CHAPTER 54: CHAPTER 54 TOWN

What kind of changes have occurred in this world?

Is it because of the system, or is it due to the connection between these worlds and the Hua Country?

Holding a myriad of doubts in his heart, Lu Ren scrutinized the elderly man dressed in clearly ancient attire and began to speak.

"Excuse me, uh... old man, is there something you need?"

The old man circled Lu Ren from a distance, took a glance at the rock in his hand, and his tense expression eased a bit.

"Young man, where are you from, where are you going, and what are you doing here?"

Good question!

As a monk from the Eastern Tang Dynasty, I’m heading to the Western Heaven to obtain scriptures, taking a break here to rest from battling some demons...

Of course, Lu Ren’s internal mockeries didn’t show on his face at all, he maintained a calm expression and said, "I came down the mountain for some experience and found there’s a town here, so I came to rest."

"Do you have an ID tag?"

Lu Ren didn’t blink: "I lost it dealing with a monster."

"What kind of monster?"

"Ghost Crying Woman."

The old man was visibly startled, looking at Lu Ren with suspicion: "You actually escaped from her hands?"

"Uh, to be precise, I killed it."

The old man clearly did not believe him, his eyes widened: "Oh, young man, I didn’t expect you to be more unreliable than Old Xu."

Lu Ren shrugged, smiling silently.

The old man lifted his long spear vertically, "Alright, go in."

That’s it?

Lu Ren didn’t ask further, cupped his hands as a salute, then calmly passed the old man and headed into the town.

"Young man, let me give you some advice, quickly find a place to stay, and after dark, better stay inside honestly, I won’t be responsible if anything happens."

The old man’s words echoed in Lu Ren’s ears, causing him to pause for a moment, then regain his calm.

"Thank you for the warning."

Entering the town, a bustling and lively scene met Lu Ren’s eyes, the street vendors shouting, children playing shuttlecock in the alley, the pedestrians coming and going all appeared harmonious.

The entire ancient town exuded a sense of peace, completely opposite to the outside world.

Yet his distinct outfit seemed entirely normal in the eyes of the townsfolk, apparently having seen it many times.

So peacefully frightening, it gave him an eerie feeling rising in his heart.

Lu Ren sighed, made a miscalculation, damn, this town is not a place to stay, must leave.

"Customer, want some noodles? My beef noodles are the best within ten miles around here!"

A warm voice suddenly reached Lu Ren’s ears.

Lu Ren looked over, focused his eyes, and saw the noodle vendor holding a human head cooking in the brine.

The so-called noodles were the hair of the head, and as for the beef, it was some brother’s severed foot.

Seeing the vendor’s warm expression, Lu Ren resisted the impulse to draw his sword and cut him down, calmly saying: "Are your beef noodles authentic?"

Authentic?

The vendor was obviously stunned, unable to respond for a moment, frozen in place, as if Lu Ren’s question found no matching response in his head.

Lu Ren slightly shook his head: "Seems pretty authentic, who wouldn’t go?"

Saying so, he swaggered away.

And just as he was about to leave town, the old man with the long spear suddenly jumped out, squinting at Lu Ren.

"Young man, you’re not being honest, letting you in, why are you coming out so soon?"

Lu Ren: "Finished shopping, naturally I came out."

"Weren’t you going to rest?"

"I suddenly remembered I left the gas on at home, must hurry back."

The old man didn’t understand, seeming stuck, suddenly shaking uncontrollably, and his face suddenly dropped a large piece of skin, revealing the mummy-like skin underneath.

His expression quickly became sullen: "You cannot leave now."

System: "Ding, the other party seems to start relying on you and has injected goodwill."

"What’s this, forced sale?"

"I let you in, you’re not giving face?" The old man’s eyes revealed malicious intentions unabashedly.

"Back in the day, I roamed with my long spear, fighting demons and monsters from Nansheng to Beixing Town for two days and nights without closing my eyes, slashing countless heads and rivers of blood flowed!"

Lu Ren blinked: "Your hand didn’t get sore from holding the spear for so long?"

The old man was clearly agitated, throwing his long spear, the spearhead wavering, emitting a ’buzzing’ sound.

"Whether my hand gets sore or not, does that have anything to do with what I’m saying?"

"I’m just curious if your hand didn’t get sore from wielding it for so long, like me, after swinging my sword ten thousand times, my hand starts to ache."

The old man was angered, tilting the long spear horizontally.

"Come on, attack me, let me show you if my hand gets sore!"

As he spoke, his skin cracked swiftly, peeling off in pieces, revealing a mummified skeletal face.

Yet to Lu Ren’s surprise, the other party retained his wisdom, not showing signs of madness due to physical transformation, ultimately losing sanity and becoming a ghost.

So, what really happened in this town to cause this situation?

"This... alright!"

Heartless Sword had already formed as a skill, and he could now execute the foundational techniques of the Sword Manual.

Sword Manual Mantra.

Without a woman in the heart, a sword is naturally divine.

This sword was visualized as the Wooden Sword, invisibly mobilizing the body, gathering strength at subtle points to enhance the speed and power of drawing the sword.

In simple terms, it’s about focus, high concentration can allow one to mobilize more potential of the body.

Though Yan Zhenghua named it crudely, it cannot be denied that Heartless Sword is indeed an exquisite form of Meditation Spiritual Swordsmanship.

This swordsmanship focuses on training one’s mental consciousness to mobilize the body.

With high focus and concentration, combined with Basic Swordsmanship, it can unleash astonishing power.

This was entirely like the Visualization Method of the Buddhist and Taoist Families, White Bone Observation, and Divine Strike kind of skills.

Whether in speed or power, both would be enhanced several levels with the explosive draw of the sword.

Lu Ren bent at the waist, his right hand pretending to hold the sword hilt at his left waist, with the Yan Form revealing a portion of the sword blade, then his eyes sharpened, and he shot forward like an arrow, reaching the old man in an instant.

Seeing Lu Ren’s speed, the other party was clearly startled, instinctively lifting his long spear horizontally.

Bang!

The sound of breaking erupted instantly, the old man’s long spear was immediately severed by Lu Ren’s sword.

The old man staggered back several steps, seeing Lu Ren approaching with his sword, hurriedly shouted: "Wait!! Using weapons is not the act of a hero, fight with fists if you dare!"

Lu Ren raised an eyebrow: "Are you serious?"

The old man threw aside his spear, proudly: "Back in the day, my Fist Technique was the best within ten miles, come on!"

(Thanks to I’m Meow King Orange’s reward! Asking for collection, recommendation votes, monthly votes, all kinds of asking, rolling on the ground asking!!!)