Chapter 501: Chapter 500: Ruthless
"Brother Shi, are you alright?"
"Xiaole."
Ai Wenhong, Crown Sword Marquis, and Yang Feng, who were faster than the others, arrived in front of Shi Xiaole. The thought that this friend had narrowly escaped death made them all shudder.
Shi Xiaole smiled, stating that he was fine.
Elder Yan’s sneak attack was indeed strong, but luckily the Wave Sword Lord timely intervened. More than ninety percent of his power was discarded, and what remained was not enough to injure Shi Xiaole.
However, what puzzled Shi Xiaole was that he had a feeling that the real strength of the Wave Sword Lord should be less than that of Elder Yan. How could his last sword strike seriously hurt him?
Not only was he puzzled, but so was the Wave Sword Lord himself.
"Strange, Elder Yan’s aura was a bit off earlier. Could it be that his injuries haven’t healed yet?"
Before the Linjiang Immortal Gathering, news of the Spring Night Hell and Tianyuan Association jointly attacking Xuanmen made great waves in the Martial World. It was said that all three parties suffered heavy losses. Elder Yan, in order to protect Lu Zixiong, was reportedly injured by the leader of Xuanmen.
After pondering for a while and getting nowhere, the Wave Sword Lord shook his head. His eyes landed on the youth in blue, who walked over with a casual, yet incredibly elegant and alluring demeanor.
"Senior Ai, I’m sorry for involving you in this."
The youth in blue spoke apologetically.
"I might be able to save you once, but not necessarily twice or three times. You’ve offended the Tianyuan Association, and life won’t be easy for you from now on."
The Wave Sword Lord said with a smile, "Why not come back with me to the Ai family? Even if Lu Zixiong is arrogant, he would not dare to venture into the Ai family. Once you have the power to protect yourself, it’s not too late to leave."
If it were just a normal friend of Ai Wenhong, the Wave Sword Lord would not have been so polite. But Shi Xiaole was different.
He had heard of his every move at the Linjiang Immortal Gathering, even at Tianyi Inn, as well as the personal stories from Shi Xiaole’s past, and the Wave Sword Lord couldn’t help but appreciate this young man.
Both talent and strength might make people cautious, but it is high-quality character that makes people approachable.
Both he and the Ai family were willing to approach this young man.
"Since the senior has invited, I dare not refuse"
Shi Xiaole nodded in agreement.
Although the Martial World is currently dangerous, Shi Xiaole is confident in dealing with it through disguise. Besides, he doesn’t have a specific destination at this moment, and it wouldn’t hurt to lie low in the Ai family for a while.
Anyway, it’s just a matter of finding a quiet place for cultivation. There are many talented people in the Ai family. Maybe he could have a good exchange with them.
Such a casual and comfortable attitude surprisingly puzzled the Wave Sword Lord, who then burst into hearty laughter. He liked this young man more and more.
Not long after, the Wine Beggar came back with his wine gourd, looking rather frustrated.
"Uncle Wine, where are the Black and White Impermanence?"
Ai Wenhong asked.
"Humph, those two ghosts can’t fight but run fast. Next time I see them, you’ll see how I’ll deal with them."
"I guess it’s because Uncle Wine couldn’t defeat them and ran back himself."
"Why, you impudent kid, what nonsense are you spouting!"
Dissatisfied, the Wine Beggar raised his head for a swig of wine. He coughed violently due to the urgency, spraying all of it onto Ai Wenhong’s face.
"Hahaha..."
Seeing Ai Wenhong’s stupefied and disgusted expression, everyone around them laughed.
With the crisis averted, they cleaned up and resumed their journey. It’s worth mentioning that the young man in black had disappeared, and no one knew when he had vanished.
...
Thud!
In a distant jungle, a figure clad in black falls to the ground. His already wrinkled face appears even older.
"What happened? I recovered from my injuries half a month ago. Dealing with that Fellow Ai Botao should have been effortless. There’s no way I was injured by his sword."
Elder Yan looked gloomy as he slowly wiped the blood from his face.
As a superpower in Xuanwu State, the Tianyuan Association naturally has its secret channels. When Lu Zixiong and Elder Yan received the exact news about the Linjiang Immortal Gathering, they both couldn’t believe it.
Shi Xiaole?
The one they chased to a dead end in the Spring Night Hell and could only escape into dangerous territory to fend for himself?
At first, they thought it was someone with the same name and surname. It was only after seeing Shi Xiaole’s portrait that they confirmed that the boy had miraculously survived and was even more powerful!
Lu Zixiong almost immediately made a decision, sending his most trusted servant to kill Shi Xiaole, unwilling to let this trouble continue to grow.
After receiving the order, Elder Yan made haste, travelling day and night. By the time he arrived, through various news, it was exactly after the dispute had ended.
Elder Yan had initially thought that killing Shi Xiaole would be an easy task. However, despite using all his strength, not only did he fail to harm Shi Xiaole, but he nearly put himself at risk.
Even until now, he was still confused.
"Could it be that my injuries haven’t fully healed and triggered the old ones?"
After resting for a while, Elder Yan felt somewhat better, and turned into black smoke as he flew away into the distance.
No matter how, he had to report the news here to the Assembly Master as soon as possible so they could devise a strategy.
...
On a hill in the opposite direction of Elder Yan.
The youth in black sat on the ground, looking weak, but felt much better after swallowing a pill.
"Holy Son, you shouldn’t have been so reckless."
Next to him, a short old man said helplessly. Seeing the black-clad young man’s fixed gaze, he sighed deeply and also looked at the young girl and the old man ahead.
Black veil embraced the young girl’s charming jade body, her exposed neck and face were whiter than snow. Her beautiful eyes were like autumn waters, flashing with myriad emotions.
This face, which exhausted all the charm of the world, made the distant green mountains and blue waters lose their colors, and the black-clad youth, though severely injured, was still in a daze.
"Saintess, the Holy Son just narrowly escaped great danger. Why did you stop me from killing that Shi kid?"
The small and stout old man shouted at the black-clad girl.
"Old Qi, are you confident that after killing Shi Xiaole, we can retreat calmly?"
Ren Mengzhen’s counter-question shut Old Qi’s mouth immediately.
It can only be said that everyone underestimated the strength of the Wave Sword Lord. This time he quietly took the black-clad youth back, thanks to the master who sneakily attacked, or the outcome wouldn’t have been so smooth.
"Old Qi, this matter has nothing to do with Junior Sister, don’t talk too much!"
The black-clad youth rebuked lightly, then immediately looked at Ren Mengzhen, his infatuation barely hidden: "Junior Sister, I almost didn’t get to see you this time. That kid is despicable, using a spirit secret method to plan against me. Otherwise, I would never lose. This favor, next time, I’ll return it a hundredfold."
"Alas."
Ren Mengzhen sighed lightly and said, "Senior Brother, have you forgotten my words? We should not reveal ourselves now. If anyone figures out your martial arts moves, wouldn’t it endanger our entire plan?"
"Junior Sister, Senior Brother was wrong. I will never make a move without your permission. Can you forgive Senior Brother?"
The black-clad youth could not bear to see Ren Mengzhen disappointed. He pleaded almost like begging. His pride in front of others seemed to be thrown somewhere far away.
Uncle Lu, standing behind Ren Mengzhen, discreetly shook his head. But he had to admit, even without deliberately trying, the Saintess was enough to make every man in the world lose their mind. Let alone Senior Brother who had known her for some time.
"Mengzhen will not blame Senior Brother."
Ren Mengzhen squatted down, smiled sweetly, causing the black-clad youth to lose himself and his breath deepened, greedily inhaling the increasingly near body scent.
"Uh..."
Suddenly, his expression changed and the face of the black-clad youth twisted.
He slowly lowered his head and saw a dagger deeply plunged into his chest. The slender hand holding the dagger was white as jade. It was the one thing he had dreamed of holding.
"Senior Brother, rest assured and go. Although Mengzhen is a young girl, she will not hold a grudge against a dead man."
"Why, why, I liked you so much, I was willing to die for you."
"Mengzhen does not need a person who hinders the plan and does not follow orders."
The black-clad youth tried hard to reach out to touch the fine hair on her forehead. Just as his fingertips were about to reach her, Ren Mengzhen suddenly took a step back.
A single step made the unreachable dream now separated by life and death.
His eyes were losing light, and the black-clad youth slumped to the ground, breathless, his face still filled with pain till death.
"You, you ungrateful woman, just received the favor of the hall master and became our saintess. How dare you rebel and kill the son of the hall master, what should be your punishment?!"
Old Qi did not react until this moment. He was both angry and resentful, but above all, there was a thick sense of fear.
He’s dead, the Holy Son is dead!
Old Qi couldn’t even imagine the reaction of the hall master after hearing this news, but himself, the guard, would definitely be turned into bones.
"Just useless trash, let him be dead."
Ren Mengzhen said nonchalantly. She seemingly despised the blood of the black-clad youth and didn’t even bother to retrieve her dagger.
"Damned woman, you are seeking death!"
With the great flare of the Dragon Gate Realm’s pinnacle level cultivation, Old Qi lashed out towards Ren Mengzhen’s neck.
Peng!
A figure flew backwards, rolling several dozens of times on the ground. The body shriveled visibly fast. If it wasn’t Old Qi, then who could it be?
"You, you..."
Old Qi was startled to see Uncle Lu in front of Ren Mengzhen. Who knew this man, who had been silent and weaker than the average person since they met, was so strong?
The strength displayed in a split-second just now seemed to surpass even the hall master!
"Just a sub-hall’s son from the Nether Demon Hall wanted to covet the Saintess, he is courting death. Since you are so loyal, you can die too."
Uncle Lu said indifferently.
In the sound of burning flames, Old Qi’s body was gradually eroded into gas, his mouth uttering a painful laugh: "Hahaha, I was blind! Hall Master, the female disciple you accepted is not a sheep, but a deeply hidden man-eating snake. It’s a pity I can’t tell you this... "
His voice grew weaker, eventually turned into ashes, and dissipated into the world.
"Uncle Lu, what’s wrong with you?"
After dealing with two useless people, Ren Mengzhen’s mood lightened, but she suddenly noticed that Uncle Lu’s face was strange.
"It’s nothing, just thinking of an old friend."
Shaking his head, Uncle Lu cast his eyes down.
In the far-off woods, a blind old man carrying an Erhu, walked by, accompanied by an innocent little girl.
"Grandpa, you clearly saved that older brother, but you let someone else take the credit. Why do good people have to do that?"
"Hehe, sometimes when you do something, you don’t necessarily need others to know."
The little girl bounced around, her mouth pouted, and she protested: "That’s not right! If you do good deeds without leaving your name, how would others know you’re a good person and distinguish you from the bad people? It’s this kind of self-righteousness that causes many misunderstandings among you adults."
