Martial Saint!
Chapter 261 - 0186 Tiger Spirit Perfection, Heavenly Destiny Mystic Tiger, descending to start the summer! (8k for monthly tickets and subscriptions)

Chapter 261: 0186 Tiger Spirit Perfection, Heavenly Destiny Mystic Tiger, descending to start the summer! (8k for monthly tickets and subscriptions)

To make it easier to deal with the "Three Harms," Su City had installed a dense network of surveillance cameras in almost all public areas; once someone made a move, traces were bound to be left behind.

Not much time had passed before all the surveillance footage from this neighborhood was pulled up.

In the video, something indeed was captured: out of nowhere, a fluttering white shadow appeared at the corner of the street and kidnapped the frantically fleeing Xiao Zhao.

Then... the white shadow soared into the sky and completely vanished.

That was all the surveillance captured.

"Slow down, zoom in, and see what that white shadow is."

Officer Lu stared at the ever-enlarging image, but unfortunately, the figure was shrouded in the white shadow, ghostlike, revealing nothing. In the end, he asked:

"Have you made any enemies?"

Ji Xuantong shook his head:

"No... wait."

His mind flashed with the image of the missing Jiang Jiao as if sparks were firing. He remembered participating in an operation years ago with Jiang Jiao, where Su City’s police force rounded up Tang Zheng’s criminal gang. In the end, except for Tang Zheng and a few top ranks who escaped, the rest were wiped out by the police.

If there were enemies to speak of, these were the few he had made. After all, since his Martial Arts Hall had taken off, he rarely took on judicial assistance tasks to earn money, fearing one day he would be targeted for retaliation by the dark and evil forces.

Many martial artists from Su City had participated in that roundup operation.

Tang Zheng, why target him?

Ji Xuantong shared his thoughts with Lu Jun.

Lu Jun seemed to recall something, his expression changing slightly: "You’re saying Tang Zheng might have returned to the country? Jiang Jiao’s disappearance might also be related to Tang Zheng?"

Ji Xuantong nodded.

"I’m just speculating; I’m not certain."

Lu Jun said:

"It’s very possible... Right now, with the Virtual Disaster looming over Su City, many dark forces are attempting to stir up trouble. Before Tang Zheng defected, he had already reached the Peak of Breakthrough Third. Time has passed, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he has advanced to Grandmaster."

Ji Xuantong’s expression darkened.

"If it’s a Grandmaster... then we’re in trouble."

A Martial Arts Grandmaster, a Black Knight lurking in the shadows—if that white shadow was indeed Tang Zheng, and he had wanted to kill Ji Xuantong, it was likely Ji Xuantong would already be dead.

Had Tang Zheng come for revenge?

Kidnapping a student was just a show of power.

Once the police had left, Ji Xuantong dialed Qingtian Cang’s number:

"Teacher."

"What, you’ve broken through to the Second Rank?"

"...No, I want to move back to the school to live."

"What’s wrong? What about your Martial Arts Hall?"

"I suspect Tang Zheng has returned to the country. The recent disappearance of Jiang Jiao is also related to him. Continuing to stay outside isn’t necessarily safe. Over the years, I’ve saved quite a bit of money. I’ll refund part of the students’ tuition fees. The Martial Arts Hall will cease operation for now."

"You mean to say Tang Zheng might want to take revenge on those who participated in the roundup back then?"

"Yes."

Ji Xuantong felt as if his heart was bleeding. He had finally built up his academy, bringing in a lot of money every year, and now he couldn’t continue it. He was worried that if things continued like this, Tang Zheng would keep harming his students, which meant bringing trouble to those innocent children.

"Alright then, move quickly."

...

On the outskirts of Su City, at a certain location.

Tang Zheng was draped in a strange white gossamer robe.

His complexion was unnaturally ruddy, with red mist exhaling from all of his pores and acupoints, giving off a faint scent of blood, until the person in his hands crumbled into bone dust.

"This ’Blood Dragon Devouring Heaven Divine Skill,’ truly deserving of being listed as the number one forbidden skill by Da Xia, the feeling of transforming others’ Qi-Blood into my own is too delightful... And this Void Robe, truly a Grandmaster Divine Weapon, with its superb concealment!"

The Void Robe was something Tang Zheng had acquired during his explorations in the Void Realm. Its effects were astonishing, able to amplify speed, hide one’s figure, and even briefly traverse voids and control the wind.

Tang Zheng exhaled slowly. With the opening and closing of his acupoints, a shadowy figure with blood-colored fleshy wings, thick Dragon Claws, and a bat’s head subtly emerged behind him.

The shadow had a fierce and sinister countenance, breathing in and out blood qi.

It opened its eyes, emanating an aura of devouring heavens and earth.

Tang Zheng mused:

"That Ji Xuantong is indeed lucky. If it weren’t for my sensing of a new Grandmaster’s aura awakening nearby, he would have turned into a dried corpse. Having just entered the Grandmaster Realm, I should avoid other Grandmasters at all costs, otherwise, if the Cold Mountain Elder or the Three Extremes Saint become aware, I would no longer be able to remain in Su City...

But then again, who might this new Grandmaster be? To my knowledge, several people in Su City have been stuck at the threshold of the Breakthrough Forth for some time now. Regardless of who it is, I must be more careful in the future and avoid entering the city lightly."

His Devouring Heaven Divine Skill progressed rapidly in cultivation, but it required constant absorption of others’ Qi-Blood and life essence. Once he began practicing, he couldn’t stop, and if he didn’t replenish regularly, it would affect his sanity and over time, even his cultivation might regress.

The higher a martial artist’s cultivation, the more useful the divine skill, effective even on common people, but it often required the slaughter of entire villages or towns. In this day and age, this was clearly troublesome. If the commotion was too large, even with Grandmaster cultivation, he would still be in mortal danger.

All forbidden martial arts come with a great price.

These things, Tang Zheng was well aware of.

However, if he had not practiced this skill, in the ruthless organization Carefree Travel, he feared he wouldn’t have lasted until reaching the Grandmaster Realm and would have been brutalized by some twisted colleagues.

Forbidden martial arts, dubbed by Da Xia as demonic skills.

He had embarked on this path, prepared to either embrace madness or perish.

Before long, several figures appeared around Tang Zheng.

"Sir Tang, the brothers are almost all here."

Tang Zheng looked at these people and said indifferently:

"Now that the struggle is going well, those who are willing to follow me will have a bright future. I have a supreme divine skill that I can impart to you all."