The Speedrun Begins with Choosing Hunter

Inside the Changhe Martial Arts Hall.

Nie Dao’s expression was grim.

News of the Nine Revolutions Sect had already spread throughout Huanglong Prefecture, and even the whole of Ling Province.

The Prefect’s protégé and the first disciple of Longevity Palace had joined forces to annihilate the Nine Revolutions Sect’s base in Huanglong Prefecture, leaving no survivors.

Such ruthless methods sent a chill down everyone’s spine.

How could he not see that this was clearly a show of force from the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office, meant to intimidate the Jianghu of Ling Province?

Today it was the Nine Revolutions Sect; tomorrow, it could be the Changhe Gang.

The Jianghu of Ling Province had thought that the Lingzhou General and the Prefect’s actions against the Divine Mansion Sect were targeted at them alone. Now, it was clear that they were targeting the entire Jianghu of Ling Province. The Divine Mansion Sect was just the beginning.

Even a power as formidable as the Divine Mansion Sect had crumbled overnight. The other sects stood no chance of resisting.

The Changhe Gang’s strength was far inferior to the Divine Mansion Sect’s, and their years of shady dealings had left them with countless vulnerabilities. The Lingzhou Prefecture Magistrate’s Office could find any one of them and use it as a pretext to wipe the Changhe Gang out.

Nie Dao let out a long sigh.

"This Jianghu life is getting harder and harder."

The Seven Star Sect was in a similar situation to the Changhe Gang.

Besides Longevity Palace and the Divine Mansion Sect, the Seven Star Sect was the other major sect in Ling Province.

With the Prefect of Lingzhou suddenly making a move, everyone in the Seven Star Sect felt their hearts tighten, afraid they would follow in the Divine Mansion Sect’s footsteps.

For a time, panic swept through the Jianghu of Ling Province.

...

"Have those two gone mad?"

Lu Yu said, annoyed, to Lu Shanshan.

The Lu Family had come to Huanglong Prefecture to transfer their assets, so they needed a stable environment.

But the actions of Kaiyang Taoist and Yan Mo had muddied the already murky waters.

Some of the businesses that were supposed to be moved from Ling Province had to be put on hold.

Naturally, Lu Yu was displeased.

Lu Shanshan lowered her gaze, a thoughtful expression on her face.

The fact that the Lord General had sent her to Huanglong Prefecture showed that he had high hopes for her. Besides her decent talent in martial arts, Lu Shanshan’s greatest asset was her exceptional strategic ability.

In truth, Lu Yu was mostly a hands-off manager; she was the one who was actually in charge.

In just half a month, Lu Shanshan had already gained control of thirty percent of Huanglong Prefecture’s wealth. Not only that, but the intelligence network she had single-handedly established was even more formidable than that of the Lingzhou Army.

It had infiltrated every corner of Huanglong Prefecture.

The stream of intelligence reports she received each day was like a ceaseless flurry of snowflakes.

Even Lu Yu had begun to see his seldom-seen younger sister in a new light.

Lu Shanshan suddenly spoke. "The Changhe Gang should be their next target."

A flicker of interest showed in Lu Yu’s eyes. "Why not the Seven Star Sect?"

"The Changhe Gang’s dealings have already attracted Yan Mo’s attention."

Lu Shanshan gave her answer directly.

The Lu Family had an intelligence network, but the information held by the Lord Governor, backed by the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office, was bound to be even more terrifying. No matter how secretive the Changhe Gang was, they couldn’t withstand the scrutiny of the state apparatus. It was only a matter of time before they were discovered.

Lu Yu’s brow furrowed slightly.

If the Changhe Gang were investigated, it would be difficult to keep his dealings with Bai Yuan a secret.

’I didn’t expect Yan Mo to be so capable when it comes to intelligence,’ he thought.

But he was naturally unwilling to cut off the transactions.

After his recent dealings with Bai Yuan, he had discovered that Bai Yuan’s medicinal pills were far superior to those on the market, and they had virtually no medicinal toxins.

Lu Yu’s perspective was a cut above the Changhe Gang’s; he knew exactly what the absence of medicinal toxins implied.

But what shocked him even more were Bai Yuan’s alchemy skills.

First-rate saber techniques, alchemy, Gu-arts, poisons, disguise... it seemed there was nothing Bai Yuan couldn’t do.

And damn it, he was only twenty-five years old!

Lu Yu was already numb from the shock of Bai Yuan’s talent.

After she finished speaking, Lu Shanshan quietly returned to studying the Lu Family’s account books.

Lu Yu pondered for a moment, then immediately wrote a secret letter.

He felt he had to tell Bai Yuan about this matter.

Otherwise, if Yan Mo and the Kaiyang Taoist really discovered something, even the Lu Family would not escape unscathed.

That Lord Governor had long been displeased with the Lu Family.

...

"Sect Leader, the Nine Revolutions Sect’s base was wiped out. There were no survivors."

Yu Hui told Bai Yuan what had happened in Huanglong Prefecture.

Bai Yuan nodded.

He had already gotten a sense from Lu Yu that Ling Province was about to move against the Jianghu sects, so he wasn’t particularly surprised.

"Sect Leader, are you going out to kill demons again?"

"Mm."

Bai Yuan nodded.

The look in Yu Hui’s eyes grew even stranger.

’Could it be that Sect Leader Bai plans to walk the path of attaining enlightenment through slaughter?’

However, his current perspective was far inferior to Bai Yuan’s, and he wasn’t in the habit of being preachy.

Bai Yuan looked at his panel.

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Class: Demon Hunter, Sword Ghost, Boxer, Spirit Cooker, Skin Painter]

[Skills: Rolling Blood Saber (Proficient), Broken River Saber (Legendary), Gui Shan (Legendary), Yaoqi Yin (Legendary), Thousand Faces Technique (Legendary)...]

[Enhancement Points: 0]

During this period of killing demons in the mountains, he had finally raised his Rolling Blood Saber to the Proficient level.

But to reach this Proficient level, he had spent a full hundred years.

Because the Blood Rolling Technique he had obtained was an incomplete version, continuing the technique was almost like creating it from scratch, which naturally required far more time than other cultivation techniques.

However, those hundred years had not been wasted.

Because Bai Yuan had successfully weakened the side effects of the Blood Rolling Technique.

At least he wouldn’t end up like Murong Tian, losing all his martial arts and becoming a cripple.

Of course, as a trade-off, the amplification of the Blood Rolling Technique was also greatly reduced. It could only increase his combat power by thirty percent, and the effect only lasted for the time it takes an incense stick to burn.

But its practical value in combat had increased significantly.

The corresponding side effect was a great reduction in strength for half a month, but it was still a worthwhile trade for the power boost.

In a duel between Martial Artists, being even a sliver stronger could mean the difference between life and death. Thirty percent was more than enough to turn the tide of battle.

If Murong Tian had possessed a Rolling Blood Saber with effects like Bai Yuan’s on that night, perhaps he wouldn’t have met such a miserable end.

But Bai Yuan’s ambitions went beyond just training the Rolling Blood Saber to the Legendary level.

Based on the experience from his previous life, as long as he had three Legendary-level cultivation techniques, he could synthesize them into an even higher-tier technique.

It was just that the number of enhancement points required was truly terrifying.

Bai Yuan couldn’t help but feel a flicker of interest in the Northern Territory.

He had heard that it was a lawless land where humans and demons mingled, a place where the strong were revered.

It was practically a holy land for grinding mobs.

However, those who kill must be prepared to be killed. There was no concept of seniority there; it was perfectly normal for a centuries-old monster to attack a young upstart who had just stepped onto the scene.

Just then, a gray pigeon flew in from the distant horizon.

Bai Yuan beckoned, and the pigeon obediently landed on his hand.

This wasn’t because of any demon-taming ability, but because he could control the Gu insect inside the pigeon’s body.

"Yan Mo has grown suspicious of the Changhe Gang’s business and will soon make a move. Brother Bai must make a swift decision."

This was the secret message from Lu Yu.

Bai Yuan gazed at the message in his hand, lost in thought.

In the past, even if the Prefect had known about this, he wouldn’t have caused too much trouble. After all, the Xuan Yang Court didn’t really have much jurisdiction over the sects.

But now, with Yan Mo cracking down hard on the Ling Province Jianghu and the Kaiyang Taoist of Longevity Palace backing him up, the situation was different.

Anyone would be intimidated.

Since Lu Yu’s letter said so, it was most likely true; Yan Mo would be making a move against the Changhe Gang soon.

According to the meaning behind Lu Yu’s letter, he was suggesting that Bai Yuan should grit his teeth and sever his ties with the Changhe Gang—preferably by silencing everyone involved in the business for good.

That way, even if Yan Mo’s investigation led him to the Changhe Gang, he wouldn’t be able to follow the trail back to Bai Yuan.

According to what Lu Yu had said before, the one who wanted to deal with the Divine Mansion Sect was actually the Prefect, while Lu Xiao was more interested in the Divine Mansion itself.

Once Yan Mo discovered the existence of the Divine Mansion Sect, the army might soon be bearing down on the Ten Thousand Mountains.

It would be another brutal war to exterminate demons, but one without a single member of a Demon Sect involved. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

A vicious glint flashed in Bai Yuan’s eyes.

He would never allow that to happen.

...

Huanglong Prefecture City was much quieter now.

The reason was that many of the sects that had originally come to Huanglong Prefecture to get a piece of the pie had witnessed Yan Mo’s bloody methods and chosen to withdraw.

In just a few days, Yan Mo and the Kaiyang Taoist had wiped out an unknown number of factions.

They say that when a scholar kills, they are the most ruthless of all. It seemed that was true.

People in the Jianghu mostly fought because of personal grievances, but a scholar would kill just because someone didn’t align with their ideology. And they showed no mercy, wiping out entire families with a single move.

This terrified the factions stationed in Huanglong Prefecture.

Crucially, Yan Mo had the backing of the Lingzhou Prefecture Magistrate’s Office and Longevity Palace, so no one dared to make a move against the two of them.

Of course, with their incredible strength, even if someone wanted to hire an assassin, no one would dare to take the job.

The Kaiyang Taoist alone was more than they could handle.

The Kaiyang Taoist was ranked sixteenth on the Tianbang. Apart from Bai Yuan, everyone ranked above him was a long-famous Grandmaster, almost all of whom belonged to the Lingzhou Prefecture Magistrate’s Office, the Lingzhou Army, Longevity Palace, or the Seven Star Sect.

In other words, aside from the Seven Star Sect, no one could pose a threat to him.

And even within the Seven Star Sect, only the Seven Star Sect Master could.

Seeing which way the wind was blowing, Lu Yu decisively halted his transactions with the Divine Mansion Sect.

His old man might not be afraid of the Prefect and Longevity Palace, but he certainly was!

Lu Yu didn’t think for a second he could defeat Yan Mo and the Kaiyang Taoist. If he got beaten up, it would be for nothing; his General father certainly wouldn’t intervene on his behalf over it.

Since there was nothing to be gained, Lu Yu naturally wouldn’t go looking for trouble.

Besides, once the storm blew over, they could resume business as usual.

Just as Lu Yu was idly letting the cold wind blow on him in a pavilion, a person suddenly appeared behind him.

Lu Yu reacted instantly, spinning around almost at the exact moment the person appeared.

"Brother Bai."

He said with a grin upon seeing the person’s face.

Bai Yuan asked, "Any movements from Yan Mo’s side?"

Lu Yu’s smile vanished. "According to my intelligence, he’ll make a move on the Changhe Gang tomorrow."

This intelligence, naturally, came from Lu Shanshan.

Bai Yuan said, "Let’s go. We have no choice but to silence them."

Lu Yu nodded. "There’s an old saying in Ling Province: you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. After a while, we brothers can team up again for something big."

He hadn’t even brought a weapon.

’Just killing a few people from the Changhe Gang. Not even worth bringing a weapon for,’ he thought.

"Is there something else?"

As Lu Yu watched in confusion, Bai Yuan spoke slowly.

"You’re going to kill Yan Mo without even bringing a sword?"

Lu Yu: "GYAAAAAAH!"