Chapter 109: The Outlaw’s Challenge

Crack!

Dark clouds churn as electric snakes slither by!

The moment Zhang Lianhao sensed the surge of Ogre’s aura, he rocketed out of the Temple Guardian Division building, unleashing the full might of his Void Form as he dashed off.

When he arrived, he beheld a towering figure, as massive as a mountain, whose eyes shimmered with swirling golden smoke as they cast a cold glance in his direction.

It was as if his presence failed to disturb or frighten him in the slightest.

Zhang Lianhao narrowed his eyes.

Is he an official? No… Ogre, he’s a thief!

Not only did he show no fear, but he even exuded an aura as if he had been waiting just for him!

After Zhang Lianhao’s arrival, the figure instantly plunged into darkness and dashed away—a blatant act of defiance, as though he completely disregarded the Temple Guardian Division.

Though Ogre’s eyes, awash with golden smoke, revealed not an ounce of emotion,

his behavior was undeniably provocative.

“He knows that the Temple Guardian Division is after him… so he flaunts this air of fearlessness? After committing murder, he even dares to taunt—what an outlaw!”

Without a trace of emotion on his face, Zhang Lianhao lightly tapped his foot and burst forth like a soaring hawk, leaping over the infernal courtyard below.

He landed on the long street and gave chase.

Ogre… if he dares to show his face and even taunt the Temple Guardian Division,

Zhang Lianhao would certainly not let such an opportunity to capture him slip away.

Boasting Void Form cultivation and martial prowess that had reached the level of a late-stage Grandmaster, his blend of martial skill and divine essence was formidable. In Jingguang City, though he couldn’t rival the old elites of the Five Great Families or sects, he still reigned at the pinnacle.

Boom—!

In an instant, the spring breeze turned scorching as his overwhelming vitality roared like a blazing furnace within him, his true qi surging wildly. As he charged down the long street, countless afterimages tore across the scene.

But he soon had to halt—he had lost his target.

“What a masterful Breath Convergence technique!”

“I can only track him with my naked eyes. Even extending my divine perception fails to catch his trail. The moment he rounded a corner and slipped from sight, he was gone.”

Standing on the long street, the spring breeze gently stirred the swaying willows.

Yet as Zhang Lianhao gripped his gilded Tiger-Head Spear, a surge of frustration and anger erupted within him.

“Ogre…”

He slightly lowered his head, engraving the image of that adorable Cute Cow Mask deep into his memory.

He abandoned the chase—after all, it was hopeless.

Back at the Million Gambling House, agents from the Temple Guardian Division had already arrived, sealing off the establishment.

Perched atop a roof of overlapping black tiles, Zhang Lianhao gazed down the distance of the long street, where the pounding of hooves echoed along Bluestone Street.

A military unit clad in radiant golden armor was advancing. Two riders led the charge on horseback, trailed by roughly forty to fifty armored soldiers.

“Jingguang Mansion’s Divine Guard…”

“They’re moving surprisingly fast—usually, they’re not this slick.”

Glancing briefly and letting out a cold laugh, Zhang Lianhao signaled to the agents below before leaping into the bloodstained courtyard.

His gaze immediately fell upon the corpse of a nailed-to-death Cursed Iron Corpse.

“The Corpse God Sect’s Tenfold Corpse Deity, creator of the Cursed Iron Corpse—whose power even a grandmaster would struggle against—was, unbelievably… brutally slain.”

Zhang Lianhao sheathed his gilded Tiger-Head Spear.

He narrowed his eyes and swept his gaze around, where a dense stench of death mingled with the metallic tang of blood.

He approached the headless body of Lin Da, recognizing him as the second-in-command of the Million Gambling House.

“Imbued with the Tenfold Corpse Curse Seal, every warrior in this courtyard bore its mark… they simply couldn’t resist the lure.”

“The infiltration of the Corpse God Sect is indeed all-pervasive. The Corpse Curse Seal helps one shatter inherent limits—the temptation is simply too great…”

Zhang Lianhao sighed.

Even many long-renowned grandmasters couldn’t withstand this lure, joining the Corpse God Sect. How could these warriors, whose prospects for breakthrough had long vanished, not be seduced?

“Ogre… he’s merciless and cunning, with methods formidable enough to annihilate everyone on his own—and one of them was a Cursed Iron Corpse…”

“A Cursed Iron Corpse is a nightmare even for a grandmaster warrior; its body is as resilient as refined steel.”

“But…”

Zhang Lianhao fixed his gaze on the corpse of the Corpse Deity, his eyes narrowing. Because… this Corpse Deity had been utterly smashed by an unparalleled, terrifying force!

That force…

was at least on par with a Nascent Realm Grandmaster!

“Ogre… has he become a Grandmaster?!”

Zhang Lianhao drew a deep breath. According to the intel from Zhang Xiangyang, when this Ogre first emerged in Feilei City three years ago, his cultivation was no more than Tendon Burst and Bone Tempering.

Three years… and now he’s reached Grandmaster level?!

“No, not exactly a full Grandmaster—he’s only exhibiting a burst of power at the grandmaster level, especially when combined with divine essence…”

After a thorough analysis, Zhang Lianhao had essentially deciphered Ogre’s modus operandi.

“He used Divine Crystal Powder to restrict the Corpse Deity’s divine outburst, forcing him to rely solely on physical strength for a crushing kill…”

“That indicates Ogre is relatively weak in divine essence… To think he’d resort to using Divine Crystal Powder offensively is truly as vicious and treacherous as Zhang Xiangyang described.”

“But shrouding the entire courtyard in Divine Crystal Powder… that’s quite an unusual tactic.”

Zhang Lianhao couldn’t help but recall the ingenious method once used to shoot Qin Yuqing from dozens of miles away—Ogre clearly possessed similar techniques.

Both acted with the unchecked ruthlessness of murderers…

truly the mien of outlaws.

“Heh, interesting,” Zhang Lianhao chuckled. After all, it wasn’t his problem; while the Temple Guardian Division handled these trivialities, their main focus remained on the three peculiar temples outside the capital.

Yet it was the Divine Guard, tasked with maintaining order in the capital, that had to deal with these lawless killers.

“Ogre… now there’s talent. A talent like that should be recruited into our Temple Guardian Division.”

“Besides, we can be sure that Ogre isn’t Li Che… Stone Lei and Hong Yong just reported that they witnessed Li Che entering the Imperial Watch to commence his routine.”

“The Imperial Watch is over a dozen miles from the Million Gambling House, and Li Che has a solid alibi… People can’t be in two places at once, right?”

Zhang Lianhao completely dismissed his suspicions about Li Che.

Although Zhang Xiangyang had speculated that Li Che might be Ogre, he never fully believed it, preferring to rely on his own judgment.

Now, the conclusion was clear…

There’s simply no way Li Che could be Ogre!

No one can be in two places, over a dozen miles apart, at the same time.

……

……

Imperial Watch.

Cliffside Treasure Tower.

Li Che removed his bamboo hat and black robe, donning the neat attire of an Imperial Watch guest-official. He smoothed out every crease and gripped his Feilei Chess Piece before moving to his designated anchor point within the Imperial Watch.

Even while within the Imperial Watch, Li Che pushed the Breath Convergence effect of his Dao Fruit [Dragon Elephant Vajra] to its limit.

After all, the Imperial Watch housed formidable individuals; if he didn’t mask his aura during his comings and goings, someone might catch on.

For instance, the assessors of guest-officials back then—Gong Yunli and Gongyang Liancheng—were Void Form cultivators no less capable than the chief agent of the Temple Guardian Division, Zhang Lianhao.

The Void Form realm is a nebulous state between the Divine Foundation and true Divine Form.

Strictly speaking, it could be considered the Divine Form realm, as a semblance of divine form is condensed, albeit more hazily and lacking the commanding aura of a true Divine Form.

Besides, the Imperial Watch even has a chief inspector and two vice inspectors—truly figures at the Patriarch of Divine Appearance level!

Though such divine form experts wouldn’t randomly sweep with their divine perception, Li Che felt it was wise to remain cautious.

By maintaining the Sleep Dragon Elephant’s Breath Convergence state, even if divine perception brushed past him, his presence in the Imperial Watch would go undetected—securing his alibi.

“The [Hanging Willow Body] I acquired from the Xu Family Old Master can actually be learned—it creates willow wood doppelgangers and better solidifies an alibi.”

Li Che smiled as his eyes sparkled, recalling a divine secret technique.

His progress in divine secret techniques had been slow, so he never truly delved into this particular method.

Dispersing the Sleeping Dragon Elephant state, Li Che quietly stepped into a cozy lodge warmed by a furnace.

Shangguan Qinghong, still barefoot with her gleaming feet, squatted on a chair while fiddling with a pickled chicken claw, munching away as she read a romance novella.

“Li Ge, you’re here?”

Shangguan Qinghong suddenly looked up at Li Che, her nostrils twitching.

“I smell blood—where did you go, Li Ge?”

she asked.

Li Che was taken aback. She could even detect blood?

Aren’t you such a bloodhound, Shangguan Qinghong?

“Sigh, I went to the Temple Guardian Division. The situation in Feilei City—you must have heard…”

Li Che sighed as he explained.

At her words, Shangguan Qinghong’s brows relaxed. “You went to the Temple Guardian Division, huh…”

That’s fine—visiting that place and getting stained with blood is par for the course.

“Qinghong, my woodcarving assignment is finished. You can contact the client so he can collect the Divine Wooden Sculpture.”

Li Che said.

Shangguan Qinghong nodded and gave Li Che a curious look. “Li Ge, this sculpture took you quite a while—half a month to finish. It must have been taxing.”

“It’s my first deal; reputation comes first. I’ll speed up next time,” he explained with a smile.

After a brief explanation, Li Che bid farewell to Shangguan Qinghong and headed for his workroom.

The Imperial Watch allocates a workroom for every guest-official.

Premium specialist rooms for refining pills, woodcarving, weapon forging, and talisman crafting are available on higher floors for rent with Divine Crystals.

Right now, Li Che was so broke he couldn’t afford it.

In the workroom area, Li Che noticed other guest-officials. He spotted a master of weapon forging in a rented forging room, clad in a short jacket that revealed his impressive build.

Catching Li Che’s eye, the weapon master nodded slightly.

In another room—a talisman crafting room—a bearded guest-official brewing tea smiled and nodded at Li Che’s glance.

Guest-officials usually maintained cordial relations, after all, they were all potential clients.

Li Che entered his own workroom, locked the door, and activated the Cosmic Chessboard to block any prying eyes.

Although no one would normally deploy divine perception in an Imperial Watch workroom, caution was essential in this world—better safe than sorry.

Taking a seat, Li Che exhaled slowly as his eyes turned ice-cold.

“Corpse God Sect…”

How treacherous!

Sure enough, they were targeting his daughter, XiXi.

“And the Corpse Curse Seal—I used my Chess Sage Dao Fruit to subdue it, yet it turned out to be of the Eight Extreme grade… no wonder it couldn’t be erased.”

Li Che exhaled deeply, his heart sinking. Being targeted by a monstrous force like the Corpse God Sect was far from a good omen.

Unlike the refined families of Jingguang City, the Corpse God Sect wasn’t intimidated by the deterrence of the Divine Sect Branch.

“There are members of the Corpse God Sect in the Million Gambling House—what about the Black Snake Gang watching over my family at the alley entrance?”

“Or even their upper echelon—the Fisher Gang, one of the capital’s three major gangs?”

“And the head of the Million Gambling House… who’s absent today. One must strike at the root to uproot the weed completely.”

Li Che’s eyes turned icily as he slowly closed them, his entire being radiating a fierce murderous aura.

After a moment, he gradually reopened his eyes, the killing intent ebbing away.

Since these forces had set their sights on his daughter, Li Che would now target them.

As long as he eliminated them before they could harm XiXi,

her safety would be assured.

“Father can only do so much… I can only help by wiping out those writhing pests,” he thought.

A determination stirred within him.

Two Qian Kun Jades appeared before him.

One from the Corpse Deity of the Corpse God Sect and the other from the second-in-command of the Million Gambling House.

“It’s been a long while since I received such a generous gift,” he murmured gratefully.

Li Che felt a surge of appreciation.

After arriving in the capital, he had finally kept a lower profile. Previously, after dealing with the ashen-faced spy from the Qin Mansion and Qin Yuqing, he never had the chance to gain such rewards.

His heart ached all the while.

Not even handling a corpse after a kill always left him feeling as if ants were crawling over him.

Once he calmed his thoughts, Li Che began to tally his gains. Breaking the restrictions on the Qian Kun Jade, everything inside was revealed under his divine perception.

He first took stock of the wealth of the Million Gambling House’s second-in-command:

Three thousand taels in silver notes, a hundred Gold Leafs, and heaps of loose silver—he barely bothered to count.

Next came a copy of the Tenfold Divine Foundation Technique and an Intermediate Divine Vein Technique…

There were several weapons, but they were just ordinary refined-iron arms—nothing to lure someone who had handled divine weapons before.

Not a single Martial Pill was present—a rather disappointing omission.

But what truly stirred Li Che’s heart was that the second-in-command’s collection even contained two Tenfold Divine Crystals!

“Not bad—they aren’t as shabby as I imagined,” he remarked with a satisfied smile. Two Tenfold Divine Crystals might be few, but they were gains nonetheless.

In terms of wealth, this second-in-command didn’t even compare to the Divine Foundation Old Master of the Feilei City family, but the two Divine Crystals made up the difference.

Continuing his inventory, he then opened a blind box from the Corpse Deity of the Corpse God Sect.

Unlike the money-laden second-in-command, the Corpse Deity’s Qian Kun Jade contained little cash—Li Che immediately sought out any Divine Crystals inside…

“Jackpot…”

His eyes gleamed as he felt a stir—he had, in one breath, uncovered ten Divine Crystals emitting a faint white glow!

Among them, one Divine Crystal was as large as a palm, harboring such overwhelming force that even Li Che, who possessed the status of a Temple Spirit, felt nearly suffocated by its pressure!

“Eight Extreme Divine Crystal!”

Li Che’s eyes narrowed in shock.

The Corpse Deity of the Corpse God Sect… actually wielded an Eight Extreme Divine Crystal?!

No…

Could it be that the Tenfold Corpse Deity really possessed such wealth?!

“Perhaps… this Eight Extreme Divine Crystal holds great utility for the Corpse Deity?”

Li Che pondered.

But whatever its use, now…

this Eight Extreme Divine Crystal was mine!

Thanks to my Deity Brother’s gift!

Combined with the second-in-command’s two crystals, that made eleven Tenfold Divine Crystals and one Eight Extreme Divine Crystal!

Not counting the Eight Extreme Divine Crystal, they were nearly worth four months of my salary!

Sure enough, working for others never makes big money!

Li Che was ecstatic—these Divine Crystals would greatly shortcut the maturation time for his Dao Fruit [Pure Heart].

Once the Dao Fruit [Pure Heart] matured to Level 3, it would awaken the initial form of its divine power!

This marked the third type of divine power Li Che could wield!

“A cultivator from such a major cult—their wealth is truly incomparable to an ordinary gang leader under the Fisher Gang…”

“Moreover, this Corpse Deity of the Corpse God Sect must have just infiltrated the Million Gambling House; these Divine Crystals are likely his operational supplies—especially that Eight Extreme Divine Crystal, which might even be tied to the Corpse God Sect’s plans.”

“Could one Eight Extreme Divine Crystal along with eleven Tenfold Divine Crystals propel my Pure Heart to Level 3?”

“If that’s not enough, there should be plenty more within Jingguang City from the Corpse God Sect’s Corpse Deity…”

Li Che lowered his gaze as he toyed with the Eight Extreme Divine Crystal—a potent divine aura with an oppressive authority—before exhaling deeply.

The Corpse God Sect is nothing good…

Consider it a service for the people.

Apart from the Divine Crystals, the Corpse Deity’s collection was modest:

a divine weapon—a long sword—that exuded an intensely frigid aura.

……

[Divine Weapon (Tenfold Supreme): Ice-Corroding Bone Sword]

[Crafted from century-old Cold Ice Iron, forged with the blood of the demon insect “Bone Corrosion,” blended with the divine essence of the Six Desires and quenched in icy spring water—capable of channeling ‘Flesh-Touch Divine Essence.’ When drawn, it can corrode muscle and bone!]

[Wieldable by those who practice the Six Desires Flesh-Touch Divine Essence Technique and Yangxing Ruhe or higher]

……

A Tenfold Supreme divine weapon, though sadly it required mastery of Flesh-Touch Divine Essence to wield.

For Li Che, it was rather of little use.

“I’ll sell it on the black market later for Divine Crystals,” Li Che remarked bluntly. After all, a divine weapon wasn’t cheap—it went straight into his Qiankun Space.

Besides the divine weapon, there was also a pill—a jet-black pill exuding a dense aura of death.

Li Che immediately activated his Thousand Analysis Hand to appraise it.

“Nine-tier Superior Martial Pill… Corpse God’s Deathly Aura Martial Pill! Once ingested, the deathly aura will erode the flesh, tormenting you through pain until you break through your limits. It’s consumable.”

“This is intended for those in the Corpse God Sect who practice the Curse Corpse technique!”

Li Che frowned as his Thousand Analysis Hand confirmed the pill was genuine, though its properties differed from ordinary martial pills.

After stowing the pill away, he shifted his focus to cultivation techniques.

“Six Desires Flesh-Touch Corpse Nourishing Technique” and “Six Desires Flesh-Touch Corpse Divine Foundation Technique”—two methods linked to divine essence.

Glancing over them, Li Che then put them aside; he wasn’t ready to delve into Six Desires Divine Essence just yet.

After all, he hadn’t even perfected his Seven Emotions Divine Essence—venturing into Six Desires might be too much at once.

Moreover, the malevolence inherent in the Six Desires method was even worse than that of Seven Emotions—he preferred a steadier path.

Apart from that, there was also Divine Martial Arts!

“Corpse God’s Deadly Smoke Finger”—part of the Nine Luminaries Divine Martial Arts!

Once mastered, its fingers ensnare deathly aura, rivaling the potency of lethal toxins!

An exceptionally venomous martial art indeed!

Li Che narrowed his eyes slightly as he silently began to review his techniques.

After some time, the martial talent imbued by his Dao Fruit [Dragon Elephant Vajra] had given him a foothold in the Deadly Smoke Finger style.

Though consolidating deathly aura was challenging, it wasn’t a major problem—Li Che had Deathly Aura Martial Pills, so he could still practice this art.

Ceasing his martial studies for the moment, Li Che’s mind stirred.

Gleaming light radiated from his pupils.

[Dao Fruit: Dragon Elephant Vajra (Lv3 15%), Pure Heart (Lv2 24%), Chess Sage (Lv2 12%)]

The maturation of his Dao Fruit had markedly improved.

Dragon Elephant Vajra had inched up by 2% from a fierce battle—not much, but progress nonetheless.

While Pure Heart changed little, the Chess Sage Dao Fruit surged significantly…

Clearly, that was due to absorbing a great deal of divine essence from deceased Divine Chess Pieces.

Yet overall gains were modest—reaching Level 3 still seemed a distant dream.

“If only I could draw divine essence from the Temple Spirit in the Bizarre Temple and absorb his divine chess pieces… my progress would surely accelerate.”

“In that battle, to end things quickly, I used up one Temple Spirit Chess Piece—now I’ve got only six left…”

Li Che sighed.

Temple Spirit Chess Pieces—you lose one for each use, yet activating the Ascending Stance consumes one as fuel.

“I must find an opportunity to visit the Bizarre Temple…”

“But the Bizarre Temple in the capital is guarded by top agents from the Temple Guardian Division and blocked by mysterious barriers, making it nearly impenetrable…”

Li Che suddenly felt nostalgic for that Temple Spirit statue outside Feilei City—the one whose head he had once fumbled with.

“Forget it. Out with the old, in with the new—there will always be a new Temple Spirit waiting for me…”

He muttered to himself.

Clearing his mind, he retrieved the Eight Extreme Divine Crystal.

Within his chest, the Dao Fruit [Pure Heart] began to throb violently, and suddenly a surging force burst out.

The faint white divine essence within the Eight Extreme Divine Crystal was voraciously absorbed by the Pure Heart Dao Fruit.

Startled, Li Che flung his eyes open, his gaze flickering with shock.

He then saw the maturation of his Dao Fruit [Pure Heart] skyrocketing rapidly.

2%… 2%… 2%…

In the span of a single breath, it surged by 2%—a pace far quicker than Li Che had ever imagined.

Li Che realized he might have underestimated the divine essence contained within the Eight Extreme Divine Crystal!

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