Carrying his long spear, Hong Yu slowly walked over to Yangg Lin's side. He held the spear in one hand, angling it down to press the sharp tip against Yangg Lin's throat.
A massive wound, torn open by the terrifying energy of the earlier explosion, gaped on Yangg Lin's chest, and fresh blood had dyed more than half his robes red. Feeling the sharp, cold tal of the long spear, he couldn't help but swallow, a bitter expression crossing his face. "To think that after all my years in the martial world, I, Yangg Lin, could still so badly misjudge soone. Compared to you, that Duan Hong from before was nothing but a piece of shit!"
"Heh..."
Hong Yu rely quirked his lips, offering no comnt.
It was Shi Tao and the others whose expressions stiffened upon hearing this. So even cast sympathetic glances toward Duan Hong.
Duan Hong hung his head, fists clenched, his entire body trembling.
Rage. Pure fury. He had reached the absolute limit of his anger.
The problem was, Yangg Lin—the very man who'd said it—had just defeated him, leaving him unable to refute the claim.
He had been hailed as a genius his entire life, the center of everyone's attention. To now be called a piece of shit... one can only imagine the impact. Duan Hong's teeth ground together with a harsh GRATING sound, his eyes glinting with venomous resentnt. 'That bastard Hong Yu... It's all his fault. All of it! If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have been humiliated like this...'
If anyone among the new disciples understood Duan Hong best, it was Dongfang Lang.
He subtly shifted over to Duan Hong's side and, with a blank expression, spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear. "Junior Brother Duan, you must really hate that Hong Yu right now, don't you?"
"What do you want?" Duan Hong shot him a cold glance.
Dongfang Lang chuckled eerily. "Don't be so sensitive, Senior Brother Duan. I just want you to know that I loathe Hong Yu every bit as much as you do."
After a pause, he continued, "I've heard that this Hong Yu offended the Four Kings, and they've already put the word out that they're going to make him suffer. Senior Brother Duan, you should know that with our level of strength, we'll be eliminated from the inner sect after the ranking tournant six months from now if we don't find a powerful backer. The Four Kings would be an excellent choice!"
"You an?"
Duan Hong's eyes lit up as he asked hesitantly.
A cold glint flashed through Dongfang Lang's eyes. "The mont we get a chance, we'll..." He trailed off, making a throat-slitting gesture.
A wave of malevolence surged in Duan Hong's eyes, and he nodded viciously. "Good!"
Their conversation was extrely discreet. Even Shi Tao, standing nearby, didn't notice, let alone Hong Yu, who was much farther away.
Completely unaware of the duo's sinister intentions, Hong Yu slowly squatted down to look at the defeated Yangg Lin. "If you want to live, you'll answer whatever I ask."
"What do you want to know?" Yangg Lin asked.
Hong Yu said, "I hear you're not from the Fengyue Kingdom."
"What?"
Yangg Lin's eyes darted around. Even though he quickly composed himself, Hong Yu still caught that flicker of panic. It only made him more certain of what he had heard. He continued, "I also hear that your gang is occupying Liger Ravine because you're looking for sothing."
"Y-You're spouting nonsense! We're from the Fengyue Kingdom. We occupied Liger Ravine to rule this territory as our own," Yangg Lin said.
"And you think I'd believe that?" Hong Yu said with a wry tone.
Yangg Lin: "..."
Hong Yu curled his lip. "Alright then. Tell the truth, and maybe I'll consider letting you go. Otherwise..."
He pushed the long spear in his hand forward a fraction of an inch, the sharp tip breaking the skin on Yangg Lin's throat.
The stinging pain in his neck gave Yangg Lin a taste of death. He struggled to speak. "If I tell you, my organization won't spare either..."
Hong Yu replied, "As long as you cooperate, I guarantee you'll live! Don't forget, no matter how powerful your organization is in the Celestial Star Kingdom, this is the Fengyue Kingdom—the domain of the Cyan Nether Sword Sect!"
Yangg Lin's expression was a whirlwind of indecision.
After a long mont, he heaved a long sigh and smiled bitterly. "Alright, you've convinced . It's true we had another purpose for being in Liger Ravine. We were..."
"WHOOSH!"
Yangg Lin was mid-sentence when the sound of sothing slicing through the air suddenly erupted from the void.
A pale blue arrow, looking as if it were forged from solid ice, radiated a faint, bone-chilling cold as it flew. It was unbelievably fast. So fast that before Hong Yu could even react, it buried itself in Yangg Lin's body with a soft THUD. Hong Yu's gaze hardened, and he instantly kicked off the ground to retreat.
The instant Hong Yu leaped away, a layer of frosty, pale blue energy spread across Yangg Lin's body, originating from where the Ice Arrow had pierced him.
"CRACK! CRACK!"
Amidst a series of sharp cracking sounds, fissures spread across Yangg Lin's body. With a loud BANG, he exploded into a cloud of glittering ice dust.
A series of sharp gasps rippled through the crowd.
A mighty Earth Soul Realm expert, utterly obliterated by a single arrow, leaving not even a bone behind. How terrifying must that attack have been?
"Dammit."
Hong Yu spat in frustration, his narrowed eyes scanning the direction the arrow had co from. "Co on out! Why are you still hiding?"
"Heheheh, that worthless Yangg Lin really was useless! To think he'd lose to a snot-nosed brat." As the eerie, effeminate voice echoed, three figures erged from the dense ranks of the Thief Gang.
The three of them walked side-by-side.
The person in the center was strikingly androgynous, their fingers held in a delicate, flower-like gesture, making it impossible to tell if they were male or female.
To the left was a masked woman, holding a large, strangely shaped Crystal Ball in her hands.
Only the middle-aged man on the right was a dwarf.
He appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with a drooping mustache, but he was only about as tall as an adult's knee.
In his right hand, he held a crossbow. Clearly, it had fired the arrow that had just killed Yangg Lin.
"Who are you?"
Hong Yu asked, his voice grave.
The appearance of these three put imnse pressure on him.
Especially the androgynous man in the center. His re presence made Hong Yu's skin crawl. When Hong Yu t his eyes—so pure and unnaturally black—he had the distinct, unnerving feeling of being seen through completely.
The androgynous man grinned, delicately tucking a strand of hair behind his ear with one long finger, but said nothing.
Instead, it was the dwarf with the crossbow who spoke, his expression impossibly arrogant. "I'm the great Niu Ben, Third Commander of the Mountain Opening Tiger Thief Gang."
Niu Ben pointed to the veiled woman holding the Crystal Ball. "This is our Second Commander, Wu Yunyu. As for the one in the middle, he's our boss, Hua Feihua!"
A muscle in Hong Yu's cheek twitched, and he felt a little nauseous. "Hua Feihua? What the hell kind of na is that for a grown man?"
"Brat, you actually killed Yangg Lin! Heheheh, not even your Cyan Nether Sword Sect Master could save you today!"
Niu Ben cracked his knuckles, producing a series of sharp, grating pops. His eyes shone with a terrifying light, and killing intent billowed off him.
At that mont, the androgynous man slightly lifted his head.
An icy glint flickered in his eyes. He spoke in a soft, hushed tone, "Niu Ben, why are you wasting so much breath on a dead man? Kill him already. We have important business to attend to."
"Heheh, I'm on it. Killing a little punk like this will be a piece of cake."
Niu Ben chuckled, slamming his fists together with a resounding BOOM, but he didn't attack right away. Instead, he looked over at Shi Tao and the others. "Hey, you lot over there. Are you planning on fighting alongside him?"
"Hm?"
Shi Tao's expression changed abruptly.
He was intimidated by the terrifying aura coming from Niu Ben. Instead of answering, he looked at Duan Hong and Dongfang Lang and sent a voice transmission: "What do you two think?"
"Those three are too strong. I'm afraid only Senior Brother Ling Tian would have the strength to fight them. As for us... unless we all team up, we'll be no match for them," Dongfang Lang said with a grim expression.
Duan Hong nodded. "Especially that damned androgyne in the middle. I can feel an imnse threat coming from him."
Shi Tao gritted his teeth and thought, 'This Hong Yu is too much trouble, and his ability to fight above his realm is terrifying. He's this powerful at only the Half-Step Earth Soul Realm. If I let him continue to grow, I'll be in for a world of hurt later on.'
'I might as well use this opportunity... '
At this thought, Shi Tao said aloud, "These three Commanders are too strong. We're no match for them."
"Senior Brother Shi, aren't you underestimating us a bit?" Duan Hong frowned.
But it was Dongfang Lang who reacted first, asking suspiciously, "Senior Brother Shi, do you have so kind of beef with Hong Yu?"
"Yes!"
Shi Tao nodded heavily. "I was tasked by soone to make him disappear from this world."
"In that case, the three of us are allies."
The three exchanged a look and nodded silently.
"Audacious villains! You dare to act so lawlessly within the borders of the Fengyue Kingdom and commit such heinous cris! Our Cyan Nether Sword Sect will never forgive you."
Shi Tao then turned to Hong Yu and declared with an air of profound righteousness, "Junior Brother Hong, your strength is formidable! You are a rising star in the Sword Sect, destined for a limitless future. We'll leave this opportunity to earn great rit to you!"
With a solemn expression, Shi Tao spun around and shouted to the other Sword Sect disciples, "Disciples of the Sword Sect, hear my command! The enemy is too strong to fight head-on. We must consider the bigger picture and retreat imdiately!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shi Tao took the lead and fled.
Dongfang Lang quickly added, "We can't be a burden to Hong Yu here. Let's leave at once!"
Duan Hong also put on a righteous face, cupping his fist toward Hong Yu. "Junior Brother Hong, the great task of slaying these villains, who are an offense to both heaven and earth, falls to you. This senior brother has other important business to attend to!"
And with that, the two of them also ran after Shi Tao.
Led by the trio, the thousand-plus Sword Sect disciples dared not disobey. One by one, they abandoned Hong Yu and fled in disarray.
Watching the Sword Sect disciples scatter like rats, Hong Yu's face turned livid.
Niu Ben and the other two commanders were stunned for a mont, looking at each other in confusion. "...What just happened?"
"Hmph. You think you can escape once we've targeted you?"
The Second Commander sneered and imdiately led a group of elites in pursuit. "I'll take care of them. This little one is all yours!"
The Second Commander's speed was astonishing.
She quickly caught up to Shi Tao's group. Left with no other choice, they were forced to turn and fight, and a chaotic battle erupted in an instant.
"Heheheh, now it's our turn!"
Niu Ben looked at Hong Yu, a savage sneer on his face. His eyes were bloodshot like an enraged bull's, and twin streams of hot air puffed from his nostrils as his killing intent solidified.
An icy aura instantly locked onto Hong Yu as the two Commander Level experts suddenly attacked.
Their powerful montum shot to the heavens, making Hong Yu's scalp tingle.
"War Trample!"
Niu Ben suddenly roared. He stomped his feet hard on the ground and charged forward like a maddened bull.
His speed was also incredibly fast, and he was in front of Hong Yu in the blink of an eye.
"Get back!"
Hong Yu furiously counterattacked, sweeping out with his Double-Bladed Long Fist, creating a stunning sonic BOOM.
Instead of being surprised, Niu Ben was delighted. He laughed loudly. "Good, good, good! This makes killing you more interesting!" As he spoke, Niu Ben suddenly ducked low, accelerated, and threw a punch to et Hong Yu's.
"BANG!"
Fist t fist. Unable to withstand the terrifying force, Hong Yu was knocked backward.
"Die!"
Niu Ben's eyes filled with a bloodthirsty light. He took an Arrow Step forward to close the distance with Hong Yu, his five fingers forming a claw as he swiped viciously at Hong Yu's head.
This claw had the power to shatter stone and tal. If it connected, Hong Yu's head would undoubtedly explode, and he would die on the spot.
But he was currently off-balance—an awkward state that left him unable to counter the fierce attack. He couldn't even mount a defense. He could only watch helplessly as Niu Ben's claw ca down on him.
A trace of despair appeared in Hong Yu's eyes...
'Am I going to die?'
User Comments
0 comments from readers