Chapter 963: [Great Gift] (Part 1)

Both smiled with extreme hypocrisy, Hong Beimo said: "I came this time and specially prepared a generous gift for the Princess."

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "The Princess is currently chatting with Chancellor Zhou and Grand Tutor Wen; Mr. Hong, whatever you have to say to me is the same." Hu Xiaotian's words clearly meant that the Princess had no time to receive you; whatever you have to say, tell me, and at the same time he was mocking Hong Beimo for not being worthy to be mentioned alongside the Chancellor and Grand Tutor.

Hong Beimo was not angry, smiling: "If so, then please Chief Hu accept this gift on my behalf."

Two disciples brought over a plaque covered in red cloth; Hong Beimo personally unveiled it, and the plaque bore the three large characters personally written by the Emperor for the Divine Strategy Manor. After ordering the investigation and crackdown on the Divine Strategy Manor, he had taken its plaque away; today he specially had someone retrieve that former plaque as a gift, which can be considered a considerable present.

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Mr. Hong, this great gift arrives a bit late; the plaque of the Divine Strategy Manor has already been hung up."

Hong Beimo gazed at the plaque above the Divine Strategy Manor and said: "How can this plaque compare to the one personally inscribed by the Emperor? Since I have brought the plaque, I might as well see the deed through. A Sheng! Replace this plaque."

Hu Xiaotian's heart startled; Hong Beimo indeed came with ill intent—on the surface it was a gift, but what he truly intended was to take down the Divine Strategy Manor's plaque; even hanging the plaque he brought would bring shame upon the Manor. Later, people would say the Heavenly Mechanism Bureau had removed the Manor's sign and then hung up another, humiliating them on their opening day—this cannot be allowed.

Behind Hong Beimo a middle-aged man stepped out; he was of medium build, pale-faced and clean-shaven, with a gentle expression and inwardly gathered essence. Outwardly he looked ordinary, but as he approached step by step, Hu Xiaotian felt a vast energy as deep as mountains slowly pressing upon him, his heart involuntarily startled, and he smiled: "Mr. Hong, just leave the plaque here; we have accepted the gift."

Hong Beimo smiled: "Since we are presenting a gift, we must show sincerity. A Sheng, what's the matter? Didn't you hear me tell you to replace the plaque?"

A Sheng respectfully replied: "Yes!"

Hu Xiaotian was pondering whether to intervene personally when he heard Zhou Mo's loud voice from behind: "Our lord said the plaque can be placed here." At the critical moment, Zhou Mo, having heard the news, came out and saw the tense scene before him.

Seeing Zhou Mo arrive, Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but relax; Zhou Mo's martial arts were robust and domineering, already having reached first-rate level. With him blocking A Sheng, there should be no problem.

Hong Beimo narrowed his eyes in a smile, watching the scene before him; today he came prepared, unafraid to stir up trouble, wanting these juniors to know the might of the Heavenly Mechanism Bureau, and also to make this flock of fawning courtiers understand the consequences of shifting with the wind.

A Sheng stepped forward; his body seemed to contract slightly, his bones crackling all over, then his muscles suddenly tensed, his whole person like an arrow released from a crossbow. He sprang up from the spot and shot toward the gate of the Divine Strategy Manor. His target was the plaque hanging high above the gate; he intended to snatch it down and, before the officials and nobles of Dakang, harshly humiliate these arrogant juniors. The instant he left the ground, the blue stone floor beneath his feet split open, the cracks spreading like a spider's web in all directions.

Zhou Mo activated his move a little later, but being closer to the plaque, he arrived first and intercepted A Sheng ahead of him. A Sheng bent his hands, drawing two arcs from left to right, and as his arms extended he sent forth a surge of thick internal energy, calmly saying: "Please make way."

Zhou Mo also swept out his palms: "Affairs of the Divine Strategy Manor need no outsiders to trouble themselves."

Their palms struck together, emitting a muffled 'Peng!' as two powerful invisible internal forces collided, squeezing the surrounding air outward like waves. It was as if a great wind had risen; onlookers' robes fluttered, those with slightly weaker martial arts felt their breath momentarily cut off, involuntarily stepping back several steps before feeling some relief in their chests.

In terms of internal energy, Zhou Mo and A Sheng were evenly matched; both bodies shuddered, yet neither managed to shake the other off. They fell from the air to the ground, and A Sheng's gentle expression suddenly turned solemn, for he had not expected that within the Divine Strategy Manor lay hidden such an expert as Zhou Mo.

Hong Beimo smiled at the scene before the gate and said softly: "I never imagined the Divine Strategy Manor also harbors hidden tigers and dragons."

Hu Xiaotian smiled narrowly: "Without some skill, who would dare hang the plaque of the Divine Strategy Manor? Otherwise, anyone would dare come to provoke, and any sort of person would dare to tear down our sign."

Hong Beimo nodded: "Chief Hu, why stand on ceremony? I merely wished to present you a generous gift; do you also disdain the plaque personally written by the Emperor?"

Hu Xiaotian hid a knife in his smile: "It's not that we disdain the Emperor's plaque, but we have no need for Mr. Hong to trouble himself."

Hong Beimo smiled: "I personally came to deliver this great gift; if Chief Hu refuses to accept it, I would truly lose face." He turned to the two facing each other and said: "A Sheng, can't you even handle such a small matter?"

A Sheng stepped back one pace; the gentle expression on his face vanished, his arms slowly opening as if embracing the moon, he walked counterclockwise, and with his motion an indescribable chill spread outward, invading the surroundings. Although it was already the start of summer, those around felt a sense of autumn wind suddenly rising.

Furthermore, one could see icy vapor emanating from around A Sheng's body, and both his palms underwent a strange change, beginning at the fingertips to be covered in white frost.

Zhou Mo coldly stared at his opponent, then suddenly let out a tiger's roar; this time he sought to strike first, stepping forward with his right foot as a pivot, he leapt into the air, his tiger-like body soaring over two zhang, in midair he bent his right arm backward, using the momentum of the plunge he violently slammed a fist downward, this punch gathering all of Zhou Mo's internal energy.

A Sheng also threw a forward punch; his right fist had, in a short time, become encased in a thick layer of frost, glittering and translucent in the sunlight, like ice and snow carved into shape; because of the frost wrapping, his fist had grown to more than double its former size.

Their fists collided, hearing the crack of the ice layer; the ice armor encasing A Sheng's right fist was shattered by Zhou Mo's blow.

Hu Xiaotian watched, pleased in his heart; truly, few could match an elder brother in a straight-up fist-and-foot clash.

Zhou Mo's punch was heavy and powerful, and with his advantage of striking from above, he held overwhelming superiority; although A Sheng withstood the blow, his feet were under doubled pressure from Zhou Mo's immense force, the blue stone beneath his feet cracking inch by inch, showing how great the pressure on his body was.

Upon fist contact, the ice armor shattered; at that moment A Sheng's right fist violently rotated counterclockwise, shattering into countless fragments of ice armor that shot out like a volley of arrows toward Zhou Mo. Launching such an attack at close range, even a first-rate master would struggle to react.

Hu Xiaotian saw the situation suddenly change and involuntarily exclaimed; he did not know that A Sheng's punch was called the Ice Explosion Fist—the ice armor increases punching power and strengthens defense, but when facing a true expert the ice armor is shattered by the opponent, and the true killing move lies in the moment the ice armor breaks: the countless shards, driven by internal energy, shoot forth at close range into the opponent's body—this is the Ice Explosion.

When Zhou Mo saw A Sheng's right fist twisting, he immediately realized something was amiss, swiftly closed his eyes, raised his left arm to shield his eyes, protecting this most vulnerable spot; having cultivated a hard qi practice that renders blades and spears ineffective, although faced with danger he showed no panic, allowing the ice armor shards to strike him at close range—though they pierced his garments, they could not penetrate his tough skin and muscles.

A Sheng, however, seized the opportunity and flashed to Zhou Mo's side, his left fist, still wrapped in ice armor, fiercely struck Zhou Mo's abdomen; he intended to knock Zhou Mo down with a single blow, and this blow solidly hit Zhou Mo's belly, yet Zhou Mo's body showed not the slightest sway; his left arm blocked the dense ice shards, and though his tightly closed eyes prevented him from seeing the scene, he could sense the opponent's presence, lunging at A Sheng like a tiger descending the mountain, this time using his body as a weapon.

A Sheng failed to dodge and was struck squarely by Zhou Mo; Zhou Mo, provoked by A Sheng's sneak attack into true anger, his hard qi cultivation being formidable in that it can turn any part of the body into a most lethal weapon—his shoulder struck A Sheng's chest, A Sheng felt as if hit by a thousand-jin boulder, unable to keep his footing, his body leapt into the air.

Zhou Mo, annoyed by the underhanded strike, had no intention of letting him off; he followed up, striking A Sheng's chest in midair with two consecutive punches, causing A Sheng to grunt twice as his body flung outward, landing spread-eagled among the distant crowd of onlookers.

Seeing someone fall, the onlookers panicked and scattered in all directions; A Sheng, about to hit the ground, was caught midair by a pair of arms that shot out from sideways—it was a blue-clad warrior in Hong Beimo's service, tall and long-armed, handsome of face; A Sheng's feet finally touched the ground, his complexion pale as paper, a surge of heat rose from his chest to his throat, he barely managed to swallow the blood threatening to gush out, gazing at Zhou Mo standing like a deity before the gate of the Divine Strategy Manor, he nodded slowly, unable to utter a word.

Although Hong Beimo's face still bore a smile, it was clearly less relaxed than before; he had underestimated the capability of Hu Xiaotian's subordinates—this Zhou Mo had actually defeated A Sheng, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions of the Heavenly Mechanism Bureau, in a head‑on clash, and his strength, even viewed across Dakang, was already among the few top experts.

Hu Xiaotian snorted coldly on the side: "Mr. Hong's subordinate is truly despicable—he even resorted to hidden weapons!"

Hong Beimo still showed no trace of anger: "Chief Hu, you misunderstand; this is not a hidden weapon, it is the Ice Explosion Fist—if he truly employed hidden weapons, this warrior would hardly have a chance to win."

Hu Xiaotian silently cursed Hong Beimo for not knowing shame; losing is losing, what need is there for so many excuses? At this point, still trying to cover his face with a fig leaf—those who know the times should slink away in disgrace.

At this moment a pleasant voice rang out: "Mr. Hong, why not call forth your hidden‑weapon expert so we may witness his skill!" (To be continued~^~)