Chapter 151: Chapter 137: Divine Jiao Body_1
"I see."
Something stirred in Lu Yan’s heart.
He concluded that the strange old man must have left a corrupt aura on Zhao Hao, which was why Zhao Hao had been assisting him.
"Both of you are under suspicion now, so why not come with us to see the Grandmaster? The Grandmaster can check your bodies, and whomever has the corrupt aura is the one being possessed."
Said the Martial Marquis of level five.
"Fine, let’s see the Grandmaster."
Zhao Hao replied, looking calm.
"You’re not afraid of seeing the Grandmaster?"
Lu Yan stared at Zhao Hao.
"I have a clear conscience, what is there to fear?"
Zhao Hao replied, brimming with righteousness.
Lu Yan’s eyebrows furrowed, he certainly didn’t want to be examined by a group of Grandmasters, else his secrets might be exposed.
Why wasn’t Zhao Hao afraid? Could it be that his body was devoid of the corrupt aura?
Impossible. If he didn’t have it, he wouldn’t have needed to assist the strange old man in the first place.
The brain!
A light flashed in Lu Yan’s eyes.
The corrupt aura might very well be hidden in the brain.
Although the grandmasters were powerful, and their inner strength was mysterious enough to investigate the internal organs, if the corrupt aura was hidden there, it could still not escape the grandmasters’ examination.
But if it was hidden in the brain, the grandmasters would have no way of finding it.
The brain was far more fragile and related to the consciousness and higher levels of cultivation, for which the grandmasters weren’t qualified yet. The forceful examination might obliterate someone’s spirit, leading to madness at best and death at worst.
If Zhao Hao wasn’t afraid of being examined, then it must be hidden in his brain.
If Lu Yan didn’t want to be examined, then all he could do was...
A resolute look flashed through Lu Yan’s eyes and he suddenly moved, his palm shooting out like a knife.
Thud!
His palm stabbed into Zhao Hao’s heart.
Zhao Hao’s eyeballs bulged, his eyes full of disbelief; he had never expected that, under so many watchful eyes, Lu Yan would dare to kill him.
He was, after all, a member of the Zhao Clan.
Even the surrounding Limit Breaking Warriors and Martial Marquis all wore expressions of surprise.
"Rest easy, the corrupt aura in your brain will prove my innocence."
Lu Yan whispered into Zhao Hao’s ear.
Zhao Hao’s pupils dilated, letting out an unwilling howl.
Splash!
Lu Yan’s palm cut across Zhao Hao’s neck like a knife, severing his head with a swift swipe.
Zhao Hao’s head rolled a few times on the ground and stopped at the feet of the level five Martial Marquis.
"I guess the old man left a corrupt aura in Zhao Hao’s head. If we split his head open, it will prove my innocence."
Lu Yan said.
"And if your guess proves false?"
That level-five Martial Marquis asked.
"I’m willing to accept the punishment. Can someone lend me a blade?"
Lu Yan said out loud.
"Senior, catch."
A Limit Breaking Warrior threw a knife.
Lu Yan caught it and threw it at once. The war knife spun out and landed perfectly on Zhao Hao’s head, splitting it in half with a splattering sound.
A grey energy escaped from Zhao Hao’s brain, slithering like a tiny snake.
The level-five Martial Marquis grabbed this corrupt aura and smiled, saying, "Good. This is indeed the corrupt aura, and it is of the same source as the one possessed by the peculiar old man. It seems that Brother here has been misunderstood. A level-five Martial Marquis would not be so easily possessed."
Lu Yan quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
It was indeed in the brain.
The place where the old man had likely possessed was also in the brain, no wonder even the Grandmaster had a difficult time detecting it.
Killing Zhao Hao was risky, but in this situation, he had to do whatever it took to survive.
If Zhao Hao’s brain did not contain the corrupt aura, he would have to escape immediately and forget about the Heart Tempering Decision.
"May you testify for me?"
Lu Yan asked.
"Of course."
"Let’s go, all those present are witnesses. Let’s go meet the Grandmaster."
The level-five Martial Marquis said.
There was a Grandmaster stationed on the city wall, a member of the Zhao Clan at that.
They quickly found the Grandmaster and explained everything that had happened in detail.
Lu Yan also reported his assassination incident.
The Grandmaster sent someone to bring the Tofu family to testify.
Tofu had woken up by now, suffering only from minor external injuries.
With so many people testifying, Lu Yan naturally cleared himself of the suspicion.
As for the killing of Zhao Hao, his collusion with the strange old man and hiding the fact that he was possessed; constituting an attempt to assassinate the city’s Martial Artists were all capital offenses.
He deserved to die!
Those were the exact words of the Grandmaster.
After bidding farewell to the Grandmaster, Lu Yan took the Tofu family home.
...
A massive castle was built on the Blood Land Vein of the Zhao Clan, a city within a city.
Inside a villa.
Crash!
A hulking figure punched a faux mountain. The three-meter-tall, tens of thousands kilos heavy faux mountain rumbled, shattered into pieces and scattered around.
Emerging from the dust was an imposing figure.
He was a middle-aged man, seemingly in his fifties, his bare upper body showed muscles as firm as fine iron. But what shocked more was his skin covered in black scales, glistening metallically, as if he wore an armor.
A thick killing intent surged around the man, not subsiding for quite some time.
"Hao’er..."
The middle-aged man murmured, his eyes ice-cold.
This man is Zhao Yi, Zhao Hao’s father.
"Master, Hao’er’s death was too gruesome, you must avenge Hao’er,"
A still alluring middle-aged woman walked over, took Zhao Yi’s arm, sobbing with grief, and continued, "Hao’er was just forced by that freak. He was helpless, how could he be at fault? Besides, the freak was already dead, the culprit has paid his dues, Hao’er is still young, he just made a small mistake, what right did Lu Ren have to kill him...and, and...to dismember him. My poor Hao’er..."
The middle-aged woman wept bitterly.
This woman, is the real mother of Zhao Hao.
"You’re right, you’re right..."
Zhao Yi muttered to himself, the killing intent in his eyes getting even stronger.
His thoughts were the same as the middle-aged woman’s.
In his heart, the freak was already dead at that time, Lu Ren did not have the right to kill Zhao Hao, he should have handed Zhao Hao over to the Zhao clan for an investigation.
In that case, given his status, he would have been able to protect Zhao Hao’s life with proper maneuvering.
But now, it was too late.
"Even if we were to assume that Hao’er was truly possessed, Hao’er is a direct descendant of the Zhao Clan. Only the Zhao clan has the right to punish him. What’s Lu Ren anyway? What qualifies him to kill Hao’er, openly no less... Master, you must kill that Lu Ren to avenge Hao’er,"
The middle-aged woman sobbed loudly, her face full of bitterness and gnawing pain, her features twisted like a mad woman.
Whether Lu Ren acted out of self-defense or to vindicate himself, they didn’t care, and they wouldn’t even think about it.
Zhao Yi was silent for a while, "The family elders have made their decision. If I act, I will certainly be punished."
Nowadays, the Zhao clan needs the power of various major feudal lords to resist the demons. The fact that Zhao Hao was possessed is undeniable, witnessed by many. If he retaliates, it would scare off the feudal lords which would not be conducive to resisting the demons, and he would certainly be punished by the higher-ups of the Zhao clan.
"Then what can we do? Are we just going to let that Lu Ren off? How can Hao’er rest peacefully under the earth?"
The middle-aged woman roared.
"Just because I can’t act personally doesn’t mean there aren’t other ways."
Zhao Yi walked into the bedroom. Soon, he held a dark red token engraved with a crescent moon.
"I accidentally got this Dark Moon Token ten years ago. It looks like it can finally be put to use."
Zhao Yi murmured.
"Dark Moon Token? The Dark Moon Assassin organization."
The middle-aged woman gasped, revealing a hint of fear.
"That’s right, The Dark Moon organization is widespread. There’s even a branch of the organization here in Lingwang City. As long as I get the Dark Moon to act, Lu Ren’s death is certain."
"Good, good! This way, nobody will trace it back to you,"
The middle-aged woman said, as if Lu Ren was already a dead man.
The Dark Moon, the number one assassin organization in Xuan Zhou.
They rarely miss their targets for assassination, and they’re often able to kill stronger targets with weaker forces. They have even successfully assassinated a Martial Marquis Level Five martial artist with a Martial Marquis Level One assassin.
As long as the Dark Moon makes a move, Lu Ren is as good as dead.
...
The next day, at the Ten-Fragrance Building, in a private room, Lu Yan and Zhao Sirong sat facing each other.
This time, it was Zhao Sirong who invited Lu Yan for a get-together.
Zhao Sirong drank three cups alone, let out a long sigh, and said, "It seems that when Zhao Hao and we separated to chase that freak, something went wrong. He was ambushed by the freak and became possessed."
"You didn’t separate before then, did you?"
Lu Yan asked.
"No." Zhao Sirong confirmed.
"That must be it then. That was the only chance. It seems that Lin Qiuyu was also killed by that Zhao Hao and the freak."
Lu Yan stated.
"Brother Lu, Zhao Hao was enslaved by the monster, aided the wicked, and slaughtered his own kind. He deserved to die. However, you beheaded him publicly. I fear some people will bear a grudge and retaliate against you. You must be careful."
Zhao Sirong cautioned.
"You’re talking about Zhao Hao’s relatives?"
Lu Yan queried.
Zhao Sirong nodded, "Zhao Hao’s father is a man named Zhao Yi. He has reached the Martial Marquis Level Five cultivation level and is extremely strong, ranking thirty-third on the Martial Marquis List."
"The Martial Marquis List?"
Lu Yan was perplexed.
Hasn’t Brother Lu heard of it?"
"No."
"That’s understandable. The Martial Marquis List is a list launched jointly by the grandmasters of various major factions. It is only circulated among the feudal lords. It lists the thirty-six strongest current Martial Marquis within the six counties of Lingdong."
"These thirty-six people, either have extraordinary comprehension ability, and have practiced a first-rate martial art to a profound realm, or have mastered more than two first-rate martial arts, all of which have been practiced to a not shallow level."
"Or they are those with either innate or acquired martial bodies, with strong and domineering bone strength."
"Zhao Yi happens to be an innate martial body, and has trained two bone strengths."
Zhao Sirong explained.
"Two bone strengths, huh?"
Lu Yan muttered to himself, not to be underestimated.
Having two bone strengths is not a big deal, but his opponent’s cultivation level is higher, reaching Martial Marquis Level Five.
While he, is only at Martial Marquis Level Three.
If it comes to a fight, it’s uncertain who will survive.
"What kind of martial arts does that Zhao Yi practice, and to what level?"
Lu Yan asked. He naturally needed to understand this potential enemy.
"Zhao Yi practices a top-tier martial art called Divine Jiao Body. Once mastered, one is said to have the strength of a flood dragon, have armor-like scales, and be impervious to both swords and spears. Aside from being slower, there are no weak points. It is very strong, but I don’t know which level he has reached in this practice."
Zhao Sirong admitted.
"Thanks for the warning, Sirong. Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. Here, cheers to you."
Lu Yan raised his glass.
Zhao Sirong lifted her cup, clinked it with Lu Yan’s, and said, "Brother Lu, why don’t you leave Lingwang City temporarily to avoid the storm? Zhao Yi can’t take action in the open, but I’m afraid he might resort to covert means."
"I can’t leave yet, not before I’ve obtained the Heart Tempering Decision. Sirong, rest assured, I have a plan."
Lu Yan laughed.
After three rounds of drinks, the two parted ways.
Lu Yan returned to his residence, found the Tofu family, and bid them farewell.
