Chapter 07: The Dark Alley Passed By

He calmly turned back to look, and the short man and the beautiful woman standing on either side of the door were so excited that after he dodged, both buckets of water splashed onto them. The strongest foodie stood far away, mercilessly mocking them.

These are all mercenaries in high spirits, either just having completed a lucrative commission or having just received one; at other times, they would not usually indulge in such extravagant spending.

Hahaha—are you out of your mind? Fortunately, I am smart enough to stand far away

They may seem pitiful, but Wang Qi distinctly remembers that when listening to the retired mercenaries from the village of Lonely Mercenaries talk, it was clearly a joyful recollection

Wang Qi lay in bed for a long time, and only after his body adapted to the discomfort of hundreds of needles piercing through him could he finally fall into a deep sleep

As he removed the soft garment covered in barbs, Wang Qi let out a soft groan of pain, gasping for breath for a while. Looking at the blood-stained barbs on the garment, he couldn't help but mutter, "I really don't know what that boastful old man's self-torturing training method was thinking! It's simply inhumane!"

I apologize for the intrusion. In the darkness, others cannot see his smile, and Wang Qi can only convey his emotions with a calm and polite voice

Seeing that most of these people are somewhat older, many of them do not even have complete weapons and battle gear, Wang Qi could not help but recall the familiar faces from the Mercenary Village... In the past, he had heard them say that if the Mercenary Guild does not receive any commissions for a period of time, the affiliated mercenary group must find a way to survive on their own. If they cannot find a solution, they will run out of food, and running out of food—everyone in the group sleeping on the streets becomes inevitable

In the darkness, the woman who received the order hurriedly chased after Wang Qi. As she burst out onto the street, her enveloping cloak was suddenly yanked off. As it flipped in the air and was draped back over her, it had transformed into a dark green cloak

Walking onto the brightly lit street feels like entering another world of night, where groups of three to five people can be seen chatting by the roadside; there are also solitary mercenaries, unaware of which tavern, inn, or perhaps casino is their destination

According to the boastful old man, he discerned that Wang Qi was suitable for utilizing his top-secret cultivation techniques; otherwise, he would never have imparted them, even at the cost of his life

He drew his sword in anger and struck her

As he passed the corner, he kept his gaze straight ahead, pretending to be completely uninterested in the situation in the corridor around the corner. It was not until he stepped into the brightly lit street that he secretly let out a sigh of relief

At that time, Wang Qi automatically filtered these adjectives, beginning to suspect that the boastful old man was leading him to self-inflicted suffering. He only believed it when he saw that the boastful old man was also wearing such soft clothing for cultivation. After trying it for a period, he discovered that the speed of cultivating his inner energy had indeed increased significantly, and thus he gritted his teeth and persevered until now

The Destruction Empire is not like the Neutral Star Systems of every household; countless Neutral Star Systems are far inferior to the Destruction Empire. It is one of the most powerful empires in the universe today and also the most aggressive empire.

As each needle is revealed with the soft garment, one can clearly see the silver needles emerging from the skin and flesh, stained with blood

If this woman truly has the potential to disrupt the imperial royal bloodline, then her likelihood of being a mercenary is almost zero. This is because, throughout history, there have been virtually no royal bloodlines that have not served the empire.

Wang Qi looked at the disheveled old men by the roadside, who had not bathed for an unknown period, squatting there without speaking to each other, likely too weak from hunger to talk. He thought to himself: 'These old men are talking nonsense! How can they still claim to be happy when they are in such a miserable state!'

Not even willing to change shoes? Wang Qi secretly wondered. Compared to wearing such a cloak, it would undoubtedly be much easier to change into a pair of shoes that wouldn't draw attention from the librarian. The fact that this person did not do so could not possibly be attributed to oversight.

When Wang Qi lay down in the guesthouse, he tugged at his collar and muttered, "Earning money like this is really dull"

Wang Qi grew up in the village of Gonyong, practicing the basics with various retired mercenaries and learning their skills. Since these mercenaries had many different ways of training their inner energy, each boasting about how formidable they were in their prime, he tried numerous methods for cultivating his inner strength. Ultimately, he found that the approach of the boastful old men was the most reliable.

Wang Qi rushed forward without a second thought, as two buckets of water were splashed past him from behind, missing him by a hair's breadth

What a forceful action! It splashed all over me!

What is this? Is it not allowed to pierce the skin? A masochist?

One can only sleep on the streets, as one must wait to be hired in the bustling streets where mercenaries are concentrated

Complaints aside, Wang Qi continued to clean his soft armor as usual. After taking a bath, he disinfected the silver needles with flames, and once cooled, he put them on again just as he had taken them off.

Wow! That was so fast!

Many so-called cultivation manuals are merely methods for unlocking various potential codes. However, why do different individuals achieve vastly different results with the same manual? This is because the potential codes of each individual are not identical, just as each person has their own unique strengths and weaknesses. The emergence of mental force signifies that potential has been activated to a relatively high degree

——

Only a fool would seek trouble for no reason, but fortunately, Wang Qi is not one of them

Thus, a self-aware and effective method was pieced together. Later, the most was learned from the boastful old man. One day, that boastful old man mysteriously passed on to Wang Qi a method of practice, claiming it to be a divine skill that shook the universe, unprecedented in history, and shrouded in the utmost mystery

In the dimly lit corridor, after Wang Qi's departure, a large group of people emerged one after another from around the corner, each cloaked in a cape

As soon as these words were spoken, every member of the group led by the beautiful Sai shook their heads and waved their hands, urgently exclaiming: "We will not go as a proxy!"

The old man who boasts has said that the royal bloodline of the Destruction Empire possesses snow-like eyes, which are particularly chilling to behold in the dark. Although I have never seen it with my own eyes, the gaze of this woman is indeed very similar. Could she be from the Destruction Empire? Wang Qi couldn't help but feel a sense of dread; it is no wonder he is afraid.

This feeling of oppression is so similar to when Old Wang, who boasts endlessly, taught me martial arts... Wang Qi secretly wondered, noticing that the edge of the cloak worn by the person from the past was stuck with quite a bit of light green dry mud, which reminded him of the color of the soil he had seen in the woods during his practice at the Free Mercenary Guild after getting off the Pachi Beast.

These needles have indeed pierced Wang Qi's body

The beautiful women prioritized—Wang Qi leaned against the wall of the dimly lit corridor, trying to make as much space as possible for them to pass through

He involuntarily slowed his pace and saw the leader wearing a cloak, of medium height, slightly bowing his head as he approached. He hurriedly stepped aside to make some space, but as the man brushed closely past Wang Qi's chest, an inexplicable sense of oppression enveloped his body and mind, leaving Wang Qi feeling quite uncomfortable

As soon as I stepped through the door of the guesthouse, a sense of crisis immediately enveloped me

Wang Qi, you still do not understand. A group of important companions who can rely on each other for life, even if they endure hunger together, their hearts remain warm; but if one is alone, even if they dine on the most expensive meals in the finest hotels every day, their heart feels desolate. As long as one survives without starving, looking back, that will become a precious memory of happiness

Those mercenaries who sit by the roadside and lean against the corners of buildings, unable even to afford a place in an inn, are the grassroots of this industry

"He must be killed; it has already been done. Follow him; this person may possess something that belongs to our empire. Investigate his background."

Having removed his outer garment, Wang Qi carefully peeled away the highly elastic fabric that clung tightly to his skin. At first glance, it resembled the usual close-fitting protective clothing, but upon lifting it, he discovered an irregular arrangement of barbed spikes underneath.

He does not remember how much he drank, only that he has coughed and vomited about twenty times

The person capable of such actions, Wang Qi, knows immediately who it is, other than that group of shameless roommates who cannot find anyone else.

"Speak up—are you here to promote an advertisement or to act as a stooge?" The most enthusiastic foodies, filled with a sense of self-awareness, proactively volunteer, having long anticipated that Wang Qihui would seize the opportunity to make money. Naturally, this involves them in advertising or boasting about how impressive his information is.

Wang Qi attended to more than twenty tables of various guild members from the Remote Travel Trial Zone in one night, bustling about. Although he successfully managed the situation and gathered more valuable information, by the time it was nearing dawn, he was nearly exhausted.

Forget it. The person who brushed past him was also a woman, her cold voice whispering in the night like a gentle breeze. She turned around, her face still concealed by the hood of her cloak and the dim light, but her eyes, covered in a frost-like chill, seemed to shimmer with a piercing icy light in the darkness, involuntarily sending a shiver down Wang Qi's spine

The short man immediately shouted: "I am responsible for sending out inappropriate advertisements! Nowadays, there are many clever people; being a stooge in the academy will mostly get you scolded. If you act as a stooge here, you might even get beaten to death by people from other academies! Whoever wants to go, go!"

The woman who had previously scolded Wang Qi gazed at the intersection leading to the street, her eyes lingering for a long time before she said: "Captain, for the sake of caution, please allow me to take care of him."

The old man boasting said: The so-called cultivation is the process of continuously stimulating one's own potential. The method of stimulation is not important; the more efficient, the better, and the less harmful to the body, the better. The so-called mental energy is the degree of potential release obtained by unlocking the body's potential code. It is well known that basic cultivation becomes increasingly inefficient over time, as it can only unlock a limited potential. Once this part is fully unlocked, progress naturally stagnates.

Then I will not be polite. Wang Qi continued forward, but secretly directed most of his perceptual attention towards the woman behind him, while the other part was focused on the unknown number of people at the corner.

Chapter Introduction: The shining snow-like eyes in the darkness, the chilling coldness coursing through the body and mind, this moment of a fateful encounter marks the beginning of a story

is not

At dawn, Wang Qi was busy posting advertisements near the entrance of an inn. When he returned to the inn around noon, he learned that the second group of people from his college had already arrived

This cloak, with its hem trailing on the ground, is clearly not intended to appear stylish, but rather to conceal oneself, even to the extent of preventing others from seeing one's shoes

"No need, you go first." The woman did not appreciate the sentiment, her bright, piercing gaze nearly causing Wang Qi's smile to falter. If it were not for his thick skin and strong composure, he would have certainly fled in embarrassment at that moment.

"A bunch of bastards have even caught up with the second batch?" Wang Qi smiled as he watched the short man and the beautiful Sai accuse each other.

"What are you looking at?" A cold voice suddenly echoed in the dim corridor, as another cloaked woman stood where the person had just passed by, clearly not harboring any goodwill