Chapter 1018 – Miscellaneous Freeloaders, a Willingness to Pay Five Hundred Years
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Xiang Qiu did not notice the blind zither player.
More accurately, he did not see the blind zither player.
This blind zither player was simply too inconspicuous.
But it was also because the archbishop standing before him was too striking.
The lines on this archbishop's face seemed to be carved from stone, and every one of its elegant features exuded an icy chill.
"Linghai Zhiwang! What are you planning?"
Xiang Qiu's gaze swept over those Orthodoxy experts standing outside the courtyard, the look in his eyes becoming razor-sharp, a cruel and bloodthirsty aura in their depths.
Linghai Zhiwang dispassionately said, "By divine edict, no one is allowed to enter or exit this courtyard. Those in defiance will be killed."
Yes, no matter who won between the White Emperor and Madam Mu, neither would touch the young Demon Lord.
This large courtyard was truly the safest place in White Emperor City today.
But the Xiang clan leader and the Demon Lord had forgotten one thing.
There were still many human experts in White Emperor City today.
No matter who won between the White Emperor and Madam Mu, these human experts dearly wished to kill the young Demon Lord.
Xiang Qiu still did not understand this reasoning, and he sternly said, "All of you should clearly understand that he is my Xiang clan's guest."
Linghai Zhiwang's expression remained impassive. He had no intention to yield.
Xiang Qiu shouted, "Do you want to die!"
After saying this, he led his subordinates in a charge.
And then, he died.
……
……
Xiang Qiu was truly the strongest member of the Xiang clan in his generation. Both his cultivation level and techniques were extremely formidable.
His subordinates were also the elite experts of the Xiang clan.
But standing outside the courtyard were Linghai Zhiwang, Daoist Siyuan, Archbishop An Lin, and Hu Thirty-Two.
In other words, he was facing a greater part of the Li Palace, leaving him with zero chance of victory.
Of course, if his opponents were just the Prefects of the Orthodoxy, perhaps he would not have lost so quickly, and even if he lost, he would not have died so quickly.
The problem was that Linghai Zhiwang and the other Prefects had not even moved. Their attention was focused completely on the courtyard.
Xiang Qiu and the Xiang clan experts were confronting a group of miscellaneous freeloaders.
These were seven peddlers, six government laborers, three fortune-tellers, two elders selling sesame candy, and one girl buying cosmetic powder.
Even though these people clearly came from Wenshui City and were probably experts from the Tang clan, this sort of arrangement could easily be taken for a group of miscellaneous freeloaders.
Ten-some berserk demi-human energies soared to the sky!
There was a crisp clattering—not the iron hoops on the gate clanking in the wind, but the copper coins in the seven peddlers' hands striking the ground.
The copper coins rolled around the ground, moving in accord with the laws of the world to naturally form an array.
Two fortune-tellers stood in the eye of the array. As they watched those demi-human experts lunge through the air, they rolled their eyes.
This was not an expression of disdain, but a sign of their extremely fast calculation speeds.
The six government laborers expressionlessly stepped forward, their hands raised to meet them.
Six cudgels decided life and death and when they poked out of the clouds, they intended to smash everything before them into the Netherworld.
Even more frightening were the chains wrapped around the six cudgels. They seemed capable of binding all living souls.
The clash of violent Qis created countless bizarre sights and terrifying whorls in space on the street in front of the courtyard.
At this moment, the two sesame-candy-selling elders took one step forward. They raised the fronts of their robes to their waists, then very casually and unremarkably punched.
Their two fists exploded with light, driving away the winds from the Red River. Like two blazing suns, they hungered to devour everything in flames.
And then, cosmetic powder, like peach blossoms, or plum blossoms, in red and in white, enveloped the scene.
Finally, there was a mournful note of a zither, like the weeping of the snow, like a final farewell.
……
……
Blood painted the street in front of the courtyard.
Ten-some Xiang clan experts lay collapsed in their blood.
Xiang Qiu's injuries were the heaviest. His clothes were in tatters, his harder-than-steel body covered in several dozen extremely fine wounds. Blood was gushing out from those fine and straight wounds, swiftly turning into all manner of garish colors the moment it touched the air. He had clearly been poisoned.
He stared at the government laborers and peddlers with eyes of pain and shock.
He had never imagined that he would witness such frightening techniques and arts in such a short moment of time.
If his eyes were not going blurry from the loss of blood, then could that really be… the Blazing Sun Style!
The techniques of those Tang clan experts were truly too terrifying. Before he and his subordinates even had time to enter berserk metamorphosis, they had suffered a crushing defeat!
Xiang Qiu's gaze ultimately fell on the blind zither player standing apart from the crowd and the old zither in his bosom.
The strings of this old zither seemed so sharp that they seemed impossible to stain with blood, no matter how many bodies they hacked through.
When he looked at the old zither, Xiang Qiu suddenly felt rather cold.
A note was played from the zither.
He realized that even if those peddlers and government laborers were not here, the blind zither player alone was enough to kill all of them.
Even if he and his subordinates had entered berserk metamorphosis beforehand, they would have still been killed to a man, none of them able to escape.
Even if his father were here, he might not be a match for this blind zither player.
An intense regret appeared in Xiang Qiu's eyes.
He had not noticed this blind zither player earlier, so he had not noticed that the zither player had been drooping his shoulders.
This posture might have meant fatigue, but it also made it easier to hold the zither.
Humans that liked to droop their shoulders were often truly extraordinary individuals.
Like Wang Po, Bie Yanghong, or this blind zither player.
He stammered out, "Truly powerful… Just who are you?"
The blind zither player did not answer his question.
Perhaps some people would be willing to answer the question of a person on the verge of death to exhibit their kindness or grace.
But not the blind zither player.
Many years ago, during an internal conflict within the sect, he had been ambushed and heavily injured by the sect master. Only after terrible struggle had he managed to survive.
From that moment, he forgot the word 'kindness'.
Many years ago, because he was in seclusion to recover from his injuries, he had avoided the disaster that was Su Li, and then he had gone to Wenshui City, where he had lived like an old dog struggling at death's door.
After that, he lost the right to any sort of grace.
The Tang Old Master's request for him to come to White Emperor City and protect Chen Changsheng was nothing but a job in his view.
He was just doing his job, making some money to provide for his retirement.
So he would not answer Xiang Qiu's question.
He had even once felt that there was nothing that could still draw his interest.
But today, something seemed different.
He looked at the courtyard, his gaze piercing through the gate and onto that tree deep within.
A figure was beneath that tree.
His sea of consciousness had grown calm and serene ages ago, almost frozen, but now, it gradually began to thaw.
His mind had become a dried-up small stream ages ago, but now, water began to flow and beat against the rocks on the banks.
Because a spark had been lit on the withered wood that was his heart, the fire getting larger and larger.
The moment he saw that figure, he seemed to come alive, and his emotions began to surge.
There was no wind, but his clothes began to flap in the air.
His complexion grew rosier and rosier.
His eyes grew brighter and brighter.
He became much younger.
It seemed like he could live another five hundred years.
But he did not want these five hundred years.
If he could kill that person today.