Chapter 159: Provincial Capital

About a hundred armored cavalrymen, their discipline strict, displayed a morale that was sharp and unstoppable.

Unlike the people from Fallen Spirit Peak before, this group came from the direction of Sheng Province; judging by the armor and weapons the soldiers carried, they must belong to the Sheng Province garrison.

The armored troops stopped before Hu Rui'an and the others, and the sound of clashing armor and weapons, previously uniform and rhythmic, instantly ceased.

Seeing this, Hu Rui'an's gaze shifted slightly, yet his expression remained calm.

Meanwhile, Murong Xiaoya, who had been silently staying in the corner, stood up and directed her gaze toward the magnificent carriage among the armored cavalrymen.

At that moment, a noble Young Master wearing ice-silk brocade and a jade hair crown parted the carriage curtain with his hand; his eyebrows were sharp like sword edges, and his eyes were cold and clear.

He glanced around at the collapsed cliff walls and the cracked earth from the battle, paying little attention, and instead looked toward Murong Xiaoya, saying lightly:

"Little Sister, Father received your letter and specially ordered me to bring you home."

Hearing this, everyone turned their heads in unison to look at Murong Xiaoya, causing her face to turn red involuntarily.

She stood in place, pinching the hem of her clothes and hesitating for a while, then turned her head to look at Hu Rui'an beside her.

Hu Rui'an glanced at that noble Young Master and asked:

"Could it be the 'Divine Needle Young Master' of the Murong family?"

The noble Young Master's narrow phoenix eyes lifted slightly at the corners; he sized up Hu Rui'an before him, seemed to recall something, and bowed his hands, saying:

"Indeed, it is I. Your lordship must be Lord Hu. Father instructed me that Lord Hu has taken great care of Little Sister along the way; thin wine has been prepared in the mansion to welcome Lord Hu. Please, all of you, accompany us."

Hearing this, Hu Rui'an did not reply immediately; instead, he turned to look at Li Musheng and spoke softly:

"Young Master, the Murong family is the foremost martial arts family in Sheng Province. In our mission to handle affairs in Sheng Province, we may need the Murong family's assistance. Before leaving the Imperial Capital, the Commander-in-Chief had already informed us of this matter."

Li Musheng raised his eyebrows slightly, glanced at Hu Rui'an, and waved his hand, saying:

"You make the decision on this matter. I have only one requirement: our stay in Sheng Province's provincial capital must not exceed two days. Once the time is up, regardless of whether the matter is resolved, I will no longer be involved."

Hu Rui'an immediately nodded eagerly in agreement, then turned to address the noble Young Master on the magnificent carriage:

"Then we shall trouble you!"

Murong Feng narrowed his eyes slightly, sized up Li Musheng beside Hu Rui'an, and then frowned.

He guessed Li Musheng's identity must be extraordinary, but he said nothing more; instead, he beckoned to Murong Xiaoya and said:

"Little Sister, are you not coming over yet?"

Seeing this, Murong Xiaoya was clearly hesitant; she sized up Murong Feng for a while, did not go over immediately, but suddenly gathered her courage and asked softly:

"Have you taken the 'Sparrow Flame Pill'?"

Upon hearing this, Murong Feng on the opposite carriage was slightly stunned.

Hu Rui'an, meanwhile, showed a strange expression, glanced at Murong Xiaoya, and wondered why she suddenly asked such a question.

At that moment, Murong Feng's expression returned to normal, and he said lightly:

"Little Sister, we haven't seen each other in a year; have you become estranged from me?"

Saying this, he waved his hand and said:

"Since Little Sister is unwilling to ride in the carriage with me, then simply travel with Lord Hu; I will not force you."

Having said this, Murong Feng lowered the carriage curtain and ceased speaking further.

Meanwhile, the hundred armored cavalrymen around remained silently waiting; before receiving orders, they stayed before the cliff walls without moving an inch.

Seeing this, Murong Xiaoya bit her lip lightly, gazed deeply at the magnificent carriage opposite, and her expression seemed somewhat unpleasant.

Then, her gaze imperceptibly swept over Hu Rui'an and Li Musheng, but she quickly lowered her head, stopped enjoying the shade, and instead went straight to board the carriage beside her.

Seeing this, Hu Rui'an frowned slightly, showing a thoughtful expression, while Li Musheng beside him sighed.

Indeed, his handsome face still possessed too much charm.

Just look: a socially anxious Miss refused her own brother's invitation just to stay with him a little longer.

At this time, the old man in hemp clothes and the little girl in pink clothes on the other side, seeing that the matter had nothing to do with them, simply packed their belongings and prepared to lead their mules to continue on their journey.

"How old are you this year?"

However, at this moment, Li Musheng approached the little girl in pink clothes, eyed her suspiciously, and asked.

Hearing this, the little girl in pink clothes furrowed her light eyebrows, glanced at Li Musheng, pressed her lips together, and said:

"I won't tell you that I am already seven years old this year."

Saying this, she let out a soft huff, turned around, climbed onto the mule herself, and completely ignored Li Musheng.

The old man in hemp clothes beside her narrowed his eyes, then addressed Hu Rui'an:

"This old man will proceed ahead first; we shall meet again in the Jianghu if fate permits."

Having said this, he led the mule and walked toward the main road ahead.

Li Musheng had no intention of stopping them; instead, he stroked his chin, gazed at the retreating figures of the two, and muttered to himself:

"What seven years old? I think it must be more than that."

Meanwhile, the old man in hemp clothes and the little girl in pink clothes, having walked some distance and crossed a hill so that Li Musheng and the others were no longer visible, the little girl in pink clothes suddenly turned her head to look back, her small face solemn as she said:

"Grandfather, I don't know if it's my illusion, but that person seemed to have discerned something about my condition."

Hearing this, the old man in hemp clothes pondered for a moment and said:

"That should be impossible. The cultivation technique you practice is too special; unless I am familiar with your situation, even after staying with you for so long, one could not detect any clue about your condition."

Saying this, he shook his head, then directed his gaze to the weasel stone on the mule's back and said:

"They have no grudge against us and should not pose any obstacle to us; we can temporarily ignore them. As for this person, we have been tracking him for over half a year; he was among those who acted back then."

"Killing him completes another step of our revenge plan. Next, only the Peak Lord of Fallen Spirit Peak and his disciples who aided the wicked remain!"

The old man in hemp clothes was expressionless at this moment, but a killing intent that could not be dispelled swirled in his clouded eyes.

Hearing this, the little girl in pink clothes withdrew her gaze, and a trace of sorrow appeared on her face for a moment.

She then turned to look at the weasel stone, whose eyes were now wide open; at this moment, after hearing the two's words, the other's expression was filled with terror, but since his mute acupoint had been sealed, he could not utter a word.

"Do you not understand why we want to kill you?"

The girl in pink suppressed her emotions, her clear eyes fixed on the opponent, saying:

"Don't worry, I'll tell you slowly why I'm going to kill you—but until then, I'll make you wish you were dead, enduring endless torment."

As she spoke, the girl in pink flicked her finger, and a black pill the size of a fingernail shot straight into Dai Shi's mouth.

In the next instant, Dai Shi's eyes bulged violently, his eyeballs filled with a dense network of swollen blood vessels, as if about to burst from their sockets.

In contrast, his once massive body shrank continuously, his skin and flesh withering, revealing veins and tendons turned a terrifying black.

Agonizing pain, like being torn apart, ravaged every part of his body, causing Dai Shi to writhe uncontrollably in unbearable agony.

Meanwhile, the girl in pink and the hemp-clad old man led their donkey and horse off onto a side path beside the main road, soon vanishing deep into the mountains.

……

After resting, Li Musheng and the others resumed their journey, with the hundred armored cavalrymen and Lady Murong's carriage following behind them.

In the afternoon, the group officially entered Shengzhou's border; after traveling another day, they would reach Shengzhou's provincial capital.

Meanwhile, Wu Xiang Lao Ren and Xu Qingcang and the others, since leaving Zhanlu Manor, continued tracking in the direction Li Musheng and the others had gone.

Previously, Wu Xiang Lao Ren, unable to resist his urge after witnessing Shen Juesheng's power the previous night, had revealed himself to Shen Liancheng, the lord of Zhanlu Manor, proposing a trial of martial skill with Shen Juesheng.

But Shen Liancheng had flatly refused; Wu Xiang Lao Ren had no choice, for Shen Juesheng's martial cultivation was far too formidable to force upon him.

After failing to persuade him, he gave up and let Xu Qingcang lead him onward, continuing to pursue Li Musheng and the others.

"That Eighth Imperial Prince is rather interesting—suddenly leaving the capital with a Tianjinwei expert, is he really fleeing in guilt?"

Wu Xiang Lao Ren sat inside the carriage, his expression thoughtful; the news of the Third Imperial Prince's death had spread far and wide over the past few days.

Wu Xiang Lao Ren had naturally heard rumors along the way, but only recently, upon receiving a secret letter from the Second Imperial Prince, did he learn this matter was connected to Li Musheng.

"A ruthless man—no wonder my disciple died so horribly. But even so, what does it matter? The people I want dead won't escape no matter where they run."

Wu Xiang Lao Ren's expression was cold as he turned to Xu Qingcang inside the carriage and said:

"Are you certain they're heading toward Shengzhou's provincial capital?"

Hearing this, Xu Qingcang nodded and replied:

"According to our scouts' observations along the way, they've been traveling straight along the main road, without veering onto any side paths."

"However, we discovered that they previously clashed with Dai Shi and other elders from Luoshen Peak; the final outcome was the complete death of Luoshen Peak's disciples, while Dai Shi himself vanished without a trace."

As he spoke, Xu Qingcang glanced at Wu Xiang Lao Ren, then added:

"They show no regard for Luoshen Peak, killing its elders at will—your target seems to be of considerable stature. Moreover, among them is a Heaven-and-Mortal Realm practitioner whose strength may surpass even mine and Dai Shi's."

Wu Xiang Lao Ren narrowed his eyes slightly—Li Musheng had dared kill an Imperial Prince in the capital; what was killing a Luoshen Peak elder by comparison?

Yet he offered no further explanation, only said coldly:

"Don't care who they are. Just do your duty. If this succeeds and I'm pleased, I might spare your life."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze slightly toward the Second Young Master of the Shengzhou General and said:

"How have you considered what I told you last night?"

Hearing this, the young man with a stern, martial appearance trembled slightly and stole a glance at Xu Qingcang.

Seeing Xu Qingcang give a slight nod, he immediately dropped to his knees with a thud and bowed his head to the ground:

"I humbly beg to become your disciple."

Saying this, he immediately knocked three loud head-bows right inside the carriage.

Wu Xiang Lao Ren's expression remained cold as he said:

"I never force disciples—I follow the principle of voluntary submission. If you're agreeing only out of fear of death, it's unnecessary."

Hearing this, the kneeling young man hesitated briefly, but quickly spoke with firm resolve:

"Your divine arts are invincible; becoming your disciple is a rare fortune I could never have dreamed of."

Saying this, he knocked several more heavy bows and said solemnly:

"Master above, your disciple vows to follow you unto death."

Seeing this, Wu Xiang Lao Ren finally gave a slight nod.

He had to admit—he was fortunate. By accident, he had stumbled upon a promising disciple for the Wu Xiang Divine Art.

Now, his wish to find a successor to inherit his skills had been fulfilled ahead of schedule.

Once he killed Li Musheng to avenge his deceased eldest disciple, his heart's burden would be mostly lifted.

Indeed, this journey out of the capital had gone surprisingly smoothly.

Thinking of this, Wu Xiang Lao Ren felt a surge of satisfaction and no longer pressed Xu Qingcang to hurry.

In his view, killing Li Musheng was merely a matter of time.

……

One day later, as dusk approached, Hu Rui'an and his group hurried and pushed forward, arriving just outside Shengzhou's provincial capital.

The provincial capital before them, though not as majestic or vast as the Great Li imperial capital, was not vastly inferior.

Especially as the center of the entire Shengzhou region and a vital transportation hub connecting surrounding lands, this city saw constant streams of merchants and travelers, with many martial artists passing through—its prosperity and bustle rivaled that of the capital, Shangyang City.

But its one flaw was that the entire city lacked the imperial capital's orderliness; instead, it appeared chaotic and disorganized, even its city guards lax and negligent.

Aside from diligently inspecting ordinary civilians and merchants to extract bribes, they dared not provoke any martial artist who looked even slightly formidable, letting them come and go freely.

This situation, aside from Jingzhou, was much the same in other provincial capitals.

Hu Rui'an and his group were used to it; as long as Wu Shang revealed even a hint of his Wu Gong, the city gate guards would automatically let them pass.

But now, their arrival at Shengzhou's provincial capital was different from before.

As soon as they reached the city gate, hundreds upon thousands of stern, armored soldiers suddenly dispersed the queue of civilians and poured out of the city in a flood.

Within mere seconds, they had surrounded Hu Rui'an and his group like an iron wall.

Or rather, more accurately, the soldiers had surrounded only Murong Feng and his hundred armored cavalrymen.

It seemed Hu Rui'an's group had merely been caught in the crossfire—but perhaps the soldiers knew they were traveling together, and had deliberately targeted them as well.

And after Hu Rui'an and the others were surrounded, several figures clad in battle armor appeared atop the towering city gate tower before them.

The one leading them appeared to be around thirty years old, with a resolute face, skin like ancient bronze, and a stern gaze looking down from above.

(End of this chapter)