Chapter 69: [Strike First] (Part 2)

Hu Xiaotian chuckled and said, "Old bald donkey, you can't even save your life, yet you dare to boast—does your left chest feel a faint ache? If you press your finger between your fifth and sixth ribs, do you feel a slight sting?"

Wu Xing suspected the boy was deliberately deceiving him, yet he still pressed as instructed—indeed, anyone pressing there would feel pain, and Wu Xing drew a sharp breath.

"Does your chest also feel a bit heavy, as if a stone were pressing on it? Your heartbeat quickens, and your lips feel a little dry."

Wu Xing was naturally suspicious, and the more suspicious a person is, the easier they fall for others' psychological suggestion traps. He glared fiercely at Hu Xiaotian, yet inside he was terrified to the extreme, secretly wondering, "Could this boy really have poisoned his dagger?" What Hu Xiaotian described were actually the normal symptoms of blood loss; Wu Xing's left leg kept bleeding, which would certainly produce corresponding blood-loss symptoms. Hu Xiaotian exploited this to wage psychological warfare, constantly feeding him suggestions. In fact, his aim was to buy time—the longer the delay, the more obvious Wu Xing's blood-loss symptoms would become, his strength would wane accordingly, and that would benefit Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Now obediently kneel on the ground, kowtow three times, and call me 'grandfather' three times; perhaps I will spare your life."

Wu Xing roared, "You little beast, even if I have to stake my life, I will take your dog's life!"

Hu Xiaotian laughed, "Old bald donkey, you truly have no idea of death—I, your grandfather, am standing right here; if you've got the guts, come catch me!"

Wu Xing tapped his cane on the ground, and his body suddenly leapt into the air.

Hu Xiaotian had schemed to the utmost but never expected this cripple could also fly; seeing Wu Xing use the force of tapping his cane to spring into the air, soaring like a great bird over more than ten zhang straight at him, Hu Xiaotian was frightened and turned to flee. I said, "I clearly stabbed him once, yet his fighting strength remains so vigorous—he can even fly! Damn, it seems their bodily structure indeed differs somewhat from mine—how can he fly so high!"

Wu Xing swept forward a distance; his body naturally would fall back to the ground, but just as he was about to land, he tapped his cane again, his body leapt up once more—two consecutive leaps brought him within less than one zhang of Hu Xiaotian. Hu Xiaotian suddenly raised the clump in his hand and hurled it at Wu Xing's face. Wu Xing opened his palm and slapped it hard—pah! —the cloth bundle burst apart, and a red, misty powder spread out. Wu Xing wanted to dodge but it was too late; he inhaled a bit of the powder, instantly feeling an intense irritation, and couldn't help but sneeze. This made things worse: as he inhaled and sneezed, a lot entered his mouth, nose, and eyes, everywhere a burning sensation. Wu Xing's eyes involuntarily shut, and in an instant tears streamed down his face. Only then did he realize the packet the boy had thrown was chili powder; he silently cursed the wretch for his viciousness, even resorting to such lowly tactics.

Just earlier, Hu Xiaotian had seen chili powder among the items loaded on the horse; this was Hu Fo's personal carry, Hu Fo brought it for his own eating, not to deal with enemies, but seeing it, Hu Xiaotian immediately turned it into a weapon to defeat the foe.

Just moments ago, when Wu Xing approached Hu Xiaotian, Hu Xiaotian had wanted to reveal his weapon, but after thinking it over, the distance was too close—if he threw the chili powder, it would be a case of killing the enemy at the cost of self-harm, possibly choking himself as well; thus Hu Xiaotian abandoned the idea.

At this moment the situation was urgent; coincidentally the heavy rain had briefly ceased—just the right time to employ this weapon. For opportunist Hu Xiaotian, he would certainly not miss such a great opportunity. He flung out an entire large packet of chili powder.

Although Wu Xing's martial skill surpassed Hu Xiaotian's, this fellow was clearly not a top-tier expert; if a stone had been thrown, he might have dodged it, but the opponent threw a packet of chili powder. Though his slap felt satisfying, its consequence was utterly disastrous.

The chili powder–struck Wu Xing fell like a bird with broken wings, yet he managed to land steadily, to his credit.

How could Hu Xiaotian pass up the chance to add insult to injury? He picked up a piece of bamboo as thick as an arm from the ground and swept it sideways.

Wu Xing had not yet freed himself from the pain of the chili powder attack; his sight and hearing were severely impaired. Just as he landed, the bamboo swept across and struck his left face, knocking his bald head to spin sharply to the right, and two bright teeth flew out as well.

Hu Xiaotian summoned his strength, raised the bamboo in his hand, exerted force with both arms, and delivered a standard "Mount Hua Splitting Strike"—with a bang! it smashed onto Wu Xing's crown.

Wu Xing toppled straight over, his cane flung to the side.

Hu Xiaotian was more cautious than Wu Xing; just now he had deceived Wu Xing with a disguise, and he couldn't guarantee this fellow wouldn't use the same trick on him. Hu Xiaotian raised the bamboo, which was over two zhang long, aimed at Wu Xing's crotch, and through gritted teeth shouted, "Your grandfather's, you dare to move my vegetables—I'll make you childless!" He thrust the thick bamboo forward with all his might, squarely striking Wu Xing's groin.

As expected, Wu Xing was indeed feigning unconsciousness; he also wanted to learn Hu Xiaotian's earlier method and launch a desperate counterattack, but facing the cunning Hu Xiaotian, today Wu Xing was like a pure child—Hu Xiaotian not only had meticulous thoughts, he was also ruthless and cruel. This blow left Wu Xing losing control of his bowels and bladder; he let out a miserable scream and passed out. Even if he didn't die today, half his life was ruined by Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian feared this fellow might be feigning, so he raised the bamboo and dealt two more hard thrusts to his crotch. To be so vicious toward a monk—aside from Hu Xiaotian, there are probably hardly any others in the world.

Hu Xiaotian was certain Wu Xing had completely lost his ability to resist, so he walked over and, using the rope he had found, bound him tightly. He didn't spare him out of mercy; he simply didn't yet know the poisoning condition of the other five companions, and needed to keep this man alive as a precaution—if he couldn't save himself, he'd still need this living captive to find an antidote.

Following the light to the meditation room where Wu Xing was, Hu Xiaotian first peered through the torn paper window and saw Murong Feiyan bound hand and foot, thrown onto the floor; she was clearly still under the drug's effect, remaining unconscious. Seeing that Murong Feiyan's clothes were neatly intact on her body, Hu Xiaotian finally relaxed completely—she was well packaged, only with a few extra bindings, and the pastries inside remained untouched.

Hu Xiaotian was sure there were no other monks nearby; he pushed the door open and entered, cradling Murong Feiyan, and softly called, "Feiyan, Feiyan!" He kept shaking her delicate body with both hands, but to no avail—Murong Feiyan remained sound asleep.

Hu Xiaotian glanced at the nearby table, where fortunately there was a bowl of cold water; he picked it up and splashed it on Murong Feiyan's face, yet she still showed no reaction—evidently the drug used by these wicked monks was extremely potent. Gazing at Murong Feiyan's lovely face, he clicked his tongue and sighed, "She really is pretty—just too fierce and lacking any feminine charm."

Hu Xiaotian set Murong Feiyan back on the ground, turned and returned to the courtyard; just then the rain began to intensify again, and Wu Xing, drenched by the pouring cold rain, actually came to.

Hu Xiaotian approached him, squatted down, produced a surgical blade and waved it before Wu Xing, speaking grimly, "Hand over the antidote, or I'll carve hundreds of cuts into your body and let you bleed to death."

Wu Xing burst into hysterical laughter, laughing wildly and horribly, saying nothing but just cackling nonstop. Hu Xiaotian grew impatient, raised his hand and slammed a fist into his nose bridge, causing Wu Xing's nose to bleed profusely as he fell backward onto the ground.

Hu Xiaotian followed up, pressed the blade against his throat, and said, "Old bald donkey, you think I'm joking with you, grandfather? Believe it or not, I'll make you a eunuch first."

Wu Xing, mouth full of blood, replied, "If you're going to kill me, just kill me—why bother humiliating me?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "I love it!" He threw another punch at Wu Xing's face. This punch was so heavy it knocked Wu Xing unconscious. He searched Wu Xing's person and found a green porcelain bottle; he opened it, sniffed the mouth, and a foul, stinging odor made him sneeze repeatedly. Hu Xiaotian took the jade bottle back to the room, aimed its mouth at Murong Feiyan's nose. Just as he was about to unscrew it, his gaze fell on Murong Feiyan's jade-white neck, and an impish thought sprang to mind. He lowered his head and fiercely kissed her immaculate neck, sucking until he drew blood, then stopped, hehe-laughing, "The taste is superb!" ***************************************************************** Again, I beg for three Jiang tickets!

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