Looks Like You Need Help!

The black market was bustling with a dense throng of people. Lu Changsheng headed straight for the female stallholder's spot. "Hmm? Nobody here?" He found her stall completely bare. The woman had actually failed to show up? From what he had gathered before, she was at the black market almost every day. Why was it empty today? Lu Changsheng began dropping casual questions to ask about her. One of the martial artists explained, "That woman brought calamity down upon herself. "A few days ago, Zhao Ruxiao, the legitimate son of Nanyang Prefecture's Zhao clan, had some sort of dispute with her, and she ended up killing him. "The Zhao clan was thunderously enraged, naturally, and sent men to hunt her down. "That's why she hasn't shown up these past few days. She's probably gone into hiding to lie low." Lu Changsheng nodded at the explanation. He knew of the Zhao clan. Like the Nanyang Zheng clan, they were a major power in Nanyang Prefecture. However, the Zhao clan had made its name through martial force, running businesses like escort agencies and muscle-for-hire outfits. In short, their martial might far surpassed Miaoshou Garden's. By killing the Zhao clan's legitimate son, the woman had stirred up a hornet's nest. There was no longer any place for her to stand in Nanyang City. "A pity..." Lu Changsheng shook his head. His previous dealings with her had gone smoothly, leaving both sides satisfied. He had not expected her to provoke the Zhao clan. In all likelihood, she would never return to the black market again. Lu Changsheng wandered the market for several more rounds, spotting martial skills and martial arts manuals displayed on various stalls. He stepped forward to inspect and inquire about them. The martial skills on offer were almost entirely tier two, and Lu Changsheng had already practiced nearly all of them; they were of no use to him. The martial arts were likewise strictly Strengthening Blood Realm manuals, without a single Tempering Bone art in sight. Lu Changsheng could not help but feel a touch of disappointment. In the past, he had worried about having too little silver to buy martial arts. Now that he had the silver, there were simply none to buy. *When it comes to martial skills, tier-three skills aren't circulated nearly as widely, so their numbers are scarce.* *As for martial arts, once you reach the Tempering Bone Realm, manuals are almost impossible to buy on the open market...* Lu Changsheng had previously been able to buy techniques to his heart's content only because the tiers he sought were very low. Yet the moment the tier climbed even slightly higher, acquiring them became extraordinarily difficult. Lu Changsheng thought back to that female stallholder. She ought to have tier-three martial skills, and she would certainly possess manuals for Tempering Bone and Refining Organs. Unfortunately, he had no way of finding her now. After lingering in the black market a while longer without discovering anything satisfactory, Lu Changsheng had no choice but to depart in disappointment. He had browsed for a full two hours, and it was now the Zi hour, the dead of night. Aside from the black market in the south of the city, Nanyang City's remaining streets were dead quiet, most people having long since drifted into dreamland. As Lu Changsheng exited the black market, his peripheral vision caught something. Faintly, he spotted several shadowy figures lurking suspiciously in a corner. However, they were not targeting him; they seemed to be waiting for someone else. Lu Changsheng paid them no heed. The black market was a den of dragons and snakes, harboring all sorts of people. Bloodshed and brawls were a daily occurrence here. Whomever those people were waiting for had nothing to do with him. Lu Changsheng turned away, his silhouette gradually melting into the darkness. *Shing!* Suddenly, the sound of blades unsheathing reached Lu Changsheng's ears. At the same time, a red-clothed woman wearing a veil found her path blocked by the ambushers hidden in the shadows. "Li Hongzhuang, you've finally shown yourself. The master had us stake this place out for days just waiting for you." "The Zhao clan?" Without a second thought, Li Hongzhuang turned to flee. Yet seven or eight martial artists leaped out around her all at once—every one of them from the Zhao clan—boxing her in completely. Beneath her veil, Li Hongzhuang's expression grew grim. All seven or eight of these men were Tempering Bone Realm martial artists. With Zhao Ruxiao slain, the Zhao clan's fury was immense to dispatch this many experts. Even though Li Hongzhuang had her own tricks and was no weakling, against so many Tempering Bone experts, her chances tonight were exceedingly bleak. "So be it. If the Zhao clan wants my life, come take it!" Li Hongzhuang drew her saber as well. As someone walking the jianghu, she had long anticipated a day like this. Just as tension stretched taut between the two sides, the quiet night air carried a faint sound of footsteps. *Tap, tap, tap.* The footsteps fell with steady rhythm. It sounded as though someone was approaching, one measured pace at a time. The Zhao clan's men exchanged glances, then peered toward the hazy gloom. Through the darkness, a shadowy figure had become faintly visible. The newcomer wore black robes, his features hidden beneath a conical bamboo hat and a face veil. He carried no visible weapon, simply walking forward step by step. "Looks like you're in trouble." The man in black fixed his gaze on Li Hongzhuang and spoke in a slow, level voice. Hearing that familiar voice, Li Hongzhuang shuddered, immediately recognizing his identity. "It's you..." The newcomer was, of course, Lu Changsheng. He had actually already walked away, but then he unexpectedly caught the stallholder's familiar voice. So he had turned right back around. The female stallholder was the red-clothed woman before him—Li Hongzhuang. As for those surrounding her, they were naturally men of the Zhao clan. "Looks like you need help." Lu Changsheng's gaze swept over the Zhao clan martial artists one by one. Zhao Li, the leader of the group, felt his heart tighten. For reasons he could not fathom, he sensed an immense danger radiating from this man in black. It was pure instinct! A single glance from the stranger had stirred an edge of unease in his chest. Even so, as a martial artist of the Zhao clan, he took a step forward and glared at Lu Changsheng, warning, "Li Hongzhuang killed the legitimate son of our Zhao clan. This is a blood feud to the death! This matter has nothing to do with you, sir. I advise you not to meddle." Invoking the Zhao clan was meant to exert pressure. Across Nanyang Prefecture, the Zhao name carried formidable weight. Yet Lu Changsheng remained rooted in place, showing not the slightest intention of leaving. Zhao Li's face darkened. Staring intently at Lu Changsheng, he said coldly, "Do you truly intend to make an enemy of our Zhao clan, sir?" "Make an enemy of the Zhao clan? "No. Precisely because I don't want to make an enemy of the Zhao clan, I have no choice but to kill you all. "As long as you are dead, the Zhao clan won't know I intervened, and thus no enmity will exist." The moment Lu Changsheng's words landed, Zhao Li's expression warped in horror. *Whoosh!* Lu Changsheng's form flickered faintly, seeming to vanish from sight. Without hesitation, Zhao Li reacted on pure instinct, raising the saber in his hands to block his front. *Rip!* A flash of white light streaked past. Zhao Li felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his throat. *Clatter...* His saber dropped to the ground. Zhao Li clamped both hands desperately over his neck. Even so, blood sprayed violently, soaking him red in the blink of an eye. With a dull thud, Zhao Li collapsed to the earth, his body's violent twitching slowly grinding to a halt. A dignified Tempering Bone martial artist had failed to withstand even a single move before dying. Nor was it just Zhao Li. Lu Changsheng went all out from the start. Like an apparition, his figure materialized beside the other Zhao clan martial artists. Flashes of white light flickered in rapid succession. It was the gleam of a dagger. Even Li Hongzhuang, watching the entire spectacle from the side, could not track the speed of his strikes. In a matter of breaths, more than a dozen corpses littered the ground, and the air grew heavy with the pungent stench of blood. Lu Changsheng stood quietly before Li Hongzhuang, not a single drop of blood staining his garments. "Trouble's taken care of," Lu Changsheng said in an even tone. Looking at the corpses scattered across the ground, and then back at Lu Changsheng, Li Hongzhuang felt a cold tremor run through her heart. Even though the man before her had just helped her, she could not stop an involuntary dread from rising within. "Thank you..." Li Hongzhuang's voice held a faint tremble. "You seem to be badly in need of money?" Lu Changsheng asked. Li Hongzhuang had already fled, yet she had still risked returning to the black market. There was only one possible reason: money. Li Hongzhuang gritted her teeth. "Yes. I'm very short on silver. "You wouldn't have helped me for no reason, would you? "Go ahead, what do you want?" Lu Changsheng did not bother with pleasantries and stated his requirement plainly: "Tempering Bone Realm martial arts. If you have Refining Organs martial arts, those will do as well. And martial skills—I need a large quantity of martial skills!" "Martial arts... martial skills..." Li Hongzhuang pondered for a moment, then set her jaw. "As long as there's enough silver, that won't be a problem. "Follow me..." Lu Changsheng did not hesitate. Falling in behind Li Hongzhuang, the two quickly vanished into the night.