The instant the window shattered, Nineteen Young Master swiftly reached out, grabbed the middle-aged scholar, and pulled him away from the breach, avoiding any possible hidden-weapon attack.
This was Nineteen Young Master's instinct. As a Princely Young Master—and the son of an unruly prince like Prince Ning—he had experienced many such incidents. His reaction speed was far beyond anything an ordinary teacher could compare to.
"It's you? You truly have the audacity to defy heaven itself!"
Seeing Chen Luo burst in, Nineteen Young Master's expression instantly darkened. He had never expected to misjudge someone.
His earlier feeling in the courtyard had been correct. This fellow truly harbored sinister intentions. He even dared to launch a sneak attack on a princely Heir Apparent—he was born lawless and unrestrained. Once such people were caught, they had to be punished with the harshest penalty, so these Mud-legged Commoners would understand the difference between high and low, noble and base!
"Heir Apparent, be careful. There is something wrong with this man."
The middle-aged scholar gave a warning, then quickly retreated to the corner of the wall.
He did not try to flee. When Chen Luo had broken through the window just now, he had already displayed his strength.
"Heir Apparent, you still haven't answered my question."
Chen Luo smiled, wearing the air of someone unashamed to ask questions of those beneath him.
"A mere inferior breed dares covet the Immortal Dao? Who gave you such courage?"
As he spoke, Nineteen Young Master's body suddenly moved.
The moment he struck, it was with killing intent. His five fingers formed a claw, Internal Qi circulating into a layer of fist intent as he attacked Chen Luo's brow. If that claw landed solidly, Chen Luo's head would surely blossom like a smashed melon. No one had expected Nineteen Young Master to be a martial path expert as well. Judging from his aura, he had likely reached the Bone Forging Realm.
Chen Luo raised his right hand, his Internal Qi erupting as he redirected the Internal Qi of the Black Tiger Fist into his palm and met Nineteen Young Master's incoming claw head-on.
Bang!!
A muffled sound rang out.
The two forces collided viciously, but in the next moment, a black tiger image emerged behind Chen Luo. With even greater ferocity, it struck Nineteen Young Master's power straight back.
Nineteen Young Master, forced back under the suppression, tasted sweetness in his throat and smashed into the wall behind him. Unable to hold it back, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Cough, cough..."
Nineteen Young Master's gaze swept across Chen Luo before looking out into the courtyard, as though waiting for something.
"Does the Heir Apparent intend to make a commotion and have that old gentleman outside come save you? If so, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed." After defeating Nineteen Young Master with one punch, Chen Luo walked over, planted a foot on his chest, and spoke with a smile.
"You did something to Old Jiang. Ah!!!"
Before Nineteen Young Master could finish, he let out a pig-slaughtering scream.
Since he had already acted, Chen Luo naturally had no more reservations.
With his foot on Nineteen Young Master's chest, he bent down and, with several crackling sounds, dislocated all his arms and legs. The brutal sight scared the middle-aged scholar beside him so badly that he trembled all over.
A ruthless man!
This fellow was absolutely a ruthless man who did not fear death. He even dared lay hands on a Princely Young Master, completely disregarding the possibility of being chased afterward. Such people were the hardest to deal with, because in his eyes, everything other than their own objective could be ignored.
"Nothing much. I merely saw that the old gentleman was so advanced in years and still standing in a tree, so I invited him down to rest."
After dislocating his joints, Chen Luo clapped his hands and answered the question with a kindly expression. When he had entered earlier, he had deliberately knocked out all the guards in the courtyard. With strength close to that of a Grandmaster, the guards in the courtyard could barely withstand a single exchange against him. The only troublesome one was Old Jiang, but Chen Luo still had ways to deal with him.
If strength was lacking, poison would make up the difference.
Old Jiang, who had secretly guarded Nineteen Young Master, had been brought down by poison before he could even react.
The medicine he had refined these past days had not been for nothing!
An opportunity for "practice" had fallen into his lap in the blink of an eye.
"Brother, calm down!"
The middle-aged scholar beside him finally could not endure it any longer. He knew that if he kept hiding like this, the outcome would become uncontrollable. Never mind the two Immortal Treasures on the table—if Nineteen Young Master died here, he definitely would not escape either. Do not overestimate Prince Ning's moral bottom line; he was absolutely capable of taking his anger out on others.
"If you kill the Heir Apparent, this matter will truly blow up. Never mind whether you can obtain the Immortal Destiny you seek—an Imperial Court wanted notice alone will be enough to make you suffer." Seeing Chen Luo look over, he instinctively grew tense.
He was merely a scholar. When had he ever faced a desperado like this?
But even if he was afraid, he had to speak now, because he wanted to live.
"Besides, you have clansmen and brothers too, don't you? Even if you are fortunate enough to escape to safety, what will happen to them? Would you be willing to watch them pay for your life?"
While the middle-aged scholar spoke, the Heir Apparent subdued on the ground also became quiet, as though he had truly accepted his fate and was waiting to negotiate.
"What you say makes sense, sir. In truth, I am merely somewhat studious and wanted to know the location of White Immortal Cave. The main thing was that the Heir Apparent became too agitated just now, so I had no choice but to act in self-defense. Surely you can understand that, sir?"
With one foot still on Nineteen Young Master's chest, Chen Luo spoke to the middle-aged scholar with utter sincerity.
Self-defense?
The middle-aged scholar froze. He subconsciously looked at Nineteen Young Master on the ground, whose limbs had been twisted apart, then at Chen Luo, who was completely unharmed.
He did not dare say a word.
"The location of White Immortal Cave is no secret. You only need to go to the Prefecture City and ask anyone at random." Nineteen Young Master said in a hoarse voice.
The moment he opened his mouth, Chen Luo suddenly felt a wave of dizziness hit his head.
The composition of the air is wrong. There is something wrong with the candle flame.
The brain skilled in poisons instantly sent back a message. He quickly looked up and saw that the middle-aged scholar had, at some point, covered his nose and mouth with a towel. A vicious expression also emerged on the face of Nineteen Young Master beneath Chen Luo's foot.
"Dragon Heart Begonia! I refuse to believe it won't poison you to death!!"
Seal your nose and mouth. Send the toxin inside the body into the Blue Energy zone.
Before Nineteen Young Master could finish gloating, the External Brain in Chen Luo's mind had already provided a solution.
Mortal poison could simply be neutralized with a higher level of energy.
What he lacked least inside the body was high-grade energy.
"Sir, there is a blade in the cabinet beside you. First cut his hand and leg tendons. I want him to live worse than death—"
Before he could finish, Chen Luo, who had supposedly been poisoned and unable to move, suddenly raised his hand and clenched his five fingers into a fist. The force of the Black Tiger Fist condensed at one point as he brought down a punch from directly above. The next instant, with a crack, Nineteen Young Master's spine was broken on the spot. Even his windpipe was smashed away, leaving a bloody, mangled mess—a scene of extreme brutality.
Nineteen Young Master, who had been shouting moments ago, died on the spot.
Having killed him, Chen Luo steeled his heart and swept across the middle-aged scholar covering his nose.
He had been the one who poisoned him just now.
"Spare—"
Without half a word of nonsense, Chen Luo smashed one punch into his forehead. Bursting blood tore out through the back of his head, splattering red and white across the wall.
After dealing with the two of them, Chen Luo quickly returned to Nineteen Young Master's corpse and pressed his hand against the man's head.
"Can't let it go to waste."
He had not struck the head earlier because he remembered what Nineteen Young Master had said before.
He had aptitude!
'Contact with Dead Person's Brainwaves detected. Damage degree: 2%. Read?'
The familiar message popped up, and Chen Luo's spirits rose. Nineteen Young Master's brain was the most intact one he had collected so far. His earlier restraint had not been in vain after all.
"Read!"
A familiar aura instantly shot through his palm and merged into his body.
Before you continue