305: Chapter 305 Secret Location, Personal Instruction

Inside the cabin, figures in black were scattered all around, silent and motionless, firmly locking all passengers in their respective positions.

No one dared to move.

The once spacious cabin hall now felt like a sealed coffin.

Chen Ran held a wine cup, one leg casually crossed over the other, leaning against the back of his chair.

His gaze leisurely swept across those terrified faces, pausing on each one before moving away.

Finally, his gaze fell upon Liu Qing.

Liu Qing stood in the middle of the cabin hall, her expression solemn.

Her hand had already pressed against the hilt of the sword at her waist,

and several Ciyin Medical Valley Disciples surrounded her from behind, each wearing a look of fear yet still striving to maintain their composure.

Chen Ran casually set the wine cup on the table, producing a crisp, light sound.

"Where is Ciyin Medical Valley?"

He spoke, his tone flat.

Liu Qing's expression changed slightly.

She looked at the languid youth leaning against the chair, fell silent for a moment, and said in a deep voice,

"What do you mean by this, Your Excellency?"

"Literally. Where is the exact location of Ciyin Medical Valley?"

Liu Qing's pupils shrank slightly.

It was not that she lacked precautions.

From the moment this person announced the hijacking of the ship, she had already gone through all possible motives in her mind.

Robbery for wealth? Unlikely.

Robbery for lust? Absurd.

Taking hostages to coerce the imperial court? It didn't seem to warrant such a massive fuss either.

But if it was aimed at a specific person, how many people on this ship were worth an Innate Realm expert taking action personally?

Now, this question laid the answer completely out in the open.

What he wanted was Ciyin Medical Valley.

Liu Qing's heart suddenly sank, a chill climbing all the way from her spine to the back of her head.

She suddenly recalled everything from just moments ago.

The people of the Red Lotus Demonic Cult were submissive to him, calling him Lord Mountain and revering him as their superior.

The Red Lotus Demonic Cult were remnants of the previous dynasty, intending to overthrow the state of Great Wei.

What about Ciyin Medical Valley?

Everyone knew that although Ciyin Medical Valley claimed to be neutral, it had always maintained close ties with the imperial court.

Whenever there was a war, Disciples from the valley were dispatched to the front lines to treat wounded soldiers; the imperial court bestowed many favors upon the valley, and the valley never refused requests from the imperial court.

In times of peace, this relationship was merely icing on the cake.

But placed in the current era of great Chaos, where the Red Lotus Demonic Cult was advancing like a bamboo split...

Liu Qing did not dare to think further.

Once they fell into the hands of the demonic cult, the consequences would be unimaginable.

She took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing her churning emotions without showing the slightest trace on her face, and said in a deep voice,

"Your Excellency has found the wrong person."

"We are merely ordinary Disciples of the medical valley out to provide free clinics; we know nothing of the valley's hidden secrets."

Chen Ran glanced at her.

"Your name is Liu Qing."

"The Third Elder of Ciyin Medical Valley, at the Peak of the Return to Truth Realm, responsible for the safety matters of this southern expedition team."

"If even you don't know where the medical valley is, then who does?"

Liu Qing's expression suddenly stiffened.

Why did this person know their background like the back of his hand?

"Since Senior knows our background so well,"

"you should also know that the address of Ciyin Medical Valley is not a secret that I alone can decide."

"Even if you kill me, you won't be able to ask anything out of me."

Chen Ran smiled.

"Who said anything about killing you?"

He stood up, leisurely tidying his cuffs, paced over to Liu Qing, and looked down at her from above.

"I am simply asking for directions."

"If you are unwilling to speak, that's fine too."

He tilted his head slightly, his gaze sweeping past Liu Qing's side toward the trembling medical valley Disciples behind her, and finally stopping at a certain spot.

"There will always be someone willing to speak."

Liu Qing's pupils shrank, and she suddenly burst into action.

Her long sword left its sheath, a cold light blooming like a streak of silk, aiming straight for Chen Ran's throat.

She drew her sword extremely fast; her cultivation at the Perfection of the Return to Truth Realm erupted fully at this moment, her sword momentum fierce and fierce winds howling,

causing the candlelight inside the cabin to lean backward in unison under the pressure of this sword wind.

Yet that sword thrust could not go past three inches.

Chen Ran raised his right hand, bringing his index and middle fingers together, and lightly pinched.

That incomparably sharp blade seemed to have stabbed into thousand-year-old ancient wood, letting out a hum before remaining completely motionless.

Liu Qing's expression changed drastically, and she forcefully pulled back with a reverse grip.

However, the blade was clamped tightly by those two fingers; no matter how much force she exerted, she could not pull it back even a fraction.

"The Peak of the Return to Truth Realm."

Chen Ran looked down at the pinched blade and gave a calm evaluation,

"Your foundation is not bad, but the gap is far too great."

"The chasm between the Innate Realm and the Return to Truth Realm cannot be bridged by sword techniques alone."

He slightly turned his wrist and exerted a gentle push of force.

Liu Qing only felt a force akin to mountains collapsing and seas churning transmit along the blade; her whole body's Meridians shuddered, and her internal organs felt as if they had been forcefully clenched by someone.

She let out a muffled groan, retreating seven or eight steps together with her sword, her back slamming against the cabin wall and causing the planking to hum.

Just as Chen Ran was about to take another step forward, a fierce sound of wind suddenly came from behind him!

No, not just one.

It was thousands of them.

The extremely dense, subtle sounds of breaking through the air gathered together, like a sudden rainstorm or a swarm of bees pouring out of their nest,

interweaving into a scalp-tingling screech within the cramped space of the cabin.

Chen Ran's brow twitched slightly, and he sidestepped to dodge.

Hundreds of silver needles, as slender as silkworm silk and as sharp as mosquito beaks, poured down like a rainstorm from the rear of the cabin.

The needle momentum was extremely dense, almost filling that space completely; the trajectory of every single silver needle was different, staggered in height, with tricky angles, sealing off all paths of evasion.

Not only that, but the tips of the needles emitted a faint eerie glow, presenting an extremely pale cyan under the illumination of the candlelight.

Bai Nianci stood towards the back of the cabin, her double sleeves already shaken open, and a grave expression appeared on her fair face.

This was the Thousand-Thread Shadow-Sweeping Needle.

It was a secret ultimate technique of Ciyin Medical Valley; ordinary Disciples could only control dozens of silver needles simultaneously in their entire lives.

Yet Bai Nianci had diligently cultivated for over a decade and could already manage to release three hundred and sixty silver needles within a single breath.

Smearing the needles was her personally concocted Thousand-Dream Mystic Poison, refined through the cross-breeding of seven rare poisonous herbs, colorless and odorless.

Once it pierced the skin, the true Qi within the body would fall into a chaotic, sluggish state within a very short time.

The Disciples of Ciyin Medical Valley never only practiced medicine.

Healers also possessed murderous intent, only it was usually hidden too deeply for the world to know.

A Return to Truth Realm Martial Artist would have their true Qi sealed upon being hit by three needles.

Even an Innate Realm expert would definitely not be completely unaffected after being hit by more than ten needles.

In this Jianghu, poison was the most insidious of all ultimate techniques; as long as the poison entered the body, cases of the weak overcoming the strong were numerous.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!

The silver needles poured down, dense as a rainstorm, covering all space within a radius of over a zhang in front of Chen Ran.

Yet the youth merely tilted his head and casually swept his sleeve.

An immensely profound wave of true Qi silently rippled outward.

Boom!

The sky-full of silver needles, the moment they touched that true Qi ripple, were like moths flying into a flame, instantly losing all momentum.

Clang, clang, clang.

The silver needles fell to the ground one after another, scattering everywhere, bouncing a few times on the cabin floorboards before going completely still.

Three hundred and sixty silver needles, without a single exception.

Bai Nianci's hand hung in mid-air, her fingertips trembling slightly.

"Nice technique."

Chen Ran lowered his head, glancing at the scattered silver needles on the ground, and looked with apparent interest at the cyan light gleaming on the needle tips.

"Launching a sneak attack from the shadows and immediately using an ultimate technique upon striking—it seems your medical valley has taught you very well."

Liu Qing's expression changed drastically, and she shouted towards the distance,

"Nianci, go quickly! Leave right now!"

Bai Nianci's figure paused slightly.

The window was less than three paces away by her side; with her lightness skill, she only needed a single leap to flip out of the window and fall into the river.

With the turbulent river waters and the boundless dark night, once she entered the water, she might not be unable to escape.

Just as Bai Nianci was torn in her heart, not knowing what to do,

"You can try moving and see what happens."

that distant voice sounded unhurriedly, yet it was like a basin of ice water poured straight over her head.

Bai Nianci's body froze in place, and she saw that Chen Ran had already walked to Liu Qing's side.

I don't know when, but his hand had already clamped onto the back of Liu Qing's neck, firmly pinning her in place.