131: Chapter 131 Xuanming Seal, Demon Dragon Seal
Bai He moved through the mountain forests of a wild hill; he could no longer hold on and slumped against the base of a tree.
“I finally escaped.”
Several more wounds had been added to his body. He had encountered more government soldiers later, and after killing them quickly despite his injuries, he had sustained a few more cuts.
He took out a small bottle, poured out a Medicinal Pill and swallowed it, causing a bit more color to return to his face.
After waiting for a while, Bai He's expression grew increasingly grim.
“Dong Xuanli and Xu Fang both failed to escape.”
In his view, Dong Xuanli must have been bogged down by Kang Shuhan and the others; following that, he would inevitably be surrounded and killed by the soldiers, making his situation look grim.
As for Xu Fang, facing Li Qing who had already displayed extraordinary combat power, she likely had a slim chance of survival.
Bai He felt a pang of distress. A Left Protector, a White Tiger Hall Master, and two Deputy Hall Masters—with these four dead, it was not much different from the White Dragon Cult losing an arm.
Moreover, his own father, Bai Lian, also...
What would become of the White Dragon Cult in the future?
Bai He forced himself up despite his injuries.
His trail was obvious, and Li Qing could easily guess that he would flee toward the mountain forests outside the city. If Li Qing caught up, how could he possibly withstand him?
“Li Qing, Li Qing, Li Qing, I will definitely have my revenge!”
He hadn't expected that Li Qing, who had always kept a low profile, would have quietly achieved a Breakthrough to Huajin Martial Artist and become so powerful.
Now that his mind had settled, he even connected this to the previous deaths of Hu Ye and the others.
“The third level of Dragon Gall Power... could it be that it wasn't Master Zhuang who did it, but Li Qing?”
And today, when he had Dong Xuanli and the others lie in ambush to assassinate Master Zhuang, was he just playing the fool for someone else's benefit?
Thinking of this, Bai He nearly ground his teeth to dust.
However, what Bai He didn't realize was that by a strange twist of fate, he had correctly guessed that Master Zhuang had returned to Shangyun City.
But there was a tiny difference.
Master Zhuang had returned with a cultivation in the Core Formation, and he truly had killed Dong Xuanli and the others who intended to ambush him.
After walking for a while, Bai He arrived at a small stream. He flicked a few pebbles, killing several fish, and tossed them all into his mouth to swallow raw.
He squatted down to wash his face and was about to stand up.
Suddenly, his hands froze. He saw a figure standing silently next to his reflection in the water.
Startled, he hurriedly dodged away and stood up on guard.
“Who?!”
A woman in a yellow dress appeared before him, her expression dull.
“Ah, so the White Tiger Hall Master followed me.”
The person before him was indeed Xu Fang; Bai He's expression relaxed.
Wait, no!
Bai He instantly became tense again.
A sense of horror flashed through his mind.
Could Xu Fang beat Li Qing?
How could Xu Fang appear beside him so silently?
Is this really Xu Fang?
Xu Fang remained unmoved by Bai He's reaction. She was playing with a token in her hand, which made Bai He's eyes light up.
“The magic dragon token?”
He had heard descriptions of this token countless times; he could never forget it.
With this token, he could join the Demon Nether Sect, he could...
For a moment, his thoughts began to wander, even imagining himself becoming famous across the world after joining the Sect.
Bai He's expression gradually became obsessed.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Bai He's mind, bringing him back to his senses.
Not good!
His eyes were filled with terror: “Xu Fang, you... you are a Core Formation Martial Artist?!”
How was it possible? Xu Fang had followed him for three years; how could she be a Core Formation Martial Artist?
He would rather Xu Fang be someone else in disguise.
Xu Fang finally spoke: “You indeed know of the magic dragon token. Or rather, has your White Dragon Cult long since been subject to Possession by the Demon Nether Sect?”
Bai He's pupils constricted: “How... how could you know of the Demon Nether Sect's existence?”
This information was only ever known to the White Dragon Cult's Sect Head and Young Lord; even the Left and Right Protectors and the four Hall Masters were not qualified to know.
Xu Fang did not answer. Suddenly, she flickered like a dropped frame and appeared before Bai He, her palm grabbing his face.
Her other hand opened a jade box, and the xuanyou flower inside flashed with a deep blue light.
Xu Fang's pupils flashed with a light blue glow, and her words began to overlap in Bai He's ears, sounding like ten thousand people speaking at once.
“Speak... speak... where is the Demon Nether Sect's base... where is the base... where... where...”
Bai He's eyes rolled back, and his mouth began to twitch. But at the critical moment just before he spoke, a black mark abruptly flickered violently on his forehead, followed by a burst of black gas that tried to invade Xu Fang's palm.
Xu Fang's other hand surged with light blue True Qi, drawing a thread of deep blue gas from the xuanyou flower. The black mark suddenly went quiet, and the black gas was drawn into that thread of deep blue gas, gaining weight and falling into the grass on the ground. Instantly, the grass withered and turned yellow.
Bai He's eyes were completely white as he trembled out, “It's... it's at—”
Buzz!
This time, the black mark instantly erupted with light. Xu Fang sighed, quickly withdrew her palm, and retreated thirty feet away.
Bang!
Bai He's head was covered by a mass of overflowing black gas, which then began to swell before his entire body exploded; it all happened in an instant.
His flesh and blood scattered; any living thing they touched, whether flowers, grass, or insects, turned into dead matter.
Xu Fang put away the xuanyou flower: “As expected of the ‘Xuanming Seal’—no, it's now the notorious ‘Magic Dragon Seal’.”
“What a pity, I didn't manage to find out where the Demon Nether Sect is.”
Whoosh!
Xu Fang waved her sleeve, and her appearance transformed into that of Bai He.
‘He’ coughed twice, his expression changing as he said through gritted teeth: “Li Qing, Li Qing, Li Qing, I will definitely have my revenge!”
It was exactly the same as Bai He's performance just now.
‘He’ smiled with satisfaction and vanished from the spot with a whoosh.
“Time to go check on ‘Father’.”
...
“What? Master Zhuang is back? And he's in the Core Formation?” Li Qing said in surprise.
He had no idea that when he had encountered Xu Fang, Zhuang Jin had already been hiding nearby.
Lu Xiu nodded, the joy on his face beyond words: “More than that, Junior Brother Zhuang helped the City Lord's Manor against the rebels today. He is now an honored guest of the City Lord's Manor. Our martial arts hall has hit the jackpot!”
That was a Core Formation expert, and a fellow disciple at that!
Thinking of the almost fawning, flattering smiles of the various Sect Heads who had previously kept their distance, Lu Xiu's face grew even more flushed.
This was truly a case of one person finding the Dao and their associates rising with them!
“Quickly, come with me to see Junior Brother Zhuang.”
After settling his family, Li Qing followed Lu Xiu toward the Liuhe Martial Arts Hall.
The sounds of crying and wailing were constant on the streets. Many people lay on the ground, their lives uncertain, while even more clutched broken limbs, curling up on the ground and howling in pain.
The chaos in the outer city was gradually subsiding, but it had left indelible scars on many people.
Government soldiers were stationed everywhere on the streets, restricting movement, but they politely made way only when they saw Li Qing and Lu Xiu.
A man in fine silk clothes said, “On what grounds can those two move about freely?”
The soldier looked at him as if he were an idiot, his tone disdainful: “If you were a Huajin Martial Artist, you could too.”
The man instantly lost his nerve and muttered sheepishly, “So... so they are Huajin masters...”
The soldier added another sentence, his tone full of awe: “Not to mention, those two have a Core Formation powerhouse backing them!”
This time, the man in fine clothes widened his eyes, his lips trembling, unable to say another word.