Start with everyday skills and grind your way to immortality.

Chapter 81 Blackmail

Chen Qian's gaze was fixed on the group of Miao people.

"Since they have a way to have all their souls enter this place, they must also have a way to return unscathed!"

This is the last straw.

Without the slightest hesitation, Chen Qian exerted force with his feet and headed straight for the stone pillar.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, could you please take me with you when you go back up?"

"I will definitely repay this kindness with a generous gift when I return!"

Chen Qian hurriedly said.

However, the Miao man showed no expression or movement, clearly not intending to answer him.

"Then I'll have to offend you!"

He gave a low shout and tried to break through the blockade of the three burly men who were protecting him.

However, the Miao men had stern faces, their curved knives held horizontally in front of their chests, their eyes filled with warning and killing intent, showing no intention of making way.

Behind them, the Miao woman was intently controlling the swarm of golden Gu worms to burrow into the seven orifices of the dried corpse. Clearly, it was the most crucial moment, and she was oblivious to the outside world.

"There's no time left—"

Chen Qian glanced at the paper figure.

If he delays any longer, he will truly become a lost soul.

"You won't let me? Then die!"

A fierce glint appeared in Chen Qian's eyes, and he stopped wasting words.

Fight!

Breaking through the eight blades, then delivering a powerful frontal slash!

He raised his military knife high, and with an indomitable spirit, slashed it down at the big man in the middle!

Upon seeing this, a hint of contempt flashed in the burly man's eyes.

In his view, everyone is in the same state; without the support of physical body and vital energy, no one can hurt anyone too badly.

He instinctively raised his knife to parry, using the same stance he always used to deflect force.

however.

"Pfft!"

A soft sound.

There was no resounding clang of metal against metal, nor a stalemate where the forces were evenly matched.

Chen Qian's military knife sliced ​​through the man's curved blade as easily as cutting through tofu, then slid down and slashed directly into the man's shoulder!

"what!"

The burly man let out a piercing scream, his soul dimmed considerably in an instant, and wisps of blue smoke rose from his wounds.

He looked at Chen Qian in horror and asked in bewilderment, "You—how do you still have strength?"

Chen Qian remained unchanged.

That strike just now—the technique of exerting force, the choice of angle, the way he seized the opening—was exactly the same as when he was in his physical form!

Even without the constraints of a physical body, their movements become even faster and smoother!

"I see----"

Chen Qian also confirmed his previous guess.

I noticed their difference from those above by observing their expressions and demeanor.

Breathing, strength, body, even movement —

An ordinary martial artist's skill lies entirely in his physical body.

Strengthening muscles and bones, and circulating qi and blood, relies on muscle memory and internal energy in the dantian.

Once the soul leaves the body, without the physical form as a vessel, it's like a car without an engine.

He has the moves but no real power, and can only be a slightly stronger ordinary person.

But I'm different!

Chen Qian's eyes were frighteningly bright.

"My power doesn't come from my physical body, but from my control panel!"

【Fighting】, 【Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada】, 【Golden Bell Cover】—these skills were not honed in his muscles, but were solidified directly in the depths of his soul!

Whether one has a physical body or not, as long as the character's physical body remains, these skills will not disappear!

Without the boost of vital energy, the martial arts skills of these masters would be greatly diminished.

Their foundation, built on the panel, is unbreakable, while their martial arts, honed through their own efforts, are utterly weak.

"Just as I observed, you guys are indeed not doing so well now."

A cruel smile curled at the corner of Chen Qian's lips.

The situation has reversed!

"Attack him together! Stop him!"

Seeing their companion seriously injured, the other four burly men were filled with shock and rage, and charged at them with their knives.

But in Chen Qian's eyes, who possessed the instinct for combat and the extreme speed of the Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada, their movements were as slow as if they were practicing Tai Chi.

"roll!"

Chen Qian moved with lightning speed, slipping through the two men's attack.

A backhand slash!

"puff!"

A burly man was slashed in the waist and abdomen and collapsed to the ground screaming in agony.

A side kick!

"Bang!

""

Another burly man was kicked in the chest, his soul violently jolted, and he flew away like a kite with a broken string.

Sold out instantly!

A complete and utter crushing defeat!

Without the protection of their vital energy, they were utterly vulnerable to Chen Qian's attacks, which contained the "rules of technique."

There are no more obstacles ahead.

With a stomp of his foot, Chen Qian charged like an eagle pouncing on a rabbit, instantly reaching the foot of the stone pillar.

At this critical moment, the Miao woman was undergoing her ritual, her forehead drenched in cold sweat, and she was completely unable to move.

She felt a gust of wind and instinctively wanted to turn around.

But the cold blade was already pressed against her slender neck.

"Don't move."

Chen Qian's voice was as cold as frost, reflecting the composure of someone who truly held the power of life and death.

He grabbed the Miao woman by the back of her collar with one hand and pressed his general's knife firmly against her throat with the other.

The blade's energy was palpable; with just a little force, it could obliterate her soul.

The few surviving Miao men around were terrified and wanted to rush forward to fight, but were driven back by a sharp look from Chen Qian.

"Back off! Or I'll kill her right now!"

The Miao woman was forced to look up, and a hint of panic finally appeared in her dark eyes.

She couldn't understand how a martial artist could retain his original strength in this place.

"What do you want to do?" the Miao woman asked softly.

Chen Qian glanced at the paper figure on his chest that was about to go out, and felt that his physical body was on the verge of collapse.

Without a word, he pressed the blade down, his tone chilling: "Send me back!"

"Take me with you, or—none of you are leaving!"

The Miao woman frowned, but still replied, "Okay!"

With a change of her hand seals, the golden Gu worms that had burrowed into the dry corpse transformed into streams of light and flew back.

"Clatter".

The moment the black wooden box lid was closed, the Miao woman was about to put it into her bag.

Chen Qian reacted quickly and snatched the box into his hand.

"you?"

The Miao woman exclaimed in surprise.

"You bastard, what are you doing!"

The Miao men around them, whose souls were dimmed, were furious at the sight.

One of them, clinging to its collapsing soul, roared as it lunged forward to fight to the death.

"Don't move!"

Chen Qian roared and raised the wooden box, bringing the blade even closer to the woman.

He wore a neurotic smile, but his eyes were as cold as ice: "Excuse me, everyone, a gentleman does not take what others love, and I have no interest in these few insects."

He stared intently into everyone's eyes, speaking rapidly and venomously: "But this is a business between the living and the dead. I've always been a coward, afraid of the dark, and even more afraid that you might try something underhanded halfway through."

"Consider this box as collateral."

"As long as my soul returns to my body and I come back to life, this thing will naturally be returned to its rightful owner."

At this point, Chen Qian glanced at the paper figure on his chest that was about to go out, and the smile on his face suddenly turned ferocious and crazed: "Otherwise—"

"Let's all stay here!"

"Anyway, I was lucky to survive. If one of me dies, I'll lose out; but if I take you all down with me, I'll have made a killing!"

"The journey to the underworld is too lonely; someone has to keep me company—right?"

At that moment, the madness and determination in Chen Qian's eyes sent chills down the spines of Miao Jiang, who had dealt with poisons for many years.

He was serious.

That's a madman!