After entering Shishui City, the group went their separate ways.
In the past, after the inter-clan martial tournant concluded, everyone would throw a grand banquet and invite guests from far and wide to celebrate.
This ti, however, not a single person brought it up.
After all, seven of the Ten Great Celestial Prodigies who participated in the finals had died. This was no small blow to the factions backing them, and at a ti like this, no one was in the mood for any gatherings. Hong Yu certainly wasn't displeased. It was good enough that these people weren't coming to cause trouble for him; how could he possibly expect them to throw him a victory feast?
As they were parting, Hong Tianduan pulled Hong Yu aside. "Hong Yu, think carefully about the advice I just gave you."
"Thank you, Third Elder. I know what to do," Hong Yu said.
Hong Tianduan nodded. He knew that geniuses disliked being restrained or controlled, so he didn't press the matter. "You look like you're in a hurry, as if you have sothing to attend to. In that case, I won't hold you up. But whatever you do, you must be on your guard against Hong Tiande…"
He paused, then added, "Co and find once you're back in the clan!"
Hong Yu nodded.
The two parted ways.
Hong Yu glanced toward the city gate and saw Hong Tiande still staring at him. He frowned, his irritation growing. 'That old dog really has his sights on . Fucking bastard, you just wait. The mont I get a chance, I'll definitely kill you.'
Previously, he had spared Hong Tiande because of Hong Tianduan's plea, suppressing his killing intent to avoid openly killing an elder and throwing the Hong Family into chaos. But everyone has a limit. If Hong Tiande refused to give up and was still determined to see him dead, Hong Yu would show no rcy.
He headed straight for the Spirit Pill Pavilion.
Realizing that Hong Tiande would never let him go, Hong Yu no longer felt it was safe to leave Yun ngyao with the Hong Family.
He had no other reliable friends in Shishui City. If Sister Qin were still around, he could have entrusted Yun ngyao to her care at the Underground Alliance, but alas, Sister Qin was nowhere to be found. After mulling it over, Hong Yu realized his only option was Master Xue Butong.
As a Spiritual Craftsman and the Pavilion Master of the Spirit Pill Pavilion, Xue Butong held a position of great importance in Shishui City.
Not even the Patriarch of the Hong Family would dare to offend him lightly.
If Xue Butong agreed to help look after Yun ngyao while he was away at the Cyan Nether Sword Sect, Hong Yu could finally leave without any lingering worries.
Just as he stepped into the Spirit Pill Pavilion, a figure rushed toward him like a gust of wind, slamming into him with a loud THUD.
"Ouch! Who the fuck doesn't watch where they're going?" Before Hong Yu could even get a clear look at the person's face, a voice began to curse loudly.
Hong Yu frowned.
'This guy clearly ran into , so why is he the one doing the cursing?'
The man who had run into Hong Yu was clutching his head, his voice sharp and grating. "You blind fool! Didn't you see this young master on his way out? It's bad enough you didn't get out of the way, but you dared to run into ? Are you tired of living?"
The corner of Hong Yu's eye twitched. "..."
'Is this guy an idiot?'
He took a closer look at the young man before him. The first glance felt familiar. A second look confird it—he knew this person!
"Tsk, tsk. I was wondering who could be so arrogant. So it's you," Hong Yu said, blinking.
"Huh?"
The brocade-robed young man froze. Clutching his head, he looked up. When he saw it was Hong Yu, his face went pale with shock. "Hong Yu?" he stamred in disbelief. "H-how can it be you? W-weren't you supposed to be dead?" Realizing his slip of the tongue, he quickly clamped a hand over his mouth.
Hong Yu paused, his sharp brows furrowing slightly. 'The people who know Hong Hu and Hong Qi tried to assassinate just returned to the city with ,' he thought. 'And Hong Tiande would certainly never let that information leak. It's impossible for anyone else to know. For Wang Ze to say sothing like that... could it be he knew all along that they were coming to kill ?'
With that thought, the question that had been nagging him was instantly resolved.
"So that's how Hong Tiande knew I was the one who killed Hong Luàn," Hong Yu muttered. "This bastard must have been the one who told him."
There's no way Hong Tiande could have obtained the intel about him and Luoo from the Underground Alliance.
Only Wang Ze and Mo Yun, the forr Hall Master of the Earth Spirit Hall, had the ans to do so.
After a quick analysis, Hong Yu pieced everything together. His expression turned grim. If his cultivation hadn't advanced by leaps and bounds during his trip to the Abyssal Mountain Range, he never would have escaped from Hong Hu and Hong Qi.
The battle that day had seed easy, but it had been fraught with peril.
If Hong Hu and Hong Qi hadn't underestimated his strength, that battle would have cost him his life.
The one who started it all was right in front of him, and a wave of fury washed over Hong Yu. If he hadn't been lucky, if Feng Xue Xin hadn't appeared at the critical mont to protect him, he would have been killed by Hong Tiande even after escaping Hong Qi and Hong Hu's ambush.
Hong Yu's face darkened. "I was wondering how Hong Tiande was so sure I was the one who killed Hong Luàn. Turns out it was you, you bastard, scheming behind my back. Damn you! Eat this!"
WHOOSH!
His Rising Dragon Fist shot through the air.
Wang Ze was only at the Seventh Layer of the Essence Realm. How could he possibly be a match for Hong Yu?
He scrambled to raise his arms to block, but the mont their fists t, his sleeves exploded into shreds. His arms snapped and twisted grotesquely, and the force of the blow sent him crashing to the floor.
"Aaaargh! My hands! My hands...!"
Wang Ze howled in agony.
A single Rising Dragon Fist had utterly shattered both his hands.
"That punch was for Sister Qin," Hong Yu said coldly, raising his other fist. "This next one is for you, you backstabbing bastard!"
Wang Ze stared at him in terror and shrieked, "No, no, no, you can't kill ! Hong Yu, my master is a Tier One Spiritual Craftsman! You can't kill ! You can't..."
"Fucking hell, I've killed Great Celestial Prodigies, so why can't I kill you?"
Hong Yu snorted, his fist about to descend.
Just then, a cold snort echoed from the second floor of the Spirit Pill Pavilion. A figure descended like a whirlwind. It was Mo Yun. He glanced at Wang Ze, who was limp on the ground and wailing, a cold light flickering in his eyes. His gaze finally settled on Hong Yu, and his face filled with astonishnt. "You little bastard. You're still alive?"
"So you had a hand in this too," Hong Yu said, his eyes narrowing.
Mo Yun faltered.
Under Hong Yu's frigid glare, he felt a chill run down his spine. He even felt a flicker of fear.
'It's an illusion. It must be. How could a re junior in the Essence Realm possibly be a threat to ?'
Mo Yun repeated this to himself, trying to regain his composure, while a grim coldness appeared on his face. "I don't know how you escaped Hong Tiande, but since you've delivered yourself to today, don't bla for being rciless!"
The mont the words left his mouth, Mo Yun attacked.
As both a Tier One Spiritual Craftsman and an expert at the Early-stage Earth Soul Realm, Mo Yun had mastered a Top-Level Martial Skill. His Dissolving Celestial Wind Palm contained a trace of a Spiritual Attack, allowing it to strike both flesh and Soul with terrifying destructive power. With this technique, Mo Yun even had the ability to challenge opponents of a higher realm.
The commotion had already drawn the attention of others in the Spirit Pill Pavilion, and the crowd cried out in alarm.
"Holy shit, isn't that Master Mo Yun, the forr Hall Master of the Earth Spirit Hall?"
"That palm strike is the Dissolving Celestial Wind Palm, a powerful Top-Level Martial Skill, I hear. Good heavens, who is that young man? To provoke Master Mo... he must have a death wish!"
"That poor kid. He's a dead man."
Hong Yu paid them no mind, his focus completely unshaken by the crowd's chatter.
He lowered his brow and suddenly raised a hand.
"Rising Dragon Fist!"
He threw a punch.
His Rising Dragon Fist, now at the Realm of Transcendence Perfection, carried a deafening Fist Montum. A faint Dragon's Roar seed to echo—AOWOO!—as the wind from his fist shot forward, as fast as lightning.
BANG!
Their fists collided, and a shockwave of energy erupted outwards.
GACK!
Mo Yun cried out as he was sent flying backward, his only remaining arm shattering completely.
His sleeve disintegrated into a shower of tatters, mixed with bits of flesh and shattered bone.
HISS!
A wave of sharp, indrawn breaths swept through the Spirit Pill Pavilion.
"Master Mo... lost?"
"Good heavens, he took out Master Mo in a single blow? Who is this kid?"
"I recognize him! I saw him during the qualifying matches for the inter-clan martial tournant. I think his na is Hong Yu, one of the Ten Great Celestial Prodigies..."
"No wonder he's so incredible. He looks to be only fifteen or sixteen, yet he has the power to instantly defeat an Early-stage Earth Soul Realm expert. His talent is even greater than the Three Prodigies and the Hegemon!"
Amid the murmuring crowd, the master and disciple pair of Mo Yun and Wang Ze both ca to their senses.
They looked at each other, seeing the wretched state of the other, and a look of disbelief flashed in their eyes. Mo Yun, in particular, was completely stunned. He had fought Hong Yu just over half a month ago, and at that ti, Hong Yu's power was nowhere near this level!
'How long has it been? And now he can defeat in a single blow?'
At that mont, Mo Yun was terrified. He was filled with regret. 'Damn it all! If I had known this guy was such a monster, I would never have thought of getting revenge!'
But now, forced into a corner, Mo Yun knew regret was useless.
Putting on a brave face, he glared at Hong Yu. "You little bastard! How dare you cause trouble in the Spirit Pill Pavilion! Heh heh, today, I will see you dead." He took a deep breath and bellowed, "Master Xue! Regarding the partnership we discussed, I'm willing to give you all the profits! I only ask that you help kill this little bastard!"
Wang Ze also yelled, "That's right, Master Xue! If you help us kill this bastard, the Wang Family will give all of its future pill business to the Spirit Pill Pavilion!"
Though the master and disciple were rely bluffing, they seed to have an undercurrent of complete confidence.
They had co to the Spirit Pill Pavilion to negotiate a deal with Xue Butong on behalf of the Wang Family. The deal was massive; under the original terms of cooperation, the annual profits were estimated to be over two to three hundred million Gold Coins. Now, Wang Ze and Mo Yun were willing to give up their entire share. This ant that if Xue Butong helped them kill Hong Yu, he would earn a profit of over five hundred million Gold Coins every year.
Five hundred million!
It was an absolutely astronomical sum.
To put it in perspective, the Hong Family, the top Noble Family in Shishui City, had only accumulated a few billion Gold Coins in liquid capital over the past century, not counting their real estate. If this deal went through, the Spirit Pill Pavilion's size and influence would skyrocket in a short ti, leaping several tiers above its current standing.
The two were confident that Xue Butong could never refuse such a tempting offer.
The sa thought was running through the minds of the other experts in the Spirit Pill Pavilion...
"I'm sure Master Xue will intervene."
"I've heard Master Xue is an expert at the Peak of Earth Soul Realm. If he gets involved, Hong Yu is a dead man!"
"A sha for such a talent. If he dies by Master Xue's hand, not even the Hong Family would dare offend Master Xue to avenge him..."
Amidst the rising murmurs, the figure of Xue Butong, who resembled a Laughing Maitreya, slowly descended from the second floor.
He had been aware of the situation on the first floor for so ti, but seeing that Hong Yu was in no danger, he had chosen not to appear. Now, however, he had no choice but to reveal himself.
"Master Xue, we implore you to..." Mo Yun and Wang Ze pleaded.
But Xue Butong didn't even spare them a glance. He simply stepped over their bodies, walked straight to Hong Yu, and offered a kindly smile. Then, he slowly spoke the words that would drive Wang Ze and Mo Yun to utter despair...
"My young friend Hong Yu, I am terribly sorry you had to experience such an unpleasantness in my establishnt. How about... I help you get rid of them?"
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