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Chapter 150 Paper Cutting and Brooms

"Ah, paper money! Yes! Of course!"

The old man composed himself, smiled, and pointed to a cabinet on one side of the wall.

"A basket of top-quality tin foil ingots costs fifty coins, and a ream of yellow paper for the Rebirth Mantra costs twenty coins. If you want something even more presentable..."

He turned around, took a brocade box from a shrine, placed it on the counter, and introduced it:
"This is a gilded Western Bodhisattva statue that I just acquired from Suzhou. It comes with an offering table and a banner, and it only costs ten silver dollars. It also comes with eight paper maids."

"Shopkeeper, this is not the kind of paper I want."

Wang Xi said calmly.

The old man looked puzzled and asked:
"What kind of paper would you like, Young Master Wang?"

Paper cutting.

Upon hearing this, the old man's pupils contracted slightly.

"Of course, there are also paper-cutting designs, including vests and suits, cheongsams and jackets, lotus flowers with Bagua symbols, and more..."

"Neither," Wang Xi waved his hand.

His calm gaze fell on the old man's forced smile, and he said, "What I want is the paper-cutting you just got."

"?!"

The old shopkeeper was stunned for a moment, then broke out in a cold sweat.

Was his secret business discovered?

It doesn’t make sense!

"Oh, Young Master Wang, you're referring to that paper-cut pavilion and tower design that just arrived yesterday, right? Haha, it's from a long-established brand in the provincial capital—"

"Manager," Wang Xi said calmly. "Tell me, how does the Zhang family usually deal with disloyal servants?"

"What does Your Highness mean by this?"

The old man swallowed and said.

Wang Xi was too lazy to waste any more words with this guy, so he took out his revolver and slammed it on the table.

Snapped!
"Recognize this?"

He stared at the old man and said.

"Ah!" The shopkeeper jumped back in fright, his eyes darting back and forth between the metal object on the table. "I recognize it! I recognize it! It's a foreign firearm!"

"Since you recognize me and this thing, are you willing to tell the truth?"

Wang Xi's tone suddenly turned cold.

"Don't think I'm joking. Even if I shoot you right now, no one will speak up for you!"

"..."

The old man was so frightened that he dared not move and his whole body trembled.

Then the young man picked up a firearm and pointed the gun at his forehead. Immediately, the shopkeeper shouted:
"I'll talk! I'll talk!!"

...

...

A moment later, Wang Xi dropped two silver dollars, picked up a small bag, and strode out of the coffin shop.

"This thing still works."

He touched the revolver and put it back in his pocket.

According to the shopkeeper, he secretly colluded with several servants of the Qi family in the provincial capital, specifically to have them collect discarded paper-cuts from the eldest daughter of the Qi family, and then resell them at a high price to a mysterious organization called "Wuhu Sanren".

When the shopkeeper mentioned the eldest daughter of the Qi family, his face showed reverence, and he said that she was a reincarnation of a deity. The paper figures she cut out had miraculous effects such as warding off evil spirits and disasters, calming the mind and spirit, and curing all kinds of diseases, which was simply unbelievable.

"Qi Luan, the eldest daughter of the Qi family..."

Wang Xi pondered the name and walked straight towards the west of the town, where the Zhang family mansion was located.

As he walked, he unpacked the package, inside which were neatly stacked more than a dozen discarded paper figures.

These paper figures are no bigger than the palm of your hand, and their outlines are as lifelike as children's, but each one is incomplete—some are missing arms and legs, and some are simply cut in half. Not a single one is complete.

"Soul-Suppressing Paper Cutting (Incomplete): A flawed piece cut by a certain paper-cutting Taoist cultivator, still retaining a trace of the deceased's spirit, possessing the power to sustain the soul of the dead. This item is against the natural order, forcibly keeping the deceased in the mortal world will surely incur retribution from the underworld, and those who possess it for a long time will suffer shortened lifespan and misfortune."

'There really are cultivators in this mysterious realm...'

Wang Xi tied the package tightly again, looking thoughtful.

This shows that the eldest daughter of the Qi family in the provincial capital was a cultivator.

But what exactly is the art of paper cutting?
And the underworld...

'Indeed, he's not simple.'

Wang Xi thought to himself, while also harboring a secret expectation.

'If I could gain deeper access to this extraordinary realm, perhaps I could master the power of this mysterious system.'

If martial arts are a man's dream, then cultivating immortality is an even greater delusion for mortals.

Although Wang Xi pretended to be an immortal in front of Shen Miaowei, he was not one... Now that there were clear clues pointing to the elusive path to immortality, he would never let it go easily.

...

...

When Wang Xi arrived at the Zhang family mansion, it was just past nine o'clock at the beginning of Hai hour. There were still about forty minutes until the peddler's promised three quarters of an hour.

In the darkness, Wang Xi quietly disappeared into the alley on the east side of the courtyard, leaning against the mottled wall, blending into the darkness. Time flowed slowly in the silence, but he remained as still as a stone statue.

Three-quarters of an hour later, a faint noise indeed came from the alley entrance. Under the dim moonlight, four men in black appeared like ghosts.

Wang Xi held his breath and stared intently—

The four men had the entry "Five Lakes Hermit - Grey Swallow" appearing above their heads, just like the two folk martial artists who had pretended to be Mao Xinrong's assistants.

Upon closer inspection, three of them were at the three-star level with a blank background, while only one had reached the four-star level with a blank background. Their faces were covered with black cloths, and they moved with agility, leaping over the three-meter-high courtyard wall as if walking on flat ground.

Wang Xi waited a few more breaths before setting off, following closely behind the group of men in black, and scaling the courtyard wall to enter the Zhang family mansion.

He followed me like a ghost.

Passing through the courtyard's archway and covered walkway, I quietly pressed myself against a huge Podocarpus macrophyllus tree and glimpsed the four people furtively searching for something outside a side room.

Finally, having searched in vain, they exchanged a glance and gave each other a tacit hand gesture. The leader pushed open the door to the room, and the others filed in.

Wang Xi silently activated the "Mud Howling Dark Frog." In the darkness, five red heartbeat lines pulsed, one of which suddenly accelerated. Faintly, a faint, terrified sound of someone covering their mouth could be heard.

'It should be Madam Zhang, Zhang Fuyun's grandmother...'

Wang Xi was about to make a move to save him when ice and snow began to condense in his palm, but he suddenly stopped.

The group of men in black didn't harm anyone; they simply and swiftly snatched a jewelry box, half a bag of silver, and a broom from the room before leaving as quickly as they had come. Their figures vanished into the night in a few leaps.

After a while.

In a dark alley two streets away from Zhang's residence, the four men suddenly stopped and ripped off their masks.

"Success." The leader, with a goatee, said in a hoarse voice, shoving the broom into another man's hand. "According to protocol, this item should be sent to the branch headquarters immediately."

"As for the other valuables..." He glanced at his companions. "You can dispose of them yourselves."

"Master Feng is a true friend!" His companion grinned, but couldn't help hesitatingly weighing the worn-out broom in his hand. "I just wonder what the higher-ups want this thing for?"

"Don't ask so many questions!" The man surnamed Feng's eyes suddenly turned cold. "Don't forget the rules of the Grey Swallows: do the job, don't ask why."

"Understood, Mr. Feng, I won't ask any further questions."

The man chuckled and quickly backed down.

Just as the group squatted down, preparing to divide the loot, the man surnamed Feng suddenly noticed something, his expression changed drastically, and he hissed, "Watch out!"

laugh!laugh!laugh!
Almost the instant he spoke the warning, the three people crouching on the ground fell down at the same time, leaving bloody holes on their foreheads or temples, their blood frozen into ice.

The man stood there, feeling a chill run from his feet to the top of his head. He reacted quickly, turning around and assuming a fighting stance, staring at the figure that emerged behind him as if facing a formidable enemy.

The man's pupils constricted slightly when he saw that the newcomer was a young man in a long black coat.

"Huo Family Martial Arts School, Grandmaster Wang..."

He caught a glimpse of the frost and bloody hole on his companion's head out of the corner of his eye, and his heart sank.

"It seems you've not only opened up the Nine Palaces and Two Elements, but also returned from the outside in, nurtured the Five Elements, and mastered the Primordial Qi—a grandmaster who cultivates both internal and external aspects?!"

"..."

Wang Xi remained calm and silent.

But deep down, I was a little curious.

I have no idea what this person is babbling about.

"What was your purpose in stealing a broom from the Zhang residence, you 'Wandering Gentlemen of the Five Lakes'?"

Upon hearing this, the man surnamed Feng felt a chill run down his spine.

His eyes twitched slightly, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and he hissed, "No comment!"

"Forget it, he's obviously a tough nut to crack."

Wang Xi shook his head.

whoosh-

In a flash, he took seven steps and arrived in front of the man.

The latter was shocked.

This is wrong!

Why didn't you ask a few more questions? Maybe he would have told you himself. Fighting at the slightest disagreement—where's the composure of a master?
The man could only dodge to the side, while simultaneously extending his right arm, his five fingers like a hook, to grab the young man's shoulder.

He had diligently practiced grappling techniques for twenty years. Facing a grandmaster on the same level as the leader, he was apprehensive, but he had no choice but to grit his teeth and make a move, desperately trying to gain a chance of survival.

A gust of wind from a slashing palm struck his face, causing a sharp pain. Fortunately, his lightness skill was exceptional, and he narrowly dodged the blow, already securing his hand on the young man's shoulder.

I couldn't help but feel happy.

Have the opportunity!
He had only heard of this young master's reputation yesterday. The horrifying feat of catching a bullet with his bare hands had already reached his ears from his Black Eel Army comrades.

The opponent is just too young and lacks combat experience!

He exerted force in his hand, a finger strength powerful enough to pierce through an iron plate—

Gaba!

But then came the sound of bones cracking, and a piercing pain shot through his five fingers.

"Ouch!" the man cried out, glancing out of the corner of his eye at a glint of ice crystals on the young man's shoulder.

Bang! !

Immediately afterward, he saw the young man's right arm flash, and his palm was already pressed against his chest like a large seal.

"puff--"

The man's feet left the ground, and a terrifying force, like a battering ram, slammed into him, sending him flying backward.

Deng Deng Deng!
After landing, he forced himself to take several steps back to stand still, then coughed up a mouthful of blood.

But the blood mist turned into sparks in mid-air.

The man stared blankly down at his head.

A charred handprint was branded onto his chest. He opened his mouth to speak, but flames shot out from his seven orifices in an instant, and he was burned to ashes in a flash.

Killed the target

"Do they have the ability to capture 'Feng Qiang'?"

'Yes. '

Wang Xi said inwardly.

A green light emerged from the ashes floating in mid-air and went straight into his brow.

"This 'Three Thousand Blazing Sun Tathagata Heart-Burning Palm' is indeed domineering."

Wang Xi shook his head and sighed.

Just like that old man going into the toilet—he just blurted things out.

The fire magic originating from the "Lord of Scorched Earth," when added to the palm force, creates this terrifying effect.

After Feng Qiang, a four-star martial artist with no skill level, was burned to ashes by the fire magic palm strike, Wang Xi's slight consumption of energy was replenished, and he returned to his peak condition.

——"Ashes Return to the Flow"

The fairytale version of the Star-Absorbing Technique is effective and I love using it.

(End of this chapter)