10: Cao Bu's Shadow Night Linglong

Cao Bu swept his gaze over the three, his expression devoid of even a trace of fear.

"The mission Gu Qingtian arranged for you is actually to kill me, isn't it?"

Vice Hall Master Yu smiled faintly and said, "Hall Master is clever."

He sized up Cao Bu, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes.

In truth, he did not understand why the Clan Chief would have them eliminate Cao Bu without a sound.

They had witnessed Cao Bu's loyalty over these years; when he heard the Clan Chief's voice transmission, he could not help but ask out of curiosity.

The Clan Chief's answer to him was only one sentence: "Bu'er is not bad, but the more loyal he is, the more afraid This Clan Head becomes; therefore, I shall undergo Ascension, and he shall go down."

He wanted to ask more, but the Clan Chief had already vanished.

This matter had become a thorn in his heart that he could not comprehend.

This was also the reason why he had not attacked immediately just now.

"Hall Master, this subordinate truly does not understand. As the Clan Chief's Adopted Son, you have given your all these years, even going so far as to detonate your Dantian to protect his son. With such loyalty, why does the Clan Chief still want to kill you?"

Vice Hall Master Yu could ultimately not suppress it and asked the question that had been puzzling him.

If he did not understand, this matter would become his Heart Demon, making him feel completely uneasy.

Cao Bu's lips curled slightly, a hint of darkness flashing in his eyes: "Perhaps Adopted Father feels that one day I will threaten him."

Upon hearing this, strange expressions immediately appeared on the Faces of the three.

One of them truly could not hold back and sneered aloud: "Hall Master, it is not that I want to lecture you, but you already have half a foot in the gates of Hell; how do you still have the leisure to joke with us?"

Threaten the Clan Chief?

What an absolute joke!

Back in the day, the Clan Chief used his Quasi-Emperor Peak cultivation to defy and kill a Great Emperor, becoming the third peerless legend in the history of the Spirit Realm to "slay an Emperor without being an Emperor."

How could such an existence be threatened by a Cao Bu who is only in the Heavenly Bridge Realm?

Moreover, the current Cao Bu is nothing more than a piece of trash.

He is not even as good as the Disciples of their Dark Night Hall.

Vice Hall Master Yu coldly swept a glance at that person and said in a deep voice: "Vice Hall Master Li, mind your words; regardless of anything, the Hall Master is, after all, the Clan Chief's Adopted Son, you should..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly bent over, clutching his stomach and laughing loudly: "Hahaha... One should laugh like this!"

Seeing this, the other two Vice Hall Masters also joined in, laughing mockingly.

The hall was instantly filled with mocking laughter.

Cao Bu serving as the Hall Master of the Dark Night Hall with merely Heavenly Bridge Realm cultivation had already made them dissatisfied.

It was just that, out of respect for the Clan Chief's Face, they could not easily express it.

Now that the Clan Chief wanted Cao Bu to die, they naturally had to humiliate him thoroughly.

Whenever they thought about how they, three Void Breaking Realm experts, had to follow the arrangements of a Heavenly Bridge Realm ant, they felt deeply humiliated.

Now they could finally wash away their past shame.

"Cao Bu, commit suicide."

Vice Hall Master Yu flipped his wrist, and a dagger with a chilling gleam appeared.

He stepped forward a few paces, the cold tip of the dagger gently lifting Cao Bu's chin.

"Do it yourself, don't dirty my hands."

Having said this, he stabbed the dagger into the black iron desk.

Cao Bu's gaze narrowed slightly, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the thumb ring, his voice terrifyingly calm: "Before I die, tell me, who else knows about this?"

"Slap!"

Vice Hall Master Yu stepped onto the desk, his rough palm slapping Cao Bu's cheek.

"Cao Bu, oh Cao Bu, don't take yourself too seriously; after you die, no one in this world will shed a single tear for you."

The corners of Cao Bu's lips curled into a meaningful arc: "So you're saying, only the three of you know about killing me?"

Vice Hall Master Yu straightened his body, looking down at him from above: "This is a secret order issued personally by the Clan Chief. After you die, we will announce to the outside world that you were assassinated and died in the line of duty, sacrificing yourself for the Gu Clan."

The fingertips rubbing the ring paused, and the smile at the corners of Cao Bu's mouth deepened slightly: "So that's how it is. Thank you, the three of you."

The three frowned; what did this mean?

"Linglong, send them on their way." Cao Bu could not be bothered to talk nonsense anymore.

Silence!

A deathly silence!

"Hahaha..."

Vice Hall Master Yu and the other two were stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, clutching their stomachs.

"Cao Bu, I didn't realize you had a comedic side." Vice Hall Master Yu laughed until he was out of breath.

Cao Bu's expression was a bit awkward, and he said softly: "Linglong, stop messing around."

However, there was still no movement.

Vice Hall Master Yu and the other two laughed even more wantonly.

"Damn it, I'm dying of laughter."

Cao Bu's Face darkened; what was wrong with Linglong?

Could it be... that she is angry?

After a good while, Vice Hall Master Yu and the other two finally stopped laughing.

The three of them simultaneously summoned a long sword that glinted with cold light.

"Cao Bu, since you won't commit suicide, don't blame us for being ruthless!" Vice Hall Master Yu shouted sternly: "Kill!"

The long swords in the hands of the other two Vice Hall Masters went straight for Cao Bu's throat.

Vice Hall Master Yu turned his blade and thrust directly at Cao Bu's heart.

A three-sided pincer attack, it could be called perfect.

At the critical moment, the shadow at Cao Bu's feet suddenly rippled.

A suffocating killing intent instantly enveloped the entire scene, and the movements of the three could not help but pause.

"Swish!"

A cold gleam flashed past.

The three long swords fell to the ground simultaneously.

Vice Hall Master Yu and the others clutched their necks in horror, looking in disbelief at the beautiful figure that had suddenly appeared beside Cao Bu.

This woman had actually walked out of Cao Bu's shadow!

Compared to their concealment technique of merging into the Void Realm, this method was incomparably more brilliant.

"Im-impossible."

Vice Hall Master Yu's voice was hoarse: "You are only at the eighth level of the Void Breaking Realm, how could you kill us in an instant?"

His cultivation was at the Peak of the Void Breaking Realm.

The other two Vice Hall Masters were at the eighth level of the Void Breaking Realm.

Could this person be a Genius capable of fighting across levels?

But to kill all three of them in one sword strike, this was too terrifying!

The three knelt powerlessly on the ground, the Life Qi within their bodies slowly fading away.

If it were before, with their cultivation, a slashed throat would have a chance to recover.

But that sword strike just now was not as simple as just slashing their throats; it had also shattered their Primordial Spirit.

Ye Linglong flashed and appeared in front of Vice Hall Master Yu, raising a slender finger to tap on his glabella.

Vice Hall Master Yu let out a shrill scream.

After a breath, Ye Linglong withdrew her finger, and Vice Hall Master Yu collapsed to the ground, completely devoid of life.

The other two dying Vice Hall Masters looked at Ye Linglong, their eyes filled with terror.

This woman was too ruthless, not even sparing those who were about to die.

Ye Linglong didn't even glance at them, turning her head to say to Cao Bu: "He was right, only the three of them know about the matter of killing you."

Cao Bu nodded: "I asked just now."

Ye Linglong said coldly: "Soul searching is the only reliable way; don't be too confident in the future."

Cao Bu shook his head: "For someone as powerful as Gu Qingtian, memories can also be tampered with."

Ye Linglong frowned, turned her Face away, and emitted a cold aura from her entire body.

"Are you angry?" Cao Bu asked tentatively.

Ye Linglong snorted coldly: "You contradicted me."

Cao Bu opened his mouth, but in the end, he said nothing.

Ye Linglong had been picked up by him three hundred years ago when she was only a few months old.

Through their time together, Cao Bu discovered that she possessed astonishing talent for Cultivation; it was no exaggeration to say that she was not much inferior to Gu Qingtian.

Afterwards, he personally taught Ye Linglong how to Cultivate.

Three hundred years of time flowed by; they were teacher and friend, kin and lover, surpassing everything.

For this reason, Cao Bu even taught her the Thousand Illusions Formless Art.

In just two hundred years, she had Cultivated the Thousand Illusions Formless Art to Perfection.

From then on, Ye Linglong gradually disappeared from the sight of the Gu Clan members, and those who knew her all thought she was already dead.

Only Cao Bu knew that she had undergone an Awakening of memories out of thin air and obtained a Cultivation Technique called the Profound Shadow Void Transformation Scripture.

With the combination of the two Cultivation Techniques, Ye Linglong became his shadow, always protecting him.

If she did not voluntarily reveal herself, not even a Great Emperor could discover her.

Cao Bu stood up, pulled out the dagger stabbed into the desk, and walked slowly to Vice Hall Master Yu.

"Swish!"

A cold gleam flashed, and a head rolled to the ground.

This scene terrified the other two Vice Hall Masters.

Cao Bu picked it up and tossed it, and Vice Hall Master Yu's head rolled "clatter-clatter" to the entrance of the main hall.

Holding the dripping dagger, he walked towards Vice Hall Master Li with a sinister smile.

"Ha-Hall Master, I beg you to leave me an intact corpse." Vice Hall Master Li's voice trembled.

Cao Bu pressed the cold dagger against his neck, pressing down slowly; fresh blood sprayed onto Cao Bu's Face, making him look hideous and terrifying.

"I heard you still have family in Azure Dragon City?" Cao Bu leaned into his ear and whispered.

"Ho-how do you know?"

Vice Hall Master Li's eyes widened suddenly, as if he did not even feel the pain of his neck being slashed.

People of the Dark Night Hall are not allowed to marry or have children; this is the rule.

In order to hide his family, he had only returned occasionally over these years.

"Go in peace."

Cao Bu smiled eerily: "Your wife and daughter, I shall raise them; you need not worry."

"You bastard..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Cao Bu exerted force with his wrist, and with a "crack," another head fell to the ground.

The last Vice Hall Master clutched his bleeding neck, scrambling backward desperately: "Hall Master! This was all directed by the Clan Chief! In consideration of the many years we have worked together, please leave me an intact corpse."

"You are about to die anyway, why care whether your corpse is intact or not?" Cao Bu sneered, and with a swift motion of his hand, the blade fell.

With a "thump," the headless corpse collapsed to the ground.

Inside the main hall, blood seeped out from the threshold, snaking its way across the bluestone slabs.

The Dark Night Hall Disciples outside the hall gasped, and just as they were about to rush in, Cao Bu's cold voice came: "Come in."