Chapter 550
Chapter 550
Chapter 550
"Ancestor, please come in!"
Li Zhuiyuan gladly accepted Zhao Yi's warm invitation.
The boy took a step and walked towards the tower in front of him.
As he walked, the boy raised his hand and waved it gently forward.
Runsheng and Lin Shuyou rushed from the bridge into the square, passing on either side of Li Zhuiyuan, and continued forward to clear the obstacles.
Chen Jing was engaged in a fierce battle with a young man with a nose ring. Each time the young man exhaled, white breath would spray out from the tip of his nose and then flow back in. He wore a black ring on each of his wrists. When he fought, the black rings resonated with his arm strength, making him powerful and fierce. The trembling sound could also disturb his mind.
Ah Jing, transformed into a white wolf, should have been able to suppress the young man with the nose ring, but firstly, her moves were not as refined as his opponent's, and secondly, the demonic aura in her eyes kept flashing violently, disturbing her emotions, and for a moment she was unable to do anything about him.
Sensing Runsheng's approach, the young man with the nose ring first gathered his strength, then threw out both fists, clashing with the wolf claws and forcing Chen Jing back. He then quickly turned around and threw another punch.
"Snapped."
Runsheng caught the heavy punch with his palm.
The young man instinctively tried to pull his fist back, but it seemed as if his fist was being tightly clamped.
The black ring vibrated, and a powerful sonic boom erupted.
Runsheng tilted his head slightly, seemingly unaffected.
The young man with the nose ring looked panicked.
Runsheng pulled back, shifting the young man's center of gravity, and then pressed down with his elbow. With a "bang," the young man tried his best to resist, but he had to kneel on one knee.
Runsheng raised his knee, aiming it directly at the young man's face. The young man had to use one hand to block, and Runsheng pressed down with his elbow.
"puff!"
The pressure from above forced the young man to his knees, causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood.
The hand that was pulled out ultimately failed to block Runsheng's knee. It only managed to press down slightly, deflecting the knee strike into its own chest and avoiding the head.
With a "thud," the young man with the nose ring was sent flying. However, because one of his fists was still being held by Runsheng, he was only suspended in mid-air and backward, but he was never able to create distance between himself and Runsheng.
Runsheng turned sideways, swung the young man up, and threw him over his shoulder.
"boom!"
After slamming the ground, blood mist emanated from the youth's body, and his physique was covered in dense cracks.
The paving stones on Wangjianglou Square are really hard; they would be very effective at hitting someone with them.
Chen Jing swallowed hard. He had just thought that the guy with the nose ring was too skilled, which was why he couldn't defeat him. But after seeing Run Sheng's performance, Chen Jing realized that it was simply because his absolute strength was not enough to crush him.
Runsheng lifted the young man up, turned his head, and looked at Chen Jing.
Chen Jing was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed and understood. He rushed out quickly, his wolf claws crossed.
"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!"
After Chen Jing passed through, Run Sheng was only holding the young man's arm; the rest of his arm had been cut into many pieces and scattered on the ground by Chen Jing.
"Runsheng, hey..."
A-Jing wanted to express his gratitude to Run-Sheng for taking him out to play, but his wolfish eyes darted to the other battlegrounds, and he immediately snapped out of his relaxed state and prepared to provide support.
Runsheng didn't go to help. He first took off the black ring in his hand, then squatted down to find another one. Finally, looking at the nose ring hanging on the young man's head, he wondered if he should pry this off as well.
The Liang sisters were initially engaged in a fierce battle with two sword-wielding maids, but because they had received training from Li Zhuiyuan, their teamwork had improved significantly.
Without external interference, it's only a matter of time before the two of them win.
However, Li Zhuiyuan's arrival exacerbated the conflict on the battlefield, forcing the two maids to cut off their arms to survive.
The two maids each unleashed extremely reckless killing moves, but the Liang sisters neutralized them all, and each of them even severed one of the other's arms.
However, the two maids managed to escape the battle in such a ruthless manner. Each of them drew another sword from their waists. One rushed into the Wangjiang Tower, heading straight for Zhao Yi, while the other rushed out in the opposite direction, pointing directly at Li Zhuiyuan, who was walking towards them.
Zhao Yi is currently sealing Zhou Xuqing at the cost of burning his life force, but this does not mean that he is incapable of dealing with or protecting himself.
But Zhao Yi was too lazy to move, so he just stood there, licking his lips, watching the one-armed maid get closer and closer to him.
As she drew near, a knife pierced the maid's chest, and then another knife sliced off her head.
The maid's body fell, revealing Lin Shuyou's figure.
"Three-eyed man, why aren't you dodging!"
"Because I trust your speed."
"you……"
"And next time, could you at least cut off the head with the first strike?"
Another one-armed maid rushed in front of Li Zhuiyuan, her sword flashing coldly.
A large fish suddenly appeared in front of Li Zhuiyuan, blocking the sword.
The maid drew her sword, intending to turn sideways and launch a new attack, but the girl stepped forward, pulled a long fishbone from the big fish, and thrust it diagonally upwards.
"puff!"
The fishbone pierced the maid's neck and then her head, killing her instantly.
After the giant fish shattered, it reformed into a blood porcelain bottle. Ah Li picked it up and followed the boy's steps.
Zhao Yi pointed outside and said to Lin Shuyou, "Look at that young girl, she even knows to cut off her head first."
Xu Ming was in great distress. The old man in front of him was shrouded in poisonous mist, causing his vines to wither and die. Not only could he no longer restrain the old man, but he was also suffering from poisoning himself.
He thought that once the battle situation on the other side turned around, someone would come to help him immediately. But after they finished killing people, they all started touching their rings and swords, as if they had forgotten that there was still him in this corner.
The old man took out a red bottle, his eyes filled with determination.
No, if you don't come soon, this old man is going to take me down with him!
"They're here, they're here."
The sound came later; first came a hand that took the red bottle from the old man's hand, followed by a soft sword placed against the old man's neck, as if playing an erhu with a gentle pull.
Blood splattered from the old man's neck, a surge of resentment and rust seeping in, turning the blood from red to black, and he collapsed to the ground, dead.
Tan Wenbin held the medicine bottle under his nose and gently smelled it:
"It's a very potent poison, which reminds me of Mengmeng's cooking skills."
Xu Ming collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
Tan Wenbin touched the old man's clothes, took out a series of small medicine bottles, and asked, "Want to try and see which one is the antidote?"
Xu Ming: "This...can I try it freely?"
Tan Wenbin: "You're quite lucky."
Of the original group that followed Zhao Yi, Xu Ming is the only one still in the team.
Xu Ming: "Give me some time, and I can resolve it myself and expel the toxins."
Tan Wenbin smiled and said, "That's the safest option."
Zhou Xuqing, who was stuck in place, looked at Zhao Yi's back with deep confusion in his eyes.
Even as the man walked off the bridge, Zhou Xuqing still wondered if this was a ruse by Zhao Yi.
After all his men were killed, he was finally able to confirm that there would be no further reversal.
Zhou Xuqing really couldn't understand why this person, whom his grandfather had described as having the potential to become a dragon king, would be so obsequious to that other person.
If you can be understanding to grovel for the sake of profit, how can you tolerate it when the other party's life and death are in your hands?
And right now, is there anything more beneficial to you than killing that person?
Li Zhuiyuan walked into Wangjiang Tower.
Without exchanging pleasantries, Zhao Yi decisively stepped aside, revealing Zhou Xuqing to the man surnamed Li.
"Hey Li, you better think of something quickly, every second is burning with my life force."
Li Zhuiyuan looked at Zhou Xuqing.
The boy didn't understand why Wangjianglou had gotten involved in this matter. After all, Aunt Liu's account books didn't contain any records of Wangjianglou. Of course, it's also possible that they had kept it very secret.
However, Li Zhuiyuan was too lazy to delve into the other party's thought process of why they were targeting him and Qin Liu.
There were so many lice that if Li Zhuiyuan listened to every single one of his enemies, he wouldn't have to do anything else for the rest of his life but listen to stories.
Zhou Xuqing's eyes darted around. Although the current situation was unexpected, he had prepared a set of words and a value analysis report about himself.
He believed that since the young patriarch had entered the Wangjiang Tower, he would inevitably need to use his key.
Circumstances are stronger than people. If Zhao Yi can turn against him, then Zhou Xuqing can also return to the righteous path and redeem himself through meritorious service!
However, the boy's next sentence caught Zhou Xuqing completely off guard, leaving him utterly stunned.
Li Zhuiyuan: "Kill them."
Zhou Xuqing glared at him: Are you crazy?!
Zhao Yi became even more agitated.
Zhou Xuqing gestured to Zhao Yi, pleading with him to put in a good word for him, considering they had only known each other for a day. Zhao Yi stomped his foot angrily, yelling, "I'm a fucking idiot!"
Without hesitation, Zhao Yi drew the tomb owner's knife and plunged the blade into Zhou Xuqing's chest.
The dragon skin on Zhao Yi's arm began to flutter wildly, while the aura of the tomb master's sword surged wildly into Zhou Xuqing's body, devouring Zhou Xuqing's life force.
Zhou Xuqing sensed his life force rapidly draining away, yet Zhao Yi still sealed him away. He couldn't speak, and endless confusion, anger, resentment, and grievances mingled in his eyes until they lost all their light, and he died.
Zhao Yi sheathed his sword and offered his lace-covered hand to Lin Shuyou.
Lin Shuyou glared at Zhao Yi, then took out ointment and bandages from his bag to bandage him.
Zhao Yi looked at Li Zhuiyuan and asked, "Hey Li, I didn't think of that just now, couldn't you have called out from a distance to remind me?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "I thought you wanted to show me your prisoners."
Zhao Yi: "What kind of prisoners are you showing off that's worth me wasting so much of my life force on? Do you know how much merit I'll have to expend to make up for all that life force?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "I don't know."
Zhao Yi: "..."
When the man surnamed Li said "Kill him," Zhao Yi finally realized that the man surnamed Li had that set of strange secret techniques. For the man surnamed Li, there was no need to coerce, entice, or persuade Zhou Xuqing to surrender. Since Zhou Xuqing's bloodline was the key to this Wangjiang Tower, wouldn't it be more convenient to use the dead key?
To put it bluntly, he shouldn't have sealed Zhou Xuqing away; he should have just stabbed him to death long ago.
Of course, the stabbing should be done with some artistry, just like I did before, using the special nature of the tomb owner's knife to kill slowly, so as to preserve the most complete corpse for the man surnamed Li.
Zhao Yi: "Hey Li, let's make this clear beforehand. Although I do need to fake an injury and lose some vitality to make it look more realistic, this is a work injury and I need to get reimbursed."
Li Zhuiyuan: "This wasn't your plan?"
If this plan was truly orchestrated entirely by Zhao Yi, after this wave of events, it would be impossible for Zhao Yi to continue living a life of luxury while remaining hidden on the other side.
Zhao Yi: "My original plan was to give those old fogies a chance to get involved, just like with the Yu family back then. But someone changed my plan, so that those elders could only stay at Qinglong Temple to admire the lotus flowers and had no reason to take the initiative to get involved."
Ha, this whole thing has turned into a source of amusement for you, Li.
"But you, surnamed Li, are even more ruthless; you want to take advantage of me and leave me with nothing."
Li Zhuiyuan: "Do you know who changed it?"
Zhao Yi: "I suspect it's Qinglong Temple."
Qinglong Temple was the starting point of this wave, and the elders also attended the ceremony there, making it the most convenient place to change the plans.
Li Zhuiyuan: "I originally thought that after this wave, you wouldn't have to pretend anymore."
Zhao Yi: "Didn't expect that, did you? After this wave, I, Zhao Yi, can act even better. I'm practically your destined enemy, Mr. Li!"
Li Zhuiyuan: "Let's go upstairs and talk."
The boy went upstairs.
Zhao Yi instructed the outside, "Hey, after you've picked up everything, clean up the outside area. Don't leave a single trace, not even a drop of blood."
Both Zhao Yi's men and Li Zhuiyuan's men responded together:
"understand!"
Zhao Yi carried Zhou Xuqing's body upstairs.
There was a tea stove upstairs, so Li Zhuiyuan took out tea leaves from his backpack to brew tea.
After helping Zhou Xuqing into a seated position, Zhao Yi also sat down.
"That guy surnamed Li, when Runsheng and the others were fighting just now, I was really drooling over him."
Zhao Yi had been envious of the boy's team configuration for a long time, but fortunately, he could occasionally have the chance to lead the boy's team and have some fun.
Li Zhuiyuan: "Your people are not bad either. Although the Zhou family of Wangjiang Tower is low-key and noble, the configuration of their lamplighters is no less than that of the orthodox Dragon King family."
Most importantly, Zhao Yi was still focused on sealing Zhou Xuqing inside the building at that time.
Zhao Yi's team is completely different with or without him. He is the kind of general who can lead the charge, and his followers are just his servants.
If they weren't in the special environment of Wangjiang Tower, and if Zhao Yi and Zhou Xuqing had been freed at the same time, with each of them leading their own team, Zhao Yi's side would have won even faster.
Zhao Yi: "Once you catch them all this time, I can make a huge profit. With fewer people on the river, the remaining people will get a bigger share of the spoils. But you, surnamed Li, won't get any of that spoils."
Li Zhuiyuan: "Guess why I was able to stand outside waiting so early this time, and time it perfectly?"
Zhao Yi slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "This is unfair! You're forming cliques and bullying people on the river!"
The fact that someone surnamed Li dared to do this means that he has someone helping him navigate those necessary paths outside, and that he recognizes the capabilities of those people and is certain they can succeed.
After the Jiangshang area is swept clean, Zhao Yi will get a bigger share of the spoils, but the large group of people around Li will also benefit. Li's side will make the biggest profit!
Li Zhuiyuan pushed a cup of tea in front of Zhao Yi and picked up a cup for himself.
If you don't consider what might happen next, this is indeed a great place to have tea; the tower is quiet inside, and the surrounding area is shrouded in mist.
Zhao Yi: "Hey Li, you didn't let them light the lamps a second time, were you planning this all along?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "I am not a god."
Zhao Yi: "It's appropriate for others to say this, but you can't use it. You're practically a bodhisattva!"
Li Zhuiyuan: "I didn't expect this at the beginning."
Zhao Yi: "But if you let them stay on the river, what if you die in an accident one day? Won't they just fight each other? How can you bear that?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "What are you trying to say?"
Zhao Yi: "I think you should consider leaving a will in advance?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "Are you afraid they won't approve of you?"
Zhao Yi picked up his teacup, drank it all in one gulp, and then twirled the cup in his hand:
"Without you, Li, around, I'm confident I can take them down one by one."
Li Zhuiyuan put down his teacup without refuting.
Zhao Yi got up, walked to the window, and leaned against the balcony railing with one hand, admiring the vast view:
"Hey Li, I just think that this martial arts world needs some real martial arts people left behind in order to clean it up properly, even if the final Dragon King isn't me, Zhao Yi."
Li Zhuiyuan: "Your mindset has grown so much!"
Zhao Yi: "You don't know, I'm on the other side. Although I eat their food, use their things, and play their games, it's really disgusting to be mixed up with them."
"Look, the first batch of disgusting stuff has arrived."
Through the fog, the silhouettes of boats appeared, and these boats were full of people.
Li Zhuiyuan faced Zhou Xuqing, who was sitting opposite him, closed his eyes, and activated the Black Book Secret Technique.
Zhao Yi knew that the man surnamed Li was capable of multitasking, and continued to sigh in admiration:
"When I was making this plan, I couldn't help but wonder if it was another kind of karma, that the debts of the previous generation of people who committed crimes on the river were being settled by this generation of people on the river."
Li Zhuiyuan: "You've really thought things through."
Zhao Yi: "Then I'd like to point to someone nearby, surnamed Li. Zhou Xuqing died because of you. In the future, when you come to Wangjiang Tower for a meeting as the head of the family, his father will be standing at the door to greet you. Won't you feel embarrassed?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "That was happiness."
Zhao Yi: "Alright, alright, then I'll go down and embrace my happiness too."
After Zhao Yi went downstairs, Tan Wenbin and the others went up to the second floor. Zhao Yi ordered his four men to carry the flags and walk to the four corners.
He himself stood on the pier, ready to welcome guests.
The thick, stagnant fog regained its activity and began to actively guide the approaching ships.
The first ship docked, then the second, the third...
Zhao Yi bowed to the people who had come ashore:
"You've all worked hard."
The crowd returned Zhao Yi's greetings. Some of the higher-ranking lamplighters in the first group became slightly wary when they saw Zhao Yi greeting them alone.
Zhao Yi led the group to the square.
At this moment, on the second floor of Wangjiang Tower, a curtain was lifted, and Zhou Xuqing stood by the window, looking down at everyone below with a faint smile and arrogance.
Zhou Xuqing raised his hand, and the clouds above Wangjiang Tower dispersed, letting the sunlight shine down, bringing a rare warmth and gentleness to the winter day, and also evaporating any remaining doubts among the crowd.
Throughout history, no matter how despicable the deeds, people have always had to give themselves a respectable reason.
While controlling Zhou Xuqing, Li Zhuiyuan read relevant memories from his spirit and learned the slogan for this mission.
Zhou Xuqing spoke from the window, his voice carried by the wind outside the building towards the square:
"Gentlemen, since ancient times, when the martial world is in turmoil, the righteous path will inevitably decline, evil spirits will run rampant, and it is the common people who suffer and are poisoned."
Today, we, the righteous people, gather here not for personal gain, but to avert an internal strife and reduce the need for revenge, infighting, and power struggles.
The significance of this battle is that…
The crowd in the plaza below responded in unison, their voices resounding with righteous indignation. At the same time, Li Zhuiyuan, seated at a round table on the second floor, picked up his teacup, a smile on his face, and softly echoed:
"For the sake of peace and tranquility in this world!"
(End of this chapter)