Why do I have so many masters?

Fei Family's old residence.

The martial artists standing behind the elderly man heard Wang Anfeng's frank remarks, their expressions changed slightly, and they couldn't help but step forward.

Their vigor surged, propelling their martial intent forward like the edge of a blade.

However, they were unable to truly step outside the door, as an old yet forceful hand halted the bodies of these martial artists.

The elderly man's expression had already become quite stern, his light grey eyes sweeping over Wang Anfeng, then lingering for a few seconds on the armor and battle robes of the young man, he slowly said:

"The Giant Whale Gang swallowed the immense foundation of the Twenty-Seven Allied Gangs, and now it wants to swallow the Tan Residence too?"

"Sometimes, progressing too fast is not a good thing at all,"

These words were not meant to scare, but were the blood-and-tears lessons of many Jianghu sects and factions. Coveting more after gaining some, their power seemed to inflate briefly, but due to the need to suppress the backlash of the original forces and the losses during the expansion, their strength actually decreased.

Such is the situation where one's virtue does not match one's position.

A statement that struck at the heart.
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Wang Anfeng looked at the old man in front of him and slowly said, "I came here, and it has nothing to do with the Giant Whale Gang."

"Oh?"

The elderly man's expression remained noncommittal.

Unaffected by his attitude, Wang Anfeng, with a calm voice, said:

"The Tan Residence was a gift from my friend, and I will not hand it over to anyone."

"The Giant Whale Gang will not step into the Tan Residence either."

The elder raised his eyes, finally seriously sizing up the young man in front of him. His eyes were not very good, so he looked extra serious. In his mind, he thought of the mysterious master who had stood in front of Tan Yurou, saving her life ten days ago. Matching him with the young man before him and then considering the subsequent attack by the Giant Whale Gang, he was slightly enlightened.

So that's how it is…

The hostility in his heart dissipated quite a bit; since he was a friend of Tan Yurou, he couldn't fail to give face to that old tiger, yet he felt more intent to examine. His face remained as stern as Qingyan, he glanced at Wang Anfeng and slowly said:

"Then you should know, what will you face by coming here?"

What to face, of course, was a competition among martial artists.

Wang Anfeng raised his right hand, and a martial artist from the Giant Whale Gang behind him handed over the bright silver spear. Yu Jianmu was of about Eighth Rank in Inner Strength. Although he did not focus on External Cultivation, the circulation of his Inner Strength naturally tempered his physique, not something ordinary people could match. Now, he had to muster his Inner Strength to hold the spear firmly.

He took five slow steps forward.

With each step, the crevices between the bluestones on the ground trembled slightly.

Wang Anfeng raised his hand, grasping the spear, lifted it up, turned it effortlessly, and with a dull breaking sound that made one's scalp tingle, he spun the spear in a circle, the spear tip pointing diagonally to the ground.

His expression was already stern, his wrist vibrated, the spear tip hummed, stirring up a circle of air waves.

No words were needed.

Wang Anfeng's response had already represented the most direct answer.

The martial artists behind the elderly man looked surprised, but the elder himself admired aloud internally. If it were Fei Yuanzhen across him, he would use various speeches to resolve the conflict, and if it were Fei Yuanbai, he would have already been provoked into anger, losing his mental balance. None could compare to the young man before him.

His heart grew increasingly desolate.

But this desolate mood merely lasted for a fleeting moment, then it was completely gone.

The elder extended his right hand towards the side, and a middle-aged martial artist behind him reached behind to take out a red wooden box taller than a person. Clicking it open, the inside was lined with black silk, on which lay a black spear, its blade chillingly cold, almost enough to hurt one's eyes.

The middle-aged martial artist lifted the spear with both hands, head bowed, stepped forward twice, and presented the spear.

The elder grasped the spear.

His light grey eyes locked onto Wang Anfeng, his body standing straight. In a trance, Wang Anfeng almost saw two spears in front of him. The old man's lips slightly parted, revealing a slight smile.

His smile was far more intimidating than his anger.

"Excellent…"

he said.

"You also use a spear."

...............

Bing Hongcai and Ah Liu employed their movement techniques, running across rooftops.

Gongsun Jing had been too fierce just now, and his killing intent was boiling. Although he had expended much of his energy and had several new injuries, for a warrior from the Military Family, this moment might be even more terrifying than when he had just started.

If they had engaged him, neither Bing Hongcai nor Ah Liu were confident they could have come out unscathed.

Thus, to avoid provoking any misinterpretations from Gongsun Jing, the two of them left that place quietly. There were three spots in the city where martial artists' forces showed movements, all involving one or two Middle Third Rank martial artists. Previously, two Sixth Rank experts had bled profusely.

"Two places left."

Ah Liu lightly stepped on the corner of the roof, his body darting out a great distance like a swimming fish, his clothes billowing, his hair on his forehead flipping back, revealing ever more calm pupils, he said:

"One of them is the Qian Family."

Bing Hongcai was beside him, his voice grave,

"The Qian Family is not worth worrying about; they are better described as businessmen and gamblers rather than martial artists. They are opportunists, always aiming to gain from little, never making a move until the situation is clear."

Aliu nodded and said,

"Another one... is the Fei Family Martial Arts School."

Bing Hongcai's movement technique instantly halted, and he landed on the fifth floor eave of an inn. His expression unconsciously solidified as he looked up at Aliu, who had stopped on the opposite eave, his throat seeming choked up as he slowly said,

"The Fei Family... That Fei Family?"

Aliu knew what he meant and nodded, saying,

"Precisely that Fei Family."

Bing Hongcai looked at him and said,

"So, has that person come?"

The wind blew, tousling Aliu's black hair, the two men's robes fluttering, creating noise.

The youth's eyes remained calm, but only Bing Hongcai, who knew him well, could tell that his subordinate resembled a cheetah showing its claws then, with each step filled with cautiousness. Aliu nodded again and said,

"He has come…"

"Fei Poyue."

Even with a premonition, Bing Hongcai couldn't help but gasp, the cold winter wind cooling his suddenly heated brain, yet he couldn't help but want to curse. What kind of auspicious day was today, starting with the martial generals from Divine Martial Mansion and then the famous Martial Arts Grandmaster from Fufeng County?

Indeed, a Grandmaster!

That man had been a Sixth Rank martial artist thirty years ago. If it hadn't been for the injury to his eyes and meridians during that incident, he might have become much stronger. The title of Grandmaster was not for his martial arts cultivation but for his achievements in boxing.

This was news only known to a few in Great Qin.

To the common folk in Jianghu, he might just be an ordinary Sixth Rank elder, but to some people, he was as renowned as a Superior Rank Grandmaster. In terms of boxing alone, across the entirety of Great Qin, the name Fei Poyue could easily rank among the top twenty, a true embodiment of the realm where technique becomes one with the Tao.

And those proficient in boxing were invariably skilled in spear techniques as well.

His spear technique was fitting enough to be called by the title 'Poyue.'

Thinking of the prowess and legends associated with that name, Bing Hongcai gritted his teeth and spat to the side, causing the waiter on the fifth floor to utter a series of complaints. Bing Hongcai then wore a look fierce as mincemeat on his face and said,

"So it's Fei Poyue..."

"Damn it, we're all Sixth Rank, and he's just an old man. Can he really behead me?"

"Aliu, let's go!"

With those words, he heavily stepped on the eave and leaped forward. Aliu's mouth corners slightly lifted in an almost imperceptible smile, then bowed his head, looking in the direction where Bing Hongcai had spat and saw the resentful waiter, and the eave Bing Hongcai had broken. He then took out a scroll from his chest.

Admiration aside, there were still duties to be done.

...............…

A fearsome whistling sound that shook the sky echoed.

A chilling glow aimed at Wang Anfeng, who, almost by instinct, stepped back half a step, raised his spear to block, and just managed to halt the incoming spear attack. The old man moved forward half a step, using both wrist and elbow, bending the black spear.

The dark color of the spear shaft, astonishingly not made of steel but simply of wood,

came with a pungent smell of blood.

The black hue was the multiple layers of dried blood that had seeped into the texture of the wood, resulting in the final color.

Then came an overwhelming power pressuring down, strong and uncharacteristic of a mere elder. Even Wang Anfeng felt a hint of pressure, but didn't retreat, only silently increasing the vigor in his arms.

The martial artist's vigorous Qi and physical strength surged like waves. The elder's light gray eyes shone even brighter than normal, and almost in the instant when Wang Anfeng's Qi changed, the bent black spear suddenly rebounded, leveraging the force of Wang Anfeng's change of move to strike like a black serpent towards his throat.

Wang Anfeng's pupils shrank, yet he didn't sense any killing intent,

As all methods of a martial artist are meant for killing, without the intent to kill, even the strongest sword and the fastest spear would naturally slow down by a third. Wang Anfeng stepped back, his left hand swiftly raised, containing a substantial force, and grabbed towards the black spear's blade. In the moment he moved, the elder's right hand held the spear, his left hand raised, and he struck down on the spear shaft.

The spear shaft trembled, emitting a howling sound.

In an instant, Fei Poyue took half a step forward, both sitting and not sitting, leaning but not falling, his body lowered, his spear rapidly spinning, the not-so-sharp blade vibrating countless times, tearing open Wang Anfeng's Qi and flicking the youth's left hand away. The force was so great it almost caused the latter's upper body to sway backward, exposing a vulnerability that hadn't existed before.

Simultaneously, the ink-black spear shaft bent, pivoting on the elder's arm, leading the spear tip in an arc of chilling glow through the air.

Yu Jianmu almost felt as if the world dimmed in that instant,

Bing Hongcai, just entering the area three hundred meters away, saw the glow that seemed to consume all the light around, his expression changing slightly. He stood still, not moving forward, only watching the dazzlingly fierce glow that made everything else look faded. He fell silent for a long while before slowly speaking, his voice now notably hoarse,

"Poyue Spear: Dragon Roaming Style"

The spear's chilling glow, reflected in the young man's eyes behind him, Aliu's lips slightly parted, uttering a word,

"Red Dragon Shake Scales Armor..."

The spear shaft trembled as if transformed into a roaring Exotic Beast.

Unstoppable.

PS: Here's the first release...

Thanks to Wuyou's most triumphant auspicious blessing, very grateful