Chapter Fifty-Nine: Soul Lure

A heavy darkness silently shrouded the land.

The night wind drifted in from afar.

At the entrance to the mountain path, a slender, white figure appeared without warning.

It was none other than Lady Qin of Zhen Family Village.

Her plain, simple dress could not conceal the graceful curves of her form.

Her bright, clear eyes swept to either side.

Lady Qin's gaze settled on a boulder beside the path.

She raised her right hand, and with slender, jade-like fingers, pointed toward the stone from a distance.

The boulder, weighing several hundred pounds, seemed to be lifted by an invisible force.

It slid several paces to the right.

At once, the earth beneath it stirred and parted.

The corpse of the man in the bamboo hat "floated" up from the ground.

With a dull thud, a heavy pouch made of beast hide slipped from his embrace.

A brightly colored, massive centipede darted out of the bag!

Seeing this, Lady Qin furrowed her brows.

With a crisp snap of her fingers, the centipede burst apart at the sound, instantly dissolving into a sticky, viscous pulp.

Lady Qin let out a cold laugh.

This was a common, insidious trick among wandering fighters: rearing a venomous parasite, useful for ambushing enemies.

If one died in battle and a foe, succumbing to greed, searched the body for loot, they would risk a fatal bite.

Even if one survived such a wound, they would be left in agony.

And if the intended foe was spared, yet an innocent passerby fell victim instead—at least there would be company on the road to the underworld.

Lady Qin's gaze sharpened.

Behind her, a vast, silvery phantom emerged, sweeping over the corpse in an instant before vanishing.

A hazy, gray remnant of a soul drifted from the body.

Lady Qin extended her fingers, curling them into a claw, and seized the ghostly fragment from afar.

The remnant soul had all its limbs, and its features matched the man in the bamboo hat exactly.

But its expression was lost and terrified.

Lady Qin tightened her grip.

Sensing impending doom, the remnant soul struggled violently, opening its mouth in a silent scream.

But its strength was far too feeble.

A soft "pop" sounded, and the soul dispersed into nothing.

Lady Qin pressed her lips together, then blew gently into her palm.

"Shadow Pavilion!"

She murmured, "These hired blades are growing restless again."

Suddenly, Lady Qin turned her head to the left.

In a clear, commanding voice, she called, "Come out!"

After a moment, a young girl timidly emerged from the shadows of the thicket.

It was Sophora.

Lady Qin frowned, scolding, "You little minx, when did you become so disobedient?"

"I told you not to come, yet you secretly followed me here. Did you think your mother wouldn't know?"

Sophora, looking guilty, reached out and tugged at the hem of Lady Qin's dress.

In a soft, trembling voice, she said, "Mother, I'm sorry."

"You—!" Lady Qin tapped her younger daughter's forehead with a finger. "Such a troublesome girl!"

Sophora hung her head and pouted, stubbornness flashing in her eyes.

"Forget it," Lady Qin sighed, resigned.

She waved her hand.

A wisp of ghostly flame appeared from nowhere, descending upon the dead man.

With a whoosh, blue fire blazed skyward, illuminating a wide swath of land.

But the spectacle lasted only a few heartbeats before vanishing.

And with it, the corpse disappeared as well.

Lady Qin took her daughter's small hand, her slender waist swaying as she vanished into the night.

The boulder, which had been moved aside, suddenly rolled back into place, settling perfectly over the pit.

The mountain path was still once more.

"Ugh!"

In the courtyard of the Little Jing Mountain Daoist Temple, Fang Xiao, who had just finished a meal, let out a burp.

He scratched his head in confusion.

For some reason, he felt as though he'd narrowly escaped a disaster.

How odd!

After pondering, Fang Xiao concluded the real problem was his own weakness, which left him feeling insecure.

He knew well that the reason he had managed to stab the man in the bamboo hat to death was not because he was superior in skill.

It was because the enemy had underestimated him!

Fang Xiao had sensed the threat the moment the killer appeared, and so he had staked everything on that one thrust.

Victory or death!

The arrogant man in the bamboo hat had dismissed him as weak, assuming victory was assured.

That was what led to his demise.

Fang Xiao did not believe he could always rely on such luck.

So long as his enemies saw him as insignificant, he would survive.

But in the end, only by growing strong—unyieldingly strong—could he defeat all manner of demons and monsters.

From then on, Fang Xiao devoted himself to his spear training with even greater intensity—one could even call it obsession.

At the Six Rivers Academy, he became a figure unlike any other.

He did not socialize with classmates, nor did he seek out groups or cliques.

He poured all his study hours into martial arts.

Each morning, Fang Xiao practiced his spear work in Lin Chong's private courtyard, receiving the teacher's guidance.

After lunch, he returned to continue training.

Though much of the time Lin Chong had to instruct other new students and could not always be present, it made no difference to Fang Xiao.

He never relaxed his standards simply because no one was watching.

Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of thrusts.

Sweat fell in countless drops on the stone tiles, seeping into the earth through the cracks.

His clothes were soaked and dried, over and over—never truly clean.

One day, two days, ten days...

Time passed.

No matter how monotonous the martial life, or how exhausted he felt, Fang Xiao never thought of giving up.

Because each small increase in experience recorded in the Red Sun Manual brought him the joy of progress.

[Red Sun Manual]
[Unshakable in Martial Ways, Impervious to All Arts, Immune to All Evil]
[Dragon-Tiger Stance (Perfected)]
[Demon-Subduing Fist (Mastered): 0/80]
[Lin Family Spear (Proficient): 39/40]
[Long River Setting Sun Spear (Adept): 17/20]
[Experience: 0]
[...]

With just one more experience point, Fang Xiao could elevate the Lin Family Spear to mastery—a result of his month-long diligence.

Nor could this achievement be separated from Lin Chong's patient instruction.

In fact, after reaching proficiency, progress slowed considerably.

Without doubled effort and perseverance, such results would have been impossible.

Moreover, Lin Chong kept his promise and taught Fang Xiao the Long River Setting Sun Spear as well.

Fang Xiao learned it quickly.

He also discovered that practicing the Lin Family Spear and Long River Setting Sun Spear together yielded outstanding results.

Thus, even though he began the latter later and spent less time on it, his progress was not slow.

After finishing his studies for the day, Fang Xiao left the Six Rivers Academy.

As he walked out of the martial hall, he ignored the curious or wary glances of those around him.

He was long accustomed to it.

As always, he mounted his sturdy blue donkey, rode to Zhen Family Village to collect his supper, and then returned to the Little Jing Mountain Daoist Temple.