Elderly Martial Saint: Sixty Times the Cultivation Speed ​​at the Start

Once outside the south gate of the prefectural city, the official road is wide and smooth.

The mythical beast horse issued by the Sky Patrol Division has a steady gait, and even Yi Yang, who doesn't ride horses much, can easily control it. There's no need to worry about it being untamed.

At this moment, Yi Yang had his eyes half-closed, and his body swayed with the rise and fall of the horse's back, looking like an ordinary old man.

But in the shadows, his senses kept him constantly alert to every move around him as he left the city, not missing a single unusual situation.

After all, human nature is unpredictable, and he was being targeted by the infamous "Six Killers".

Who knows if anyone in the Sky Patrol Division dislikes him and leaked the information?

After advancing to the third level of Inner Qi, his perception range nearly doubled compared to the second level.

Within a hundred feet, even the slightest movement of a squirrel jumping from one branch to another would not escape his perception.

As Yiyang advanced rapidly, the trees on both sides of the official road became increasingly dense.

The old trees of locust, cypress and elm are mixed together, their canopies intertwined, cutting the sunlight overhead into fragmented spots of light.

The air was filled with the smell of decaying leaves soaked in morning dew.

Damp and cold.

It was completely different from the lively atmosphere I had experienced in the prefectural city before.

Just as Yi Yang was riding his horse quickly toward his destination, he seemed to sense something in his mind.

Three auras.

Right behind me!

It followed him almost imperceptibly at the very edge of his perception.

Yi Yang probed for a while and confirmed that the other party was following him.

Moreover, Yi Yang maintained a very steady distance from them, neither too far nor too close, about 120 or 130 zhang away. It seems that the other party is also very experienced!

They've come with ill intentions!

Thinking of this, Yi Yang tucked his hands into his sleeves, his thumb unconsciously rubbing the pad of his index finger.

The three people following behind were positioned in a very orderly manner.

The three people spread out in a triangular formation, with the two wingers slightly forward and the one in the middle half a step back.

This wasn't just some random passerby; it was a trained assailant.

One of the auras made Yi Yang's brow twitch.

The opponent's internal energy was thick and solid, indicating a level three internal energy cultivation, and it was completely genuine, clearly the result of diligent training.

Moreover, the method of operation is rather forceful. Although it is compressed very hard, there is still a trace of heat emanating from the end of the breath, which cannot be covered even by the method of concealing the breath.

The other two auras were slightly weaker, but both were at the second level of internal energy.

Thinking of this, Yi Yang did not turn around to check the other person's appearance.

The sound of horses' hooves continued to beat steadily on the official road.

He frantically searched his memory.

That night in the Beast Ridge Mountains, when I used the Concealed Breath Formless Technique to escape with all my might, behind the terrifying aura of the True Qi Realm cultivator who "wiped out," there were clearly three or four Inner Qi Realm cultivators accompanying me.

At the time, escaping was the priority, so he didn't carefully distinguish the characteristics of each path, but he still vaguely remembers one particular energy that was either too strong or too volatile.

The texture of the heat emanating from the three layers of internal energy behind him was highly consistent.

They were the ones who slaughtered the six bandits.

These three people have come for revenge.

The moment the thought settled, Yi Yang's heartbeat didn't quicken; instead, it dipped slightly and became more steady.

He had anticipated this situation; there was nothing unexpected about it, and the worst-case scenario had not occurred.

As Yan Wuyuan had said, the leader of the so-called "Six Bandits Who Killed All" did not appear, and your second brother, "Qin Wuli," who was at the peak of the third level of internal energy, also did not appear.

This is very good news.

As for the three people currently following Yi Yang, the strongest among them is only at the third level of internal energy.

A month ago, this kind of scene would have made his scalp tingle.

But now he is also at the third level of internal energy, and has mastered many techniques, making his combat power far exceed that of others of the same level.

Thinking of this, Yi Yang tightened his grip on the reins, his gaze calmly sweeping across the narrowing road ahead, a fierce "killing intent" flashing in his eyes.

I'm not running anymore.

He wants these three people to never leave this forest today.

……

One hundred and thirty feet behind him.

Three figures darted along the middle of the tree canopy, their toes barely touching the branches, causing even the leaves to tremble slightly.

The man in the middle to the back was a broad-shouldered, burly man. He was in his early thirties, with a very short beard that ran along his jawline, giving him a rugged appearance.

Furthermore, the five fingers on his right hand are thicker than normal, and the knuckles are covered with calluses, layer upon layer, not unlike tree bark.

This person's name is Wu Jin.

He ranked third among the six bandits killed in the massacre.

He possesses three levels of internal energy and primarily practices the superior fist technique "Shattering Mountain Fist".

The man to his left was as thin as a bamboo pole, with an old scar on the corner of his lip. A long, black-sheathed sword hung at his waist, its hilt wrapped with old hemp rope, worn smooth and shiny.

This man is named Jiang Sha, and he is the fifth among the six bandits. He has the second level of internal energy.

On the right was a woman in her late twenties, of medium height, with delicate features, but there was always an indescribable meanness in her eyes, and the spirit of always being ready to find fault came from her bones.

A pair of short daggers were tucked behind his waist. The daggers were not long, but the black sheen on the blades indicated that they had been coated with a special poison.

This man is named Chen Xinhu, the fourth among the six bandits, and his internal energy is at the second level of perfection.

The three walked silently through the woods, their eyes fixed on the back of the old man slowly riding a horse on the official road ahead.

We've been chasing each other for almost half an hour now.

Jiang Sha finally couldn't resist leaning closer to Wu Jin, lowering his voice to a level where only the two of them could hear:

"Third Brother, why didn't Second Brother come? Sixth Brother was killed by that old bastard, shouldn't Second Brother have taken action himself?"

Wu Jin, with his rugged appearance, snorted disdainfully through his nose and clenched his five thick fingers into a fist.

The joints cracked and popped a series of times.

"My second brother is in seclusion trying to break through to the True Qi Realm; he's just one step away from succeeding."

He spoke gruffly, a hint of undisguised contempt playing at the corners of his mouth:

"Do you think he'd break through his cultivation level for some old, useless person with only a basic internal energy cultivation?"

After saying that, he flicked his wrist again, his tone casual, showing no concern for Yi Yang's strength:

"Besides, he's just a sixty-year-old guy. Even if he held back some of his strength when he killed Lao Liu, he's at most at the second level of internal energy. I can handle this kind of trash by myself. I only called you two along because I was afraid he'd run away."

Hearing his third brother say this, Jiang Sha's brows furrowed, his lips twitched slightly, but in the end, he managed to squeeze out what was on his mind:

"But Lao Liu isn't stupid either. He was able to be killed by an old man with 'first level of internal energy,' there must be something going on here—"

He hadn't finished speaking.

"Fifth brother, when did you become so nagging?"

Chen Xinhu's voice drifted over from the right, carrying an undisguised sarcasm.

She didn't even turn to look at Jiang Sha; she deftly flipped the two short daggers between her fingers, the blades reflecting shards of light.

"Third Brother's Mountain-Shattering Fist has reached perfection. It is a powerful fist technique. One punch can shatter the bones and rupture the internal energy of someone at the same level."

"Besides, does a sixty-year-old geezer need the three of us to help him? If you keep dawdling, I'll be embarrassed for you."

Jiang Sha's face darkened even more after being mocked by his fourth sister, but he remained silent.

Wu Jin, who was standing to the side, also remained silent.

Despite his nonchalant tone, his right fist remained clenched tightly.

The calluses between the knuckles were slightly warmed by the internal energy, and the tendons under the fascia were taut and straight.

The internal energy has been secretly pushed to a critical state.

It can unleash a devastating attack on the enemy at any time.

The fact that he's still alive means he's cautious to the core; the more arrogant he is with words, the more ruthless he is with actions.

……

Yi Yang, standing in front, seemed completely unaware of the three figures behind him.

As the strange beast horse rounded a bend, the trees on both sides of the pipeline suddenly grew taller.

Ancient locust trees and old cypress trees intertwined, their branches almost completely blocking out the sunlight overhead, leaving only a few thin beams of light to slant down and fall on the moss-covered stone surface of the official road.

Upon seeing this environment, Yi Yang's gaze swept over both sides without making a sound.

To the left, deep in the dense forest, lies a rocky slope, with waist-high thorns growing among the loose stones.

On the right, old trees with intertwined roots are everywhere. The thickest locust tree's trunk requires three people to encircle it, and its roots have raised the ground by half a foot.

The view here is extremely limited.

It can be described as a natural hunting ground.

Having made up his mind, Yi Yang slightly adjusted his posture on horseback; from the outside, it looked like he was just changing his position because of back pain.

But in reality, his breathing had already completely settled down in that half-breath.

It's like a hunter who's been preparing for a long time spotting a natural trap.

What we should do is not take the initiative to intervene.

Instead, they let the prey go in.

The moment he made the decision in his heart, he felt completely relaxed.

His shoulders slumped down slightly, his wrists hung naturally, and only his right thumb, resting on the scabbard, silently pushed the latch open a crack.

Yi Yang stopped his strange beast horse in front of the giant locust tree.

Yi Yang dismounted at a leisurely pace, even stretching slightly.

Like an old man who's tired from traveling, he stretches his muscles and rests, then he wraps the reins around the tree trunk and ties a slipknot.

next interest.

Yi Yang fully activated the first level of the Hidden Breath Formless Technique, "Hidden Abyss."

The surging internal energy in the dantian receded from the body surface at an extremely unnatural speed, closing off the meridians, skin membranes, and pores.

Subdue your mind and reduce your sense of presence to the minimum.

This is the secret weapon of the Youquan Division.

The entire process takes no more than two breaths.

Then Yi Yang disappeared on the spot.

It's not that the body disappears, but that the martial artist's "existence" disappears within their perception.

He darted onto a giant tree, pressed himself against the rough bark of the ancient locust tree, leaned against the trunk, and almost stopped breathing.

The texture of the withered leaves underfoot remained perfectly smooth, undisturbed in the slightest.

A gust of wind rustled through the treetops, sending a few fallen leaves swirling down.

One of the pieces landed right on his shoulder.

Yi Yang didn't move.

and characters

……

The hoofprints the three men were following ended in front of the giant locust tree.

When Wu Jin and his two companions arrived at this shady woodland, the first thing they saw was the gray-black beast horse tied to a tree trunk.

The horse was still snorting and swishing its tail to shoo away flying insects, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

The people of Yiyang are gone.

The moment Wu Jin, the leader of the three, landed.

His senses spread out, and he carefully searched the area within a radius of fifty feet.

But there was nothing there.

The surroundings were clean and tidy.

They couldn't even detect the last trace of the old man's breath as he walked.

It's as if he vanished into thin air.

Seeing this, the wary Jiang Shashou had already gripped the hilt of his knife and taken a half step back.

His spine tensed uncontrollably in the dark and oppressive woodland, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he whispered, "Third Brother, he's found us."

Chen Xinhu, standing to the side, slid two short daggers from behind his waist into his palms, holding them in a unique way, with the blades facing backward against his forearms, ready to be used as daggers at any time.

Her eyes darted around, scanning the shadows of every tree trunk in the vicinity.

It seems they want to find out where Yi Yang is hiding.

Faced with this situation, the three's first reaction was to silently tighten their formation, back to back, in a triangular defensive posture.

There was no reckless action.

But at this moment, the only sounds in the forest were the wind and the occasional swishing of the strange beast's tail.

This made the lines of Wu Jin's masseter muscles stand out beneath his short, bushy beard.

His fist clenched even tighter.

Internal energy surged within the body, ready to erupt at any moment.

Quiet.

It's too quiet.

This silence pushed everyone's nerves to their limit.

When the three of them were so tense that they were almost starting to distrust each other—

Footsteps sounded.

It wasn't a sneak attack from the shadows, nor the sharp whistling of a hidden weapon cutting through the wind.

It was the sound of footsteps, upright and honest, treading on fallen leaves.

Yi Yang, who had been hiding, emerged from behind the giant locust tree.

With his hands hanging at his sides, Tiger Roar was still lying diagonally behind his back, undrawn, and he hadn't even touched the hilt of the sword.

He walked to a spot ten feet in front of the three men and stood still.

His face remained as calm and composed as ever.

But when his gaze swept over the three of them, Wu Jin, who was full of confidence, involuntarily clenched his fist even tighter.

Because Yi Yang's eyes were too calm.

It was abnormally calm.

Seeing the three of them, Yi Yang's lips moved, and he spoke in a tone as if greeting an old friend:

"They're here."