The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  After releasing this bird, Wang Chong and Old Eagle continued rushing forward.

  Chapter 290: Su Hanshan!

  Chapter 290: Su Hanshan!

  "There are traces of blood on the ground!"

  "There has been a battle here!"

  Wang Chong and Old Eagle stopped exactly where the masked man had encountered the huge group of men. There was a huge puddle of blood on the ground, and marks of battle could be seen across the entire area—holes all over the ground, the severed trees, and the wooden shavings here and there.

  "The amount of blood here isn't normal. Most probably, someone died in the encounter."

  Old Eagle stood up and glanced at the clear human silhouette formed using blood just a few steps away. Most probably, the pool of blood had flowed from the victim's body to mark out his shape on the ground.

  Judging from the amount of blood that person had lost, even if he was still alive, it wouldn't be too long before he breathed his last.

  "They have already carried the corpse away."

  Wang Chong nodded in agreement to the other party's words. The men from the Duke of Liu Residence seemed to be intent on hiding this matter from everyone else. Thus, they carried the corpse away as soon as they could.

  However, due to the limited time they had, not to mention that they had to dispatch most of their personnel to pursue the masked man, they hadn't been able to clean the blood traces and marks of battle in the area yet.

  "Hmm?"

  Suddenly, a glint flashed across Wang Chong's eyes, and he walked swiftly to the edge of the forest. He bent down and picked up a piece of black cloth.

  "This is the mask of that lad!"

  Old Eagle walked over, and upon seeing blood dripping from the black cloth, worry immediately filled his eyes.

  "To be even throwing up blood, it seems like he has suffered grievous internal injuries."

  Old Eagle had been following the fellow who had been sneaking around Duke of Liu Residence for some time already, so he harbored some feelings for the latter. Besides, that lad was a person whom gongzi specially entrusted him to look into.

  Even though he didn't understand why gongzi asked him to investigate that lad, he could sense that gongzi seemed to regard him as a friend rather than a foe.

  Holding onto the blood-soaked cloth, Wang Chong fell into deep thought.

  "Let's go!"

  A moment later, Wang Chong tossed the black cloth to the side and advanced into the forest.

  He was becoming more and more curious about the relationship between that fellow and the Duke of Liu Residence.

  That fellow left Kunwu Training Camp just so that he could visit the Duke of Liu’s residence in the middle of the night to search for something.

  What item in the Duke of Liu Residence could possibly belong to him? And also, the Duke of Liu didn't seem to regard him as an ordinary thief, either.

  The Duke of Liu seemed to know that the other party would make a move and prepared such an elaborate trap for him: a trained eagle in the residence, as well as a team of experts that was ready to move at any moment.

  Would the Duke of Liu need to go through so much trouble to deal with a common thief? There was surely something deeper beneath the surface.

  With such a thought in mind, Wang Chong hastened his speed.

  Old Eagle glanced at the bird above him, who was giving him an update on the situation. It seemed like the situation in front was getting worse and worse for the masked man. Even though the masked man was not an easy figure to deal with—just the fact that he could break out of the encirclement in the first place was a testimony to his prowess—it was unlikely that he could hold on for much longer against so many people.

  "Don't let him get away!"

  "If he escapes, I'll hold all of you accountable!"

  "Capture him!"...

  From afar, anxious voices accompanied by explosions echoed in the air. Judging from the commotion, there seemed to be quite a few people gathered in front of them.

  Wang Chong's heart tightened. He immediately picked up his pace again.

  Moving through the dense forest, Wang Chong saw many brawny men carrying powerful killing intent with them. Even though most of them weren't dressed in the uniform of the Duke of Liu Residence, it was clear that all of them were experts the Duke of Liu had hired.

  At the center of those men was a young man who was sitting on the ground in desolation. His face was as pale as a sheet.

  Blood was seeping out from his lips, and his entire body was soaked. Crimson wasn't a color that would show easily on the black clothes that he wore, but even amidst the darkness, Wang Chong could still clearly see the viscous, fresh blood that drenched it.

  His body was inflicted with many cuts from different weapons, and some of them weren't superficial, either. Some of them were holes that went through his body, and some parts of his bones were exposed as well. Were it an ordinary man who had sustained such injuries, he would have already fainted from the excruciating pain by now.

  But that masked man still held onto his consciousness.

  With calmness so deep that it even induced fear, he sat on the ground, assessing his opponents. It was almost unimaginable to think that this was even possible.

  But that man was indeed doing so.

  In fact, Wang Chong couldn't feel the slightest emotion from the masked man.

  Calm so deep that it induced despair, perhaps even callousness would be a more appropriate term.

  The group of men encircling the masked man didn't notice Wang Chong or Old Eagle's arrival. Every last one of them had their entire attention focused on that young man before them, all of them infuriated and frustrated.

  This was especially true for the leader of the group. He had initially surrounded the masked man just slightly beyond the tall walls of the Duke of Liu Residence, but who knew that this lad would actually slaughter a way out of their encirclement, killing many people in the midst of his escape.

  This had left him extremely angered.

  "Charge! Kill him!"

  "The person who kills this lad will be generously awarded!" the leader of the group bellowed, but despite the aggressive aura that the experts from the Duke of Liu Residence were emanating, no one stepped forward.

  The leader of the group was stunned for a moment, before flying into a huge rage.

  "Charge! I tell you to charge! You bastards, we have already cornered this lad! What are you all still afraid of?" The leader of the group yelled as he pushed the men beside him forward. However, even though they felt a little awkward, none of them budged.

  That lad was severely injured and cornered. Every single one of them knew this.

  However, that was also what their other brothers saw before returning to the earth. That lad might seem like he was dying, but everytime someone stepped forward to engage him, he would suddenly become as energetic as a tiger, putting his life at stake just to inflict a fatal wound on his opponent. Through such tactics, that lad had killed their brothers one after another.

  It wasn't like they had never seen such a desperate fighting style before, but no one had ever gone to the extent of this lad.

  This wasn't just mere aggressiveness anymore, this was a true offense with no regard or fear for death at all. There were no tricks or feints to his attacks, he would simply take on the other party's attacks to launch an even deadlier strike on his part, killing his opponent before his opponent could kill him.

  And what that struck the greatest fear into their minds was the bone-chilling method the lad used to eliminate his opponents—stabbing his hands into his enemy's bodies.

  At this point, everyone realized that the lad's greatest weapon was not the sword in his hand, but his pair of fists.

  All those who thought that they could take advantage of this lad's weakness had ended up breathing their last, so who would dare to make a move?

  "Bastards!" the leader of the group howled, flying into a rage. Shua, drawing his sa
ber, he was just about to move when a loud cry sounded out.

  "Gongzi is here! Gongzi is here!..."

  At that instant, everyone felt as if they had been spared.

  Under the starry night, a figure dressed in a white shirt appeared with a darkened face. Accompanying his side were a bunch of experts whose very presence felt like a powerful storm. Their cultivation had clearly surpassed the boundaries of True Martial realm.

  Even from a distance, everyone could feel the powerful aura of nobility that that man emanated. It was the young successor to the Duke of Liu Residence, Li Bing.

  "Open a path!"

  Hualala! Everyone immediately stepped aside, opening up a path for the young master of the Duke of Liu’s residence.

  Li Bing leapt down from the branch of a nearby tree, and two unfathomable experts with deep gazes followed closely behind him.

  Beneath the large tree, upon seeing the two Profound Martial realm experts behind Li Bing, the impassiveness on the young man's face finally collapsed, and his complexion darkened.

  "Hmph!"

  The eldest son of the Duke of Liu, Li Bing was in his early twenties. He had a fit build, and he carried a domineering aura. As soon as he appeared, everyone naturally regarded him as their leader.

  "Su Hanshan. Since you chose to assume this name, I'll call you like that, then," Li Bing uttered coldly, revealing his knowledge of the young man's background. The masked man who snuck into the Duke of Liu Residence in the middle of the night was none other than Su Hanshan, who shared a room with Wang Chong at Kunwu Training Camp's White Tiger Peak.

  "... If you were to remain as 'Su Hanshan' at the Kunwu Training Camp obediently, I wouldn't be bothered to deal with you. But since you chose to turn your eyes to the Duke of Liu Residence, don't blame me for getting nasty."

  Seated beneath a large tree, Su Hanshan stared coldly at Li Bing without saying anything.

  "Karma exists in this world, Li Bing. One day, you and the entire Duke of Liu Residence will pay the price for the affairs back then!" Su Hanshan suddenly opened his mouth and spoke. After saying those words, calm returned to his face. He slowly closed his eyes, awaiting the ultimate end.

  "You're seeking death!" The words Su Hanshan spoke had infuriated Li Bing thoroughly. "Since you're so ready to die, I'll grant your wish then. Kill him!"

  Weng!

  With the uttering of those words, one of the Profound Martial realm experts standing behind Li Bing suddenly stretched out his hand with his fingers opened, his grip headed straight for the young man beneath the large tree.

  Beneath the dim illumination of the night, his five fingers were imbued with the cold gleam reminiscent of a sword!

  "Stop!"

  At that crucial moment, a voice suddenly boomed across the forest, catching everyone's attention, except for the Profound Martial realm expert charging toward Su Hanshan.

  Boom!

  In that crucial moment, a figure cut through the crowd and entered the scene like a bolt of lightning. The figure stood right before Su Hanshan and took down that deadly strike.

  "Who is it?!"

  The two Profound Martial realm experts' faces turned cold as they turned their gazes to the newcomer.

  "Who are you?" At the same time, Li Bing's gaze also shot toward the forest.

  There shouldn't be anyone else present here at this moment!

  "Brother Su, how are you?"

  Wang Chong walked out from the forest and glanced at Su Hanshan, who looked as if he had already died once, with an awful look on his face.

  Even though he had shouted for the other party to stop, the experts beside Li Bing didn't budge in the least. If he hadn't brought Old Eagle with him this time, Su Hanshan would have probably died just now.

  "Who are you all? What is your relationship with this fellow?" Li Bing assessed Wang Chong with a darkened expression.

  Su Hanshan was an important target for them. The Duke of Liu Residence had waited for a very long time for him to walk into their trap.

  In fact, Li Bing even went to the extent of personally leading his troops here.

  Top secrecy had to be maintained for this operation, and nothing must go wrong. But the appearance of this fellow was completely outside his expectations!

  In that instant, a hint of killing intent flashed across Li Bing's eyes.

  Chapter 291: Confrontation!

  Chapter 291: Confrontation!

  "Li gongzi, pleased to meet you. I am Wang Chong, the grandson of ex-Prime Minister Wang Bowu, and the son of General Wang Yan!"

  Taking everything into his sight, Wang Chong immediately flicked his wrist and threw a golden token over.

  Taken aback, Li Bing subconsciously caught it. Glancing downward at the token, his face immediately warped in shock.

  Li Bing had never met Wang Chong before, and they didn't share any common social circles either. But nevertheless, there was no one in the capital who wouldn't be able to recognize the emblem of the Wang Clan.

  Wang Bowu!

  There was no one who addressed him by that name anymore. Everyone, and that included the qinwang and dukes of the empire as well, addressed him respectfully as Duke Jiu.

  Li Bing never thought that the young man who walked over here from the forest at such a time would actually be Duke Jiu’s grandson, the legendary youth who caused a huge uproar in the Great Tang royal court a while ago!

  How could he be here? Watching as the composed young man slowly walked over, fear surfaced in Li Bing's eyes.

  The Wang Clan was one of the most esteemed clans in the capital, and in terms of standing, it was nowhere beneath the Duke of Liu.

  "Brother Su, are you still able to hold on?" Ignoring Li Bing, who was currently in deep thought, Wang Chong walked through the crowd and headed straight toward the bottom of the tree, where the grievously wounded Su Hanshan was seated.

  At this moment, the person he was the most worried about was Su Hanshan.

  He was a potential great general who could possibly rival Go Seonji, Fumeng Lingcha, Geshu Han, and Zhang Shougui in the future, so Wang Chong couldn't allow any mishap come to him.

  To Wang Chong's astonishment, it seemed like a slight divergence in the future events had occurred.

  In his previous life, Su Hanshan was cold, arrogant, and solitary.

  Even though the army he trained was known to be the number one in Great Tang and was capable of piercing through all formations, he had a fatal flaw—he only operated alone.

  He didn't even get along with his fellow peers in Kunwu Training Camp, needless to say the others.

  To him, no one could be considered an ally, so he rejected all possibility of working with anyone!

  But bizarrely, every year, at this specific period, he would leave the military and visit a certain place in the capital.

  Even when the war was at its worst, this habit of his didn't change.

  It was capitalizing on this knowledge from his previous life that Wang Chong instructed Old Eagle to investigate this matter.

  Just that, Wang Chong didn't expect his investigations to bring him to Duke of Liu, and such a matter even occurred.

  If he hadn't appeared at this instant, would Su Hanshan really have died here?

  Wang Chong had never considered such a possibility before.

  At this instant, he realized that future events were beginning to diverge from the original flow of destiny he recalled.

  "Brother Su, here is a recovery pill. It'll help you recuperate from your injuries."

  Wang Chong took a recovery pill which he had obtained from Six-fingered Zhang from his pocket and passed it over.

  Su Hanshan's face was still impassive and cold, as usual. He didn't take the recovery pill which Wang Chong passed over, and his gaze seemed to be pushing Wang Chong away from him.

  Just that, when those pair of cold eyes fell on Wang Chong's figure, an inconspicuous hint of astonishment still flashed momentarily across his eyes.

  Clearly,
Su Hanshan hadn't expected Wang Chong to appear here at this very moment, at this very timing!

  "He indeed hasn't changed at all!"

  Having expected Su Hanshan's reaction, Wang Chong chuckled inwardly.

  Even though both of them had shared a room on White Tiger Peak, they usually engaged in their own matters and rarely interacted with one another.

  Su Hanshan also often disappeared early in the morning and returned only late in the night.

  Thus, even though they were sharing the same roof, the time they spent with one another was minimal.

  Under such circumstances, it would be a wonder if Su Hanshan would willingly accept Wang Chong's kind gesture given his personality.

  "Li gongzi, let me take him away, and I'll owe you a favor. How about it?" Wang Chong asked confidently with a glance at Li Bing .

  Given that both sides had already expressed their identity, this conversation could be considered to be a formal meeting between the Wang Clan and the Duke of Liu family.

  Once the gongzi of a prestigious clan reached adulthood, their actions and gestures would represent their clan. As such, they rarely gave out their word.

  Wang Chong believed that his favor should be worth more than Su Hanshan's life, and Li Bing had no reason to turn him down.

  "Chong gongzi, pardon my nosiness, but this person, Su Hanshan, isn't a person from the capital, and he doesn't seem to have any ties with Chong gongzi. Thus, I hope that you can hand him over to me. My father has instructed me to bring him back regardless of what happens, so I hope that Chong gongzi can step back on this matter."

  After a moment of hesitation, Li Bing uttered words that were contrary to Wang Chong's expectations. To think that he was still unwilling to let Su Hanshan go despite the situation!

  Frowning, Wang Chong glanced at the pale-faced Su Hanshan on the ground.

  The Duke of Liu actually personally issued an instruction to capture him?

  This wasn't the normal stance one would take against a petty thief. Did this fellow have some dark history with Duke of Liu?

  "Li gongzi, you must be misunderstanding something, my friend's personality has always been like that. Brother Su and I shared the same dormitory in Kunwu Training Camp's White Tiger Peak, and my grandfather has entrusted me with the responsibility of inviting him over to the Wang Clan as a guest. Just that, after waiting for a long while, I still didn't catch sight of him, so I came over to look for him. I didn't expect such a matter to actually occur. Li gongzi, I hope that you can let this matter go on my account. I'll surely pay the Duke of Liu Residence a visit another day to express my earnest apology."