362: Chapter 362 Can Things Still Get Better?

Before the Great Elder could recover from his shock, Leng Bingyan appeared behind him like a ghost and kicked him straight off the mountain!

"You old beast! Get lost!!"

The Great Elder tumbled and fell, and by the time he landed on the mountain path, several of his bones were already broken.

He lifted his head tremblingly and saw Lin Xiao sitting in front of the carriage, watching him with a mocking smile.

"Tell me, why were you so determined to come here and seek death? Don't say it's because you're worried about retaliation from Liao Meier; she isn't worthy of that."

The Great Elder was filled with despair, a self-deprecating smile appearing at the corner of his mouth:

"I am completely convinced by the Prince's martial prowess. Don't ask me anything else; please, just give me a quick death..."

Lin Xiao was a bit surprised. This old thing was actually refusing to talk?

"Could it be that you are worried the person behind the scenes will destroy your Ten Thousand Poison Cave?"

The Great Elder closed his eyes, looking like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.

Lin Xiao thought for a moment and realized that wasn't right. He himself could destroy the Ten Thousand Poison Cave, so there must be another reason.

After carefully reviewing the Great Elder's profile, he discovered that he was actually "married," and Lin Xiao understood a little bit more.

"Does your wife, or your family, know that you came to assassinate me?"

The Great Elder's face twitched slightly, and he tried his best to feign composure, saying, "I have never taken a wife; I am all alone."

Lin Xiao felt a bit helpless. This old man was quite steady; could he not be bluffed?

Just then, Mu Wanying returned from afar, holding her spear in one hand and dragging a burly, fat man tied up with vines in the other.

"Husband, this is the person who was using some strange mechanisms from a distance. I thought he might have an unusual identity, so I brought him here alive."

The Great Elder took one look and his face instantly turned ashen: "Ano... you..."

Ano was tied up with vines, with two bleeding wounds on his body, and he was nearly half-dead.

"Master... my qinggong is not as good as hers..."

Lin Xiao glanced at them and chuckled.

"Wanying, you really are a lucky star for your husband. You actually captured the Great Elder's fine son."

Indeed, Lin Xiao had discovered that this Ano was actually the Great Elder's son!

As soon as these words were spoken, both the Great Elder and Ano were terrified!

Because Ano was an illegitimate son, the Great Elder had kept it hidden not only from his own family but also from everyone in the Ten Thousand Poison Cave.

This secret was meant to be taken to the grave!

In order to prevent anyone from noticing their father-son relationship, Ano had even eaten until he was very fat since he was a child, making his facial features less distinct.

"No wonder this guy's martial arts were clearly stronger than the other disciples; it turns out he had a biological father giving him special training on the side?"

Mu Wanying teased, "Then I won't kill him just yet. I'll stab him a few more times for fun to vent some of my husband's anger!"

"No! General Mu, please don't!"

The Great Elder was truly panicked now. Lin Xiao even knew about Ano's illegitimate status, so he must have already investigated his family background thoroughly!

Damn that Liao Meier; she must have leaked some useful information!

"Prince, I can tell you who is behind this, but I hope you will spare Ano!"

Lin Xiao said indifferently, "You are not qualified to negotiate with me. Even if you don't say it, I will still find out."

The Great Elder collapsed in defeat. He dared not disbelieve him, because this man could truly dig three feet into the ground to find the truth!

"To be honest, the one who made us deal with the Prince... is the Leader of the Moon Worship Cult!"

"Who?"

Lin Xiao frowned; he had never heard of him.

"Husband, the Moon Worship Cult arose in the sixteen foreign states. They worship the Moon God and have many followers in Baiyue, Nanling, and Western Shu."

Xiao Qingxuan explained from inside the carriage, "The Leader of the Moon Worship Cult has a mysterious identity; almost no one knows what he looks like."

"Since the founding of the cult, over fifty years have passed, and many martial arts sects in the Million Mountains have been incorporated by it."

"It is said that the Prince of Wu in Baiyue has an unusual relationship with the Leader of the Moon Worship Cult. The two do not interfere with each other, maintaining a balance between the government and the martial arts world in the Baiyue region."

Xie Juner also said, "I have also heard of this Leader of the Moon Worship Cult, because many merchants in Baiyue are also followers and pay tribute to the leader all year round."

"It is said that the leader is not only highly skilled in martial arts but also has many powerful subordinates."

"Originally, because Baiyue had many mountains and deep waters, it was a place where fish and dragons mixed, with countless factions, and many commoners suffered greatly."

"Since the emergence of the Moon Worship Cult, they believe firmly that the Moon God can purify evil. They kill mountain bandits and provide relief to commoners, so they quickly won over the hearts of the people."

"Merchants in the Baiyue region thus have a relatively safe business environment, which is why they are very respectful toward the Leader of the Moon Worship Cult."

Lin Xiao heard this and couldn't help but sneer: "So, that Leader of the Moon Worship Cult is a great guy? How did I provoke him that he had to send the Ten Thousand Poison Cave to assassinate me?"

The Great Elder sighed bitterly: "The Leader of the Moon Worship Cult's reason is that the Prince will sooner or later raise an army to rebel, causing a bloodbath."

"To prevent the suffering of the common people, he must..."

"Bullshit!"

Before he could finish, Mu Wanying cursed angrily: "Since the day my husband raised his army, he has been forced into it by this world!"

"If that dog emperor were of any use, would my husband, a mere soldier, need to break the deadlock alone and turn the tide!?"

Leng Bingyan was also very angry: "Just look at our husband's governance. The people of the North are living in peace and contentment, and the Zhenbei Army has protected so many commoners."

"That Leader of the Moon Worship Cult just kills a few bandits in the mountains; at most, he is a rogue of the martial arts world. How dare he speak recklessly about our husband?"

Lin Xiao waved his hand, telling the two women not to say more.

"Did that Leader of the Moon Worship Cult come in person?"

The Great Elder shook his head: "The Leader of the Moon Worship Cult is elusive; I really don't know where he is..."

Lin Xiao flicked out two bursts of internal energy, sending the father and son on their way together.

[prestige + 150]

The Great Elder of the Ten Thousand Poison Cave, who was described by Liao Meier as someone who could summon wind and rain in the Million Mountains, was nothing more than this!

"Husband, the reason the Leader of the Moon Worship Cult wants to kill you must have something to do with his true identity."

Xiao Qingxuan frowned and said, "I think we should send people to investigate."

"My wife is right," Lin Xiao said. "Yaner, contact Yanyu Pavilion and have Shu Yelan send people to investigate."

Leng Bingyan nodded: "Husband, should we kill Kong Sen?"

"No rush. I'm interested in those mechanisms of his; let's go take a look."

The group then crossed the highly toxic area and found Kong Sen, who was guarding a pile of black-looking equipment.

When Lin Xiao saw the things that looked like cannon barrels, he thought to himself, "As expected!"

The sound from earlier was indeed cannon fire!

However, the black balls launched later were not black powder; otherwise, the power would definitely not have been so small.

If he wasn't mistaken, it was some kind of crude explosive; the formula and craftsmanship were far from reaching the standard of black powder.

"Prince! Prince, your martial arts are truly unparalleled!"

As soon as Kong Sen saw Lin Xiao approach, he hurriedly knelt down. "I have already done as you said. Can you let me go find Meier..."

Lin Xiao did not answer but asked, "Are these all mechanisms you made?"

Kong Sen nodded: "Yes! These are called Black Tubes, and they are my family's ancestral mechanical arts!"

"Then what was that black fireball that was shot over earlier?"

"That is called 'Poison Fire,' and I developed it too!"

"What materials did you use?" Lin Xiao asked again.

Kong Sen's mind raced. "If the Prince wants to know, I am willing to offer the formula, only asking... to be able to take Meier away."

"How bold! You dare to negotiate terms with the Prince?!" Qin He stepped forward, ready to strike.

Lin Xiao reached out to stop him and said, "Kong Sen, if I am not mistaken, this should contain saltpeter, sulfur, and... charcoal, right?"

Kong Sen's eyes widened in shock. "You... how do you even know this?!"

"I not only know the formula, but I also know that these things were definitely not made by you!"

Lin Xiao sneered, "You are just taking your ancestors' legacy and puffing yourself up to look like an expert! You yourself... are just a piece of trash!"

Kong Sen collapsed onto the ground, pouting, and was actually scolded to tears!

"I... I just want to find my Meier. What is wrong with that!? After so many years... I finally waited until Prince Bai died. Do you know how hard it was for me!?"

"You don't understand me, you don't know how important she is to me, so why do you have the right to scold me like this!? Waaah!—"

Seeing him sitting on the ground howling in such a pathetic manner, the women all showed expressions of disdain.

Liao Meier had treated him like that, yet he was still hoping for her to have a change of heart; he was truly a spineless wretch.

Lin Xiao looked at this guy, speechless...

[Kong Sen, 36 years old, descendant of the Xuanji Sect, Aptitude: mystic grade]

No wonder the Xuanji Sect had faded into obscurity; with it passed down to someone like this, could anything good possibly come of it?!