The Attack Of The Wastrel

hapter 209 – Refuge in a Tree

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As the situation took a critical turn, Gu Lingzhi did not think twice as she leaned backwards, and half her body fell out of the carriage . She hooked both her feet tightly at the edge of the Wildebeest carriage . She dodged another of Su Nian’s attacks .

Wei Hanzi rushed over and slashed her long sword, covered in fire spiritual energy, directly towards Su Nian’s head .

Su Nian’s expression changed as he rolled on the floor, narrowly escaping her attack . Impatience flashed in his eyes . Just a little more and he would have succeeded .

“Are you okay?” Forcing Su Nian to retreat, Wei Hanzi helped Gu Lingzhi reenter the carriage and look over her worriedly .

“I am okay . You should be careful,” Gu Lingzhi said as she regained her footing .

Su Nian was about to descend on them as rocks fell from the sky and his blade was aimed for Wei Hanzi .

“Since you have a death wish, I shall fulfill it for you!”

Gu Lingzhi retrieved the Protective Jade Pendant that Rong Yuan had once again replaced for her and threw it at Su Nian . She had about ten of these Jade pendants and if she used it in coordination with Wei Hanzi, they might be able to defeat Su Nian .

Wei Hanzi immediately understood what Gu Lingzhi was trying and drew her sword and pulled Su Nian away from Gu Lingzhi . Gu Lingzhi remained at the side, interfering with her Jade Pendant and blocking Su Nian’s attack whenever Wei Hanzi was in danger . After a few times, Su Nian became irritated as he looked sinisterly at Gu Lingzhi and stopped what he was doing .

As the both of them were staring at each other, Wei Hanzi suddenly let out a miserable cry . A meter-long stone formation protruded from the ground, infused with metal . It had pierced through one of Wei Hanzi’s legs . Luckily, she managed to dodge in time such that it was only her leg that had gotten hit .

Su Nian took the chance and flew towards Wei Hanzi before even her cries could die out . He struck out at Wei Hanzi repeatedly .

Gu Lingzhi quickly threw down another Jade Pendant to block the attack but was not as fast as Su Nian and he managed to get a few hits on Wei Hanzi . The stench of blood quickly filled the carriage as blood seeped from Wei Hanzi’s wounds .

“Hanzi!” Gu Lingzhi cried out and called her real name by accident .

“Don’t worry . After I kill her, I am coming for you next . ” Smiling slyly, Su Nian lifted his sword and stabbed violently towards Wei Hanzi .

Gu Lingzhi murmured, “Wood spiritual energy, bind!”

Thick vines suddenly appeared around Su Nian’s body and started to wound tightly around Su Nian as if capturing a live animal . It was the seed of the vine that Gu Lingzhi had secretly planted on Su Nian when she was interfering and distracting him . When it was activated by her wood spiritual energy, they binded Su Nian up .

“Throw him off the carriage!” Gu Lingzhi growled .

Wei Hanzi immediately lifted her leg and kicked him . Su Nian only managed to block his vital points in time before he was kicked violently out of the carriage . The huge force caused him to burst through the carriage walls and fall out of the carriage . Afraid that he would catch up, Gu Lingzhi used up what was remaining of her spiritual energy and activated the secret ability of her Fengwu Sword – Fire Meteor .

In a split second, fire meteors the size of human heads, carried bits of rock as they flew towards the sound of Su Nian’s cries . It obstructed Su Nian, who had already gotten out of the wooden binds and was trying to reenter the carriage .

When he finally managed to escape from the fire meteors, the wildebeest carriage that was carrying Gu Lingzhi and Wei Hanzi had already hurtled past . All that was left was a dirt road signaling his failure .

Two years of hiding just to complete his mission from that person . However, just as he finally made a move, he had failed . Su Nian refused to give up as he activated his spiritual energy and tried his best to catch up with the carriage . However, the carriage was much faster and pulled further and further away . He finally gave up when there was no hope of catching up .

If he knew that this was going to happen, he would not have used the fastest wildebeest carriage to bring Gu Lingzhi out of Yan Capital . Now, it was helping her escape .

On the contrary to his unhappiness, Gu Lingzhi and Wei Hanzi were overjoyed that they were able to escape .

“Who would have known that Su Nian could actually hide in the Royal School for so long by suppressing his cultivation level . The Royal School should filter their students more carefully . ”

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Wei Hanzi nodded her head in agreement . Although she was also of the Martial Lord rank, she was clearly not Su Nian’s match . She took over the carriage and changed the direction at which they were moving away from the Yan Capital .

If we head back now, we might fall into another trap . We should find a safe place to hide for a while and wait for Master to find us . ”

“Okay, I wonder what happened to the Secret Guards . ”

Wei Hanzi’s expression stiffened as she fell silent .

The Secret Guards were a part of the Death Troops . For the convenience of the Inter-school Compet.i.tion, they all had their unique methods of communicating .

It has been about half an hour since she had lost contact with the Secret Guards and she still had not gotten any information from them . She was afraid that… the worst had happened .

All these guesses made Wei Hanzi feel a sense of distress . However, it was only for a fleeting moment before she scolded herself .

Did she think she was a free person after pretending to be the Black Thorn for so long? Wasn’t the sole reason for the Death Troops existence to ensure the safety of their master? It was their fate to sacrifice themselves to protect Gu Lingzhi .

Wei Hanzi’s gaze hardened as she thought about this . No matter what, she would ensure Gu Lingzhi was safe . She would hand her over to Rong Yuan completely unscathed .

The area outside the Yan Capital was flat and it was not easy to hide . Gu Lingzhi and Wei Hanzi’s carriage rolled on for a long period before stopping at a relatively small forest to hide .

“This place is conspicuous and small . It’s not very suitable for hiding . ” Wei Hanzi rushed to say as she saw Gu Lingzhi exit the carriage .

“It is indeed unsuitable for hiding . ” Gu Lingzhi glanced at her surroundings and laughed . “The people chasing us will think the same way . ”

Gu Lingzhi then walked to a tree that had the width of about a water bucket and knocked on the trunk . She knocked on the trunk from its base to where she could no longer reach . She then turned to Wei Hanzi and said softly, “This forest isn’t that big and the people chasing us will most likely not waste too much time looking around here . Why don’t we hide in the tree?”

Wei Hanzi did not understand, “How do we hide?”

“Just like this . ”

Gu Lingzhi then climbed to the halfway point of the tree, cutting into the tree with her Fengwu sword . Before long, she had created a two-foot gap in the trunk . She then dug out the inside of the tree until it was empty enough to fit a person in it . To Wei Hanzi’s astonishment, Gu Lingzhi hopped into the tree and disappeared from sight .

When she put the last piece of tree bark in place, a light voice asked from within the tree, “How is it? Can you tell that there is anyone inside?”

“I can’t tell!” Wei Hanzi happily copied what Gu Lingzhi did and made a hiding place for herself in the next tree .

In the meantime, Gu Lingzhi fed the wildebeests before hitting their back and sending them on their way . The well-rested Wildebeests then pulled the carriage and ran off .

Gu Lingzhi then went and hid in her tree . Wei Hanzi was also done with hers and did the same .

They only hid for a while before the sound of hoofs could be heard from afar . Soon, the sound stopped at the forest which the two of them were hiding at .

“Search . Be careful not to miss anything out . ”

A rough voice barked out an order and the sound of footsteps soon filled Gu Lingzhi’s ears .

Carefully, she peered out of the small gap that she had made earlier and saw about ten over masked men . Their leader was wearing an ugly black mask . This weird shape of the mask was similar to the one that Wei Hanzi was wearing .

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This black masked man wanted to kill her…

A familiar image flashed into Gu Lingzhi’s mind . She seemed to have seen or heard this before . But in that moment, she could not put a finger as to why he seemed familiar . The masked man’s subordinates were done checking the forest once over and did not find any traces of them .

Taking one last look at the forest, the masked man waved his hand and ordered everyone to mount their horses and continue forwards .

“I don’t believe that Gu Lingzhi could have escaped . ”

This time, in order to kill Gu Lingzhi while she was in the Yan Capital, they had activated quite a number of their men . They had surrounded the entire Yan Capital in all directions . No matter where Gu Lingzhi appeared, they would be able to find her .  This time, Gu Lingzhi was sure to die!

Yet, Gu Lingzhi had escaped right under his nose .

When the group left, Gu Lingzhi then carefully crawled out of the tree . She exchanged glances with Wei Hanzi who was doing the same thing . Both of them had a solemn look on their faces .

It seemed like the person behind Su Nian was quite powerful . He was actually able to send so many people after them in such a short period of time . It seems like Wei Hanzi was right, when the enemy was so strong and they were weak, they could only wait for Rong Yuan to come and rescue them .

The two of them crawled back into the tree simultaneously, reading each other’s minds . Thankfully, they had both chosen a large tree and were able to sit in it .

Their decision was on point . Not long after the both of them hid back in their trees, another group of masked men appeared . When nightfall finally came, there were already about five batches of men looking for them . And Rong Yuan had yet to be seen…

“Rong Yuan, the Eight Treasure Jade soup from the Fuyue Restaurant is not always available . Today’s Eight Treasure Jade soup is made from the Shadow Leopard, do you want to try it?”

Rong Yuan picked up a piece of Shadow Leopard meat and placed it in his mouth . Although the meat of a fifth-order demon beast was not as tender as normal beasts, it had a special bite to it . Along with the ingredients of the Eight Treasure Jade soup, the flavor was really extraordinary . What was even more incredible was that whoever ate it would receive the energy in the Shadow Leopard’s meat upon swallowing it . It would dissolve to become spiritual energy and help improve one’s cultivation . This was the reason why the Eight Treasure Jade soup was so popular among Martial Artists .

Chapter 208 – Su Nian’s True Colors

The first round of duels in the final rounds for the Martial Pract.i.tioner category was over . What everyone was talking about was not the b.l.o.o.d.y scene involving Xin Yi, nor the feud between Rong Yuan and Gu Lingzhi, nor was it Song Ze’s b.l.o.o.d.y combat . They were all talking about the Black Thorn .

When Gu Lingzhi was competing, it was only at the very last minute that she showed the power of her Earth-Level Spiritual Weapon . At that time, everyone was just slightly suspicious . However, later on when Tianfeng Jin competed, the entire arena buzzed .

An Earth-Level Spiritual Weapon!

It was the second Earth-Level Spiritual Weapon that appeared during the compet.i.tion today . But that was not the important part, what was important was the weird and awkward shape of Tianfeng Jin’s long sword that was unique to the Black Thorn’s work .

In the past two years, everyone knew about the uncommon Weapon Forger in the Xia Kingdom . Every Spiritual Weapon made was different and each was weirder than the next . However, they would contain unique properties that other Spiritual Weapons did not have . It caused lower-ranked Martial Artists to have a love-hate relations.h.i.+p with the weapons she made .

Today, they once again saw weirdly shaped Earth-Level Spiritual Weapons . Did this mean that… the Black Thorn had become an Earth-Level Weapon Forger?

Someone then confirmed this with a student from the Royal School .

Quickly, numerous Martial Lords and Martial Sages were interested . In the past, the Black Thorn’s weapons were only Black-Level ones and were thus not of concern to them . Now, the Black Thorn could make Earth-Level Spiritual Weapons that they needed .

After all, every Martial Artist seeked a weapon that could make them stronger .

When the news of the Black Thorn becoming an Earth-Level Weapon Forger spread through the entire First School and into the Yan City, Zhang Kuihan boiled with anger .

Why? It was an Earth-Level Spiritual Weapon that they worked on together . He had spent so many days working on it but had yet to see an improvement . Yet the Black Thorn was able to advance before him? How could someone from a weaker country than him be stronger than him? He had to become an Earth-Level Weapon Forger as quickly as possible . Otherwise, he would become the laughing stock of his entire school!

Gu Lingzhi, who had a restful sleep, never expected the weapons she made for her and Tianfeng Jin to create such an uproar . The next morning, as she was about to watch Yan Liang and Nie Sang compete, she was stopped at the door .

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“Is this Lady Black Thorn?” a robust and healthy-looking man wearing a mud yellow robe hurriedly asked as they stepped out of the door .

Wei Hanzi was mildly stunned as confusion flashed across her face under her mask, “That’s me, can I help you?”

“Haha, Lady Black Thorn, I’ve heard of you and heard that you are already an Earth-Level Weapon Forger . I wonder if you could make a Spiritual Weapon for me? As long as the quality of the Spiritual Weapon is good, money is not an issue . ”

He came to ask for weapons . Wei Hanzi tilted her head as she looked towards Gu Lingzhi, asking for her opinion . After receiving a negative reply, she proceeded to reject him, “I’m sorry, I currently do not have time to make weapons . I am afraid I can’t help you . ”

“Wait, hear me out . ” The yellow-robed Martial Artist misunderstood that Wei Hanzi rejected him because she was afraid of failing as she was a new Earth-Level Weapon Forger . If not, she would also not have made Earth-Level Spiritual Weapons for lower-ranked Martial Artists to test out .

“You don’t have to make a Spiritual Weapon for me now, you can contact me when you are more confident,” the man then pa.s.sed Wei Hanzi a slip of paper with his contact information . It was obvious that he had expected this beforehand .

“I think you’ve misunderstood . ” Impatience flashed across Wei Hanzi’s face, “I won’t be helping anyone forge weapons and will not forge any weapons in the North Qiu Kingdom . If you are interested, you can find me in the Chiyang City of the Xia Kingdom when this compet.i.tion ends . When the time comes, you can look for weapons that I made in the Store of Many Treasures and buy them from there . ”

The man’s expression changed after hearing Wei Hanzi speak . It was obvious that Wei Hanzi was not willing to give him a chance at all . He was about to burst out in anger but was cut off by Gu Lingzhi, “The Black Thorn only personally customises Spiritual Weapons for people that are close to her . The rest of the Spiritual Weapons are still made carefully . If you still need a weapon, you can try the visiting the Store of Many Treasures in about two months . Maybe you will find a suitable weapon . ”

After her explanation, Gu Lingzhi then took Wei Hanzi’s hand and quickly left the area .

She still had to rush to pa.s.s the two Spiritual Weapons that she made the night before to Yan Liang and Nie Sang .

A day later, the news that another two students from the Xia Kingdom’s Royal School possessing Earth-Level Spiritual Weapons once again shocked the public . This time, even those that were suspicious of the standard of Black Thorn’s Weapon Forging skills could not no longer attribute it to luck .

One or two successes could be counted as luck . However, with four successes it was clear that she had the abilities to do so .

In a flash, it was time for the second round of duels .

In the first round, Su Nian was unlucky and met with one of the Martial Students with very high potential to win the champions.h.i.+p . He lost the first round as a result .

Although he lost, Su Nian was still very cheerful . This was because Gu Lingzhi had given him a middle grade Black-Level Spiritual Weapon before the compet.i.tion and this was the highest possible grade of weapon that could be used by Martial Students .

“Lingzhi, I really love this sword . I want to engrave my name on it so that if I lose it, others will know it is mine and return it to me . ”

If you lose it, won’t it most likely be sold or used by whoever found it?

Gu Lingzhi swallowed what she really wanted to say and instead smiled as she said, “No worries, all I did was provide the materials . The one who actually made the weapon is the Black Thorn . ”

Su Nian immediately turned to thank Wei Hanzi and looked at Gu Lingzhi expectantly, “Lingzhi, I want to treat you to a meal as a way of expressing my thanks . ”

“Sure . ” If she did not let him treat her, he would not feel comfortable using the weapon and hence Gu Lingzhi agreed .

Su Nian lit up with joy, happy that he got what he wished for, “Then let’s do it today . It is about time for lunch and I know a good place to eat near the Yan Capital . We can go there . ”

Su Nian was done with his fight and there was no one else from the Royal School that was competing today, hence Gu Lingzhi did not object . Under Su Nian’s warm hospitality, she sat with him and Wei Hanzi in a rented carriage .

“Is the restaurant very far away? Why do we need a carriage?” Looking at the pa.s.sing scenery, Gu Lingzhi casually asked .

“It is not that far . After exiting the Yan Capital, it takes about half an hour to get there . If you are bored, you can rest first . I’ll wake you up later”

The carriage they rented was extremely s.p.a.cious and both sides of the carriage would allow a person to lie completely .

“No, thank you . It is nice to look at the scenery . ”

The scenery in the Yan Capital was rather impressive . The minute they exited the gates, the scenery was mesmerising . Vibrant green fields stretched on and anywhere would be good to have a picnic .

When the Inter-school Compet.i.tion ended, she could come again with Rong Yuan to appreciate the scenery .

Just as she thought of this, Wei Hanzi grabbed the hand by her side .

Gu Lingzhi turned over to look and saw the serious look on Wei Hanzi’s face .

“Xiao Hei, what is the matter?”

“I have lost contact with the Secret Guards,” Wei Hanzi breathed out quietly .

Whenever Gu Lingzhi left the city, there would be a group of guards secretly guarding her . If not, Wei Hanzi would not allow Gu Lingzhi to leave the boundaries of the Yan Capital . But a while ago, she suddenly realised that she could no longer sense the guards that were following them .

“Su Nian, stop the carriage!” Gu Lingzhi immediately understood what Wei Hanzi was worried about .

There was only one explanation for this… the guards had been hindered by someone .

Su Nian did not immediately stop the carriage but smiled as he asked, “Why? We haven’t reached yet . ”

“It is dangerous, we have to quickly get back, if not…” Gu Lingzhi suddenly halted as she looked at Su Nian warily .

He still looked the same, but usually he always looked extremely joyful . However, now the corners of his mouth slightly changed and there was a hint of gloominess and something seemed strange .

“We can’t . I’ve said that we haven’t reached yet . If we get off early, my Master will not be happy . ”

Hearing this, Wei Hanzi did not hesitate to draw out her sword . Recovering from her shock, Gu Lingzhi realised that someone had sent Su Nian to harm her! No wonder he had pretended to be infatuated with her for so long . It was to the point that his infatuation with her was slightly weird .

Gu Lingzhi drew out her Fengwu Sword and surrounded Su Nian on his left and right side with Wei Hanzi .

“Tsk, you are really cruel . You would take action on someone that has liked you for so long, what a waste of my affection for you . ” As he said this, Su Nian did not show any mercy in his actions as he aimed his sword at Gu Lingzhi .

“Master, Su Nian’s cultivation level is not of a Martial Student . He’s a low grade Martial Lord!” After exchanging a few blows, Wei Hanzi was appalled to realise Su Nian’s true cultivation level . He had managed to hide it for so long! He had suppressed his cultivation level to that of a Martial Student and hid amongst the Royal School for so long without being detected .

Gu Lingzhi was also shocked as she quickly left the carriage . If she was. .h.i.t by someone of the Martial Lord level, she would be severely injured . She looked at the wildebeest which was still running and whipped it, causing it to run even faster .

She then stood at the fringe of the carriage and shot a few spiritual energy b.a.l.l.s towards Su Nian to distract him .

“Ah…” Suddenly, Wei Hanzi’s body flew and hit the hall at the back of the carriage, a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of her mouth .

“You’re overestimating yourself!” Su Nian scolded . He stopped attacking Wei Hanzi and went for Gu Lingzhi who was standing at the edge of the carriage .

His target was Gu Lingzhi . Once he finished her off, his mission would be completed!

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