Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

"How about you become my disciple?"

The old man untied the bundle and, with a rustling sound, laid out the thirty or forty old books that were almost falling apart, as if displaying toys, showing them to him.

"You are the first disciple I have taken in this mortal world. A peerless martial arts manual is yours to receive upon becoming my disciple!"

……

"What, you don't believe it?"

The old man seemed to sense suspicion in Lu Aniu's eyes, and slowly tied up the bundle. "Do you think I look like a swindler?"

"It's hard to say," Lu Aniu nodded honestly.

"Ha...no problem, no problem..." the old man said with a leisurely smile, "I'll prove it to you right away."

"Prove what?" Lu Aniu frowned.

----

When the boat reached the middle of the river, the boatman used a wooden oar to stop it in the center, making it easier for him to move.

The boatman sitting at the stern suddenly changed his expression and pulled out a gleaming knife from under the deck, startling everyone who screamed and huddled together.

"Sorry everyone, but that's the code of the trade." He brandished his weapon, slashing a few times in the air, making a rustling sound. "Would you like some wonton noodles, or a broadsword...?"

"Hey, what's that old man up to? Sit down!"

……

The old man stretched his shoulders and neck, making a cracking sound, and slowly stood up under everyone's gaze.

He winked at Lu Aniu and gave him a smile.

Chapter 830: Seventy Years, a Changing World

"Noodle?"

Evelyn looked puzzled. "Why ask someone what kind of noodles they want to eat at a time like this? Is there any connection between the two?"

"That's underworld slang. Those two boatmen are river bandits. Most ordinary people have no way to survive if they encounter them," Lu Aniu explained patiently. "You definitely won't keep your money. If you want to eat knife-cut noodles, they'll chop you up and throw you into the water; if you want to eat wonton noodles, they won't force you. You'll just take off your clothes and jump into the river to drown."

The calm narration, ironically, elevates the terror of this江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and江湖义气, a code of honor among江湖义气) slang to another level.

The girl felt the chilling aura and couldn't help but shrink her shoulders and neck.

"However, with him there, none of this happened... He showed me the highest level of martial arts, like... in your words, like magic. Before I could even see how he made his move, my opponent had already lost consciousness and fallen headfirst into the water."

"Later I learned that he used a martial art called 'Wild Goose Skill' that day, which emphasizes speed. After mastering it, one's whole body is filled with energy, moving gracefully like a startled swan or a swimming dragon, with a lithe and elegant figure like an immortal. It is said to be a martial art passed down from the Kunlun School."

Compared to him, my previous skills were nothing more than crude gambling techniques.

"After getting ashore, I immediately knelt down, acknowledged him as my master, and kowtowed three times. That was how I formally accepted the relationship."

That past was so wonderful.

Even now, though he is on the other side of the world, and his relationship with his sect is irreparably broken, like ripped silk, his smile remains faint as he speaks of it, but like a fleeting flash of lightning in the summer sky, it vanishes quickly.

His eyes were empty and deep, like a living corpse.

Evelyn could hardly believe that such a person had actually defeated Zhang Renfeng.

"And then..."

"I went with him to Zhongnan Mountain and stayed there for a few days. He said he had some things to take care of, related to something like 'receiving the ordination' or 'ascending to immortality,' and that it would take him a day or two, so he couldn't take care of me for the time being. He left me in a courtyard, and that courtyard was..."

----

"what--!!!"

Lu Aniu suddenly opened his eyes, jumped up from the bed, veins bulging, clenched his fists, and instinctively wanted to hit someone.

Looking around, there was nothing to hit him, only the thin sheet of paper cup covering him, soaked with his sweat. Perhaps it was because he had unconsciously exposed one leg while sleeping, and the cool breeze had caused his muscles to tense up involuntarily; this might have been the source of his nightmares.

He dreamt of the raging flood in the dark night, of an endless escape, the dark river like a giant, living python, always lurking beside him, ready to pounce and swallow him whole at any moment.

In his dream, the floodwaters transformed into a torrential downpour, pouring down from the sky like a well being overturned, seemingly intent on washing away the entire land. He ran desperately, running with all his might, finally managing to struggle free from the water that was almost ankle-deep.

It looked as if a small puddle had gathered beneath him.

"Damn it... How long have I been asleep...?"

The shadows were stretched long by the setting sun.

The shadows were stretched long by the setting sun.

The shadows were stretched long by the setting sun.

Lu Aniu scratched his head, looking at the setting sun sinking into the horizon, and for a moment felt a pang of confusion. He suddenly realized that he was completely alone in this world, and he could sleep in this room forever. Even if he slept until he died, no one would come to wake him.

He straightened his clothes, went outside, and saw the setting sun and a cool mountain breeze.

A small bridge spans a flowing stream, and a thatched cottage nestles against the green hills.

The village dog barks by the fence, and the recluse comes and goes as he pleases.

……

In this peaceful place, he had no enemies to guard against, and therefore nothing to do.

Lu Aniu then sat down cross-legged, clasped his hands together, and began to practice the exercise that the strange old man had told him halfway through the journey.

After meditating for a while, Lu Aniu gradually entered a meditative state. He felt the world around him begin to blur, from the scenery to the images, to the lines, and then to the scattered points of light like rain clouds. Until finally, even the points of light disappeared, and everything around him, like old wallpaper, peeled away in the wind, leaving only a pure, silent expanse of white.

He was surrounded by white.

In a daze, he entered an indescribable state, where time seemed to stretch out infinitely in this white expanse. He wasn't sure if he was sitting or if he had already become one with the white space.

He was awakened from his meditation by a whistle.

……

It doesn't seem like much time has passed.

An ordinary-looking middle-aged man was standing in front of him, staring at him with great interest.

Having had a previous experience, Lu Aniu wasn't too surprised. Perhaps all the people here were like this, so he simply took the behavior as a greeting.

"Don't worry about me." The man smiled and gestured for him to continue.

"..." Lu Aniu was speechless. If you really didn't want me to talk to you, why did you whistle like that?

However, he only meditated to relieve boredom, so it was naturally better to have a living person come up to him and chat with him.

"you are……"

"My surname is Yin." The man greeted him with a generous fist and palm salute, "I am a rough and unrefined mountain man, and I also eat and live in this thatched hut."

"May I ask, Brother Yin, what is the origin of this thatched hut?" Lu Aniu asked curiously. "From day to night, I don't think I've seen many people besides you."

“They’ve all gone down the mountain,” Yin Shanren said calmly.

"Why come down the mountain? To become a Taoist priest?"

"Looking for someone." Yin Shanren simply brushed aside the topic, seemingly not wanting to bring it up again, and turned his head to gaze into Lu Aniu's eyes.

Suddenly, two sun-like rays burst forth from his deep pupils, greatly shocking Lu Aniu.

"Who taught you your method of visualization?"

"Contemplate...?" Lu Aniu asked, puzzled. "What does that mean?"

"It's that visualization technique you just used, where you merged all things in the world into yourself."

Lu Aniu grew increasingly terrified. "That's what I was thinking. How did you know?!"

Yin Shanren patted him on the shoulder and gave him a mysterious smile.

“No one taught me. There was an old man with skin like dragon scales who took me as his disciple and taught me the techniques. I just felt that this technique, when cultivated... should be like this, peeling away the layers until only a vast expanse of white remains.”

Lu Aniu truthfully stated, "I subconsciously thought so, and that's what I thought."

……

"Good, good, good."

After a moment of silence, he was greeted with three "good"s, which made Yin Shanren overjoyed.

"You are a genius, one in a million, with a bold and unrestrained spirit."

"You have a talent for this. Why don't you stay with me in Zhongnan Mountain? I will teach you the five arts of mountain, medicine, destiny, physiognomy, and divination, with your talent..."

"Seventy years."

"Seventy years is enough to achieve some success on the path."

Chapter 831: We Meet Again

"You didn't agree?" From the result, Evelyn could naturally deduce the process. "Why? Wasn't this a great opportunity? To draw a clear line between yourself and your painful past. Why did you refuse?"

"..."

Lu Aniu remained silent and did not answer.

I don't know if it's just my imagination, but his back seems a little more hunched than when we first met, as if it's been bent over by something.

……

"Here we are."

After walking for a while, Lu Aniu stopped, pointed to a bunker next to him, and said, "Those people who were with Zhang Renfeng are all locked up here. The road I just took you is the shortest route. As you can see, there's almost no one else here except us, because it's not on the soldiers' night patrol route."

"Do you remember how to get there?"

"..." Evelyn's expression was somewhat complicated. After much hesitation, she nodded.

"Okay, I got it. Go back now. Go do whatever you need to do."

Lu Aniu turned around and, with his increasingly hunched figure, walked step by step toward the bunker, the colossal structure swallowing it whole into the shadows.

"Don't worry, he won't die."

His voice echoed in the gloomy, narrow passageway, "Between him and me, there is still one final battle to be won..."

----

Sword light.

A sword, as massive as a mountain, slashed down from the clouds. It violently rubbed against the atmosphere, sparks flying, and with a thunderous roar, the entire continent trembled, and the sea in the distance began to boil.

Dust and smoke billowed in his face, and crumpled grass roots smeared onto his skin, but Zhang Renfeng was helpless.

He is so insignificant.

This was the first time he had felt that the power he was so proud of could be so insignificant and so useless.

"boom-----!!!!"

……

"what!?"

Zhang Renfeng thought he had suddenly opened his eyes and sat up, but in fact, he had simply woken up with a start. Like anyone who wakes up with a start, he felt like he was "sinking" into the blankets, a sticky and uncomfortable feeling, followed by aches and pains all over his body, as if something had seeped into his muscles, and even the slightest movement would aggravate his wounds.

internal injury.

This was an experience he had never had before.

His physical condition was so strong that most internal injuries were blocked by his muscles and could not reach his lungs or internal organs.

"what……"

He clutched his shoulder, his brow furrowed tightly. After moving around a bit, he found that his limbs were still intact, which was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

Carefully sitting up and lifting the blanket, Zhang Renfeng discovered the reason for his aches and pains—his body was almost completely wrapped in bandages, making him look like a bound mummy. Even with so many layers of bandages, the wound running from his shoulder through his abdomen had not fully healed and was still oozing blood.

He extended two fingers and, with utmost caution, pressed them towards the wound.

His fingers, which were as strong as cast iron, trembled slightly at this moment.

"Hiss...ah..."

One click.

It was an extremely intense pain signal, which immediately changed his expression. He felt utterly hopeless and slumped against the wall in despair.