The Battle for the Heavenly Sword - Chapter 82

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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82
Woo Geom-San Rules the World
“He only bought a massive amount of medicinal herbs before entering the Sohyang Inn.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes! That’s really everything.”
Zhang Oh stared blankly at Im So-ryeong as if wondering what the problem was. Seeing that expression on his face made her feel her blood boil for some reason.
“There was no one he contacted, or any other issue?”
“None. He just quietly went straight into the inn.”
“And after that?”
“I told you, nothing.”
“Really? Not a single thing?”
“Yes!”
“So there’s absolutely nothing unusual about him?”
“Yes! Except for being handsome. Isn’t that why you sent me to tail him? To jump him at night.”
“Hey! I’m not that starved.”
Im So-ryeong firmly placed her hands on her hips and glared at Zhang Oh with a terrifying look in her eyes. However, Zhang Oh casually answered while subtly averting his gaze from hers.
“Yes, yes! Of course you aren’t.”
“Lately, this elder sister has been letting you off too easy. You’re really pushing your luck, aren’t you?”
“Who, me? Not at all.”
“Don’t lie to me! I can see the rebellion filled right up to your throat.”
“You must have seen wrong.”
“That mouth of yours. I should just rip it wide open. If you don’t want it ripped, keep it shut.”
“Yes ma’am!”
Zhang Oh tightly shut his mouth.
Im So-ryeong glared fiercely at him.
“To think I couldn’t find out his name, his background, or a single detail. My lot in life is so wretched, dragging around such an incompetent underling.”
“Why don’t we just ask him directly instead?”
“Who gave you permission to open your mouth? Do you want it ripped?”
“No, ma’am.”
Zhang Oh hurriedly shut his mouth again.
It was because he knew all too well how terrifyingly this delicate-looking woman could transform when she got angry.
The reason she became the Investigation Hall Chief was not because of luck or good connections.
It was because she had proven herself through sheer skill.
Her martial arts proficiency was so outstanding that even the formidable Six Rivers Squadron Leaders loathed facing her.
There was no short supply of martial artists who, unknowingly trying to hit on her, ended up completely shattered by those small, white hands.
Zhang Oh was also one of the martial artists who had been broken in that exact manner.
Though he had been reined in ever since to serve as her hands and feet, Zhang Oh was by no means an ordinary martial artist himself.
Im So-ryeong muttered to herself.
“For some reason, he carries an otherworldly aura. Could he have learned Taoist martial arts? Since both the Wudang Sect and Mount Hua Sect ceased their activities long ago, it shouldn’t be them. Where on earth is he from?”
It was at that exact moment.
Bang!
Along with a booming explosion, a brilliant flash of light flared outside the window.
“What was that?”
Im So-ryeong and Zhang Oh hurriedly dashed outside.
A massive storehouse burning furiously caught their eyes.
As if a Thunderbolt Bomb had detonated, the roof of the storehouse had been blown away while the structure was engulfed in flames.
Im So-ryeong blinked her eyes and asked Zhang Oh.
“Were you storing Thunderbolt Bombs inside there?”
“…….”
“Open your mouth, you bastard! Do you want to die?”
“Why would we store Thunderbolt Bombs there? Besides, that’s an empty storehouse.”
“If it’s an empty storehouse, there shouldn’t have been anything to explode.”
“Naturally.”
“Nothing to explode, yet it blew up?”
Im So-ryeong furrowed her beautiful brows.
Although it appeared dilapidated and abandoned on the outside, it was a place thoroughly managed by Punglim Fort.
Of course, they would never leave flammable materials inside the storehouse.
Even so, the storehouse had been completely blown away in an explosion.
“I smell something fishy.”
“Yes! It smells very strong.”
“Order them to put out the fire immediately, and tell the boys to grasp the current movements within Cheongang County.”
“Cheongang County?”
“The bastards who commit arson usually fall into one of two categories. One is simply enjoying the flames themselves, and the other is using the fire to completely distract everyone.”
“……Is it making a sound in the east and striking in the west?”
“For now, that’s what I’m suspecting. Move, quickly.”
“Understood.”
Zhang Oh replied with a face completely stripped of its usual playfulness.
＊＊＊
Niu Jinhong stared toward the wharf with his brows tightly knitted.
While standing guard with his subordinates, he had heard the booming explosion echoing from the wharf.
Bright red flames could be seen shooting high up into the sky from the wharf.
Judging by the location of the flames, it was unmistakably the storehouse sitting right next to the wharf.
“That was a close call.”
Niu Jinhong patted his chest in relief.
He and Niu Jinshu had previously considered the storehouse at the wharf as a place to store the goods brought in from the Western Regions.
After all, it made loading the goods onto ships much more convenient. However, because it was so isolated and far away from their lodging, it had been excluded from their choices.
If they had stored their goods in that wharf storehouse, everything would have turned into a pile of ashes along with the explosion.
“But was there really anything capable of exploding in that storehouse?”
When he checked it during the day, it was definitely an empty storehouse.
It was completely hollowed out, containing nothing to burn, let alone explode.
Yet, he could not comprehend how it had suffered such a massive explosion.
The flames were still soaring high as if trying to reach the heavens.
Niu Jinhong gathered the subordinates who were guarding the storehouse inside the inn.
“The atmosphere is definitely unusual, so tighten the security.”
“Understood.”
The subordinates replied with tense expressions.
Ordinary people might think Niu Jinhong’s order was excessive, but experienced martial artists like them knew very well that the current situation was by no means normal.
It was just as the martial artists were tightening their perimeter.
“The vermin are quite quick on the uptake.”
Suddenly, a sinister voice echoed from midair.
Niu Jinhong instantly took up a defensive stance and shouted.
“Who is it?”
His gaze snapped toward the top of a tall tree growing inside the Chunyang Inn.
A figure wrapped in red robes was standing precariously on top of a slender branch.
The branch swayed wildly in the blowing wind as if it might snap at any moment, but the man in red robes stood perfectly upright with his back straight.
Niu Jinhong furrowed his brows.
It was because he could sense a malevolent aura radiating from the man.
Even though they were far apart, the energy emanating from the man atop the tree was intense enough for Niu Jinhong to feel it clearly.
Recalling what the man had said just a moment ago, Niu Jinhong spoke.
“If we are quick on the uptake, then the person who set fire to the storehouse must be someone related to you.”
“Indeed.”
“Was your target us from the very beginning? No one who targeted the goods of the Feiyun Merchant Group has ever survived.”
“Hehehe! I have absolutely no interest in your paltry goods. Just hand over the mother and son you are protecting, and I will leave peacefully.”
“Ugh! You came targeting them?”
Niu Jinhong bit his lip hard.
At that exact moment, the man in red robes leaped down from the tree and landed lightly in front of Niu Jinhong.
Niu Jinhong grew tense at the sight of the man landing without making even the slightest sound of wind.
Just from this single, fluid movement, he could tell that his opponent was an incredible expert.
The man who landed before Niu Jinhong was none other than Chilian Xinjun.
Taking advantage of the gap created by Li Changyi and his subordinates setting fire to the storehouse, his plan was to quietly take Liu Jiayan and her son away.
However, because the response of Niu Jinhong and the subordinates guarding the Chunyang Inn was faster than expected, his original plan was discarded.
In truth, taking a detour when a fast route was available did not suit Chilian Xinjun’s taste at all.
He did not care what happened to Li Changyi and the Mechao Dang after he left.
To him, fulfilling the mission bestowed by the Sect Leader was far more important.
The corners of Chilian Xinjun’s mouth, revealed between his disheveled hair, curled upward.
“If you just hand over those two, I promise the Feiyun Merchant Group will not suffer any harm.”
“Stop spouting such nonsense and get lost. Our Feiyun Merchant Group never turns its back on those in peril.”
Niu Jinhong was not saying this solely out of a sense of pure justice.
Liu Jiayan had revealed to Niu Jinshu and Niu Jinhong that she was a member of the Qingyu Clan, promising a massive reward if they delivered her safely.
To the Niu brothers, the reward from the Qingyu Clan was not what mattered most.
What truly mattered was that by delivering the mother and son, they could secure a powerful backing like the Qingyu Clan.
What the Feiyun Merchant Group currently needed above all else was a reliable background exactly like the Qingyu Clan.
When the Mount Hua Sect was alive and well, there was no need to seek a separate background. This was because Niu Jinhong had learned his martial arts from the Mount Hua Sect. However, now that the Mount Hua Sect had sealed its gates, a new backing was required.
That was why they chose the Qingyu Clan.
Although the Qingyu Clan was not quite on par with the New Five Great Families that had emerged alongside the Ten Pillars as the new core powers of Jianghu, they still possessed immense financial might and influence.
If they could receive their protection, the Feiyun Merchant Group would be able to soar even higher.
Even for the sake of the Feiyun Merchant Group, they could never hand over Liu Jiayan and her son.
Seeing the resolute look in Niu Jinhong’s eyes, the corners of Chilian Xinjun’s mouth curled up even further.
“You truly know nothing.”
“What is it that I don’t know?”
“The true identity of Liu Jiayan, and the value of her son.”
“What kind of nonsense are you……”
“If you don’t know, then you must die.”
At that instant, Chilian Xinjun waved his hand. Simultaneously, a crimson energy erupted from his hand at a terrifying speed, shooting forward like a shooting star.
Niu Jinhong swung his sword like a flash of lightning and shouted.
“In your dreams!”
Bang!
The crimson energy and Niu Jinhong’s sword collided violently in midair.
“Urgh!”
In that moment, Niu Jinhong felt his chest violently rattle.
An impact akin to being struck by a massive iron hammer traveled through his sword and straight into his chest.
The shooting star-like crimson energy was a technique called Chixing Tuohun, the first stance of Chilian Xinjun’s ultimate art, the Chilian Maying Hand.
Its power was far too immense for Niu Jinhong to withstand.
“Squadron Leader!”
“You bastard!”
Seeing Niu Jinhong being pushed back, the martial artists rushed toward Chilian Xinjun to save him.
“Moths to a flame.”
Chilian Xinjun mocked them and waved his hands.
Swish, swish, swish!
A gale of red blades erupted from his hands, hacking into the martial artists of the Feiyun Merchant Group.
“Argh!”
“Aggah!”
Accompanied by wretched screams, the limbs of the martial artists rushing toward Chilian Xinjun were severed.
As dozens of martial artists were hacked to pieces and lost their lives in an instant, the air in the courtyard froze rapidly.
The martial artists of the Feiyun Merchant Group had weathered all kinds of hardships throughout their lives, but they had never witnessed such a sight before.
Their opponent was an expert who stood far beyond their wildest imaginations.
Slaaash!
As Chilian Xinjun waved his hand once more, a gale of red blades arose and slaughtered over ten more martial artists.
The targeted martial artists tried to block it with their swords and sabers, but it was entirely futile.
The gale of red blades created by Chilian Xinjun was a technique called the Chiren Piaofeng Hand, which possessed a destructive power that rivaled Sword Blade Qi.
There was no way ordinary martial artists who had not even reached the Peak Realm could stand against such a technique.
If they blocked with a sword, the sword was severed; if they blocked with a saber, it was equally useless.
Chilian Xinjun’s Chiren Piaofeng Hand sliced through everything blocking its path as if it were mere paper.
The Chunyang Inn was transformed into a bloodbath in the blink of an eye.
“Damn it!”
Niu Jinhong clutched his chest and glared fiercely at Chilian Xinjun.
The sight of his subordinates, who had been with him for over a decade, lying in pools of blood drove him to utter despair.
Although nearly a hundred subordinates still remained, they could never stop that monster.
It was just as Chilian Xinjun was about to deploy the Chiren Piaofeng Hand once again.
“Xinjun, stop.”
The door of the Chunyang Inn opened, and Liu Jiayan walked out with a sorrowful expression.
Chilian Xinjun grinned widely and spoke.
“You’ve finally decided to come out.”
“To think you would pursue me all the way here, you are truly relentless.”
“The Sect Leader commanded me to bring Madame back without fail. Don’t you know? Just how much the Sect Leader loves Madame.”
“Stop spouting such ridiculous lies. What he wants is not me, but my son, isn’t it? Do you really think I don’t know what he did to my son?”
Liu Jiayan glared with bloodshot eyes, but Chilian Xinjun merely snorted.
Ning Hanming, the Sect Leader of the Red Cloud Sect, had three wives.
Liu Jiayan was his third wife.
While traveling through Jianghu, Ning Hanming had been captivated by Liu Jiayan’s beauty, kidnapping her and bringing her back to the Red Cloud Sect.
The son born from forcing himself upon Liu Jiayan was none other than Ning Yunxiao.
Because of Ning Yunxiao, Liu Jiayan had been unable to escape and was forced to live within the Red Cloud Sect.
Chilian Xinjun spoke.
“By the way, where have you hidden the young master? The Sect Leader insisted that I must bring him back as well.”
“You will never find Yunxiao.”
“It seems you’ve hidden him away quite securely. But I wonder, can he really stay hidden until the very end while watching his mother die?”
“What?”
Thud!
Mid-sentence, Liu Jiayan’s eyes went wide with a burning, searing pain.
A single dagger was buried deep within her lower abdomen.
Chilian Xinjun, who had approached like a ghost before anyone noticed, had driven the dagger deep into her.
“Ah, ah!”
Along with a low groan, Liu Jiayan collapsed right where she stood.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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