Inside a tavern on the border of Jiannan Province,the spacious establishment was occupied solely by Su Xin,who sat alone drinking.Even the innkeeper hid in a corner,fearing that the swarm of shadowy martial artists outside might burst in and tear the small tavern apart.
Indeed,after a day of fermenting,the matter of Di Yunfei putting a bounty on Su Xin's head had become common knowledge throughout Jiannan and Yunan Provinces.
The people outside were some wandering martial artists from surrounding prefectures,all casting covetous glances at Su Xin,their eyes betraying a greedy gleam.
However,they could only look on helplessly;Su Xin didn't even spare them a glance.They themselves knew that the chance of obtaining the Heaven's Dao Stone was close to zero.
These martial artists were all relatively weak;there were plenty at the acquired realm,and at best,some had reached the Nascent Soul stage.
It could be said that without the cultivation of the Divine Palace realm,one wouldn't stand a chance in this battle.
In the other two prefectures,martial artists who considered themselves somewhat capable had also rushed over to get a piece of the action.Though there was only one Heaven's Dao Stone,who knew if it might end up being theirs?
Even when faced with the Heaven's Dao Stone,even some disciples from major sects felt tempted.However,just as they were about to act,they were all stopped by their sect leaders.
The puzzled disciples asked their masters why they were being restrained,and the answers from these sect leaders were almost identical:"Is Su Xin really so easy to kill?With only one Heaven's Dao Stone,who should take the lead in such a crowded field?"
Just by personal achievements,Su Xin ranked twelfth on the Wanted List.Even when it was heard that remnants of the Wu Kingdom at the Divine Transformation realm had targeted him,they couldn't kill him.Why should you be confident in dealing with him?
For these major sects,sending their disciples to kill Su Xin for the Heaven's Dao Stone was truly pointless.These sects themselves were guarded by cultivators at the Divine Soul realm.It wasn't worth risking their disciples'lives for such a slim chance.
Moreover,even if they succeeded,what about the retaliation from the Six Fan Gate?
The bounty was offered by Di Yunfei,but he was affiliated with the Sword Alliance,capable of withstanding the wrath of the court.
However,these ordinary martial sects,even if they had cultivators at the Divine Fusion realm,still wouldn't stand a chance against the court.
Even if wanted,wandering martial artists could flee from the court's pursuit,but these major sects couldn't escape.
At that time,they might enjoy the Heaven's Dao Stone with their lives hanging by a thread.Therefore,disciples from these major sects refrained from acting,but they all watched the scene from the sidelines,eager to see how Su Xin would handle the situation.
As for other wandering martial artists,they didn't care.Even if hundreds or thousands fought for the Heaven's Dao Stone,even if they faced the risk of being killed by Su Xin,they were willing to gamble.
After all,with their talents and resources,the probability of breaking through to the Divine Fusion realm was probably lower than this.
While Su Xin was drinking alone in the tavern,a person struggled through the crowd and walked in.It was none other than Zhang You,known as"Wind Orchid."
During this period,he had been shuttling back and forth between Su Xin and the Sword Alliance,making a fortune.Di Yunfei was generous in his rewards,and Zhang You had received quite a lot of valuable items.
Seeing Su Xin sitting calmly in the face of such a scene,Zhang You couldn't help but admire him."Master Su is truly bold.To be able to drink calmly in such circumstances is admirable."
Su Xin shrugged indifferently."A pack of wild dogs wants to surround a lion.What can the lion do?Snarl to scare them off?They aren't even qualified for that."
Di Yunfei's move this time was quite decisive;he directly put a bounty on Su Xin,attempting to use others to do the dirty work.
Among the Divine Palace realm martial artists in Jiannan and Yunan Provinces,the number of people with the courage to come and snatch the Heaven's Dao Stone from him probably exceeded a hundred.
To be honest,even Su Xin himself wasn't confident he could take on so many Divine Palace realm martial artists.However,Su Xin still chose to stay and fight.
This place was too far from Jiangnan Province.Even if he used the token from the Underworld,it might not necessarily succeed in teleportation.
Moreover,in terms of long-distance running,Su Xin didn't have much of an advantage.So,he decided to fight here,to kill them and make them too scared to come and snatch his Heaven's Dao Stone.
Besides,Su Xin also had the idea of using them to hone his own martial skills.
Battle was undoubtedly the fastest path to breakthrough.
Su Xin had already reached the peak of the Divine Palace realm.The next step for him was to prepare to enter the perfect realm of Heaven and Man as one.
However,Su Xin hadn't even touched the edges of this realm yet.So,Su Xin decided to use this battle to attempt a breakthrough,to see if he could comprehend the state of Heaven and Man as one.
Su Xin wasn't the kind of person who could achieve enlightenment by just closing himself off.The few times he had enlightenment experiences were either in battle or by chance.That routine of closing himself off and coming out much stronger didn't suit Su Xin.
Zhang You paused for a moment and said,"Master Su,Di Yunfei asked me to pass on one last message to you.If you can hand over the Heaven's Dao Stone to him now,Di Yunfei will immediately revoke the bounty,and you can safely return to Jiangnan Province."
Su Xin's gaze remained unchanged as he replied,"And what if I refuse?"
Yunan Province was after all the stronghold of the Sword Alliance.They dared to lay hands on Su Xin to snatch the Heaven's Dao Stone,but they didn't dare to target Di Yunfei in Yunan or Jiannan Province.
It was as if they also wouldn't dare to touch Su Xin in Jiangnan Province;otherwise,the thousands of elite constables there would be more than enough to teach them a lesson.
However,Su Xin just smiled and replied to Zhang You's words,"Di Yunfei indeed can,he has improved quite a bit,even knows how to play tricks and schemes now.But this trick still won't be of much use.Most of the time,martial artists have to rely on their own fists to speak."
Saying so,Su Xin waved his own fist,expressing his meaning.
Zhang You shrugged;he knew this would be the outcome,so he directly squeezed out of the crowd and went to the tavern opposite to Su Xin's,heading straight for the private room on the second floor.
Pushing the door open,Di Yunfei and Lu Wanting were both there.Zhang You repeated Su Xin's attitude and words.
Upon hearing Zhang You's words,Di Yunfei couldn't help but sneer,"Arrogant!Then let's just wait and see what happens next."
But Lu Wanting,on the side,brightened up upon hearing Su Xin say that martial artists ultimately had to rely on their own fists.She felt that this statement was quite to her taste.
As time passed,it gradually reached noon,and the crowd outside Su Xin's tavern grew larger and larger.
But this time,it wasn't those acquired realm and Nascent Soul stage riffraff;it was the well-known Divine Palace realm martial artists from Jiannan and Yunan Provinces.
It turned out that those acquired realm and Nascent Soul stage martial artists had been pushed aside and were discussing the scene before them.
"Look,it's'Seven Kills Lord'Yu Feiyu from Jiannan Province.He has been at the peak of the Divine Palace realm for more than ten years.It seems he can't resist taking action this time."
"And there's the expert from Yunan Province,'Heart Sword Guest'Yuan Tong.It is said that he inherited the ancient Heart Sword Dao,with his swordsmanship being mysterious and unpredictable,very powerful."
"Look at'Purple Thunder Sword'Xiao Fuyuan from Jiannan Province.He arrived early,but he's been hiding on the side.His cultivated transformation relies on'lightning.'Thunder and lightning originate from the same source.It can be said that this Heaven's Dao Stone with its thunder attribute would be most useful for him."
"Huh?'Sinful Heart Monk'Guang Yuan from Yunan Province is here too.He was originally a lay disciple of the Shaolin Temple but violated precepts and had his martial arts abolished.After he retrained himself,he secretly took the tonsure,tarnishing the reputation of Shaolin Temple and being pursued by Shaolin disciples.He actually dares to come here,isn't he courting death?"
"These lone wanderers coming is one thing,but how come'Qianyuan Mountain'Four Swords,'Honghu Fort'Nine Elders,and the Seven Heroes of'Tiandang Mountain'are here to join the fun?With only one Heaven's Dao Stone,they are all together.How will they split it after snatching it?Bickering?"
The crowd was noisy.In a moment,they saw more than ten wandering martial artists who had gained fame in Jiannan and Yunan Provinces,and there were also hundreds of existences whose names they couldn't even recall.However,these people were genuine Divine Palace realm martial artists.
With so many strong individuals gathering here,the atmosphere became extremely tense.
At this moment,there was a muffled sound of"thud,"startling everyone,and they all took a step back.
But it turned out that Su Xin had just finished his last sip of wine and left a stack of silver coins in front of the innkeeper.
Su Xin stood up and said,"Consider the excess as compensation for any broken chairs or benches later."
The innkeeper weighed the silver coins,which amounted to fifty taels,enough to replace more than a dozen sets of chairs and benches in his small tavern.However,he still showed a look of being on the verge of tears.
Even though he didn't understand martial arts,the innkeeper could still tell that if so many martial arts experts fought together and really broke his tavern's chairs or benches,he would be in trouble.Perhaps his tavern,passed down for several generations,would be ruined in their hands.
Su Xin walked towards the door.With each step he took,the people outside took a step back.By the time he reached the entrance of the tavern,those martial artists had already retreated to the street.
The shadow of the tree,the name of the person.
Ranked twelfth on the Wanted List,the Chief Constable of Jiangnan Province,Su Xin,wasn't so easily killed.
Su Xin's achievements were earned through one bloody battle after another.
Even before reaching the Divine Palace realm,he was able to escape from Jueyan's hands.Later,he even confronted Niangang's Xia Tangtang three moves,forcefully regaining Jiangnan Province's taxation and monitoring rights from Niangang's hands.
At this moment,everyone realized that along the way,even those well-known Divine Palace realm martial artists had become stepping stones for Su Xin.Leading over the older generation of martial artists wasn't something achieved step by step.
Everyone knew that killing Su Xin could obtain the Heaven's Dao Stone and even get a mysterious-grade weapon from the Sword Alliance.But the problem was,who dared to be the first to face him?
Because with Su Xin's strength,he could almost instantly kill martial artists of the same level in a one-on-one fight.
