Chapter 211 - 209: Old Acquaintance

Chapter 211: Chapter 209: Old Acquaintance

Zhu Xinwu didn’t listen to Zuo Tianyuan’s advice.

To be more precise, ever since he learned of his son’s murder, his mind was consumed by a single thought: revenge. He couldn’t hear anything else.

After Zhu Xinwu left, the martial artist who had delivered the message asked softly, "Alliance Leader, can Zhu Xinwu actually kill Chen Jiutian?

After the battle in Qin Province, it seems Chen Jiutian is on the verge of a meteoric rise.

For other young prodigies on the Hidden Dragon Rankings, having a single kill against a Primordial Pill Realm Grandmaster is already an incredible feat. But Chen Jiutian has two!"

Although it took all three of them to kill Wu Daoquan, the Hidden Dragon Rankings still counted it as Chen Yuan’s accomplishment, lending it significant prestige.

Zuo Tianyuan’s eyes were slightly closed. "Don’t underestimate Sword Worship Manor," he said. "Zhu Xinwu’s methods are extraordinary. The martial artists who initially joined all went for access to their Sword Dao Secret Techniques. After studying them, they felt indebted and wanted to stay on as Guests.

But once they join, Zhu Xinwu is somehow able to win them over completely, making them willingly stay. Even I can’t compare to such skill.

His Sword Worship Manor has over a hundred Condensing Truth Realm Martial Artists. If so many of them attack at once, even a Primordial Pill Realm Martial Arts Grandmaster would have to give them a wide berth. How can Chen Jiutian possibly escape?"

Despite his words, for some reason, he felt a flicker of uncertainty.

But this was a true death trap. If Chen Jiutian still managed to return from Qin Province unscathed, then the next time, he himself would have to risk everything—perhaps even the entire foundation of the Nine Swords Alliance!

Meanwhile, in Jieyang Prefecture, Qin Province, Chen Yuan prepared to depart after reaching a basic level of mastery in the Three Generations of Bright King’s Demon-Suppressing Spell and the Gouli Blood Flame Divine Seal.

Upon emerging from his seclusion, a Jieyang Prefecture constable handed him a copy of the Hidden Dragon Rankings.

The Qin Province branch of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower had been swift; they had updated Chen Yuan’s ranking the day after the events in the Blood Killing Realm.

On the current Hidden Dragon Rankings, the name "Chen Jiutian" was ranked fourteenth, just above "Chen Yuan" of the Great Brightness Sect.

Gu Lichuan and Qin Suguang were ranked twenty-third and twenty-fourth, respectively.

In truth, Gu Lichuan’s rank should have been several places higher than Qin Suguang’s.

However, since their achievements were inextricably linked, it was difficult to separate them, leading to their current rankings.

After putting away the Hidden Dragon Rankings, Chen Yuan changed his clothes, picked up a bamboo hat, and prepared to take the back roads to Ning Province.

’I’ve made too many enemies on this trip to Qin Province. It’s best to keep a low profile on the way back to Ning Province.’

’I killed Zhang Zhilan of the Shenxiao Sect, and I took care of Murong Li too.’

’I’m not worried about those two. The Shenxiao Sect is in Jiang Province and the Murong Family is in You Province. Both are a long way from Qin Province; they’ve probably only just received the news.’

’But I still need to be on guard against Sword Worship Manor and Vajra Prajna Temple.’

’Most importantly, the Hidden Dragon Rankings also mentioned that I obtained a Seven Kills Stele Fragment. There’s no telling if some greedy bastard might try to ambush me for it.’

’It’s not that I’m afraid, it’s just a hassle.’

Leaving Jieyang Prefecture, Chen Yuan stuck mostly to the small paths through the mountains and forests.

He would only detour onto the main roads when the path ahead became impassable.

Five days later, Chen Yuan rode up to a dilapidated little posthouse. He tossed the reins to an attendant to get his horse some feed and went inside to find something to eat.

Chen Yuan was traveling on a long-abandoned official road that had fallen into disrepair. Most caravans took the newer, wider main roads, but some petty merchants would use this dilapidated route to save on tolls.

The posthouse was no longer staffed by the Court’s Posthouse Soldiers. Instead, a restaurant owner had leased the building and hired a few attendants to run it as an inn and tavern.

Chen Yuan stepped into the posthouse. It wasn’t crowded—just five people at two tables.

"Shopkeeper, bring me a few of your best dishes." Chen Yuan casually tossed a silver ingot onto the counter.

The posthouse was staffed by just two attendants and a shopkeeper. Hearing the order, the shopkeeper quickly replied, "Right away, honored guest. It’ll be ready in just a moment."

About fifteen minutes later, an attendant brought out four dishes and a soup. The presentation was surprisingly good.

Chen Yuan took a bite, paused for a moment, then began to eat ravenously. He moved with incredible speed, finishing all four dishes and the soup in no time.

The shopkeeper pretended to be tallying accounts, but his eyes never left Chen Yuan.

When he saw that Chen Yuan had eaten every last bite, the shopkeeper burst out laughing. "Hahaha! So much for a prodigy from the Hidden Dragon Rankings! In the end, you still fell for my trap, didn’t you?

’All of you, learn from this,’ he said to the others. ’Poison may seem like a crude and common tactic, but sometimes, it’s just that effective.’"

The shopkeeper took off his hat and pulled a long, narrow Miao Saber from beneath the counter.

The two attendants and the five other martial artists in the posthouse closed in, their faces twisted into menacing grins.

"You’re brilliant, Third Brother Xie! We’ve captured Chen Jiutian, the Array Master and Hidden Dragon Rankings prodigy! The Manor Master will see this as a great accomplishment!"

Third Brother Xie, who had been disguised as the shopkeeper, laughed heartily. "This is a prodigy from the top twenty of the Hidden Dragon Rankings! This isn’t just a great accomplishment for the Manor Master—you and I will be famous throughout the Jianghu!"

"But Third Brother Xie, I think the Manor Master ordered us to capture him alive if possible. He wants to personally subject Chen Jiutian to death by a thousand cuts."

Chen Yuan just watched their little performance with a detached air. Third Brother Xie was surprised to see that Chen Yuan hadn’t collapsed yet.

’I used more than enough of the drug. Why isn’t he down yet?’

"Are you done?"

Chen Yuan said coolly, "You try a poisoning scheme with such terrible acting? What kind of attendant swaggers around like that? You don’t even know how to bow and scrape properly?

’And this posthouse, on an abandoned road... you’d be lucky to get hot water and some dry rations, maybe some jerky at best. Yet you served up four dishes and a soup. Aren’t you afraid of going bankrupt?

’Then there are the two tables of ’customers.’ When I walked in, you all made a point of *not* looking at me.

’What veteran of the Jianghu doesn’t pay attention to a newcomer?

’Your methods are cruder than a common burglar’s. It’s laughable!’"

Third Brother Xie’s face fell. He never imagined their disguise had been seen through from the very beginning.

"If you knew we were faking it, why did you still eat the food?"

Third Brother Xie sneered. "I watched you eat every bite. There was a whole bottle of Dispersing Powder in that meal!"

Chen Yuan was speechless. "My goodness. You wouldn’t use this much to poison all thirteen members of the Qi Family. I was wondering why it tasted a bit strange.

’Still, I haven’t had a hot meal in days, so I guess it was passable.’"

Once the Celestial Fire Secret Manual was cultivated to a certain level, its Celestial Fire Power was potent enough to incinerate most poisons. In a sense, Chen Yuan was virtually immune to all toxins.

Forget this cheap Dispersing Powder; Chen Yuan could probably chew up a Miaojiang Gu Insect like it was a roasted cicada.

Shaking his head gently, Chen Yuan drew Blood Sea Listening Tide. A flash of crimson light, and in the blink of an eye, the two attendants were decapitated!

The five martial artists in the back tried to flee, but before they knew it, five lines of fire had already snaked to their feet.

The next moment, a searing Demon Flame erupted, incinerating all five men in an instant!

In the blink of an eye, only Third Brother Xie remained.

He trembled, his knees buckled, and with a THUD, he fell to his knees before Chen Yuan.

"Lord Chen, spare me! I was blinded by greed to have plotted against you! Please, spare my life!"

"You’re from Sword Worship Manor?"

Third Brother Xie nodded, then shook his head. "My brother is one of them, and I hung around the manor for a while, but I’m not officially a Guest.

’He’s the one who told me Manor Master Zhu wanted you dead and told me to set up an ambush here. He said if we actually managed to kill you, it would be a huge accomplishment.’"

"Where is Zhu Xinwu? How many men has Sword Worship Manor deployed?"

Third Brother Xie looked miserable. "I’m not part of Sword Worship Manor, so I don’t know any of that! I was just following my brother’s orders to lie in wait here. I never thought I’d actually run into you!"

Chen Yuan shook his head. "I gave you a chance, but you’re useless. You don’t know anything. How can I possibly let you go?"

Before Third Brother Xie could plead for his life, a flash of crimson light, and his head hit the floor.

Chen Yuan stepped out of the posthouse. Just as he was about to leave, a soft, charming, and somewhat familiar voice suddenly called out.

"A friendly piece of advice: Sword Worship Manor has laid an inescapable trap for you up ahead. No matter which path you take, you’ll walk right into their ambush."

From the dense woods emerged a woman with a slender yet voluptuous figure.

She wore a fiery-red, form-fitting outfit that clung to her alluring, curvaceous body, outlining a breathtaking silhouette.

The hem was cut high on her thighs, with high slits on both sides that revealed long, straight, and shapely legs that seemed to glow like jade with every step she took.

The woman looked at Chen Yuan with a complex expression. "Master Chen, it’s been a long time. I never imagined you would reach such heights.

One man holding two spots on the Hidden Dragon Rankings... that’s something that hasn’t happened in many, many years."

Chen Yuan stared at the woman, a flicker of killing intent unconsciously entering his eyes. His hand was already on the hilt of Blood Sea Listening Tide.

The woman was none other than Wen Rou, the former master of the Lianshan City branch of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower.

In the entire Jianghu, aside from the members of the Great Brightness Sect, she was the only one who had seen Chen Yuan and could recognize both of his identities.

Wen Rou’s perception was sharp. The instant Chen Yuan’s killing intent flared, her expression changed. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she said quickly. "We’re old acquaintances, you know! Are you really going to kill me to silence a witness? I came here specifically to warn you that Sword Worship Manor is planning to ambush and kill you.

Besides, I know you’re with the Great Brightness Sect, which means you should also know that the sect is currently using my Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower’s intelligence network.

’My Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower and the Great Brightness Sect have a fine working relationship. I’d have to be bored out of my skull to leak your identity, and I certainly don’t want to provoke the madmen of the Ming Sect.’"

Chen Yuan released the hilt of his blade and laughed heartily. "Boss Wen, you’ve gotten the wrong impression! How could I, Chen Yuan, be the sort of man who would bring ruin to a beautiful flower? We’ve known each other since our humble beginnings; why would I ever want to kill you? You’re just being too sensitive."