Obtaining Top Art on Family's Extermination Night

Chapter 341: Chapter 174: Walking into the Trap

Tang Lie stared at Fang Shuwen, his face a mask of utter confusion. He wanted to ask, but he was worried Fang Shuwen would call him an idiot.

But after agonizing over it for a while, he couldn’t help but ask anyway:

"So what does this have to do with the Celestial Martial Grand Assembly?"

Fang Shuwen suddenly gave Tang Lie a rather complicated look.

There was no mockery in his eyes, but there was pity.

When Tang Lie understood the look, he felt even more uncomfortable from head to toe.

Fang Shuwen sighed.

"We’ll reach Celestial Martial Peak on Liuxia Mountain in seven days at most.

"They chose this exact moment to frame me for murder. What do you think... could possibly be the reason?"

Seeing that Tang Lie still didn’t get it, Fang Shuwen felt the urge to kill rising within him.

’I’ve traveled the Jianghu for so long, and this is the first time I’ve ever met someone so dense.’

Fighting the urge to beat the guy to death, Fang Shuwen did his best to explain calmly,

"News of the Celestial Martial Grand Assembly on Celestial Martial Peak has already spread throughout the entire Jianghu.

"The Jianghu people of the Northern Domain Martial World have all been mobilized; they’re all heading to Celestial Martial Peak.

"Under these circumstances, a rumor starts spreading that I, Fang Shuwen, have been slaughtering innocents. What do you think will happen?

"Even you were planning to ’expose’ the ’truth’ of my ’slaughter of innocents’ at the Celestial Martial Grand Assembly, and you’re still asking this kind of question?"

As soon as he heard that, realization dawned on Tang Lie.

"You’re saying that all the experts from the Northern Domain on Celestial Martial Peak will join forces to attack you!!!"

Fang Shuwen let out a long, slow breath.

"What else?"

Tang Lie understood now. He thought about it carefully, then said to Fang Shuwen,

"You’ve offended someone."

He stated the obvious with a completely serious tone.

The corner of Fang Shuwen’s mouth twitched.

"And I suppose I should thank you for the reminder?"

"Don’t mention it."

Tang Lie looked at the carnage around them.

"So, you didn’t kill all these people?"

"I already told you, I didn’t."

Fang Shuwen had no intention of letting this misunderstanding escalate. As for notions like ’I live my life as I see fit and owe no one an explanation’—Fang Shuwen felt that was entirely unnecessary.

He would take responsibility for his own actions.

But to be saddled with the blame for something he didn’t do?

’Am I a lunatic?’

Right now, Fang Shuwen just wanted to drag the people pulling the strings out into the open, tear them all to pieces, and in doing so, avenge these innocent villagers who had died so tragically.

"Then these people... these people are too vile!"

Tang Lie was suddenly filled with righteous indignation.

"How could they kill so many innocent commoners just to frame one person?"

But after saying that, he couldn’t help but shoot another glance at Fang Shuwen.

"Wait, you’re not trying to trick me, are you?

"I’m telling you, I’m very sharp. You can’t fool me!!"

Fang Shuwen suddenly waved a hand. Tang Lie’s expression changed, and he instinctively tried to cover his face.

But his limbs wouldn’t move.

A force materialized and settled over him. His whole body jolted, and he found himself standing up.

He finally freed his hands to shield his face, but after waiting for a long moment, the expected slap never came. When he came to his senses, he realized with a pleasant surprise:

"I can move again?"

"..."

Fang Shuwen gestured lightly.

"You can go."

"Huh?"

Tang Lie was stunned.

"You’re letting me go?"

"Why would I keep you?"

Fang Shuwen retorted.

"The two of us don’t have many rations. We can’t afford to feed a third mouth."

"But everyone says Fang Shuwen is ruthless and cruel. How could you possibly let me go?"

"That’s just slander spread about me by the Jianghu people."

Fang Shuwen said coolly,

"You don’t know me. I’ve never been one to kill the innocent."

"..."

Tang Lie wasn’t entirely convinced, but his Inner Strength had indeed returned, and his limbs were working normally again.

Though his injuries were not light, they didn’t hinder his movement.

With the facts laid out before him, he had no choice but to believe.

He looked at Fang Shuwen once more.

"You really didn’t kill these people?"

"Whether I killed them or not is no longer important. What’s important is that if you keep spouting nonsense, you *will* be someone I’ve killed."

Fang Shuwen raised his eyes and glanced at Tang Lie.

In that instant, every single pore on Tang Lie’s body clenched shut.

In his eyes, the Fang Shuwen of that moment was a Demon God walking through a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

An overwhelming, terrifying aura washed over him.

It felt as if the other man could kill him a thousand times over with a single thought.

"I’m going!!!"

The courage in Tang Lie’s heart suddenly shattered, and he immediately turned and fled.

Fang Shuwen withdrew his gaze, not watching him leave, and simply stared into the dancing flames, lost in thought.

After a long while, he slowly let out a breath.

Long Qingzhi couldn’t help but ask,

"Brother Fang, are you really just letting him go?"

Fang Shuwen smiled.

"Ever been fishing?"

"No..."

Long Qingzhi shook her head.

"My father used to love fishing. He’d get so smug whenever he caught a big one.

"Mother was always complaining about him..."

Fang Shuwen couldn’t help but chuckle. So, after all that, Long Qingzhi’s father was a fishing fanatic.

He said softly,

"Fishing is one of those things. It can be difficult, but it can also be simple.

"When it’s time to chum the water, you chum. When it’s time to bait the hook, you bait it...

"Sometimes you have to go with the flow, and other times, you have to be decisive."

Long Qingzhi listened, utterly bewildered, not understanding why he had suddenly started teaching her how to fish.

Still, she listened intently. She loved listening to Brother Fang, no matter what he was saying.

...

...

Tang Lie ran for his life. Only after he had gone a great distance did he finally let out a long breath.

He subconsciously reached for the hilt of his saber, but his hand grasped at empty air.

Only then did he remember that when he had attacked Fang Shuwen earlier, his own blade seemed to have been ’eaten’ by that sword of his.