Chapter 236 - 39: Trash

A Sword Aura shot out from the Reed Marsh, utterly silent.

Zhu Danren's pupils shrank. He saw the Sword Aura heading straight for Huo Shen and had no time to think. His body reacted on pure instinct. He thrust out his left palm, gathering the potent Blood Gang of his Blood Exchange Third Transformation to intercept the Sword Aura.

Huo Shen could not be allowed to die. He had promised the Alliance Leader.

The Palm Aura and Sword Gang collided with a muffled *pfft*, like a blade piercing water-soaked paper.

Zhu Danren looked down, his face a mask of disbelief. He saw that the Sword Aura had pierced through his left palm.

'My Blood Gang, at the peak of the Blood Exchange Third Transformation, couldn't block this attack?'

'Sword Gang?'

'Could it be one of the top two from the Lin Family's younger generation?'

'Lin Mingxi? Or Lin Mingchen?'

However, before he could get a clear look at his assailant, Huo Shen's agonized scream echoed from behind him.

The Sword Gang hadn't lost any momentum after piercing his palm. It slashed across the side of Huo Shen's head, slicing off the skin from his left cheek and taking his ear with it. Now, blood gushed through the fingers of the hand clamped over his face.

Zhu Danren didn't dare to turn around. He sensed that something was terribly wrong. In the wound where the Sword Gang had pierced his left palm, his flesh and meridians were still being torn apart, and even channeling his Blood Gang couldn't stop it.

'Two types of Sword Intent?'

'No, at least three.'

Without a moment's hesitation, a grim look flashed across Zhu Danren's face. He drew the long knife from his waist with his right hand and hacked down at his own left wrist.

The blade fell, and blood sprayed from his severed wrist. His left hand tumbled toward the ground, but before it landed, it exploded, disintegrating into a shower of gore that splattered everywhere.

Seeing his own hand explode, Zhu Danren's pupils constricted. A flicker of heart-stopping fear appeared in his eyes. Had he not sensed the danger and acted with such ruthless speed, it wouldn't have been just his hand exploding—it would have been his entire left arm.

However, before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, another Sword Aura flashed into existence from a different part of the Reed Marsh. Once again, it was aimed at Huo Shen.

"Fuck! With that kind of power, why do you have to be so damn sneaky!"

Even with his steady temperament, Zhu Danren couldn't help but curse. A single ambush would have been one thing, but for an opponent with such a powerful Sword Gang to change positions and deliberately target Huo Shen again... they were banking on the fact that he would be forced to protect him.

The worst part was that this worthless idiot, Huo Shen, was just standing there frozen in place, even after having half his face sliced off.

'Where was all that frenzied cruelty he showed when he was torturing and killing others?'

To make matters worse, the attacker had moved to a brilliant position, perfectly aligning themself with both Huo Shen and him. If he swung his knife now, he'd have to cut down the moron who was still standing there like a statue.

"Get down!"

With a furious roar at Huo Shen, Zhu Danren threw himself forward, knocking Huo Shen out of the way. In that same instant, he swung his long knife in a wide arc, trying to block the incoming Sword Aura.

But he was too slow!

The Sword Gang arrived the very instant he knocked Huo Shen away and raised his knife!

SWISH!

This time, the Sword Gang punched straight through his right elbow. It didn't just leave a bloody hole; the destructive power within instantly severed the flow of blood and energy at the joint, completely disrupting its circulation.

Zhu Danren's right hand lost all its strength, and he could no longer grip his knife. It fell, landing with a soft *thud* as it plunged into the marshy ground, leaving only the hilt exposed.

Any Spiritual Weapon could cut through iron as if it were mud.

Having lost his Spiritual Weapon, Zhu Danren's eyes filled with despair. He couldn't repeat what he'd done to his left hand. All he could do was watch helplessly as, a second later, his entire right arm exploded.

As flesh and blood splattered, Zhu Danren let out a pained grunt. He stared fixedly in the direction the attack had come from. "A great Sword Gang powerhouse from the Lin Family, and all you dare to do is hide in the Reed Marsh and launch sneak attacks?"

"As you wish."

A voice came from yet another direction, and a young figure emerged from the reeds.

A chill ran through Zhu Danren. 'This person not only possesses a terrifying Sword Gang, but his Body Technique is also incredibly strange.' He had changed positions three times in just a few seconds, and Zhu Danren hadn't sensed a thing.

"Who are you?"

'In the Lin Family's younger generation, only two people have achieved this level in the Sword Dao.'

'It's not Lin Mingxi; the gender is wrong.'

'As for Lin Mingchen, while I've never met him, I know the Lin Family uses sashes to distinguish between the branches. Lin Mingchen is from the Fifth Branch. This person is wearing a white sash, which means he must be from the Third Branch.'

"Lin Yan."

"You're Lin Yan?"

Sprawled in the mud, his hand still clamped over the bloody ruin of his face, Huo Shen's eyes were wide with disbelief.

'How could it possibly be Lin Yan?'

'The guy from a branch family... how could he be this strong?'

'And more importantly, if you're this powerful, why didn't you do anything when I humiliated you back then?'

Huo Shen's face was a mask of doubt and confusion. He didn't understand!

Zhu Danren, however, understood completely. In that instant, all his questions were answered.

'This is why the Lin Family suddenly mobilized on such a massive scale, intending to wipe out the Water Bandit Alliance in one fell swoop.'

'It was all because of Lin Yan.'

'A Sword Dao genius who had mastered at least three types of Sword Intent... Even within the Lin Family, his potential would place him at the very top. How could the Lin Family possibly stand by and do nothing after such a talent was provoked and humiliated?'

Zhu Danren turned to look at Huo Shen, who was still on the ground. If the Alliance Leader and the other Bandit Leaders knew that Huo Shen was the cause of this whole disaster, would the Alliance Leader still dote on his precious grandson?

The other Bandit Leaders, at least, would surely choose to lop off Huo Shen's head and offer it to the Lin Family as an apology once they learned he was the culprit.

"Lin Yan," Zhu Danren said, "those outer Water Stockades from a few days ago... that was you too, wasn't it?"