Comprehending Myriad Techniques as Woodcutter

Chapter 191: Chapter 164: One Slash to Break Another

At Xie Yuan’s words, the tightly packed crowd at the Escort Agency’s main gate instantly fell silent.

Chen Su shot Xie Yuan a strange look, his brow twitching slightly.

"Xie Yuan, on what grounds do you speak to me like that? Who do you think you are?"

The corners of his mouth turned down in a sneer as he stood on the steps of the main gate, looking down on Xie Yuan.

Even when the Escort Agency was still around, he was the master of the One Blade Martial Hall, and even Shen Longteng had to show him some respect.

And though Xie Yuan was famous, his prestige surely couldn’t surpass his own—the master of a martial hall that had been established for years.

Now that the Escort Agency was gone, he, Chen Su, was the undisputed number one practitioner of the Martial Dao in Yunzhao County. How could he tolerate a junior like Xie Yuan ordering him around?

’No matter how strong he is, he’s just a junior. How strong could he possibly be? He just got lucky, picking up the pieces after the rest of the Escort Agency and the Vajra Sect crippled each other. The Escort Agency is just trying to create some young hero!’

’Besides, isn’t Wang Chengpeng right here beside me?’

Wang Chengpeng also looked down at Xie Yuan, scrutinizing him from head to toe and tightening his grip on his greatspear.

He was from another county and only vaguely understood the local situation. Though he found the young man before him incredibly reckless, he still instinctively raised his guard.

Seeing their Hall Master’s anger, the surrounding disciples chimed in, shouting and jeering as they crowded around Xie Yuan.

Xie Yuan remained unmoved. He looked at Chen Su and said matter-of-factly:

"I’ll give you one stick of incense. After that time is up, if there’s anyone left inside who isn’t from the Escort Agency, don’t blame me for starting a massacre."

The quiet words left his lips, his voice not loud, yet they instantly quelled the uproar once more.

The curses from the surrounding disciples dwindled, then died out completely.

It wasn’t just the men from the One Blade Martial Hall who heard Xie Yuan’s threat; the onlookers lining the street heard it crystal clear, and they all looked at each other in stunned silence.

They were eager to watch Master Xie cause trouble for the One Blade Martial Hall...

...but they had never expected to see Master Xie, all alone, threaten the entire martial hall.

’This Xie Yuan... has he gone mad?’

’No matter how strong you are, numbers still matter! Even if Chief Shen himself were resurrected, he wouldn’t boast about wiping out an entire martial hall single-handedly. Not even a master in the Qi and Blood Metamorphosis Realm would be this brazen.’

"Have you lost your mind? A massacre? In a minute, we’ll be the ones knocking your teeth all over the ground!"

"The Escort Agency is gone, Master Xie. Shouldn’t you be at home in mourning instead of acting like a madman here? Why not just tuck your tail between your legs and be grateful you’re still alive?"

"We’re doing you a favor by using your residence, not even minding the bad luck clinging to it! Pah! And you’re still putting on airs!"

Hearing this threat of annihilation, the disciples of the One Blade Martial Hall were enraged. If they didn’t secretly fear they couldn’t beat him, they would have already attacked together instead of just running their mouths.

Wang Chengpeng shook his head slightly, concluding that Xie Yuan must be delirious with grief. ’How else could he be so foolish?’ Of course, he didn’t lower his guard. While men like this posed no real threat, one still had to be wary of them suddenly lashing out in a mad frenzy.

Chen Su’s face grew thunderous. If he didn’t respond after being threatened repeatedly by a junior in front of so many people, his martial hall would lose all credibility.

He clasped his hands behind his back and said coldly:

"Xie Yuan, I’ll stand right here for one stick of incense, for an hour, for a day, for a year! What can you possibly do to me? Let me tell you, I am quite fond of this residence, and my One Blade Martial Hall is taking it! You insolent brat, with no elders to teach you any manners! Today, I’m going to see just what you’re made of..."

Before he could finish, Xie Yuan looked him up and down and cut in abruptly:

"I wasn’t talking to you just now."

Chen Su froze for a second, then sneered.

"Trying to back down now? It’s too late!"

Just as Xie Yuan was about to speak, he suddenly heard a shout from down the street:

"Xie Yuan, Xie Yuan! Don’t be rash! We can talk this out!"

He turned and saw Qin Hai rushing over with a group of former members of the Escort Agency.

When Qin Hai and the others drew near, they saw Xie Yuan completely surrounded, with the auras of two Fourth Training experts pressing down on him. They grew extremely anxious.

’To be surrounded so tightly... one wrong move and he’d be hacked to pieces. Even the Chief would have had to be extremely careful in this situation. Xie Yuan is being far too reckless!’

He saw the cold look in Chen Su’s eyes and, though reluctant, lowered his head respectfully and cupped his fists.

"Hall Master Chen, Master Xie has just heard the terrible news. He is young and hot-headed. Please, be magnanimous and don’t hold it against him. Do our Escort Agency this favor..."

"A favor? Your Longteng Escort Agency is gone. What favor do you have left to give? With this small handful of men, you’re weaker than any minor martial hall in the city!"

Chen Su snorted coldly and pointed a finger down at Xie Yuan.

"This brat is arrogant, defiant, and courting death. For the sake of my past acquaintance with Shen Longteng, I’ll break an arm and a leg but spare his life. I’ll consider that merciful enough!"

Qin Hai’s face turned pale. The Escort Team had indeed suffered grievous losses. These men were all who could come, led by a few at the Second Training level. They were barely the size of a small-town martial hall, let alone one in Yunzhao County.

’This isn’t the Longteng Escort Agency of old. Our very home has been taken by this man. How can we possibly expect mercy...’

His face was ashen, but he still gritted his teeth and cupped his fists.

"Hall Master Chen..."

"Say no more! My mind is made up!"

Chen Su waved his hand impatiently, then turned back to Xie Yuan, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Are these the helpers you were waiting for? Did you think I would spare you because of them? How naive. How innocent. So young and promising... You live up to your title, Master Xie."

Xie Yuan silently met Chen Su’s gaze. Only after he had finished speaking did Xie Yuan say calmly:

"Are you done?"

The three simple words showed he was completely unfazed by Chen Su’s raging arrogance.

Chen Su felt a surge of unease under that gaze, and the calm tone only stoked his simmering anger.

’This bastard... it’s like he’s never taken me seriously, not even for a second. The sheer arrogance!’

The One Blade Martial Hall was on the rise; even the Piaoyu Sect and Sword Monarch Hall kept their distance from him. The old powers of Yunzhao were gone—the greatest Escort Agency and the Vajra Sect had fallen. Now, his hall stood alone as the dominant force.

Lately, Chen Su had been basking in constant flattery. Seated in the position of Yunzhao’s top Martial Artist, he was practically walking on air. Who would ever dare threaten him to his face?

His expression darkened completely. His tone, however, slowed, becoming dangerously calm.

"Fine. I’ve changed my mind. Since you’re so determined to champion the Escort Agency, you can join them in the afterlife today."

Xie Yuan looked at him and asked again:

"If you’re finished with your nonsense, it’s my turn to speak. I keep getting interrupted..."

A vein throbbed on Chen Su’s temple as he stared intently at him.

"Do you have any last words?"

Qin Hai and his men were held back at the perimeter by the martial hall’s disciples, unable to do anything. They desperately tried to signal Xie Yuan, urging him to beg for mercy, but Xie Yuan paid them no mind. He simply looked at Chen Su and said calmly:

"As I said, my previous words were not for you."

Hearing this, Qin Hai and the others breathed a small sigh of relief, only to hear Xie Yuan continue:

"I was speaking to everyone else.

"Everyone else has one stick of incense to pack their things and get out. They can live.

"But you are a dead man today. Why does a dead man talk so much?"

At his words, the entire street fell dead silent.

The veins on Chen Su’s forehead bulged, throbbing violently. Suddenly, he let out a dark chuckle.

"Good! Since you’re so eager to die, I’ll grant your wish! I’d like to see how someone like you is going to kill me!

"Everyone, get back!"

He barked at his disciples to clear the way, then strode to the front of the gate. With his hand resting on the hilt of the long blade at his waist, he glared coldly at Xie Yuan.

"Draw your weapon! Today, I will show you that my One Blade Martial Hall..."

Chen Su’s words came to an abrupt stop.

In one fluid motion, Xie Yuan drew his long blade. A single, wolf-like lunge accompanied by the phantom howl of a great wolf, and then he sheathed his blade and stood perfectly still.

Before the last of Chen Su’s words had faded, his head was already flying through the air, lips still moving.

Everyone saw Xie Yuan’s movement with perfect, crystalline clarity, yet no one could react. The image was seared into their minds, but it all happened faster than anyone could process.

With two dull thuds, Chen Su’s head bounced on the ground.

The sound finally snapped them back to reality, just in time to see the headless corpse still standing, a fountain of blood erupting from its neck, its hand still resting on the hilt of its blade.

Hall Master Chen...

...was dead?

The onlookers held their breath, exchanging furtive glances as if to confirm that what they had just witnessed was real.

The Hall Master of the One Blade Martial Hall, the new top expert of the Martial Dao in Yunzhao County, couldn’t even survive a single strike from Master Xie?

A commotion broke out among the martial hall disciples who had been surrounding Xie Yuan. They scattered, keeping their distance, their terrified eyes darting between Xie Yuan and their master’s headless corpse.

’This man... this man killed the Hall Master without even breaking a sweat!’

’What level of power is that? Could it be...’

The disciples’ legs grew weak. Recalling how they had just been crowding around Xie Yuan, hurling insults, they began to quietly retreat, trying to disappear into the crowd of onlookers.

Qin Hai and the men from the Escort Agency stared at Xie Yuan in stunned disbelief.

’So Master Xie wasn’t killed by the Grandmaster... his power has grown even stronger?’

’In that last strike, it was as if they saw the Chief himself.’

They stood dazed for a long moment, their eyes fixed on the Longteng Escort Agency emblem embroidered on Xie Yuan’s clothes. Suddenly, their eyes welled with tears.

’The Longteng Escort Agency, and Xie Yuan... they aren’t finished yet!’

Xie Yuan swept his gaze over the terrified faces of the martial hall disciples and stated nonchalantly:

"Half a stick of incense remains."

He didn’t spare the corpse before him a second glance. In his eyes, the man had been dead already, just a walking corpse that could talk.

He had been a dead man from the day he stepped into the Escort Agency and drove out the Chief’s family.

Hearing Xie Yuan’s calm reminder, the martial hall’s disciples jolted as if waking from a nightmare, a collective shiver running through them.

’Has the timer been running this whole time?’

No longer daring to treat his deadly ultimatum as a joke, they exchanged a look and then swarmed into the Escort Agency building to grab their things.

Xie Yuan glanced at Wang Chengpeng, who stood frozen by the gate, his eyes wide with shock and profound fear. Noting the greatspear clutched in his hand, Xie Yuan asked with a hint of confusion:

"Are you also from the One Blade Martial Hall?"

Wang Chengpeng flinched under Xie Yuan’s gaze. With a sharp movement, he put away his greatspear and said hastily:

"I am not! I don’t even use a blade! I’m from the neighboring county, just passing through. Master Xie, I have urgent business, so I’ll take my leave!"

He took two tentative steps sideways. Seeing that Xie Yuan made no move to stop him, he immediately broke into a brisk walk and hurried away from the Escort Agency.

Wang Chengpeng had the highest cultivation of anyone present. When Xie Yuan attacked, he had been gripping his spear, his body subconsciously moving to react, but he was a fraction of a second too slow. He could only watch, paralyzed, as Chen Su was beheaded by that single strike.

Afterward, he felt an almost imperceptible blade intent envelop him, freezing him in place. He didn’t dare move a muscle. It wasn’t until Xie Yuan let him go that he finally let out a huge sigh of relief, grateful that his reaction had been too slow and he hadn’t drawn his spear. If he had been even a fraction of a second faster, he would have shared Chen Su’s fate.

’Dammit, what God of Slaughter did Chen Su provoke? He nearly dragged me down with him...’

Wang Chengpeng risked a glance back and saw Xie Yuan, with a casual flick of his wrist, mercilessly cut down two Direct Disciples who had charged out to avenge their master. A fresh shiver ran down his spine. He whipped his head forward, not daring to look again, and quickened his pace out of Yunzhao County, vowing never again to get mixed up in the troubles of this place.

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