Martial Arts: Starting with Upgrading the Dilapidated Temple

A piercing scream tore through the rain. Sun Niqiu, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, jumped three feet high. His originally sinister face was now twisted and deformed with pain, making him look exactly like a vengeful ghost.

Sun Niqiu let out a shrill scream, clutching his buttocks and retreating violently. He couldn't understand how this little guard, who had been unsteady on his feet just moments before, could possess such terrifying explosive power, that this single strike had actually broken through his protective qi!

"Go to hell!" Enraged, Sun Niqiu ignored his injuries and turned around to grab Xu Hao's crown with a claw.

Having succeeded in his attack, Xu Hao had no intention of lingering with him.

He was like a nimble raccoon, using the rocking of the boat to slide backward and avoid the vicious blow.

Immediately afterward, Xu Hao seized the opportunity when Sun Niqiu slipped, and kicked him squarely in the bleeding wound.

"Get out of here!"

The kick landed squarely. Sun Niqiu, already off-balance, was sent flying and crashed into the surging river with a splash.

The waves surged and instantly swallowed the figure.

The ship was deathly silent.

Coach Lin clutched his blackened shoulder, staring in shock at the scene. He couldn't hold back the mouthful of black blood and vomited it out.

"Don't just stand there!" Xu Hao swung his knife backhand and stabbed through a water ghost who had just climbed onto the ship's railing to launch a sneak attack, then kicked the corpse away.

He stood at the bow of the boat, soaked to the bone by the rain, his long sword dripping blood, his eyes colder than the icy river water.

"If you want to live, get the boat moving!"

"Thump."

Sun Niqiu made quite a commotion when he fell into the water, but the splashes were not very noticeable in the downpour.

But in that instant, it was as if someone had pressed a hand on the throat of the river.

The archers on the salt gang's large ship in the distance were probably dumbfounded. This was their third leader, "Ghost Hand," a master of martial arts, who had been kicked into the river like a dead dog.

The rain of arrows stopped for a moment.

"What are you looking at! Are you waiting for him to swim up and buy you drinks?"

Xu Hao's loud shout rang out like thunder in everyone's ears.

Without pausing, he kicked over the thick wooden table in front of him that was blocking the arrows, tucked the knife into his waistband, and grabbed the handles of two mahogany boxes weighing hundreds of kilograms each next to him.

"rise!"

His arm muscles tensed instantly, and he lifted the two incredibly heavy boxes with ease.

Xu Hao strode towards the entrance to the lower deck, carrying a suitcase. The murderous aura mixed with rain and blood forced the surviving guards to retreat.

"Anyone who doesn't want to die, get in the hold and row! If the boat sinks, I'll throw you all overboard to feed the fish!"

These guards, usually quite ruthless, were terrified by Xu Hao's murderous aura and scrambled into the hold.

Before long, the boat jolted, and the oars on both sides frantically stirred the water. The speedboat, like a startled black fish, used the current to suddenly dart towards the gap in the encirclement.

Several water ghosts, their heads emerging from the river, hesitated, clinging to the gunwale as they watched their leader vanish without a trace.

"Don't want to leave? Then stay!"

Xu Hao left the cabin and stood at the stern, his hundred-refined steel sword transforming into a streak of lightning.

"Click, click."

Several crisp sounds were the sound of the hook being cut, accompanied by several severed fingers and screams falling into the river.

Now the water ghosts were completely obedient, and they all let go and dived to the bottom of the water, afraid that if they were a step too slow, their heads would be taken away.

The awning boat was closely followed by the large ship of the salt gang. It wanted to turn its sails around and chase after them, but the wind was very erratic in the rain, and the hull was heavy. Turning a corner was as difficult as an old ox pulling a broken cart.

On the contrary, the fast boat that Xu Hao directed the boatman to steer nimbly and darted left and right on the dark river surface, its agility almost eerie.

Xu Hao closed his eyes, feeling a slight warmth from the breathing talisman on his chest.

Splash... splash...

The sounds of the reefs and rapids were clearly audible to him.

"Go three feet to the left" to avoid the hidden reefs, "Go five feet to the right" to go with the current.

Under his command, the Clippers grazed the edge of the whirlpool several times, carving a path to survival right at the gates of hell.

The awning boat sped straight for three miles, shaking off the pursuers, before Xu Hao felt a surge of blood rushing to his chest.

The knife and kick he just delivered looked effortless, but in reality, they drained most of his explosive power.

In an attempt to break through his external martial arts technique, Xu Hao nearly snapped his own tendons with that single strike.

Under the cover of darkness, Xu Hao flipped his wrist and pulled out a handful of crystal-clear "refined rice" and stuffed it into his mouth.

With a few crisp crunches, the rice grains were chewed, and a warm, soothing sensation slid down the throat, calming the restless heart and restoring strength to the aching muscles.

"Xu...Xu Hao."

A weak sound came from beneath the mast.

Instructor Lin sat leaning against the side, three bloody holes in his shoulder gushing black blood and emitting a foul stench.

Xu Hao walked over and squatted down to examine it.

"He's been poisoned; the poison is very potent."

The murderous aura on Xu Hao's face vanished completely, and he returned to his honest and unassuming appearance.

Coach Lin forced his eyelids open and stared intently at Xu Hao, his gaze complex.

"This strength...this reaction..." Instructor Lin gasped for breath, a trickle of black blood spilling from the corner of his mouth. "You've already forged your bones in just over a month?"

Xu Hao casually tore off a strip of cloth and used it to bandage Lin's wound: "Instructor, when people are pushed to the limit, they'll use any means necessary. I just want to live."

"To survive... what a wonderful way to survive."

Instructor Lin gave a bitter laugh, his hands trembling as he pulled out a porcelain bottle from his robes, poured out two pills, and swallowed them whole—a potent poison meant to prolong life.

As the effects of the medicine took hold, an unnatural flush rose to his face, and he gripped Xu Hao's wrist tightly with astonishing force.

"Listen... there's something wrong with this shipment." Instructor Lin's voice was extremely low, only the two of them could hear. "Once we reach the prefectural city, don't trust that contact person..."

He struggled to pull a blood-stained jade pendant from his inner pocket and shoved it into Xu Hao's hand. The jade pendant was warm and smooth, with an ancient-looking character "令" (command) engraved on it.

"Believe...believe this..."

Before he could finish speaking, Instructor Lin's head lolled to the side, and he completely lost consciousness.

Don't trust the contact person? Then what's the use of this jade pendant? Xu Hao lowered his head and pondered.

"Xu... Brother Xu?" Li Da and Luo Bao poked their heads out from the lower deck.

The two men looked at the mess on the boat and the corpses lying scattered everywhere, then glanced at Xu Hao standing in the rain, their eyes filled with fear.

Just now, Xu Hao was a ruthless killer. Is this really the same Xu Hao who usually tries to steal their braised pork?

Xu Hao turned his head and looked at the two of them, his murderous aura completely gone.

He wiped the rain off his face, revealing an expression of exhaustion and lingering fear, and swayed his body as if he were physically weak.

"Oh my god, that scared the hell out of me!"

Xu Hao plopped down on the deck, panting heavily. "Boss Lin has passed out from poisoning. Sun Niqiu was really unlucky just now; he slipped and ran right into my blade."

Li Da and Luo Bao exchanged a glance. Although they felt something was amiss, seeing Xu Hao's surviving appearance, their fear dissipated considerably.

"Brother Xu, what do we do now?" Luo Bao asked, shrinking his neck.

Xu Hao pointed to the reeds, "What else can we do? Let's row the boat in and make some repairs. In this damn weather, even a god couldn't catch up."

While the two were busy with their work, Xu Hao quietly touched his waist.

He had a paper package stuffed in his arms, which he had casually torn off before Sun Niqiu fell into the water.

The items on the third leader of the Salt Gang must be of good quality, right?