"Little girl?"
Hearing herself addressed thus, a cold glint flashed in the woman's eyes. The long saber in her hand seemed poised to unsheathe at any moment.
"Hmm! Not bad, not bad!"
The hunchbacked old man, observing the malevolent energy entwined with her saber, nodded with great satisfaction.
"Come with me!"
With a wave of his hand, the woman was enveloped by a strange force. When she attempted to resist with her own power, she discovered that the true energy within her seemed locked, rendering it completely unusable.
In the next second, both the old man and she vanished from their original positions.
The sudden disappearance of two living people naturally caused some commotion. But soon, the surrounding onlookers relaxed.
It seemed that the re-emergence of ancient martial artists had indeed brought about subtle changes in their perceptions.
Not long after the hunchbacked old man had taken the black-clothed woman and disappeared, a young man appeared at the spot where they had vanished.
"Interesting!"
He then disappeared as well.
...
On the rooftop of an abandoned building outside the capital's urban area, the hunchbacked old man appeared with the black-clothed woman.
"Who are you?"
The woman stared intently at the old man. Even with her strength sealed, the killing intent in her eyes did not diminish in the slightest.
Instead, it grew sharper.
She showed no fear whatsoever.
"Good! Very good! If you can discard all emotion, then in this world, you can be considered supreme!" The hunchbacked old man's expression was somewhat excited, but then he shook his head as if recalling something, saying, "A pity! There is still a trace of obsession in your heart!"
Hearing these words, the black-clothed woman knitted her brows slightly and said, "You still haven't answered my question!"
Who exactly was this mysterious old man before her?
At the same time, she was also shocked.
With her current strength, she was completely powerless against this mysterious old man. If she had not experienced it firsthand, she would have found it hard to believe.
In this world!
Could such a person exist!
"Hahaha! You can call me Old Man Kumu for now! Of course..." The old man chuckled, "From now on, you will have to call me Master!"
Master?
The old man intended to take the woman as his disciple?
"With your current strength! In the ancient martial arts world, you have already reached the pinnacle of the pyramid. But if you were to go elsewhere, perhaps..."
He clearly implied something.
"I have no interest in the matters you speak of! Nor do I wish to become your disciple!" The woman's words were still filled with coldness.
"Release my seal!"
She would never believe the words of this stranger. Since childhood, the only one she could ever trust was herself.
"Hahaha! With your disposition, I naturally didn't expect you to obey obediently! But..." At this point, the old man's tone deepened. "Do you have the ability to resist?"
"If I wished, I have countless ways to make you obey me! Even to make you perish right here!" He said this, then his tone softened, and he smiled. "The only reason I haven't done so is entirely due to your talent and state of mind."
"Come with me! I can grant you the power to crush Gu Taiyi, and completely obliterate that trace of obsession in your heart. Then..." As he spoke, the black glow in the old man's eyes flickered more intensely, and he became excited. "Then, we will stand at the pinnacle of the world!"
It was unclear whether the world he spoke of was consistent with the world perceived by the woman.
"I told you! I have no interest in your idealized world!" The woman was not moved by his words, and still said coldly, "If you want to kill me, you can do so at any time!"
Death!
Had been a constant companion since her childhood.
To this!
She was also utterly fearless!
It was precisely because of this disposition that she was able to touch the peak of the Martial God at such a young age.
"Oh!"
Upon hearing this, the old man's smile grew wider. Such a good vessel, was this not what they had been searching for all along?
If they could successfully bring her back, then...
"Little girl! Whether you are willing or not! You must come with me!" The old man waved his hand, and the two of them began to float. "At least for now, you cannot resist."
No matter what, he would take her back first.
"You..."
Seeing this, the woman tried desperately to break free from her restraint. However, no matter how hard she struggled, it was in vain.
"You'd best not give me an opportunity, otherwise... I will kill you!"
After her struggles proved fruitless, the woman's ice-cold eyes stared intently at the old man, as if trying to engrave his appearance into her soul.
As she had said, if she ever had the chance, she would surely make Old Man Kumu suffer eternally.
"Good! Hahaha! My life is preserved for you."
The more intense the woman's killing intent became, the happier the old man seemed.
But just as he was about to take the woman away, a very plain voice suddenly entered their ears.
"Excuse me! I'm also interested in this woman, and I can't let you take her away!"
The voice was faint and light, yet it carried an unyielding dominance.
The sudden turn of events made the old man's heart tremble.
With his strength, he had not detected anyone lurking in the shadows.
"Who is it?"
The hunchbacked old man instantly unleashed his senses, scanning the surroundings. However, the result made him break out in a cold sweat.
Because he found no one.
But as he remained on guard, a blade-like energy, as red as blood, suddenly struck from behind him. Along with this blade energy was an extreme killing intent.
"What?"
The old man turned around abruptly. The blade light had already reached him. He had no time to think and could only place his hands in front of him, forcefully blocking the attack.
"Disperse!"
After being forced back several meters by the blade light, a ferocious expression flashed in the old man's eyes. A terrifying black aura surged from within him, instantly shattering the blade energy.
And his hands were completely unharmed.
"When did you break free from my seal!"
The old man, his face grim, stared at the woman holding her long saber not far away.
At this moment, the woman was enveloped by a blood-red true energy. Her eyes were filled with sharp killing intent, as cold as bone.
In response to the old man's question, the woman did not answer. Instead, she held her long saber upright in front of her, and even cut her own palm, merging the flowing blood into the saber energy.
The moment the blood fused, the malevolent energy entwined around the saber became even more alluring. The aura it exuded seemed to dye the surrounding air red.
The woman herself seemed to transform into a bloodthirsty Asura.
The woman leaped forward, turning into a streak of blood-red light, and charged directly at Old Man Kumu.
"Insolent!"
Seeing that the woman dared to attack again, Old Man Kumu's gaze turned cold. With his strength, he naturally did not take her attack seriously.
However, someone was lurking in the shadows.
This was what he feared.
"Retreat!"
Old Man Kumu simply flicked his index finger.
*Boom!*
Before the woman could even react, an invisible wall of air appeared before her, and she slammed directly into it.
The fierce impact nearly rendered her unconscious. Her body was sent flying backward. As her last shred of consciousness remained, she clearly felt herself falling into a warm embrace.
And as that warmth enveloped her, all her nerves relaxed. Then, she fainted completely.