Chapter 428: Warring States Makes Its Move

With a single move, Su Yun revealed the exquisite essence of 《Mountain-Splitting Staff Art》.

Wangchuan immediately understood.

This kind of training had broken past the threshold of his previous methods.

The force of the move and the buildup of internal energy combined to unleash even greater destructive power. An ordinary sparring Iron Dummy Stake simply could not withstand it.

The moment Su Yun finished his demonstration, he immediately withdrew his hand and said to Wangchuan,

“Hall Master.”

“《Mountain-Splitting Staff Art》 is not easy to cultivate. If you truly want to practice it, this subordinate can find a specially made shield and spar with you.”

Su Yun made the suggestion.

Wangchuan nodded.

“Good!”

“Go make the arrangements. Whatever you need, have the Weapon Room provide it.”

Not long afterward, Su Yun came over carrying a rattan shield.

Wangchuan examined it carefully.

The inside of the shield was actually a solid shield. It had merely been wrapped in layers upon layers of woven rattan on the outside.

The thing looked cumbersome and difficult to use in real combat. At most, it was only suitable for sparring practice.

Su Yun planted his feet, raised the shield, and assumed a sparring stance.

Wangchuan showed no courtesy. He immediately ran the process through his mind once, grabbed a long staff, and began gathering momentum step by step, exerting force through his entire body, pouring internal energy into the weapon, and then releasing it in an instant.

Wuuu!!

With a fierce, shrill tearing sound through the air, the staff smashed brutally toward Su Yun...

Su Yun gripped the shield with both hands, his expression grave.

As the tremendous, heavy strike landed without the slightest reservation, the rattan shield dropped sharply, and Su Yun retreated half a step!

Wangchuan found the feeling.

He turned, twisted his waist, aligned his hips and stance, and concentrated all his force into a single point...

The long staff thrust out again!

Su Yun immediately raised the shield to block.

Dong!!!

This time, Su Yun retreated two full steps.

Wangchuan’s strength found an outlet. Not only did he fail to weaken, his fighting spirit instead surged higher and higher. The moves of 《Mountain-Splitting Staff Art》 exploded forth one after another with full force.

Chop!

Slash!

Thrust!

Sweep!

Smash!

Su Yun received them steadily.

Though he gave ground with every strike, he truly did force Wangchuan’s momentum out in full, allowing one move after another to connect more smoothly and more naturally.

Only after more than two hundred moves, when his internal energy was exhausted, did Wangchuan finally let out a long breath of turbid air and summon his Status Panel.

《Mountain-Splitting Staff Art》 Entry Level! 13/100.

The fifth-rank staff art had finally entered its first stage.

Su Yun was not faring well either.

Both of his arms trembled faintly.

His internal energy had also been heavily drained.

The moment he lowered the rattan shield, he sat cross-legged and began circulating his internal energy.

Wangchuan circulated 《Xuanwu Art》 to recover his own internal energy.

Now that he had found the correct path, all that remained was to follow it step by step and charge toward Practice Makes Perfect.

The next day.

The auction officially began.

Wangchuan did not attend in person. Instead, he sent Chen Ergou as his representative to bid on his behalf.

When Chen Ergou returned, he brought back the three 《Thunderfire Drills》, and at the auction, he had also bid on a Lesser Rejuvenation Pill for himself.

“Hall Master, guess who I saw at the auction today?”

When Chen Ergou came back, he leaned in with a gossiping look.

Wangchuan was still circulating 《Xuanwu Art》 to recover his internal energy and had no interest in gossip.

Chen Ergou answered his own question:

“I saw Lin Xun, and Bai Yuhui.”

“...”

“They came to the auction too. Well, that makes sense. They’ve been making money steadily all year, and now that it’s the end of the year, it’s time to buy something good.”

Wangchuan opened his eyes.

He knew that over the past stretch of time, Lin Xun and Bai Yuhui had been earning money quite steadily. At the very least, each of them had probably accumulated a few thousand taels of gold by now.

“But it didn’t look like they took part in the bidding.”

“I greeted them, and the two of them seemed to be preparing to make a trip to the Capital.”

Wangchuan was taken aback.

“What are they going to the Capital for?”

“I don’t know.”

Chen Ergou said he had not managed to pry the answer out of them.

Wangchuan thought for a while, then called Wang Yuehui over and had him get in touch with Bai Yuhui to ask about the situation.

He had the feeling that there was something behind this.

Why go to the Capital for no reason?

The New Year was almost here.

The waterways were already sealed.

Traveling a thousand li over land was not safe.

He did not want Bai Yuhui to come to harm.

Wang Yuehui quickly brought back a reply.

Bai Yuhui had spoken evasively and said he wanted to explain it personally to the Hall Master.

As expected.

Wangchuan logged off and received a phone call from Bai Yuhui.

On the phone, Bai Yuhui told him that Su Wan, the person in charge of the Warring States Game Studio, had ordered them to escort a valuable consignment to the Capital. A total of three Land-Clearing Teams would be participating in the operation, including two third-rank martial artists and thirteen second-rank martial artists.

“So you’re also one of the leaders responsible for this operation?”

Wangchuan frowned slightly. The more he heard, the more unreliable Warring States Game Studio’s plan sounded.

He personally called Su Wan and asked for the details.

“Su Wan.”

“You’re arranging for three Land-Clearing Teams to head to the Capital at year’s end. Don’t tell me this is just to deliver money to your boss?”

In truth, he had already guessed.

At the end of the year, the Capital would hold an auction on a much larger scale.

If Su Wan was sending people there at a time like this, they were most likely sending money.

On the other end, Su Wan stood quietly before the floor-to-ceiling window, holding her phone as she replied,

“There’s no helping it. Escort agencies charge too much these days. Their fees start at thirty percent! Besides, our studio already takes on escort assignments anyway. For something like this, of course we have to handle it ourselves.”

After a brief pause, she could not help but laugh.

“Of course, if Hall Master Wangchuan is willing to help and send a few capable people to join the escort, I’d welcome that too. The fee just can’t be too high.”

“What about Captain Bai? Wouldn’t it be better to let Captain Bai handle this kind of job? The target would be smaller, the concealment stronger, and no one would lightly dare scheme against a fourth-rank martial artist.”

Wangchuan offered what he believed to be a better suggestion.

Su Wan sighed.

“You think I didn’t want to do that? I contacted Captain Bai too, but she recently accepted a guard assignment for an overseas auction event along the coast. That one is huge in scale and will last for three full days! By the time she’s free to come over, the auction in the Capital will already have begun... There’s no helping it. We can only organize our own people to escort it.”

Wangchuan’s brows drew together slightly.

An overseas auction event?

He had not expected such a grand occasion to exist along the coast as well...

At that moment, Su Wan continued,

“Don’t worry.”

“This is an escort mission involving several thousand taels of gold. Of course our studio will take it seriously. We’ve already calculated the safest route... and we’ve arranged eyes and ears along the road in advance to scout the way. There won’t be any danger.”

Hearing Su Wan say that, Wangchuan did not press further.

“What exactly have you taken a fancy to, to make such a big production out of this?”

Wangchuan asked casually.

Su Wan smiled.

“Hall Master Wangchuan, have you ever heard of an Ultimate Art?”

“...”

Wangchuan’s expression froze.

Before he could speak, Su Wan’s voice continued to drift from the phone in an unhurried tone.

“Things like Ultimate Arts rarely circulate in the outside world. Even at auction conventions, they only appear at an event of this level in the Capital at year’s end.”

“Our studio has been gathering information on this Ultimate Art for a full year.”

“As long as we secure this Ultimate Art and deliver it to the boss, he’ll become one of the standouts among fifth-rank martial artists, perhaps even sixth-rank ones. And then our studio will have a chance to move from the third tier into the second tier, obtain higher clearance, and wield much greater influence.”