Returning from the abyss

Chapter 1321 Magical Weapon
Lu Ning had not yet figured out the situation in Xingyin City - probably no one could see the whole picture. The forces in Xingyin City were complicated. The government, the underworld, and the demon sect were only the ones on the surface. If the demons were included, it was impossible to determine how many forces there were in the dark, and whether there were factions among these forces.

Fortunately, she didn't need to worry about this problem. Lu Ning had a clear mission goal, so she needed to achieve enough achievements in this chaotic situation so that she could "return home in glory." In fact, this condition was quite loose. Except for not being able to go against the government, she could achieve the corresponding effect no matter which side she chose as the opponent.

Yes, including the people in the underworld, under the current situation in Xingyin City, they may also become rebels.

In the evening, Lu Ning walked into Changqing Tower, the most famous theater in Xingyin City.

The trace she left on the blind girl led her here. The Five Ghosts Moving Mountains method can take things away, and naturally it can also secretly put things on people. However, Lu Ning did not expect this little trick to work, she just came to see the result.

At the corner of a pillar on the right side of the Changqing Building stage, she picked up the crumpled talisman paper that she had pasted on the blind girl.

No ambush?

Ah, the other party was not in a normal state of mind, so it was normal that he did not continue to ambush. However, in this way, Lu Ning lost the clues that could continue to track.

At this time, the gongs and drums sounded, and it was time for the evening show. Because of the curfew in Xingyin City, the people who could go out to watch the show at night were basically high-ranking officials and nobles. Of course, Changqinglou also made money from these people.

Lu Ning was not going to listen to the opera here. She was not very interested in this kind of traditional art. Moreover, the situation was becoming more and more urgent. Although she was still on the edge of the situation, this might not last long.

As for killing someone, she could certainly do it now. It was the easiest thing to do at the moment. If she really wanted to kill the blind girl, she would not be able to survive tonight. But it didn't make much sense.

At this time, guests had already started to arrive. Officials, wealthy families, and local wealthy families were not here to listen to the opera. Lu Ning recognized that many of them were the ones invited by the Xingyin prefect for lunch. This group of people really socialized non-stop.

Of course, the theater is open for business, so anyone can come and listen to the opera as long as they are not afraid of coming home late, and they can leave before the curfew. However, the theater owner deliberately arranged the show to be held at such a late time, which shows his thoughtfulness.

The hazy reflection of the sunlight at dusk passed through the grid-like wooden carved windows of the theater and was projected onto the ground.

As if it was some kind of sign, Lu Ning turned around and looked at the passage leading to the backstage. Then, she felt a sharp pain in her head.

She immediately reached out to hold onto the pillar beside her, and with her other hand she had already touched the hilt of the sword. She subconsciously used her demon eyes to see - and then she discovered that this habit did not produce the results she needed.

"This special vision... I see. Can you track something with it?"

A middle-aged scholar walked out of the deep passage. He gave the impression of being a common Confucian scholar of this era, with a long beard, a hair crown, a brown gown, and a jade tablet in his hand.

However, Lu Ning immediately felt that this person was probably very rich.

Although not very conspicuous, the jade belt buckle, the ornaments on the waist, the gold beads on the cuffs, and the jewels on the hair crown all vaguely reveal that this person has a wealthy family. But why is such a person here? Is he an accomplice of the blind girl?

Guests were slowly pouring into the front of the stage behind her, which was not far from Lu Ning, but she could feel as if a dividing line was drawn between her and those people. Perhaps it was from the moment she picked up the talisman paper, or perhaps it was from the moment she saw the mottled afterglow of the setting sun, that she was pulled into another world.

"My name is Cheng Zhiyi," the scholar said, "I had no intention of plotting against you, but Yan Li's experience really showed that you were in danger, so I had to resort to this desperate measure."

"I don't recognize you, but - Yan Li is that woman?" Lu Ning asked.

"Yes. If you have no intention of continuing the pursuit, I will also stop from now on. If you still intend to explore our secrets, then please forgive my rudeness." Cheng Zhiyi bowed lightly and took a slight step forward. With one movement, Lu Ning felt the difference between this person and Yan Li.

He has martial arts skills.

"You took my things, and now you're asking me if I want to keep chasing you?" Lu Ning laughed. "If I stop, can you give them back?"

"First, I don't know how to return an ability. Second, this exploration ability is too dangerous for us. I dare not leave it to you."

"Then what else is there to talk about?" Lu Ning drew out his sword and stepped into the shadow created by the pillar. As the sun sank below the horizon, the lights in the hall replaced the light outside the window, making the places that were not illuminated by the light even darker.

"The thing I hold is called 'Life and Death'." Cheng Zhiyi raised his head slightly, "If you take one thing, I will also take one thing away. The quality of the things should be similar first. This is not a transaction, so the things I give and take may not be of equal value."

Lu Ning frowned slightly.

"Since we are going to fight officially, I must follow a fair way, so that you can be convinced. You can use both open and covert tactics to rob someone, but when swords clash and you meet an equipable opponent, you must not be careless." Cheng Zhiyi took a step back, letting himself be completely enveloped by the shadow. "And I am good at fists, feet and hidden weapons, not weapons, because I am not naturally fond of fighting. Having said that, if necessary, I can also use this to defeat the enemy."

This guy is indeed more dangerous than Yan Li.

Lu Ning didn't have the hobby of revealing all her abilities to the other party. She just thought about the methods she could use to deal with this guy now. For her who had fought against countless strange superpowers, she knew in an instant that if Cheng Zhiyi didn't lie, she had to destroy the object called "Life and Death".

At this moment, there was a sound of breaking air, and Lu Ning immediately twisted her body to avoid the attacking hidden weapon - a caltrop. She used the force of twisting her body to charge forward, instantly shortening the distance between the two sides.

"Yes."

Cheng Zhiyi threw a punch from the shadows, and at the same time, a hidden weapon came out. Lu Ning didn't need to think at all, she swung her sword to deflect the hidden weapon, and continued to dodge Cheng Zhiyi's punch with her body skills.

The force of this punch was not very strong, it looked too much like a lure.

And Lu Ning's behavior of avoiding the fight despite having the strength to fight back was obviously beyond Cheng Zhiyi's expectations. He murmured in surprise, then threw out three hidden weapons, turned around and kicked Lu Ning in the abdomen.

Lu Ning dodged three hidden weapons with a nod of her head, then raised her sword with both hands and blocked the kick. As she expected, the kick was not very powerful and she was not kicked very far. If she had really used her strength and luck, she could have even knocked Cheng Zhiyi out.

Cheng Zhiyi rushed forward, a flash of light passed by, and the hu board had already hit Lu Ning's face. The speed was not fast, but Lu Ning still turned his head to avoid it, and then stretched out his hand to hit Cheng Zhiyi's chest. After this palm hit the solid place, Lu Ning retreated as soon as it touched it, without exerting any force at all. After the two sides exchanged moves for such a round, Cheng Zhiyi was a little surprised.

After he got the "Power of Life and Death", he was no longer afraid of any opponent except the young master who knew its true form. Even if it was his colleagues who also got the magic weapon bestowed by the young master, he thought he was stronger than them.

This was not arrogance, but the conclusion he came to after judging the strength of his colleagues one by one based on his prudent character.

None of his colleagues had the means to fight for their lives, or rather, risking their lives was the best they could do. Only he didn't care about death at all. He would give back as much as the other party had gained. If the other party took his life, then in return, the other party's life would be taken away by him - this was a nearly invincible defense.

However, Cheng Zhiyi did not feel detached because of this. He knew from the young master's methods that there are many mysterious and secret techniques in the world, and there may be methods that can restrain him. Therefore, even if he wants to act against certain people, he will collect information in advance. However, if he really has to get into a fight, he will also tell the opponent about his abilities to ensure fairness in the fight. This can be said to be his self-confidence, and even more so his persistence.

Lu Ning's tracking ability was enough to follow Yan Li and expose the actions of the Holy Church. This was not good, so he had to take action. However, he could only warn first. If the warning was ineffective, he would fight. Generally speaking, fighting was difficult to avoid.

But he had never met an opponent like Lu Ning. In the few battles after he obtained the power of "life and death", his opponents did not understand the function of his magic weapon. They either relied on their agility to block his hidden weapons, or relied on their superb martial arts skills to injure him.

He had never seen Lu Ning's fighting style, which was basically all about defense and evasion. Even when she took the opportunity to attack him, it only lasted for a moment.

Could it be that Lu Ning had guessed all of his abilities based on that brief introduction just now?
When the doubt arose, he was distracted for a moment, causing Lu Ning to hit his shoulder again, but the palm still grazed him lightly, only causing some wrinkles on his clothes.

"If you have no intention of fighting, why are you so determined not to retreat?" Cheng Zhiyi asked in a low voice.

"Oh? How do you know I have no intention of fighting?"

Lu Ning continued to swing the sword with a cold glow. Even Cheng Zhiyi could see that her swordsmanship was superb, but he was not stabbed by the sword moves even once. There were even a few times when she was almost stabbed, but he watched Lu Ning retract the sword.

"Neither fight nor retreat!"

Cheng Zhiyi increased the speed of his punches and kicks, and stopped probing the opponent with fake moves, but started to attack with all his strength. But he soon discovered that no matter how he attacked, Lu Ning still held him firmly in place, and there was still room for transition between offense and defense.

Cheng Zhiyi knew that Lu Ning's martial arts was better than his, but he thought that the power of "life and death" would be enough to narrow the gap between the two. However, Lu Ning's action made him begin to doubt.

Was there any error in his judgment? Was there any background that he didn't know about Lu Ning's age not matching her combat experience?
At this moment, Lu Ning lightly flipped over his head, pressed and pushed lightly on his back with her palm, and pushed him a distance towards the front desk.

"you!"

After staggering two steps, Cheng Zhiyi's face became even more angry.

"Fair fight, that's what you said." Lu Ning dodged two hidden weapons thrown by Cheng Zhiyi. "Of course, if your martial arts skills were higher, or if you didn't fight me in an open and aboveboard way, it would be difficult for me to find a way to deal with you."

She even put away her sword.

"If you really have no intention of fighting..."

"I've been fighting seriously, Cheng Zhiyi." Lu Ning stretched out his palms and took a fighting stance. "After all, if I want to win, I must first eliminate the threat of life and death. As long as I take something from you, you will take something back. So before I solve it, I can't touch you easily, right?"

"Smart... Many people are not as smart as you." Cheng Zhiyi gave up his posturing and walked directly towards Lu Ning, "Then I'll come over."

"Pressure won't work on me. Let me guess." Lu Ning took light steps. "Chest, shoulders, back, why do you think I should touch these places? In other words, such an important item, even if I don't know what it looks like, where should it be placed?"

Cheng Zhiyi had given up on attacking with force, but Lu Ning was still just circling around him. With Lu Ning's lightness skills, as long as she didn't want Cheng Zhiyi to touch her, she would definitely be able to dodge. Cheng Zhiyi couldn't touch Lu Ning, and his movements became more and more chaotic. As Lu Ning spoke, he became more and more certain that Lu Ning had seen through the effect of "life and death".

She even started looking, and seemed to have been looking since the beginning!

She knew I wouldn't leave the power of life and death where it could be easily found.

She has already made a judgment about my character.

she was--

and many more.

An expression of astonishment finally appeared on Cheng Zhiyi's face. He suddenly realized that it was not him who was thinking about these things just now, but there was a voice in his head that kept repeating similar things.

At this moment, he seemed to see a deep and humid cave, and the underground waterway illuminated by phosphorescence flowed along the underground river to a seemingly unknown distant place. He was not on the shore, but in the river, and with his five eyes, he could only see that he was drifting with the current, and his body could not be controlled by him at all.

The chatter, so complicated that he could no longer hear clearly, filled his mind and deprived him of the ability to move. He swam upstream along the waterway, even though he knew in his heart that this was a journey that would inevitably lead to a dead end.

Until a trace of pain allowed him to see a glimpse of reality through the dark water.

"This thing is not so easy to control. As long as there is a gap in will, it will take advantage of it."

He saw his abdomen being ripped open, and a blood-stained knife coin was picked out from under the skin of his abdomen by Lu Ning.

"Gulu..."

Cheng Zhiyi finally heard himself making a sound like spitting out bubbles, and then he, or the fish, plunged into eternal darkness.