Chapter 1648

Hu Xiaotian gave Lin Muqing a cold glance; the oppressive killing intent surged like an undercurrent, enveloping Lin Muqing, making his breath catch and the words he meant to say die in his throat.

Qiu Xanguang took a step toward Hu Xiaotian, appearing casual but actually placing himself in front of Lin Muqing, dispelling the chilling killing intent that made one's heart tremble.

Qiu Xanguang, just as before, coldly and silently gazed at Hu Xiaotian and said, "Mr. Meng, there's no need to quarrel with juniors; if you don't believe me, I can prove it to you."

Hu Xiaotian wondered inwardly, "Proof? How? Has Qiu Xanguang changed his mind? Agreed to let him search the Sword Palace?" He firmly believed Xia Zhangming's information could not be wrong, but even if that were so, even if Qiu Xanguang agreed to open the Sword Palace for them to search, he and Ji Feihua might still not find Qin Yutong's whereabouts.

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said, "Sect Master, it's better to clear up the misunderstanding."

Qiu Xanguang said, "Please follow me!"

Hu Xiaotian followed behind Qiu Xanguang; Ji Feihua wanted to go with him, but Lin Muqing blocked her path, and Hu Xiaotian snapped, "What do you mean, Sect Master Qiu?"

Qiu Xanguang said calmly, "If Mr. Meng wishes to prove this, he must come with me alone; if he refuses, then forget it."

Hu Xiaotian inevitably hesitated; Qiu Xanguang was clearly trying to separate them on purpose, perhaps to isolate them and deal with them one by one. Yet they had already conceded, and since they had come to confront him, he wasn't afraid of escalating matters. Just as Hu Xiaotian was about to press on, Ji Feihua said, "Master, your disciple waits here for you; don't worry about me—if anything happens, just call and I'll come running."

Seeing Ji Feihua let him follow Qiu Xanguang and hearing her speak with such confidence, Hu Xiaotian assumed she had a countermeasure; at worst they could force their way out, nothing to fear. Thinking this, he nodded at Ji Feihua and said, "Be careful; if anyone dares to bully you, I, as your master, will never let them off!" He then gave Lin Muqing a fierce glare while speaking.

Lin Muqing felt a chill to his core from that glare, yet dared not speak.

A faint smile touched Qiu Xanguang's lips: "Mr. Meng, rest assured; no one in my Sword Palace will act against the disciples of Xuantian Guan."

Hu Xiaotian followed Qiu Xanguang out of Hui Sword Hall, stepped outside, saw snow drifting down from the sky, left the courtyard, climbed the stairs, and arrived at the Sword Pavilion. The Sword Pavilion consists of two five-story terraces, east and west, connected by a rainbow-like skybridge; beneath the bridge lies the main road of the Sword Palace. The road runs north‑south, narrowing from north to south; viewed from above, it resembles a long sword hidden within the Sword Palace. The point of the sword aims toward Wanren Mountain, the Sword Palace's forbidden zone.

Although the snowfall grew heavier, the wind‑rain pavilion on the bridge kept Hu Xiaotian free of snow. He crossed the bridge to the wide platform atop the western tower, known as the Sword‑Grinding Platform, bare of anything, now dusted with a thin layer of snow. In its center stood a man in a green scholar's robe, gaunt of feature, composed of expression; the swirling snow seemed to avoid him, not a single flake landing on him. At that moment Qiu Xanguang also quietly withdrew.

When Hu Xiaotian saw the man's face clearly, his blood seemed to freeze instantly.

The middle‑aged scholar gave him a slight smile and a nod, saying softly, "Long time no see?"

Even if Hu Xiaotian racked his brains, he could not have guessed that the person before him was the head of Xuantian Guan, Ren Tianqing.

Hu Xiaotian immediately realized he had been exposed. What sort of person was Ren Tianqing? He could not be so clueless as not to recognize his own senior brother Meng Zizai; moreover, Ren Tianqing himself was a master of disguise, and Qin Yutong's disguise technique came directly from his true transmission. Even Qin Yutong's skill, which Hu Xiaotian regarded as unsurpassable, paled beside Ren Tianqing's. Since Ren Tianqing resided in the Sword Palace, Qin Yutong's safety was naturally assured.

Then the whole affair of Qin Yutong being seized by the Sword Palace was merely a trap—not the one Hu Xiaotian and Ji Feihua had analyzed. Hu Xiaotian sighed inwardly, "Qin Yutong, Qin Yutong, what role are you playing in this? Could you also be scheming against me?"

Though his heart churned and he even felt like cursing, his exterior remained calm, wearing a harmless smile. He stayed silent, for speaking would surely reveal a flaw; indeed, his silence had already given him away, so he could only smile.

Ren Tianqing said, "How dare you impersonate my senior brother—there really aren't many like you in the world."

At this point, Hu Xiaotian saw no need to pretend; he chuckled and said, "Your senior brother isn't anyone special; impersonating him is just the blessing he cultivated in his past life."

Ren Tianqing nodded and said, "It seems my obedient disciple does hold some place in your heart."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Let me get this straight—are you two acting together in this play, or did you direct it all yourself?"

Ren Tianqing said, "It has nothing to do with Yutong; I've merely heard some things. Hand over that picture, and I'll let Yutong go free."

Hu Xiaotian gaped in astonishment: "Did I hear you right? You're actually using your own disciple's life to threaten me?"

Ren Tianqing smiled: "Exactly. Hand over that skin, and I'll release her!"

Hu Xiaotian had heard correctly; Ren Tianqing spoke even more clearly this time, referring to that skin—presumably the human skin belonging to Emperor Jingde. Hu Xiaotian had merely leaked the information to Prince Yan Xue Shengjing on purpose, hoping to disrupt Xue Shengjing's layout and draw the snake out of its hole. He never expected Xue Shengjing's countermeasure, Yingdui de ce, to target Qin Yutong's side. Ren Tianqing and Xue Shengjing are undoubtedly allies. Thus it appears Xue Shengjing was merely feigning before him; the so‑called Immortal Envoy was just a title to confuse him—perhaps no such Immortal Envoy exists at all, or perhaps it is someone else entirely.

Hu Xiaotian stared at Ren Tianqing and asked, "Are you the Immortal Envoy?"

A faint smile touched Ren Tianqing's lips: "Why not?"

Hu Xiaotian also laughed: "How do you know I would choose to bow to you for Qin Yutong's sake?"

Ren Tianqing said, "Because I really will kill her!"

"She is your disciple!" Hu Xiaotian reminded him, still doubtful in his heart, Qin Yutong perhaps also took part in this affair—even a tiger does not eat its cubs, the bond between master and disciple is like that between father and son—how could Ren Tianqing bear to treat his most favored disciple this way?

Ren Tianqing said, "Compared to the Heaven Myriad Phenomenon Diagram, a disciple means nothing? I also have more than just her as a disciple."

"Heaven Myriad Phenomenon Diagram?" Hu Xiaotian repeated the familiar words with some surprise; he had thought the human anatomy diagram drawn by ghost doctor Fu Luo was the Heaven Myriad Phenomenon Diagram, but Ren Tianqing's words awakened him from his dream, and only now did he realize that the truth of the Heaven Myriad Phenomenon Diagram lay here.

Ren Tianqing gazed at Hu Xiaotian with his deep eyes and said, "It seems there are still many things you don't know. Do you not know that Qin Yutong is not her real name? Her surname is Zhou, and her father is the Dakang Chancellor Zhou Ruiyuan. Speaking of which, you were once betrothed to her by childhood agreement. Do I not have sufficient reason to threaten you with her?"

Hu Xiaotian felt a sense of mental confusion; everything seemed utterly bizarre to him, yet Ren Tianqing should not be deceiving himself about this. He slowly nodded, then said to Ren Tianqing, "Although I really want to give you that damned Heaven Myriad Phenomenon Diagram, I just don't have it!"

Ren Tianqing said, "Isn't it already too late to say you don't have it now?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "You got two things wrong: one, you trust Xue Shengjing too much; two, you overestimate Qin Yutong's position in my heart!" As soon as his words fell, he rushed out like a tiger bursting from its cage, then raised his fist and threw a punch at Ren Tianqing—God-Demon World-Extinguishing Fist! He remembered Ji Feihua's admonition: unless absolutely necessary, try not to use the light sword; besides the light sword, he also has fists, and his God-Demon World-Extinguishing Fist is also remarkably powerful. At the instant Hu Xiaotian launched his attack, he erupted with a great roar that shook heaven and earth.

This roar was, however, meant to send a message to Ji Feihua.

Before Hu Xiaotian made his move, Ji Feihua already sensed that the atmosphere was off; an old man sweeping the floor slowly lifted his head, and his originally dull, lightless eyes suddenly shot out a cold gleam like a sharp sword, fixedly staring at her.

Lin Muqing, however, quietly retreated toward the door at this moment.

Ji Feihua gazed at the old man, her expression showing not the slightest fear, the corner of her mouth curling with a hint of mocking smile.

The old man said in a low voice, "Please make way, I need to sweep the floor."

Ji Feihua whispered, "What if I don't make way?"

The old man said, "Then go to die!" As he spoke, he had already struck; the broom in his hand pointed at Ji Feihua, and midway the broom scattered and fell apart, revealing the coldly gleaming sword blade hidden within—a blade three feet long, its edge exposed but only an inch; this inch of cold light shot straight for Ji Feihua's throat, pursuing wind and lightning, swift as a meteor.

Ji Feihua stared at that thread of cold light, not blinking an eye; just as the cold light approached her, she extended the two fingers of her right hand, precisely gripping the sword blade; the cold light dissipated in an instant, accompanied by a crack, and the sword blade snapped in response; Ji Feihua's slender fingers actually broke the tough sword blade; she then gave a light shake, and a point of cold star shot straight toward Lin Muqing's rear neck—puff! The broken sword blade pierced Lin Muqing's rear neck, penetrated his neck, shattered his Adam's apple, and then its momentum did not wane, carrying fresh blood it let out a wail as it shot out of the Wisdom Sword Hall, straight into the group of Sword Palace disciples surrounding the Wisdom Sword Hall; tragic cries rang out one after another, and actually three people died on the spot.

The old man's three-foot sword had been broken by an inch; his anger all gathered in the bald broom, the broom's bamboo shaft burst open from within, exposing the sword hidden inside—a sword like deep water, its light deep and somber, yet its sharpest edge had already been broken by someone.

In the early morning, this first update is just to secure a baseline; nowadays, speaking the truth is never believed—Zhangyu has no draft, last month Zhangyu only revised and still had no draft; between people, can there be no even the most basic trust? Does Lao Zhangyu at this speed need to keep a draft? As long as you dare to vote, Lao Zhangyu dares to go berserk; today's first update is delivered, charging into the top six, four more, top five, five more! (To be continued~^~.)