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nChen Ming soon saw Duan Shou coming back with Daoist Radiant and notice his lower half bled like crazy, Yep, half-alive indeed.

nA weak voice came from Daoist Radiant, “Why do strangers like us need to cross swords?”

nChen Ming replied, “I’m a righteous and honest to god youngster that goes out subduing monsters and vanquishing evil. How can I not kill you?”

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nChen Ming was in no mood to waste words on the dead, especially when bad guys usually die at this time. He pulled his saber and stabbed through Daoist Radiant’s forehead and started stirring.

nHe wiped the blood on the body and muttered, “Since he’s dead, we need to leave evidence, one that proved Nr. 6 was out of the loop. This way it won’t break Crownless Assembly’s rule.”

nAfter all, if killing him would end up with Heavenly Court’s generals going after Nr. 6, it would be the same as violating Faceless’ rule.

nChen Ming pondered then wrote with the blade on the ground.

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nWith that done, he and Duan Shou swaggered off.

nChen Ming also got the notice, “Ding! Advancement mission complete, cultivation released.”

nThe pair returned to Yan Mountain after an eternity and a half, not in the least bit interested in the aftermath. Just as he got back, the decennial Inevitable meeting required his attendance.

nHe sat on his throne in the main hall and wore the mask.

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nAs Faceless appeared, they were all there except for Nr. 6. They watched him with a long look. Chen Ming and Nr. 6’s squabble went on for two decades.

nNr. 6’s delay had to have something to do with Nr. 5.

nAnd by the looks of it, it was a heavy blow too.

nEven Inevitable showed up, but Nr. 6 was still missing. Inevitable, with his mask of rage, turned his abyss-like eyes to Chen Ming.

nChen Ming wanted to say, Don’t look at me, when Nr. 6’s seat was occupied at that moment.

nHe slapped the table in rage and anxiety, “Nr. 5, I accept your declaration of war!”

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nIn Chen Ming’s mind, What did I do? When did I write it?

nThe others made their own guesses. Nr. 5 had to have hit the other so hard, it caused him this delay to the point he barely made it.

nInevitable ignored his outburst. He saw his fair share of wars and hostility among them.

nChen Ming said, “When did I declare war?”

nNr. 6 glowered, “It’s what you did with Daoist Radiant!”

nChen Ming now got it, “Oh, oh, now that you mention it, didn’t I leave a message?”

nNr. 6’s rage was mounting, “You call that a message?”

n“Exactly. I left a message stating you were totally innocent!”

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n“So you wrote: it wasn’t the Faceless in the neighboring constellation that did it?”

nChen Ming thought for a bit, “Yeah, I wrote it since you had nothing to do with it!”

nNr. 1 smiled, “Reverse psychology…”

nNr. 3 added, “No, no, no, this just goes to show how honest Nr. 5 is…”

nEven Inevitable smiled, “En, it doesn’t count as using Heavenly Court to do it.”

nHe killed Daoist Radiant and even left a message: It wasn’t the Faceless in the neighboring constellation that did it.

nCould he be any more clearer?

nWith these two matters combined, the first suspect that popped in anyone’s mind was Nr. 6. Heavenly Court considered it a challenge to their power.

nKilling and leaving such an obvious and arrogant message was the same as saying Nr. 6 did it without a doubt then challenged with: Uh, I did it, so what are you gonna do about it?

nNr. 6 was raging, “Just you wait. The next Inevitable meeting you won’t be there to see it.”

n“Ding! You triggered an S- storyline mission: Overt Showdown. Please kill Nr. 6 and obtain his mask. Reward: 1 billion spiritual knowledge, 0.1 million fame, and unknown.”

nChen Ming was peaked on the spot. He left that line but, Didn’t see that one coming.

nIt’s just a scuffle. Plus I need to go over at the barbarians’ place and I won’t be back anytime soon. Killing Nr. 6 to spread my might should fit right in my schedule.

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nNr. 6 and I are too close, neighbors actually. One that always schemes to kill me.

nThe tumor had to be removed.

nThe meeting had nothing substantial to offer and soon came the time for trading, but Chen Ming declined to participate. He was mulling over how to get rid of his neighbor.

nHmm, it’s a bit hard.

nEach Faceless had the power to hang a general of the four Domains at a whim. The hardest part was finding them.

nChen Ming could inspect their status, even if they were Faceless, but as this was war, Nr. 6 wasn’t as easy to handle as Daoist Radiant. He wouldn’t bump into him on the street, that’s for sure. Plus he wore a mask all this time and had no clue as how he looked.

nChen Ming was thinking and so was his neighbor.

nNr. 9 said his the same line as always, “I only want to kill all of you.”

nWith Inevitable’s meeting drawing to a close, Chen Ming opened his eyes and sighed, “Such troubled times. I only had the best intentions, so he won’t die of old age. Who’d have thought he’d take it the wrong way. Now I need to figure out how to deal with him.”

nCrossing swords wasn’t hard, but finding Nr. 6 was, as well as how to slaughter him.

nHis first order of business was to get a feel of his true strength. War had begun.

nIt was an S- mission. It wasn’t S, however it exceeded the A rank. The rating alone spoke of its difficulty. Nr. 6 was going to be a headache.

n“Increase my cultivation to Emergence stage.”

n“Ding! 3 billion spiritual knowledge required, continue?”

n“I have no time to fuss with a hussy. Do it!”

nChen Ming’s body began to change as the scriptures in his Dao Furnace floated and radiated with light, touching the furnace.

nThe Dao Furnace expanded and began to connect with the meridians around it.

nChen Ming felt his power growing, his spiritual power rising. It had been a long time since he last looked over his status and it was time to see just how much did this step improved him.

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