Watching Chase and Hal leave, Toledo turned to the backyard where Shadeless was still examining the corpse."Master Shadeless, since we didn't retrieve the item from the target, why did we still reward those two?" Toledo asked."Even though we didn't find the item, this is definitely the right person. You don't need to worry about this anymore. Just focus on your own tasks. After reporting these two, they'll fill the vacancies left by those who were lost earlier," Shadeless said, dismissing Toledo.Shadeless then took the body and left the shop from the back, pulling out a crystal to sense for any traces. Sure enough, the body had a faint hint of the divine crystal's presence, but it was on the verge of dissipating.Either the divine crystal was handed to someone else by the deceased, or it was taken after he was killed.The only ones with the opportunity to take it were those who had fought him. Shadeless' eyes darkened as he thought about this.Even outside the shop, he could n
Chase only had time to shout a warning before a powerful force struck him from behind, sending him flying dozens of meters and tumbling several times before coming to a halt.He was badly injured and struggling to get up when he heard another thud and saw Hal lying on the ground in the same position. It seemed Chase's warning had not been effective.Chase finally stood up, spitting out several mouthfuls of clotted blood. He looked back. As expected, it was Shadeless from Shadow Pavilion. After attacking them both, Shadeless did not make another move."Master Shadeless, what's the meaning of this?" Chase asked.Shadeless just stared at Chase and Hal, not intending to answer. These two did not have the power to fuse or absorb the divine crystal. They probably did not even know what it was.Seeing that Shadeless was not going to speak but also was not attacking again, Chase helped Hal up from the ground.Hal was clearly more seriously injured and was barely able to stand with Chase'
"Chase, have you encountered any difficulties? Is that why you're leaving in such a hurry?" Harold asked in the hall of the city lord's manor."No, no. It's nothing serious. I've already troubled you for a long time, and I have some important matters to attend to," Chase replied smoothly.He thought it best not to mention his infiltration into Shadow Pavilion to Harold. Although they had gotten along well in the past few days, their relationship was not deep enough to share such secrets."Does this have to do with the fleeting battle in the city last night? Don't worry, as long as you're within Eagle City, no one would dare cause trouble," Harold said, his confidence and imposing presence making Chase believe Harold could indeed stand up to Shadeless."Lord Scanlon, you're overthinking it. There's nothing wrong. I simply want to travel and gain more experience."For a moment, Chase considered staying in the city lord's manor and dealing with Shadow Pavilion from there.However, h
After leaving the city lord's manor, Chase waved to the Scanlons and swiftly departed.Shadeless had been in a foul mood recently. The great opportunity that had been within his grasp disappeared because of his hesitation to take action personally.He toyed with the crystal in his hand. He had obtained this one by ambushing someone on the brink of breaking through to the martial lord realm.Upon returning to the Eagle City base, Shadeless planned to refine this crystal, which was not a true divine crystal. However, he sensed another divine crystal through it, leading to the subsequent events.Detecting that the divine crystal was in the hands of a young marquis at the early stage of the realm, Shadeless wanted to avoid alarming Harold. He assigned the Shadow Pavilion operatives to handle it, thinking four individuals of the same level would easily capture the young martial artist.Shadeless was already imagining himself refining the divine crystal and ascending to the martial mona
Could it be that after Shadeless's test, he still had doubts about Chase and Hal? Did that cause Shadow Pavilion to delay their approval of the two of them?During this period, Hal had come by to drink with Chase twice. However, it was always on Chase's tab as he had told both Hal and Shadow Pavilion that he was staying here.Their interactions were not exactly joyous, but they were amicable. They both expressed their frustration about the slow process of joining Shadow Pavilion. At least, that was the impression Chase gave Hal.Just when Chase thought today would be like any other, that there would be no response, Hal hurriedly walked over in quick steps."Chase, we've got a response. They're asking us to go over," Hal shouted from a distance, addressing Chase by the window.Upon hearing this, Chase perked up.Afterward, he left the tavern and followed Hal to the base of Shadow Pavilion, where they met Toledo. Toledo led them to the shop's backyard to report to Shadeless. This
Chase walked slowly back to an inn next to the tavern. The inn was actually owned by the same person who owned the tavern, so staying there allowed Chase to enjoy a significant discount on drinks.Once in his room, he scanned the surroundings. He found nothing unusual, so he opened the envelope given by Shadeless.Seeing the contents of the envelope, Chase was momentarily stunned. The words on the letter read: [Assassinate Hal and bring back his body.]What was Shadow Pavilion's intention? Were they planning to use and discard them?For a moment, Chase was truly perplexed. However, seeing the contents, he guessed that Hal's letter likely contained instructions to assassinate him and bring back his body as well."What's so hard to understand? Have you ever seen an assassin who cares about feelings?" Lucas said in Chase's mind.Right, Lucas' words jolted him awake. It turned out Shadow Pavilion was wary of how close he and Hal had become, so they came up with this task.It seemed
It was not until early in the morning that Chase felt a faint killing intent. His heightened senses allowed him to detect any directed hostility from a considerable distance."Have you made up your mind?" Chase asked without even opening the door. He was addressing the presence outside the inn.There was no response, but the already faint killing intent seemed to weaken further."If you've already decided in your heart, don't let external factors sway you. Don't you agree?" Chase continued.There was still no reply, but after a moment, the killing intent suddenly intensified. Chase stopped talking and simply moved from his bed to the door, showing no signs of defense.He knew exactly who was outside—Hal.Hal's timing was impeccable. Moonless and windy nights were perfect for killing. The pre-dawn hours were when vigilance was at its lowest, making it the most vulnerable time for anyone."Why go through this trouble? Are you resigned to your fate?"In Hal's eyes, Chase seemed to
"Come back with me to the headquarters later!" Shadeless gave the order."Headquarters?" Chase asked."Yes. Strange people have appeared in the past few days from unknown lands. They don't look like they belong here and are furiously attacking the headquarters right now. The headquarters has just sent over a secret order for all members of Shadow Pavilion to stop all missions right now and return to protect the headquarters!"Chase had a guess about what happened when he heard Shadeless' words. It had to be the doing of the group of people who came in with him from Capital City.Could the headquarters of Shadow Pavilion be situated above the formation of this world?"Master Shadeless, what are we waiting for? Let's go right now!" Chase acted like he was prepared to die for Shadow Pavilion.This helped remove any last doubts Shadeless had of him.He did not make any other movements but grabbed Chase and flew into the air hurriedly in one direction.Chase was surprised at the spe
"Damn it! I shouldn't have been defeated so quickly even if I hadn't healed from my injury!"The man in black clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes slightly. He wanted to kill Chase badly and turn him into dust.He thought that if he exerted some power, the bumpkin in front of him would kneel and beg for mercy, but things turned out differently. That bumpkin had actually faced three moves from him without losing and even made him cough up blood."Roar!"The man suddenly shouted, and the air around began to contort. A terrifying wind galed and took Chase with it.After that, the man leaped like an eagle hunting a rabbit and went for the kill. An eerie light black as ink wisped around his right fist as he dealt out a vicious punch. His punch was like a venomous snake leaping out of the hole. It was precise and vicious, and quick as lightning.Chase's eyes widened as he moved half a foot to the side. It was a close call as the lethal blow almost landed on him. He kicked at the ma
This was a huge palace that stood as tall as the mountains. It was glittering and brilliant with various paintings and images hung on the walls. Some were of deities visiting the moon and playing musical instruments, some were of phoenixes flying through the clouds. There were others of dragons roaring and griffins clawing in a dance. They were lifelike and looked real."Where is this?" Chase looked around in a daze.Meanwhile, deep inside the palace, a man in a purple shirt approached Chase.He had a good-looking face and nice features. The man was tall and exuded a strong aura. He was like a deity."W-Who are you?"Chase was flabbergasted. This man intimidated him. Chase felt a heavy pressure above him, which almost suffocated him."Who are you? Why did you barge into the forbidden land of my ancient country?" The man sounded calm. He had a hand behind his back and looked down on Chase when he spoke."Ancient country?" Chase was taken aback at the man's words. Was this the leg
There was a muffled sound, and the leaf turned into dust. The man's palm was unscathed. All he had was some dust on his sleeve."You…" Chase's eyes widened with great fear. He was aware that all that man had to do was blow some air and Chase would be dead for sure."This can't continue. There'll be hope as long as I'm still alive. I have to leave this godforsaken place right now!" Chase made a quick decision. He stood up right away and made a mad dash for the coastline."Die, you lowly ant!"A roar echoed in the air, and Chase's movement slowed. He felt a chill.A massive power came crashing down like the skyline was collapsing. It suppressed everything in all corners and was suffocating.Chase's knees gave out, his bones cracking. He fell kneeling to the ground. His shoulders were trembling, and he was in great pain."I need to run as far as I can!" Chase was filled with great fear. He gave everything he could to channel true energy and ran crazily to the front."Hmph! Trying
The martial artists who survived in the land where light and dark convened were naturally tainted by evil energy. Their physique would gradually transform, slowly making them a better fit in the nether realm.While within the nether realm, martial artists would experience various hallucinations.They would hear spirits crying and wolves howling. Resentment was everywhere, and evil spirits would constantly appear. That place was covered in dark fog, and spirits roamed. Every corner of it was dangerous and had high death rates. Ordinary people would never dare step into this place.Chase had lived on Earth for 20 years. He trained in martial arts and medical skills from a young age and had seen a lot of this world.However, even he felt a chill down his spine after he was one reading the record on the nether realm."No wonder I keep having the feeling of a mysterious movement at the northeast corner of the martial realm. Could the dark energy from the nether realm have seeped throug
"Unfortunately, we chose to stay behind back then. There's no other way. If we aren't able to stop the balance from being destroyed, the martial realm will meet with catastrophe."All three elders looked at each other and sighed.That was when a skinny middle-aged man suddenly pushed the door open and entered. He gave them a fist and palm salute. "Masters, I have something urgent to report."An emerald slip appeared in the man's hand."Oh? Is there news of the influential families of the martial realm?""I can't believe there's news so soon."All three elders were surprised.It had only been 15 minutes since it happened, and there was already news. That was not easy to obtain.All three elders were top powerhouses with strong capabilities. However, they were hopeful that the news was true and reliable. They took the emerald slip and used the divine sense technique to check the news in it."What?!" "The martial realm's Secret Sect has been destroyed?!"All three of them rais
"I understand it now. This is a spiritual stone tablet with a record of a mysterious Soul Refining Technique!"Chase looked delighted.The Soul Refining Technique was used to refine a person's soul and purify the Origin of the Soul."That's really powerful!"Chase opened his eyes and took a sharp breath. "The things left behind by powerhouses of the nether realm are really incredible. Such treasure is highly valuable. Even a small piece of this would be enough for powerhouses to fight over it!"A notion crossed his mind, and a massive soul energy surged. The spiritual tablet was instantly crushed by the soul energy.The spiritual tablet was crushed to dust and recondensed into an emerald slip that floated in the air. It gradually flew toward Chase."Huh? That isn't right."There was a cold look in Chase's eyes. He discovered a thread of a soul energy's fragment inside the emerald slip.A contorted savage phantom shadow shot out of the emerald slip. It came clawing at Chase wit
"My gosh! How is this happening?!" The skeletal old man panicked. His soul energy sensed that heaven and earth's vitality seemed to be attracted by something when it was around Chase, and it flowed directly into Chase.Meanwhile, the brilliant glow of the sun appeared in the air behind Chase. It burned brightly and blinded those who saw it.A massive Divine Red Phoenix appeared and opened up its wings as it flew in the air. It was ferocious and had an air of danger about it."The Divine Red Phoenix?!"The sight of it put fear in the skeletal old man as his eyes widened. "Who exactly are you?!"Chase ignored him. He had formed into a golden-red phoenix and was emanating a terrifying aura in the air."Burning Sky Technique!"The temperature in the cave suddenly hiked up several hundred degrees due to the burning golden sun. Even the cave walls and ground were melted into lava that started to flow like a river.The skeletal old man screamed in pain as his body turned red instantly
Chase moved extremely fast. He appeared in front of the skeletal old man, who was about ten yards away, in an instant.They were fighting in close combat. Their hands and legs hit and kicked each other as protective energy flew about.Several muffled explosions were heard. It was difficult to determine the victor in this fight."You're at the end of your tethers, little bastard! You're about to die! I'm going to refine you and feed your soul to the Phantom Coffin. You'll be vanquished completely and turned into a part of my body."The skeletal old man held back his head and laughed wildly. His wounds were healing at an incredible speed.Chase's performance in this fight had angered him. He no longer cared about hiding his identity."You want to refine me? You're nothing but a ghost. Are you dreaming?" Chase sneered and suddenly lunged forward."Die!" Chase was quick as lightning as he instantly got close to the skeletal old man. He pressed his palm down on the old man's shoulder
A strange air of authority could be felt coming from him."How did this happen?"The skeletal old man's eyes widened, and his heart beat violently. He was trembling.Chase looked just like a demon king.He took a step forward. The earth and sky tremored as cracks appeared on the ground.Chase's physique suddenly expanded exponentially. His skin was bright red, and his bones seemed to be clanging. A strong dark blood energy flooded out from him.Chase waved his arms about crazily. Explosions went off in the air. Every punch he swung was followed by the terrifying sound of an explosion.The surface of the graveyard collapsed from Chase's savage strength.Chase crushed half the skeletal old man's face with one punch, and the old man's body flew off several yards away.Meanwhile, Chase was suffering from backlash because the true energy reserves within his body had erupted. Bloody arrows began shooting out of him."Only a little of my true energy is left!" Chase said sadly.Even