Chapter 86: Chapter 85: Reunion
"There are even legends that many famous female martial artists of that era were entangled with him.
"But then he suddenly vanished without a trace... Some say he was heartbroken and retreated from the world in disillusionment.
"Others say he got into trouble over a woman and met a violent end in the martial world.
"I never would have thought he’d end up looking like this."
Jiang Ran asked thoughtfully,
"Can you tell where that little old man comes from?"
Li Tianxin shook his head.
"That, I can’t tell.
"But his martial arts are far superior to that Jade-Faced Qilin’s. He can’t be a nobody."
Jiang Ran nodded.
Although the fight was currently a stalemate and it looked like neither side could gain the upper hand, the martial arts the little old man had displayed so far were all common routines.
He hadn’t used any of his own school’s techniques, which showed he was still holding back his trump cards and not revealing his true abilities.
Jiang Ran’s thoughts drifted, and his gaze went past the two fighters toward a cave on the side of the ravine.
Just as he was about to speak, his brow suddenly furrowed.
’More people are coming...’
The little old man seemed to sense it too. The force of his attacks, which had been light and airy, suddenly intensified, forcing the Jade-Faced Qilin back.
He looked up again to see a sky full of palm shadows, like a heavenly net, completely enveloping his opponent.
"Thousand Variations Heaven Net Palm!!"
The little old man’s expression darkened. His hands separated and came together, changing form three times in quick succession before he suddenly thrust out a palm.
With a dull BANG, a massive surge of inner energy erupted from the point of contact, sweeping out in all directions.
The little old man was heard roaring in anger,
"Tong Wanli, you dare launch a sneak attack!?"
Jiang Ran’s heart skipped a beat. ’The newcomer is Tong Wanli?’
He immediately looked toward the direction Tong Wanli had come from.
Sure enough, footsteps followed behind him.
A moment later, the newcomers revealed themselves.
Leading them was a woman in plain clothes, holding a longsword. Her gaze was as cold as moonlight.
It was Ye Jingshuang.
At her side were two young men.
One was dressed head to toe in red, the other in black.
As they looked up at the changing situation in the battle, they were still whispering something to Ye Jingshuang.
Ye Jingshuang’s expression was grave, and she didn’t respond.
Jiang Ran smiled at the sight. A reunion with old friends was a good thing, of course, but more importantly, the key ingredient for his Life-extending Pill had grown legs and run right back to him.
But his brow furrowed again soon after.
’Tong Wanli and Ye Jingshuang were supposed to have returned to the Red Maple Ye family. How did they get here so quickly?’
’Is it because they found out something happened to Liu Wenshan?’
’Or have they already uncovered some clues?’
While Jiang Ran was pondering this, the situation on the field changed again.
Tong Wanli appeared, and his Thousand Variations Heaven Net Palm was truly endlessly transforming. His two palms covered all directions, trapping not only the little old man but also Ghost Thirteen, who was unable to escape.
In the blink of an eye, the duel between two had become a three-way melee.
The little old man was cursing Tong Wanli out, but Tong Wanli was the quiet, blockheaded type who said nothing and just attacked on sight.
No matter how much the old man cursed and spat, he didn’t make a sound, simply raising his hands and attacking relentlessly.
Ghost Thirteen’s martial arts were a notch weaker than theirs, and he was struggling to survive in the crossfire.
At times he would team up with Tong Wanli to wail on the little old man, but when forced, he would join the little old man in facing the Palm of Heaven Net.
For a moment, it was an inextricable tangle.
Seeing this, Jiang Ran said softly,
"I’m going to go check it out. Be careful."
"Mm..."
Li Tianxin nodded. He then saw Jiang Ran execute the Celestial Nine Steps, his figure leaving behind an afterimage and vanishing in the blink of an eye.
His movements were light and nimble, sticking to the shadows. In just a few steps, he was in front of the cave on the side of the ravine.
By the light of the fire, he could see that the corpses lying on the ground had cyan-black faces, clearly having died from a potent poison.
He glanced back at the fighters in front of the ravine, and seeing that they hadn’t noticed him, he tapped his foot lightly and floated into the cave.
The cave was quiet, damp, and the smoke from the fire was suffocating.
Remains of meals and animal bones were scattered on the ground. It was clear this group had been staying in the cave for some time.
’Just now, the little old man said Ghost Thirteen had resorted to despicable methods. I guess he found them here and secretly poisoned this group to death.’
’The old man wasn’t poisoned, which is why he started fighting Ghost Thirteen.’
As these thoughts ran through his mind, his ears twitched, and he headed in a certain direction.
The cave wasn’t actually very large. He hadn’t gone far before the firelight revealed a person with their hands bound, thrown in the middle of the cave.
The flickering firelight illuminated the person’s face—it was Liu Wenshan!
But at the moment, his eyes were tightly shut, and though he was breathing, it was extremely faint.
Seeing that he was still alive, however, Jiang Ran breathed a sigh of relief.
He had already accepted the proxy mission that afternoon.
If the man had died, the mission would have almost certainly been a failure.
’But I figured the System wouldn’t issue a mission that was absolutely impossible for the host to complete.’
’If Liu Wenshan had already died before this, the mission probably wouldn’t even have been triggered.’
With this in mind, he was about to go and rescue the man when he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.
He subconsciously hid his figure in the shadows around a corner.
A moment later, three figures approached.
At the same time, he heard someone speak:
"Watch your step. This cave is filthy. I already said the two of us could come in. Why did you have to tag along?"
The speaker was the red-clothed young man accompanying Ye Jingshuang.
Ye Jingshuang’s brow furrowed slightly.
"You’re being too serious. This concerns my uncle’s life and death. How could I possibly leave it to others?"
"Ah... you’re right, you’re right."
The red-clothed youth gave a dry laugh.
"That was thoughtless of me. Mmm, we should be there soon."
Hearing this, Jiang Ran couldn’t help but give a silent laugh. He thought for a moment and decided not to reveal himself just yet.
It wasn’t that he was intentionally hiding to surprise them.
It was just that this cave was enemy territory. Dressed in black and with his face covered, if he appeared rashly before they rescued their target, it might cause a misunderstanding.
’It’ll probably be better if I show myself and explain my purpose after they find Liu Wenshan.’
With that thought, the group filed past him.
The three continued forward and, sure enough, they saw Liu Wenshan.
The red-clothed youth was heard saying,
"Jingshuang, look. Is that your uncle?"
"My aunt had her reasons for leaving home back then, and I only ever met my uncle once as a child... It’s hard to tell now."
Ye Jingshuang said,
"However, since he’s the one imprisoned here, it’s unlikely to be anyone else.
"Let’s rescue him first..."
"Alright."
The red-clothed youth nodded immediately. "Let me."
As soon as he spoke, he strode forward.
Ye Jingshuang and the black-clothed youth followed close behind.
Jiang Ran followed silently with his arms crossed. He watched the red-clothed youth help Liu Wenshan up and was just thinking it was about time to show himself when he heard a RATTLE.
Two chains shot out of thin air like mountain pythons, unfurling in mid-air and striking straight for the red-clothed youth and Ye Jingshuang.
The attack was completely unexpected. Not only were the red-clothed youth and Ye Jingshuang oblivious, but even Jiang Ran, with his profound Inner Energy, had failed to sense the person hiding nearby.
The red-clothed youth and Ye Jingshuang didn’t react until the chains were right behind them.
The red-clothed youth’s hands trembled. In that hair’s breadth of a moment, he spun around and sent out two consecutive palm strikes.
The force of his palms struck the chains but only managed to make them pause for a fraction of a second before they swept forward and hit him in the chest.
It was a brutal blow. The youth coughed up a mouthful of blood and was sent flying.
On the other side, the longsword in Ye Jingshuang’s hand shot out of its sheath.
She turned the blade sideways, barely managing to protect her chest, and a sharp DING rang out.
The sword and chain collided, sending out a shower of sparks. Her feet didn’t move, but she was forced back sideways more than ten feet.
The blade hummed and trembled ceaselessly. The web of her thumb split open, and blood dripped onto the ground.
"Tong Yan!"
The black-clothed youth cried out in alarm. Ignoring Ye Jingshuang, he instinctively lunged toward the red-clothed youth.
At the same time, the two chains didn’t retract after the first strike. The dark shadow behind them twisted, and they attacked again.
The black-clothed youth let out an angry roar. As his inner energy circulated, he reached out to grab them, but the chains were like Spiritual Snakes, instantly evading his grasp and coiling around his entire body.
Ye Jingshuang’s face darkened. She was at the awkward point where her old strength was spent and new strength had yet to be generated. With the chains striking, she was momentarily unable to act and could only retreat.
Unexpectedly, as she took a step back, her shoulder was gripped tightly.
She was involuntarily moved to the side. Turning her head, she saw a man in black with a saber at his waist. His five fingers formed a claw and shot out.
The Spiritual Snake-like chains changed direction repeatedly but still couldn’t escape the range of his grasp. He caught them in his hand and let out a soft shout:
"Come out!"
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