And the riders could not gain a steady footing because of the chaos.
When they noticed what was going on, they had their actions limited because of their hesitation, because they were wary of affecting their companions beside them, thereby making it difficult for them to bring out their real abilities. In a short moment, Happy had killed around a dozen of them with the momentum of a violent gust blowing at falling leaves.
"Put away your horses!"
Someone finally realized what was off about the situation and quickly shouted loudly to give to the others.
Rustle!
But the change in their field of vision and the reality of their situation still did not change much.
Happy was already in battle mode. What he used were all skills from Flowering Knights' Song that were most beneficial to him in a group battle. He gave up on defense completely and used the most vicious attacks to replace it. He was like a sharp blade whose might was shown completely. He rushed into the crowd with an indomitable spirit, looking just like he did in his previous life, when he was one with his blade.
"Ah!"
"Spread out! Spread— Urk!"
Once everyone put away their horses, they noticed an even more brutal reality. Without the horses limiting his movements, Happy's saber glare seemed to have lost the final restraints on it. He swung his saber at full might and completely vanished before them, just like a divine soldier who had charged into the middle of a crowd!
The only thing they could see before them was a saber!
All those who tried to block it found their stomachs cut open and their heads separated from their bodies. Blood gushed into the air, and after one round, Happy slaughtered his way out with his Hundred-battle Saber. He went through the crowd by himself.
The group of sixty or so people was left with less than thirty people. After noticing it, he summoned his purplish red horse and, without any hesitation, flipped himself on it before he struck it and left.
The red and blue figures left with a cloud of dust behind them. Their movements were as smooth as water, and everything was done with natural grace and elegance.
Happy!
That name would forever be engraved in their hearts.
They would never be able to forget what they saw. He had slaughtered his way into their midst as smoothly as flowing water, killed their people while becoming one with his blade, and then left resolutely in a cloud of dust.
What was left behind was not hatred.
Instead, it was the carefree air of a wandering martial artist leaving once they had done what they wanted, be it to repay a kindness or exact revenge. It was the true air of a wandering martial artist!
All that the group of players saw on that day left behind a mark that was difficult to get rid off in their hearts. It was also bound to bring about a slight change.
That change also happened in the heart of another observer—CantFoolAround!
He was the man with the black face who was nearly mistaken as a pursuer by Happy. He was a powerful player on the Dragon Rank that was dressed in rags—the attire of those in Beggar's Sect.
While the people from the side put away the money their companions dropped, CantFoolAround revealed half of his body from behind the tree, because he had not actually gone far. There was an exaggerated shocked look on his face while he stared at Happy, who had left in the distance. He gulped, as if he was still remembering what he saw on the government-made road.
"Amazing!"
After a long time had passed, CantFoolAround suddenly remembered the baffling words Happy had said a bit earlier. His eyes sparkled, and he flipped open the World of Martial Arts Secret News Log Happy had returned to him.
Flip, flip.
He began searching through the pages hastily.
In the end, he finally found Happy's name on the Famous People Rank he had never paid attention to before. As he read it, a dazed look slowly appeared in his eyes, because a row of words had slowly appeared in front of him
[Killed thirty-eight people out of sixty riders at the foot of Mount Song. Left the fight unscathed. His enemies were unable to injure him in the slightest!]
*****
[A major part of the World of Martial Arts Secret News Log is still occupied by the official developers. The numbers are not important. Please excuse me.]
Chapter 154 - Market Price Change
A very hilarious scene played out in Dengfeng County.
On a street where people could be seen hurrying up and down was an old man with a white beard. He held a white piece of cloth to serve as his sign. On it were the words [HALF IMMORTAL COMMENTS ON FATE]. He swayed his head to the left and right and walked in a languid and relaxed manner with a small crease between his eyebrows as he calculated something with his fingers. He seemed to be performing a divination on something.
There was a group of male and female martial artists walking closely behind the old man with the white beard. They were all dressed differently, but their expressions were solemn, and they followed behind him attentively. They did not dare to be negligent.
A few minutes passed, and the wrinkles between the old man's eyebrows became deeper. While he swayed his head, his strides became longer.
The group of people were instantly at a loss!
"What's going on?"
"Why is he taking such a long time this time?"
"Hey, are you done, Half-immortal Liu?"
Some of the rash ones rushed forward and blocked the old man!
Half-immortal Liu then stopped with a troubled and hesitant look on his face. He looked at one of them and said slowly, "Young swordsman, it's not that I am unwilling to tell you the details, but this person is surrounded by an evil aura; he is filled with evil and malice! If I reveal the secrets of the universe rashly, I will have a lot of karma added to me. Ah… it's simply not worth it."
The group was instantly stunned speechless. They did not know why Half-immortal Liu would suddenly say that the person was filled with evil and that the secrets of the universe had even become involved, even though he had been fine just a moment ago.
"This money is not enough to resolve my karma. I do not have the courage to receive your money. I can only return it to you."
Even though he said that, Half-immortal Liu's actions when he brought out the money were very reluctant. He was very unwilling to give up.
The group instantly saw his goals!
Being forbidden to reveal the secrets of the universe? He could just say that the money was not enough and that he wanted to increase the price!
The players who followed behind Half-immortal Liu gritted their teeth, but they could do nothing to the old man.
In the end, someone in the group asked in resignation, "Just tell us what the market price is now."
"Heh heh…" Half-immortal Liu smiled bashfully and extended two fingers.
"If you want the information regarding this person, you'll need to pay an additional one thousand taels of silver crumbs."
"What the heck?!"
When the players in the area heard the words, their expressions changed, and they wanted to push Half-immortal Liu's head against the wall and punch him a few times.
"Could you not be so black-hearted?! How can it cost two thousand taels of silver crumbs just to find out his location?!"
Ten minutes ago, the market price had been one thousand taels of silver crumbs. Yet in a blink of an eye, it had doubled!. Could someone's market price inflate so quickly? That person was just a Blessed Realm player!
"The price is fair. I will not deceive anyone!" Half-immortal Liu's expression became stern. He stroked his beard and continued to walk down the street.
"Darn you!"
"You thief!"
The people did not give him the money immediately. Instead, they brought out a piece of paper and a messenger pigeon and wrote a message to their superiors telling them that the fee for the information regarding that person had doubled. After all, they did not know
whether their superiors would agree to give them the money.
While on his way, Happy arrived in a small mountain village and bought a second-hand World of Martial Arts Secret News Log that was ridiculously expensive while he was at it. When he saw the descriptions of the few battles he had recently on the Famous People Rank, there was not a single emotion on his face. He slowly closed the book. It was as if everything was within his expectations. He only frowned slightly, and his expression became even more solemn.
His assumptions were right.
Some of the things in World of Martial Arts had changed slightly because of him, a butterfly who decided to fly about madly after he returned to the past. Fortunately, the changes were very minor.
Also, Wandering Know-it-all, who was a rich player that spent his money lavishly, had once again obtained a spirit vessel reward, which was something only spoken of later in the game. That item was known as Universe Secrets Inkstone, which allowed him to renew the ranks within a very short period of time.
It was also through that Universe Secrets Inkstone that Wandering Know-it-all obtained the abilities of a true diviner. He could perform divination on his own and find out all that a person had done during a certain period of time or what happened in a particular region, but he would not be able to find out about the things that happened in special regions.
Happy put away the World of Martial Arts Secret News Log. He then bought a few sets of rather normal handwoven clothes from players in the mountain village. Once he changed his clothes, he summoned the normal horse he once used and left the village.
More than one hundred riders rode on the road he traveled with dust clouds flying behind them.
The person in the lead was a man with a rather savage and murderous look on his face. Beside him was a man with a coronet who had a hooked nose and long, narrow eyes. He hugged a skull-shaped metallic weapon that had two segments. Their appearance was very eye-catching and astonishing.
When they saw Happy stop by the road, they scrutinized him with derision. They swept their gazes over him and his horse, but no one stopped for even a moment.
"Search the place!"
"He rides a high-grade purplish-red horse, and he's dressed in blue. He'll be very easily recognized!"
The rumbling of horse hooves and their roars as well as actions that made them sound like bandits alarmed the entire mountain village!
However, it was very clear that they would find nothing.
Before even entering the village, Happy had already given up on using the purplish-red horse. The players in the village were also short on money, so they would naturally not be stupid enough to spend a whole load of money to purchase his location.
A few minutes later, the entire mountain village was searched through, but the riders did not manage to find their target.
At that moment, new information was delivered to them via messenger pigeon!
"What location?"
"I don't know!"
"What?"
"Our brothers in the city said that his value has doubled! Every single time someone tries to perform a divination about him, they will have to pay two thousand taels of silver crumbs... How could this be?!" The man with the coronet was filled with surprise.
This sort of thing had never happened before!
The leader scowled. With great impatience, he swung his hand and answered, "Cut the bull and give them the money! We'll talk after we find him!"
Once they sent a messenger pigeon back, an answer soon came from the city.
The man with the coronet cast a glance at the paper and crushed it with great strength.
"He changed his attire! He's that person we ran into outside the village!"
The aggressive look on the leader's face instantly become much more prominent. He struck his horse, turned around, and shouted, "After him!"
When he finished speaking, the man with the purple coronet and hooked nose took the lead and charged forward. In just a moment, he got out of the village.
"I'll stop him on the road ahead!"
"Once you find him, don't be in a hurry to fight him! Hold him back and wait for us!" the leader reminded him with a shout.
"I know." His horse galloped so fast that no dust could touch it.
Those people were unlike the idle organizations or normal sects that Happy had previously encountered.
As a gaming guild famous in the country, they could not waste their resources. If they used up so much manpower and time to search for a person, but were still unable to get him, then not only would the money they spent doing so all vanish into the wind, it would also be very embarrassing once people learned of it.
Besides, the money Happy had was incredibly important for the future development of their guild.
Furthermore, Happy was ranked in the fourth place on the Famous People Rank. As long as they killed him, the day when their guild would rise to power would no longer be far away.
They regarded the descriptions regarding Happy within World of Martial Arts Secret News Log contemptuously.
They had observed the video from Punishment Mount online, and they came to a conclusion that Happy had relied entirely on the defense provided to him by nature—Iron Chain Bridge—to defeat Class One Hall. His other feats were not astonishing at all.
He had never ran into anyone with actual power during his journey. Everyone he had faced before could not compare to them!
Chapter 155 - Glutinous Rice’s Instincts
Aside from the sects, forces of power, and guilds that had been chasing after fame paying close attention to Happy's actions in Zhengzhou, there was also a small group of people who had been very attentive and worried about his situation.
Among them were numerous students from the University of South China.
South China Martial Arts Ranking Board would deliver many of the events that happened in the game to its members in a timely manner. Since Happy, who was a student of the University of South China, had managed to enter the Famous People Ranking Board on the World of Martial Arts Secret News Log, it was only natural that he could not escape from everyone's sight!
Even though many people criticized Happy for retaining his mysteriousness and not revealing his real identity, they felt very proud when a university mate of theirs was so successful in the game.
It was especially so when they learned that Happy had snatched a brocade box that all the players dreamed of getting in the game, and he had even toyed around with a large group of martial artists with his intellect and resourcefulness. Because of it, they held great admiration for him.
They also became even more curious about Happy's real identity.
This was especially the case for Phoenix Dances in Beautiful Robes, who was the master of Beautiful Robes faction. When she remembered that their nameless faction would have such a powerful player join them, she became even more confident when she organized the various internal matters within the sect.
"Sister Phoenix Dances, I'd like to ask you something."
"Hmm?"
"When do you think Happy will join us?" The pleasant voice paused for a moment before adding more words in anger. "The sects in the city are still suppressing us. Hmph, I really can't wait for Happy to join us. At that time, I'd like to see whether the others will still dare to assume airs in front of us. Hmph!"
The person who spoke was another swordswoman from the University of South China, Glutinous Rice, who had become pretty close with Phoenix Dances with Beautiful Robes!
Glutinous Rice had some freckles on her face, which made her especially similar to the girl-next-door who looked pretty and was quiet. She was very adorable, and at that moment, her face was full of excitement and anticipation as she grumbled.
The anger that made her gnash her teeth at Happy during the martial arts tournament could no longer be found. It was a transformation that had occurred when Happy had stunned Orochimaru while being below the stage.
Of course, when Glutinous Rice heard this, s
he had cursed Happy in a show of good cooperation. She degraded him until he was worth nothing, as if she was worried that others would mistake her for being fond of him.
Just like usual, Phoenix Dances in Beautiful Robes s.u.c.k.e.d in a deep breath after hearing her words. She seemed to be slightly absent-minded.
"Who knows? He is far too good at keeping secrets. I asked different girls from different majors, and there is no one who uses Happy as their QQ ID, MSN ID, or ID in the forums. The Three Lonely Wolves won't tell me about it either, for some reason."
When she said it, she could not help the enraged expression that came onto her face.
No matter what, she was still a popular figure in the University of South China. Forget the students, even the lecturers never rejected any of her requests, but when it came to those people, she had run into a brick wall. She did not know why she was so unlucky when it came to them.
When she saw the change in Phoenix Dances, Glutinous Rice's lively black eyes sparkled. A thought struck at that moment, and she reminded Phoenix Dances quietly, "I heard that two new people have been added to the group of developers for South China Martial Arts Ranking Board…"
"I know." Phoenix Dances nodded. "One of them is the Three Lonely Wolves' dormmate, a nerd who's really good at studying. The other one is the princess of the Computer Engineering Department, Xu Xin."
"Chen Kaixin, his given name sounds identical to the Chinese characters for Happy, you know?" Glutinous Rice stared at Phoenix Dances to observe her reaction.
"That nerd?" Phoenix Dances could not help but laugh while shaking her head. "Impossible."
"Why?"
"In truth, the people from the Computer Engineering Department suspected him far earlier than we did, but according to the words of his coursemates, ever since Chen Kaixin joined the university, he has never played any games and only knows how to study. He's really good at it, but people who don't have any experience in VR games like him won't be able to reach Happy's level."
Sword Among Us c1-1268 Page 82
