Chapter 96: The Pincers of Gusong and Kuzhu

Night.

A dark, long alley; a desolate, chilling fog.

Yu Liancheng and Shangguan Xueer walked out slowly, with Gusong and Kuzhu following slowly behind them; sparse stars were sinking.

Walking out of the long alley, it was still pitch black outside.

Gusong suddenly asked, "Young Master, had you already calculated that there would be that sword strike from behind?"

Yu Liancheng did not answer him, only patting Shangguan Xueer on the head and saying, "It is late, and you are still a child; go to sleep quickly."

"But... alright, I will go to sleep first; you remember to sleep early too, half-master." Shangguan Xueer had subconsciously wanted to retort, but seeing Yu Liancheng's slightly stern expression, she dared not argue further, unleashed her light-body technique, and dashed toward the inn.

Yu Liancheng looked at Gusong again: "I had my suspicions about Cold Plum."

Gusong said respectfully, "Please enlighten me, Young Master."

Yu Liancheng looked up at the starry vault, as if murmuring to himself: "When a person has reached the end of their rope and might lose their life at any moment, they should not be as calm and confident as Fang Yufei, unless they have another trick up their sleeve."

Gusong seemed to have understood his meaning and said, "And at the time in the gambling house, there were only a few of us, so the trick must also be among us."

Yu Liancheng nodded and said, "And the reason for today's events is that Cold Plum once told Xue'er that there was a Silver Hook Gambling House here, a very fun place, but one that required a lot of silver."

Kuzhu let out a long breath: "So, Young Master, although you were not yet certain, you already suspected Cold Plum and were on guard against him."

Yu Liancheng only nodded.

Gusong cupped his hands and said, "Young Master is truly brilliant and has eyes like torches; Gusong admires you."

Yu Liancheng suddenly smiled: "I not only have eyes like torches, but I also understand a bit of physiognomy."

"Oh." Gusong and Kuzhu seemed to have doubts.

They knew that Yu Liancheng was definitely not a person who would shoot without a target.

Since he had said so, there would certainly be a follow-up.

Yu Liancheng suddenly turned around and looked the two of them up and down: "I have examined your faces, and I have a piece of bad news to tell you."

Gusong said, "Please speak, Young Master."

Yu Liancheng said very seriously, "You are going to have bad luck."

Kuzhu asked in confusion, "What kind of bad luck?"

Yu Liancheng said, "The kind of bad luck that Cold Plum had."

Gusong and Kuzhu could not help but knit their brows.

Everyone will have bad luck, but the bad luck of Cold Plum is something one can only experience once in a lifetime, and no one is willing to have that kind of bad luck.

Yu Liancheng sighed and said, "You have rendered great service to the Rakshasa Cult, and your positions are second only to the Sect Leader, yet you insist on doing such things; human greed is insatiable. And once you have done such things, you can only have the bad luck of Cold Plum."

Gusong said coldly, "Young Master, what exactly do you mean? This old man does not quite understand."

"I had no need to bring Xue'er along, but I brought her anyway; do you know why?"

Yu Liancheng did not wait for them to answer and continued: "It is only because my martial arts and reputation are both very high; no matter who wants to make a move against me, they would find it very difficult and thorny."

"So I brought Xue'er; she is my disciple, she not only understands my martial arts, but I also have no defenses against her. Moreover, Xue'er is very good at acting; she looks just like an innocent and playful little girl, very easy to bribe, and she became my flaw. So whether it was Cold Plum or you two, you all chose to start with her."

"Cold Plum did that because he did not want to be bullied by you, because he refused to admit he was old and was unwilling to be lonely; what about you?"

Gusong and Kuzhu kept their mouths shut, their expressions having completely darkened, refusing to answer.

"Everyone says the 'Three Friends of Winter' are recluses who are indifferent to fame and wealth, retiring at the height of their fame, and once they retired, they stayed hidden for twenty years."

The mocking smile on the corner of Yu Liancheng's mouth grew deeper: "But if you were truly such recluses, how would you have joined the Rakshasa Cult? If you truly did not want to be the Sect Leader of the Rakshasa Cult, how would you have asked Xue'er about my martial arts style, looked for my weak points, and even instigated her to secretly poison me?"

The faces of Gusong and Kuzhu were already as cold as ice.

Yu Liancheng sighed: "Now that there is no one around, it happens to be a good opportunity for you to make a move; the Pine and Bamboo Divine Sword, the two swords combined—there are not many people in the world who can withstand it, let alone the fact that I have no sword in my hand."

Gusong said coldly, "You are truly a clever person; it is no wonder you were able to deceive us for so many years."

Kuzhu also sneered and said, "Do you think you have us in the bag? But when my elder brother and I join forces, even Yu Luosha would not dare to underestimate us."

Yu Liancheng waved his hand: "Just make your move. Your third brother died at my hands; I will just send you down to reunite with him and continue your brotherly bond."

Gusong and Kuzhu did not speak; they only looked at Yu Liancheng coldly.

In reality, regarding this matter, they were not yet completely certain.

But at this point, they had to make a move.

Although the two seemed to be standing casually, the positions they stood in were very ingenious, as if they were a pair of pincers that had already clamped Yu Liancheng in the middle.

Now, although the pincers had not yet clamped shut, they were already poised to strike.

With the combined strength of these two, how many people in the world could withstand them?

However, if they truly had confidence, they would not have needed to use underhanded tricks against Yu Liancheng, waiting until today to be exposed before daring to make a move.

Yu Liancheng also seemed to be standing very casually, but as a peerless swordsman like him, even if there was no sword in his palm, even if his sword had not left its sheath, as long as he was there, there would be Sword Qi pressing against one's eyelashes.

And now, Gusong and Kuzhu already felt a strand of Sword Qi pressing against their eyelashes.

This strand of Sword Qi was so sharp, cutting through iron like mud, its edge fully revealed.

It also seemed so heavy, like a mountain or a peak, dangerous and unclimbable.

The two of them had unconsciously broken out in a cold sweat.

Yu Liancheng was far more terrifying than they had imagined.

But the arrow was on the string, and it had to be fired.

Clang!

Clang!

Two dragon-like roars rang out.

The swords of Gusong and Kuzhu had already left their sheaths.

Gusong's sword, the moves seemed very ordinary, yet it carried a kind of unwavering, indomitable sword momentum, just like a lone pine on a distant mountain facing the cold wind.

Kuzhu's sword, the sword light flew ten zhang, steep and uniquely tall; although it was not as good as Ye Gucheng's "Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens," it was still the top-tier sword technique in the world.

Decades ago, these two were already renowned experts across the world, and now, joining forces, they were truly earth-shattering and extraordinary; who else under heaven could be their match?

Their Qi merged, and two streaks of sword light formed a pincer attack.

It was as if a pair of pincers were rapidly closing in, clamping toward Yu Liancheng.

Yu Liancheng still did not move, his expression remaining very calm.

As a swordsman, he had no sword to draw at this moment; where was his sword?

Just at the instant the two swords were about to strike, Yu Liancheng suddenly moved, moving so quickly that no one could see his movements clearly.

Suddenly, there was another soft "Clang" sound, sword light flashed chaotically like lightning and radiance, and the three figures merged and then separated.

The fog grew thicker and colder.