Chapter 291: Assassination by Fudong, Dongqing Changes Teams (5k, please subscribe)

Seeing that the person was about to leave, the minor official in the shadows felt very anxious; after all, if he allowed this fellow's Golden Core to shatter, he would have to bear the responsibility.

At this moment, Du En once again stopped him with a look and gestured with his hand, indicating that he should just let him handle the surveillance.

Then, without giving the minor official time to react, he followed along on his own.

One person walked in front, stumbling and falling from time to time, looking exactly like a beggar in the mortal world, crawling and rolling in a foul gutter.

One person followed behind, steady and unchanging, pausing occasionally, doing nothing else, just maintaining the pursuit, his gaze never changing either.

Seeing them leave, the minor official felt conflicted, but decided to return first to report and see what the supervisor above him would say about this.

Because he dared not provoke Du En; if he followed and ended up drawing the disgust and targeting of this senior, who clearly looked to be favored by a big shot in the city, he would be finished just the same, and even more thoroughly—the kind of situation where only one path remains.

Thus, only Du En and the other two drifted further and further away.

Walking and walking, they arrived in a truly dark corner.

Halfway there, the decadent person in front discovered Du En's pursuit; at this moment, he sat slumped on the ground, head hanging, glancing listlessly at the person who had stopped at the same time with his peripheral vision, seeing that calm face.

No pity, no contempt, yet also no affirmation, no indignation.

Truly high and mighty...

"This one, any interest in hearing about how that was just a dream, a false experience?"

"Mm."

"Then I shall tell it. In that psychedelic dream, I was just an ordinary hunter's son. The world there was full of mediocre people, and I was born restless, always liking to listen to the storytellers who traveled from village to village, especially those stories of immortals who flew high and moved freely."

"The time of childhood passed quickly. Because of a great drought one year, there was not enough food at home, so I was entrusted to distant relatives. Under their upbringing, I entered a Jianghu sect and learned some crude martial arts."

"Life was alright, especially since there was a doctor in the sect who treated me very well and always took care of me... But who could have known that appearances are deceptive? That doctor actually had ulterior motives and wanted to possess my body. Fortunately, I had obtained a fortuitous encounter earlier, which allowed me to barely turn the tables. From then on, I knew the coldness of human hearts, and after stepping into the cultivation world, I was terrified and cautious, like walking on thin ice."

"Later, due to various accidents, I had to flee overseas to the Vast Sea cultivation world. There, I met my lover and Dao companion. We swore to change our difficult situation and win a beautiful future on the islands of the Vast Sea."

"So, through the opportunity of a strange treasure, I worked hard and cultivated tirelessly, finally saving enough spirit items to form a Golden Core. I could change my inferior status, defy the heavens to change my fate, complete a turnaround, and have a place of my own."

"And then, and then, everything was just an empty dream..."

Speaking to the end, the lingering sound drifted.

A vivid, seemingly real, yet ultimately false experience that, when heard, only makes one sigh inwardly.

"So, this is the reason you defected to the Fudong Immortal Sect?"

Du En asked calmly.

"No, it is just the echo that this fellow could not forget even upon death."

The person leaning in the corner replied this way.

The atmosphere suddenly became sharp and cold; figures full of baleful aura appeared quietly, directly surrounding Du En.

There were ten of them in total, each a Golden Core perfection, each a top-tier expert, and each with intense killing intent!

Kill!

Die!

There was no need for words; ten Spirit-Guiding Secret Arts landed on Du En simultaneously, intending to break his Firm Spirit Art, while mana surged like a tidal wave, and many other targeted killing moves were brewing.

The Spirit-Guiding Secret Art was useless.

Du En just shook his body and threw a punch, directly blowing up the enemy nearest to him who had just stood up, avoiding a vicious sneak attack launched by him.

Turning around again to face the others, his mana began to erupt—the triple mana star rings in his dantian began to accelerate and circulate; although they had not yet formed a clear scale, they already had a state of endless vitality, as if inexhaustible, constantly generating new mana.

So it is not a Firm Spirit Body?

The remaining nine Fudong assassins were not too surprised by this and directly released other prepared targeted killing moves.

Withered Leaf Decay!

Golden Metal Corrosion!

Water Dried and Evaporated!

Fire Extinguished and Heat Death...

Various secret arts covering the Five Elements Spirit Bodies, as well as four other types of secret arts covering heterogeneous spirit bodies, were used instantly, which could be called an all-around weakening, leaving no gaps at all!

At the same time, they had quietly covered themselves in shells, directly turning into cold, murderous monsters, gaining physical strength exceeding that of ordinary body cultivators of the same rank.

As fast as possible, as hidden as possible, they unleashed close-quarters combat, intending to behead Du En in this narrow alley corner!

Du En only felt his body sink, as if falling into quicksand, with pulling and dragging everywhere; in reality, he was affected by the secret arts, his blood and Qi were failing, his physical defense was loosening, he lacked follow-up strength, his consciousness was dazed, and his mana was sluggish.

He was being weakened in every aspect; as one side fell and the other rose, the situation was truly critical!

So he directly revealed his true ability.

Inexhaustible Green Spirit Body!

The incoming assassins could not help but widen their compound eyes, because in this instant, they felt as if they had arrived on a vast loess land, but the key was not that, but the lush, vigorously growing green tree in front.

The reddish-brown trunk and the emerald-green leaves stood there, relying on absorbing the nutrients of the thick earth, without the slightest decay, only growing more robust.

Terrible!

Used the wrong secret art!

This type...

Before the thought could finish circulating, the scene reflected in their minds had already disappeared, replaced by Du En, whose divine might remained, inexhaustible and ceaseless.

His fist!

Boom!

A fine head directly shattered into rotten meat, and the hard shell scattered into fragments, either clattering or embedding into the wall.

So strong!

Has he already completely digested the Firm Spirit Body?

No, it is a new spirit body evolved further while still retaining all the original advantages!

Damn it!

Intelligence...

These Fudong assassins were no pushovers; as their thoughts raced, their killing intent grew even more intense, and they simultaneously launched a joint strangulation attack, wanting to kill this person right here!

Then, another person was blasted out of the fray.

Although Du En also took three hits—on the back of his neck, his spine, and his lower back—the dharma robes at these three spots were torn, his reddish-brown skin was ripped open, revealing the bone and flesh connected underneath, and a decaying, grayish rot was rapidly seeping in.

Fortunately, during this recent period, to be safe, he hadn't been wearing his Lacquer Shadow Dharma Robe, fearing it might encounter an accident and be carelessly damaged, so what was damaged now was only an ordinary dharma robe.

It was also fortunate that he possessed the Inexhaustible Azure Spirit Body; within a breath, the damage mended, the gray decay vanished, and he returned once again to his peak state.

Unless his dharma power was exhausted, unless his Golden Core was shattered, or unless his Qi and blood were drained dry, he could rely on burning them to obtain an inexhaustible and ceaseless, formidable physical body.

Therefore.

Boom!

Another person was killed!

Risking being struck and wounded, he would still sever one of their fingers!

The assassin from the Fudong Immortal Gate felt their heart sink, yet they showed no panic or confusion, fully displaying the true character of an elite assassin; silent and emotionless, they unleashed various secret and strange close-quarters killing techniques, paired with this carapace demon-transformation, one after another.

In another breath, a full thirty-six types of substitution secret techniques landed directly on Du En's body.

Pfft!

Boom!

Clack!

Piercing, blasting, sharp wounds, and even more negative applications like corroding Qi and blood, neutralizing dharma power, affecting the Golden Core, and bewitching the mind were used, all to break his momentum.

But none of them succeeded.

One layer of the star ring was exhausted, leaving only an outline.

Two people killed!

Another layer of the star ring was exhausted, leaving only an outline.

Two more killed!

Two remained, but the star ring's dharma power was insufficient, so his Golden Core vibrated, and brilliant golden light bloomed from his pupils; he truly grew stronger the more he fought, his momentum climbing continuously, like a great tree growing wildly, constantly shooting straight upward!

Shatter, die, win!

There was absolutely nothing flashy; there was only the most extreme and fastest way of trading wounds for life. The fighting styles of both sides were identical; one encounter, one contact, and someone was bound to die.

Very quickly, all ten assassins died in the alley.

From beginning to end, there was no great commotion, and there wasn't even any extra damage to the alley itself; in just a short time, a pile of corpses simply lay there.

The assassins fought fiercely, which was understandable; Du En fighting fiercely was actually equally understandable.

Because he couldn't let his kills be stolen.

At this moment, although his dharma power was depleted and his Golden Core was withered, he felt no discomfort, because he was long used to it; his daily dharma practice often left him with depleted dharma power.

Fortunately, the recovery pills he obtained from An Yan were truly numerous; he ate them every day, and even now he still had a pile left. After winning, he casually took out two bottles and finished them off just like drinking water.

At the same time, he took out a new dharma robe to wear, then used the tattered dharma robe to wrap up the remains of the corpses and stuffed them into his storage bag.

After doing all this, Du En turned around and looked at the person at the alley entrance.

Ying Dongqing.

This City Lord had sensed something was wrong as soon as Du En erupted with dharma power and had hurried over, but then, she saw him locked in battle with the assassins, exceptionally close and particularly dangerous, so she found it difficult to intervene for a moment.

And by the time she could intervene, she discovered that Du En didn't want her to intervene at all; the reason he erupted with dharma power at the beginning was mainly to call her over to act as a backup.

—To avoid the enemy sending reinforcements at the Nascent Soul stage, which he wouldn't be able to defeat.

To snatch credit, was it worth fighting like this?

She looked at the turning Du En, her eyelids twitching, muttering to herself, and then she couldn't help but sigh, speaking with a heavy tone: "The enemy actually snuck in so early; this was my negligence."

"For enemies capable of sneaking into this sect's territory, one could never count on the city's defenses being secure to begin with."

Even the eighth-tier boundary grand array couldn't prevent their infiltration, so the fifth or sixth-tier city defenses went without saying.

Of course, the former was because it had the backing of the Fudong Immortal Gate.

Therefore, even if they could sneak into the inner city of Changle now, it must be extremely difficult; otherwise, they would have just sent a few Nascent Soul stage cultivators in directly to surround and attack Du En together, to ensure nothing went wrong!

However, if that were the case, he naturally wouldn't boldly step into a trap, but would only see that the situation was bad, immediately sound the alarm, and adopt a strategy of retreat.

"This... still requires a few kind words from Traveling Envoy Du." Hearing that Du En didn't intend to harp on anything, Ying Dongqing's expression eased slightly, and after weighing her words, she bowed, "Although, as the Envoy said, it seems logical, after all, I allowed thieves to sneak in and attempt to assassinate someone as meritorious and talented as you."

Simply put, the logic was as stated, but the fault and error still existed.

If the higher-ups were to nitpick, this matter would be very hard to get past.

After all, Du En was now a Traveling Envoy valued by the sect, and he had previously performed well and earned merit repeatedly.

Unless...

A thought stirred in Du En's mind, and he only said: "City Lord Ying need not be so formal. Previously, when I was a guest here, all expenses were covered by the City Lord's Mansion. Moreover, as someone valued by this sect, if one were to chatter on about one's own incompetence, it would only lower one's standing in the eyes of those above."

Translated, this meant that for now, she could save the favor and use it when it was useful later.

Ying Dongqing weighed and balanced the situation, struggling, but in the end, she only nodded stiffly, looking like someone who was being sold but was unwilling to go along with it.

Sigh~

She couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

She had intended to lean toward the side of True Monarch Zhuding, but in the end, through a twist of fate, she had instead owed a favor to Meng Changqing's faction!

This favor would not be easy to repay!

If she operated just a little more, she would be transformed into "one of their own"!

But if she were to explicitly refuse now and draw a line, the outcome would be even worse; she would only be manipulated and have the matter blown out of proportion. By then, she wouldn't be able to keep her position as City Lord, and might even be transferred to the battlefield... she truly didn't dare to gamble.

Therefore, rather than responding passively here, it would be better to be straightforward and just actively submit!

Of course, the premise was that their faction was willing to accept her openly.

Ying Dongqing actually held very little hope for this; after all, based on the style of this sect as she had inquired about it, no matter how one looked at it, it did not seem like they would accept an opportunist like herself!

That damned Fudong Immortal Gate!

All the trouble stems entirely from this bunch of fellows!

Du En could tell that this City Lord Ying, who was reluctant and suddenly revealed a rather pitiful smile at him, was clearly very decisive in attempting to choose to switch sides, and must truly be furious at this moment.

That surge of anger could not be hidden, or rather, she had no intention of hiding it.

"It is just that she does not know Meng Changqing's temperament; otherwise, she would certainly not have such thoughts. However, it is also possible that even if she knew, she would not dare to gamble that he would not hold it against her. After all, the outcome of losing that gamble might be being sent to fill the front lines on the battlefield, and sooner or later dying without even a speck of ash left."

Especially for someone who is calculating and likes to weigh gains and losses, one dares not pin their hopes on the other party's benevolence.

Just as Du En thought of this, he suddenly felt his Traveling Walker's token flicker.

"Traveler Du, this is?"

Ying Dongqing watched the movement of him taking out the token and could not help but feel a bit nervous.

"The Resolution is contacting me. Hmm, how about this, City Lord Ying, will you come with me?"

"……Okay."

If she went, she would truly be picking a side.

Although she had already made her decision, when the moment arrived, she still felt a sense of helplessness and hesitation; after all, this was clearly a moment that would determine her subsequent fate.

Being forced into this in such a rush... one could only say that Du En was also seizing every opportunity. Since the other party was preoccupied with the matter of picking a side, taking the chance to cement it for her was naturally not unacceptable.

Therefore, Ying Dongqing looked at the young junior before her, thinking of the events before and after, and in the end, said nothing else, merely spitting out that one word.

Who told the Fudong Immortal Gate to come straight for him with an assassination attempt?

And the location just happened to be the place she personally oversaw; no matter how she tried to shift the responsibility, she could not shake it off!

Had she known it would be like this, she would have forced him into the action team no matter what, or been generous enough to offer a heavy reward to entrust him to roam outside. In short, she should not have kept him near the city under the pretext of monitoring unstable factors.

He was stable enough, but the problem was that the Fudong Immortal Gate did not cooperate!

This bunch of damned fellows, just wait until I catch you all later, see how I torture you severely!

On the way back to the City Lord's Mansion following Du En, this City Lord Ying became more furious the more she thought about it, and the more she thought, the more she gnashed her teeth!

However, very quickly, her attention was diverted.

Because the only thing Meng Changqing wanted to say by proactively contacting Du En was one matter.

The war on the Lin-Dong battlefield, over at the Sighing Death Gobi, was slowing down!

From the previous participation of the convict camp to the constant large and small skirmishes until recently, it had finally begun to subside. Both sides had chosen to retreat, quickly withdrawing until only the daily minor scuffles between Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages remained.

That is to say, the Southern Pivot City no longer needed to worry about that side. Next, there would be no excuse for shirking, and they could no longer respond passively as before. Very soon, they would be able to free up some manpower to come and formally support Changle City.

Speaking of this aspect, Meng Changqing was somewhat hesitant and vague.

From the fact that he did not apply pressure this time to urge the Pivot City to squeeze out some resources, it was clear he had some concerns or was struggling with something.

Especially seeing that Ying Dongqing was also following along, his behavior became even more pronounced.

Although in her eyes, Meng Changqing was just keeping a straight face, his tone indifferent, and his words very brief.

It was also because she was there that Du En did not directly ask for the specific reasons.

However, summarizing the events before and after, a situation had been roughly determined.

"So, there is no need to worry about this for now. The question now is, do they know about this change in the situation?"

Du En, walking out of the City Lord's office alone, thought to himself.

This "they," of course, referred to the group of Fudong Immortal Gate infiltrators.

And whether they knew or not was clearly crucial; it would still need to be judged from their actual actions later.

Then, at this moment, behind him, the contact had not yet ended.

Meng Changqing had just peered at Du En a few times and taken the opportunity to make his own decision, so he was currently examining and questioning Ying Dongqing, who had proactively come to pick a side.

For someone like her who was not of the same path, this Resolution Counselor of his sect would not usually accept them. However, through the previous action at the Nancang Ruins and the influence brought about by his subordinate Du En, his approach had undergone some changes.

The previous reorganization, being able to barely hold his nose and cooperate with True Monarch Zhuding, was actually one of those instances.

Therefore, at this moment, he was just following the trend to examine Ying Dongqing.

It was mainly to retrieve relevant records and then apply pressure with sharp questioning to determine if there were any situations of violating rules or committing evil in her past style, and then, after she passed this aspect, to set down a few keynotes she must abide by.

(End of chapter)