The Martial Master - 81 Odd.

‘It’s similar to Su Min’s soul!’

She couldn’t help but gasp a little, causing the man to ask.

“Is something wrong?”

Wen Mian froze for a second as she attempted to regain her composure. The white-haired man seemed to find it interesting as he looked at his jade and her.

She quickly spoke as she saw this.

“No, sorry, it just reminded me of something.”

The man paused, but seeing no sign of Wen Mian wanting to talk about it, he didn’t push for information. He couldn’t induce any sort of negative impression, otherwise, she may close herself to him.

“Well, ladies first.”

His eyes narrowed with a strange crimson as he swayed his hand towards the portal. Wen Mian gazed at such a portal for a second, but with a firmed heart, she decided to step in!

*SHIINGGG*

A strange light encompassed her vision as a piercing shining sound blasted her. She found the urge to close her eyes, but for that moment they were open, a strange gold gleamed…

*THUD*

“Agh…”

With a dizzy mind, Wen Mian found herself land on unknown material. It was hard, cold, and metallic.

“This really doesn’t seem like a heavenly treasure…”

That vision a few moments before blazed in her mind, finding that the gold resembled the ancient races. But, she somehow felt that there wasn’t just gold, but white and black accompanying it as well.

Yet, as she rubbed her eyes and gazed upon the world she had been thrown into, she froze, her eyes widened, and a strange closeness shrouded her heart.

“My bloodline..?”

A plain spread itself out, but within this plain stood a creature gazing right at her. It had a white torso similar to a leopard, and a head like a lion. Its eyes were of a bright oceanic blue, rumbling with a royal aura that could shake the very foundations of anyone’s blood.

The ruffled fur; the razor-sharp claws; the teeth shimmering under the blue sun; it all rumbled in her heart. Those eyes too, just like jewels…

“Blue Saber Tiger… What is this place?”

Wen Mian fell a step back as she felt her own blood resonate toward the beast, whom of which felt so too. They stared at each other for a while, but this didn’t last long as that beast pronged the ground with its claws and eyed Wen Mian with a newfound light.

*RUMBLE*

A bright blue thrashed the surrounding area as a whirlpool of heavenly energy twirled around the beast. Its colour resembled the ocean, bringing a near deafening sound of crashing waves.

“This beast originates from my bloodline!”

She found the air around her tighten as that beast growled. A killing intent locked onto her, causing Wen Mian to grit her teeth and wave her hand.

“Whatever! It’s not like I can’t handle this anyway!”

Her eyes shined with a strange blue as the entire world shook. The beast shivered as the whirlpool around it froze. Terror clouded its eyes, but it found that before it could even respond, its vision had grown blue.

“Oceans Might, descend!”

A dense release of heavenly energy wafted out of Wen Mian’s palms as she spoke. A faint but overpowering aura blew out of her, clouding the beasts bloodline hundreds of times over. It was obvious that Wen Mian has a much more potent bloodline, in fact, their bloodlines couldn’t even be compared…

*WOOOSH*

An ocean of blue descended onto the beast, bringing a dense tumbling shockwave and a cry of death.

*RUMBLE*

Yet, before she could even withdraw such an attack, the world shook and dissipated in view. She found that the world was now somehow cloudy, fogged.

The attack that was still floating there with the dense collection of heavenly energy disappeared without resistance, and soon after, a sign thrashed the ground in front of her.

It had a rough word written on it.

‘Shop’

Then, not even waiting for Wen Mian’s mind to recollect, a single black jade appeared before her and trembled.

*CATCHAAA*

A shining bolt of golden lightning broke through the sky like the descent of God. Wen Mian felt her body freeze and her mind quake, and before she even knew it, a faint inscription had appeared on the jade in front of her with this flash of gold.

It was the outline of a man, mediating in said gold.

*THUD*

The jade fell as the force controlling it retreated, resounding with a puffing plop.

“This place…”

Wen Mian drooped down and grasped the luke-warm jade. Her hands were still shivering, but she forced it to a halt as she stared at the sign in front of her.

“Let’s keep going…”

…

…

…

“Here’s you identity jade and talisman.”

With a rather unenthusiastic grumble, a receptionist handed over a black jade talisman. Su Min nodded as he looked over at the gigantic portal, one that made his heart feel heavy.

‘I can’t see through it…’

A strange annoyance thrummed in his chest as he stood here. In fact, ever since he had entered the pavilion, this feeling only grew. It wasn’t dangerous at least, but whatever it was, he knew that this place wasn’t something this sect could control.

Just as he was thinking this, a faint scruffle sounded out behind him as a strange gaze pierced his back. Su Min grumbled as he ignored this and leapt toward the portal.

A spirited roar resounded behind him as someone leapt and chased after him.

“Hey, don’t run from me! I just want to have a chat, you know…”

Su Min’s expression went a little gloomy as he landed next to the portal. He didn’t even hesitate to rush into the gigantic abyss in front of him, causing an annoyed shout to resounded as his vision turned to gold.

“HEY-”

*SHIIINGG*

‘Uh?’

Su Min soon forgot about that scuffle as he got a strange urge to close his eyes. But, this wasn’t anything to him, so he continued to watch on.

His body seemed to be floating in a strange abyss, falling and falling.

“Gold, white and black?”

Su Min rubbed his chin as he gazed at an exceptional view. It was one where three interlocking colours twined together and formed a cocoon around him. An odd force shrouded him, but he didn’t find anything hostile so he let it be.

*SHIIIIINGGGGG*

An even stronger feeling overtook Su Min’s mind as that urge to close his eyes tightened. Su Min pondered as he found that the cocoon had paused as if it was waiting for him to do so.

“No.”

He wasn’t in a good mood so yielding to some goddamn portal wasn’t in his best interests. In response, a faint growl seemed to resound in this abyss as a terrifying force ruptured the cocoon and threw itself onto Su Min.

“Agh…”

He felt his soul quake and his chest burn as that force brewed around him, one of a strange nature. No matter what he did it didn’t go away, it just grew stronger and more annoying.

“Hahaha, is this all you got?!”

A hint of madness flashed as Su Min chuckled with a sneer. Although his soul felt painful and his chest hot, this was nowhere near his limit. He has always had this strange personality after rebirthing, and it seemed to be blazing in response to this force.

He also found that it seemed to temper his soul, so he found no issue with resisting it.

*MMMMmmmm…*

Yet, to his surprise, that irritating force threw itself off Su Min and silence overtook.

“Uh…”

Then, in a woosh of sacred aura, a sacred draconic voice swept past Su Min’s eardrums and made them burst.

“Stop… Resisting… It… Is… Pointless… Futile. Ant…”

A splutter of blood spewed onto the cocoon, where a great listlessness fogged Su Min’s pupils. His body went a little limp, and a sliver of blood leaked out of his mouth.

“Ah… Alright. Bastard.”

Su Min choked as he found that his damaged cultivation was about to flare up. He closed his eyes, and soon after, a desolate thud quaked.

*THUDD*

“Was that a dragon..?”

Su Min lifted himself off of the dirt floor with a grumble, feeling rather played. He didn’t expect it to just do that, because how was that fair?

*SHIIINGGG*

“Oh, never mind that, this seems to be more important.”

His eyes narrowed as he rubbed them and cast that listlessness out. A strange sight struck him soon after, one of a bleak dirt plain. A couple burnt and near collapsed trees were around him, and in this area that exuded an ancient vibe similar to his, a single golden dog stood not too far away from him.

The dog was similar to a pit bull, but it didn’t seem to have fur or even skin. No, strangely, it was just a glowing figure of gold. Its eyes had no emotion, only a thick desolate aura that surpassed the world.

If any cultivator, even Wen Mian, were to gaze upon such eyes, they would find them beyond horrifying. It was something about them, a sort of all-seeing touch that surpassed any sort of common sense.

It was an undeniable feeling one would get when gazing upon a God, or something they can’t even fathom. An unfathomable feeling, as such.

“Is that…?”

Su Min paused as he felt his bloodline rumble a little, but it wasn’t that noticeable. Those eyes didn’t do much for him, in fact, it made him feel like he was gazing at something tiny.

The dog seemed to notice Su Min’s presence as it shifted its bleak obtuse gaze onto him, and like a rule, a flat bloodlust accompanied it.

Su Min coughed as he mumbled to himself.

“Great, I have to fight a dog. Reminds me a little of the tournament, if only it was a little bigger and more… Uh, mean?”

*SHIING*

As he spoke a strange force permeated the realm and shrouded the dog. A small area around the dog trembled, and in blazing speed, several sharp golden blade-like silhouettes pierced right for Su Min’s heart and eyes.

It only took an instant for the dog to attack, but to Su Min, this instant was nothing. He didn’t even look as he swished his hands and clenched at the air.

*GRASP*

“It seems that you are part of my race, considering that you, a mere dog, can control the ancient energy…”

His hands crackled as a strange scene played. One where three piercing blades of gold appeared in his grasp without warning. It was like they didn’t even need to get caught by him, as if they were instead getting controlled by him.

*SHIINGG*

He clenched even further as he threw his arm back and formed a swinging motion. The dog remained unchanged to it all as it attempted to form another set of blades in the air, but Su Min couldn’t let that happen, could he…

*BANGGGG*

His body erupted with a striking power that, with a fierce swing, pummelled three blades right at the dog. They emitted keen cries of sharpness as they teleported and, in a shocking fashion, blazed right past the dog and onto the ground.

The ground trembled slightly, but not even a crack formed. The air also didn’t rupture nor did any craters form beneath Su Min.

*Woosh…*

The dog’s eyes didn’t even quiver as its body split into three equal pieces, dissipating soon after in the wind. Su Min stood there a little dumbfounded at the world and at the unresponsive dog, but much like Wen Mian, the world dissipated and formed a white world.

It was a world encompassed in fog and frothed clouds, like heaven itself.

His jade appeared, and in the same bolt of lightning, an inscription of a glowing man appeared on it as it thrashed the ground with a thud. Su Min couldn’t even see the lightning bolt move, so he felt his mind tingle a bit.

Su Min grasped the jade as he took the sudden changes quite well. His eyes shined a strange light as he gazed at the inscription, where a murmur escaped from his lips.

“A golden figure..?”

*BANG*

Yet, as his thoughts slurred a little, a sign thrashed the ground in front of him with a single word engraved on it.

‘Shop’