Chapter 11 Ancient Paintings

In a five-star hotel.

Having discarded his coat, Alkaid changed into the new clothes a staff member had just purchased for him.

He moved his body slightly, shaking his muscles and bones, and found no hidden injuries on his body.

However, recalling Lei Ao's violent and fierce struggle before his death...

"Very strong,"

he muttered.

That demon was very strong.

Its physique had possibly reached the limits of the human body.

Although under his restriction technique, it had no chance to demonstrate its prowess and was killed by two swords.

But...

This demon was certainly not the upper limit for demons.

But he...

was nearly reaching the human limits.

Images from Alkaid's original body flashed through his mind as he crossed over.

It was a gruesome scene of a demon sucking out the brain marrow of several teenagers.

Having hunted demons incessantly for a year, he had realized that the human brain could enhance the intelligence of demons, accelerating their evolution.

This was the relationship between hunter and prey.

Irreconcilable.

The key was...

Who was the hunter, and who was the prey.

Demons infiltrated human society, hunting humans.

He lurked in the shadows, hunting demons.

Who would ultimately prevail, Alkaid did not know.

All he could do now was to enhance himself and solve the problem at its root—kill.

...

"Demons see humans as mere ants, and even forcing them with a sword only brings them great shame and unleases their demonic nature, adding to the danger. To this day, I still do not know where the demons come from; this world's feature...is it..."

Scenes from sci-fi and fantasy movies flickered through Alkaid's mind.

"An invasion from beyond?"

The former...

would be somewhat better.

Demons and humans have coexisted since ancient times, reaching a natural balance.

But if it were the latter...

"Three-headed demons gathering in one place, this is something I haven't encountered before; there should be more gains to expect."

Alkaid pondered with his head bowed, his gaze shifting towards the sword in his hand.

To ensure absolute safety, he had to carry a weapon.

But this sword...

"Needs to be replaced."

It was a shortsword.

Less than eighty centimeters long.

Straight and without a handle.

At first glance, it looked like a sharpened, flattened stick.

This style was very suitable for Alkaid to conceal.

Through the "Formless" secret technique, the shortsword was hidden in his arm like a magician's prop, and due to the constant nourishment of qi and blood, it became a part of his arm—undetectable even by some detection devices.

Unfortunately...

There were already some cracks on the blade.

"To truly nurture a sword to be a part of the body using the 'Formless' secret technique, to the extent that it can't be detected by any instrument, will take some time,"

Alkaid muttered, "To avoid unnecessarily delaying 'Sword Nurturing' time, I need to choose a good sword to avoid breaking it when a demon manifests its demonic body."

Although the sword in his hand was valuable, it was not considered a Divine Weapon.

It was simply that he had just mastered the "Formless" secret technique, and the utility was more experimental than practical; that was why he had bought a convenient sword for over ten thousand.

Now...

It was time to switch to a better sword.

He contemplated the process of nurturing the shortsword through the Formless secret technique, always feeling like a cultivator refining a Lifebound Flying Sword with his Lifebound Essence.

Of course, he didn't have any Lifebound Essence, nor was the Formless secret technique a method for Artifact Refining Lifebound Flying Swords.

"I'll look for a good sword tomorrow,"

Alkaid muttered.

He set the nearly ruined shortsword aside.

Efficiently, he focused his mind on the professional information search engine—the mysterious ancient tree.

The growth nutrients obtained from killing demons were controlled by him, poured into the branch representing the "Martial Artist" career.

Suddenly, this branch swayed as if it penetrated deeper into the chaotic Void, absorbing every piece of information about Cleansing Marrow into Alkaid's mind.

And when this infusion finished, the branch representing the "Martial Artist" had also grown to its limit.

The information contained in his mind was not limited to the cultivation methods of a "Third Rank Grandmaster" but also included some intelligence on countering Martial Saints as a Third Rank Grandmaster.

"The information on Third Rank Grandmasters is completely mastered; I could refine my organs to Perfection even with my eyes closed. Without any accidents, after killing another demon, the ancient tree will bear a Grandmaster Dao Fruit, deriving Third Rank Grandmaster secret techniques. If things go well, the overflow of nutrients might even allow the branch representing the 'Martial Artist' career to break from Third Rank into Fourth Rank, and then the data collected will all be about Fourth Rank Martial Saints,"

Alkaid said inwardly.

Martial Saint is just Fourth Rank.

What about Fifth Rank?

Sixth Rank, Seventh Rank, Eighth Rank, and even Ninth Rank, Tenth Rank?

Moreover, Tenth Rank might not be the limit.

What if there were Eleventh Rank, Twelfth Rank, Thirteenth Rank?

Becoming a "Human Immortal," mastering the art of riding the winds and dining on dew, was not a mere pipe dream.

The future was promising.

"Furthermore..."

He sensed the robust growth of the spiritual world's ancient tree, almost reaching four meters in height.

"Once the 'Martial Artist' branches reach Fourth Rank, the ancient tree should sprout a new branch. At that time, I can choose a new sub-profession to absorb nutrients more quickly."

...

The next day.

Zhang Qing once again arrived early at the hotel where Alkaid was staying and enthusiastically took him straight to the sword market.

After discussing with his father, he was specially allocated funds for the purpose of accompanying the esteemed young master of the Su Family.

Unfortunately, Shanlong City was ultimately a small place. Alkaid browsed around but failed to find a satisfactory dagger.

Seeing this, Zhang Qing became somewhat anxious and quickly consulted his father.

And Zhang's father, true to his reputation as a local bigwig in Shanlong City, quickly provided an answer.

"Young Master Su, not only are firearms strictly regulated here in Dayu, but swords and blades are also restricted, and their development is far less prosperous than in neighboring Feiyu Country. If you trust me, let's head to Guangming City across from us. We know a forge there, the master is a true, long-standing sword-making Grandmaster."

Zhang Qing said.

"Let's go."

Alkaid agreed without any hesitation.

As a Grandmaster, he could easily ignore most dangers in the world.

"Alright."

Zhang Qing quickly made arrangements.

In less than half an hour, their vehicle arrived at the checkpoint.

They hardly needed to handle visa formalities; someone even opened a small gate to let them out of the country.

Guangming City was located just across from Shanlong City. Its economic prosperity was even less than that of Shanlong City. At first glance, there were very few buildings taller than ten stories, most being four- or five-story residential buildings constructed haphazardly without any plan.

Although there were cars on the streets, there were more bicycles and motorcycles.

And each cyclist did not adhere to traffic regulations, often blocking the streets completely.

In such conditions, it took their sedan about an hour to stop in front of a yard located on the outskirts of the city.

The front yard sold framed and ready weapons, while the back yard was a residential area. At first glance, it had the feel of a makeshift, privately-owned small enterprise.

"Is Old He here? I'm introduced by Boss Zhou, a big client has arrived."

Upon seeing the reception staff, Zhang Qing asked directly.

The staff, seeing the distinguished attire of the two men and that they were introduced by an acquaintance, quickly led them into the inner yard.

Though it was a residential area, there were quite a few swords and blades on display.

And it was apparent that the quality was definitely a cut above.

Alkaid glanced at them.

Each of these swords and blades was no less exquisite than his shattered dagger.

However, after a brief examination, his gaze fell on a specially framed and protected ancient painting on the wall.

On it, numerous tiny figures wielding long spears and clad in armor were besieging a bull-headed, three-faced, six-armed monster.

In comparison, the monster stood about thirty meters tall, roaring up at the sky.

Above the monster in the heavens, a massive sword, countless times larger than the monster, pierced through the clouds, as if descending from the heavens.

Just the tip of the sword emerging from the clouds conveyed an oppressive feeling that took one's breath away, making it hard to imagine the true size of the entire sword.

"Heavenly Sword Demon-Suppressing Chart?"

Alkaid uttered.

"This is a historical relic traceable back a thousand years and is also one of the treasured artifacts of our Heavenly Sword Workshop."

At this time, a spirited elderly man around his sixties came out and introduced with a cheerful laugh.

"Heavenly Sword Demon-Suppressing?"

Alkaid inquired, "Are there really demons in this world?"

"It's a thousand-year-old matter, who can say for sure? Believe it and there is, doubt it and there isn't."

The elderly man spoke somewhat sentimentally.

But Alkaid could tell at a glance that he was being deliberately mysterious.

Ignoring it, he directly said, "I want to see your best sword."

"Then, esteemed guest, you've come to the right place. Our Heavenly Sword Workshop has been carrying on the tradition for over eight hundred years. We have reached the pinnacle in sword-making, winning not just once at major sword-making competitions. Not to mention just Guangming City, but across the entire Feiyu Country, almost no one can match our craft..."

The elderly man boasted.

But all the words used were superlatives like "peak," "strongest," "exceptional," with not a single specific ranking mentioned.

Fortunately, Alkaid wasn't looking for a divine weapon.

The old man led him around the yard to various rooms storing renowned swords and treasured blades, and the quality of the swords was indeed satisfactory.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have garnered a certain reputation.

Only the price was a bit steep.

Alkaid chose a short sword with a similar design. The Heavenly Sword Workshop directly asked for five hundred thousand.

Zhang Qing wanted to pay on his behalf, but he refused.

After purchasing the sword, they left the yard and drove back.

But after a moment, they saw a minibus ahead, its window suddenly opened, and then a slightly frail girl jumped out, shouting for help.

Alkaid glanced at her...

She looked somewhat familiar.

It seemed she was the woman who had taken the same cab to Shanlong City with him a couple of days ago.