Twin Dragon Society Leaders! Northern Land Saber King! Killing Intent

Ma Wuji crouched in the tree, his body trembling uncontrollably, even his teeth chattering beyond his control.

After escaping the temple earlier,

he had stumbled upon something deadly!

And leaving Zhang Chu alone to face that terrifying ghost monk had felt rather dishonorable.

So he had secretly hurried back.

Who would have thought that the moment he reached the temple's rear mountain, a piercing shriek would bore into his eardrums? His entire body froze rigid, and an unbelievable sight appeared before his eyes.

Ma Wuji stared at the nearly ten-meter-deep crater blasted into the ground, especially the interwoven icy gleam and scorched blackness around its edge.

His eyes were wide and round, filled with shock.

He swallowed, his voice trembling. "Daoist... Daoist Priest Zhang, was... was that really martial arts?!"

Over his years roaming the Jianghu, he had seen no shortage of experts. He had even met True Gang Grandmasters.

Yet he had never seen such terrifying palm force, capable of releasing two utterly opposing powers. And that shriek could directly crush one's mind!

Such methods!

Had long surpassed everything he knew of Jianghu martial arts.

At that moment, Ma Wuji could already imagine how the terrifying ghost monk in the temple had died.

With that palm technique, even if the ghost monk's grandfather crawled out of his grave, he would still be sent to reincarnation with one slap!

And this was supposed to be tenth on the Human Ranking?

"Of course it was martial arts. Want to give it a try?"

Zhang Chu narrowed his eyes as he assessed him. This kid's Lightness Skill was probably of an extremely high grade, and Zhang Chu was quite tempted.

"Y-you... what are you trying to do?!"

The instant Ma Wuji saw Zhang Chu's gaze, his expression changed. "I... I risked my life to come back and warn you. You can't act rashly!"

"Warn me? Then tell me." Zhang Chu smiled, though there was something exceedingly strange about that smile.

This kid had turned and run without a second word earlier.

If the information was not valuable enough,

Zhang Chu felt it was time to settle the score.

"Fine, I'll tell you. Just don't make a move!"

At that moment, Zhang Chu seemed even more terrifying in Ma Wuji's eyes than those old devils from the Demonic Cult!

"When I went down the mountain just now, I discovered that the Twin Dragon Society seemed to be making a major move. From the look of it, they should be coming for you!"

Zhang Chu had killed the second leader's daughter earlier. Once they received the news, they had immediately set out to hunt him down.

"They're coming for me? There's such a good thing?!"

Zhang Chu suddenly smiled.

After his martial arts fused, his Merit Points had been swept clean. He was just worrying about not having enough Merit Points.

And now people were rushing over to deliver themselves to him?

Seeing Zhang Chu smile, Ma Wuji nearly went mad. He was being hunted down—how could he still be smiling?!

No, this man was far too terrifying. He had to find a chance to escape. He was truly terrified now...

"Where are they?" Zhang Chu asked.

"I don't know, but they should have gone ahead to block your path. You're planning to attend the Sword Forging Manor's Sword Appraisal Convention too, right?" Ma Wuji asked after answering.

The Sword Appraisal Convention at Sword Forging Manor on the fifteenth day of the seventh month had spread throughout the Jianghu as early as a month ago.

He did not believe Little True Martial would remain unmoved.

"They've gone ahead to intercept me? Then let's set off at once. We can make it to the Sword Appraisal Convention before the fifteenth day of the seventh month."

At his level of strength, going without sleep for several days was perfectly normal and would not affect his condition.

That was a whole heap of Merit Points!

Besides, he had an agreement with Li Gang.

"What? Us?!"

Ma Wuji's eyes widened. Was this devil not planning to let him go?

"Could it be that Brother Ma is unwilling?"

"N-no, I'm willing. I'm willing!"

That damned Zhang Chu was a demon Daoist. He had merely run away once, yet Zhang Chu was retaliating against him like this.

"Then let's move. Oh, Brother Ma, go to the temple first and lead my horse out. It's a long journey, and we definitely can't do without a horse. Zhang does not like walking."

Zhang Chu headed down the mountain first. He neither said farewell to Guangming and the others nor offered any explanation.

Leaving Ma Wuji alone where he stood, seething with frustration.

"Ahhh! ..."

He, Ma Wuji, the dignified Flying Immortal on Land, a young Jianghu talent ranked ninety-eighth on the Human Ranking, was actually being ordered about like a servant by that damned Zhang Chu...

In Lingnan in the seventh month, rain fell in an endless drizzle.

The morning had still blazed beneath a fierce sun, but by noon dark clouds pressed down overhead, heralding an imminent downpour.

On the official road, a fine horse hurried past.

"Daoist Priest Zhang, there's an inn ahead. How about we shelter from the rain for a while?" Ma Wuji looked up at the sky, then toward the youth on horseback.

That damned fellow simply was not human.

He rode the horse himself, yet made Ma Wuji run below, even saying that since Ma Wuji's Lightness Skill was good, he would not get tired.

If Ma Wuji could have beaten him, he would have turned hostile long ago.

"Fine. Let's go in and wait it out."

Dressed in a blue robe, Zhang Chu had handsome, refined features, yet his eyes held a depth wholly unsuited to his age.

Looking at Ma Wuji below him, he could not help recalling a saying—something about taming humans...

As they spoke, raindrops as large as beans began pattering down, swiftly turning into a torrential downpour.

The inn's attendant had long been waiting by the entrance. Seeing guests arrive, he hurried forward beneath an oilcloth umbrella. "Esteemed guests, please come inside quickly. This rain truly came down in a hurry!"

Zhang Chu swung down from the horse, handed the reins to Ma Wuji, and strode straight into the inn's main hall.

"That demon Daoist really does treat me like a servant."

The more Ma Wuji thought about it, the angrier he became. At last, in a burst of fury, he... merely tied the horse in the stable.

Sooner or later, he would get revenge on that fellow.

The moment they entered, a wave of heat mixed with the scent of wine, sweat, and food rushed toward them.

The inn was already packed.

Judging by their attire, most were Jianghu folk. Some gathered in groups of three or five, conversing quietly, while others drank alone in corners.

As expected, these people were likely all heading to Sword Forging Manor for the Sword Appraisal Convention on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.

Zhang Chu calmly swept his gaze across the hall, then found an empty seat by a window and sat down.

Ma Wuji followed close behind and called over a waiter. "Bring two jugs of good wine, and a few of your signature dishes."

"Coming right up!" the waiter answered before leaving.

Yet neither Zhang Chu nor Ma Wuji noticed that,

the instant they stepped into the inn, the entire hall fell silent for a moment.

Countless gazes, open and concealed alike, turned toward them before swiftly looking away again.

Those looks were a mixture of awe, curiosity, and wariness.

In a corner of the hall, two men sat at a square table.

Both wore dark gray fitted outfits and had short blades hanging at their waists. From the moment Zhang Chu and Ma Wuji entered, they had kept their heads lowered as they drank, without uttering a word.

Seven or eight empty wine jars already sat upon their table, yet neither showed the slightest sign of drunkenness. Instead, their gazes grew colder by the moment.

"That's Little True Martial Zhang Chu?" A bearded man at the neighboring table asked his companion in a low voice.

"Keep your voice down! Are you tired of living? Didn't you see the Twin Dragon Society's two leaders sitting over there?"

A Thin and Tall Youth hurriedly pointed toward the corner.

Following his gaze, the bearded man indeed saw the two gray-clothed men in the corner.

"Mountain-Crossing Dragon Chang Zuo and River-Crossing Dragon Chang You? Why aren't they staying at Yinfall Mountain? What are they doing here?"

The Thin and Tall Youth explained in an almost breathless whisper, "What else could it be? Haven't you heard that Jinguang Temple was destroyed last night? River-Crossing Dragon's only daughter supposedly died in that temple too."

"Jinguang Temple? Wasn't that just an ordinary temple? And what would a woman be doing at a temple in the middle of the night?"

"Ordinary?" The Thin and Tall Youth sneered. "You probably don't know that Jinguang Temple was actually a hidden den of the Demonic Cult's Refining Corpse Sect. Three Dark Strength Realm Chan masters were stationed inside, two of them Gold Corpses! And what happened? In a single night, none of the three experts survived!"

The bearded man's eyes widened. "Who did it?"

The Thin and Tall Youth did not answer directly. Instead, he gestured with his eyes toward Zhang Chu.

The bearded man immediately understood, his face turning pale. "Him? Little True Martial Zhang Chu? Th-this is impossible..."

"How is it impossible?"

A scar-faced man at another table cut in, clearly having heard their conversation. "Little True Martial did not earn his name for nothing. First he wiped out the Boat Gang, then the Water and Land Elders, and now even Jinguang Temple has fallen to him. In less than a month, six Hidden Force experts have died by his hand! His tenth-place ranking on the Human Ranking was carved out with real killing!"

People at several surrounding tables pricked up their ears. Discussions erupted at once, all of them stunned by Zhang Chu's achievements.

"No wonder both leaders of the Twin Dragon Society came out together!"

"But now that their enemy stands right before them,"

"why are they holding still?"

Mountain-Crossing Dragon Chang Zuo and River-Crossing Dragon Chang You, the Twin Dragon Society's two leaders, were Hidden Force experts who had been famous for ten years.

The two brothers had once fought three experts of the same realm together without defeat. Their names resounded throughout the Jianghu.

"Because they are wary."

At that moment, a steady voice rang out.

Everyone followed the sound and saw a white-haired elder seated near the staircase. He drank alone, carrying an extraordinary air.

"Senior, what insight do you have?" the scar-faced man asked respectfully.

The white-haired elder slowly set down his wine cup. "It is not that the Twin Dragon Society does not wish to take revenge. They do not dare. Zhang Chu destroyed Jinguang Temple in a single night. Those three Chan masters were no weaker than Chang Zuo and Chang You. If they rashly make a move, then I fear..."

He did not finish, but the meaning was already obvious.

No matter how strong Chang Zuo and Chang You were, they were merely on par with Jinguang Temple's three Chan masters—perhaps even somewhat inferior. Since Zhang Chu could destroy Jinguang Temple, he could naturally destroy the Twin Dragon Society as well.

"Then why are they waiting here?"

Someone asked in confusion.

The white-haired elder smiled meaningfully. "All these years, the Twin Dragon Society has secretly been transporting Lingnan's supplies to the Northern Blade Sect. They could be considered half-subordinates of the Saber King. Now their daughter has been killed, while they themselves do not dare act rashly. What do you think they will do?"

"Call for reinforcements!" the bearded man blurted out.

"Exactly." The elder nodded. "And those reinforcements have likely already arrived."

At those words, everyone in the inn exchanged glances, their hearts tightening.

If the Northern Land Saber King truly intervened, then this matter would become enormous.

That man was a major figure listed on the Earth Ranking. His adopted son, Young Blade King Yuan Haotian, was an even more outstanding young talent ranked eighth on the Human Ranking!

For a time, the atmosphere inside the inn became strange.

Rain poured in a steady roar and the fragrance of wine drifted through the air, yet neither could conceal the killing intent surging beneath the Undercurrent.