Chapter 149: Shen Liancheng

The estate manager, upon hearing this, wore a smile and secretly glanced at Jing Chengluo before saying:

"Our lord has long instructed that since Zhanlu Estate has joined the Tianxia Alliance, we are now one of its members and must obey the Alliance's orders, following the Supreme Leader's every command."

Saying this, the estate manager volunteered to step forward and immediately led several others toward the courtyard.

But Jing Chengluo suddenly reached out and blocked him, saying:

"Not yet—we must be cautious. Let's wait a little longer."

Upon hearing this, the estate manager said nothing and immediately stopped; after all, among these people were Heaven-Tier experts, so being cautious was only natural.

Meanwhile, beneath the courtyard wall in the distant darkness, two figures stood—one tall, one small.

Seeing this from afar, the hemp-clad elder slowly shook his head and said:

"They're too deeply poisoned, and we have more urgent business—we can't interfere now, or we'll alert the snake."

Saying this, he turned and walked away without hesitation, the pink-clad little girl beside him.

The pink-clad girl said nothing, only nodded lightly and followed closely behind.

Yet, just after she took a few steps, she involuntarily turned back to glance once more.

That glance made her suddenly stop, and she softly called out:

"Grandfather."

The hemp-clad elder sensed her unease and turned back, following her gaze.

There, under the dim night, Jing Chengluo and the others—who had been waiting patiently for the poison to take full effect—still stood motionless in place.

But somehow, a new figure had suddenly appeared beside the six of them.

The man's appearance was utterly unexpected, leaving both the elder and the girl stunned.

Yet quickly, they realized: it was the young man whom Hu Rui'an and the others had called "Young Master" during the day.

He had previously teased the little girl, so she remembered him vividly.

Now, in their line of sight, the young man strolled calmly beside Jing Chengluo and the others, showing no sign of being poisoned at all.

"He's not affected?"

The pink-clad girl's dark eyes widened, her voice clear and full of astonishment.

The hemp-clad elder narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression equally startled.

After all, he had personally watched Li Musheng drink several cups of Spirit Deer Wine.

The poison of Drunken Immortal Death was extremely potent—even Cao Gaoshan, who had merely inhaled part of the wine's aroma, had been poisoned into unconsciousness.

Logically, Li Musheng should have absorbed the most toxin of all—but now he appeared completely unharmed, which was truly unbelievable.

After a moment of silence, the hemp-clad elder slowly shook his head and said:

"We've underestimated them."

In his view, the only possible explanation was that Hu Rui'an and the others had long seen through Zhanlu Estate's poisoning scheme.

They had used themselves as bait, pretending to fall for the trap in order to lure out Zhanlu Estate's hidden mastermind.

Judging from the outcome, they had undeniably succeeded.

For a moment, Hu Rui'an's face flashed in the elder's mind, and he murmured softly:

"This man must be a seasoned angler!"

Hearing this, the pink-clad girl furrowed her delicate eyebrows slightly; she understood what the elder meant, yet something still felt off.

"Let's go."

At that moment, the hemp-clad elder turned his gaze away and called out.

He no longer paid attention to Li Musheng's side, instead turning to continue leading the girl away.

The pink-clad girl nodded lightly, glanced back once more, and said nothing further before hurrying to catch up.

Tonight, she and her grandfather had more important matters to attend to.

…

Meanwhile, Li Musheng subtly glanced toward the direction the hemp-clad elder and the girl had departed, then ignored them, his gaze settling on the estate manager and Jing Chengluo and the others.

Jing Chengluo and the other five, along with the estate manager, now stared at Li Musheng before them, their eyes filled with terror.

For they still had no idea when Li Musheng had appeared—or how they had all become utterly immobilized.

How had this happened? They had felt absolutely nothing.

Just moments ago, they had been preparing to enter the courtyard and seize their targets; now, they were like fish on a chopping block, completely at the mercy of this young man who possessed no martial qi whatsoever.

"You're quite resourceful—this poison method is truly hard to guard against."

Li Musheng raised an eyebrow; he wasn't skilled in toxins or pharmacology, but it didn't matter—he was immune to all poisons.

For him, drinking any amount of Spirit Deer Wine made no difference—as long as the wine tasted good.

Of course, encountering members of the Tianxia Alliance here wasn't surprising to him; he'd expected it.

After all, when they had previously aided Qin Hao against the Bai Sha Gang, countless eyes had witnessed it; it was only natural the Tianxia Alliance would react.

The only unexpected thing was that a martial sect like Zhanlu Estate had secretly joined the Tianxia Alliance.

But Li Musheng had no interest in investigating further, nor did he care to waste words with these men.

He unleashed several Life-and-Death Talismans, torturing the six of them.

Immediately, they willingly and fully confessed everything he wanted to know.

Poor estate manager, believing the hidden poison Drunken Immortal Death would ensure the Tianxia Alliance's flawless capture of Li Musheng and the others.

Poor Jing Chengluo, who had just seen several men easily poisoned and thought victory was assured, convinced that seizing the Jade Tablet map would be a great achievement.

Yet after Li Musheng finished his questioning, he casually activated the Life-and-Death Talismans and ended their lives—they never even had a chance to beg for mercy.

After completing this, Li Musheng rubbed his chin, his expression thoughtful.

He realized that Zhanlu Estate's lord, Shen Liancheng, was rather interesting.

Just now, from the steward of the manor, he learned that the other party had not only joined the Tianxia Alliance, but had also secretly joined Luoshen Peak, and worse still, had quietly joined the court of the Great Li dynasty.

And regarding this matter, whether it was the Tianxia Alliance, or Luoshen Peak and the court, none of the three parties knew about it — all of them had been kept completely in the dark by Shen Liancheng.

Apart from a few trusted confidants of Shen Liancheng within the manor, the other people in the manor, including Shen Liancheng's Lady and daughter, also knew nothing of this matter.

And according to the manor steward, Shen Liancheng seemed to be secretly preparing to do something major; as for what exactly it was, the steward himself was not clear either.

Thinking of this, Li Musheng sighed — this kind of trivial matter he had absolutely no desire to manage in the first place.

However, he turned his head and glanced at Cao Gaoshan and the others in the courtyard, who were still poisoned and unconscious.

Then, thinking of Hu Ruian as well, he muttered to himself:

"Calculating by time, Lord Hu should have the poison take effect by now too. I wonder what the situation is?"

Thinking this, he shook his head, searched the manor steward for the antidote, and with a casual flick, the liquid flew out through the air, precisely landing in the mouths of Cao Gaoshan and the other two, as well as Murong Xiaoya inside the room.

Then, he headed off in the direction Hu Ruian had previously disappeared toward.

(End of chapter)