Chapter 176

Thus, the Flower Immortal unleashed a brilliant burst of colored light from her palm, striking first with a volley of "Nine Heavens Fairy Needles."

Yet the outcome surprised the Flower Immortal.

The two masked figures surrounding her suddenly accelerated, easily slipping beyond the coverage of the "Nine Heavens Fairy Needles."

"Incredibly fast movement!"

Their footwork was plain and direct, yet reached such extreme speed that it achieved the effect of "transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary."

They appeared and vanished in an instant, like ghosts.

Had the Flower Immortal not possessed profound cultivation, she could not have tracked their movements at all.

The Flower Immortal no longer underestimated them; she focused her spirit and unleashed "Phantom Immortal Trace," her form flickering in and out, shifting left and right, leaving observers dizzy and utterly unable to predict where she would appear next.

The targets kept changing, and this eerie footwork caught the two masked figures off guard.

The Flower Immortal used illusion to counter their speed, clinging tightly to both opponents and pressing them relentlessly.

On the other side, four masked figures surrounded Jiang Sishui.

Their movements were swift as ghosts, weaving and crossing from every angle, their swordlight sweeping and thrusting in perfect coordination, leaving Jiang Sishui no chance to unleash the "Heavenly Sword Drawing Technique" again.

The "Heavenly Sword Drawing Technique" had incredible speed, but returning the sword to its sheath required time.

If Jiang Sishui forced another use, he might kill one of them instantly—but he would surely be pierced in return!

Trading injury for life, or even life for life—the four were certain Jiang Sishui would not dare.

Jiang Sishui stepped on "Lingbo Microstep," weaving through the sword shadows, yet with minimal effect; he narrowly avoided being struck several times.

These four masked figures' speed was nearly equal to his own!

The four formed a sword formation, striking simultaneously—their attacks were bizarre, swift, and deadly, their swordlight flashing into a continuous web that tore inward from all directions.

Jiang Sishui let out a cold snort, unleashing his full cultivation of Master's Ninth Layer!

Powerful Northern Darkness Qi surged outward from his body, blasting the four black-clad figures clean away!

Jiang Sishui's eyes flashed.

These men practiced Wu Gong of extremely high Grade; though each hovered around Master's Sixth or Seventh Layer, their astonishingly swift footwork allowed each to match a Master's Ninth Layer expert.

Together, they were unmatched beneath the Heavenly Realm.

But they had one weakness: their internal energy was shallow, far inferior to other cultivators of the same level.

In a direct internal energy contest, they were virtually defenseless.

It was as if their cultivation had been rushed through heretical methods.

"Rushed…"

A thought flashed through Jiang Sishui's mind, yet his movements did not slow.

Taking advantage of the disrupted sword formation, he struck with "Breaking Sword Form," piercing one man's throat.

Immediately, he unleashed the "Heavenly Sword Drawing Technique" again, splitting another man in two.

The remaining two finally lost their nerve and turned to flee.

The two fighting the Flower Immortal also abandoned the fight, seeking to escape.

"Want to run?"

The Flower Immortal sneered, her figure flickering thrice in succession, catching up to one man and releasing a volley of "Nine Heavens Fairy Needles" point-blank.

This time, the man could not dodge—he was pierced full-body, turned into a "Ma Feng nest."

"After them!"

Without delay, both Jiang Sishui and the Flower Immortal Unleashed Lightness Skill and gave chase.

The remaining three masked figures, seeing this, scattered in three directions, each fleeing for their lives.

Jiang Sishui and the Flower Immortal each pursued one.

The third man, not being chased, had barely breathed a sigh of relief when he ran straight into two figures.

It was Helmsman Qiao Feng and Duan Yu.

"Brother, stop! Let's talk this out properly!"

Helmsman Qiao Feng roared, unleashing "Roaring Dragon's Regret."

The masked man said nothing, sidestepping the powerful palm force.

Then he thrust his sword, body moving with the blade, targeting Helmsman Qiao Feng's vital points.

Helmsman Qiao Feng swung his heavy palm, the air exploding, shaking the masked man's sword so violently it trembled in his grip.

The masked man's eyes darkened with malice; his free left hand suddenly produced a needle, launching it unexpectedly as Helmsman Qiao Feng pressed forward.

"No sneaky attacks!"

Duan Yu, beside him, thrust one finger—a light, nimble sword qi shot from the tip of his right pinky, arriving after but striking first, knocking the needle aside.

"Hmph!"

Helmsman Qiao Feng's tiger-like eyes grew colder, his power increasing by a third.

……

On the other side, Jiang Sishui captured the masked man alive.

He activated the beginner-level "Soul Seizing Dharma," controlling the masked man for two breaths.

Then he pulled a wooden plaque from the man's robes.

The plaque bore no characters; one side was engraved with a sunflower carving.

Jiang Sishui tore off the man's face covering.

A face of thirty to forty years, ordinary in appearance, yet Bai Jing and beardless.

Jiang Sishui gave a light laugh, ended the man's life, then delivered a palm strike through the air to his crotch.

As expected, it was empty.

"Sunflower Manual? I'd like to see who you really are."

Jiang Sishui took out the "Seeking-Object Luo Pan," searched for the wooden token, quickly locked onto a direction, and gave chase at once.

195 — A sword slays Xuan Ci; the Huaxianzi's change of heart

At the edge of a stone cliff sat an old monk with grey-white brows and beard.

The old monk held a string of prayer beads in his hand, his eyes tightly shut, his expression serene, his lips moving in a steady murmur — no one knew for whom he was chanting the rebirth sutra.

The mountain breeze stirred gently, puffing out the wide sleeves of his monk's robe. The motionless old monk's sash streamed in the wind, and he somehow took on a few parts of the bearing of an enlightened Gao Seng.

Jiang Sishui stopped ten zhang behind him, put away the "Seeking-Object Luo Pan," and said lightly: "From Shaolin Temple?"

The prayer beads turning in the old monk's hand stopped. He slowly opened his clouded old eyes, rose to his full height, and turned to face Jiang Sishui: "Amitabha. This poor monk is Xuan Ci of Shaolin. Greetings, benefactor."

Just as expected!

Jiang Sishui studied the old monk before him closely; he had already guessed the whole cause and effect of the matter.

Seeing Jiang Sishui say nothing, Xuan Ci asked again: "May I know the benefactor's name, and what Hejian Sect you have come to seek from this poor monk?"

Having confirmed the man's identity, Jiang Sishui saw no point in playing games with him and got straight to the point: "Those assassins — you sent them, didn't you~?"

Xuan Ci's brows knit slightly, his eyes carrying puzzlement: "Amitabha. Benefactor's words leave this poor monk quite unable to understand. There must be some Shenmewu Society between us."

"There is no Shenmewu Society!"

Jiang Sishui cut in: "Old bald donkey, I'd guess you're trying to avenge your old flame Ye Mengse, aren't you?"

"Tch, who'd have thought — Shaolin Temple, one of the leaders of the righteous path, actually running around hand-in-hand with a band of assassins."

"Or maybe… those assassins were secretly trained by Shaolin Temple all along?"

Jiang Sishui had torn the paper over the window in one stroke. Knowing the matter was exposed, Xuan Ci dropped the act and said woodenly: "You know about me and her?"

Jiang Sishui nodded: "I know. It's precisely because I know the fine deeds the two of you have done that I want to kill her… oh, and you too."

"Ye Mengse is nothing but a mere Grandmaster, committing evil for years yet always living free and easy — your lecherous lover must have put in quite a bit of effort, no?"

"…Forget it, too lazy to keep talking to you. Go to hell."

Jiang Sishui had originally meant to rebuke Xuan Ci a couple more times, but suddenly felt there was really nothing worth saying to a beast about to die. Better to finish the matter quickly and then go rejoin the Huaxianzi.

"That woman won't take the chance to run off, will she?"

A doubt crept into Jiang Sishui's mind.

But he wasn't worried, because he had left something on the Huaxianzi that would let him easily track her down.

As his words fell, Jiang Sishui flashed forward, drew his sword and slashed — a head flew straight up into the air.

Xuan Ci was only at the Early Grandmaster Stage, on the same level as Ding Chunqiu. Faced with the minor-accomplishment "Heavenly Sword Drawing Technique," he had no power to resist at all.

Jiang Sishui casually poured out a bottle of "Corpse-Dissolving Water" and turned to leave.

……