20demayo Chapter 24, 3 River Town 12
Chapter 24, 3 River Town 12
His arrogant figure swept across the entire scene, and everyone present felt a chill run down their spines. The newcomer was none other than Cui Chou!
The fox-like eyes were fixed on Gu Mingfeng, who had just called its name. Its narrow eyes narrowed slightly, and after recognizing the person, it increased the force of its footsteps.
"Prince Rui's son? I am handling a case. All irrelevant people should leave immediately and not interfere. Does Prince Gu perhaps wish to 'visit' my Governor's Mansion?"
"Do you even know what you've destroyed?!"
Driven to near madness by his desire for the Immortal Flower, Gu Mingfeng found it hard to believe that Cui Chou was unaware of its miraculous effects!
You should know that as long as you take the Immortal Flower, you can gain sixty years' worth of internal energy!
"Ha," Cui Chou was about to say, making a sarcastic remark.
A cold glint flashed in his eyes. Sensing the movement of the wind, he shifted his body, a sword aura grazing past him. A group of men dressed in black surrounded him like ghosts. Their eyes were cold, and the weapons in their hands, gleaming with a cold light, revealed a hint of killing intent. Clearly, the purpose of this group of men in black was to eliminate witnesses.
Seeing that things were not going well, the Qingcheng Sect disciples immediately protected Fei Xi inside the formation, and the seven figures quickly returned to their positions.
The Big Dipper Formation, activated!
The men in black split into two groups, clearly placing greater emphasis on Cui Chou. Of the 30 men in black, 20 went to attack Cui Chou, while the remaining 10 launched a fierce attack on the Qingcheng Sect and Gu Mingfeng.
Their weapons gleamed coldly, and their moves were fierce. However, the seven members of the Big Dipper Formation coordinated perfectly; their palm strikes flowed like clouds and water, skillfully deflecting the attacks of the men in black. The seven palm strikes resonated with each other, forming a powerful force that neutralized the attacks of the men in black one by one.
The attacks from the men in black came like a tidal wave, but the Big Dipper Formation remained unmoved.
In the fierce battle, the seven people in the Big Dipper Formation gradually gained the upper hand. The youths' palm techniques became more skillful and their coordination more and more perfect, while the black-clad men on the other side began to show weaknesses.
Seeing this, the boys joined forces and struck, instantly breaking through the black-clad men's defenses, and the men fell to the ground one after another.
Gu Mingfeng, who was fighting two men in black nearby, was astonished. These men in black were not only experts but also assassins, clearly well-trained. He was already struggling to deal with just two of them. How could the Qingcheng Sect disciples, whose martial arts he considered mediocre, be able to make the men in black retreat so decisively?
During a brief moment, he stole a glance at Fei Xi, who was standing in the middle of the seven people.
He had never seen the frail girl standing in the center of the formation before, with her sharp eyes and resolute expression.
She calmly directed her fellow disciples, the seven of them protecting her completely. Gu Mingfeng suddenly realized that the girl was far more unfathomable than he had imagined.
On the other side, Cui Chou, facing the siege of 20 masters, laughed heartily, showing no fear. He stood tall and straight, the knife in his hand gleaming coldly in the moonlight. He charged towards the men in black with lightning speed, his blade flashing like a fierce storm. Each swing of the blade sent a spray of blood onto the ground, creating a bloody and cruel scene.
The attacks of the men in black became powerless against the fierce and domineering counterattack of the Mad Blade; their swords were easily blocked or cut in half.
Cui Chou's swordsmanship was extremely domineering, and his arrogant and rampant sword energy was unstoppable. His figure moved through the darkness, reaping the lives of his enemies one by one with each strike.
As the last man in black fell, Cui Chou stood in a pool of blood, his body stained with the blood of his enemies, his resolute gaze a coldness unlike his manic expression.
The title "Butcher" is well-deserved; those who dare to underestimate him will surely pay the price for their folly.
After killing the men in black on his side, Cui Chou did not help Fei Xi and the others. He watched with great interest as the Qingcheng Sect disciples fought against the men in black.
The boys' moves were agile and unpredictable, like flowing clouds, but in his eyes, those soft palm strikes were too weak and gentle, each move showing only a woman's compassion.
Yet this seemingly powerless move, which he considered excessively "benevolent," possessed such earth-shattering power when combined with other techniques. Cui Chou's eyes gleamed, like a beast spotting its prey. He licked his teeth, a bloodthirsty smirk playing on his lips.
The two men in black who were besieging Gu Mingfeng were also defeated by the Qingcheng Sect. Just as Fei Xi was about to capture them alive, an extremely domineering blade aura cleaved one of them in two.
Seeing that things were not going well, the men in black scrambled to their feet and tried to escape, but the fierce butcher's knife was faster than their agility.
"Lord Cui, please spare their lives! They are the very people I mentioned earlier!"
Ignoring the fact that they knew each other, Fei Xi spoke urgently, trying to stop Cui Chou's murderous attack.
"What use is there in keeping a group of suicide soldiers around?"
As his arrogant and disdainful words fell, Cui Chou finished off the last man in black with a single strike, then turned and charged at the Qingcheng Sect members with unabated momentum.
This madman! ! !
"The formation begins, scattered like stars..."
Fei Xi cursed inwardly, but dared not stop talking, quickly instructing her junior brothers to return to their positions and deal with the situation.
The violent sword energy was initially probing, sharp but restrained, and did not intend to kill the Qingcheng Sect members.
The seven people within the Big Dipper Formation cooperated seamlessly, jointly blocking the blood-shadow blade light. The two energies canceled each other out, and before the storm could subside, the Heavenly Gang Palms launched a counterattack, their palm winds carrying the power of heaven and earth attacking Cui Chou.
Observing is definitely not the same as experiencing it firsthand. The peach blossom eyes, which always seemed to be slightly squinted, widened with excitement. The sword energy surged, and the bloodthirsty blade seemed to resonate with the feelings of its wielder. With a whoosh, the earth-shattering sword energy slashed towards the palm wind!
The palm strike was fierce, but the blade energy was even more ferocious. The Bloodthirsty Mad Blade cleaved through the palm strike, its momentum undiminished as it continued its attack on the Qingcheng Sect members. Though the youths were fearless and naive, they were like a leaf in the ocean before this absolute suppression, completely at the mercy of its power.
At this critical juncture, three streams of internal energy attacked from three directions. The sharp palm strikes and powerful fist strikes were no match for the final, vast and boundless brushstroke.
The righteous spirit returns to its origin, encompassing the entire universe!
An elderly man with white hair and a youthful face, dressed in a blue robe, arrived gracefully. He looked at Cui Chou with his still bright and all-seeing eyes and said:
“Lord Cui, if you want to find someone to compete with, we old bones can still move. Why make things difficult for a group of children?”
"I don't need to explain my cases to anyone!"
Cui Chou sheathed his Aoxue Blade and turned to leave.
He wasn't going to waste his breath talking to a bunch of old men, since she wasn't a woman. Before leaving, he glanced at the girl who was being helped up and was spitting blood, a glint of malice flashing in his eyes.
One of the three who, along with the white-haired old man, deflected the sword energy was Yin Zhengyi, the Xuantian Elder of the Qingcheng Sect.
Ignoring the fighting nearby, he strode forward to support Fei Xi and began channeling his inner energy into her body. The continuous flow of inner energy attempted to gradually dissolve the sword energy within her frail body.
But the violent sword energy was not so easy to remove. Yin Zhengyi's temples were gradually soaked with sweat, and some of the sword energy in Fei Xi's body was still slowly tearing at her flesh.
"Fellow Daoist Yin, let this old man do it."
The refined and amiable old man stroked his long, snow-white beard after seeing the butcher Cui Chou leave. Seeing the pale, sickly girl surrounded by the crowd, he stepped forward and took Yin Zhengyi's place. His vast and inexhaustible inner energy entered the girl's body, enveloping and dissolving the violent sword energy.
The biggest difference between having martial arts skills and not having them lies in the fact that martial artists can cultivate internal energy. Regardless of whether one specializes in external or internal martial arts, the only difference is the way internal energy circulates.
Those who practice martial arts can use their own internal energy to resist attacks from others' internal energy. Ordinary people without internal energy are powerless against attacks from martial arts practitioners; they can only let the internal energy tear their flesh apart until they die.
Therefore, all seven junior brothers of the Qingcheng Sect were unharmed, except for Fei Xi, who had no internal energy, who was affected by the sword energy and vomited blood in pain.
Feeling her internal energy stabilize, Fei Xi opened her eyes and said in a weak, hoarse voice, "Thank you."
"Thank you for your help, Master. I never expected you to come in person."
Once the sword energy was completely dispelled, the patriarch of Xuehai Academy withdrew his hand, nodded, and smiled:
"The younger generation surpasses the older; I'd like to see which young master proposed this grand gathering on the origins of the three religions. Will Master Hongfa truly attend?"
With a slight smile on her pale face, despite her weakness and frailty, Fei Xi answered each word with utmost firmness and seriousness:
"It was indeed this junior who had made a fool of herself and the Master laugh at her. Thanks to the kindness of the seniors, they have all agreed to my proposal. I will do my best at this grand event and live up to the Master's expectations."
"Ha, a young man with ambition will surely succeed."
"What kind of grand event is this? I, Tie Liang, have come to join in the fun."
A burly man with broad shoulders and a thick waist came closer, looking at the old man and the young man in front of him with curiosity.
The leaders of Pilibao, including Tie Liang, the elder of Qingcheng Sect, Yin Zhengyi, and the patriarch of Xuehai Academy, along with the elders of the three sects of Kuai Zai Lou, gathered at the shore of Beiliang Lake.
Fei Xi offered a few words of explanation, apologized, and walked toward the pale scholar's corpse.
Beside the scholar's corpse, Gu Mingfeng stared blankly at the remains of the Immortal Flower, which had long been trampled into a muddy mess, without uttering a word.
"The Immortal Flower must be consumed within fifteen minutes of being picked; otherwise, it will lose its effect. But is consuming this flower truly beneficial?"
A calm, gentle voice sounded beside Gu Mingfeng. Seeing the girl in front of him with her head bowed, her hands caressing the man's body, which had been cleaved in two, Gu Mingfeng frowned in disgust and replied with displeasure:
"What do you mean?"