Chapter 433: 408 Search

Shangguan Jianke narrowly escaped death and turned hostile in his rage. Everyone present felt a chill simultaneously and couldn't help but retreat a few steps, none wishing to be dragged into the dispute between the two, fearing they might be implicated; no one, however, was worried about Meng Huazhou.

Meng Huazhou's strength was a notch lower, and before he could react, he was held at sword-point, his life instantly in another's hands. He could not help but panic for a moment, but it was clear he was still managing to suppress it, saying, "Senior, do not be rash! I have absolutely no intention of deceiving or harming you..."

Shangguan Jianke would not allow his sophistry, only saying, "Whether you did or not no longer matters. If you refuse to be honest, then so be it; even if you spoke, I would not believe you. You—"

He pointed casually, and the person he pointed at happened to be Tang Zhao, who had been retreating more slowly. "You, come here."

Tang Zhao had not expected to be involved, and confirmed, "Me?"

Shangguan Jianke said, "It is you. Come over and search his body. Lay out everything on him one by one. If you leave even one item behind or hide anything, I will kill you along with him."

Tang Zhao's heart stirred: this is a good idea. It's the perfect chance to see what he has hidden.

He agreed, and Black Widow tugged at him, handing him a pair of Spider Silk Gloves.

Tang Zhao only then remembered that Meng Huazhou was still the Young Master of Jingzhe Villa; he did not know if he might be hiding any poisonous insects on his person, so he said, "Senior, do not blame me, searching his body is a bit dangerous." He then picked up a tree branch to use as a stick, poking around Meng Huazhou's body.

Meng Huazhou was furious and glared at Tang Zhao. Tang Zhao was not flustered in the slightest, merely using the wooden stick to flip through his clothing pockets to see if there was anything inside.

Poking around, the tactile sensation was just ordinary skin; it seemed there really were no things like poisonous insects inside Meng Huazhou's clothes. Tang Zhao then followed the procedure for a body search, first removing his sword, then untying his pack, and finally turning out his belt, pockets, cuffs, and every other hidden place, placing the items on the ground one by one.

The moment Tang Zhao removed Meng Huazhou's weapon, Meng Huazhou's body went rigid, and his fingers clenched tight. In that instant, he seemed about to snatch the sword for a Death Struggle, but Shangguan Jianke had sensed it early on, the sword tip tightening to graze the meridians on his neck. Meng Huazhou froze instantly, and in that moment of hesitation, the sword was already removed. The only weapon he could rely on for battle had fallen into another's hands.

As Tang Zhao held the Jingzhe Sword Dharma Artifact, he suddenly thought: in critical moments, one cannot hesitate; sometimes, a single moment of wishful thinking can reverse life and death.

If it were he himself in such a situation, he should seize the final opportunity for a Death Struggle.

Shangguan Jianke then pointed at Yue Lai, telling him to turn out the pack Meng Huazhou was carrying, and all the items were laid out as well.

There were truly quite a lot of things on him; fans, fire-starters, small daggers, and the like were common items. Medicine bottles, gloves, and powder boxes were related to poisons. There were even several Art Tools hidden in various corners of his body, intended to be ready for a counterattack at any time. Shangguan Jianke glanced at them and said, "You are quite well-prepared."

He was, after all, a Sword Guest of some standing; even if he was not a Talisman Sword Master, he had seen many Art Tools, and with a rough scan, he knew these were all ordinary attack or Art Tools, with nothing special among them.

Tang Zhao finished searching and took a step back, saying, "The things are all here; it seems there is nothing special."

Shangguan Jianke hummed. The White Fox knew he was speaking to it and replied, "Indeed, I do not feel that the things on him have anything to do with Baiyujing. How can there be no travel permit? Without a travel permit, how can one go up? Either he is completely ignorant and brought you all here on a whim, or he still has something hidden."

At this time, Yue Lai had also finished turning out the pack, laying out the drinking water, rations, and even changes of clothes, but there were no clues there either.

Shangguan Jianke's brow furrowed slightly as he watched. What he wanted was something that could bypass Meng Huazhou himself and go directly to the Xiancheng, preferably something without restrictions that could be used as soon as it was obtained, or at the very least, a tangible object he could see and touch. Once he had the object, manipulating Meng Huazhou would be much easier.

However, since he could not find a tangible object, he would have to force a confession. Yet his sword lacked a Sword Art like mental control to guarantee the truth; if he just kept torturing him, the other party could stall for time with a mix of truth and lies. Once it dragged on until nightfall, the Xiancheng would descend; it would be one thing if he lost his chance, but letting this brat escape into the Xiancheng would be an endless source of trouble.

While Shangguan Jianke was hesitating, Yue Lai stood up and said, "Lord Shangguan, something is missing here."

Shangguan Jianke said "Hm?", and Yue Lai already said, "He has no Cunshu Art Tool on him; this is unreasonable. As the Young Master of a villa, he should at least have a Cunshu Art Tool!"

Meng Huazhou was furious, and Shangguan Jianke realized it, saying, "That's right! He must have a hidden Cunshu Art Tool on him. That brat, search him again for me."

Tang Zhao asked, "Search where? I have already searched everywhere that could be searched."

Before Shangguan Jianke could speak, Yue Lai said, "You only searched the outer layers just now. Good things are definitely hidden close to the body; perhaps they are hidden in even more concealed places on his person."

This sentence completely tore off the mask, and Meng Huazhou's gaze held nothing but venom.

Shangguan Jianke said, "That makes sense. You go search, or else strip his clothes off piece by piece."

Tang Zhao approached, and Meng Huazhou's lips moved slightly, whispering, "If you dare to touch me, I will surely kill you one day."

Tang Zhao's expression was calm, and he also whispered, "If I were you, I would hand it over voluntarily. Why go to the final step only to suffer humiliation and still not be able to keep your things?"

Meng Huazhou's expression shifted. Tang Zhao had already reached out his hand. He took a deep breath and said loudly, "Fine, I'll tell you. It's in my hair."

Tang Zhao looked up and saw a cypress wood hairpin stuck in his hair. Looking closely, it was indeed an Art Tool. He reached out to take it, and as soon as he did, he saw a flash of white on the hair beneath the hairpin; it was actually a small white flower pinned there as well.

It was not strange for a man to wear a flower, and Tang Zhao knew his father had recently passed away, so he assumed it was a memento. The White Fox, however, reminded him rapidly, "It's that, that flower! Heavens, it's not just a travel permit, it's actually a Fragment of the Highness's Sword Momentum. How did he get it?"

It was practically jumping up and down there, but only Tang Zhao could hear it. Tang Zhao suppressed his impulse and handed the hairpin directly to Shangguan Jianke, saying, "My lord, please look."

He already knew the key was that flower, so he didn't care about what was in the hairpin at all.

Shangguan Jianke, however, did not know. He took the hairpin and lowered his head to examine it. During this examination, the sword pressed against Meng Huazhou's neck could not help but loosen slightly.

In an instant, Meng Huazhou suddenly erupted, his head snapping back violently.

Shangguan Jianke noticed immediately, his long sword stabbing diagonally, flicking toward Meng Huazhou's neck. This sword strike combined offense with defense; if Meng Huazhou were to launch a sneak attack, he could also use the momentum to seal off all his lines of attack.

However, Meng Huazhou had no intention of attacking; he reached out and tore the flower from his head, clutching it in his hand.

He only performed this simple action when the small flower suddenly dispersed, transforming into a huge flower bud. It bloomed into six translucent white petals that wrapped around him, looking like a giant flower-shaped cocoon.

Shangguan Jianke's sword had already touched Meng Huazhou's neck, and the Sword Qi had drawn a wound, but the next instant, the sword touched those soft, seemingly weightless petals and was immediately bounced away.

The next moment, Meng Huazhou was already protected by the flower without a single flaw.

Shangguan Jianke was furious and struck out with his long sword again, hacking fiercely at the petals. The petals yielded and indented, as if unable to resist the impact, but the blade could only touch the surface of the petals, failing to pierce in at all, merely sinking inward along with the petal's surface. Finally, the petals indented until they were just three feet from Meng Huazhou's body and stopped; the long sword had completely lost its force and could not advance an inch further.

Shangguan Jianke was both shocked and angry, then gradually calmed down. After all, he was an old Sword Guest; he had just been angry and ashamed at being played by a mere child, and he could quickly regain self-control.

"Sword Art—Metal!"

With a shake of the sword, the snow-white blade actually turned gloomy, the edge shifting to pitch black, as if its very texture had changed.

"Ssh!"

The black sword stabbed fiercely into the flower, emitting a muffled sound, and the petals indented once more. Compared to the lightness of stabbing into cotton before, this time the petals' resistance was clearly much more sluggish, and the tip of the black sword had undoubtedly pierced into the flower bud.

Shangguan Jianke continued to exert force, the blade becoming increasingly black, the pressure on the petals growing greater. The petals could dissipate the pressure through deformation, but the hardness and sharpness of the black sword were pushing the petals to their limit.

"Is it a qualitative change in the material of the sword body?" Tang Zhao watched coldly, quickly analyzing Shangguan Jianke's intelligence through this hard-won opportunity. "There is Metal; there should be other qualitative changes. In fact, the room for variation is not small."

The White Fox, however, said, "Stop watching. He is just a Sword Guest; how could he possibly contend with the lingering charm of the Highness's Sword Momentum? Hard-headedness like this is clearly a waste of talent. Even if that person doesn't know how to use it, the Highness will protect him."

Before the words had faded, they saw the white flower bloom abruptly, like a leaking balloon, shrinking rapidly from over a person's height until it looked like it would become a small flower in the mud. The black sword instantly missed, stabbing into the air and emitting a hissing sound.

That flower was not only shrinking, but also becoming transparent, becoming thin, becoming hazy and indistinct...

It was about to disappear!

It was not just disappearing itself; it was taking Meng Huazhou within it as it vanished. Meng Huazhou had already become a part of it, following it as it prepared to disappear from this world.

Oh no!

Everyone, including Shangguan Jianke, Yue Lai, and even Black Widow, cried out in alarm and rushed forward together. Shangguan Jianke lunged the fastest, not even using his sword, throwing himself forward like a starving tiger to grab the transparent flower that was already falling into the dust and smoke.

"Thump!"

His body slammed into the ground, one hand pressing into the soil, but he grabbed nothing, catching only a handful of dust.

"Oh—"

Black Widow let out a long sigh from behind.

Tang Zhao, however, was staring fixedly ahead; he saw that Shangguan Jianke was not the fastest. In front of him, there was still a shadow.

It was the white fox!

As if it had anticipated it long before the flower shrank, the white fox had pounced over, making a move to bite.

At this moment, the white fox landed lightly, seemingly having gained nothing as well; Tang Zhao watched it with some trepidation.

Then, the fox turned its head and bared its teeth, between which a Micro Light flickered.