Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World-Chapter 147 - 106: Rising Fame! Undercurrents Surging!_2

Just now, it was merely using Xiong Jianmei as a whetstone to test the weapon. Now that the test is done, there is naturally no need to let him live. Such tricks may work on others, but before Gu Sheng, they are mere child’s play.

Buzz!

A faint humming sound could be heard, and a layer of pale blood-red qi surfaced on Gu Sheng’s body as the Qi Blood Power hidden within him erupted like a torrent.

Xiong Jianmei’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"Blood Refining Realm! How is this possible?"

In an instant, he sensed the robust surge of Qi Blood coursing through Gu Sheng — a power he had yearned for desperately. He had been stuck at the bottleneck of his flesh-and-blood limits for years. Confronting an assassin wasn’t just a challenge; it was also an attempt to ignite his breakthrough.

But he never imagined it would draw a Blood Refining Realm assassin to him instead.

Blood Refining assassins were a rarity, and they hardly bothered to hunt down fugitives below Blood Refining Realm.

"Escape! Run!"

His decisiveness was unparalleled. In an instant, he let go of his Soft Sword, abandoning any thoughts of attacking the exposed throat in front of him. He knew a Blood Refining master would never let such a ploy succeed. His figure abruptly retreated with explosive speed.

Gu Sheng grinned, his Qi and blood surging, making his expression even more ferocious.

"Trying to run?"

With the Qi Blood Power enhancing him, his strength leapt several levels. Just a shake and a sway, and the Soft Sword slipped from the axe handle, rebounding and embedding itself into the stone wall.

Gu Sheng’s leg muscles were as hard as iron, suffused with Qi Blood. He took two thunderous steps forward.

In a flash, he closed the gap with Xiong Jianmei.

"Die!" freēwēbnovel.com

With a roar thundering in his heart, Gu Sheng’s eyes bulged. His arm muscles swelled, veins rising visibly. The axe strike—Chopping Wood at the First-level—augmented by Qi Blood Power, carried a terrifying momentum. The raging gale roared as it slashed toward the fleeing swordsman.

Rip!

Like a sharp paper cutter slicing through paper, there was no resistance. Even the flesh-and-blood body that had reached its limit provided Xiong Jianmei little defense against the strike; a metal plate he wore on his chest was also effortlessly torn apart.

Xiong Jianmei’s fleeing body came to a sudden halt, his chest splitting to reveal a slowly widening bloodline. Straining to lower his head, he saw a vivid slash of crimson blooming on his chest. Before he could get a clear view of the scarlet behind it, the world tilted violently, his sight spinning into chaos. Fragments of bones and a jumble of viscera spilled out in all directions.

One chop cleaved his torso in two.

Survival was impossible.

Gu Sheng exhaled slowly, stepping forward to sever the head. Unexpectedly, Xiong Jianmei, with only half his body remaining, had not yet died. On the brink of death, his Qi Blood faintly transformed, extending his life for a fleeting moment. He didn’t look at Gu Sheng but at the corpse of the young boy nearby.

"Help... help me... bury... Xiao Nian... thank you..."

His words came out in broken fragments.

Gu Sheng nodded slowly.

"Alright."

Relief seemed to flicker in Xiong Jianmei’s eyes before his vitality faded entirely. With a sweep of Gu Sheng’s massive axe, a severed head dropped into his hands, still dripping blood.

As for whatever bond existed between Xiong Jianmei and the boy, Gu Sheng neither cared nor intended to find out. A final, small dying request — it was nothing more than a casual favor. It didn’t conflict with his mission to kill Xiong Jianmei.

After searching the body briefly, he pocketed his spoils into a leather bag. With a cold glance at his surroundings, Gu Sheng picked up the boy’s corpse and left.

...

Outside the town, he hastily dug a pit and buried the boy.

Gu Sheng then made a trip to the Canghe County yamen, where, under the awe-filled gaze of a scribe, he collected his reward money. Afterward, he returned to Gu’s Manor.

In the courtyard.

Gu Sheng reflected on the blade-handling bounty task he had just undertaken.

"For my first mission as a blade handler, it went fairly well. It took a total of four days, and just the reward money alone brought in a hundred taels. Additionally, I found items and silver worth over a hundred taels on Xiong Jianmei. The harvest wasn’t bad."

A smile broke across his lips.

Generally speaking, even with an intelligence advantage, missions like this aren’t easy to complete.

These bandits are excellent at hiding, especially those adept at disguise. They won’t just sit still in one place. A single mission might take one or two months, and there’s still no guarantee of success.

Although there were minor surprises on this first mission, it was overall fairly perfect.

"That said, even a Xiong Jianmei managed to conceal so much strength. I must be more cautious when taking future contracts."

"To ensure safety, I’ll limit myself to targets with strength no higher than entry-level Blood Refining Realm. This way, even if the target hides their full strength, I can still handle it, keeping risks manageable."

"To avoid wasting time, I should also steer clear of targets skilled in movement techniques or disguise."

"As for taking missions, once a month should suffice."

Gu Sheng set out several principles for himself in undertaking future contracts.

While blade-handling missions were lucrative, they were, after all, life-threatening endeavors. Even someone as powerful as Gu Sheng, capable of overwhelming opponents, did not want to overextend himself. Ensuring his own safety was his top priority.

Earning enough silver to support his cultivation was sufficient.

Under no circumstances should the order of priorities be disrupted.

"Right now, I consume more than a dozen portions of Strengthening Blood Powder each month. If progress remains steady, I should be able to advance to Great Success in Blood Refining by the year’s end!"

Gu Sheng was pleased with his progress.

He had always been methodical and steady. Apart from the early, difficult period when survival itself was a struggle, which cost him a lot of time to stabilize, his cultivation had since been on track. His pace wasn’t lightning-fast, but it was far from slow.

Even Gu Xiaojiang, known as a rare genius with plenty of resources and merely needing diligent cultivation, was still only at the Jade Skin Realm.