Chapter 114: Chapter 114: The Two Lotus Lords
A starry night, the bright moon slightly waning, a gentle breeze brushing against faces.
A group of people quietly left the headquarters of the Subdue Evil Sect, sneaking towards the outskirts of Four Directions City. Before long, they arrived at a flat plain dotted with hillocks.
Nine towering pavilions, each three stories tall, stood several miles apart, within everyone’s view.
The Nine Lotus Sect was different from other martial factions in the Martial World—it was not led by a single person but jointly managed by nine Lotus Lords. The territories ruled by the nine Lotus Lords were respectively referred to as the First Pavilion, the Second Pavilion...and so on.
"Everyone, proceed with caution."
He Qingyu muttered, leading Su Junhao and several experts from the Subdue Evil Sect towards the First Pavilion.
Subsequently, the others also moved towards their respective targets as per the plan previously discussed.
"Young Master Shi, let’s go."
A protector from the Subdue Evil Sect came up and addressed Shi Xiaole with a smile.
Shi Xiaole slightly nodded his head.
Since four of the Lotus Lords were out, He Qingyu’s plan was to combine everyone’s strength to separately take down the five Lotus Lords who had stayed behind at the sect.
Shi Xiaole and the adept fighters from the Subdue Evil Sect that followed him were responsible for the Fifth Pavilion.
"We will see."
Unexpectedly caught up in this messy affair, Shi Xiaole undoubtedly had his own thoughts.
One can’t catch a wolf without entering its den, so he planned to observe He Qingyu for a while to judge his true character before deciding on the next steps.
Soon, everyone arrived outside the Fifth Pavilion.
Guarded thoroughly, with the pavilion at the center, numerous sentry posts were set up in the surroundings. Patrols passed by intermittently.
Everyone waited patiently.
As the night struck midnight, coinciding with the change of sentry posts, Shi Xiaole gave the signal and everyone immediately charged in without making a sound.
"Alert! We are under attack!"
When they were only five paces away, the disciples at the Fifth Pavilion finally detected Shi Xiaole and the others.
"Kill!"
An adept fighter from the Subdue Evil Sect threw his arm forward and, with a swishing sound, iron darts with deadly precision pierced through several throats, causing the first wave of chaos.
Realizing their cover had been blown, the rest of the Subdue Evil Sect’s fighters had no reason to hold back. They roared and charged at the Fifth Pavilion like ferocious tigers.
Instantly, the sounds of shouting, calls to arms, and clashing of weapons filled the air. In less than a quarter of an hour, after losing more than ten men, the fighters from the Subdue Evil Sect stormed into the inner area.
"Something’s wrong."
Shi Xiaole furrowed his brows.
Although he didn’t know the exact strength of the Nine Lotus Sect, they could not have held their reign over the Four Directions City for years if they were easy to defeat. So why did they crumble so quickly?
"Retreat immediately!"
Almost instinctively, Shi Xiaole retreated instead of advancing and urgently shouted at the others.
Boom!
At the same moment, plumes of white smoke, reminiscent of bombs, exploded around them and instantly obscured Shi Xiaole and the people of the Subdue Evil Sect.
"It’s poison gas."
"Damn, we’ve fallen into their trap."
People started to collapse one after another, shuddering on the ground, their fate uncertain. Some tried to hold their breath and run towards the outer area but were abruptly cut down by hidden blades.
Due to consuming the core of the Emerald-eyed Golden Toad, the poisonous fog had no effect on Shi Xiaole. Still, with a single thought, he also collapsed onto the ground.
"Ha-ha, these fools! Did they really think the Nine Lotus Sect is so easy to oppress?"
Once the poison gas dispersed, a group of individuals surrounded them.
The two individuals at the front were an elderly man with a complexion resembling a jujube and a short, middle-aged man dressed in black. The latter man was the one speaking.
"He Qingyu really is cautious. Saying that this lad is quite proficient and that we need to handle him together. He’s really making a mountain out of a molehill."
The black-clothed middle-aged man was the Fifth Lotus Lord of the Nine Lotus Sect.
"You can’t separate He Qingyu’s rise to this position from his cautious character."
The elderly man glanced at Shi Xiaole, lying on the ground. His eyes held a glimmer of excitement.
Nobody knew that the events that were transpiring tonight were actually a big show orchestrated jointly by He Qingyu and the Nine Lotus Sect.
Conspiring with each other accomplished two objectives. On one hand, it solidified He Qingyu’s reputation as a man of justice. On the other, it provided an opportunity to capture some high-level fighters, and then, using extreme torture, they could force them to reveal their martial arts secrets.
Over the past decade or so, He Qingyu had used this tactic countless times.
Furthermore, he had reaped rich rewards—he not only gained fame but also strengthened his association with the underworld forces. Moreover, he obtained several valuable martial arts secrets. It was a situation where he killed three birds with one stone.
Initially, their target was ’Young Master Sword’ Su Junhao.
According to He Qingyu’s deduction, Su Junhao could eliminate a fourth-level Qi Absorption underworld master with three sword strokes, which strongly suggested that he had already practised a second-tier lower-class sword technique from the Truth Sword Sect.
If they succeeded in this mission, they could easily fake a death, wait for their martial arts to greatly improve, change identities, and re-emerge in the Martial World. Wouldn’t the entire Cloud Triangle be at their mercy at that time?
However, when Shi Xiaole appeared, He Qingyu immediately changed his plan.
Compared to Su Junhao, Shi Xiaole’s background was much weaker, almost negligible. Yet, his quick rise suggested he must also have a remarkable martial arts heritage.
Since both would achieve the objective, it was only rational to pick the easier target.
And so, the events of tonight were set into motion.
"What a pity, to accommodate He Qingyu this time, we of the Nine Lotus Sect will lose quite a few men."
The black-clothed middle-aged man shook his head and laughed, but his words didn’t hint at regret.
If they could gain a powerful martial arts technique and didn’t have to hide like dogs, what was the big deal in losing a few men?
"Summon the men, administer the antidote to this youth in green, take him to the dungeon and cripple his martial arts and limbs. Then, let the Grand Lotus Lord and He Qingyu handle him."
The elderly man acted swiftly and decisively, and with a wave of his hand, people all around sprung into action.
"Your tricks almost worked."
Having heard the answer, Shi Xiaole no longer pretended, as there was no need for it.
"You’re not poisoned?"
Seeing him stand up, both Lotus Lords were taken aback.
The poison smoke earlier could even harm high-ranked Qi Absorption masters, leaving the two Lotus Lords at a loss - how did Shi Xiaole withstand it?
"Hmph, a crafty rabbit has three burrows indeed. Yet even if you are not poisoned, don’t think of escaping."
After a brief pause in surprise, the middle-aged man in black regained his composure, revealing a merciless cold smile.
Although he received information that Shi Xiaole defeated the chief of the Subdue Evil Sect in just two or three strokes, the latter had admitted it was due to his carelessness.
Additionally, as the Fifth Lotus Lord, his strength was already stronger than that of the Subdue Evil Sect chief, and the Fourth Lotus Lord was a peak master of Quadruple-Qi Absorption.
The two of them together, he didn’t believe Shi Xiaole could turn the tables.
"Escape? Who says I am going to escape?"
With the two Lotus Lords in front of him, Shi Xiaole remained calm, slowly drawing the Qingfeng Sword from his waist.
"How audacious!"
His serenity did not sit well with the middle-aged man in black, let alone the elderly man with dates, who gestured to attack first.
Bang!
An invisible gust of wind thrashed towards him like a copper and iron wall, reaching Shi Xiaole’s chest without even getting close and causing a churning sensation.
With a flick of his wrist, Shi Xiaole wielded his sword and thrust it outwards.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Three sparks flew out in succession.
It was the Taiyue Three Green Peaks, a technique he hadn’t used in a long time.
Right now, Shi Xiaole’s internal power did not fall short of an ordinary Quadruple-Qi Absorption master. Strengthened by the odd and dangerous Taiyue Three Green Peaks attack, he easily repelled the old man’s palm wind.
"What?!"
This scene greatly changed the complexion of the old man, his face was a mixture of shock and rage.
He was shocked by Shi Xiaole’s capabilities, but also highly certain - He Qingyu’s speculations were correct, Shi Xiaole certainly held secrets within him.
Whoosh!
A blade’s edge rushed to his face, and the middle-aged man in black seized the opportunity to launch an attack.
As he swung his big copper-ringed knife, it let out a crisp sound, and its wind seemed like a long, sharp mountain, rolling towards Shi Xiaole layer by layer.
The Jiuxiao Ningshan Blade, a mediocre-tier but top-quality blade technique.
Under this blade technique, a martial artist with a Single-Tier Qi Absorption wouldn’t even be able to resist, let alone launch a counterattack.
Unfortunately, he was up against Shi Xiaole.
With a single step, Shi Xiaole met the continuous knife wind. His sword technique was both ghostly and elegant, its rapid changes were nothing short of bewildering.
Thirteen Skills of Mystifying Cloud and Mist.
Ding ding ding...
Within the changing sword techniques, the middle-aged man in black was horrified to find that his knife technique had been hindered - his full strength could only exert about forty to fifty percent of its power.
By the fifth move, Shi Xiaole’s sword technique had found an opening, preparing to pierce through the chest of the middle-aged man.
"Dragon Turtle Binding Palm!"
With a roar, the elder lunged forward.
Surrounding his palm were winds that faintly formed two blurry shadows, like dragon and turtle bellowing in harmony, attacking Shi Xiaole from both sides.
If Shi Xiaole didn’t let go, he would surely suffer significant damage. If he did let go, he might not necessarily have the upper hand given the two of them had the initiative.
"Obey my orders, be ready to shoot arrows at any time."
As if that’s not enough, the old man yelled to the Nine Lotus Sect masters around him.
"Scram."
As the Soul Transfer Great Method was activated, there was a bizarre color in Shi Xiaole’s eyes as he looked towards the old man.
With the two of them just three feet apart, the old man took a sudden hit, and his palm power burst like a pricked balloon.
Hiss.
In the eyes of the man in black filled with regret and bitterness, Shi Xiaole’s sword successfully killed him.
"Shoot this kid for me, kill him."
Upon regaining consciousness, the old man felt icy cold all over. As he yelled, he hastily retreated, desperately trying to put distance between him and Shi Xiaole.
He realized that the youth on the opposite side was beyond conventional wisdom and somewhat evil.
However, as long as he could put some distance between them, he would be safe from the youth’s Pupil Skill.
Watching the state of the old man, Shi Xiaole hooked his mouth, suddenly leapt up and slashed down harshly like a Phoenix Soaring Across the Sky.
His ultimate move—Phoenix Soaring.
The distance between the two was shortened drastically, and the arrows in front were broken off mid-flight.
Facing this strike, the old man felt a moment of daze and the sword felt unstoppable. The next moment, he retaliated with a loud roar and palm strike.
Rip.
In the sound of ripped cloth, the old man’s palm wind was cut open and he screamed in pain. His face was bisected by a line of blood.
In terms of internal power, Shi Xiaole lagged behind the old man at most by a third. Yet, could this third make up for the huge gap in their respective killing techniques?
With two Lotus Lords dead one after another, the Nine Lotus Sect henchmen present were startled. Seeing Shi Xiaole escape the range of the arrow rain, those who tried to flee, fled, and those who pleaded, pleaded. In an instant, they crumbled.
Ignoring them, Shi Xiaole sprinted towards the First Pavilion.
As He Qingyu intended to harm him, his countermeasures became clear.
