Chapter 36: Divine Silk Force

Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Divine Silk Force

In the gloom of night, the few campfires inside the ruined temple were the only light.

CRACKLE~

The crackling of burning firewood was the only sound that broke the silence.

The silence held until a young woman, Chengg Lin, her face flushed with anger, snatched the porridge pot from the hands of a young man named Qii Zhengyi.

"You drank my porridge! Spit it back out!"

Upon hearing this,

Qii Zhengyi, who had the air of a Ranger, was struck speechless. His expression was a mixture of confusion and nervousness; he couldn’t understand why his simple remark about wanting to become a disciple at Dao Yi Mountain had provoked such a violent reaction from the formerly gentle young woman.

His confusion was voiced by Lin Qingqing from not far away:

"Hey, young lady, why are you so hostile toward people who want to become disciples at Dao Yi Mountain?"

Lin Qingqing frowned and walked over.

"Do you have a grudge against Dao Yi Mountain?"

She was also on her way to become a disciple at Dao Yi Mountain, sharing Qii Zhengyi’s goal, so naturally, she couldn’t stand the girl’s sudden change in attitude.

The girl in front of the crippled man had heard Lin Qingqing’s words about also wanting to become a disciple at Dao Yi Mountain. She now turned her head and glared at Lin Qingqing with hostility.

She said nothing.

But her gaze said it all.

There was a grudge!

A deep and bitter one, at that.

The girl didn’t answer the question. She only asked in a cold voice, "What’s so great about Dao Yi Mountain that every single one of you wants to go there and become a disciple?"

"Lin’Er."

The crippled man behind her slowly opened his eyes.

"The closest Martial Arts Sect is over there. This group is full of Martial Artists, and it’s not surprising we’d run into them, young people wanting to seek apprenticeship."

Meanwhile, Lin Qingqing looked thoughtfully at the crippled man.

This man was missing an arm and a leg...

Yet his features were quite handsome.

One glance was enough to tell he’d had an extraordinary past.

Lin Qingqing grew even more curious. "Who exactly are you people?"

"My dear young lady, I don’t know whether to call you lucky or unlucky."

The old man in the padded cotton jacket, Wuu Liusheng, was gnawing on some jerky by the campfire in front of their carriage, but his gaze was fixed on the crippled man.

"If I’m not mistaken, he should be the sixth of Dao Yi’s old guard—Li Jianzhou. After being defeated by that ’young master’ you so admire, he was left crippled and descended the mountain in disgrace."

"What?"

"He’s Li Jianzhou!"

Lin Qingqing and her brother exclaimed one after the other upon hearing the name.

Seeing that everyone had stood up and was now staring at her master and his two disciples...

The girl who had been making porridge grew tense.

"What are you planning to do?"

Their identities had been exposed.

They were indeed Li Jianzhou and his two disciples, who had descended from Dao Yi Mountain three months ago to wander the Jianghu.

The girl’s name was Chengg Lin, and the boy’s was Zhao Yunkong.

"So, he really is Li Jianzhou."

Lin Qingqing’s gaze upon Li Jianzhou was filled with intense curiosity and excitement. "The genius Senior Martial Uncle from Dao Yi Mountain who was defeated by my future master?"

The Lin Family’s eldest son, however, was a picture of terror and alarm as he stared at the crippled man. "That’s Li Jianzhou."

They were on their way to Dao Yi Mountain to become disciples, yet now they had encountered the greatest rival of their "future master" from within the same sect.

They had heard the story before setting out for the mountain.

This cripple on the ground had tried to seize power on the very day the old Sect Leader was buried. He was crushed by his junior brother, Chen Sha, who then became the new Sect Leader. Finally, in front of the entire sect and their guests, Li Jianzhou had personally destroyed his own Martial Arts and crippled his limbs, slinking away from the sect like a beaten dog.

After Lin Baibai carefully examined Li Jianzhou’s limbs and saw the empty sleeves and trouser legs, he relaxed considerably, thinking to himself:

’Even if these three are outcasts from Dao Yi Mountain and harbor a deep grudge, what are they now? A cripple with two children. What do I have to fear from them?’

「On the other side.」

The Ranger, Qii Zhengyi, was still somewhat bewildered.

He seemed completely unaware of the name Li Jianzhou or its connection to Dao Yi Mountain, and he still didn’t understand why the girl had become so angry when he mentioned his plans.

Just as he was reaching out to the young woman beside him, wanting to discuss how to deal with this great enemy of Dao Yi Mountain—

"Li Jianzhou! Ever since I heard you were kicked out of Dao Yi Mountain, I, the Xiangjiang Divine Saber, have chased you all the way to this place! I’ve finally found you in this ruined temple, you beaten dog! Hahaha!"

The wild laughter echoed in from outside the dilapidated Daoist Temple.

A burly figure strode in, one step at a time. He wore a cotton robe, but the bulging muscles underneath gave off an impression of explosive power.

"Today, I, Miao Shaoshan, can finally avenge my sixteen brothers from the Xiangjiang Ghost Village that you killed!"

The man strode in, radiating a violent aura. He saw the three groups of people inside but paid them no mind. He had clearly been waiting outside for a while, only confirming that he’d tracked the right person after hearing the name "Li Jianzhou." Now, his heart was filled with a murderous intent that none could stop.

"Every grievance has its source, every debt its debtor! I’m not here for anyone else. All you nobodies, scram!"

As soon as the words fell,

a cold glint flashed in the burly Swordsman’s eyes. His blade left its sheath. From thirty paces away from Li Jianzhou, who was lying in the corner, he charged, closing the distance in the blink of an eye.

In a single breath, he was just three feet from the master and his disciples.

WHOOSH~~

The crimson Ghost Head Saber swung directly at Li Jianzhou’s neck.

"Don’t you dare hurt my master!"

The young man and woman cried out in unison. Zhao Yunkong and Chengg Lin instantly leaped in front of him, drawing two longswords from the cloth bags on their backs.

CLANG! CLANG!

However, after just two ringing clashes of their blades against his, the two of them coughed up blood and stumbled back five paces.

The might of Miao Shaoshan’s single strike was enough to do this, proving his strength was far beyond that of the two disciples.

Miao Shaoshan had burst in and attacked Li Jianzhou, all within the span of two breaths.

Lin Qingqing’s expression changed, and she quickly looked toward the most powerful person she knew: the old man in the padded cotton jacket.

"Old man!"

Sword Crown Wuu Liusheng asked in surprise, "What is it? You want me to save them? But he’s your future master’s greatest rival."

As soon as the old man spoke, the Lin Family’s eldest son hurriedly said from behind him, "Elder Wuu, we should just watch. That man said he isn’t here for us. We absolutely must not get involved."

As the eldest son of the Lin Family, he had been well-versed in the ways of the world since childhood. Their goal was to join Dao Yi Mountain. If they saved Li Jianzhou, it was certain that Dao Yi Mountain would never accept them.

"But that brother and sister..." Lin Qingqing began, wanting to point out how young they were.

But she was cut off by a young man’s shout from within the temple: "I don’t know what your grudge is, but for a grown man like you to attack two kids is going too far!"

It was none other than Qii Zhengyi, the one who had drunk Chengg Lin’s porridge.

With a shout, he drew the longsword at his waist and rushed forward, intending to save the young woman who had done him the kindness of sharing her porridge.

"Courting death!"

Enraged, Miao Shaoshan turned and swung his saber back at Qii Zhengyi.

Not far away, Chengg Lin and Zhao Yunkong, who had just been forced back, were both shocked and overjoyed at the sight.

Especially Chengg Lin.

The young woman shot Qii Zhengyi a look filled with both gratitude and guilt.

Then,

she and her martial brother charged at Miao Shaoshan’s back without a word.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

For a moment, Miao Shaoshan found himself besieged from three sides.

But as Lin Qingqing watched, her expression changed.

’This Swordsman is clearly a First-class Expert, but those three only have third-rate skills. I’m afraid they won’t last more than a few exchanges...’

Ultimately, she couldn’t bear to watch. Especially not the young man named Qii Zhengyi. With his chivalrous heart, he couldn’t be allowed to die like this.

Just as Lin Qingqing finally gave in and was about to beg the old man to intervene—

FWOOSH!

A sharp crack echoed through the air.

THWACK!

The Swordsman, Miao Shaoshan, who had been fighting the three of them, suddenly froze in place. A small red dot appeared on the back of his skull, and another bloomed between his eyebrows.

THUD!

The next moment, he toppled over like a wooden statue.

Instantly, the ruined temple was filled with incredulous gasps. 𝑓𝑟ℯℴ𝓂

Qii Zhengyi, who had been moments away from being cut down by Miao Shaoshan’s blade, was especially bewildered. He had no idea how this terrifyingly ferocious expert had died so mysteriously.

Lin Qingqing and her brother were also stunned.

Their first instinct was to look at the old man in the padded jacket.

"Hmm."

The old man in the padded jacket fixed a meaningful gaze on the crippled man under the shrine in the corner, who was slowly closing his mouth. He then spoke.

"That was a Martial Art of the Divine Silkworm Sect—the Divine Silk Force."