Shen Bai listened from outside the door. When he heard the name "Five-Heart Sect," he gripped the Iron Sword at his waist.
'The Five-Heart Sect again.'
This faction had ties to the Qian Family, yet the Government Office couldn't trace its origins, making it exceptionally mysterious.
'More importantly, that woman seems to be investigating something related to the Five-Heart Sect.'
'When I ran into her at the Qian Family's estate last night, she must have been conducting an investigation.'
A rough idea began to form in Shen Bai's mind, and he decided to keep listening.
The woman didn't speak, nor did the little girl. Instead, the weak voice of a middle-aged man cut through the silence.
"Five Hearts Facing Heaven! Absolute freedom! Let me go, or the Sect Leader will kill you!"
Although the voice was weak, Shen Bai could detect something unusual in it: hatred, madness, and a bone-chilling hysteria.
Shen Bai's eyes narrowed. 'A member of the Five-Heart Sect.'
Just then, the woman spoke again.
"Five Hearts Facing Heaven was originally a proper Cultivation Method. But your Sect Leader has twisted Yin and Yang; what he passed down to you is a corrupted 'Reverse Five Heart Technique'."
"The more you practice it, the crazier you become, until you can separate your own head and limbs. If you succeed with your four limbs, they can detach from your body without you dying. But if you try it with your head, you die on the spot."
"If you want to live, you'll do as I say."
Her tone was laced with disgust.
The man's voice came again.
"Five Hearts Facing Heaven! The Sect Leader would never harm us! He is leading us to freedom! Die! Die! Die! Die!"
As soon as the voice faded, Shen Bai heard the sounds of a fight breaking out.
It sounded like the weak man had broken his restraints and was fighting the woman.
Every so often, a loud booming sound rang out.
The area was so remote that there was almost no one around. Otherwise, a crowd would have surely gathered by now.
Shen Bai rubbed his chin, wondering if he should just turn and leave.
"You've actually cultivated a second heart!"
Just then, he heard the sound of something whistling through the air, rapidly approaching the doorway.
Shen Bai's reaction was instantaneous. Qi flowed around his legs as he retreated at top speed.
The moment he fell back, the door was thrown open from the inside.
A woman with delicate, makeup-free features was sent flying out backward, her back slamming against the door.
The woman, dressed in pale yellow, clutched a pair of short spikes. She rolled three times upon hitting the ground, and blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Blood was seeping from a wound on her abdomen.
"I was careless... You've managed to cultivate both your hands!"
"You... who are you?"
As she spoke, the woman in yellow finally noticed Shen Bai, her face filled with astonishment.
'I don't understand,' she thought. 'I chose such a remote location. How could someone be passing by?'
Shen Bai considered for a moment before replying in a serious tone, "Just a passerby."
The woman in yellow looked completely unconvinced.
But there was no time for more words. The sound of footsteps emerged from the room.
Shen Bai turned to look, and what he saw was utterly horrifying.
A gaunt man walked out of the room. His hands were detached from his shoulders, floating in mid-air.
Furthermore, his pupils were askew, one pointing left and the other right, giving him the look of a crazed fool.
One of the floating hands gripped the little girl by her hair.
The little girl cried out in pain but kept speaking, "Daddy, it's me, Yaya! Don't you recognize me?"
"Yaya?"
The gaunt man's face was contorted. His right hand twitched. "To attain freedom, one must sever the root of all worldly troubles."
The other hand floating in mid-air swung around and came hammering down toward Yaya's head.
Seeing this, the woman in yellow charged forward with her short spikes.
But she hadn't taken more than a few steps when blood spurted from her abdominal wound. The woman cried out in pain, her pace slowing considerably.
All she could do was watch the hand close in on Yaya, her eyes filled with despair and helpless indignation.
Just then, a rusty longsword appeared, intercepting the blow.
CLANG!
The sound of metal striking metal rang out.
The collision between the longsword and the arm sent a shower of sparks into the air.
Shen Bai felt a powerful force transmit through his blade and was slightly taken aback. 'Incredible strength.'
Seeing this, the woman in yellow looked at the rusty longsword, a sense of familiarity washing over her.
After another look, she recalled the events of the previous night, and a look of delighted surprise lit up her face.
"It's you! The expert from last night!"
'Expert?'
'Me?'
Shen Bai was completely baffled.
'I don't think I can be considered an expert. After all, I haven't been involved in this world for very long.'
But this wasn't the time for such thoughts.
Seeing Shen Bai block his attack, the gaunt man actually let the little girl go and turned his assault on him.
With his hands detached, one shot forward to grab Shen Bai's Iron Sword, while the other flew like a hammer toward his chest.
In response, Shen Bai executed the Blood Sword Dance, the qi and blood within his body surging.
As his qi and blood surged, a brilliant, righteous aura materialized around his Iron Sword.
CLANG!
The sound of the impact was completely different this time.
The longsword sliced one of the arms in two. It fell to the ground, twitched a couple of times, and then dissolved into a wisp of black smoke.
By then, the other arm was already bearing down on Shen Bai's chest.
Because the arms were detached, they had no physical constraints. It was as if Shen Bai were being attacked by two people at once.
At this point, Shen Bai had no way to dodge.
He had just swung his longsword and needed time to bring it back.
Seeing this, the woman in yellow gritted her teeth against the pain and raised her short spikes.
The previous night, this expert had been conducting an investigation of the Qian Family. Back then, she had never seen such ferocious Sword Techniques and had fled in terror.
But now, if he were struck by that arm, which was as hard as iron, she feared Shen Bai would be killed instantly.
Her abdominal wound was excruciating, but she had to try to intervene, to at least create an opening for him to survive.
As far as she could tell, Shen Bai had no way to recover his stance in time.
Just then, the woman in yellow saw Shen Bai raise his left hand.
A layer of golden light materialized on his left hand, shrouding his fist.
From within the golden light, the faint sound of Buddhist chants emanated, as if a Buddha had descended upon the world.
Along with it was a grim, murderous aura, like that of a demon-quelling Vajra.
This fist landed on the gaunt man's arm.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the arm, and under the assault of the golden light, it exploded.
Black smoke billowed out, and this arm, too, vanished.
With both arms gone, the gaunt man let out a wretched scream, his eyes rolled back in his head, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Shen Bai turned his head and looked at the woman in yellow beside him.
The woman in yellow was stunned.
In her eyes, Shen Bai stood with the longsword in his right hand and his left hand clenched into a fist.
A brilliant, righteous aura radiated from the longsword, while pulsing Buddha's Light enveloped his fist.
The righteous aura and the Buddha's Light intertwined, along with a grim power that seemed almost illusory, all of it circulating around Shen Bai's body.
The scorching power of his qi and blood washed over her with the force of a collapsing mountain.
The woman in yellow knew she would never forget this image as long as she lived.
Only one thought remained in her mind.
'To think an expert of this caliber exists in a small place like Shengyun County...'