Chapter 4: Disappearance

Of course, Li Musheng had no intention of fleeing at all; he sat on the stone steps without moving his bottom even an inch.

At the same time, Zhu Fang glanced at Yu Zhentian, who was locked in a fierce battle with the Zha River Seven Thieves, hesitated for a moment, then scrambled to his feet and rushed frantically toward the courtyard exit, paying no attention whatsoever to Yu Ermei and the others.

Seeing that Yu Zhentian was stretched too thin to handle everything, the other martial arts academy disciples and apprentices each focused solely on seizing the chance to escape for their own lives, having no mind left to save anyone.

"Did I tell you to leave?"

At that moment, Zha Lao'er, who had not yet made a move, thrust a palm through the air; a tangible force of qi slammed into the courtyard wall.

It directly collapsed the entire brick wall ahead; dust surged, and the fallen bricks and stones piled up, blocking the very path everyone must take to flee.

The immense power of that palm strike terrified Zhu Fang and the others, causing them to halt abruptly before the rubble, daring not advance even a single step.

"Rebellious disciples! A whole bunch of rebellious disciples!"

Yu Zhentian roared in fury; he had naturally witnessed the actions of Zhu Fang and the others.

The disciple he valued most had betrayed him out of fear for his own life, while the two apprentices he had looked down upon most refused to abandon him; this left him with a mixture of bitter and sweet emotions.

"Take Ermei and the others; I will cover your escape!"

Yu Zhentian's internal energy surged; he swept his sword horizontally, knocking back Zha Laosan and the others who were besieging him.

Then, using that force, he flipped through the air and descended from the roof to land before Zhang Dazhuang and the other two.

However, he saw that these two martial arts academy apprentices were standing still, staring at each other in bewilderment.

"I could carry the Second Young Lady, but I have no confidence in my ability to carry her and run very far."

Zhang Dazhuang muttered; his bone structure and aptitude were both extremely poor.

After so many years at the academy, he had learned little in martial arts, possessing only slightly more strength than an ordinary person.

Otherwise, he would not, like Li Musheng, have spent twenty years merely as a martial arts academy apprentice.

Nevertheless, Zhang Dazhuang ultimately set down Yu Xian and approached Yu Ermei.

For no matter how he looked at it, he was far stronger than Li Musheng, who was a full size smaller than him.

Seeing this, Yu Zhentian breathed a slight sigh of relief and glanced at his second daughter.

He thought to himself that if they survived this calamity, his first order of business would be to force her to lose weight; otherwise, at a life-or-death moment, no one would be willing or able to save her.

"You two, make sure to stay close behind me!"

Yu Zhentian spoke in a deep voice, then shifted his gaze, only to find that Li Musheng nearby had not moved.

He was about to call out, but Zha Laosan and the others had already closed in.

At the same time, Zha Lao'er shifted his stance, drew his blade, and landed nearby to provide support.

"If you do not hand over the item, you will not be able to go anywhere."

Zha Lao'er's expression was blank; his internal energy surged, and a murderous aura radiated from him, revealing a presence that was even stronger than Yu Zhentian's.

Seeing this, Yu Zhentian's pupils contracted, and his face immediately turned extremely grim.

"Old Man Yu, I suppose you are stingy; what is this thing you are so unwilling to part with, forcing us all to die alongside you?"

Li Musheng asked curiously; upon hearing this, Yu Zhentian instinctively glared at him.

But remembering that this young man was one of only two apprentices willing to stay and help, he could only take a deep breath and say:

"This matter has nothing to do with you; do not ask too many questions!"

Li Musheng shrugged, then turned his gaze to Zha Lao'er:

"How about you tell me what exactly you want from him?"

Zha Lao'er swept his gaze over Li Musheng; seeing the youth's immature appearance yet daring to question him, a sinister smile curled his lips:

"Come closer, and I will tell you."

"Boy, I think you are tired of living!" someone among the Zha River Seven Thieves besieging them cursed.

He swiftly brought his blade down; the blade-light sliced through the air, accompanied by a "crack" as it headed straight for Li Musheng.

Seeing this, Yu Zhentian immediately flashed forward to block with his sword, but in the next instant, his gaze suddenly froze.

Yu Zhentian was shocked to discover that the very moment he acted, the apprentice Li Musheng had vanished from his line of sight.

At that moment, as the ear-piercing sound of blade striking blade rang out, Zha Lao Wu, who had struck, was forced back half a step by Yu Zhentian's sword.

But he did not look at his opponent; instead, his pupils suddenly widened as he stared at the spot where Li Musheng had been standing, exclaiming in alarm:

"That boy... where is he?"

Upon hearing this, Zha Laosan and the others, who were preparing to raise their blades and attack again, abruptly halted their movements, instantly becoming filled with shock and doubt.

A living person had simply vanished from their sight; how could they possibly ignore it?

They immediately began searching everywhere for Li Musheng's figure; just then, a voice sounded from behind Zha Lao'er:

"I have come; should you not tell me now?"

In an instant, every hair on Zha Lao'er's body stood on end, and his expression changed drastically.

But he had experienced countless battles in the Jianghu and reacted quickly; without hesitation, he reversed his grip and slashed backward with his blade, striking toward his rear with the speed of thunder.

At the same time, he channeled internal energy into his legs and sprinted forward at extreme speed, seeking to put distance between himself and the person behind him.

However, Zha Lao'er's blade struck nothing but air, and the voice of Li Musheng behind him followed like a ghost.

"You run as soon as I arrive; that is no fun."

As the words fell, the entire courtyard of the martial arts academy suddenly fell silent.

Before the academy's disciples and apprentices could understand what had happened, they were shocked to see that six of the black-clad figures, including Zha Lao'er, stood motionless as if carved from wood or molded from clay.

"I have sealed their acupoints."

Li Musheng's voice came from beside Yu Zhentian.

Yu Zhentian whipped his head around; upon seeing him, he instinctively took several steps backward.

"You... who exactly are you?"

Yu Zhentian gazed in disbelief at this unremarkable martial arts academy apprentice before him, his aged face filled with wariness.

Li Musheng shrugged, reached out to pat Zhang Dazhuang's shoulder beside him, turned his head and said:

"Brother Zhang, please stop staring at me like that. Although I know you've always been jealous of this handsome face of mine."

"Ah??"

Zhang Dazhuang shook his head, came to his senses, looked at the seven Zha River thieves who had been acupointed, then looked at Li Musheng, took a deep breath heavily, and said:

"A-Sheng, you make me feel like a stranger!"

Li Musheng chuckled, turned his head to face Yu Zhentian:

"Old man Yu, I leave these thieves to you for disposal."

Saying this, he spread his hands toward the other person and said:

"Also, I forgot to tell you, I won't be staying at the martial arts hall anymore. As agreed, give me five taels of silver after I wash my hands of the world. Don't be like before and deduct or default on the debt."

Yu Zhentian's gaze fixed intently on Li Musheng, the shock on his face lingering for a long time, hard to dispel.

"Are you really that brat Li Musheng? But I remember you were clearly a martial arts waste, how could you be like this..."

However, Li Musheng directly cut off his words and asked:

"You wouldn't be thinking of defaulting, would you?"

Hearing this, Yu Zhentian's mind startled, and he hurriedly waved his hands.

He rummaged in his chest for a while; he carried no silver on his person, only pulling out a silver note worth one hundred taels.

But before he could speak, the silver note instantly vanished from his hand and fell into Li Musheng's hand.

Li Musheng said with a smile:

"Not bad, not bad, rare to see you generous once; I'll accept this silver note!"

(End of this chapter)