Chapter 696 - 696: 11 People (7th Update)
Xu Cunxiao and the others were the second group to receive the news of Huang Jianyuan's murder. When Huang's subordinates escaped back, Xu and his companions were still waiting in the room, expecting Huang Jianyuan to bring back the Cold Moon Blade.
Little did they know, not only did they not get to see Huang Jianyuan return, but they also received such terrible news. The Cold Moon Blade was not only failed to be snatched back, but even the blade itself had been stolen by Ye Qing.
"Damn it!" Xu Cunzhi, sitting next to Xu Cunxiao, was the first to fly into a rage, slamming the table as he stood up and roared, "That night, we failed to kill that Ye bastard, leaving behind such a huge problem. If only I had known, I should have pursued to the bottom of the valley that night to thoroughly confirm whether he was dead or not!"
"Cunzhi!" Xu Cunxiao pulled him back to his seat and said in a deep voice, "Such things are unpredictable. If he didn't die after falling from such a high cliff, perhaps it's because his time has not yet come. However, how exactly did he kill Second Brother? I am very clear about this person's strength, he is only slightly stronger than Shen Baichuan and his likes. He is by no means a match for any member of the Killing Gate Seven Hidden, how could he possibly kill Second Brother?"
"Could your intelligence be wrong?" the Eldest Brother said in a deep voice, "Or, has this person been hiding his true strength?"
"It's impossible," Xu Cunxiao said, "We have personally crossed hands with him; we are well aware of his strength. That night, we forced him to the edge of the cliff and he was knocked off by us. How could he possibly still be hiding his strength? This person, he is simply incapable of releasing his Inner Strength externally!"
The Eldest Brother frowned deeply and said in a serious tone, "However, he has just managed to perform an Internal Energy Release, so what is going on?"
Xu Cunxiao and Xu Cunzhi exchanged glances, both full of confusion. It was well-known that if one could not achieve Internal Energy Release before the age of eighteen, it was almost impossible for them to achieve it later in life. Ye Qing was already at such an age, how could he have suddenly made such progress?
"Could it be... he has met some expert who has cleared his meridians for him?" Xu Cunzhi spoke softly.
The expressions of everyone in the room changed. They all understood how difficult it was to clear someone's meridians. Legend had it that only masters on the level of the King of North-South Boxing had such ability. If Ye Qing was truly cleared by some expert, then how powerful must that person be? If Ye Qing had such a master behind him, even if all these people in the room united, they probably wouldn't stand a chance against him!
"Impossible! Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Xu Cunxiao shook his head decisively and said, "As far as I know, there are only eleven people in the world capable of clearing someone's meridians. The Northern Fist King Li Changqing is already dead. Southern Fist King Shen Tianjun and the Bloody Monk have been missing for twenty years and are unlikely to suddenly appear. The Western Xinjiang Purple-Robed Lama definitely would not leave Western Frontier, and Helian has been in Meng District all this time without leaving. As long as Helian stays in Meng District, Prince Nalan of the Capital dares not leave the Capital. Ever since the Northern Fist King Li Changqing was defeated by the Southern Fist King Shen Tianjun, the two have stood off against each other for twenty years without any movement; they cannot possibly just appear. Also, Sai Hua Tuo Baili Xi and King Yan Ning Qianshu, the former is rumored to no longer be of this world. As for the latter, hmph, would he dare to show his face?"
The crowd slowly nodded in agreement. Xu Cunzhi, however, hesitated and spoke softly, "Brother, that's only eight people. You just said there were eleven, who are the other three?"
Xu Cunxiao glanced at Xu Cunzhi and said solemnly, "The remaining three are in Tai Island and simply couldn't appear!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Cunzhi's expression changed as he finally realized which eleven people Xu Cunxiao was referring to.
The Eldest Brother slowly nodded and said, "Aside from these eleven people, it's nearly impossible for anyone else to do such a thing. But what on earth is going on with Ye Qing? Furthermore, he even managed to get the Seven-Star Ancient Sword to recognize him, which is also unthinkable. You must know, the Seven-Star Ancient Sword, just like Cui Yulong's Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade, is a top-level Famed Instrument. Even if Ye Qing truly had the ability to make the Seven-Star Ancient Sword recognize him, it should have taken some time at least. Even a figure like Cui Yulong took more than a month to tame the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade, let alone him. However, to my knowledge, Ye Qing only got his hands on the Seven-Star Ancient Sword in the last couple of days. How could he make it recognize him within two days?"
The group looked at each other, finding this question even more baffling than the previous one.
"There are too many secrets about this Ye Qing; he is involved in too much!" Xu Cunxiao bit his teeth and said solemnly, "If you ask me, no matter what secrets he holds, this man cannot be left alive. Given our current situation, even if we don't take action against him, he will certainly not let us go. Eldest Brother, what do you think about us taking the initiative?"
The Eldest Brother was silent for a while before slowly nodding and saying in a serious tone, "You're right, this man cannot be left alive. The question is, who should we send to ensure a nearly certain death for him?"
The group looked at one another, hesitating. Ye Qing was capable of killing Huang Jianyuan, who among them dared to confidently claim victory?
"Eldest Brother, since this person initially escaped from the two of us, let's be the ones to act!" Xu Cunxiao said solemnly, "Leave this matter to us brothers!"
"Good!" Eldest Brother nodded and said, "Third Brother, Cunzhi, the two of you must act swiftly and deftly, and make sure not to leave any loose ends!"
"Yes!" The two nodded, turned around, and left the house.
After stepping out of the courtyard, Xu Cunzhi looked towards Xu Cunxiao and said in a low voice, "Eldest Brother, have you lost your mind? Ye Qing has the Seven-Star Ancient Sword, and he has also taken the Cold Moon Blade. It won't be so easy for the two of us to kill him. Why on earth are we taking on this task?"
"Are you stupid?" Xu Cunxiao glared at him and whispered, "You know Ye Qing has the Seven-Star Ancient Sword and the Cold Moon Blade, so why not strike now? I asked just now; Ye Qing killed Huang Jianyuan while in a sneak attack state—his actual strength isn't that great. Our combined forces can easily kill him. Besides, after killing him, we can seize the Seven-Star Ancient Sword and the Cold Moon Blade; that's what truly matters. Think about it, if we do the job and grab those two famed weapons, we are bound to get our share of the spoils, right? But if we let someone else do it, we probably won't get anything!"
Xu Cunzhi's eyes widened with enlightenment, and he joyfully said, "Eldest Brother, you've really thought this through. The Seven-Star Ancient Sword, the Cold Moon Blade—those are top-level famed instruments. If we could have one of them, then even someone like Cui Yulong wouldn't stand a chance against us!"
Xu Cunxiao sneered coldly; if he could get a famed instrument to recognize him as its master, he would gain the strength to challenge Eldest Brother, which was the key motive behind his determined plotting.
Ye Qing returned to Tian Sheng with the Cold Moon Blade in hand and divided the Ziyu Chenxiang Pill in two, having Black Bear and Da Fei each take half. Although the Ziyu Chenxiang Pill was incredibly valuable, to Ye Qing, his brothers were what mattered most.
Having been halved, the Ziyu Chenxiang Pill was naturally not as effective. Fortunately, the injuries Black Bear and Da Fei had sustained were not fatal. After taking the pill, both of them quickly recovered.
"What a waste! What a waste!" Old Wang Ba muttered incessantly from his bed. In his view, the Ziyu Chenxiang Pill was a supreme treasure, too precious to be squandered on Black Bear and Da Fei like that.
"What's wasteful about it? If it's medicine, it's meant to cure!" Ye Qing replied.
"Damn, you're spending twenty million in one go for treatment?" Old Wang Ba stared, pointing at Black Bear and Da Fei, and said, "Each guy takes up ten million; damn, do you need to be that extravagant?"
"What ten million?" Da Fei, who was clueless to what was happening, grumbled, "Eighth Master, cut it out. What's the problem, you don't like seeing me recover? Big Brother, where did you get this medicine from? It really works wonders. Tell me where so I can buy a few bags to carry around just in case!"
"Buy a few bags?" Old Wang Ba's eyes widened again and he exclaimed, "A few bags? A few bags? You want to buy a few bags? Damn, one pill is worth twenty million; even if we sold you, you wouldn't fetch a thousandth of that price!"
"What? Twenty million?" Da Fei's eyes also widened, and after a long silence, he suddenly reached to poke his own throat.
"What are you doing?" Old Wang Ba asked curiously.
"Damn, ten million!" Da Fei said urgently, "I'm checking if I can vomit it back up. I'm gonna lie in bed; you help me sell it for ten million, and I'll give you two million. Damn, give me eight million, and I'd be willing to lie in bed for a whole year!"
"Get the hell out of here; the medicine's already digested in your esophagus, would you vomit it out for dogs?" Old Wang Ba kicked Da Fei out of frustration and said, "This is a waste of heavenly resources, utterly wasteful. They weren't even that badly injured, was there a need to waste this much?"
Ye Qing paid no attention to him. He simply sat, slowly playing with the Cold Moon Blade. The blade looked no different from ordinary ones, but peculiarly, when Ye Qing held it, he faintly felt an indescribable chill, bone chilling. When the Cold Moon Blade was placed next to his Seven-Star Ancient Sword, the sword seemed to hum softly as if contending with the blade. The chill surrounding the blade grew even more intense, as though it refused to be outdone by the Seven-Star Ancient Sword.
Ye Qing had no idea what a famed instrument was, but the odd interaction between the two weapons when placed together certainly puzzled him. Slowly drawing out the Cold Moon Blade and holding the Seven-Star Ancient Sword in his hand, he could distinctly feel the power coursing through the sword, a power that made it sing faintly.
"Eighth Master, come take a look at this." Ye Qing picked up the Seven-Star Ancient Sword and said to Old Wang Ba, "Why is this ancient sword constantly making sounds? And this blade, why is it so cold?"