangjiang could see clearly that this whole act was an act.

"Why don't you run?" Shuangjiang asked again.

"I can not."

"I know I can't escape, I'll only die faster." Azi shook her head gently, her voice trembling with sobs, tears streaming down her face.

"So, do you think you'll die?"

Shuangjiang slowly squatted down, closing the distance between herself and Azi to within three feet, and looked at her calmly.

Azi shook her head again, her big eyes filled with confusion: "I don't know, sister, will you kill me?"

Frostfall's lips curled into a faint smile: "It's hard to say, but you're very clever. Tell me, what value do you have that I'd spare your life?"

The temperature inside the building was extremely low. Although Azi was not frozen solid, she was shivering all over and her face was pale.

She tightened her sleeves and whispered, "I know many secrets of the Starry Sea, and I also know the whereabouts of the Three Treasures of the Starry Sea."

"Oh?"

"tell me the story."

Shuangjiang raised an eyebrow, her tone carrying a hint of amusement.

Azi's big eyes were fixed on Shuangjiang. The two were very close, and in her eyes, this was the perfect opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

She lowered her head as if organizing her thoughts, but her wrists were subtly moving inside her sleeves.

The next moment, three fine, hair-like poison needles suddenly shot out from her sleeves, their bodies gleaming with a greenish luster. These were none other than Xingxiu Hai's unique hidden weapon, the "Azure Phosphorus Needles."

These cyan needles are extremely fine, fly silently, and move incredibly fast. Once they hit a target, the person will experience excruciating pain, the wound will turn green and fester, and the person will die within moments.

The two were only three feet apart at that moment. Such a close-range sneak attack would be impossible for an ordinary person to dodge.

Shuangjiang's smile remained unchanged; she was already on guard, and she noticed Azi's movement as soon as it began.

The moment the poison needle was fired, a slight vibration suddenly occurred in the air between the two people, and a buzzing sound could be heard continuously.

The temperature suddenly dropped by dozens of degrees. The three emerald needles had just flown to the sight of Frostfall when they condensed into white mist and ice shards, stopping abruptly in mid-air, unable to move forward even an inch.

"The Bridge Between Heaven and Earth!"

Azi's face changed drastically, and she screamed in shock. Her previous fear and confusion vanished, leaving only disbelief and horror.

"You...how do you have such high martial arts skills?"

Her knowledge far surpasses that of children her age; she had seen her master, Ding Chunqiu, use this move when he was ambushed by his disciple.

Later, I found in the records of Xingxiu Sea that this is the mark of the Tongxuan Realm, a bridge connecting heaven and earth, which can draw on the primordial energy of heaven and earth for one's own use, and possesses many incredible abilities.

"Ding ding ding~"

Three crystal-clear needles, frozen into ice crystals, landed on the blue bricks with a crisp sound.

Frostfall showed no anger on her face; instead, a smile appeared on her lips.
"You're a good prospect."

"You've got a lot of poison on you, why don't you come with me?"

Little Azi had thought she was doomed, but to her surprise, this woman with superb martial arts skills took the initiative to recruit her. Overjoyed, she quickly nodded:

"Alright! Sister, can you forgive Azi for her offense just now?"

"of course."

Shuangjiang's smile deepened, revealing a row of white teeth, and his tone was gentle: "Who would argue with a child about these things? You have extremely high talent. Follow me and learn well. In less than ten years, you will definitely make a name for yourself in the martial arts world. At that time, what will Xingxiu Sea be?"

A hint of longing flashed in Azi's eyes, followed by some worry: "Sister, but my master, the Starry Constellation Old Monster, won't let us go. The Starry Constellation Old Monster's martial arts are very powerful, do you know that?"

"Heh, Star Constellation Old Monster?"

"That's perfect. Then you and your master can reunite and test the medicine together," Shuangjiang chuckled.

"what???"

Azi's expression changed drastically. Before her exclamation could even finish, Shuangjiang's internal energy surged up and covered her like a tide.

Azi felt her whole body stiffen, her limbs and bones were frozen, and she didn't even have the strength to speak.

The internal energy of the Frostfall wrapped around her legs, as if carrying an object, and pulled her towards the stairs.

"Dangdangdang~"

Azi's frozen body was out of control, and she stumbled and bumped along the stairs.

Upon reaching the second floor, Moganshan and Hongluan were peering downstairs, while the others inside were busy with their own tasks, seemingly oblivious to the commotion below.

When they make their move during the Frost's Descent, they never worry about any unexpected incidents.

Seeing Shuangjiang carrying a little girl up, whose forehead was bleeding from being banged on the ground, Hongluan couldn't help but frown.

She had only been at the Twenty-Four Towers for a short time, did not recognize Shuangjiang, and dared not ask her any questions rashly.

Bai Lu came up to her and asked, "Sister Shuang, why are you still keeping a child?"

Shuangjiang glanced indifferently at the frozen Azi, her tone flat: "Keep her for testing poison. Have someone dispose of the corpse downstairs, and fix the door too. I'm going upstairs now."

After saying that, he picked up Azi and continued walking up to the third floor.

"Dangdangdang~"

Azi's body continued to collide on the stairs, the sounds particularly clear in the quiet building.

Upon hearing the words "testing for poison," Hongluan's face showed a look of reluctance.

Bai Lu saw her expression and said softly, "Sister Hong Luan, you don't understand the rules of the Twenty-Four Towers."

She wanted to say something more, that Shuangjiang was already considered merciful in the building, and there were many people in the building who were far more cruel than her.

But she swallowed the words back; there was no point in saying more. Hongluan would understand eventually.

Hongluan nodded gently, recalling how Moganshan had been injured by the poison, and felt that this treatment seemed reasonable.

Bai Lu turned to look downstairs, her brows furrowed slightly, and said to Hong Luan:

"Sister Hongluan, go to the Wude Division on the next street and ask them to clean up this place."

"what?"

"To the Martial Virtue Division?" Hongluan was stunned, her face full of confusion.
"Ah."

"The Martial Virtue Division is in charge of maintaining order in Kaifeng City. The attack on our building is within their jurisdiction," Bai Lu nodded.

"But the Martial Virtue Division is..."

The Wude Division was like a local tyrant in Kaifeng, acting arrogantly and no one dared to provoke them. If you went to the Wude Division to deal with this kind of thing, you would probably get beaten up and kicked out.

"Oh, Sister Hongluan, you can go without worry. Just say that our building was attacked and let them handle it."

Bai Lu waved her hand, her tone resolute.

Although Hongluan still had doubts, she dared not ask any more questions and could only follow instructions to walk out of the Twenty-Four Towers.

After passing through the bustling Suzaku Avenue, you will arrive at the Imperial Street.

The large, square sign of Wudesi stands prominently on one side of the road.

(End of this chapter)