Lu Qingshan tried to deflect the fist heading for his face. He was instead sent crashing into the wall. The attack hadn’t even reached him — Marquis Zhou was still far away.

  That could only mean one thing. Somehow, the man had reached the Innate realm.

  Lu Qingshan picked himself up from the rubble. His face ached. This was the first real injury in a long, long time. Instead of fear, he found himself grinning, eager to rush back in.

  Seven cracks split the floor. Lu Qingshan’s path towards Marquis Zhou was cut off by an invisible wall of energy. A brutal fist shattered his left shoulder blade the next moment, sending him flying again.

  He grimaced as he tumbled on the floor. His body tried to heal itself. Then Marquis Zhou was right in front of him, a foot stepping down. He rolled to the side just in time.

  A fist came. He dodged. A kick. His head tilted backward. A jab. He swerved violently to the side.

  Wu Chang, worthless. Jin Teng, a frog in a well. Before a true Innate realm expert, Lu Qingshan was nothing. Unless he unleashed the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique.

  But that would be no fun. Not yet. Lu Qingshan’s smile only grew wider as he figured out Marquis Zhou’s attacks. The man himself laughed as well, and his motions suddenly became a lot less predictable.

  Lu Qingshan flew backwards again and again. Most of his ribs had been shattered and repaired multiple times at this point. The pain only grew his determination to win without relying on the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique. It was not a life and death battle. Instead, sparring evenly with an expert above his level would naturally propel his growth and insights.

  As Marquis Zhou drew close once again, Lu Qingshan took a chance. Seven steps took him behind a wall. Forty two more caused him to vanish. In an instant, Lu Qingshan emerged to the side of Marquis Zhou, slamming a palm into his side.

  An invisible force tried to repel his attack. The Blood Pulse Technique bared its fangs once again. With a slight flutter of his clothes, Lu Qingshan tore through the inner force protection around the Marquis and sent him flying into the wall.

  Blood swam in the air. Lu Qingshan waited for the man to get back up.

  “That was good,” Marquis Zhou growled. He hurled himself forward again, but Lu Qingshan was ready this time.

  A fist shot for his head, shearing away some hair with the force. Another tore open his cheek. Lu Qingshan couldn’t prevent himself from losing scraps of cloth, hair, or skin. But the Marquis could no longer send him flying like before.

  Lu Qingshan moved like water, appearing at the man’s side one moment and then at the other side the next. He slammed another palm into the Marquis’ back. He sidestepped the counter and planted a third palm into the man’s chest. A rib cracked. The Marquis’ eyes bulged.

  A phantom fist erupted into the air, but Lu Qingshan had disappeared. The force of the blow shattered a wooden container in the distance. Splinters were sent flying everywhere, almost hitting them both.

  But the man only laughed. “Let me show you why I am called the Five Extremes Grandmaster,” he said. He swung into motion for a final time, and pain blossomed in Lu Qingshan again.

  A phantom finger sliced off a chunk of flesh. Phantom fists slammed into his side, and his bones crunched. The ghost of a palm was barely blocked just for a wave of secondary attacks to knock him backwards.

  Unseen forces pressured Lu Qingshan in all directions. Even the Seven Steps Technique could no longer avoid them. Every passing heartbeat introduced a new wound in his body.

  Lu Qingshan ingrained each deficiency into his mind, and each bloody lesson to heart. There was a simple way out of this situation: pure power. The Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique whined to life inside his body. Lu Qingshan was moments away from entering the first step of the technique when an epiphany appeared in his mind.

  He stopped the activation. There was a pattern to the Marquis' movements that revealed a flaw the more attacks Lu Qingshan withstood. Though the man had attained the Innate realm, he hadn't achieved perfection in his technique yet. Marquis Zhou clearly favored the fist and palm more than the finger.

  And that meant he was lacking in speed. As another wave of phantom fists and palms approached, Lu Qingshan pushed his personal combat understanding of the Seven Steps Technique to another level. Instead of a single sidestep, he unleashed two, three, and four steps at a time, dodging a fist, palm, and another fist in rapid succession. A ghostly finger managed to get past his newfound success, but Lu Qingshan was adapting.

  The next series of phantom fists and palms all missed their mark. Marquis Zhou was forced to switch to using phantom fingers, but his attack speed had clearly slowed down. Lu Qingshan stepped through the gaps in the attacks and was clearly beginning to close the chasm between him and the Marquis.

  "That's enough," the Marquis said with a chuckle, though it clearly sounded forced. "You are indeed an expert. I will leave you to your own devices for now, but do keep what I said in mind. My retinue always seeks more talent."

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Marquis Zhou walked away from the battle, hands clasped behind his back. Though he maintained his dignity in front of his Five Dragons Army, Lu Qingshan knew the true victor in this battle was himself. He let a wide grin grow on his face. Without using the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Technique, he had forced an Innate realm expert to retreat as a quasi-Innate expert. And the Hidden Veil Technique had not been broken.

  After the Marquis and his army disappeared into the distance, Lu Qingshan called the Azure Wind Gang disciples guarding the building over. "You were very brave," he said to them. "Good job. I’ll see that you both are highly rewarded."

  Their eyes went wide. Lu Qingshan was gone the next moment, leaving their questions unanswered.

  He appeared in an old alleyway and hid himself inside the worn-down, abandoned building. Taking out the Bloodsense Bug, Lu Qingshan focused on the most recent connection drawn from the blood spat from Marquis Zhou’s mouth.

  The man was indeed getting farther away. Lu Qingshan breathed a sigh of relief then took a look at the stone slab. The progress he made in that battle outweighed the gains developed through basic practice by many months to even years. By combating the inner force of an Innate realm expert, the Blood Pulse Technique made its biggest stride in the many years since it had reached level two.

  Blood Pulse Technique (Level 2, 745/10000)

  The Seven Steps Technique was also greatly improved now that Lu Qingshan was able to flexibly use it in battle. Finally, the Great Ape Breathing Method and his various inner force methods all received a small boost to their proficiency.

  The normal trajectory of a martial artist looking to rapidly polish their skill would usually involve seeking conflicts with all types of experts all over the world. Lu Qingshan did not have the same motivation. It was clear from Marquis Zhou’s demeanor that he was hiding his status as an Innate realm expert from most of the kingdom. There was an unknown danger to reveal oneself as a martial expert of that caliber.

  Lu Qingshan decided he would try and elevate his sect to have Innate realm experts of their own. This would greatly increase his own practice speeds, as well as give him more experience with fighting the experts demanded by the second rank of the Blood Pulse Technique. Currently, Liu Yingting was the sole candidate for targeted training.

  As for the Marquis’ motives, Lu Qingshan wasn’t sure. He also didn’t know why the Marquis chose to immediately attack a small gang like the Azure Wind Gang even if the information he received was reliable. Lu Qingshan concentrated on the Bloodsense Bug’s other connections, from before the Barbarian Bull Gang had fallen. He got his answer once he located some of the Furious Whale Gang’s martial artists who had spilled blood several times in their raids.

  All of those connections were very far away. It was now abundantly clear the gang had fled the city.

  Through the Bloodsense Bug, he could give chase. Lu Qingshan was highly tempted to strike. Firstly, their fleeing leadership wouldn’t be thinking of taking everything they had with them, but instead their most quality treasures they could transport. That would give him the highest returns.

  The only problem was how to reach them quickly enough. The Bloodsense Bug couldn’t give an exact distance, but he knew that Dong Qianyu and the rest of the Seven Mysteries Gate were much farther away. He could make the journey.

  Another option would be to let Qin Ye or Liu Yingting take the Bloodsense Bug and go there themselves. This was a choice fraught with risk. Lu Qingshan rejected the idea almost immediately, but taking Qin Ye with him wouldn’t hurt.

  Three decisions that required his personal attention awaited Lu Qingshan now. The first was to continue staying in the city, acquiring more Green Heart Worms to accelerate their forces’ growth. But this would almost certainly necessitate attacking one of the two sects. He didn’t think another set of disciples would come out and die, not to mention he needed to target Viscera Tempering Elders. In the delicate situation wrought by Marquis Zhou, Lu Qingshan decided to hold off on the attack for now.

  Then there was the trade with the ghost market. With Marquis Zhou fended off, he could hide the Divine Crossbow somewhere while his Elders negotiated with the white masks. The price wouldn’t soar immediately until it became known there were no available Divine Crossbows left.

  In that case, the third and final choice was to go hunting for treasure. There would be chaos in the wake of Marquis Zhou’s actions of destroying the Furious Whale Gang. But Lu Qingshan chose to trust his Elders this time. With the two immortal cultivators, Li Fanghua and Qin Ye, holding down the fort, the sect would not be wiped out.

  He emerged from the abandoned building and quickly returned to the Azure Wind Gang’s territory. Through the Bloodsense Bug, he tracked down each of his Elders for a meeting. He also sent clusters of Bloodseeker Flies all throughout their territory to see if anything demanded his attention.

  For now, the city remained calm. Meng Zhang, Qin Ye, Li Fanghua, Miao Mei, Wu Ruoling, and Jin Teng stood in Liu Yingting’s isolated house. They stared at him, waiting for his response.

  “I just fought Marquis Zhou,” he started. “The man is an Innate realm expert. He’s planning something with the kingdom, likely rebellious. They don’t know his true power.”

  “We may have the last trade-available Divine Crossbow in our hands. The Furious Whale Gang has left the city. I know where they went. I’m going to chase after them. But I need you all to guard the territory safely in my absence.”

  “Don’t take any unnecessary risks,” he warned. “Just lay low until I get back. And prepare for war in the meantime, because we will be going against the Blade Shadow and Lower Mountain Sects when I return. Any questions?”

  “What do you want us to trade for?” asked Miao Mei.

  “Prioritize your own cultivation,” Lu Qingshan said. “Anything to help you reach Viscera Tempering.”

  They nodded, then shot competitive glances at one another, with the sole exception of Qin Ye who looked bored. “Can I come with you?” he asked.

  Lu Qingshan was tempted. But he still shook his head. “It’s for the best if you stay. Other than Liu Yingting, you’re the most powerful.”

  “Not for long,” muttered Wu Ruoling. Her eyes met Qin Ye, who frowned.

  They discussed a few additional contingencies, such as how to deal with the two gangs and hold further transactions with the ghost market. The priority was to shrink their territory if need be. Then there was the way the Stone Axe Gang treated the people under their rule, which Meng Zhang, Li Fanghua, and Jin Teng assured him would go well.

  The sect’s future direction had been decided. Lu Qingshan strode out of the city in the dead of night, quietly vanishing in an instant.