Chapter 54: Funeral Processions? Taking to the Streets!
Some time after leaving Panshan Town.
Qiao Mu, holding a long spear, is fighting and practicing with Zhang Kui, a mountain bandit who holds a spear in each hand, between the mountains and forests.
Both sides are using spears, and Zhang Kui is using two large spears, one in each hand.
But every time their long spears clash, the tremendous force transmitted through the spear shaft makes Qiao Mu's hand shake.
"Zhang Kui's internal strength is obviously weaker than mine, but his physical strength is much greater than mine?"
"Then----"
"Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method!"
With a long spear in his hand, there was a sudden burst of internal strength, creating a loud piercing sound.
Qiao Mu swung down a spear, using the wooden shaft to hit Zhang Kui's waist, sending the big man flying two to three meters away.
Holding the spear, Qiao Mu stood still in his place, appearing calm and relaxed.
In reality, he was enduring the painful aftermath of the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method, feeling a burning sensation in his internal meridians.
After reaching the age of 42, Qiao Mu's Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method had reached a basic level.
After ten years of hard training, he now had a deeper understanding of the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method.
Generally speaking, martial artists who have mastered the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method can tap into their potential and unleash multiple times their normal internal strength in a short period of time.
With his basic mastery of the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method, Qiao Mu now had greater control over his abilities.
The Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method suddenly burst forth in an instant, without any warning, and in the blink of an eye, it unleashed internal strength that exceeded Qiao Mu's own capacity by three to four times.
Faster eruption, with slightly less physical damage.
Self-harm doesn't affect Qiao Mu much, as he can refresh his condition by sacrificing himself.
Furthermore, Qiao Mu gained a better understanding of how to exploit his potential with the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method. This means he can squeeze out more potential when using the method, but the cost is a shorter duration and stronger side effects.
After all, the stronger the fire burns, the faster the firewood runs out.
Now, Qiao Mu has a mysterious self-confidence: no one understands the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method better than him!
This self-harming secret technique can only be used once or twice in a lifetime. Others don't have the opportunity to repeatedly use it and improve their proficiency like he does.
However, Qiao Mu is still a little unsatisfied.
"The side effects of this Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method are not big enough, it's simply not up to par!"
"Isn't it called the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method? Why doesn't my body fall apart and disintegrate completely after I use it?" Qiao Mu pondered.
"If it were that convenient, I wouldn't have to worry about dealing with my own body every time, it's so bothersome."
If the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method could also disintegrate the body or even turn it into dust, wouldn't that be more convenient?
While contemplating, Zhang Kui climbed up from the ground and walked over with a sheepish smile.
"Brother Qiao, your inner strength is so strong, indeed more powerful than mine."
He didn't realize that Qiao Mu had just unleashed the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method in an instant, thinking it was just Qiao Mu's unexpectedly strong inner strength.
Qiao Mu also had a question in his mind, "By the way, why is your strength so great?"
Just now, he held a spear with both hands to deal with Zhang Kui, whose hands were also holding a spear, but his hands were slightly numb from the impact, and it was obvious that the opponent's inner strength was not as good as his.
Zhang Kui explained, "Brother Qiao Sen, haven't you encountered any external martial artists? Martial arts can be divided into internal and external. Internal martial arts focus on developing internal strength, while external martial arts prioritize physical power. I practice external martial arts, which emphasizes physical training, and luckily, I also have naturally greater physical strength."
"The burst of internal strength became stronger, and the physical strength became more enduring. It can only be said that each has its own strengths."
Speaking of this, Zhang Kui sighed softly again.
"Power, Strength, and Skill are the three paths of martial artists, each with its own strengths."
"The internal strength and martial techniques of martial artists will continuously accumulate and improve with age and experience. It can be said that they become stronger as they grow older."
"I heard that there was once a martial arts master who was over eighty years old, with declining vitality, but his swordsmanship had reached an extraordinary level. He defeated a second rank martial artist in their prime using only a wooden sword."
"The accumulation of internal strength is like building a sand tower, it becomes more profound as the years go by."
"Only physical strength, once past its prime, will decline."
"I am strong now, but in another ten or eight years, if I am unable to continue to break through, my vitality will quickly decline, and my strength will weaken."
"Vitality is the foundation of a martial artist. If one's vitality is completely depleted due to old age and bodily decline, no matter how strong their internal strength and martial techniques are, they will be like castles in the air."
"We martial artists cannot live forever, our lives are limited. It's a pity that we cannot go further in the paths of skill and strength. Otherwise, perhaps we could truly match that inhuman..."
"Yes, mortal martial artists have limited lives. After a hundred years, they ultimately become a pile of dirt." Qiao Mu also sighed beside him.
Except for me.
Although Qiao Mu will also age, he will not die of old age. At the same time, his accumulated martial arts skills and internal strength will not disappear.
Not to mention, he also has a solution for the decline of qi and blood during old age, such as the "Long Life Fist Sutra."
While the two were talking.
Wang Songhe came walking from afar.
After Qiao Mu separated from Qiao Canxue in Panshan Town, he returned to this bandit's den to discuss their plans against City Lord Guo Yan.
The sparring with Zhang Kui just now was only a private exchange of skills.
At that time, Wang Songhe came over and asked about what happened earlier.
"Brother Qiao, the matter we discussed earlier has been taken care of."
"The body of your son, Qiao Lin, has already been reported to the authorities by a clean-background doctor under my command. By now, it should have been delivered to the Yan City Lord's residence." With this, Wang Songhe hesitated for a moment before continuing:
"But after all, the deceased deserves respect... Wasn't this a bit too much?"
Wang Songhe was shocked when he just heard that Qiao Mu wanted to use Qiao Lin's corpse to "fish".
After all, respect for the dead is important.
When City Lord Guo Yan made a statement, vowing to hang Qiao Lin's body on the city gates and expose it, Wang Songhe couldn't understand why Qiao Mu, being Qiao Lin's father, was rushing to deliver his own son's body. This action completely puzzled him.
However, Qiao Mu had no reservations in his mind, after all, this was not really his son's body, but his own.
If it wasn't necessary, Qiao Mu wouldn't leave behind his own body.
If needed, he can fight alongside his own dead body and ashes without any hesitation.
Qiao Mu said, "No need for more words. The deceased is gone. As a living person, I shall carry on with the unfinished matters of the deceased."
"If I could kill Guo Yan, I would willingly use my current body as bait instead of my son. Unfortunately, it's not possible."
Wang Songhe and Zhang Kui remained silent.
Although they still couldn't fully understand, they all thought... Qiao Sen is truly a ruthless person.
Truly worthy of being the father of Qiao Mu and Qiao Lin!
"But speaking of that, how confident is Brother Qiao Sen? After Qiao Lin's body is delivered to Yan City Lord's mansion, will Guo Yan fall for the trap and leave that heavily guarded residence?" Wang Songhe asked again.
Guo Yan, who was hiding in the City Lord's mansion, is invincible.
The chance to infiltrate the City Lord's mansion was only once, and now they have already alerted the guards. Qiao Mu naturally cannot launch another strong attack on the mansion.
But if Guo Yan is not in the heavily guarded lord's mansion, maybe we can try.
"I'm pretty sure," said Qiao Mu.
Actually, he only had a 50% certainty in his heart.
From his previous encounters with Guo Yan, he was certain that this person valued his wastrel son greatly.
Now that Childe Guo was dead, it was also normal for Guo Yan to do something like hanging Qiao Lin's body on the city gate to vent his anger.
It's impossible to have a foolproof plan. There is no one as wise as Zhuge Kongming, and Qiao Mu cannot read minds.
A thousand plans are not as good as one reckless action.
If it were someone like Wang Songhe, carrying the lives of many bandits on his back, it would be difficult to not hesitate and worry about things.
But Qiao Mu is different.
Other people's lives are valuable, but he is willing to risk his own life at any time to fight.
So even if this mission fails, it's no big deal, they can just start over.
He acted recklessly.
.................
The morning light is faint.
The gates of Yan City are tightly closed, and a group of soldiers is guarding them.
A merchant caravan wanted to enter the city, but they were stopped at the city gates. No matter how the leader of the caravan smiled and begged, or secretly bribed, the gates remained closed.
Qiao Mu and Wang Songhe, along with a group of bandits, were on a small hill, observing the situation at the gates of Yan City.
Wang Songhe said, "Since Qiao Lin broke into the city lord's mansion, Yan City has been sealed off for a full seven days. It's been difficult for outsiders to enter the city. Only Brother Qiao Lin's coffin was allowed in."
"If this Guo Yan wants to move the body of the heroic Qiao Lin, it will probably happen in the next two days. But how do we get in?"
"It seems like this Guo Yan is wary of outsiders like Brother Qiao Sen entering the city."
Wang Songhe felt a bit helpless.
The plan couldn't keep up with the changes. They were originally planning to secretly enter Yan City and wait for Guo Yan to leave the Lord's residence before making a move on Qiao Lin's body. But now they can't even enter Yan City.
Killing one Qiao Mu brought about an Qiao Lin.
Now that they've killed Qiao Lin, this Guo Yan has also become cautious and directly sealed the city. Even if the Qiao's family wanted revenge, it would be difficult for them to enter.
"Then you can try using the underground passage beneath the Lord's residence." Qiao Mu suggested.
"There is an underground river passage beneath the Lord's residence that leads to the mountains outside the city. That's where my son drifted out from."
"Aside from that, there should be a hidden study chamber within the Lord's residence."
"If nothing unexpected happens, there should be something from the Wuji Association inside the secret room."
Wang Songhe stared at Qiao Mu, feeling a bit shocked.
He was not only amazed by Qiao Mu's knowledge of the Lord's Manor, but also surprised by what he heard - that Qiao Mu had no intention of joining them in their action.
"I have my own way to enter the city, but you won't be able to follow this path."
"I'll be blunt, no need for politeness." Qiao Mu said calmly.
"When it comes to killing Guo Yan, no one can compete with me."
"I'll go kill Guo Yan, and after he leaves the manor, you can sneak in from the well to create chaos..."
No one can compete with Qiao Mu when it comes to throwing their life away!
He won't be polite with anyone when it comes to this kind of job!
Wang Songhe and others immediately showed respect.
Although they joined forces to deal with Guo Yan, assassinating Guo Yan was undoubtedly the most dangerous part.
And Qiao Mu unexpectedly suggested they step back. From what he said, he even wanted to face Guo Yan alone?
As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Taking the most dangerous part upon himself in such a proactive manner was more touching than ten thousand righteous lines.
Does "Qiao Sen" have a grudge against Guo Yan? So he's eager to kill Guo Yan?
These bandits have families to take care of, and most of them come from Yan City. Their grudges might not be any less than "Qiao Sen's."
Especially Wang Songhe himself, who was injured in a fierce fight with City Lord Guo Yan.
Seeing the bandits' strange reactions, Qiao Mu thought they might find him too righteous, which was abnormal. So he sincerely explained:
"In my entire life, I have no other interests except showing off in front of good people and having excellent martial arts manuals."
"If you don't compete with me for the chance to show off in front of others and help me steal some secret books from the Wuji Association, it would be the greatest help for me."
Qiao Mu's lack of explanation was better, as this explanation only made things more obvious.
Showing off in front of others? Who would risk their own life to do that?
And as for trying to take those possibly nonexistent martial arts secret books, it's simply ridiculous.
Finally, Wang Songhe put an end to the quarrel among the bandits who were hesitant to speak.
The two teams went in separate directions.
Qiao Lin turned and walked along a familiar mountain path, arriving at a cliff edge.
This cliff was where Qiao Mu had bid him farewell, and where they both jumped off with the gray-clothed old man.
Without hesitation, he leaped and fell straight down, shattering his bones upon impact.
The loud sound on the ground startled the wolves in the valley. The wolves opened their shiny green eyes and looked at Qiao Mu's body, then looked up at the sky.
The weather is nice today, and it's starting to rain again?
Thank you again for the blessings from above.
.............
When Qiao Mu opened his eyes again, he found himself back at the empty house in the outer city revival point.
This kind of meaningless suicide is considered as E-level death in the judgment of the Immortal Lock. It wastes six months to a year of life span without any increase in martial arts skills.
But for Qiao Mu, this was a great thing.
His body refreshed once again, completely recovered from the damage caused by the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method, and returned to the best state.
And more importantly, he had already infiltrated Yan City.
The more the city was locked down by Guo Yan, the less he could imagine that someone could secretly enter Yan City.
If Qiao Mu takes action, it will surely be unexpected for Guo Yan.
................
Qiao Mu patiently waits for his chance in an empty house in the outer city area.
After seven days of being on high alert in the Lord's Manor, the tense atmosphere finally eased after Qiao Lin's body appeared and City Lord Guo Yan laughed heartily for the first time.
Although nobody believed that Qiao Lin could survive such serious injuries, finding the body still brought some peace of mind.
The Qiao brothers died tragically, and the so-called Qiao family is not a concern, and may not even exist.
During this time, the threat to the Lord's Manor finally disappeared completely.
The next day.
The sun was shining brightly.
City Lord Guo Yan, who hadn't left his house for many days, finally stepped out of the City Lord's Mansion.
He rode a strong horse at the front, with a sturdy body and a serious expression. Behind him were hundreds of servants, just like the grand procession he used to have when riding through the streets.
The City Lord's grand appearance naturally caught the attention of the people on the streets. The crowd quickly made way, curious to see the coffin in the middle of the procession.
"Is the City Lord... attending a funeral? Is it for the young lord who was assassinated?"
"But why isn't anyone wearing mourning clothes? It doesn't seem like a funeral."
Guo Yan listened to the people's comments without any expression on his face. His lips curved downward slightly, and his face darkened.
He wasn't attending a funeral, but rather going on a public display.
He was going to carry Qiao Lin's body from the inner city to the gate of the outer city, crossing the entire Yan City. Then, he would hang the body on the city gate tower, making everyone in Yan City see the fate of the wicked Qiao Lin.
"Open the coffin! Let them have a good look!" City Lord Guo Yan ordered decisively.
