Chapter 41: What Sets You Apart from Them?

"Young friend, it seems like you rarely leave your home. You have quite a few people in your family, right?" The old woman smiled.

"That's right. My father is at the sixth stage of the Qi Refining Realm. If you're planning to rob me, you better think it through." Fang Chen sneered.

No wonder the young man had so many talismans for sale. He probably stole them from his family

, she thought to herself. From his demeanor and tone, it was clear he was a pampered young master. As for the sixth stage of the Qi Reigning Realm... even though such a cultivation level was pretty high, and if they were to ever meet such a cultivator, they would shower them with respect to no end, the other party wasn’t present at the moment! Even if they robbed his son blind today, they didn’t have to worry over the father’s revenge. There was certainly no way for him to know who the culprits were.

With that thought, she visibly relaxed, and the corners of her lips tilted upwards. “Young friend, hand over the spirit stones and you can go. Don't risk your life over trivial worldly possessions," she advised.

"Tie Ma, Ol’ Huang, go deal with those three fellows," Fang Chen said with a faint smile.

"Understood." Both of them knew what he wanted them to do and they knew their limits. Without hesitation, Huang Sihai leaped out of the carriage, and Tie Ma drew his sword, rushing at the group of three.

"

Hehe.

You really think two martial artists can deal with three cultivators?” The old woman’s lips curled into a sneer. The other party surely had a trump card hidden up his sleeves, but instead of using it, he instructed his followers to deal with the group.

She completely relaxed. He was just a pampered young master who didn’t know how the world worked. She didn’t need to worry about him.

Feeling insulted, the three cultivators’ faces were aflame with anger.

Tie Ma and Huang Sihai activated their Divine Movement, Strength, and Vajra Talismans. They were suddenly able to move at incredible speeds, and were able to exert frightening strength. A golden glow covered their bodies, giving them a metallic sheen.

Fang Chen had instructed them not to hold back, as their enemies weren’t normal people. The two dared not be complacent.

"Talismans!? This wastrel is having his martial artists use talismans?!” The three cultivators were furious. The talismans should have belonged to them after they robbed him, they thought to themselves in unison.

"Attack!" one of the three yelled. His spiritual energy surged through his body, and the water vapor in the air condensed into an Ice Arrow before shooting toward Huang Sihai.

Bang!

The Ice Arrow hit Huang Sihai's chest heavily. Prompting the latter to abruptly stop as he glanced down at his chest. He saw that the arrowhead had peeved through the Vajra Talisman, but it stopped after stabbing an inch or so into his body.

"Interesting." Huang Sihai grinned, and his chest muscles began to wriggle, squeezing the arrow out. Such a wound was insignificant to him.

"How is this possible..." The cultivator was stunned. Although the opponent seemed to have used a Vajra Talisman, he was no cultivator! He shouldn't have been able to use the talisman to its full potential. How did his arrow fail to pierce completely through him? How could his flesh and bones be so sturdy?

"Die!" Huang Sihai snarled as he charged at his opponent like a giant bear.

"Attack!" "Attack!" Ice Arrows shot toward Huang Sihai.

He raised his arms and shielded his vitals. The other areas hit by the Ice Arrows would cause negligible damage, anyway. When he reached one of the cultivators, he sent him flying with a single punch.

Huang Sihai was usually not agile due to his large stature, but with the Divine Movement Talisman, he felt as though he could fly.

As Huang Sihai was dealing with his enemy, Tie Ma agilely dodged the oncoming attacks from the other two. He closed in on them, sword in hand, and decapitated them in several swift movements.

Even in death, the cultivators didn’t understand how they had died in the hands of a martial artist!

"I'll help you." Tie Ma glanced at Huang Sihai and joined him in fighting the last of the three, the one at the third stage of the Qi Refining Realm. The cultivator seemed to have some sort of treasure on him, and he wasn’t injured after getting punched by Huang Sihai.

Facing two martial artists at the Qi Manipulation Stage who had the assistance of various talismans, he was starting to get overwhelmed. Initially, he was able to fight back, but he was quickly suppressed. He could only use his treasure to keep himself alive.

"Dammit! He’s like a turtle! Why can’t we kill him?!" Huang Sihai couldn't help but snort.

In front of the carriage, the old woman was observing what was happening. Her expression changed slightly before she sneered at Fang Chen. "These cultivators are useless. They’re so poor that they don’t even have a single talisman. No wonder your subordinates can beat them up into such a state. In the cultivation world, they are nothing but the lowest of the low."

"Granny, are you telling me that you're different from them?" Fang Chen chuckled.

"Of course." She sneered. "I can easily suppress you once I unleash my treasure, these two martial artists included. Alright. Let’s talk about my conditions. I—” A thunderclap cut her short.

As the purple lightning struck her, her spiritual energy surged out of her to protect her. But it couldn’t neutralize the full power of the Purple Lightning Talisman. Eighty percent of the power remained, and she was forced to retreat. Wisps of smoke emerged from her body.

Astonishment could be seen in her eyes. "Daoist arts? Talismans?" She hadn't expected Fang Chen to be able to use something like that.

Fang Chen didn’t give her the chance to retaliate, and another bolt slammed into her before she could even retrieve her spirtiual treasure.

She was caught off guard once again. "What's happening?" She was extremely bewildered. The power of the lighting poured into her body and prevented her from utilzing her own spiritual energy.

"What’s the matter?" Fang Chen asked relentlessly.

Boom!

"Are you really different from them?"

Boom!

“Speak! What makes you different?”

Continuous bolts of lightning struck the old woman as Fang Chen slowly strode toward her. Looking at her, charred black without a single spot void of injuries, and with her dispirited eyes, he saw that she had lost her ability to fight. Fang Chen remarked, "

Heh

. I’ll tell you how you’re different from them. You’re from the Spirit Blood Sect whilst they’re not, right?”

His statement elicited a reaction from her. Finally regaining her awareness, she stared at Fang Chen in absolute terror. "Who... who are you?"

"You can't even recognize the Purple Thunder Talisman? Looks like the cultivators the Blood Spirit Sect sent to the Grand Xia Empire aren’t anyone of importance," said Fang Chen.

That was good news.

"Why do you know..?" She spoke with great difficulty.

"Tell me; how many cultivators did the Spirit Blood Sect send to the Great Xia Empire?" Fang Chen asked casually.

She stared at him through contorted features, and she shrieked with horror, "You... How dare you attack me when you know that I’m a cultivator of the Spirit Blood Sect?!"

A smile appeared on Fang Chen’s face. "Right now, I'm the one asking the questions. If you don't answer me, I don't mind sending you on your way to Hell. But wouldn’t it be a shame to have all your efforts on cultivation wasted just like that?”

His words caused the fear in her to rise until she couldn’t take it anymore. The person before her seemed to show no fear toward the Spirit Blood Sect. Feeling very overwhelmed, she bit her lip and spoke with some difficulty, "I was the only one—”

"

Heh.

Daoist Xue has already died at my hands. That’s one contradiction. If you say anything that contradicts what I know again, I’ll have you dead," Fang Chen interrupted with a soft chuckle.

She couldn't believe her ears. If Daoist Xue had been killed by the other party, that would mean that some other power had set their sights on the Blood Spirit Sect! Fearing that the Blood Spirit Sect had been marked by some formidable faction, she felt frightened.

"Speak now. You have one final chance,” he said.

After a moment of silence, she finally spoke, "There are a total of... seven of us..."

Seven?

Fang Chen's expression didn’t falter, but his heart gradually grew heavier.