The black-mole-faced man's gaze first fell upon Liu Qiaolian's lovely, curvaceous figure, a flash of heat in his eyes. But when the corner of his eye caught Xia Daoming, he seemed to remember something and abruptly turned his gaze onto him.
"Eh!" The black-mole-faced man narrowed his eyes, a trace of recollection showing within them.
"Stop the carriage!"
After the carriage had traveled five or six zhang away, the black-mole-faced man suddenly thought of someone. His eyes lit up, and he abruptly cried out.
"Whoa!" The driver hurriedly pulled tight on the reins, and the carriage slowly came to a halt.
"Young Master, the damage to your meridians from this trip is quite serious. Evergreen Hall's Snow Toad Pill cannot fully heal you. You must hurry to Thousand Treasures Hall in Green Cypress City and purchase some of their specially made Mystic Turtle Marrow Paste to apply and consume. Only then can you hope to recover completely.
"During this time, you should not stir up any further trouble, and you especially should not go near women." Inside the carriage, the gray-clad elder sitting opposite the black-mole-faced man frowned slightly and advised him.
Clearly, the elder thought his young master had taken a malicious interest in the woman by the roadside out of boredom during the journey.
"Uncle Lin, I know which matters are urgent and which are not. But that man just now looked like a disciple Liang Jingtang took in recently, the one who appeared at Jade Flower Pavilion a few days ago." The black-mole-faced man spoke, a savage glint in his eyes.
This black-mole-faced man was none other than Shi Yingdeng, the young master of the Shi Family who had been injured by Liang Jingtang at Jade Flower Pavilion.
The gray-clad elder was Lin Lu, the old steward who served at the side of the Shi Family patriarch.
"So that was it. I was overthinking things." Lin Lu let out a breath of relief, then a vicious look appeared on his face. "If he truly is Liang Jingtang's newly accepted disciple, this is a fine place to bury a corpse."
"Heh heh, that was what I was thinking too." Shi Yingdeng sneered.
With that, he impatiently lifted the carriage curtain and jumped down.
Lin Lu and the Martial Master acting as the driver hurriedly followed him out of the carriage.
"Master! They seem to be members of the Shi Family!" Liu Qiaolian's expression changed slightly as she spoke in a low voice.
"Lian'er has sharp eyes. They are indeed from the Shi Family. That young man is called Shi Yingdeng. I met him at Jade Flower Pavilion just a few days ago.
"As for that old man, I do not know him." Xia Daoming watched Shi Yingdeng and the others dismount in the distance, a hint of delight appearing on his face.
A few days ago at Jade Flower Pavilion, Xia Daoming had already wanted to kill Shi Yingdeng.
He had even considered afterward whether he should find an opportunity to assassinate him in the city. But there were ultimately too many concerns and risks, so he gave up on the idea.
Who would have thought that today, in this desolate wilderness with no village ahead and no inn behind, he would run into him by chance?
"That old man is Lin Lu, the Shi Family's old steward. A Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master!" Liu Qiaolian finally saw the newcomer's face clearly, and her expression changed again.
"Lian'er, later, do your best to keep that driver occupied. Do not let him escape. You need not concern yourself with anything else." Behind his veil, Xia Daoming narrowed his eyes.
Liu Qiaolian's heart gave a heavy thump at his words, but she immediately replied, "Yes, Master!"
"Friend, have we met somewhere before?" Shi Yingdeng stopped more than a zhang away, staring coldly at Xia Daoming with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
As Shi Yingdeng spoke, the driver had already circled around Xia Daoming and Liu Qiaolian, cutting off their retreat.
His heated gaze fell upon Liu Qiaolian.
"Young Master Shi has good eyes and an even better memory. I did not expect that after meeting only once, you could recognize me by my build." Xia Daoming spoke as he lifted his black veil.
"Haha! It really is you!" Shi Yingdeng burst into delighted laughter at the sight.
"From the looks of it, Young Master Shi seems quite happy!" Xia Daoming said with a smile.
"Meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign land is naturally something worth celebrating," Shi Yingdeng said with a smile.
"That is true." Xia Daoming nodded in agreement.
"You are Xia Daoming, correct?" Shi Yingdeng asked.
"I never thought that a nobody like me would be known by Young Master Shi. It seems you specifically made inquiries about me." Xia Daoming narrowed his eyes.
"Brother Xia, what do you think of the scenery here?" Shi Yingdeng asked with a teasing expression.
"Whether I think it is good or not is unimportant. As long as Young Master Shi thinks it is good, that is enough." Xia Daoming replied.
"Haha, not bad. You have some nerve. That makes it interesting. Otherwise, if you started off weeping and wailing for mercy, it would be far too dull." Shi Yingdeng laughed.
"Young Master Shi is so certain you can keep us here?" Xia Daoming asked.
"What do you think?" Shi Yingdeng smiled smugly, then said to Lin Lu beside him, "Uncle Lin, I'll have to trouble you. But leave him breathing if possible. I want to see whether he will still have this kind of nerve afterward."
"Rest assured, Young Master! After traveling for so long, I was getting bored myself. This is just the thing to provide some amusement." A ferocious smile surfaced on Lin Lu's wrinkled old face.
With that, Lin Lu violently stamped his toe against the ground. Dirt and stones instantly sprayed outward, while his entire body soared into the air like a great bird. Midair, he raised his hand in a chopping palm strike and pounced upon Xia Daoming to kill him.
The mountain wind whipped his robes with a loud rustle, making him appear exceedingly formidable.
Xia Daoming seemed frightened stiff. He sat dumbly atop his horse, not even knowing to dodge.
Shi Yingdeng's face showed a disdainful sneer, as though Xia Daoming were already a dead man.
Then, an aura of blood and vital force erupted from Xia Daoming's body like a mountain flood bursting loose.
"Fifth-Rank!" The savage smile on Lin Lu's face froze in midair, and intense unease surged in his heart.
But by then, it was too late to alter his move.
A massive fist, carrying a fist wind that could shove mountains and overturn seas, rapidly expanded in his pupils and struck in an instant.
Bang!
Fist and palm collided.
An incomparably tyrannical force, like floodwaters breaching a dam and sweeping away mountains and seas, surged through the colliding fist and palm into his body.
Snap! Snap! Snap!
Lin Lu seemed to hear the sound of meridians and tendons snapping within his body.
The sleeve around his arm exploded, turning into scraps of cloth that fluttered everywhere. The flesh of his arm split open and blood sprayed out. He could no longer suppress the mouthful of blood bursting from his lips, and his entire body fell backward like a kite with its string cut.
As Lin Lu fell backward, his bulging eyes, filled with horror and disbelief, saw a black figure shoot into the sky from horseback, then pounce toward Shi Yingdeng like an enraged flood dragon plunging into a river.
In the blink of an eye, the situation had completely reversed from what Shi Yingdeng had expected. His mind was blank, unable to process it at all.
Lin Lu was a Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master! Even though he was advanced in years, it would take at least some formidable expert at the level of a Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master to severely injure and send him flying with one punch.
Yet the man before him was merely a disciple Liang Jingtang had accepted half a year ago!
But while Shi Yingdeng's mind was blank, a cold and fierce fist wind struck toward his chest.
Shi Yingdeng jolted violently and finally came to his senses. He hastily crossed his arms before his chest to block it.
Yet the Serpent Head Fist rushing toward his chest was as nimble as a snake. It suddenly twisted, "slithered" past his crossed arms, pressed against his chest, and explosively discharged Hidden Strength.
Crack! Crack!
Shi Yingdeng felt as if a rampaging wild bull had slammed into his chest. His body flew backward, while the sound of bones being crushed came from his chest.
In midair, Shi Yingdeng lowered his head.
He saw his brutally caved-in chest, his eyes filled with disbelief and terror.
Bang!
Shi Yingdeng crashed heavily onto the ground, blood continuously flowing from his mouth.
He braced his hands against the ground and tried to rise, but the searing pain in his chest made his arms give way. He fell back onto the ground, gasping in great gulps. Every breath brought tearing pain to his chest, covering his forehead in cold sweat.
Xia Daoming paid Shi Yingdeng no heed. Instead, he leaped directly over him and pursued Lin Lu, who was staggering toward the forest beside the mountain road.
Bang! Bang!
Each time Xia Daoming's foot landed, a dull boom came from beneath the ground. Spiderweb-like cracks spread from where he stepped.
His body shot forward like a cannonball.
After only a few leaps, Xia Daoming had reached Lin Lu's back.
"Spare me!" Lin Lu felt the fist wind piercing through his back and screamed in terror.
Bang!
The answer Lin Lu received was the heavy sound of a punch.
Lin Lu sprawled face-first onto the ground, blood gushing continuously from his mouth.
His eyes bulged like those of a dead fish, and his breath was gone.
Xia Daoming's punch had struck directly over the back of Lin Lu's heart. Hidden Strength penetrated through his back and shattered his heart.
Screech!
As Xia Daoming killed Lin Lu with one punch, on the other side, the driver, frightened out of his wits, did not dare fight Liu Qiaolian at all. He turned and ran.
Liu Qiaolian urged her horse after him, gripping a short spear in her hand, and viciously drove it into his back.
The pitiful driver was also a Fourth-Rank Martial Master, his strength equal to Liu Qiaolian's. Yet because he had been scared out of his wits and left his back completely exposed, Liu Qiaolian took his life with a single thrust.
Seeing Liu Qiaolian dispatch the driver alone, Xia Daoming was slightly taken aback. Then he slowly and unhurriedly walked toward Shi Yingdeng.
When Shi Yingdeng saw Xia Daoming approaching, it was as though he had seen a demon. His feet kept kicking against the ground as he scooted backward.
"Lord Xia, spare me! Lord Xia, spare me! I'm still young, I don't want to die yet!" Shi Yingdeng wept and wailed as he retreated, even forgetting the pain in his chest.
"Shi Yingdeng, you are still the Shi Family's young master, a Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master. Yet right from the start, you are weeping and wailing for mercy. Isn't that far too dull? Oh, right. Young Master Shi, what do you think of the scenery here?" Xia Daoming looked at Shi Yingdeng teasingly.
Seeing Xia Daoming return his own words to him word for word, Shi Yingdeng was both terrified and overwhelmed with regret. He continued pleading, "This lowly one deserves death. Lord Xia, please raise your hand and spare this lowly one's life!"
Today's update is complete. Please add it to your collection and keep reading if you can. Thank you.
Before you continue