CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: HAND IT IN? LET ME MASTER IT FIRST!

The matter involves the Heart Killing Stream, and the death of the Blood Crow is no small affair. The case directly alarmed the high ranks of the Linjiang City Martial Arts Association, prompting them to personally intervene and inquire about the details, especially the whereabouts of the Divine Sword Jade Scroll.

Hee Zhongyang consistently claimed that the item was hidden by Ye Qingzhou, demanding a thorough interrogation.

Xu Yunxi naturally defended Ye Qingzhou vigorously, retorting at the meeting, "Hee Zhongyang, on what grounds are you so sure the Divine Sword Jade Scroll was taken by the Blood Crow? There were quite a few Heart Killing Stream members present at the time. Or is it that someone secretly colluded with the Heart Killing Stream, otherwise how could the perimeter of the Secret Realm be infiltrated silently?"

"Xu Yunxi, stop spewing baseless accusations, I’m suing you for defamation! She’s slandering me!"

"Enough, this matter ends here."

Bai Yuanhu, the Chairman of the Linjiang City Martial Arts Association, suddenly struck the table. The imposing aura of a Master Level Martial Artist pressed down on the entire room, leaving several Captains of the Law Enforcement Team gasping for breath, finally putting a temporary halt to the quarrel.

Where there are people, there is a world of martial artists. Back then, when Qi Shengtian returned from the Milo Grotto Heaven with the Treasure Manual, he first founded the Divine Gang Dao, and the Martial Arts Noble Families were founded by the first disciples who accepted the new style of martial arts from the Divine Gang Dao.

Later, as the nation began to pay attention to martial arts, the Martial Arts Association was established, gradually developing into the colossal entity it is today.

However, because of this, within the Martial Arts Association, the forces of the Martial Arts Noble Families have become deeply entangled, and their factions are growing stronger.

To prevent the Martial Arts Noble Families from becoming too dominant, the officials from the Dongji Kingdom, knowledgeable in the art of balance, have consciously supported the rise of civilian martial artists. They even spent a vast amount of resources to launch a Martial Arts Rising Star Program to gather martial arts talents from among civilians and cultivate them, thereby balancing the power of the Martial Arts Noble Families within the Association.

Hee Zhongyang and the Hee Family rose to prominence in this way, and over the years, the conflict between the two forces has become increasingly fierce. Today, in Linjiang City’s seven Law Enforcement Teams, four of the team captains are of civilian martial artist origin, a clear indication of the official stance.

Bai Yuanhu is happy to see the balance of power between the two factions underneath him.

However, despite the rivalry, business must still be conducted.

"I’ve received intelligence that Ghost Sword Sorrow Duann Ming has arrived in Linjiang City, presumably to assist the Heart Killing Stream members who successfully broke out. Although Extreme Heaven Madness Zhang Xinwu has confirmed abandoning the Heart Killing Stream to retreat to the Kunlun Grotto Heaven for secluded cultivation, we still cannot afford to be careless, nor allow these lawless martial fanatics to threaten the stability and harmony of our Dongji Kingdom. Do you all understand?"

"Yes!"

"Then let’s begin the operation!"

Soon, members of the Martial Arts Association, having assembled, blocked the members of the Heart Killing Stream at the old dock freight area in the northern part of the city.

To show loyalty, Hee Zhongyang was the first to take action, charging forward: "Ghost Sword Sorrow, hand over the Divine Sword Jade Scroll, or else today will be the day you die in regret!"

With a loud angry shout, a violent torrent of flames swept across the dock.

Mastering both the Fire and Forest Stance, with a cultivation of Professional Fifth Rank, and having practiced the fire attribute cultivation technique Smoke Battle Body, Hee Zhongyang’s strength was undoubtedly formidable.

As he struck out with a palm, a blaze shot up to the sky, causing all to quake in awe.

However, the raging fire wave was quickly split in two by a crimson sword Qi, as Ghost Sword Sorrow’s wild figure stood proudly amidst the crimson sea of flames, cursing: "Damn it, you Martial Arts Association’s bastards have become more and more outrageous. How dare you try to settle scores with me? What Divine Sword Jade Scroll? I’ve never even seen it!"

Ghost Sword Sorrow, a half-step Master, with surging Blood River Sword Qi, was not someone Hee Zhongyang could withstand, so he quickly fell in defeat, and several other captains hurried forward to assist.

Facing many adversaries alone, Ghost Sword Sorrow remained arrogant and unrestrained: "The bald tiger isn’t here? With just you bunch of weaklings, you think you can stop me?"

"Hmph, dealing with you doesn’t require Chairman Bai to take action himself."

To capture Ghost Sword Sorrow, six of the seven Law Enforcement Teams were dispatched, with as many as thirty-three Professional Martial Artists, and soon both sides engaged in fierce combat, ultimately leveling the entire dock area.

Ghost Sword Sorrow indeed lived up to being a former civilian martial arts rising star, as he single-handedly led the members of the Heart Killing Stream to break through the Celestial Net set by the Linjiang City Martial Arts Association.

The incident was so significant that it even made the news, stirring local public opinion, as everyone eagerly discussed what had transpired.

When Ye Qingzhou returned to school, his classmates were abuzz with talk about it.

"Damn, Pig Head Ye, you actually skipped class for an entire day! By the way, what were you doing yesterday?"

Huang Liwen, with his intense curiosity, exclaimed, "You didn’t go to Beauty Xu’s house to propose marriage, did you? It seems she also didn’t come to school yesterday."

Ye Qingzhou put away his bag and sword bag, leaning back on his chair to rest, casually explaining, "The night before yesterday, I killed someone and was taken back by the Martial Arts Association to assist in the investigation. I only got released last night."

Huang Liwen gave a thumbs up, "Your excuse for skipping class is truly impressive."

At this moment, the homeroom teacher Zhu Hanwen appeared at the classroom door with a tired expression, clearly having had no proper rest in the past two days, with dark circles looking as if the Black Mountain Demon had drained his Yang Qi.

"Ye Qingzhou, come out for a moment."

In the office, Zhu Hanwen looked at Ye Qingzhou with a complex gaze and gave a word of advice: "The incident from the night before needs to be kept confidential. Though it was self-defense, credit without fault, since you did kill someone with your own hands, I don’t want this matter spreading around school with strange rumors."

Ye Qingzhou blinked, calmly responding, "Alright, no problem."

Zhu Hanwen couldn’t help but vent internally: ’No problem? You came to class like nothing happened after killing someone; that’s quite a big issue!’

He hadn’t expected someone like Ye Qingzhou in his class, capable of cutting off someone’s head without flinching, and even having the leisure to loot the corpse afterward.

Compared to this, those naughty troublemakers who frequently peek at the girls’ skirts in class seem so obedient and harmless in Zhu Hanwen’s eyes.

Returning to the classroom, Ye Qingzhou appeared calm on the outside, but his inner thoughts were turbulent.

The experiences of the past few days, even for someone like him who had weathered many storms, left his heart surging uncontrollably. "The Divine Sword Jade Scroll, this object being contested by both the Divine Gang Dao and Heart Killing Stream must indeed be extraordinary! Thankfully, I didn’t forget to loot the corpse after the kill, or I might have missed it."

As for handing it over, Ye Qingzhou never even considered it.

It’s not that he is selfish, but this cultivation technique is rightfully his spoils of war. If handed over, at most he would receive a commendation flag, and likely would never get to see this Divine Skill Manual again in his life.

Even if it needs to be surrendered, it would only be after mastering it.

If one doesn’t look out for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them.

Meanwhile, Ye Qingzhou also gained a clear understanding of his circumstances.

The current martial artists in Dongji Kingdom can be divided into two factions; one is the force behind the Martial Arts Association, the Divine Gang Dao, founded by the Nine Dragons Boxing Saint Qi Shengtian, and also the origin of the Martial Arts Noble Families.

As for the other force in the Martial Arts World, it was the Heart Killing Stream, created by the extraordinary genius Zhang Xinwu from a civilian background.

The Heart Killing Stream initially recruited civilian martial artists, developing rapidly, but their increasingly lawless actions eventually led to suppression and bans by the authorities.