Jia Tianlong wrinkled his brows as he felt that something was a bit strange. According to the strength of the defending guards, it was reasonable to say that the last stretch ought to be even more difficult to attack. How could it be taken down by some miscellaneous troops? Perhaps there was some other conspiracy in play?
A gloomy expression appeared on his face. Any one that was familiar with Commander Jia Tianlong would know that this was a sign that he was not pleased in his heart. If anyone provoked him during this time, that person would wish he or she was dead.
“Since it has been breached, why are we not moving?” A voice sounding like a broken gong rang out. There was no hint of respect for Commander Jia Tianlong contained in that sentence.
Commander Jia Tianlong would have been extremely angry, but instead, he turned around and respectfully said, ”Master Zhang, I feel that there is something fishy about this breach. I’m afraid there might be a trap located inside. It’s better to be a bit more cautious!”
“What are you afraid of? With me by your side, how can these ordinary people even be able to hurt you? Let’s go, let’s go! I’ve been here for close to an entire night, I’m extremely tired. The faster we dispose of these Seven Mysteries Sect bastards, the faster I can rest my old bones.” This voice did not sound old at all, but he let out an overflowing archaic tone that was very irritating to the ear.
Chapter 82: Monk Golden Light
The person who spoke was a three feet tall dwarf standing beside Jia Tianlong.
The dwarf was forty years old and had a thin body frame that was covered by a red robe embroidered with gold thread. On his finger and around his neck were, respectively, a gold ring and an extremely thick gold chain. Around his waist, several gold bells hung from his belt. Even his gold teeth reflected a golden light whenever he opened his mouth. This was a look that only the rich could afford to have.
At this moment, impatience clouded his features; evidently, he was extremely unsatisfied with Jia Tianlong’s cautiousness.
Disguised as a wealthy merchant from a village, the dwarf actually dared to show such disrespect towards Jia Tianlong. This caused the loyal Iron Guards standing nearby to glare at the dwarf with extreme rage smouldering in their eyes.
This dwarf could obviously see the rage within the eyes of Jia Tianlong’s loyal Iron Guards, and he coldly laughed, as if he did not put them in his eyes at all. He even arrogantly stated:
“Commander Jia, you spent 3,000 taels of gold to invite me over. Surely the money you spent was not just for me to passively stare in vain for an entire night, correct?! Whoever you need me to deal with, just tell me directly. However, you don’t need me to deal with the Sect Leader of the Seven Mysteries Sect, right? Against such a weak person, you can just settle it yourself. Why do you still need to spend money and hire me for assistance?”
“Just a mere Sect Leader of the Seven Mysteries Sect truly does not warrant the attention of Immortal Master. The reason why I invited Immortal Master was because the Sect Leader of the Seven Mysteries Sect still has three senior martial uncles. On the surface, these three people have been declared dead, but in reality, they have been undergoing closed-door cultivation inside a hidden chamber on Setting Sun Summit. I’m afraid that their current cultivation bases have already broken through to the Transformation Realm. Against these martial uncles, ordinary experts would not be a match for them. These three people are the strongest pillars of the Seven Mysteries Sect; thus, I have no choice but to humbly beseech Immortal Master to deal with them for us.” Jia Tianlong sounded extremely pathetic, without a hint of anger in his voice.
Jia Tianlong had coincidentally met this red-robed dwarf in a Daoist temple near the border of the Savage Lands. A self-proclaimed “Monk Golden Light”, this martial arts expert was equipped with immense magical powers, and he had demonstrated techniques for controlling flying swords and cultivating an invulnerable steel body.
After Jia Tianlong personally witnessed this, he was deeply mesmerized by the might displayed by the two techniques.When he suspected that the dwarf was most likely someone who had walked the fabled path of Immortals, he decided to establish a relationship with him.
After knowing that the dwarf had an extreme obsession with gold, Jia Tianlong immediately gifted a huge amount of gold to the dwarf. With this, he had finally moved the dwarf’s heart, obtaining a promise that the dwarf would help him with his problems just once.
Thus, Jia Tianglong acted meek and humble like someone from the junior generation whenever he was in the dwarf’s presence, not daring to reveal the slightest bit of disrespect. He was very clear in his heart: this Monk Golden Light was someone that his tiny Feral Wolf Gang was unable to contend with.
After Monk Golden Light heard his request, he let out a crazed laughter. Once his laughter subsided, he exclaimed arrogantly, “Just a few mortals? Leave them to me! No matter how high their cultivation bases have reached, no matter how strong their martial arts are, they would definitely not be a match for my flying sword technique! You can just relax!”
“Then, I will have to trouble Immortal Master. The rewards I promised will definitely be delivered, and what’s more, I’ve decided that after the matter is settled, the reward will be increased by 2,000 taels of gold.” Jia Tianlong appeared overjoyed as he increased the reward without hesitation. After all, he knew that his helper was certainly not amiable. It was better if he directly used gold to speak.
After Monk Golden Light heard this, traces of a smile broke out on his wizened face. He nodded his head in satisfaction, obviously happy with the increased reward.
After obtaining the guarantee of such a powerful figure, Monk Golden Light, Jia Tianlong no longer remained cautious and commanded his forces from the Feral Wolf Gang to rush to the top of the Setting Sun Summit to prepare to attack the main division of the Seven Mysteries Sect—the Seven Supreme Division.
Because there were so many people rushing up the summit, Jia Tianlong and the rest of the Iron Guard had to expend tremendous effort to finally arrive at the entrance of the division.
Staring at the main division of his most hated enemy, Commander Jia was still taken aback by the majesty of the Seven Supreme Division Hall. He felt that the main hall of his Feral Wolf Gang was nothing but a dog tunnel, unbearable to be looked upon when compared to this place.
Looking at the empty acres of land on top of Setting Sun Summit, there were quite a number of halls constructed from bluestone—one large building, followed by six smaller ones.
Although the dim light from the torches was insufficient to fully see the details of the buildings in the dark of the night, the imposing and majestic aura of the bluestone halls was still capable of astonishing the members of Feral Wolf Gang and the other small sects. The attackers did not immediately start their attack, but rather surrounded the bluestone halls, with the intent to not even allow a single fly pass through.
“Indeed, our opponent is a sect that has existed for over 200 years; this level of wealth simply could not be matched by the clans and sects that have only existed for a decade. How extravagant!” Jia Tianlong silently exclaimed in his heart.
He had already decided that once the Seven Mysteries Sect was eliminated, he would immediately move over to the main bluestone hall and designate it as his center of command. Such a majestic building would only benefit a status such as his own.
Jia Tianlong glanced at the main hall’s pitch-black entrance. After observing his surroundings, he slowly raised his right hand into the air.
In that moment, silence descended upon the people surrounding the Setting Sun Summit as the gazes of the crowd turned to Jia Tianlong’s hand. They knew that once the arm was swung down, it would signal the start of the attack.
“Wait.”
Suddenly, a cold voice drifted over from the pitch-black main hall.
Pa da! Pa da!
A wave of footsteps rang out from within as the sound grew clearer and clearer.
Fina
lly, a white-robed, middle-aged man emerged. This figure had a wooden hairpin on, and the only equipment he had on his body was a longsword in a white scabbard. His face was incomparably pale, but his eyes were bright. Wherever he looked, those who met his gaze felt as if sharp swords had cut into their hearts, causing them to shiver despite the warm air.
After leaving the hall and walking ten meters away, he stopped as he slowly contemplated the crowd standing in front of him, without a trace of fear in his eyes.
Finally, his vision landed upon Jia Tianlong’s right hand that was raised up in the air. His gaze moved from Jia Tianlong’s right arm to Jia Tianlong’s face.
“Jia Tianlong.” This middle-aged man shouted out the name of Commander Jia.
“Wang Juechu.” Not wanting to appeared weak, Jia Tianlong also shouted out the name of his adversary.
“Speaking of which, this is the first time that we’ve met face to face as the respective leaders of our individual camps, is it not? My dear Sect Leader Wang!” Jia Tianlong used a leisurely tone as traces of a mocking smile hung upon his lips. He slowly retracted his extended right arm from the air.
Wang Juechu stared expressionlessly at Jia Tianlong without saying anything. The atmosphere began to grow increasingly tense.
“Sect Leader Wang came to this place alone, could it be that you intend to surrender?” Smiling, Jia Tianlong asked this question with a hint of ridicule
“You are correct. I wanted to discuss with you matters regarding a surrender,” the Seven Mysteries Sect’s Sect Leader, Wang Juechu, replied icily, similar to an sculpture made of frigid snow.
Chapter 83: A Huge Pitfall
“Do you truly plan to surrender?” Jia Tianlong felt somewhat surprised.
“To surrender is to surrender. However, which side will surrender to whom? That has not yet been decided!” Saying this slowly, Sect Leader Wang narrowed his eyes and consciously brought his hand to the longsword’s hilt.
“What is the meaning behind your words?” Jia Tianlong’s face sank, but soon after, he waved his hand, signaling his men to surround Sect Leader Wang.
Immediately, his Iron Guards rushed forth from behind him and surrounded Wang Juechu in a semicircle. At the same time, they took out powerful crossbows. With flashes of green light, the Iron Guards pointed their crossbow bolts at him.
It seemed that with a single command from Jia Tianlong, they would indiscriminately release a barrage of arrows without hesitation, immediately shooting at Wang Juechu on the spot.
“You believe that just because we moved the sect’s lower ranked disciples to Setting Sun Summit, we had never thought of an external enemy invasion and thus were incapable of resisting?” Sect Leader Wang’s voice contained a somewhat menacing and sinister tone as he seemed to have turned a blind eye to the crossbow bolts.
Hearing these words, Jia Tianlong’s heart slightly sunk. His mind felt a trace of obscure foreboding. He didn’t interrupt the Sect Leader Wang’s words and instead continued to have a gloomy expression on his face. Jia Tianlong wanted to hear what his enemy ultimately had to say.
“The one who migrated the sect to this location was the seventh generation Sect Leader, Sect Leader Li. Not only did that person have great skill and strategies, he was also an expert in construction and machinery. He was named the top genius of his generation.” With this said, Sect Leader Wang shortly paused, expressing a hint of admiration.
He opened his mouth and continued: “Sect Leader Li selected Setting Sun Summit as the sect’s main hall. There were two reasons for this. One reason is that the mountain peak is dangerous. Because it is easy to guard and hard to attack, it is an exceptional defensive location strategically. The second reason is that within the center of this mountain peak lies a vast natural stalactite cave. This cave is wonderful beyond compare. It occupies nearly two-thirds of the Setting Sun Summit. Seeing this marvel, Sect Leader Li made plans in his mind to integrate of all the construction techniques he possessed with the terrain of the stalactite cave, and he turned the entire mountain peak into a huge natural pitfall. So long as there were people to activate the mechanism, the entire mountain peak would immediately collapse, burying all the people on the summit.”
After Sect Leader Wang finished talking, he stayed silent. He swept his eyes over the crowd before him with a cold gaze that one would use on a corpse.
After Jia Tianlong finished hearing this, he stood in amazement. He naturally did not believe the opposition’s words, but after a few moments, he did not know how he would refute Sect Leader Wang’s menacing words.
The others on the mountain clearly heard these words. They all couldn’t help but become restless and talk about it softly. A few of the somewhat clever ones had even begun to slowly draw closer to the only road off the mountain. They were prepared to wildly rush off the mountain the moment something went wrong.
“Silence! Those clamoring or flailing about will be killed mercilessly!”
Jia Tianlong quickly regained his calm. Seeing his own men turn disorderly on just a bluff, he couldn’t help but become irritated. He knew that if he did not immediately put a stop to their restlessness, the situation would become a lot harder to control. He soon acted without thinking and loudly issued a stern command.
Jia Tianlong’s order was well executed by his loyal subordinates. After they beheaded a few of the cowards that had attempted to escape, the rest were intimidated and quelled, their roars suppressed.
However, Jia Tianlong understood that this suppression was only superficial and temporary. If he could not confirm what the opponent had said were lies, regardless of what gang or faction the men belonged to, they would all be unable to stay here at ease. He feared that this rumor would spread and cause all of them to flee.
“You can’t convince us that your words are true on the mere basis that you said them!” Jia Tianlong strongly restrained the anger in his heart, intending to personally expose Sect Leader Wang’s fabrication.
“Of course not. I have plenty of proof. Just stay here and see it for yourself. Regardless of whether or not you heard properly, if someone were to see my proof and intends to escape or possibly continue their assault, I would activate the entire mechanism and end us all.” Wang Juechu’s words were filled with desire to kill as his menacing intentions were undoubtedly revealed.
Jia Tianlong carefully examined his enemy’s expression, trying to find some mistake or gap in his state of mind. Unfortunately, Wang Juechu’s face was ice cold through and through. No indication of falsehood had appeared, nor was the slightest degree of false confidence shown.
Jia Tianlong couldn’t help but murmur to himself, “Don’t tell me that Sect Leader Wang’s words were not a deception, but rather an actual scheme to destroy anyone on the summit, including the sect?”
“Activate the second mechanism!” Wang Juechu suddenly turned his head to the sect hall and loudly commanded.
He then turned his head to the side and began staring at the comparatively small stone hall, no longer paying attention to Jia Tianlong.
Seeing his opponent look down on him in such way, Jia Tianlong couldn’t help but be angry. With great difficulty, he resisted the anger in his heart and inwardly resolved himself. So long as the opponent’s evidence did not satisfy him, he would immediately give the order to turn this Sect Leader Wang into a human-shaped hedgehog.
However, Wang Juechu’s strange stare towards the stone hall had aroused the attention of the Feral Wolf Gang members. They couldn’t help but turn their gazes as well, wanting to see if anything strange would occur.
The Feral Wolf Gang members were all restless. None of them took notice of two people wearing Broken Water Sect clothing lowering their heads and whispering.
“Han Li, do you think what our Sect Leader said was true? Don’t tell me that this huge Setting Sun Summit is truly hollow? I have come here several times before and never felt anything amiss in this place.”
“Could it be that Sect Leader Wang
is trying to deceive them in order to stall for time?”
“Maybe…”
A young man was talking to a taciturn youth in the midst of the crowd, discussing the offensive. It seemed that they had great doubts regarding Wang Juechu’s explanation.
These two people were not bystanders, but were in fact Han Li and Li Feiyu, who had rushed to Elder Li’s residence in disguise.
Chapter 84: A Tremendous Battle
Earlier, Han Li was afraid that the Broken Water Sect’s disciples would escape and alert the other enemies, so he had to personally get involved. Using Shifting Smoke Steps and Imperial Flight Technique in unison, he easily killed all the enemies in a short span of time. Li Feiyu, who was thinking of continuing his attack, was dumbstruck. Only then did he realize Han Li’s true strength.
After recovering from his dazed state, Li Feiyu was shocked that Han Li was able to possess such astonishing skill. Han Li’s battle prowess was a result of cultivating Blinking Sword Art.
This kind of thinking caused him to panic the moment he stepped up into the arena and immediately disturb his own inner strength, wishing he had cultivated in the Blinking Sword Art. Luckily, he knew the bitter truth— regardless of time or aptitude, it was too late for him to switch to a different sword art.
Further down the road, Li Feiyu continuously threw up his heart’s grief and sighed heavily at the lucky bastard, Han Li, for being able to learn such a terrifying skill.
Han Li was not in the mood to comprehend his good friend’s sour mood. Instead, he started to ruthlessly kill all the enemies he met, intending to reveal his true strength.
All the enemies that encountered Han Li’s strange technique were neither able to withstand nor receive a single blow. They all breathed their last breath of air, and even the high-ranked experts were no exception.
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