Chapter 495: A Person in Ten Steps - Flower Stealing Master

Master Shi Li’s eyes widened in shock. With his martial arts skills, how could he possibly keep up with Song Qingshu’s Qinggong? He stood there, petrified, waiting for death.

Fortunately, Xuan Cheng, who was prepared, saw Song Qingshu move and quickly stepped between them. Not daring to be overconfident, he swung his meditation staff, employing Shaolin Temple’s top technique, the Demon Subduing Staff. Given Song Qingshu’s speed, Xuan Cheng believed there was no way out except for a head-on collision.

In a head-on collision, Xuan Cheng did not believe that his decades of hard practice would lose to a young martial artist.

Seeing Song Qingshu approaching like an arrow released from a bow, showing no intention of dodging, Xuan Cheng sneered and swung his staff at him.

Although Xuan Cheng was proficient in thirteen techniques, his most refined and powerful were the Prajna Palm and the Demon Subduing Staff. He was confident that no one in the world could take a direct hit from his staff without dodging and remain unharmed. Seeing Song Qingshu recklessly not dodging, Xuan Cheng’s staff swung even faster, determined to seize this opportunity to eliminate this threat.

Just as the staff was about to hit Song Qingshu, Xuan Cheng had no time to rejoice before he was shocked to find that the opponent’s entire body had become as light as a leaf, effortlessly floating to the side thanks to the force of the staff’s wind. Song Qingshu had evaded what Xuan Cheng thought was a sure-hit strike!

Ignoring the stunned Xuan Cheng, Song Qingshu floated past him and suddenly sensed a forceful wind from the side. It turned out that Xu Zhu had been waiting nearby. Seeing Xuan Cheng fail, he immediately struck.

“One Palm, Two Scatter?” Song Qingshu recognized the move. Back then, Murong Fu had suffered greatly under this move, but he thought, “I’m not a weakling like Murong Fu!”

Song Qingshu knew the opportunity was fleeting. If he waited for everyone to react, it would be much harder to kill Master Shi Li under the protection of so many experts. So, he didn’t dodge and used his left hand to counter Xu Zhu’s palm with “Proud Dragon Repents” while flicking a wisp of sword Qi with his right hand into Master Shi Li’s forehead.

“How dare you!” Xu Zhu was shocked but couldn’t stop it in time. He could only watch as Master Shi Li died on the spot.

As the sword Qi cut off Master Shi Li’s life force, Song Qingshu’s “Proud Dragon Repents” met Xu Zhu’s “One Palm, Two Scatter.”

There was no expected loud bang, nor a mountain-crushing force from the opponent. Instead, it felt like a black hole, continuously devouring Song Qingshu’s energy.

“Northern Darkness Divine Art?” Song Qingshu sneered. This seemingly honest monk was actually quite insidious. When he faced Murong Fu, he used “One Palm, Two Scatter” to make Murong Fu abandon his sophisticated techniques and go head-to-head; against Ah Qing, seeing that he was losing, he used the sinister “Life and Death Talisman.” Now, under the guise of saving Master Shi Li, he actually wanted to absorb Song Qingshu’s energy.

Song Qingshu didn’t know why Xu Zhu was so different from his original character, but with Zhang Wuji’s precedent, he wasn’t too surprised.

Either Xu Zhu had also been taken over by some old monster, though it seemed unlikely given that his martial arts didn’t have a backdoor like the Heaven and Earth Great Shift. Or it was the butterfly effect caused by his transmigration. Or perhaps, Xu Zhu was never the simple monk he appeared to be…

In the original work, whether it was receiving Wuya Zi’s power at the Zhenlong Chess Game or accidentally absorbing the century-old skills of Tianshan Tonglao and Li Qiushui in the Western Xia Palace, no one else was present. Both Wuya Zi and Tianshan Tonglao, as well as Li Qiushui, died without exception.

Given that Xu Zhu was the ultimate beneficiary of these events, the truthfulness of his accounts was questionable.

The incident where a Western Xia princess was drugged and taken to an ice cellar for shameful deeds—was it really done by Tianshan Tonglao? It was worth pondering.

Moreover, the princess, a young maiden, suddenly appeared on a stranger’s bed, not scared but instead seductive. If she wasn’t dru*gged, he would cut off his hand… well, maybe not. He would decide to abstain for three days.

Song Qingshu admired his own ability to think of such irrelevant matters in such a critical moment.

Xu Zhu was even more puzzled. Despite making contact and successfully using Northern Darkness Divine Art, why couldn’t he absorb any inner strength?

Xu Zhu didn’t know that Song Qingshu had long comprehended the realm where a palm could either be powerful or void. The move he used was purely void, leaving Xu Zhu nothing to absorb.

Noticing Xu Zhu’s shock, Song Qingshu smirked and forcefully sent a surge of sword Qi through Xu Zhu’s open meridians.

Sensing danger, Xu Zhu quickly withdrew and retreated several steps before stabilizing himself. Looking at his limp arm, his face turned pale. Fortunately, his profound skills saved his arm from being crippled, but it seemed unusable for several months.

Though the description was lengthy, the entire process happened in an instant for the onlookers. They only saw a blur before Song Qingshu effortlessly dodged Xuan Cheng’s full-force strike, then knocked Xu Zhu back with a palm and killed Master Shi Li, returning to the stage in a flash.

Master Shi Li was no mediocre, and Xuan Cheng was hailed as Shaolin’s best in two hundred years. During the tournament, Xu Zhu also showcased extraordinary skills, equal to Xuan Cheng. For Song Qingshu to kill Master Shi Li so swiftly in their midst, his prowess was terrifying.

“K!lling a person in ten steps, leaving none behind for a thousand miles,” Huang Rong suddenly recalled this poem by Li Bai.

“Leaving once the deed is done, hiding both merit and fame,” Yeu Nanxian, though not well-versed in Han literature, was a swordswoman who resonated with Li Bai’s poetry. Like Huang Rong, she remembered the same poem.

‘That rascal can be quite charming sometimes…’

Yuan Ziyi thought before her expression changed.

‘Bah! That shameless, deceitful rogue, full of lies, harming the loyal, and taking others’ wives…’

Yuan Ziyi had been fooled by Song Qingshu on Mount Emei, giving her a poor initial impression of him. Later, hearing about the Red Flower Society’s encounters, Song Qingshu became synonymous with scum in her mind. Realizing her stance was wavering, she naturally became anxious.

She wasn’t the only one feeling this way. Guo Fu stared intently at the person on stage, her delicate face glowing like a peach blossom, lost in thought.

“Sister, brother-in-law is amazing!” At the seat of Prince Mu’s Mansion, Mu Jianping exclaimed softly with wide eyes, struggling to find words of praise for Song Qingshu’s astonishing skills.

“Don’t call him brother-in-law, Princess. Don’t talk nonsense.” Fang Yi shyly covered Mu Jianping’s mouth, secretly feeling proud. This was the man she chose—strong enough to make even the Little Prince look up to him in awe…