Chapter 19 Cold Moon Alone
Though Wu Qianhuan's warning came fast, their clash moved faster—like lightning.
Before she could even finish speaking, Chu Fan's Taiyi Divine Fist had already struck out.
Ironically, her warning only made matters worse. The moment Chu Fan heard her words, the power in his body surged—he unleashed his full strength.
Fist met fist.
Boom!
The muffled thunder of their collision resounded, and waves of internal force exploded outward.
Everyone present felt the shock and turned pale.
The two "servants" nearby didn't even have time to react before the force sent them flying.
Except—only one of them was truly struck. The other had deliberately flung himself away.
Chu Qing felt like cursing out loud.
What kind of cursed banquet was this? Why did all the demons and monsters of the martial world decide to show up today?
Valley of Ten Thousand Nights—Xin Youhen.
He had heard that name before but never paid much attention to it.
The Valley of Ten Thousand Nights lay to the east of Tianwu City. The two families had long been on friendly terms, with no rumors of enmity.
So why had Xin Youhen suddenly infiltrated the Chu household and launched an attack on Chu Fan?
At that moment, Wu Qianhuan instinctively turned her head to glance at the two servants who had been flung aside—and her eyes met Chu Qing's faintly exasperated gaze.
It lasted only a heartbeat. At first, she didn't register what she'd seen.
But then something felt wrong. That was not the look a servant should have.
And worse—why did that gaze feel so familiar?
The thought flickered through her mind, but she had no time to dwell on it.
When she looked up again, Chu Fan had already retreated three steps, the third landing solidly to stabilize his stance.
Xin Youhen, meanwhile, hadn't taken a single step back. His eyes glimmered in surprise.
"What formidable innate strength! What a Taiyi Divine Fist!"
Even as he spoke, his feet moved, launching another punch in swift succession.
"Xin Youhen! How dare you cause harm in Tianwu City!"
Wu Qianhuan twisted her long sword, ready to strike, but Tang Xi shouted angrily and leapt into the air first.
His palms fluttered like petals, striking toward Xin Youhen's back.
"Get lost!"
Xin Youhen's inner force surged. Without even turning, he lashed out with one backward kick.
It shattered Tang Xi's palm strike and drove straight through, landing squarely against his chest.
With a dull crack, Tang Xi spat blood and was hurled backward, slamming heavily into the ground.
"Young Hall Master Tang!?"
Wu Qianhuan's heart sank. Her long-primed sword finally unleashed its strike.
The City Lord of Tianwu City, Wu Ganqi, was renowned in the martial world for his Seventy-Seven Forty-Nine Forms of the Xing Tian Axe. But as a woman, Wu Qianhuan had found wielding such a massive weapon unbecoming and had instead devoted herself to swordsmanship.
Her sword art came from a famed master—Reverend Ye Tan of Green Pine Cave on Lone Moon Mountain—and was known as the Cold Moon Sword.
The moon-bright blade shone like a silver wheel, its light cold as frost.
When unleashed, it was like the full moon rising over the sea—radiant and majestic.
Her natural talent had always been extraordinary. Even in childhood, Chu Qing had often been beaten black and blue by this girl during practice matches.
Now, after seven years apart, she had perfected both inner and outer cultivation to an exceptional degree.
With a single stroke, Xin Youhen's second punch was halted mid-motion.
His Overturning Sea Dragon Fist surged like waves from a storm-tossed ocean, continuous and unending.
But if he persisted in attacking Chu Fan, he would surely be wounded by Wu Qianhuan's blade.
Pivoting on his left leg, he turned his body sharply, redirecting his second punch from Chu Fan toward Wu Qianhuan instead.
In that instant, the courtyard filled with flashing sword light and roaring fists, dazzling to the eye.
Suddenly—
Xin Youhen's superior internal power prevailed. The accumulated energy of five Overturning Sea Dragon Fists burst forth, overwhelming Wu Qianhuan's strength.
A sound like shattering glass echoed as the moonlight of her sword fractured and faded.
A massive shadowed fist tore through the air, driving straight toward Wu Qianhuan's chest.
Just as she was about to be struck, Xin Youhen's body abruptly stiffened mid-motion.
The punch that had been as swift as thunder suddenly lost all its momentum.
Wu Qianhuan twisted her steps, her form leaving afterimages as she narrowly evaded the strike.
"Junior sister, now!"
Chu Fan, having steadied his breath, shouted as he leapt into the air, his legs crossing and sweeping forth.
It was the Taiyi Divine Leg, from the Human Scroll of the Immutable Heavenly Scripture of Taiyi Sect.
Hearing his command, junior sister Wen showed no expression. She spun lightly, raising a hand and striking with one finger.
Their attacks fell simultaneously.
Xin Youhen drew in a sharp breath, his body coiling like a divine dragon among clouds as countless fist shadows burst outward, filling the air.
Yet even as he attacked, his eyes darted around the courtyard, as though searching for something unseen.
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded.
"Sister, what are they doing?"
"They're fighting, little one."
"Should we help?"
"If you want to fight, just say so…"
"Then who do we hit?"
"..."
The older sister fell silent.
Lying on the ground feigning unconsciousness, Chu Qing instantly recognized the voices.
He squinted one eye open and glanced toward the wall—two heads were peeking over the top.
After a moment, he remembered.
Those were the same lunatics who'd appeared when Chu Fan fought the Iron Horse Seven Bandits.
Why in the world had they come here again?
While that thought crossed his mind, the older sister spoke up.
"Last time, we wronged Second Young Master Chu without understanding the situation. This time, we've come to apologize. Let's help him out."
"But they're outnumbering him!"
"...Just this once."
"Fine."
The younger sister's face was full of reluctance, but in the next instant, she leapt into the air. The older sister followed, and quite naturally, the younger one grabbed her sister's ankle midair.
Then the younger sister swung her around like a weapon, hurling her straight toward Xin Youhen.
The older sister extended one palm forward, releasing a fierce gust of internal force at the same time.
Even a lifelong wanderer like Xin Youhen had never seen such an absurd fighting style.
The brilliance of this technique lay in its insanity—the weapon was human, and the human carried a hidden killing strike.
In other words, the weapon itself concealed a deadly counterattack.
He now had to defend not only against the person being hurled at him but also against the person doing the hurling.
It was utterly incomprehensible.
For an instant, Xin Youhen felt as though he had stepped into the threshold of life and death, where a single misstep could end him.
Truly, he was living up to his name—bearing a grudge against fate itself.
Drawing a deep breath, he shifted his stance. Both fists opened into palms, unleashing a thunderous explosion that sent shockwaves rolling across the courtyard.
Chu Fan and junior sister Wen were forced to change their moves and defend, while Xin Youhen's body shot upward, leaping clear over the wall.
"Eh? He ran away!?"
The younger sister's strike hit nothing but air, leaving her face full of disappointment.
The older sister huffed indignantly.
"Retreating without a fight—how shameless!"
"Chase him!"
Chu Fan could hardly allow this intruder to escape after attacking so brazenly.
He immediately vaulted over the wall in pursuit.
The two sisters exchanged glances. The last time they had mistaken Chu Fan for an enemy during the Iron Horse Seven Bandits incident, they had planned to apologize after killing the bandits.
But they went the wrong way, and by the time they returned, they heard the bandits had all died at the hands of the so-called "Night Emperor."
Now, arriving empty-handed, they'd come to the Chu household to make amends.
Yet before they could even apologize, the man had already taken off.
"This won't do! Wait for us—we haven't apologized yet!"
Calling out, they dashed off in pursuit as well.
Only junior sister Wen remained behind. She turned to glance at the courtyard and noticed two people missing.
One was the servant who had brought the tea tray. The other—Wu Qianhuan.
When had they slipped away?
Wen pondered for a moment, then decided it wasn't worth the trouble. She turned away, unconcerned.
(End of this chapter)
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