Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 15

Lu Feiyu quickly lost interest and prepared to leave. He urged Han Li to quickly copy the manuals and bring them back next time without fail.

Even if no one paid attention, such a large quantity being empty all at once could be discovered someday.

As Lu Feiyu left, Han Li also hurriedly packed his things. A light mist settled over the mountain, creating a somber atmosphere.

On the narrow mountain path, the coniferous forest was dense, and when the wind brushed through the trees, a chilling ‘swish! swish!’ sound could be heard.

Every time the branches moved, they looked like monsters opening their mouths to attack. Han Li hurried past this eerie scenery and headed towards the Divine Medicine Valley.

* * *

The deep mountains were pitch black. Han Li opened all his senses and was on guard in all directions.

It wasn’t just because of the wild animals. Since the Seven Mysteries Sect had established its base in Sunset Mountain, most of the large and small animals, as well as various poisonous insects in the mountains, had become the elixirs of the Seven Mysteries Sect disciples and had disappeared.

He kept his eyes and ears open like this out of habit. It wasn’t like this from the beginning, but it was a habit that had been instinctively developed since he learned of Master Wen’s secret.

This habit minimized the danger he faced. As a result, the mountain path, which was usually difficult for ordinary people to see, felt as clear as day.

The mountain wind grew stronger, and every time it swept through the mountain, he felt a chill down his spine. He wanted to get out of this forest quickly.

It was a great psychological burden to come out of such a deep forest alone in the dark. Han Li quickly escaped to the edge of the forest and sighed.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew.

As the wind passed, Han Li suddenly stopped walking. He frowned and listened, as if sensing something strange. He could feel the presence of people in the distance.

Han Li couldn’t see because of the darkness, but he hid behind a large tree. Even if they passed in front of him, they wouldn’t be able to find him.

‘Who is it at this hour? For someone to be passing through such a remote place.’

It wasn’t a common occurrence. It was clear that they were people who needed to avoid the eyes of others. They got closer and closer, and the sound of their conversation was transmitted intermittently.

“…go down the mountain… need to prepare. The time… the person… the gang leader [幫主 – bāngzhǔ, a term for a gang leader or head of a group]…..”

The strong wind on the mountain sucked the voices into the gale, and only parts of it reached Han Li’s ears.

Han Li had overheard a huge secret. The only person called a gang leader within hundreds of miles was the leader of the Arang Gang, Jia Tianlong.

If it was something related to him, it was something that should be listened to carefully. To the disciples of the Seven Mysteries Sect, Jia Tianlong was a mad demon.

He was said to be healthy and very ferocious, eating human flesh and drinking human blood for all three meals a day. His existence made the young disciples in the sect tremble with fear.

Lu Feiyu, who had seen him, said that he wasn’t actually like that. He was by no means a threatening giant, but had a very thin and handsome appearance, and looked to be only in his early thirties.

However, his habit of killing people at the drop of a hat was as rumored, and many people within the Arang Gang were afraid of him. Otherwise, how could he have subdued the bandits of the Arang Gang with such an appearance?

Han Li’s heart grew cold as he recalled the information about Jia Tianlong. He crouched down as much as possible and slowed his breathing even more.

“…this time… steal the ledger… need to make a move….”

Once again, a muffled voice was faintly heard. It was clearer than before, and it was clear that they were getting closer to Han Li.

If he was discovered here, he would be killed immediately. They were clearly spies sent by the Arang Gang, and they would never let a third party know their secrets.

“Hurry up with the plan……”

The two people’s voices began to fade again. Only the sound of the wind rustling through the bushes lingered in his ears. They had already passed the bushes where Han Li was hiding, and their shadows were moving away.

However, Han Li remained hidden behind the tree for a long time. Only after confirming that they were far away using the Eternal Spring Technique [a technique to sense the presence of others] did he slowly get up.

Fortunately, he had sensed their presence in advance and barely managed to save his life, but Han Li’s skills were not enough to defeat them.

Judging from their conversation, it seemed that the other party was planning to do something unfavorable to the Seven Mysteries Sect in the near future. And it was related to some kind of ledger.

Although he didn’t see their faces or appearances in detail, one of the voices was someone he knew. In his memory, he was a worker in the kitchen.

Although they hadn’t talked much, he was definitely the person who had gotten a rabbit for Han Li. He was greatly surprised, but he thought that this was the kind of person who could frequently go outside and deliver news without arousing suspicion from others.

* * *

It was a long time before he finally arrived at the Divine Medicine Valley. As always, Master Wen didn’t even glance at Han Li coming and going.

He usually didn’t interfere except for sending good medicinal herbs. Han Li wasn’t satisfied with the precious medicinal herbs that Master Wen sent, but he forced himself to swallow them to avoid suspicion.

On his way back, he decided how to deal with the spies he had met on the road.

Although he didn’t have a deep attachment to the Seven Mysteries Sect, he was half a disciple of the sect.

So, he couldn’t ignore the movements that were trying to harm the Seven Mysteries Sect. Moreover, he had already chosen the person to solve this problem. It was Lu Feiyu.

In Han Li’s eyes, Lu Feiyu had a strong desire to be recognized. He was also ambitious and always wanted to rise to a high position in the Seven Wonders Hall.

So, for him, who didn’t have much time left to live, it was a good opportunity to make a great contribution. This was a way to repay the favor of getting the Mountain Crushing Sword Technique.

Thinking about the Mountain Crushing Sword Technique made Han Li feel uncomfortable.

When Lu Feiyu asked about this sword technique, he couldn’t tell him the details of the sword technique, but the contents recorded there were very different from ordinary martial arts.

In Han Li’s view, it was more like a secret art than a sword technique. The sword technique dealt with the secret art of killing people by gathering various factors such as the heavens, the earth, and people. It was definitely a very rare sword manual.

The sword technique taught how to confuse the enemy by using various terrains such as grass and trees, the intensity of light, and the difference in angles, and to attack the enemy’s weakness in an instant and stab them to death in an instant.

This was a very precise technique that could only be mastered with excellent senses and natural talent. If these were the only conditions, everyone would have coveted the power of this sword technique. But this sword technique had even harsher training conditions.

The practitioner of this secret technique must not be well-versed in internal energy. Otherwise, there would be problems in exerting power and performing precise techniques.

Even if one managed to pass this gate by luck, in an actual fight, the movement would become vigorous due to the true energy [internal energy], and the sword technique would be distorted, revealing many weaknesses to the opponent.

With this condition alone, most practitioners would not try to learn this sword technique. If they gave up the internal energy they had accumulated so far to learn this sword technique, it would be a huge joke. And even if a few people had natural talent and no problems with true energy, the final gate remained.

That was because this sword technique was too vast and complex. Just looking at the bundle of books that he had received from Lu Feiyu was enough.

Just looking at the enormous amount would have scared most people away. Each book dealt with one type of swordsmanship, and there were over a hundred types of swordsmanship.

In addition, they had to pay attention to the parts that changed each time each move was performed depending on the different environment and climate.

Due to these strange conditions, it was unknown how many disciples of the Seven Mysteries Sect had given up on learning this sword technique.

That’s why most people in the Seven Mysteries Sect lost interest in this sword technique. So, it had become something that no one looked for for a long time.

The elder who created this sword technique was originally a master of high internal energy. One day, he was caught up in a bloody battle in the martial world and lost all of his internal energy to his opponent. After that, he was unable to cultivate his internal energy by any means. He was afraid of losing his prestige within the Seven Mysteries Sect, so he kept his affairs secret and acted as if he had achieved great achievements in martial arts to deceive the people of the sect.

And he reduced his exposure to the outside world to avoid being discovered by others. The elder was desperate at the fact that there was no way to recover his internal energy.

However, without giving up, he attacked small sects and tried to find martial arts secrets that could be used without using internal energy.

He learned about many mysterious martial arts over the years, but there was no martial art that suited him. As he looked through the manuals they had collected, he was surprised to create his own unique skill.

Even he himself was amazed when he had this thought. Creating one’s own martial art was the dream of all martial artists.

He began to pour all his heart and time into creating martial arts. He put aside all worldly affairs and went into closed-door training, paying no attention to external affairs.

Creating a unique skill that did not use true energy and included all kinds of secret techniques was a difficult task. Unimaginable difficulties followed. However, he devoted half his life to creating the Mountain Crushing Sword Technique and bringing it to the world.

When he delivered this good news to the people in the sect, the Seven Mysteries Sect was in great decline. They were on the verge of annihilation due to the combined attacks of other large and small sects.

At this moment of crisis, he used the martial arts he had created to deal with powerful enemies one after another, and led the remaining masters to break through the enemies that were surrounding the Seven Mysteries Sect, creating a way out.

Thanks to this, the Seven Mysteries Sect was able to continue, but his body had reached its limit, and he passed away, leaving behind a will to pass on the sword technique he had created.

Han Li was not curious about who created this sword technique. He just needed this sword technique to protect him. He returned to his room and continued to read the books by the light of the lamp.

He used his extraordinary memory to put them all into his head. This way, he didn’t have to worry about leaving any traces, and there was no risk of the fact that he was practicing the secret techniques being leaked.

Dawn was approaching, but Han Li continued to fall deeper into this sword technique. The strange techniques captivated his mind. When Han Li looked up, the dazzling sunlight was shining through the window.

Han Li had mastered all the books. He had spent the whole night practicing techniques to harm people, and it was as if he had become a different person than before.

He was dazed for a moment, then opened the door and went outside. He washed his face with cold water, and his mind cleared instantly.

When he used the Eternal Spring Technique to circulate his energy, the fatigue that had accumulated overnight disappeared without a trace.