Chapter 214: The Last Fishy Smell

Just back at Spirit Spring Mountain, A Nuo felt a sting in her eyes.

Lu Xingzhou sat in the wheelchair holding Shen Tang, the two circling the pool as if "taking a walk."

"Touch here... see if there's a bump?"

"There really is. Press down?"

"Don't, that'll shoot."

A Nuo thought for a moment, then thought for a moment again.

"Eh, A Nuo." Shen Tang spotted A Nuo and waved happily: "Come give your mistress a kiss."

A Nuo shuffled over in small, reluctant steps.

You two are messing around outdoors in broad daylight, how can you have the face to let a child come watch? Where's your shame?

Won't Mr. Ye vomit inside the house?

After dawdling closer, she realized this wasn't the wheelchair Shen Tang had been sitting in these past two days, but Lu Xingzhou's.

Lu Xingzhou said, "I'm teaching your mistress how to use this wheelchair. It has all kinds of functions, much better than her ordinary one."

A Nuo understood.

So just now she was pressing the trigger of the Rainstorm Pear Needle!

If Shen Tang were to go into battle, sitting in a wheelchair would obviously greatly limit her performance, but with Lu Xingzhou's wheelchair it was different; once she mastered its various functions, it might even add a bit of combat power.

If this got out, one could conclude, "Her actual combat is still hindered by her broken leg, but the high-end wheelchair compensates a bit," and Gu Zhanting wouldn't feel that even a broken leg couldn't limit her; after all, she ultimately relies on external tools.

It's just... does this wheelchair count as the most important object Sister Yu forged for Master? Should it just be given away like this?

"Why are you standing there? Come, spar with Tangtang."

A Nuo asked, "Why doesn't Master spar?"

"I can't strike hard, I can't achieve the effect... uh, no, I need to sit on it and point out the various uses."

A Nuo said, "Then I can't strike hard either. I recommend another person who definitely can strike hard... they'll surely make this wheelchair smoke everywhere."

Shen Tang asked curiously, "Who?"

A Nuo ran straight for the house: "Mr., Mr, Master is calling you an old woman!"

Shen Tang: "?"

A giant invisible hand extended from inside the house, pinching toward the wheelchair like catching a chicken.

Shen Tang, unfamiliar with the wheelchair, instinctively chose to raise a protective shield first.

The giant hand pinched the shield; with a "Crack," the incredibly sturdy shield cracked like an eggshell, though it wasn't smashed outright.

Lu Xingzhou broke out in a cold sweat, just about to point out the ejection escape, when the entire wheelchair was lifted up and casually flung.

"Splash," both the wheelchair and the dog-man and woman fell into the pool; they splashed twice with "Gurgle, gurgle," then popped out of the water together: "Lu A Nuo!"

A Nuo poked her head out of the house, made a face with "Lah lah lah": "Isn't this helping you get familiar with the wheelchair? Was the hand heavy enough?"

The next moment, the giant hand moved behind her, pinched her collar with two fingers, lifted the whole A Nuo up, and tossed her into the pool with a "Whoosh."

The world was quiet.

Ye Tinglan's voice drifted lazily from inside the house: "Whether in materials or the energy contained within, this wheelchair is only at the upper level of fourth grade... It's not that the artificer didn't give you something good; it's simply that your ability back then couldn't wield anything higher. Now it looks like it has many functions, but in reality, when facing battles above third grade, its power is too weak."

Lu Xingzhou, ignoring his dusty face, hurriedly asked, "Can Mr. modify it?"

"This thing of yours is half magical treasure, half forged mechanism. As for forging, I'm unfamiliar; your Tianxing Sword Sect has its own halls, you can decide yourself how to add materials and recast it. As for the power contained within... the internal array needs adjustment, and the built-in core energy source needs replacing. It's too late now to find a suitable treasure for the core; let's modify the array and materials first."

Shen Tang, furious after being thrown in the water, forgot her anger upon hearing this and hurriedly asked, "What kind of core is needed?"

Ye Tinglan said indifferently, "What, uneasy about the coming battle?"

Shen Tang said, "I rely on this for battle... This is currently Xingzhou's most important flying artifact!"

"..." Ye Tinglan fell silent for a moment, then answered: "Not many requirements; just something with strong compatibility and contained energy of at least third grade. If your spirit stone mines have spirit crystals or even spirit marrow, that will do."

"We haven't dug deep into our spirit stone mines, so we're not sure. But for a treasure like this..." Shen Tang thought for a moment, then pulled a gem from her ring: "Will this work?"

Ye Tinglan fell silent even longer, unsure whether to say he recognized this as the famous Royal Shanhe Pearl, a treasure created by gathering the power of the four seas and all mountains and rivers, generally serving as a secondary energy reserve on one's person, providing a backup power source for a counterattack even when utterly exhausted.

Even some of the younger Imperial Princes don't have this; there are only a few in the entire world. You're using it for your lover's wheelchair?

But thinking it over, it could be disassembled anyway, so it didn't matter: "In that case, go to the forging hall first; later, I'll help you remake the core."

Shen Tang splashed out of the water, paddled the wheelchair straight for the Forging Hall, while Lu Xingzhou hesitated with words on his lips.

How to put it... if even this wheelchair is modified, then there will truly be nothing left around him that is the original flavor related to Yuan Muyu; the main cultivation method changed, the primary soul of the Soul Banner changed, the wheelchair's core and materials changed... the alchemy teacher changed, the alchemical fire was newly acquired, and even the alchemy furnace was snatched from the Incense Tower.

But this wheelchair would need upgrading sooner or later anyway, otherwise it couldn't keep up with demand. If the fishy smell is gone, so be it...

Perhaps only the combat skills and array knowledge learned remain; once learned, they are learned, and won't be forgotten.

"What's wrong?" Ye Tinglan's voice came: "You look like you're reminiscing about something."

Lu Xingzhou entered the house, seeing Ye Tinglan sitting cross-legged by the bed; that familiar face gave a strange illusion of time and space crossing, as if he wanted to say something, yet knowing it wasn't that person, saying anything would be meaningless.

Ye Tinglan opened his eyes, met his gaze, and frowned slightly. Too disrespectful.

"I'm not reminiscing about anything, and it has no meaning anyway." Lu Xingzhou lowered his eyelids: "Just some old matters occasionally pop into my mind, especially when there's some reminder... I can't completely forget; after all, I'm not an Immortal. Revenge is so, and naturally other things are too."

Ye Tinglan said, "You also know Immortals should forget emotions... those who care too much can be hurt by any scene at any time, which is detrimental to cultivation. You seem to cultivate quickly, but perhaps reaching third grade will be an extremely severe hurdle for you."

Lu Xingzhou smiled: "I haven't reached the hurdle yet; who knows? Let nature take its course."

Ye Tinglan, who had told his disciples to let nature take its course, felt that Lu Xingzhou was different from his disciples.

But he wasn't the true master anyway, so there was nothing good to say; he changed the subject: "Don't expect me to intervene heavily in your arena match."

"I know; I never intended for Mr. to be the main force. Not only is it a matter of not wanting to trouble Mr., but more importantly, this battle must display Tianxing Sword Sect's own prestige."

Ye Tinglan spoke with some sarcasm: "Judging by your performance of hugging the wheelchair and pressing bumps at this critical moment?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "It's just that the whole world underestimates Shen Tang."

Even Gu Zhanting, or the Jin Prince or Qi Prince, all underestimate Shen Tang.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have merely broken a leg and used an inferior faction like the Incense Tower to suppress her... even this time, there was still no decisive action like Lei Ting.

Then they are destined to regret it.

…………

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

In these three days, the arena duel between the Profound Heaven Sword Sect and the Dongjiang Gang had spread like wildfire; not only in Xiazhou, but many people from surrounding commanderies had rushed over to watch.

This was a duel involving several third-grade experts on the surface; for the vast majority of ordinary cultivators, it was even a high-stakes match that many might never witness in their entire lives.

And while on the surface it was about comparing which side's "escort" offered more security, even children could see that this was actually deciding the champion of Dongjiang Commandery.

The winner would see their momentum explode; the vassal forces sheltering under their banner might increase by hundreds overnight, and no opposing voice would remain within the entire commandery, ruling over a thousand li.

Furthermore, this battle allowed outside aid to prove that "connections are important when walking the Jianghu," but in reality, it also served to demonstrate local dominance and whose network of relationships was stronger.

It was common knowledge that the Profound Heaven Sword Sect had no network of relationships.

When a person leaves, the tea grows cold; even if the old Sect Master had some connections, they were mainly in the distant Yongzhou, and it would be very difficult for them to benefit the completely new sect now. Others might speak a few words on your behalf to mediate a dispute out of regard for a late old friend, but expecting them to provide significant support would be asking too much.

In contrast, the Dongjiang Gang had operated in this locality for so many years, with connections everywhere, and even a more formidable backer. Just looking at those sitting by the arena this time, besides Shi Tielong, sat the Sect Master of the Lingyun Gate, Daoist Jingxu, proving the complete merger of the Lingyun Gate and the Dongjiang Gang.

There was also the second-grade elder of the Canglan Sect, Shi Zhong; it was unknown whether the fellow disciples he brought were also second-grade. And who else had come from behind the Lingyun Gate?

They had heard Shen Tang was very strong, matching Shi Zhong palm-to-palm in a stalemate. But that was just a palm clash; if they truly fought, did you know how many unknown techniques a second-grade expert possessed?

Even if you could win, you should be injured; how many do you want to take on? What if another second-grade expert joins?

No matter how one looked at it, it was a crushing match; people could hardly imagine how Shen Tang dared to accept such a challenge.

One could only say that young people are full of vigor, and once they achieve something, they start to swell with arrogance.

In the distance, a wave of sword intent, cold and severe, arose; the sound of people's discussion gradually faded. Turning their heads to look, they saw...

Lu Xingzhou pushed Shen Tang at the front; on the left, a little girl followed, eating candied haws, while on the right, a mature and graceful woman walked with an ethereal air.

Behind them, a sea of white robes like snow appeared, resembling a sword formation; every person was like a sword, with coldness piercing the sky.

Many people involuntarily drew in a sharp breath of cold air.

They had heard the Profound Heaven Sword Sect was a mixed sect, containing the Danxia Gang, the Incense-Burning Pavilion, and the recently accepted disciples of the Alchemy Cauldron Gang, with origins of all kinds.

Yet how could such a ragtag army, in such a short time, cultivate a unified and severe sword intent? How was it fused together?

And that Shen Tang... no one had ever thought a cripple could be so beautiful. Sitting in a wheelchair did not affect her elegance at all; instead, it added a touch of broken beauty. Merely looking at her made one unable to lift a blade.

Could she really be a Sect Master? Could she suppress the strong soldiers and fierce generals under her command?

And such beauties, they had more than one.

Who was that beauty following on Lu Xingzhou's right? She was like a heavenly goddess descending to the mortal world; at least for now, everyone could not tell who was more beautiful, her or Shen Tang.

People did not know that in the heart of their Emperor, this woman was the number one beauty under heaven, while his own daughter, Shen Tang, was nothing more than a stray on the roadside in this regard.

Someone had already begun to whisper: "Is it too late for me to join the Profound Heaven Sword Sect now?"

"Join what? You might get hammered into the mud immediately."

"So what? The peak produces false supporters; twilight witnesses true believers! I just want to walk out of the mud with them..."

"Lu Xingzhou has already done this; wake up."

Arriving outside the arena, Lu Xingzhou stopped his steps.

Behind him, they all stopped in perfect unison, displaying a strict discipline of orders and prohibitions.

At this moment, looking again at the motley appearance of the Dongjiang Gang, the Lingyun Gate, and others, strange thoughts arose in people's hearts... who exactly was the ragtag army that had been established just over half a year ago?

Shen Tang spoke softly, her voice transmitting to all directions: "Shen Tang of the Profound Heaven Sword Sect, bringing my disciples to keep the appointment."

(End of this chapter)