Chapter 202: Chapter 177: Li Xingyuan’s Demise _1
Li Xingyuan was struck in the chest by Li Wenxuan’s double palm and flew back several dozen meters, coughing up a large mouthful of blood. His chest bone was broken and a palm print was sunken into his chest.
"Are you... a Master?"
Li Xingyuan was shocked.
"Now, you know whose talent is stronger. I don’t need Martial Food, I can still break through to Master level, and I achieved it earlier than Li Wenxin. Li Xingyuan, you misjudged."
Li Wenxuan said coldly, striding towards Li Xingyuan with a crimson soft sword in his hand.
"Why?" Li Xingyuan roared.
He couldn’t understand why Li Wenxuan, whom he had watched grow up since childhood, would try to kill him.
Just because he wanted to give the Ink Jade Heart Bead to Li Wenxin?
"Go and ask the spirits."
Li Wenxuan leapt up, the sword light surged, and he stabbed towards Li Xingyuan’s chest.
Li Xingyuan could only block with his palm.
His primary skill was swordsmanship, but his sword, which he had placed by the solitary tomb earlier, was now out of reach because Li Wenxuan had knocked him back several dozen meters.
However, Li Xingyuan was, after all, an old man who had lived for more than two hundred years.
He had cultivated his primary skill of first-class swordsmanship to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts realm and had also cultivated a first-class palm technique to the transcendent realm.
His Inner Strength circulated, covering his palms and his hands became like iron palms, slapping down on the sword light.
The sword light trembled slightly, then flickered and split into dozens of sword flowers, stabbing at different parts of Li Xingyuan’s body.
"Are you... almost reaching the Unity of Man and Martial Arts realm?"
Li Xingyuan was greatly shocked in his heart.
He was a master of swordsmanship, and could tell from the first encounter that Li Wenxuan’s swordsmanship was nearly at the boundary of the Unity of Man and Martial Arts, at the peak of transcendent realm.
"Breaking through to Master level alone, and reaching such a high realm in swordsmanship, Wenxuan, if you had shown such talent, I would have passed the position of Family Head to you."
"Stop now. It’s not too late to turn back. I won’t hold today’s matters against you, and the position of Family Head will be yours in the future."
Li Xingyuan spoke loudly.
But Li Wenxuan remained unmoved, his eyes cold. He said, "Old man, do you think you can fool me with this stalling tactic, thinking I’m some naive youngster?"
In the blink of an eye, the two of them had already exchanged dozens of blows.
Li Xingyuan had been ambushed earlier and was severely injured. He had no time to heal his wounds and was gradually losing stamina under the heavy fighting, falling on the defensive and could only use his palms to defend himself.
In contrast, Li Wenxuan’s sword light surged, enveloping Li Xingyuan. He was pressuring him step by step, each move deadly.
Splat!
Suddenly, Li Xingyuan spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. His Inner Strength faltered, his palm strength weakened and a gap was exposed.
How could Li Wenxuan miss such an opportunity? His sword light surged and he stabbed out with all his strength.
Splat!
The crimson soft sword pierced from Li Xingyuan’s right chest through to his back.
"Evil creature, today I will clean up my own house."
Li Xingyuan roared angrily, his beard and hair standing on end, his Inner Strength raging. His aura soared in an instant and a solid Inner Strength poured into his palms, striking out with all his might.
"No good, I’ve been tricked."
Li Wenxuan’s expression changed suddenly.
He immediately understood that the gap just now was intentionally exposed by Li Xingyuan, luring him to approach and strike him, trading injury for injury.
However, it was too late to dodge now.
Thump thump!
Li Xingyuan’s palms landed solidly on Li Wenxuan’s body.
These two palms were thrown out by Li Xingyuan with all his might, despite his injuries, and had about seventy percent of his full strength.
This kind of power was not something a first-level Master could withstand.
Li Wenxuan was blasted dozens of meters away and nearly fell off the cliff. He finally stabilized himself by grabbing into the ground, leaving a trail of seven or eight meters in the rocks.
Li Xingyuan staggered, spat out two more mouthfuls of fresh blood, his face pale. He circulated his qi-blood to seal the sword wound in his chest to prevent excessive blood loss.
But he was confident that the blow he dealt just now caused Li Wenxuan more damage than he had taken.
However, the next moment, Li Xingyuan’s pupils dilated in shock.
He saw Li Wenxuan slowly stand up. A thick black fog filled his body, and that sunken palm print on his chest was rapidly healing.
"Martial Spirit, you are a Martial Spirit, Li Wenxuan, you’ve practiced the Way of the Martial Spirit..."
Li Xingyuan, who had lived for over two hundred years, couldn’t contain his shock and he roared out loud.
No wonder Li Wenxuan could break through to Master level without needing Martial Food.
No wonder his swordsmanship improved so rapidly.
It was because of the Martial Spirit.
Li Xingyuan turned to flee, neglecting his injuries and stimulating his potential to explode his Inner Strength to its limit.
Today, he could not die.
It was not because he was afraid of death, but because he had to get this news out.
Otherwise, a calamity would befall the Li Family.
"Old man, die. Die for me."
Li Wenxuan’s face was twisted, the black fog around him surging. A bone spur grew from his wrist, nearly three feet long, like a bone sword.
He charged forward and chased after Li Xingyuan.
Li Xingyuan hadn’t gotten far before he suddenly stopped.
Because a figure appeared in front of him.
A refined middle-aged man with a gentle appearance, like a scholar.
"Li Xingyuan, we meet again."
The refined middle-aged man smiled faintly.
"It’s you."
A look of despair appeared on Li Xingyuan’s face.
He had met this man before, the Martial Spirit who had aided the Demon King in his escape outside Lingwang City.
He was extremely powerful, capable of contending with Zhao Tiansheng.
Although he ended up at a disadvantage, he still managed to retreat casually. This showed his strength.
Bear in mind that Zhao Tiansheng was a third-level Master and the top martial artist of the six provinces in Lingdong.
Even at his peak, he was not a match for this man.
He knew that today was his day to die.
"Li Wenxuan, the Li Family, will fall at your hands."
Li Xingyuan gave a roar and turned to attack Li Wenxuan.
Before his death, he wanted to take Li Wenxuan with him.
But that was just wishful thinking.
Li Wenxuan unleashed his Martial Spirit power to increase his battle strength and blocked the desperate attacks of Li Xingyuan.
Splat!
A hand penetrated through the back of Li Xingyuan, clutched his heart, and gave a firm squeeze. Li Xingyuan’s heart burst.
But he did not die instantly. His eyes bulged in anger, locked on Li Wenxuan. He took a step forward, trying to walk towards Li Wenxuan, but he only managed three steps before he couldn’t hold on anymore and fell to the ground.
His last gaze fell on that solitary tomb.
"So tired... wife, I am coming to see you. What a pity... The Li Family..."
His voice gradually softened until there was no more sound.
The black fog around Li Wenxuan gradually receded and his expression returned to normal, silently standing next to Li Xingyuan’s body.
"What’s the matter, feeling sentimental?"
The elegant middle-aged man chuckled softly, circulating his Inner Strength to clean the bloodstains from his hand.
Li Wenxuan was indifferent, "Those who aspire to great things cannot be fettered by others. Not to mention Li Xingyuan, even in the face of a bigger trend, what are one’s children worth?"
The elegant middle-aged man clapped his hands and laughed, "Li Wenxuan, we indeed did not misjudge you."
Li Wenxuan’s gaze rested again on Li Xingyuan’s body, "I will bury you both together, at least fulfilling your last wish."
He walked to the solitary tomb with his sword, cut open the tomb, dragged Li Xingyuan’s body into the tomb, and then refilled it with earth.
"Let’s go, next is Li Wenxin,"
Li Wenxuan started descending the mountain at a brisk pace.
...
Inside Li Wenxuan’s mansion, a secret council chamber.
Li Wenxuan and his son, Li Canglin, were in a meeting.
"Father, is that old geezer finally dead?"
Li Canglin eagerly asked.
"Indeed." Li Wenxuan nodded.
"Good, good, good riddance. With that old geezer gone, the Li Family will belong to you. Can we go after Li Wenxin and Li Cangqing now?"
"Also, we can’t let that Lu Yan off the hook, I suspect that Cangxin died by his hand. Even if he didn’t, he repeatedly opposed us, he should have been dead long ago."
Li Canglin initially sounded excited but gradually a murderous intent could be sensed.
"That’s why I called you here today, to discuss this matter. We need to act against Li Wenxin and Li Cangqing in the next few days. But as Lu Yan is far in Changfeng City, if we act against Li Wenxin first, he will definitely catch wind of us and escape. Killing him will then become difficult."
"So, if we want to kill, we need to do it all at once."
Li Wenxuan advised.
"Father, leave it to me, I’ll go and deal with Lu Yan."
Li Canglin suggested.
"Alright, today is the first day of the seventh month, let’s plan to start on the third day at dawn. You go ahead and select some helpers, I’ll guard your back."
Li Wenxuan said.
Li Canglin nodded, turned around, and left. Shortly, he returned leading three figures to meet Li Wenxuan.
Since Li Canglin acted cautiously, and did not underestimate Lu Yan, he chose three elites from under Li Wenxuan.
One was of Martial Marquis Level Five, two of Martial Marquis Level Three, and he himself was of Martial Marquis Level Four.
This line-up was indicative of the respect they were giving Lu Yan.
But Li Wenxuan shook his head and said, "If Lu Yan was indeed the killer of Cangxin, if he could kill Li Wenlong and Li Wenyan back then, his strength must not be underestimated. When a lion hunts a rabbit, it should still use its full strength. We can’t be careless. I will send another person to assist you."
He clapped his hands, and a burly figure walked in. The figure moved with a dragon-like stride and tiger-like vigor, radiating an immense pressure.
Li Canglin and the others looked curious.
Because they didn’t recognize this man.
"This man is Yang Hu. He is Martial Marquis Level Five, and is extremely powerful in battle. No one can handle him unless a Grandmaster comes forward. With him accompanying you to kill Lu Yan, success will be nearly guaranteed."
Li Wenxuan said.
At present, Lu Yan had resumed revealing his true identity and all were aware, including Li Wenxuan.
But Li Wenxuan didn’t know that behind Lu Yan stood the Master of Archery.
He had heard of the occasion when five Grandmasters surrounded Liu Zhenshuo.
The Li Family’s three Grandmasters, the Ancestor of the Wei Clan, and the Master of Archery were involved.
Later, he learned the details from a middle-aged woman from Spirit Sect.
However, he didn’t know that the Master of Archery had a connection with Lu Yan.
He just thought the Master of Archery was a helper that Li Xingyuan had called upon.
This was something Li Xingyuan hadn’t told him.
Li Xingyuan only told Li Wenxin and did not tell a second person.
If he had known, he wouldn’t have been so confident.
Li Canglin was overjoyed, "Father, I’ll set off tonight and head towards Changfeng City, first to track Lu Yan’s movements, then to kill him."
"Hmm, be discreet, we don’t want to startle Lu Yan and have him run away. Besides, when cutting grass, remove the roots. Therefore, do not miss any of Lu Yan’s trusted disciples."
Li Wenxuan reminded.
"Yes," replied Li Canglin with a nod.
That night, Li Canglin, leading four great experts, set off towards Changfeng City.
The second day of the seventh month, early morning, the sky was just turning bright, the city gates were already open. Merchant caravans and citizens leaving the city for work created a bustling scene.
Li Canglin and his party of five also arrived at Changfeng City in the early morning.
They blended in with the city in disguise, chose a secluded residence to stay in, and two of the Martial Marquis Level Three disguised themselves as citizens and covertly watched the City Lord’s Mansion.
