Chapter 688: Heavenly Mystery
[V7C005 – In Life and In Eternal Rest]
After a long while, Li Tianquan suddenly thought of something. He rushed out of his office and ordered his men in a hurry, “Go to the prison and bring Duan Chengpeng here!”
It was at this time that one of his aides rushed over. “Second Elder, things don’t look good! That Duan Chengpeng suddenly…”
“What’s wrong with him, speak!” Li Tianquan had a feeling that something bad was up.
“He’s dead.”
Li Tianquan felt his vision go dark as a sweet scent gushed up from his stomach.
Outside of the base, Li Kuanglan had just turned into a streak of blue and was about to speed up when a slender figure appeared to block his path.
“Where are you rushing off to, Young Noble Kuanglan?” that person said calmly.
Li Kuanglan’s expression turned cold. “I don’t care who you are. Get out of the way or you’ll die for nothing!”
The man laughed out loud. “I was born of a humble family, and this life of mine isn’t worth much, my death certainly won’t mean anything to you. It’s just that I’m fairly learned in tactics and combat arts despite my lack of talent. I’m afraid you’ll have to spend some effort to kill me.”
Li Kuanglan spoke not a single word. With a shake of her right hand, Cold Moon’s Embrace appeared in her grasp and several beams of blue light shot toward Mister Liao.
The latter raised his sleeves to reveal a sword in each hand. The blades moved like the wind and actually blocked all of the blue beams.
Li Kuanglan revealed sharp killing intent as she launched a lightning fast strike that went straight for Mister Liao’s forehead! The second exchange told her that the opponent was definitely a powerful enemy. Hence, she launched a rapid attack without the slightest bit of hesitation.
This Mister Liao didn’t have Edward’s ability, but he blocked his vitals with one hand while slashing at Li Kuanglan’s legs with the other. He made no effort to block the blade radiance of the Cold Moon’s Embrace.
Li Kuanglan was slightly astonished, realizing that this Mister Liao was determined to trade injuries in order to delay her journey. So much so that he wasn’t afraid of losing his life in the process.
Li Kuanglan naturally wasn’t willing to trade injuries with him. As such, she withdrew her strike to block the man’s attack and followed up with dozens of wild attacks.
Mister Liao met transformation with invariance, defending himself securely with one sword while attacking the enemy with the other. Whenever he fell into a dangerous situation, he would shift toward a stance of mutual injury, effectively blocking the entire series of swift blade strikes. This inadvertently revealed his solid foundation in the sword arts.
Her heart filled with concern, Li Kuanglan became increasingly anxious as she fought on. She took a deep breath as frigid energy appeared around her body, poised to unleash a killing move and quickly disable the enemy.
It was at this time that Mister Liao’s expression changed drastically, and his body made an eerie sideways shift. A small hand appeared out of nowhere and launched a flurry of several claws and slaps. If not for the mysterious man’s movement technique, he would’ve been struck by this ambushing hand.
Ji Tianqing appeared out of thin air and said to Li Kuanglan, “Go, I’ll deal with this henchman.”
The proud Li Kuanglan actually didn’t object to this. She shot a glance at Ji Tianqing and said, “I’ve known you for so many years, but this is the first time you’re not annoying.”
Ji Tianqing chuckled. “After helping you once, I can beat you up with a clear conscience when we compete next time.”
Li Kuanglan’s eyes twitched briefly. “Have you ever won against me before? And you know what, I take those words back.”
While the two were chatting, Mister Liao launched several frantic attacks, but all of them were duly blocked by Ji Tianqing. All he could do was watch as Li Kuanglan disappeared into the distance.
After Li Kuanglan was gone, Ji Tianqing’s innocent smile disappeared as she sized Mister Liao up from head to toe as a predator would his prey. She then reached into her pocket, seemingly about to fish something out.
As someone who knew a lot of secret information, Mister Liao was immediately shocked out of his wits. Now that Ji Tianqing was about to use a weapon, how could he dare stay behind? He immediately turned and fled with a loud cry.
Following a cold glint in Ji Tianqing’s hand, Mister Liao let out a miserable cry and blood sprayed out of his back. However, the man didn’t turn back and kept on running at full speed. In the blink of an eye, he had vanished over the vast horizon.
Ji Tianqing was a bit astonished, not expecting the cautious man to run without even knowing what she was reaching for. She knew it was already too late to give chase.
She muttered to herself with a regretful expression, “What a pity! I could’ve exchanged him for some good stuff!”
Back in Indomitable, Zhao Jundu was standing before the window with his rifle beside him, gazing at the vast skies and thinking about something. He had been standing here since Qianye collapsed from his injury and hadn’t moved an inch since.
That lady appeared behind him and said in a gentle voice, “Young Master, you should rest.”
Zhao Jundu didn’t turn back. “It’s not time yet.”
“Both Duke You and Duke Chengen’s legions have arrived, haven’t they? Moreover, Miss Ruoxi is also standing guard. Nothing will happen.”
Zhao Jundu replied, “I’m here to observe an outcome. I must see who dares to scheme against Qianye at such a juncture.”
The woman hesitated for a moment, and then said tactfully, “Young Master, you know the current situation and just how broad his implications are. Some people do have unfathomable motives, but there’s no need to retaliate immediately.”
Zhao Jundu broke into a laugh. “I’m not that boorish. Although those people are powerful, I have no need to fear them once I cross over the threshold of heavenly monarch. I can afford to wait, but the same can’t be said for them.”
Puzzled, the woman asked, “Since that’s the case, why don’t you conceal your actions?”
Zhao Jundu said calmly, “Why must I? I must let them know that Zhao Jundu is someone who remembers his grudges. That’s the only way we can make them apprehensive. If they refuse to restrain themselves despite all that…”
After a brief pause, Zhao Jundu’s voice turned cold. “The day I become heavenly monarch is the day I uproot them all!”
The woman opened her mouth as though she wanted to say something, but no words came out.
Zhao Jundu suddenly took a step back. Surging frost energy poured in from the window as Li Kuanglan stepped in and stood before Zhao Jundu.
“Here.” Li Kuanglan passed a box over, her tone fairly stern.
Zhao Jundu asked as he opened the box, “Stillwater Rebirth?”
“Yes.”
Zhao Jundu was about to offer his thanks but Li Kuanglan cut him short, “No need, our Li family doesn’t owe people.”
With that, she jumped out through the window and disappeared from sight. She left so fast that it almost looked like she was running away.
Zhao Jundu broke into a laugh. “This fool!”
He passed the box to the lady and said, “Since it’s here, then let Qianye use it. It’ll just be a waste otherwise.”
The latter found Zhao Jundu’s tone odd. “Young Master, is this medicine not useful for Young Noble Qianye?”
Zhao Jundu replied, “It’s better than nothing.”
“Then why did you send people to demand the drug from the Li family?”
“This thing rightfully belongs to Qianye, so we must use it on him. Even if it’s a waste, that’s our Zhao clan’s business.”
The lady inquired, “Young Master, then Qianye’s injuries…”
Zhao Jundu sighed lightly. “I don’t know what to do either, only that bastard might know something.”
“Who?”
“Song Zining.”
The woman was rather astonished. “Song Zining? That mysterious pretty-boy? What ability does he have? I can destroy him with one hand!”
Zhao Jundu shook his head. “Regarding Qianye, we can only rely on that mysterious fellow.”
The woman seemed somewhat dissatisfied, but she could only accept since Zhao Jundu had said so. “Fine, since that fellow is so important, I’ll keep an eye on him and see what he’s up to.”
“Okay, go.” Zhao Jundu turned back to gaze at the night sky once more.
Moments later, the woman came back. “I’ve already used the Stillwater Rebirth, but…”
“But what?”
“Young Noble Qianye seemed to regain some vitality, but it’s not very distinct. Could it be that the medicine isn’t effective?”
Zhao Jundu had long since expected this. He sighed. “Stillwater Rebirth can only do so much. With it, Qianye can at least hold out for a while longer. And there’s been no news of Duan Chengpeng all this time. Go and see how he’s doing.”
“Yes, Young Master,” the lady replied. “But rest assured, Young Master, those Li family people don’t have the courage to kill a Zhao clan general!”
Zhao Jundu’s expression was serious. “The Li family naturally doesn’t, but what if the assailant is someone else? I wasn’t thorough enough with the arrangements regarding this matter. Go and investigate his fate as soon as possible.”
The lady affirmed the order and asked in a murderous tone, “What if someone interferes?”
“Do as you see fit.”
“Understood!”
The woman seemed to recall something before leaving. “Young Master, I went to see Song Zining just now. He has shut himself in his room, performing divinations all day. I have no idea what he’s doing, but judging from his expression, it’s not going all too well. Shall I drag him over and interrogate him about what he’s doing?”
Zhao Jundu gave it some thought before saying, “Song Seven likes to play petty tricks, but he’s rarely careless regarding important matters. Just leave him be.”
The woman left the room with a bow and vanished into thin air.
In the core region of Indomitable, Song Zining had isolated himself for one day and night within a side residence. He neither ate nor drank, and wouldn’t even open the door for Zhao Yuying.
At this moment, there weren’t many divination tokens left on the table as most of them had shattered over time, a clear display of the results. There were also countless tokens flying about in the air, each of them formed from flying leaves. The ones on the table together with the ones in the air formed the complete divination pattern.
The floating leaf-tokens were dying and coming back to life. Several of them were breaking down into a shower of light at every given moment while more were being formed out of thin air. Countless invisible currents were surging through the air and crushing the tokens into powder.
One could imagine how hard it was to deduce the heavenly mysteries on this floating island. A single mistake and one could end up contending with the likes of Lin Xitang and the Evernight grandmasters. Despite being cautious, Song Zining felt like he was dancing in a forest of blades, his body littered with wounds within mere moments.
More and more of the tokens in front of him were being destroyed. He was so close, yet it looked like he was going to fail again. A fierce expression flashed across his face as he coughed up a mouthful of blood onto the tokens.
A clap of thunder rang out through the air, and the divination pattern finally took shape.
Song Zining’s long hair hung in a mess behind him. And, among the strands hanging in front of his eyes, there was a single white-hair that was especially eye-catching.