Chapter 2: Abandoned by All

"Arrogant! Today, martial heroes from all paths have gathered here; how can we allow you, a villain, to run amok!"

Yu Zhentian roared, his beard and hair bristling, raised his hand to grab, and directly seized the sword at the waist of his eldest disciple, Zhu Fang, standing nearby.

His seemingly aged body surged with vital energy, white vapor steaming; the long sword in his hand emitted a sharp sword qi, slashing diagonally upward.

Zhe Laosan sneered, his figure not moving an inch, raised his hand with a blade, and met the sword qi with a horizontal chop downward.

The blade light and sword qi crashed together, exploding with a deafening clashing sound of metal on metal; powerful residual waves scattered, overturning the roof tiles and beams.

In the courtyard, Yu Zhentian retreated several steps abruptly to dissipate the force on his body, supported by a group of disciples.

"Crack!" The crossbeam beneath Zhe Laosan's feet snapped in response; he used it to push off, leaped into the air, and landed on the roof on the other side.

"Old thing, your hand skills aren't completely wasted yet." Zhe Laosan's eyes held a cold, killing intent.

Below, the assembled guests, seeing Yu Zhentian and the opponent were evenly matched in strength, many temporarily halted their departing steps.

The Yu Family Martial Hall is one of the top two martial halls in the entire Ancheng City; this old hall master, Yu Zhentian, has been famous for decades, and his Wu Gong strength is well-known throughout this region.

If he can deal with this thief, there is no need for the crowd to flee.

However, just at this moment, a series of dull sounds of breaking the air approached from afar.

Five masked figures in black robes, in a few leaps, jumped onto the roofs on all four sides of the mansion, forming a pincer formation to surround everyone in the courtyard.

Seeing this scene, the martial guests who had come to observe the ceremony were all greatly alarmed; without a doubt, the ones arriving must be the other five of the Zhe He Seven Thieves.

"Second Brother, you are late."

Zhe Laosan spoke in a muffled voice; one of them, a black-clad man with wrinkles on his forehead and graying temples, opened his mouth with a slightly hoarse voice:

"No rush; we still have the time of one incense stick."

Hearing this, Zhe Laosan slowly nodded, then looked at the many guests in the courtyard and smiled leisurely:

"Time is running out; you have six breaths left!"

Upon hearing these words, the guests in the courtyard hesitated no longer and rushed out in all directions.

They had come today merely as guests to offer gifts, not to die.

The Zhe He Seven Thieves are infamous; even one of them is not weaker than Yu Zhentian; the Yu Family Martial Hall simply cannot hold out against the other six.

"Hall Master Yu, I have a sudden family matter; I take my leave first."

"My strength is low; Brother Yu, take care!"

"If Brother Yu can eliminate evil and promote good today, Ancheng City will remember you."

Some figures of note in the martial world and Ancheng City hastily left a few polite words, then departed one after another in a hurry.

Each and every one feared that if they walked slowly, they would be caught in the crossfire and have their heads separated from their bodies.

Yu Zhentian's face looked ugly; watching the guests quickly disappear, he sat with a gloomy face, saying not a word.

He could not speak to keep these people, and also knew it was impossible to keep them.

Moreover, since the arrival of Zhe Lao Er and the others, the inner breath and aura radiating from these thieves were not weaker than his own, making Yu Zhentian very clear that these ragtag bunch remaining here would be of little use.

"Brother Zhang, if you want to go, go; no one is stopping you."

Li Musheng was pushed aside by the surging crowd, turned his head to look at the muscular giant with a conflicted face.

Zhang Dazhuang gripped the staff in both hands, tightening and loosening, loosening and tightening; seeing the people in the courtyard becoming fewer and fewer, he felt anxious in his heart yet could not make up his mind.

"We are all people of the Yu Family Martial Hall; will these villains let us go?" Zhang Dazhuang asked hesitantly in a low voice.

The oppressive aura unintentionally radiating from the six figures on the four sides of the roof pressed down on him, making the whole person feel as if he could hardly breathe.

"I think there is no problem; you are surnamed Zhang, not Yu."

Li Musheng rubbed his chin, glanced at the Zhe He Seven Thieves standing on the roof holding their blades, and smiled:

"If you really are unsure, just ask them; see if they let you go?"

Hearing this, Zhang Dazhuang was startled, quickly grabbed Li Musheng, and said in terror:

"You kid are truly reckless; you still dare to ask these villains questions? Do you think you haven't died fast enough?"

While the two were speaking, most of the guests in the courtyard had already run away.

Even some people, because they fled in such a rush to be first, left behind scattered items on the ground such as shoes, hairpins, jade pendants, and broken silver.

The disciples, apprentices, and servants of the Yu Family Martial Hall had not yet fled, but they were all equally extremely hesitant.

Everyone knew very well that the Zhe He Seven Thieves were notorious and extremely ruthless; there were never any survivors under their hands; staying behind almost meant only one path: death.

But Yu Zhentian had accumulated great authority in daily life, so they truly dared not flee from the battlefield; moreover, they also had the same worry as Zhang Dazhuang, not knowing whether the Zhe He Seven Thieves would let them go.

"Brother Hao, these thieves are running amok and committing evil under the bright daylight in Ancheng City; it is simply extremely arrogant! Today, you and I join hands to eliminate this scourge for the martial world!"

Yu Zhentian gripped the long sword in his hand, turned his head, and spoke in a deep voice; powerful inner force surged, causing his full head of silver hair to fly.

Hao Shen, who had not yet left nearby, looked at Yu Zhentian and slowly nodded:

"What Brother Yu says is absolutely right; as the Mayor of Ancheng City, I naturally cannot allow these thieves to commit evil in the city."

Hearing this, Yu Zhentian's heart relaxed slightly; Hao Shen's Wu Gong was profound, and with his help, his own pressure would be greatly reduced.

However, the next words from Hao Shen made his heart turn cold.

"However, the Zhe He Seven Thieves possess astonishing martial arts; relying solely on the two of us, I'm afraid we cannot deal with them. Please, Brother Yu, hold on for a moment; I will go to gather the city guards, and then sweep up these thieves in one net."

Having said this, Hao Shen's feet generated wind, and his figure leaped out of the courtyard extremely quickly.

The Zhe He Seven Thieves on the roof merely watched indifferently, showing not the slightest intention to stop him.

"Pfft!"

Li Musheng, seeing this scene, could not help but laugh out loud, turned his head, and said:

"I told you this old man Yu is too stingy in daily life; look, at the critical moment, not a single person is willing to help him; I reckon he will soon be abandoned by all, with no friends or family left."

Zhang Dazhuang, a tall giant, propped himself with the staff in his hand; seeing everyone casting glances in this direction, he subconsciously shrank his head, patted Li Musheng, and said:

"Speak a little quieter; they all heard you. Besides... the old hall master isn't always stingy; sometimes, occasionally, he can be generous once."

Hearing this, Yu Zhentian, whose face turned extremely ugly, suddenly turned his head and glared fiercely at Li Musheng and Zhang Dazhuang.

However, he had no energy now to deal with the two apprentices in the martial arts hall who only knew a trifling amount of Wu Gong; instead, he turned to look at his group of disciples and said:

"Why are you all standing there stunned? Pick up your weapons and resist! There are no cowards in the Yu Family Martial Arts Hall!"

Hearing this, the disciples instinctively moved to act, but when they saw the three figures beside Yu Zhentian remain perfectly still, everyone slowly stopped their movements.

Those three were Yu Zhentian's three most favored disciples, and also the three with the strongest Wu Gong strength in the entire martial arts hall, aside from Yu Zhentian and his eldest son.

(End of this chapter)