With the Alliance Leaderless, the Meeting Scattered; the Yuanxiang Golden Cicada Escaped in the Chaos

"Hm?" Lan Xu froze.

"What did you want my arm for?"

Yet Chen Duan's words and actions had moved in perfect sync.

As he spoke, he sprang up again and sent another kick flying at him.

"Looks like we still have to settle this with a fight."

A wave of speechless disbelief rose in Lan Xu's heart.

I haven't even said anything yet!

What was the point of asking?

Naturally, there was no way he could agree to such an unreasonable demand.

The Tai Qi Gui Yuan Jue activated, and an intricate barrier of True Qi appeared once more.

But just as Chen Duan's toe was about to touch the barrier, he suddenly withdrew most of his force. His toe lightly tapped the barrier, borrowing its force to launch himself into the air in a somersault.

That move of his just now had been rather strange—it could actually disrupt Protective True Qi. Yellow Medicine was no longer useful; he could only rely on wits now.

Suspended in midair, Chen Duan no longer held anything back, releasing the full aura of the Fuhu Fist Fifth Level.

With a whoosh.

Twisting his waist and hips, he fired his Right Fist like a meteor at Lan Xu.

Before the fist even arrived, its pressure already made it hard to breathe.

Lan Xu was stunned by the sudden surge in his aura.

This state was completely different from before!

It was as if he had been probing just a moment ago, only to unleash a killing blow the next.

And the extent of this bastard's concealment was no small matter!

Watching that punch, a flash of insight struck Lan Xu's mind. A thought surfaced, and he suddenly recalled why it had felt familiar before.

He had seen the style of this fist before!

"You are..."

Before strength that defied common sense, the barrier shattered like glass.

In the final instant before losing consciousness, Lan Xu saw a fist the size of a sandbag growing larger and larger in his vision.

A short while later.

Chen Duan tossed a fresh piece of material into the Wooden Box.

He glanced at Lan Xu, sprawled on the ground.

He had originally worried that Qi Baorui might be nearby and intended to hold back a little, but he had not seen even a shadow of the man until now. That made it irrelevant.

So what if his fighting style had been exposed? He was preparing to wrap things up anyway. It was about time to leave this place.

He dragged Lan Xu into the house and laid him together with the others, then stood at the doorway and cupped his fists.

"Many thanks to you all today. Though mountains stand high and rivers run long, may we meet again if fate allows!"

With that, Chen Duan took his leave.

"My lord! We... we found them!"

A subordinate hurried to Liu Zhong's side, lowered his voice, and reported several things into his ear.

Liu Zhong, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them. A trace of astonishment appeared in his narrow eyes, which were usually half-lidded.

"Hm? What did you say?" He even suspected he had misheard.

After receiving his subordinate's confirming look, Liu Zhong shot to his feet, his expression turning grave.

Without another word, he immediately led several trusted men out of the alliance gathering grounds and rushed toward the scene.

Then he saw masters from the various sects sprawled on the ground, sleeping soundly.

"It's Du Quan of the Chiliu Sect!"

"And Lan Xu of the Taihui Sect!"

"Those are several Sect Masters of the Seven Sects!"

"Gasp—so many Five Refinement Masters! Just who in the world did this?"

The Experts accompanying him could not help crying out in alarm.

Listening to his subordinates' discussion, Liu Zhong crouched down to inspect them.

As Liu Zhong examined them, he found that they had not merely fainted. Their faces bore dazed expressions, and they seemed to still be muttering in their sleep, as though they had taken the wrong medicine.

Other than that, there were their neatly severed arms...

After going to such lengths to bring down so many masters, he had not taken their lives and had only taken one arm from each?

Could he be conducting some kind of wicked ritual?

To be honest, Liu Zhong felt that if all these people had died here, it would have been more normal than the scene before him. Yet this was precisely the kind of inexplicable mess it had become.

If he wanted to kill them, then kill them. If he had killed them all, Liu Zhong would have had an easier time and might even have welcomed it. What was the point of taking only an arm?

He drew a deep breath and asked in a low voice, "Has news from this place leaked out?"

"My lord, more or less. At first, a spectator discovered it by accident and reported it to the constables in his panic. By now, I fear the news has already spread."

Liu Zhong made a swift decision. "Send people at once to inform each of the sects involved of the situation here, exactly as it happened.

"Have them immediately send people to retrieve their own. Remember, inform them—do not ask for instructions. Your words must be respectful, but our position must be made clear.

"Tell them that the authorities have only just received the report as well and are doing everything possible to secure the scene and protect the safety of all these masters."

He spoke quickly, his thoughts clear.

This black pot could not be dumped onto the authorities and Liu Zhong's own head.

Moreover, from this absurd incident, he faintly caught the scent of a dangerous conspiracy, sending chills down his spine.

It would be best to toss this matter to the sects involved. Better to keep himself untouched, like a leaf that never touched the water.

Meanwhile, at the alliance gathering grounds.

The remaining three Sect Masters each received the news.

"Hm? What did you say?"

"Such a thing actually happened?"

"The Arm-Stealing Demon? What... what fresh nonsense is this?"

The three Sect Masters were shocked at first, followed by concern for themselves as a chill ran through them.

Even Du Quan and Lan Xu had fallen victim. What could they possibly do?

"Since they've all left, I'll leave too. There shouldn't be any problem, right?"

"To hell with it. If anyone asks afterward, we can explain then."

The three Sect Masters each left the gathering grounds with some of their disciples and returned to their own sects, leaving the rest behind at the alliance meeting to muddy the waters.

Before anyone realized it, Tong Hou saw that the last three Sect Masters had vanished as well, and his brows knitted tightly.

What exactly was going on?

The alliance meeting had not even ended. Why were they all leaving one after another?

Even the people from the authorities seemed to be moving about.

He sensed that the situation was heading in an unpredictable direction.

"Master!"

Just then, a voice sounded behind him.

Tong Hou turned around and discovered that his disciple Xiao Lian had returned.

"Why have you come back?"

Alarm rose in Tong Hou's heart.

His original plan had been to divide their people into an overt group and a covert group. Xiao Lian would lead the covert group away first, while he would remain in the open with the rest as cover, waiting for the right opportunity.

"Master, we have to leave quickly. Something's happened!" Xiao Lian briefly told him what she had just heard.

"What? Is that true?"

"The news has already spread! Master, everyone's attention is focused on this now. This is our best opportunity! Once they come to their senses, it'll be difficult to get away!"

Tong Hou's gaze flickered as he weighed the matter for only a moment.

"Good. Opportunity must not be lost. We're leaving!"

He led all the remaining Yuanxiang Sect Disciples out of the alliance gathering grounds "quietly."

Since the other Sect Masters had all left, their departure instead seemed perfectly natural and did not draw much attention.

At the same time, a rumor began spreading among the spectators.

"The Arm-Stealing Demon? What the hell is that?"

"Several Sect Masters from the Seven Sects have been hit! Even masters from the Chiliu Sect and Taihui Sect weren't spared!"

"I heard it's a monster that likes gnawing on people's arms. A buddy of mine saw it—just like that, it swallowed an arm whole in two or three bites!"

"Seriously? Is that even human?"

"Someone caught a glimpse of that Demon Lord's appearance. They say it was some strange creature with a blue face and fangs!"

"Even Five Refinement Masters couldn't defeat it. This prefecture is probably about to see the sky change! From now on, people may have to stay indoors after dark, and children will stop crying at the mere mention of it..."

One person told ten, ten told a hundred. As the rumors spread by Word of Mouth, they were embellished layer upon layer, and titles such as the "Arm-Stealing Demon," "Hand-Eating Monster," and "Severed-Hand Ghost" began to circulate.

Meanwhile, the one responsible for this absurd upheaval had already returned home.