CHAPTER 40: CHAPTER 40: LIGHT BODY TECHNIQUE MASTERED

Two days later.

Xu Ping visited Yuan Wei’s home again.

"Master, something bad has happened at the market. Evil spirits have appeared, and many cultivators have been drained of their flesh and blood, leaving only bones." Yuan Wei said in shock.

"I know." Xu Ping nodded calmly.

Seeing Xu Ping remain so calm, Yuan Wei couldn’t help but secretly admire him. He’s truly a fierce man who destroyed the Xiongba Gang, unfazed even when hearing of evil spirits.

"Master, do you need to buy some Exorcism Talismans? The price for talismans at the market is almost four Spirit Stones each, and they might increase even more in a few days." Yuan Wei asked.

"Almost four Spirit Stones each?" Xu Ping felt a stir in his heart.

After a moment of thought, he took out more than twenty Exorcism Talismans from his storage bag and handed them to Yuan Wei: "Sell these together as well."

Yuan Wei was slightly stunned but quickly understood. The master intended to seize this opportunity to make some money!

Though it’s a good time to earn, if all the Exorcism Talismans are sold out and they encounter evil spirits, what will they do then?

It’s hard to abandon such a big backer; if he were lost, it would be heartbreaking.

"Master, shouldn’t we keep a few? After all, evil spirits are really fierce." Yuan Wei hesitated before cautiously reminding.

"No need, I have better things." Xu Ping refused.

"Understood." Yuan Wei nodded.

It made sense; considering the master’s strength and possessions, he surely had better alternatives.

...

...

Three days later.

In the dense forest.

Standing in the forest, Xu Ping suddenly flashed with a spiritual light, and his whole being turned into a breeze, disappearing into thin air.

A series of loud rumblings suddenly erupted, as nearby trees began to split one after another from the middle, the cuts smooth and mirror-like, yet no one was visible around.

Moments later.

Slightly glowing with spiritual light and holding the Qinghe Sword, Xu Ping’s figure emerged.

Although he was panting and sweating profusely, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing an uncontainable joy.

"After the Light Body Technique broke through to mastery, I’ve reached beyond the limits of the naked eye. Unless someone has practiced magic related to eyesight, they probably can’t catch my figure."

"With just this speed alone, I might already reign at the Qi Refining Realm. And if I add the mastery of the Flowing Cloud Sword..."

"Though I dare not say invincible in the Qi Refining Realm, there are certainly few stronger than me."

"But such extreme speed puts a heavy burden on the body. Even with my current physique, I cannot sustain it for long. If prolonged, my whole being might completely collapse." Xu Ping frowned slightly.

"Ah, the Nourishing Life Skill is progressing too slowly." He sighed lightly, "Perhaps I should ask whether Yuan Wei or Zhang Chenyu have a solution."

"But not now."

Xu Ping made a flourish with his sword and placed it into his storage bag.

"It’s time to find ’Old Sun’." His eyes flashed with a fierce light.

With the mastery of the Light Body Technique and the Five-Thunder Talisman in hand, he was already in an invincible position.

...

...

In the days that followed, every midnight, Xu Ping would quietly get up, leave the house, wander nearby, searching for the whereabouts of ’Old Sun’.

He wondered if ’Old Sun’ had left this area.

After several days, there was no trace.

...

Late that night.

Moonlight like water, spilled over every inch of land in the dense forest.

After several days without finding traces of ’Old Sun’ nearby, Xu Ping planned to expand his search.

After more than half an hour.

Xu Ping passed by a household.

Suddenly, a sinister wind mixed with piercing cold emanated from the house, chilling to the bone.

"Where!"

Xu Ping’s eyes flashed fiercely.

He knew this aura too well.

Xu Ping suddenly dashed to the door, kicking it open.

He was on high alert, ready for combat, prepared to draw his sword at any moment.

As he scanned the room, he found no trace of ’Old Sun’, only saw two figures lying straight on the bed in the bedroom.

Walking a few steps forward, Xu Ping saw the dried corpses of a man and a woman lying on the bed.

The two corpses had lost almost all moisture, their skin shriveled, muscles extremely atrophied, looking like two skeletons.

Even more frightening was that both corpses had their mouths wide open, their eyes glaring angrily, but showed no signs of struggle, as if they turned into corpses in an instant.

The miserable state of the two made Xu Ping’s heart sink.

"Late by a step." He sighed lightly.

After searching carefully, he found two storage bags, an unexpected gain.

...

...

In the following days, there was still no trace of ’Old Sun’, but the number of cultivators drained by it continued to increase.

For a time, the entire market was plunged into panic. Even the large factions organized nightly patrols, but still found no traces.

In this atmosphere of fear, the price of Exorcism Talismans surged again, reaching as high as six each, yet still in short supply.

Seeing this booming market, Xu Ping decisively devoted most of his time to crafting Exorcism Talismans.

As his proficiency increased, his success rate in crafting talismans greatly improved.

This wave proved to be a lucrative windfall.

After a few more days.

Still no trace of ’Old Sun’, Xu Ping was getting somewhat agitated.

A faint scream came from a nearby house; if not for his enhanced hearing from the Nourishing Life Skill practice, he might not have heard such a subtle sound.

Driven by the philosophy of rather mistakenly capturing a thousand than letting one escape, Xu Ping decided to take a look.

Just a few steps forward, a faint smell of blood permeated the air, becoming increasingly intense.

This... doesn’t seem caused by evil spirits, more like a robbery." Xu Ping furrowed his brow, feeling hesitant.

His encounters with ’Old Sun’ always resulted in drained cultivators, not even leaving a trace of blood, let alone any other odors.

Suddenly, there was a commotion in the room.

Xu Ping hesitated no longer and broke in directly.

A nauseating smell of blood rushed at him, and Xu Ping’s brows furrowed tightly.

As he surveyed, a broken corpse came into view.

Its organs were completely hollowed out, blood flowing everywhere, and a look of deep terror and pain remained on its face.

It seemed as if the person had watched themselves being hollowed out alive.

This... doesn’t match the robbers’ typical style of work?" Xu Ping frowned tightly.

Robbers usually aren’t this cruel, generally killing you simply and plundering everything you have.

"Could it be a robber who enjoys gouging out hearts?" Xu Ping mused.

No matter the truth, it didn’t concern him.

After another search, finding nothing useful, he quickly left the scene.