This voice came so abruptly that Ergou's heart tightened instantly, and he instinctively looked up.
He saw a masked person sitting there, letting the rain fall on them, without moving at all.
"You... who are you?"
Ergou did not expect that when he woke up, he would actually see another person.
But he was very cautious... his experiences left him with no choice but to be cautious.
Tang Xi seemed like a ferocious ghost emerging from the Underworld; ever since he saw him, it felt like his life was left with only despair and hatred.
It was hard for him to believe that a kind soul would suddenly jump out to help him.
"I am an assassin."
That person's answer made Ergou's heart tighten, as if a sharp knife was aimed straight at his Heart Gate.
Just a thought away, he could be killed by the other party.
But in the next moment, his spirits lifted once again.
Assassins...isn't it natural for assassins to kill?
Yet the uplifted spirits seemed to be extinguished by the rain, and he gave a bitter smile:
"I... don't have money."
As soon as he spoke, he suddenly looked up at Chu Qing:
"But if you can really help me kill him, I can give my life to you!!"
After speaking, he nervously watched the person on the wall.
He didn't know if after hearing this, the person would turn and leave or kill him in a fit of rage.
After all, this seemed just like trying to get something for nothing.
Unexpectedly, the person suddenly laughed heartily, then spoke in a deep voice:
"Deal!"
"What?"
Ergou was stunned. He agreed?
"Tell me your address, after the deed, your life belongs to me.
"But before that, I need you to explain everything about the entire situation clearly to me!"
...
...
The rain was heavier than expected.
By the time Chu Qing returned to the inn, it was already a dark chaos outside.
He asked the innkeeper for a bucket of hot water and took a nice hot bath, while recalling what Ergou had said in his mind.
The whole process was more or less as Chu Qing had speculated.
Ergou said that initially Tang Xi was not acquainted with them, but merely saw them on the street, and that very night his fiancée was abducted.
He looked madly for days, but in the end, found her unrecognizable corpse by the town's monument.
Filled with despair, he didn't know what to do.
He originally intended to die for love, but then... Tang Xi appeared.
Tang Xi told him how he had abducted the girl, and how she died, explaining every detail clearly, enraging Ergou, who immediately wanted to rush to seek revenge.
Unfortunately, he didn't know Martial Arts, and except for being beaten up by Tang Xi, he gained nothing.
But from that day on, he had an obsession, and that was to kill Tang Xi!
He pursued relentlessly, trying over and over, until now.
Today's despair was too overwhelming, pressing on him so he couldn't breathe, and he had tried every way but found no success.
He was tired, he wanted to die... but Tang Xi appeared again.
Every time he wanted to die, Tang Xi would show up, recounting how he tormented that girl, like reciting cherished lore, which extinguished his suicidal thoughts, adding a few more layers of hatred.
"It's the Resentful Heart Demon Skill..."
Chu Qing muttered softly as he climbed out of the bath, dressed, and then sat cross-legged on the bed.
With a thought, the system panel appeared immediately.
[Assassin System]
[Host: Chu Qing]
[Current Commission: Assassinate Young Hall Master of Luoyu Hall, Tang Xi (Uncompleted)]
[One unopened Martial Arts Treasure Chest, would you like to open it?]
"Open it."
Chu Qing rubbed his hands together and spoke softly.
He prayed inwardly for a decent reward; otherwise, the upcoming target might be quite difficult to eliminate.
[Opened successfully, acquired Inner Power: Purple Mist Divine Skill!]
Chu Qing's eyes lit up immediately:
"Purple Mist Divine Skill!"
Among Huashan's nine skills, Purple Mist ranks first!
This is exactly what I needed!
At the same time, a surge of Inner Strength suddenly emerged beside his Dantian. Before Chu Qing could feel it carefully, the Inner Breath from Ruo Xu Scripture leapt up, directly charging towards the Inner Strength of the Purple Mist Divine Skill.
The two forces of Inner Strength suddenly began to battle within him.
Chu Qing could testify that it was the Ruo Xu Scripture that initiated the attack first, but the Purple Mist Divine Skill was not to be outdone.
This was no trivial matter; any slight mishap in the Inner Breath transformation could lead to injury or death.
Chu Qing was busy maneuvering his Inner Breath, while simultaneously accepting all the mantras about the Purple Mist Divine Skill in his mind, cursing incessantly:
"The Ruo Xu Scripture is a Daoist Sect Martial Arts, and so is the Purple Mist Divine Skill.
"Can't two Daoist Sect Martial Arts coexist peacefully?
"How could they suddenly start fighting?
"It's touted as the Profound Sect, supposed to be impartial and harmonious...this isn't very harmonious at all!"
He multitasked, trying to calm the two forces of Inner Strength, making them stop fighting.
But it was to no avail, so he then began trying to merge the two forces of Inner Strength.
As soon as he started this attempt, a hint appeared before him.
[Purple Mist Divine Skill and Ruo Xu Scripture conflict, Inner Power fusion begins!]
With this hint, Chu Qing discovered that the two previously incompatible forces of Inner Strength suddenly showed signs of compatibility.
An inspiration struck him, and he sat cross-legged, with his mind filled with both the Purple Mist Divine Skill and Ruo Xu Scripture's Inner Power heart formulas, while new mantras derived from the two surfaced in his heart.
Within the span of an incense stick, the two forces of Inner Strength had fused to form one entity, each within the other.
[Fusion successful!]
Only then did Chu Qing let out a sigh of relief, secretly glad that he controlled his impulse, and waited until he was at the inn before opening the Treasure Chest.
If he had done so in the wilderness, within this time of an incense stick, even a passing three-year-old child could have taken his life.
He didn't open his eyes; there was still a large amount of Inner Strength that needed to be gathered. He guided the energy according to the formulas, letting it travel along his meridians, occasionally vibrating his body and opening an acupoint.
For a moment, Chu Qing, seated cross-legged, had his robes fluttering without wind, his hair flying, and a faint purplish hue appeared in the slits of his tightly closed eyes.
More than an hour later, Chu Qing suddenly opened his eyes, and two purple flashes flickered and vanished from his gaze, his agitated Inner Breath causing the bed curtains to quiver.
The window opened with a crash.
With a slow press downwards of Chu Qing's hands, all the Inner Strength was gathered back into his Dantian.
Only then did he let out a long breath, his eyes filled with delight:
"In just one short hour, I've managed to open my Ren and Du Meridians, isn't this astounding!?
"However, this set of Inner Power, resulting from the fusion of Ruo Xu Scripture and Purple Mist Divine Skill, hasn't reached the Transformation Realm yet."
The delight slightly faded, and Chu Qing carefully comprehended the differences between the two Secret Manuals, quickly gaining clarity:
"After all, the Purple Mist Divine Skill emphasizes 'utilization' rather than 'accumulation of Inner Strength'; the one I obtained from the system should be the Great Perfection of the Purple Mist Divine Skill.
"After the fusion of the two, using their Inner Strength, this Inner Power was pushed to the Seventh Realm.
"From now on, utilization and accumulation are integrated, every move contains a mystery.
"This Martial Arts isn't purely the Ruo Xu Scripture, nor purely the Purple Mist Divine Skill.
"Why not just call it the Purple Mist and Void Scripture."
...
...
PS: I've been reading everyone's comments these two days and know everyone is eager for the protagonist to open the Treasure Chest for rewards, but please don't worry...the plot arrangement is fine, and I'm not holding back on opening the Treasure Chest, since the Martial Arts in the chest were written out a long time ago, there's no reason to delay.
And from the protagonist's perspective, from the time he received the reward till now, it's just been half a day.
He killed Xin Youhen in the afternoon, and immediately proceeded to kill Bai Qi.
Then he encountered Ergou on his way back to the city, took a new task, and opened the Treasure Chest after returning to the inn, which is entirely logical~
The reason it seems dragged out is mainly due to the slow updates, if it were like after launch with daily updates of ten thousand words, this would have been updated in just two days.
This is the helplessness of a new book period, please bear with it a bit longer.
Thank you all~~~