Chapter 293: Chapter 292: The Best Master
It wasn’t until Miss Red Wine tugged at the red string clamped between her teeth that Hu Ma realized the Beggar Gang Leader, Ji Tang, hadn’t truly escaped.
When she first pulled out the red string, holding one end in her mouth, Hu Ma didn’t know its purpose. He thought it was just one of her quirks. After all, the bright red string against her pale face created a strangely beautiful contrast.
It wasn’t until she tugged it that Hu Ma realized the string seemed connected to something mysterious.
Hu Ma felt as if he saw Ji Tang pulling on a stretched rubber band. Ji Tang was desperately trying to flee. The more frantically and farther he ran, the more intense the energy the metaphorical rubber band accumulated, until it suddenly released.
SIZZLE!
With a flick of her pinky, the manipulated red string sprang up a mist of blood.
The blood mist burst not only around him and Miss Red Wine but also spread out, as if the breeze from all directions carried a faint metallic scent.
The next moment, Hu Ma suddenly saw an object flying from afar, drifting lightly like a kite. Focusing his eyes, he discovered it was none other than Ji Tang, being pulled back by some force.
No, it wasn’t Ji Tang.
It was just a skin. This skin, suspended by invisible threads, hung in the air, making it appear as if Ji Tang had been dragged back.
Skin removal...
Miss Red Wine had actually stripped an entire layer of skin off him?
It was only at this moment that Hu Ma remembered Miss Red Wine’s nickname, Skin Stripper Lady Han...
So it wasn’t just a nickname; she really possessed such a technique?
More importantly, Ji Tang seemed to have escaped quite far. Could she still remove his entire skin from such a distance?
"The skin of a Shousui man isn’t easy to peel..."
Miss Red Wine gently raised her hand and caught the skin. She shook off the bloodstains, folded it a few times, and placed it into her pouch. Then, she softly explained to the wide-eyed Hu Ma beside her, "If he hadn’t run and directly charged at me, I might not have had the strength to peel this skin off.
"Rather than saying I peeled off this skin, it would be more accurate to say he pinned his own skin to the wall and then tore it off forcefully.
"However, this is something I’ve wanted for a long time. The Trick Door isn’t adept at dealing with evil spirits and ghostly gods, so I naturally had to prepare something good for General Jinge. It’s my only means of handling such things."
Skinning to refine ghosts? That’s the skin of a Shousui man...
Hu Ma listened, growing even more horrified. He had witnessed General Jinge’s ferocity. Now, with the addition of this Shousui man’s skin, what terrifying thing would it be refined into?
"We’ve reached this point, so it’s about time. The rest is up to you."
But before Hu Ma could ask further, Miss Red Wine had already nodded gently to him, giving instructions.
Hu Ma was momentarily confused. The man had already escaped, and his skin had been peeled off—what else could there be? But then, his heart suddenly skipped a beat. He turned his head, and his chest tightened instantly.
He saw Ji Tang walking out from a distant path.
Or rather, it was a bloodied figure.
His body was devoid of skin; his tendons and blood vessels lay exposed. He left a trail of bloody footprints with every step.
As he walked back step by step, behind him, a person holding a knife, seemingly disappointed, sheathed the blade, shaking their head softly, "If not for that letter, I really wanted to claim this last head myself..."
On both sides of the road, an old man with a melon cap burning incense and, on the other side, a plump woman riding a donkey and holding a peach blossom branch, briefly revealed their figures before softly fading, leaving no trace.
"If you had told me earlier that you had blocked my path so thoroughly, I wouldn’t have run. How embarrassing..."
The bloodied figure, presumably Ji Tang, walked back step by step. He suddenly spoke in a deep voice, startling everyone. Even in his current state, he could still speak clearly.
His voice even carried a hint of calmness.
"But where did you find so many skilled people to besiege me?"
Ji Tang spoke quietly as he examined the bleeding wounds all over his body. Bending down, he grabbed a handful of dirt, trying to apply it to the wounds to stop the bleeding. But how could one handful be enough?
He simply lay on the ground and rolled over, covering himself in dirt. Then, he slowly climbed back up. Raising his head, his eyelid-less eyes stared intently at Hu Ma and Miss Red Wine.
If rage could be tangible, his anger at this moment would be like a mighty ocean. Even though he had been skinned, Hu Ma could feel a formidable strength emanating from his fury.
This man had been skinned, but he definitely still possessed the power to fight—perhaps even more fiercely than before.
"You can only blame your Beggar Gang for never doing any good. When word got out in the jianghu that I was going to finish you, countless people rushed over to lend a hand."
Miss Red Wine merely gave a cold laugh, still holding one end of the red string between her teeth. She then gestured to Hu Ma with her eyes, as if to ask, "The man is here. Why aren’t you moving?"
Hu Ma hesitated. Am I not just bait in all this?
"Listen to your elder sister," Miss Red Wine said, glancing at him. "Do you realize how rare an opportunity it is to face a Shousui man on the brink of death?
"This single encounter will be more beneficial than three years of any well-meaning master teaching you personally."
"Alright!" Hu Ma agreed.
Although he knew deep down that he dared not fight an Entering the Mansion Shousui man, he could see that Miss Red Wine had seized every advantage. Killing Ji Tang would be a simple matter for her. She was currently sparing Ji Tang, keeping him alive, precisely to let Hu Ma learn something. He nodded, raised his knife, and rushed forward.
SLASH!
The moment Hu Ma drew his knife and charged, Ji Tang roared angrily, slashing forward.
Furious, he had walked back step by step, conserving what little strength he had to restore his energy and reclaim his skin.
In his eyes, Hu Ma was negligible. He was solely focused on Miss Red Wine, the one with the red string in her mouth, as his target.
But unexpectedly, a strong gust of wind heralded Hu Ma’s attack. He exerted all his strength, executing the Mountain Opening strike aimed at Ji Tang’s face. His technique was fundamentally solid and carried potent force. Even in his current state, Ji Tang dared not meet this strike head-on with his body. Instead, he suddenly shifted his blade, violently chopping down at Hu Ma.
SIZZLE!
Their weapons clashed, sending a shower of sparks into the air.
Hu Ma received the blow, feeling a shock course through his entire body. Both his hands sank into the muddy ground.
Ji Tang wielded a treasure sword. Although its blade had been scorched by fire and its edge dulled, preventing it from cutting through Hu Ma’s saw-toothed knife, the force of the blow still pressed down on Hu Ma. His bones creaked loudly, and his spine felt as if it were on the verge of collapse.
The enormous force impacted his body harshly. Fortunately, his Five Organs had already been refined, so they didn’t rupture on the spot.
WHIZ!
But before Hu Ma could fully neutralize the force, Ji Tang had already shifted his blade, slashing fiercely towards his neck. The sheer ferocity of the attack was terrifying.
Hu Ma himself was a Shousui man and had learned a full repertoire of techniques. Ordinarily, he often pondered the most direct and effective ways to strike an opponent. Only now, however, did he truly understand what it meant to apply those skills in a real fight.
Moments ago, when Miss Red Wine had exchanged a few blows with Ji Tang, she had made it look deceptively effortless.
But now that it was his turn, the reality was entirely different.
Still, he had indeed put considerable effort into honing his skills. At the crucial moment, he executed the Ghost Ascending Stairs technique. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, his body bent sharply backward in a classic ’Iron Bridge’ maneuver, narrowly evading the slash Ji Tang aimed at his head.
HAH!
Simultaneously, as Ji Tang’s strike missed, he immediately transitioned to his next move.
He didn’t even wait for Hu Ma to complete the Iron Bridge. He darted forward, his bloodied elbow striking towards Hu Ma’s chest.
This elbow strike was like a spear. Hu Ma felt that if it landed, his body would likely be pierced through.
However, facing an opponent whose cultivation and skills far surpassed his own, Hu Ma dared not let down his guard for an instant. The moment he executed the Iron Bridge, he had already abandoned his saw-toothed knife, bringing his hands together abruptly in a forward salute.
This was the Four Ghosts Salute, executed abruptly but prepared in advance. Knowing his skills were insufficient, he had planned this counter while initiating the Iron Bridge.
In an instant, a rush of yin qi surged forward, impacting Ji Tang squarely. However, this yin qi, which had previously been unstoppable, rebounded with even greater intensity upon striking Ji Tang, wrapping itself around Hu Ma instead.
SIZZLE!
Hu Ma used this enveloping yin qi to slide backward a distance of about ten feet, narrowly avoiding Ji Tang’s bloodied elbow.
BANG!
Ji Tang’s elbow hit the ground, creating a crater.
No way! Hu Ma thought after exchanging just three moves with Ji Tang. He immediately reached a conclusion: I’m not his opponent at all.
He only made three simple moves, and I was forced to use all my skills. I could be killed at any moment.
How can I possibly fight this?
We’re not even on the same level.
Even though Ji Tang has been skinned, I’m still no match for him.
"Not bad at all..." Miss Red Wine murmured, a hint of approval in her expression. She had seen Hu Ma dodge Ji Tang’s three moves. One was an Entering the Mansion Shousui man, and the other merely an Ascension Shousui man; the disparity in their skills was immense.
For Hu Ma to dodge three moves from an enraged Ji Tang already demonstrated his solid foundation. It showed he had indeed put considerable effort into mastering the Shousui man’s techniques.
This performance far exceeded her expectations.
As she thought, her fingers intertwined with the red string, gently pulling as if playing cat’s cradle.
She began with the simplest pattern: a small square handkerchief!
SIZZLE!
As Miss Red Wine formed the handkerchief pattern with the string, Ji Tang, who was ferociously pressing his attack on Hu Ma, suddenly let out a muffled roar.
Although his skin had been removed, the silver needles were still embedded in his flesh. Two of them, which had only been shallowly pricking his surface, suddenly pierced deeper into his body.
The next moment, the bones in his limbs crackled, layers of blood mist burst forth, and his strength was instantly weakened by more than half.
With a mere flick of her hand, Miss Red Wine had crippled most of Ji Tang’s cultivation.