Lord Shenxiu
Chapter 154: Challenge Invitation (Request for Monthly Pass)

Chapter 154: Chapter 154: Challenge Invitation (Request for Monthly Pass)

The evening sky deepened into a profound darkness.

A cold wind blew, causing Zhong Shenxiu to shiver abruptly.

He looked around, somewhat bewildered, before realizing that he had been so engrossed in thought that he had unwittingly stood until the night had fallen.

"Forget it... This stone formation merely proves... ’His’ presence, nothing more."

"With my current state, rashly studying this is akin to courting death."

"However, it seems that Shang Jun being enlightened by Niu Shenjun, his rampant victories over other nations, as well as the Wu Dynasty Grand Ancestor’s dream of the divine figure who established the source of Martial Arts, might not be false after all..."

"With this said, the world’s peculiar Martial Arts also have an explanation..."

Under the moonlight, Zhong Shenxiu took one last glance at Niu Shenjun Temple before his figure vanished in a flash.

...

In the following days, he wandered east and west around the ancient capital of Shang Dynasty, even stealthily intruding into the ruins of the Shang Country Royal Palace several times.

Regrettably, he made no other discoveries.

On this day, Zhong Shenxiu was drinking tea in a teahouse.

This place was near the government offices, a favorite spot for Jianghu martial artists to gather, not for any other reason than the monthly update of the Heaven, Earth, and Human three rankings on the bulletin board at the entrance of the Yamen.

Noon arrived.

Several constables from the Divine Capture Sect removed the old postings with solemn faces and put up new ones.

As usual, there were no significant changes on the Heaven and Earth rankings.

The Human ranking also didn’t show much change.

Zhong Shenxiu understood this, even though the martial artists on the Human ranking were updated frequently, the issue was... you first had to find the person to challenge them! Moreover, it was best to have a few highly respected witnesses.

For example, himself, as the bottom of the Human ranking, and with no significant backing, Five Elements Palm Xun Liuyi was naturally the target that recent newcomers to Jianghu would want to challenge.

Unfortunately, he had long left Little Mountain City, and with no one to find, their efforts were in vain.

Just then, a commotion suddenly arose among the martial artists ahead.

Zhong Shenxiu listened closely and vaguely heard words like "Earth List," "Grandmaster," and "Five Poison Sect," which made him focus intently.

He definitely had a deep impression of Gu Qingying and Black Widow Hua Miao.

However, judging by the situation, the news had only spread for a brief moment; all that was needed was to wait quietly.

Surely enough, in less than a moment, the storyteller’s clap of the wooden block resonated, giving out a shocking piece of news, "On the fifteenth of the next month, the seventieth ranked Grandmaster on the Earth List, Black Widow Hua Miao, has challenged Golden Zombie Ximen Cuo to a duel on the shores of Luoyue Lake! And Master Ximen has already accepted!"

The news silenced the entire floor.

Then, impatient martial artists immediately leaped out of the window onto their horses, ready to rush to the duel site of the two great Earth List Grandmasters.

Ximen Cuo was ranked forty-sixth on the Earth List, and a clash between two such masters was extremely rare.

The Martial Arts community cherished the honor of witnessing such grand events.

Zhong Shenxiu, however, was not in a hurry, just listening to the storyteller continue, "This Master Ximen Cuo, also known as Golden Zombie, does anyone know the origin of this alias? It all starts with the martial arts he practices... The technique Master Ximen cultivates is called ’Dead Body Fist,’ a boxing form that’s quite widespread in Martial Arts, but while it is easy to learn, mastering it is extremely difficult, comprising five major realms: Zombie, Flying Corpse, Iron Corpse, Silver Corpse, and Golden Zombie!"

"If it’s just the plain Zombie Fist, then you might find travel guards in escort agencies who know a couple of moves—nothing remarkable. But if one masters the Flying Corpse Fist, they could become a first-rate hand of Jianghu."

"As for the Iron Corpse Fist, it requires the true secret technique, and it is said that a great amount of precious Elixir Pills are needed as well to open the body’s meridians and undergo a blood exchange. Afterward, the body becomes comparable to an Iron Corpse, impervious to blades and spears, capable of contending with Human Ranking Experts..."

"The Silver Corpse Fist technique is a Grandmaster-level punch!"

"And Golden Zombie Ximen Cuo has reached the highest realm of this boxing line—the Golden Corpse King Fist! Once this technique is achieved, one’s body is like that of a Golden Zombie, indestructible. Even among Grandmasters, he stands out as top-tier... Back in the day, Ximen Cuo once..."

The storyteller was speaking so animatedly that spit was flying, and his story was packed with substantive details, making Zhong Shenxiu suspect that the tea house might be backed by the Divine Capture Sect, and the information in the storyteller’s hands could very well be internal data from the sect, hence its high accuracy without errors.

’It’s normal for the court to control public opinion...’

He found it neither strange nor concerning but was rather curious why Hua Miao gave up chasing after Gu Qingying and instead randomly challenged a Grandmaster?

’Could it be that Gu Qingying is already done for? Being pursued by the Five Poison Sect, it’s indeed quite possible...’

’In any case, now that I’ve got a lead on the Black Widow, it’s worth checking out... A duel between two Great Grandmasters is rare to see...’

Zhong Shenxiu returned to the inn, packed his belongings, settled his room bill, filled a gourd with fine wine, hung it on his old horse, and prepared to leave the city.

He hadn’t gone far beyond the city gates when he came upon two major roads.

One went straight out of Shang County, and by pushing his horse to its limits, he could reach Luoyue Lake in just half a month.

The other road, however, led to the Black Crow Mountain Range.

"Speaking of which, Iron Arhat Jing Fan and the peerless swordsman Duan Mingyu have also been gone for several days without any news. Could something bad have happened to them?"

Zhong Shenxiu looked at the crossroads, pondering for a moment: "No... These two rank higher than me in the Human Listing. If they both encountered danger they couldn’t resist, my going would be useless—I could at most collect their corpses... Well, that’s about the extent of our acquaintance after having a few meals together."

"Since there are still villages at the foot of Black Crow Mountain, it means that without venturing deep into the mountain, it’s not too dangerous... Since there’s still time, I might as well take a look, perhaps to collect the bodies of two friends..."

With these thoughts, he turned his horse around and headed towards Black Crow Mountain.

...

Black Crow Mountain.

In the dense forest at the foot of the mountain, a young girl carrying a medicine basket was running swiftly, with several dark figures leaping and pursuing among the tall trees behind her.

Suddenly, a piercing howl of an ape filled the air, turning the girl’s face ashen.

"Dharma! Dharma!"

From between the trees, a giant macaque suddenly leaped down.

It was nearly as tall as a man, with arms incredibly thick and its body covered in black fur; its blood-red eyes were intently fixed on the girl’s head.

Petrified with fear, the girl collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

Just as she was overrun with tears, believing her skull was about to be smashed and her brain devoured, the sound of galloping hooves suddenly reached her ears.

With a few swooshes, the Demon Ape that was about to snatch her life had vanished into thin air.

"So, this is a mutant monkey? It’s indeed formidable... Although I did not use my full strength with the Kidney Water Section, to think it still escaped after being hit by my palm..."

Zhong Shenxiu slowly opened his hand, sighing softly.

"Ah Xia, thank you for the rescue, kind hero," the girl on the ground said in a timid voice.

"It was nothing..."

Zhong Shenxiu lifted his gourd, "Where do you come from?"

"From a village nearby..." The girl clearly did not know any specific place names; in ancient times, it was normal for a person to spend their whole life without leaving their village.

Zhong Shenxiu smacked his forehead, then asked, "Have a monk and a young master carrying a lute come to your village recently?"

"Not to our village..." Xia thought for a moment, then said with certainty, "But the neighboring village mentioned that two such men came few days ago, even hired a guide to enter the mountain, and then there was no news..."

’It seems... something really did happen?’

Upon hearing this, Zhong Shenxiu felt a slight stir inside.