The Powerful Jinghong Guards

Inside the Zhennan Prince’s Mansion, Jun Ao leaned sideways against a soft couch.

A maid servant dressed in a green robe was currently kneeling behind him, her ten slender fingers placed on his shoulders, kneading and massaging with a force that was neither too heavy nor too light.

Jun Ao closed his eyes, his breathing uniform, looking leisurely and comfortable.

But only he himself knew… this heart of his was currently beating like a drum.

It was not fear.

It was excitement.

The birth of that strand of true qi last night was like a flint struck in the darkness, completely igniting his blood that had been dormant for twenty years.

Being able to raise one’s cultivation level just by killing bastards… where else could one find this kind of “good thing”?

He had thought about it for an entire night and finally figured it out.

That black banner inside his body was probably something extraordinary.

It was able to absorb the other party’s blood and qi through killing people to feed itself back.

It was only because those three bastards last night were too weak, not even counting as the First Realm of martial arts, that the true qi fed back was so thin.

While today…

The corners of Jun Ao’s mouth curved up slightly.

The one coming today was an expert of the Eighth Realm of martial arts.

The martial arts of this world was very simple: the nine realms of the mortal body were the first nine layers of martial arts.

Above the Nine Realms was the Transcendent.

Above the Transcendent was the Celestial.

Above the Celestial… was the Immortal.

For thousands of years, only one person had become an immortal, and that was his mother, Luo Jinghong.

During this night, Jun Ao tried to circulate the “Jinghong Formula” left behind by his mother.

A strand of true qi was actually condensed at his fingertips, weak as a firefly, yet it truly existed.

This meant that he was able to cultivate.

Although he could not sit in meditation to absorb qi like ordinary people, nor could he absorb the spiritual qi inside source stones.

But right now, the bastards were invading…

Killing bastards was his path of cultivation.

“Heir,” A’San came in from outside the door, lowering his voice, “when do you think these bastards… will arrive?”

Jun Ao opened his eyes, a trace of cold light flashing through his eyes: “They will come. Are things on the side of the Jinghong Guards prepared?”

“According to your commands, all thirty Jinghong Guards have already been arranged inside the mansion.” A’San reported, “They have disguised themselves as servants and maid servants, their auras completely reined in, so outsiders absolutely cannot see any flaws.”

“Very good.” Jun Ao closed his eyes once again, “It is enough to just wait with peace of mind.”

A’Qing’s hands were currently massaging his shoulders.

Jun Ao suddenly smiled, raising his hand to press down on the back of her hand that was resting on his shoulder.

A’Qing’s hand was very soft.

“A’Qing, where is A’Shui?” he asked, his voice carrying a trace of a smile.

A’Qing’s face turned red, and she lowered her head: “A’Shui said the heir is lecherous, so she refused to come.”

“Who said I am lecherous?” Jun Ao turned his body around, facing her, his finger hooking up her chin, “Come, give the lord heir a smile.”

A’Qing’s face turned even redder, like a fully ripened peach, her eyelashes trembling lightly, yet she truly forced out an unpolished smile.

“This is more like it.” Jun Ao nodded with satisfaction, leaning a bit closer as he sniffed near her neck, “What kind of fragrance are you using? It smells quite good.”

“It is my own natural body fragrance…” A’Qing’s voice was as soft as a mosquito.

Watching from the side, the corners of A’San’s mouth kept twitching, and he could not help but let out a cough: “Heir, you acting like this… be careful of the young mistress finding out.”

Jun Ao’s movements froze.

The shadow from the year he was fifteen instantly surfaced in his heart.

He had snuck out to the Wanhua Brothel, only to be caught red-handed by Mei Yingxue carrying a sword.

That woman said absolutely nothing, splitting half of the brothel with a single strike of her sword, scaring him so much that he did not dare to go out of the door for three months.

He subconsciously looked left and right, and only after confirming that the white-clothed figure was not there did he let out a sigh of relief.

“Afraid of what,” Jun Ao said stubbornly, “she isn’t even here.”

As he spoke, his courage grew large again, reaching out his hand to pull A’Qing’s waist, bringing her onto the soft couch.

A’Qing let out a soft cry of surprise, her entire person falling into his embrace, warm fragrant soft jade, the touch being extremely good.

“Heir…” A’Qing’s voice even carried a hint of crying.

“Don’t be afraid,” Jun Ao lowered his head, speaking softly beside her ear, “just a hug.”

Before his words could even land…

A burst of extremely faint sound of breaking air suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

It was like the wind blowing through a bamboo grove, and also like a night bird sweeping past the eaves of a roof.

A’Qing’s pupils constricted slightly: “Heir, they are here!”

…

The front yard of the Prince’s Mansion.

More than a dozen dark figures landed like ghosts and monsters, completely silent.

Their entire bodies were wrapped inside black martial attire, revealing only a pair of eyes, with long narrow curved blades hanging at their waists.

The one leading them was a one-eyed middle-aged man, a white cloth wrapped around his forehead, with a red sun stamped in blood upon the cloth.

It was the Yamazaki from the mouth of that bastard who had been stabbed to death by Jun Ao last night.

He swept a glance across the empty courtyard and gave a savage laugh: “The Zhennan Prince’s Mansion… is nothing more than this.”

A ghost warrior behind him said in a low voice: “My Lord, the intelligence said Mei Yingxue went to the Southern Border, and only that trash heir is left inside the mansion.”

“Trash?” Yamazaki sneered, “The death of this trash can be of great use.”

He raised his hand and gave a wave: “Except for leaving Jun Ao to me, for the others, leave not a single one alive. Remember, it must be fast, we must withdraw before the city defense army can react.”

“Yes!”

More than a dozen ghost warriors drew their blades at the same time, their figures like lightning as they pounced toward every courtyard inside the mansion.

Yamazaki, on the other hand, carried his blade, walking step by step toward the main hall.

The hall door was wide open.

He saw Jun Ao on the soft couch at a single glance, currently embracing a maid servant and flirting, a complete posture of a playboy dandy.

“Heh,” Yamazaki stepped into the hall door, his voice hoarse, “death is right before your eyes, yet you still have the mind to play with women?”

Jun Ao raised his eyes to look at him, there was not much expression on his face: “You’ve arrived?”

“You knew I was coming?” Yamazaki narrowed his single eye.

“I knew.” Jun Ao let go of A’Qing, standing up to tidy his robes, “After all, those three bastards had too little backbone, they confessed everything.”

Yamazaki stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly burst into laughter: “Interesting!”

He pressed closer step by step, the tip of his blade dragging against the floor, drawing out a piercing sound: “Killing you, the Southern Border can be broken in the blink of a finger.”

Jun Ao did not move, only asking faintly: “What benefits did your Emperor promise you?”

“Benefits?” Yamazaki grinned, “Killing you, I will have the top merit. His Majesty the Emperor will reward me with ten thousand source stones, bestow me a fief, and put me… above ten thousand people in Fusang!”

“Oh.” Jun Ao nodded his head, “Then that’s a pity.”

“A pity for what?”

“A pity that you… have no life left to enjoy it.”

The moment his words fell, miserable screams came from outside the hall.

It was not the screams of the mansion’s servants.

It was the ghost warriors.

Yamazaki fiercely turned his head.

He saw that inside the courtyard, those people who were supposed to be “servants” and “maid servants” had all completely changed their appearance at this moment.

Their movements were as fast as ghosts and monsters, their strikes ruthless and precise, and in just a single encounter, five or six ghost warriors fell to the ground, clutching their chests or throats as blood gushed out continuously.

What was even more terrifying was their aura.

Previously they were completely ordinary, yet at this moment every single one of them was like a drawn sharp sword…

“This… how is this possible?!” Yamazaki’s pupils sharply constricted.

The people he brought, the weakest was also of the Sixth Realm, and the strongest possessed the Seventh Realm.

Yet in front of this group of people, they were actually like they were made of paper.

“The Ninth Realm…” Yamazaki’s face turned deathly pale.

But in the next instant, a ruthless look flashed through his eyes.

Jun Ao was no more than three zhang away from him!

As long as he captured him, there would still be a turning point for everything!

“Die!”

Yamazaki bellowed violently, his figure shooting out like an arrow, his long blade swinging out a patch of snowy bright blade light, chopping straight toward Jun Ao’s face!

This blade strike was fast to the absolute limit, and before the blade qi could even arrive, the sharp fierce wind had already blown Jun Ao’s robes into a hunting rustle.

However—

“Clang!”

A light sound rang out.

The blade light stopped three feet in front of Jun Ao, clamped tightly by two slender jade fingers.

It was A’Qing.

She had blocked in front of Jun Ao at some unknown point, expressionless, her fingertips exerting a slight force.

“Crack.”

The long blade forged from refined steel broke in response to the sound.

Yamazaki held a section of the broken blade, standing frozen on the spot, as if he had not yet reacted.

“A’Qing,” Jun Ao’s voice rang out behind him, “crippling him is enough, don’t kill him.”

“Yes.”

A’Qing complied, raising her hand, and stamped a palm onto Yamazaki’s chest.

“Puff—”

Yamazaki flew backward out, crashing down a standing pillar inside the hall, slumping onto the floor as blood foam continuously welled up from his mouth.

He struggled wanting to crawl up, but discovered that the channels and meridians of his entire body had already been broken by the shock, his true qi completely scattering, possessing no more strength for a single battle.

The battle inside the yard had also already ended.

More than a dozen ghost warriors were all lying on the floor, either with broken hands or broken feet, their wailing cries rising one after another.

Thirty Jinghong Guards stood quietly all around, completely expressionless.

Jun Ao walked to the front of Yamazaki, squatting down his body.

“Now,” he looked into Yamazaki’s despairing eyes, speaking softly, “it is my turn.”

He drew the dagger from his waist.

The tip of the blade pressed against Yamazaki’s heart.

A hoarse rattling sound came from Yamazaki’s throat, wanting to say something, yet he could only cough out blood.

“Don’t worry,” Jun Ao said, “it will be very fast.”

His wrist gave a thrust.

“Puchih.”

The dagger plunged into the heart.

Yamazaki’s body gave a sudden freeze, his eyes staring perfectly round, immediately dimming down after.

At the exact same time, inside Jun Ao’s sea of qi, that black banner trembled once again.

A strand of black gas that was far more dense than last night’s drifted out from Yamazaki’s corpse, plunging into Jun Ao’s brow.

Only, this black gas was something only he himself could see.

The black banner shook violently, the red color at the edges of the banner surface deepening by another degree.

Right after that, a burst of pure true qi gushed out from the bottom of the black banner, instantly flooding the channels and meridians of Jun Ao’s entire body.

The First Realm of martial arts—was achieved.

Right after that, the Second Realm was achieved!

The Third Realm… was achieved!

It only stopped after reaching the full completion of the Third Realm!

Jun Ao closed his eyes, feeling the rushing power inside his body, the corners of his mouth slowly raising up.

He pulled out the dagger, wiped it on Yamazaki’s clothes, and stood up.

Then, he went on to kill them one by one!

Every time he killed one person, the true qi inside his body would rise by one degree…

“A’San.”

“Present!”

“Chop off the heads of these bastards and hang them at the city gate.” Jun Ao said faintly, “Then write a plaque—those who cross my Great Wu, though they be far away, they must definitely be executed.”

“Yes!”

Jun Ao turned his body around, returning to his own room.

Inside the sea of qi of his body.

The movement of the black banner was getting larger and larger…