Chapter 629: Suspected Return of an Old Friend

This sudden change happened so quickly that everyone was left dumbfounded.

Do not be fooled by the appearance of the Tiger-Subduing Master, who looked old, frail, and hollowed out by wine and women; in truth, he was a genuine Sword Guest. His body had been tempered, so he would not have tripped and fallen headfirst just from a stumble. Someone must have pushed him down, with such great force and speed that he could not resist.

Watching the Tiger-Subduing Master fall backward, his head already submerged in the pool, it was clear that once his body followed, even an immortal could not save him. He would truly become the first sacrifice sent into the Yingze.

Yet at this very moment, an even greater cry of alarm erupted!

The body of the Tiger-Subduing Master suddenly stopped falling, appearing for an instant as if frozen in mid-air.

He maintained the posture of having his head in the water and his body outside, looking exactly like an ostrich with its head buried in the sand.

Just as everyone thought the Tiger-Subduing Master had used some method to stabilize his form and stop himself, they saw his head tilt back and lift out of the water, inch by inch.

Unless one were performing a contortionist act, it would be impossible for a person to perform such a movement in that posture. The crowd fell silent.

As the head of the Tiger-Subduing Master rose inch by inch, once it cleared the water's surface, everyone saw it clearly.

A hand reached out from the water, its palm pressed against the back of the Tiger-Subduing Master's head, slowly lifting him up.

If it had been a curiosity before, it was now terrifying. Most people had never seen such a scene, even in ghost stories.

Amidst the silent trembling of the dumbfounded crowd, a strange smile appeared on one face.

But no one saw this smile; no one even saw the face.

The crowd only saw that hand from the water drag the Tiger-Subduing Master out, toss him up, and then continue to rise itself.

Behind the hand came an arm, a shoulder, a body...

Finally, a person rose from the pool.

And, surprisingly, it was an acquaintance.

"Wu Shayu?!"

The Sunset Manor Master, the meritorious veteran Wu Shayu who had participated in the Shooting the Sun Great War a hundred years ago, who had been defeated and captured in the arena battle, who had then sealed himself off and refused to cooperate, and whose fate most did not know—had actually emerged from the Yingze at this moment!

Moreover, this person, while said to be Wu Shayu, did not look like Wu Shayu.

In everyone's impression, Wu Shayu was a decrepit old man in a wheelchair, short-tempered and rambling, a very annoying old wretch. But the current Wu Shayu, though his temples were still gray, was strong and sturdy, his back straight. Even if he were not a handsome figure, he could be called "dignified and imposing." Especially his eyes; his gaze was sharper than a falcon's, cold light gleaming as he looked around.

On his back, he carried a Long Bow.

That Long Bow was covered in a faint radiance, not the golden color of Sunlight, but a misty black light. That light was not blinding, yet it seemed as if it could suck away all the light in a person's eyes.

Seeing this bow, everyone thought of the "Ghost Sea Sunset" sculpture at the entrance of Sunset Manor.

This bow, this person—if one said he had shot down the sun with a single arrow a hundred years ago, it would not be so hard to believe.

"How did he come here?"

"Did Huanri Manor let him out?"

This thought flashed through almost everyone's mind.

Many looked at Wei Se. They only knew Wu Shayu had been imprisoned and did not know what happened afterward. Of course, Wei Se could not have spoken of him dying and decaying in silence. The young man who had guarded him at the time had guessed whether he had used a cicada sloughing its skin to escape, and Wei Se had been half-skeptical, feeling the corpse did not look fake. Now it seemed his insight had indeed been shallow.

This person had truly used some method to escape, leaving behind a fake corpse to fool him, and he even dared to return to stir up trouble.

Every faction present at this Sacrifice harbored ulterior motives; it would have taken only a spark to ignite this powder keg and cause a massive explosion. Yet no one expected that the first accident would be someone completely outside everyone's field of vision.

Since Wu Shayu had returned, and in such an unexpected way, he had clearly encountered a miraculous opportunity and was likely here with ill intent.

Sure enough, he looked down upon the crowd, especially casting a look of disdain at the still-terrified Tiger-Subduing Master, sneered slightly, and opened his mouth to—

Wei Se's heart stirred, and he pointed at him, shouting, "Good! Wu Shayu, you still dare to return! So it was you who took everyone's lifespan! Everyone else has aged several years, yet you have recovered your youth. Did you come specifically to anger everyone? You despicable, shameless old bastard!"

The words Wu Shayu was about to say were choked in his throat. In that instant, the crowd was ignited, and they shouted one after another, "Good! I was wondering why he became young; so he used my lifespan!"

"Shameless, truly shameless, shameless old thief!"

"Return our lifespan!"

The momentum of Wu Shayu's grand entrance was immediately suppressed. After all, this was a major matter involving lifespan; no one could remain calm. The crowd clamored endlessly. The dozens of manor masters were naturally furious, and even the group from the Turtle Bandits joined in the uproar. It was An Wang who was unhappy that he had attended the Long Life Society for nothing, only to be held hostage by a handle, and in the end, gained no benefits while getting himself into trouble, yet this person had reaped the rewards; thus, he had his men join the clamor.

Wu Shayu shouted for them to stop, but how could those people listen to him?

He strained his throat and shouted a few times, then suddenly, anger rose from his heart and malice grew from his gall. He took down his bow and drew it; an arrow condensed at the bowstring, appearing neither black nor white, flickering uncertainly between the two.

"Snap—Whoosh—"

The bowstring twanged like a thunderbolt, and the Black and White Arrow shot explosively toward...

The direction of Wei Se!

It was too late; the speed of this She Ri Bow arrow was far superior to ordinary hidden weapons and much faster than Wei Se's reaction. Before Wei Se could react, the arrow was already before his eyes, and for an instant, his mind went completely blank.

Just at this moment, a hand reached out from the side, slapping like a palm-leaf fan, and knocked the arrow askew.

Although the arrow was deflected, its force remained undiminished, shooting downward and burying itself into the sand beneath the Altar until the feathers were submerged.

Only then did Wei Se steady his mind. Looking back, it was the Inspector Fu Xianchan, who had been following the team, who had struck from the side and saved his life.

Wei Se found it inconvenient to address her, so he cupped his hands, wanting to continue his verbal assault, but he felt the dizziness of life and death still lingering, his teeth cold, and he found himself unable to speak for a moment.

At this time, Fu Xianchan spoke, "Yo, Old Man Wu has made progress. Are you already a Sword Hero?"

In truth, when she had struck just now, she had intended to catch the arrow or even throw it back at Wu Shayu. Who knew that upon touching the arrow, she realized the power contained within it far exceeded her expectations, and she could only exert more force to deflect it. Even then, it had not dissipated much of its power. Even though she was bare-handed, she was a Sword Hero, and her strength was not small among Sword Heroes.

A power that could make her feel strained could naturally only be another Sword Hero, right?

Once the words "Sword Hero" were uttered, the crowd, which had been cursing endlessly, immediately fell silent.

Ordinary Sword Guests feared Sword Heroes, and those Sword Guests who had witnessed the great battle between Gui Rong and Tang Zhao feared Sword Heroes even more.

Pairs of eyes filled with shock, doubt, envy, and other emotions focused on Wu Shayu, as if asking, "You are already a Sword Hero? By what right are you a Sword Hero?"

This gaze caused Wu Shayu's fury and displeasure at his failed sneak attack to quickly subside, and feeling greatly pleased, he looked up to the sky and laughed, "That's right, I am already a Sword Hero! Is it strange? Let me tell you, all of this is the grace of my Lord Wangliang!"

"Some short-sighted mongrels say I stole your lifespan; how laughable! No matter how much lifespan one has, it is merely extending one's life; how can it make a person recover their youth? Only Lord Wangliang has such great power! It gave me health with its left hand and strength with its right. It is omnipotent and omniscient! How foolish are those who are enemies with it?"

The crowd widened their eyes, not expecting this answer. The Tiger-Subduing Master, who had fallen to the ground, felt his Spirit lift:

If this were the case, it meant Wangliang was indeed still alive and could still preside over matters! It could still descend divine miracles and protect Wangliang Mountain!

At this moment, was there anything more important than this?

Wu Shayu continued, "I have received the favor of Lord Wangliang, and my strength has greatly increased. I originally should have launched a counterattack to slaughter all those who have bullied me..."

He glared at the YoungMaster played by Wei Se; clearly, that arrow just now was not merely for intimidation, but also contained personal grievances.

"However, forget it. I have no time to deal with you all now. It is not that I am magnanimous, but that the will and great cause of Lord Wangliang are more important than anything else. And in the little program His Oldness has prepared for today's Sacrifice, you all have a part to play."

A program?

A part to play?

Two inexplicable terms popped up, and everyone had a somewhat ominous feeling.

Someone in the crowd muttered: "A Sacrifice? Isn't the Sacrifice already being held?"

Wu Shayu sneered: "You call this a Sacrifice? Ask yourselves, of all those who came here to perform the Sacrifice, one by one, which one harbors a heart of reverence for the Lord of Wangliang Mountain? Your faces, each harboring ulterior motives, are sickening to look at. I suppose too many people have died on Wangliang Mountain recently, and some petty thieves cannot help but stir, treating the Sacrifice as a stage for your infighting..."

He looked at Huanri Manor, then looked at the Turtle Bandits; to Wangliang, these people all harbored malicious intentions and were no different.

"What a pity, do not forget, three feet above your heads, Lord Wangliang is still watching you! You think you are chess players, wanting to use the Sacrifice as a chessboard to play your ridiculous Chess Game. What a pity, Lord Wangliang has called me as an envoy to tell you clearly—there is only one chess player on this Wangliang Mountain, and that is my master Wangliang. Whether you can even be chess pieces depends on whether Lord Wangliang of Wangliang Mountain has any interest in using you to start a game."

He was there holding forth with great vigor, and Wei Se wanted to say: Since Wangliang can speak so much, when the Long Life Society was causing trouble on Wangliang Mountain before, and later its Abyss Envoys were killed and scattered, and Wangliang Mountain has had a Ghost Disaster these past few days with everyone in danger and its wings clipped, why did it not come out to stop them?

But the current atmosphere was being led by Wu Shayu, and since the old fellow was also a Sword Hero, he truly did not dare to open his mouth to mock him again. At this moment, Fu Xianchan touched him lightly, signaling him to turn around.

Wei Se turned around; behind him was the altar.

At this time, the people on both sides were concentrated in front of Yingze, and the altar in the middle was instead empty, without any abnormalities.

He took a few more looks, and indeed there was no abnormality, so he turned back.

Then he heard Liu Hu say: "So that's how it is. Since you represent Lord Wangliang, then you are an Abyss Envoy, right?"

This sentence stunned everyone, even Wu Shayu was stunned: Sword Hero strength, crawling out from Yingze, speaking on behalf of Wangliang... if this is not an Abyss Envoy, what is it?

It is just that previous Abyss Envoys were all birds and beasts, all sorts of strange and bizarre things, but now it has turned into a human.

That said, since he has become an Abyss Envoy, is he still human?

Could it be that, like other Abyss Envoys, he only possesses the form, but in essence has already turned into something like a shadow? Wei Se thought further: Perhaps what was left at the place of imprisonment was indeed the corpse of Wu Shayu, and what Wangliang took away was his Soul, or perhaps even his shadow, which is why he is in the appearance of his youth.

Of course, whether he is human or not is irrelevant to the crowd; they only care about their own interests, and a Manor Lord said respectfully: "Does Lord Wangliang have any other instructions?"

An invisible smile bloomed once more.

Wu Shayu said: "Since you all like playing chess so much, then let this game be started by my master. Let's put a wager on this chess game—the winner can continue the Sacrifice, and Lord Wangliang will respond to your prayers. The loser becomes a Sacrifice. Come, bring out the chessboard."

He pointed upward, and the sky suddenly turned black.