Silence reigned both inside and outside the Guangju Pavilion. The diners outside, who had been gossiping and convinced the Conical Hat Guest was dead, now stared at Lin Xuankong in his conical hat as if he were a Demon.
Even Gu Beicheng, who was hacking at the Demon Vine, was momentarily distracted by the sight. Consequently, the Demon Vine nearly ensnared his chest and abdomen. He quickly refocused and resumed his battle with the Demon Vine.
Lin Xuankong relentlessly attacked the Demon Vine with his Spiritual Crane Finger.
With a single throw of the Heaven-Covering Flying Locusts, six hits out of six, Xuu Zhongxiong only lasted for a single breath. He truly lived up to his name as the Blood Tiger!
A piercing shriek suddenly tore through the air.
"Zhongxiong! Zhongxiong!"
Seeing Xuu Zhongxiong fall, motionless and clearly dead, Wang Po finally reacted, her disbelief palpable. She shrieked, her face contorted with murderous intent, "You dare kill my son Zhongxiong! No matter who you are, I'll flay you alive!"
Lin Xuankong gazed at the vile old hag who treated human life as worthless, his own eyes burning with equal killing intent.
"If you want to kill me, then come. Why shout so loudly?"
"You claim you want to kill me, yet your knees are bent, and your eyes betray fear. Are you preparing to flee?"
"Is it because the Demon Pearl has consumed too much of your Qi Blood? Can you no longer sustain it, old sow?"
Before he could finish, the Demon Vine binding him and Gu Beicheng abruptly shuddered, then dissolved into black smoke and vanished. Wang Po, who had just been screaming about flaying Lin Xuankong alive, saw her expression shift. She pushed off with her legs and retreated rapidly.
Lin Xuankong was correct. As Lii Xiaolan had said, the Demon Pearl consumed a vast amount of Qi Blood; ordinary first-layer Transcendence Martial Cultivators couldn't sustain it for long.
Now, Wang Po, nearly seventy percent of her Qi Blood depleted by the Demon Pearl, continued her backward retreat. Despite being a Late Stage first-layer cultivator, stronger than Xuu Zhongxiong, she didn't dare flee towards the Guangju Pavilion's entrance. Lin Xuankong's Heaven-Covering Flying Locusts had terrified her.
She frantically channeled her Qi Blood, hurtling towards the private room behind her, intending to crash through it and escape via the wall.
Unfortunately, though she retreated with the speed of a galloping horse, she couldn't outrun Lin Xuankong's Heaven-Covering Flying Locusts!
Inside the Guangju Pavilion, the intense sound of objects slicing through the air erupted once more. Countless shadowy projectiles shot from Lin Xuankong's hands, hurtling towards Wang Po.
Half a breath later, Wang Po, having retreated several zhang and crashed into the private room, went rigid and collapsed limply.
Her elbows, shoulders, abdomen, and knees were all struck by Flying Locust Stones. Bones shattered, flesh tore, and blood gushed forth. One Flying Locust Stone, arcing through the air, slammed into her mouth, shattering her teeth and mangling her tongue.
Grievously wounded, Wang Po lay on the ground, wailing in agony. Lin Xuankong stepped into the ravaged private room. He stood over Wang Po and said coldly,
"You must be desperate to know who I am. And I very much want you to know!"
With that, he lifted the black veil on his conical hat and revealed a corner of his mask.
"NGH... NGH... NGH..." Wang Po, on the verge of death, struggled to gaze at the face before her.
When she clearly saw Lin Xuankong's face, her features twisted violently. The expression in her eyes shifted rapidly from disbelief to utter astonishment, then to sheer terror, and finally settled into a profound, venomous hatred.
She mustered her last vestiges of Qi Blood, channeling them to her throat, desperate to scream the name of the man before her. She wanted the news to spread, for the Black Tiger Gang to avenge Zhongxiong and herself. But her ruined tongue could only produce garbled, incoherent whimpers.
"This stone is for the brother you murdered in the vat!"
Lin Xuankong flicked a Flying Locust Stone, striking Wang Po.
"This stone is for the young man you imprisoned for a day and a night!"
Another Flying Locust Stone struck Wang Po.
"This stone is for my wife!"
"This stone is for me!"
"And this stone is a gift for you," Lin Xuankong continued, his voice cold, "for all the innocent women you abducted and tormented!"
With that said, Lin Xuankong ignored Wang Qiluo, who was succumbing to death consumed by hatred. He waved his hand, picking up the Twin Vine Demon Pearl lying nearby. He left the private room, swiftly dispatched the remaining Black Tiger Gang remnants, and quickly collected the silver taels from the bodies of Blood Tiger Xuu Zhongxiong and the dozen or so others. Then, he turned and walked towards the entrance.
By now, the onlookers outside had long since fled. They hadn't fled when Xuu Zhongxiong fought Gu Beicheng. They hadn't fled when Wang Po produced the Twin Vine Demon Pearl. But after witnessing Lin Xuankong's terrifying Concealed Weapon Technique, not a single one dared to remain. They knew that even Xuu Zhongxiong and Wang Po had only withstood it for a mere breath. If this mysterious man in the conical hat decided to silence witnesses, none of them would survive.
"Thank you, Senior, for saving my life. I, Beicheng, am eternally grateful," Gu Beicheng said. "Might I ask for Senior's name? I will surely repay this debt in the future!"
Gu Beicheng wrapped his sister's corpse in his outer coat and looked at Lin Xuankong, a trace of fear on his face. He knew he was no match for the formidable man in the conical hat before him. This Martial Cultivator didn't seem to be any Steward from the Yin Talisman Sect, which made Gu Beicheng extremely apprehensive. Thus, he had expressed his gratitude without hesitation.
"A wanderer at the ends of the earth; no need to ask my name."
Lin Xuankong strode past the entrance and leaped away.
...
Standing on the rooftop of his wooden house, Lin Xuankong gazed towards Shuinan Street.
Soon after he returned home, the unmistakable sounds of fierce battle—shouts and cries of killing—erupted from the direction of Shuinan Street. Countless Gang Members of the Black Tiger Gang's Great Marsh Hall and disciples from the Yin Talisman Sect were converging on Shuinan Street. Torches flickered along the thoroughfare, and innumerable figures darted between the wooden buildings.
The Black Tiger Gang and the Yin Talisman Sect had been feuding over territory for years, their enmity already deeply entrenched. Gu Beicheng's challenge to Blood Tiger, along with the deaths of Blood Tiger and Gu Beicheng's sister, was merely the spark that ignited the flames. Even if Gu Beicheng's sister and Xuu Zhongxiong hadn't died today, the deaths of a Gu Nancheng or a Xuu Zhongci tomorrow would have inevitably triggered this massive conflict.
How many arrogant Martial Cultivators, once so proud and mighty, will lose their lives tonight? And Zhang Wu, who's always scheming to kill me... will he die in this war?
Lin Xuankong watched for a while longer before leaping down from the wooden building.
Entering the outer room, he examined the silver taels on the table by the light of the oil lamp.
Xuu Zhongxiong and Wang Qiluo, notorious for their greed, had clearly hoarded more wealth than Ma Xiong. The silver they carried on them alone amounted to over two hundred taels. Added to what he'd taken from Ma Xiong, Lin Xuankong now possessed more than three hundred silver taels.
So much money! Selling sesame seed cakes for a hundred years wouldn't earn me this much!
With this much silver, I can afford a daily bowl of Nine Revolutions Qi Replenishing Soup for over half a year. I shouldn't have to worry about money for a long time!
When my Young Lady returns, I can take her to the old man who sells meat pies. She can eat to her heart's content! That little glutton, her belly will be round even if she only takes one bite of each pie!
Of course, the most delightful acquisition for Lin Xuankong was Wang Qiluo's Twin Vine Demon Pearl!
According to Gu Beicheng, this Twin Vine Demon Pearl once appeared at an auction in Liang City, inciting countless Martial Cultivators to bid for it. Who would have guessed that such a precious Demon Pearl would fall into the hands of an old woman like Wang Qiluo, who wasn't even part of a gang!
Lin Xuankong clutched the Twin Vine Demon Pearl, his eyes shining brightly.
He had already tested the Twin Vine Demon Pearl. Just as he'd anticipated, when activated, the Demon Vines moved with incredible speed, perfectly obeying his will.
Never mind a first-layer Transcendence cultivator; even those at the Second Layer or Third Layer would likely fail to evade its sudden entanglement. And as long as he had sufficient Qi Blood, the Demon Vines could proliferate almost endlessly!
As for Qi Blood consumption...
Compared to the Manluo Demon Pearl, which consumed nearly ten points of Qi Blood per breath, the Twin Vine Demon Pearl used about three points per breath. This was still a substantial amount.
An ordinary Martial Cultivator, like Wang Po—a Late Stage first-layer cultivator—could only sustain it for seven or eight breaths before exhausting all their Qi Blood!
However, his Life Plate possessed a Qi Blood storage ability.
[Transcendent Qi Blood: 386/100,000]
With this much Qi Blood, he could sustain the Twin Vine Demon Pearl for over a hundred breaths!
Being able to activate the Twin Vine Demon Pearl for so long meant that even facing foes at the Second Layer or Third Layer of Transcendence might not be too dangerous! He could first use the Demon Vines for control, then bombard the 'stationary target' remotely with the Heaven-Covering Flying Locusts. Even if he couldn't kill Second Layer or Third Layer experts, he could certainly leave them battered and humiliated!
If Zhang Wu didn't die in this conflict, how would he react when he eventually encountered my Twin Vine Demon Pearl and Heaven-Covering Flying Locusts?