1. Rumors Catch Fire
By noon, Qingzhou City was on edge.
People whispered in alleyways and behind closed doors.
"He's coming."
"Who?"
"The Butcher."
Children were pulled off the streets. Storefronts closed early. Even rogue cultivators kept their heads down. Everyone knew the stories—how the Butcher had once wiped out an entire sect over a debt of just one spirit stone.
Nobody crossed the Butcher.
Nobody faced him and lived.
2. Lin Bufan Gets the Message
At a local tavern, Lin Bufan sat alone at a table in the corner. Steam rose from his cup of bitter black tea. His saber leaned against the wall beside him.
The atmosphere was tense. It was too quiet for midday.
Mu Qingxue slid into the seat across from him, looking grim. "Word's confirmed. The Shadow Sect has put the Butcher on your trail."
He didn't react.
She leaned closer. "You should leave the city. Now. This guy is more than just an assassin. He's a monster."
"I've heard."
"No, Bufan. I mean it. This is suicide."
He took a slow sip. "It's only suicide if I lose."
[System Notification]
Hidden Quest Timer: 36 hours remaining.
Objective: Survive the Butcher.
Reward: Unique Skill — Ghost Step Lv. 1
Bonus reward if you kill him:
Bonus reward if you kill him: Epic Weapon Chest x1
He stood up.
"Let's go meet him."
3. First Blood
They didn't have to wait long.
That same hour, The Butcher arrived at the outer west gate of Qingzhou.
Seven feet tall. Shoulders like a mountain. He had a bloodstained, chipped twin-blade axe on his back. No cloak. No mask. Just bare skin, battle scars, and a smile that promised murder.
He walked straight down the main street.
A squad of city guards tried to stop him.
"State your business!" one shouted, spear trembling.
The Butcher didn't speak.
He just raised his axe.
Splat.
One swing.
Half a dozen bodies hit the ground, cut clean through.
Blood sprayed the nearby walls. Civilians screamed and scattered like rats.
[System Broadcast: City-wide alert: martial law engaged."
All cultivators are restricted from flying within Qingzhou for 12 hours.
4. Lin Bufan Doesn't Run
From the rooftop of an herbalist shop, Lin Bufan watched the chaos unfold.
He could have left. He could have vanished into the wilderness.
But he didn't.
Instead, he stepped off the roof and landed in the center of the street, fifty meters from the approaching storm.
Pedestrians fled. Merchants ducked into doorways.
Only two people remained in the street:
The Butcher.
and Lin Bufan.
5. Words Before War:
"Are you the kid who killed Yan?" the Butcher asked, licking blood from his thumb.
Bufan nodded slightly. "Are you the dumb brute they sent to die next?"
The Butcher laughed. It was a deep, guttural sound that echoed through the street.
"Good. You've got some teeth. Makes it more fun when I tear 'em out."
He took a step forward.
The ground cracked beneath him.
Enemy identified: Tier-A Elite · "The Butcher"
Power Level: Peak Foundation Realm
Passive Ability: Blood Frenzy — Strength increases with injury.
Warning: Do not engage in extended combat.
Suggested tactic: high-speed burst kill.
Bufan's saber hissed out of its sheath.
No fear. Only fire.
"Come on then."
6. The First Clash
The Butcher struck first.
He swung his massive axe vertically, bringing it down like a falling mountain.
Bufan moved.
One breath. One step.
He dodged cleanly and responded with a slash aimed at the ribs.
CLANG!
Steel met skin, but didn't cut.
The Butcher's body was like stone, his muscles taut and reinforced with spiritual energy.
He grinned. "That tickled."
Bufan spun to the left, ducked a backhand swing, and kicked off a street lamp to gain height. He slashed midair, aiming for the throat.
The Butcher roared and blocked with the flat of his axe.
BOOM!
Shockwave.
Tiles cracked. Dust exploded.
People watching from windows were blown backward.
7. System Assist: Ghost Trace Mode:
[System Alert: Battle Data Collected — Unlocking Ghost Step Lv. 1]
Skill Gained: Ghost Step
Allows instant afterimage movement up to 10 meters.
• Cooldown: 10 seconds
Bufan vanished mid-dodge.
He reappeared behind the Butcher with Ghost Step!
His saber glowed.
One full-force slash to the spine!
CRACK!
Blood sprayed. The axe fell.
The Butcher stumbled forward.
For the first time, he screamed.
But not in pain.
In joy.
8. Blood Frenzy Activates:
Enemy Buff Triggered: Blood Frenzy
Status: Power +40%, Defense +25%, and Pain Resistance +90%.
Duration: 2 minutes
"Ohhhh yes!" the Butcher bellowed.
He grabbed the axe with both hands, spun like a tornado, and unleashed a flurry of strikes.
Each swing carved craters in the street. Buildings shattered. Debris rained from the sky.
Bufan barely dodged one cut that grazed his shoulder and drew blood.
HP -18%.
Bleed status applied (minor).
Pain screamed through his nerves.
But his mind stayed calm.
"All right," he muttered. "Time to finish this."
9. Break the Beast
He activated Ghost Step again, this time moving above instead of behind.
In midair, he gathered every ounce of spiritual energy. Every line of qi. Every last drop of willpower.
[Ultimate Technique Activated: Soul-Splitting Skyfall.
Charges saber with compressed spiritual force.
• One-use finisher
Armor penetration: 90%.
Critical rate: 3x
"DIE!" he shouted.
And fell like lightning.
The Butcher raised his axe to block.
Too slow.
Too late.
Ka-boom!
The blade cleaved through the axe, his collarbone, and his chest.
—and buried itself in the earth.
The street shattered.
Silence.
Then—
Blood geysered from the Butcher's mouth. He fell back with wide eyes and twitching arms.
Still alive. Barely.
Bufan stood above him, panting.
The Butcher chuckled, choking on blood.
"Heh... guess... you're the monster now..."
Then he died.
10. Aftermath: Streets Painted Red
The city guards arrived too late.
They only found wreckage and dead bodies.
Dead bodies. Collapsed walls. There was a crater where the street used to be.
And Lin Bufan.
He was still standing.
He is covered in blood.
Alone.
[Quest Complete: Survive the Butcher.
Rewards received:
Rewards received:
- Skill: Ghost Step Lv. 1
• Bonus acquired: Epic Weapon Chest x1
- Reputation: +600 (Qingzhou)
- Shadow Sect Aggro: +70%
Hidden Title Gained: "The Red Ghost of Qingzhou"
Intimidation increased vs. enemies.
Cultivator Fear Response: +25%
Mu Qingxue appeared on a nearby rooftop and watched from the shadows.
She didn't speak.
She only whispered,
"So this is what you're becoming."
11. The Red Ghost Rises
That night, Qingzhou didn't sleep.
Bells rang through the upper districts. Alarms howled. The streets glowed red under the firelight.
But no one dared approach the epicenter of the battle.
Not until dawn.
When the first rays of sunlight hit the shattered cobblestones, Lin Bufan was still standing in the same spot where he had fallen asleep—saber still stabbed into the earth and blood now dried on his clothes.
Mu Qingxue stood beside him, arms crossed.
"You could've moved, you know," she said.
"I didn't want to break the silence," he replied, his eyes still scanning the empty street.
"You killed the Butcher."
"Yeah."
"You realize what that means, right?"
He nodded slowly.
"It means the sects are going to start watching."
12. Murmurs Across the Lands
News spread that same day.
Fast.
Too fast.
In a Sword Sect stronghold far to the north, an elder paused over a jade slip. His white eyebrows twitched.
"Lin Bufan... Peak Qi Condensation?" Killed the Butcher? Impossible."
Another voice chimed in. "He used a system."
That caught the elder's attention.
He stood up.
"Prepare the envoys. Qingzhou just became important."
In a brothel of the Drifting Cloud Pavilion, a veiled woman sipped wine.
Her lips curled into a smile.
"The little beast has sharp fangs," she whispered. "Let's see if he can grow claws."
She flicked her finger. A black butterfly flew from her sleeve, heading straight for Qingzhou.
Deep within the Shadow Sect, inside a dark pool of blood and ice, the Sect Master stirred.
His eyes, glowing red, opened.
"So, my dog was killed."
He turned to the kneeling assassins.
"Send the Serpent Twins."
The kneelers trembled. One of them tried to object.
"Sect Master, they're not stable—"
"Exactly," the master smiled. "Let chaos begin."
13. Mu Qingxue's Secret
That evening, Lin Bufan rested in a quiet courtyard.
His body was covered in bandages. His saber leaned against a nearby tree.
Mu Qingxue sat beside him, holding a gourd of medicinal wine.
"You're reckless," she said.
"I won."
"You barely survived."
He chuckled. "That's called style."
She rolled her eyes.
Then, silence.
Finally, she asked, "Bufan, do you trust me?"
He looked at her.
Her tone was too serious.
"Yeah," he said. "Why?"
She didn't answer directly.
Instead, she took out a smooth, warm, glowing jade pendant.
He raised an eyebrow. "That looks expensive."
"It's not just expensive," she said. "It's forbidden. No one outside the Jade Celestial Clan should have this."
He sat up.
She met his gaze.
"I didn't just 'happen' to be in that forest, Bufan. I was being hunted."
"By the Shadow Sect?"
"Worse."
He narrowed his eyes.
"Then why are you here?"
"Because you saved me," she said quietly. "And because if I leave now, they'll find you anyway."
[New Companion Quest Unlocked: "Bloodline of the Hidden Moon"
Objective: Protect Mu Qingxue until she reaches the Spirit Vein stage.
Reward: Unlock the Dual Cultivation System Compatibility
Danger Level: Unknown
He stared at the system panel.
Then he looked at her.
"You planned this, didn't you?"
She smirked. "A little."
14. The Calm Cracks
The next morning, a new message appeared at the city gates.
It was a white scroll nailed to the walls of the central square.
It was signed with the emblem of the Sword River Sect.
To Lin Bufan:
"You've caused ripples in the pond.
Let's see if you can swim in the river."
—Yu Shuang, Outer Disciple of Sword River
Mu Qingxue read it aloud.
Bufan just yawned. "Finally."
"You're seriously thinking of accepting this?"
"Why not?"
"It's a public duel."
"All the better."
15. Prelude to the Heaven List
That night, a messenger hawk flew over Qingzhou, scattering papers across the rooftops.
Each one held a name:
A list:
The Qingzhou Preliminary Heaven List.
It ranked young cultivators below the Foundation stage.
Lin Bufan was unranked.
But next to his name, a red mark had been drawn.
"Unknown monster. Killed the Butcher. Possibly unstable."
Recommendation: Immediate monitoring.
The town buzzed.
Some mocked.
Others feared.
But deep down, everyone felt it.
Qingzhou was no longer just a remote city.
It was becoming a battlefield.