Chapter 278: Xu Xiaoshou Panics

The Golden Pavilion was an inn with extremely luxurious decor.

Xu Xiaoshou felt a peculiar connection with the word 'gold'. Carrying the unconscious person on his back and leading Mu Zixi, he booked two rooms.

After washing up, the young man immediately bounced onto the soft, plush bed. He still possessed a large quantity of spiritual crystals, so naturally, he wouldn't scrimp on food and lodging. After all, Xu Xiaoshou's original intention for leaving the Spirit Palace was to travel—to experience the local culture and cuisine of this world. He had too much illicit money, and it needed to be spent quickly.

Then, once he passed the alchemist badge exam and visited the Golden Merchant Guild, this spiritual energy-rich city would soon see a rising millionaire!

“Tsk, tsk!” Xu Xiaoshou imagined a life of extravagant indulgence in the future, practically drooling.

Soon, he rolled over, stopped his daydreaming, and pulled a ring from his pocket. Such is the unpredictability of life; even in a life of luxury, there are always disruptive elements that occasionally surface to upset him.

“An assassin…” Xu Xiaoshou narrowed his eyes; this ring was obtained from the assassin in the back alley. He considered himself a low-key and peaceable person throughout his life, with not many enemies. The only one who constantly tried to cause trouble in front of him was Zhang Xinxiong! Unfortunately, he was also dead.

“The Zhang family?” Xu Xiaoshou pondered. He knew about the Four Great Families of Tiansang County: Zhang, Chao, Zhou, and Su, all renowned. The young generation's geniuses from these families almost all lived up to expectations, entering the Tiansang Spirit Palace and even its inner courtyard. Xu Xiaoshou had also interacted with these young people. But honestly, regarding the families behind them, the information he possessed was merely a rough outline in his mind.

He didn't know how powerful they were, but as soon as he left the Spirit Palace, they could send Master-level assassins—and two at once... All he could say was, they were unfathomable!

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the other assassin blocking the doorway, who had fallen unconscious again after taking a palm strike from him. To be honest, if Mu Zixi hadn't mentioned it, he would have thought the matter was over. But it was good to have one left. He'd question him once he woke up. Yes, he'd extract as much information as possible. It didn't matter how much, as he was going to kill him eventually anyway...

Dismissing those thoughts, Xu Xiaoshou looked back at the ring, excitement in his eyes. What kind of treasures would a Master-level expert possess? He licked his lips, his spiritual sense probing inside.

“Spiritual crystals… more spiritual crystals. This is practically forcing me to commit a crime!” Xu Xiaoshou was stunned by the terrifying concentration of spiritual energy inside the ring. As far as his sight could reach, there were spiritual crystals several times the amount he had previously collected. The ring's space was enormous; it contained at least half of the spiritual crystals. A rough glance suggested nearly a million!

“By the way, does this world not have something like spiritual crystal cards?” Xu Xiaoshou thought of the Golden Merchant Guild; theoretically, they must exist. The only possibility was that the ring's owner was a miser!

Pulling his gaze away from the breathtaking mountain of spiritual crystals, Xu Xiaoshou focused on another section of the space. Pills, spiritual weapons… familiar and unfamiliar items were haphazardly piled together. Xu Xiaoshou was startled. How many people had this guy killed, and how many treasures had he collected? The various weapons and pills here could probably arm dozens of Xiantian realm cultivators for a small sect! Furthermore, there were quite a few Master-level treasures as well!

“Whew…” Xu Xiaoshou exhaled, slightly steadying his shocked emotions. He had finally witnessed the true wealth of a Master. This guy was an assassin; he probably didn't trust anyone or any place, which is why he carried all his possessions with him. Upon his death… everything changed hands!

Xu Xiaoshou didn't meticulously examine the other treasures for now, but in that smaller section of the space, the most striking items were undoubtedly the incredibly large number of array disks. There were probably hundreds! Including the scrapped and semi-finished ones, there were over a thousand!

“This guy seems to be a Spiritual Array Master, so these are the array disks he made?” Xu Xiaoshou stared in a daze. He took out a few array disks that strangely pulsed with energy and could immediately sense their terrifying power, far surpassing that of his ‘Five-Finger Seed Imprint Art’.

“This…” Xu Xiaoshou was startled. If A-Jie hadn't intervened at that time, and he had used this guy as a whetstone for training as originally planned, would all these things have been unleashed on him if he'd provoked him?

“Holy crap!” “This guy absolutely couldn't be provoked!” Even with his Master-level body, Xu Xiaoshou was absolutely certain that if these things had truly hit him in the face, he would have instantly exploded! Even a King-rank cultivator might not be able to withstand such pre-charged power!

“Spiritual Array Master…” Xu Xiaoshou fell into deep thought. He suddenly realized that this profession might be truly wicked… no, incredibly satisfying! Prepare array disks beforehand and unleash them directly in a fight? If he became a Spiritual Array Master and sealed that black lotus beforehand, he could just throw it at anyone he met… If one wasn't enough, what about three, ten, or a hundred?

“Oh my god…” Xu Xiaoshou was stunned by his own thoughts. He figured every Spiritual Array Master must think this way. Seen in this light, was this guy's death at his hands truly an accident?

“Phew.” “Careless again!” Xu Xiaoshou, who had initially believed himself invincible with his Master-level body, had suffered a great loss against the grey-misted man, and had since become more cautious. But only after witnessing the wealth of a true Master did he realize how shabby he, a cultivation parvenu, was compared to the real powerhouses.

If it weren't for A-Jie… “Indeed, the path of caution is the true way. In future fights, never have the mindset of a trial. Even in an arena match, there can be accidents.”

“Upon meeting, unleash killer moves, directly reveal your trump cards, and blast the enemy to oblivion with lightning speed…” Xu Xiaoshou thought this, staring intently at the ring on his hand. “From now on, his trump cards will be my trump cards!”

The young man clenched the ring, an inexplicable sense of conviction growing in his heart, and he nodded heavily. “Yes, that's it!” “This world is too cruel. When you meet an enemy, they must die. Never hold back!”

“Hmm…” Just then, Xiao Shiliu, who was unconscious by the door, let out a soft groan, seemingly about to wake up. Xu Xiaoshou was suddenly startled. Having witnessed the profound capabilities of a Master, he no longer had any previous disdain, and his heart was filled with panic. This guy was also a Master, and a companion of that assassin… Who's to say he didn't also possess the ability to instantly blast him to death!

“Not good!” Seeing Xiao Shiliu about to wake up, Xu Xiaoshou instantly transformed into a blur of light, shooting towards him. With four fingers of both hands, he directly pierced through his shoulders. After disabling the assassin's arms, Xu Xiaoshou was still uneasy. He then used his extended fingers to almost sever Xiao Shiliu's thighs.

His limbs, they should be incapacitated now, right…? Still uneasy, Xu Xiaoshou, after retracting his hands, placed his forearm directly across Xiao Shiliu's neck. But he was still somewhat worried, so he pushed again, preemptively cutting halfway through the major artery… Blood gushed out!

Only at this moment did the intense pain transmit from all over his body to Xiao Shiliu's mind. The man, who had just emerged from unconsciousness, almost felt like he was splitting apart.

“Aarghh—” “Holy crap!!!” Xiao Shiliu convulsed, his eyes wide, looking at the grave-faced young man before him with utter horror, as if witnessing the arrival of Death itself.

“X-Xu Xiaoshou?”