Chapter 153
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
Chapter 153: Child, Don’t Be Self-Delusional
Wan Ronghua’s family had a thriving business, and naturally, they had their own industry in the market square of the Imperial Capital.
At this time, he was observing the commotion caused by Qiao Mu from a room in a tavern facing the street.
Qiao Shuanglin killed the sacred Sword Ghost of the Wan family, whom he saw as a great enemy.
So he came here in person, prepared to witness how Qiao Shuanglin would handle this, and then based on Qiao Shuanglin’s reaction, make his next move.
When he saw Qiao Mu draw his sword and declare that he would risk his life to prove his innocence, he was amazed.
"This Qiao Shuanglin is courageous… but if he dies like this, then the mission will be successfully completed, and it will be easy."
From his perspective, if Qiao Mu were to die as a result, it couldn’t get any better.
He only lost an ordinary pawn who wasn’t even an internal strength martial artist, but he exchanged it for the formidable enemy Qiao Shuanglin, who was above the spiritual refining fourth rank. This deal was definitely a win-win!
Wan Ronghua could never have imagined that Qiao Mu was an immortal.
Once Qiao Mu dies, the situation won’t end here.
Instead, there will be a second and third even more powerful Qiao Mu coming back, determined to fight to the death!
A powerful enemy who cannot be killed and even becomes stronger as they kill more, it’s really despairing!
What’s even more despairing is… they don’t know about Qiao Mu’s special powers, so they still hold onto hope of killing Qiao Mu.
"But that young woman seems to lack courage." Wan Ronghua frowned and pondered.
"Being threatened by Qiao Shuanglin like that, she’s having trouble speaking clearly. Others might start to suspect something, don’t you think?"
The situation is constantly changing.
As a wealthy person in the capital city, Wan Ronghua naturally has some skills.
Only by being present at the scene does he believe he can understand people’s true intentions from their subtle expressions and take appropriate actions.
So, what should he do now?
Should he give new orders to his subordinates at the scene to intimidate and coerce that young woman?
But soon, with a loud noise from the tea house next door, the tea house almost collapsed, and two beams of rainbow light rushed out, transforming into two figures wearing Great Dao Sect robes.
The icy cyclone wreaked havoc in the market square, sweeping away the stalls and meat cases, turning them into icy streams, blowing against Dao Zhen, who was enveloped in golden light.
The crowd in the market square was chaotic, filled with screams and shouts.
"People from Great Dao Sect? How could they be fighting in the bustling market square?"
Wan Ronghua’s heart skipped a beat.
He was unexpectedly involved in an Inhuman Disaster?
This is the Imperial Capital! Not some deserted countryside or small town!
Even as a cultivator from Great Dao Sect, shouldn’t they still follow the rules?
As a wealthy person in the Imperial Capital, Wan Ronghua’s biggest background was Immortal Gate Great Dao Sect. How could he not recognize the robes of Dao Zhen and Dao Xu?
Wan Ronghua felt miserable in his heart, watching the hired actors disperse and run away on the street.
No matter how many plans he made, they were no match for the Immortal Gate’s powerful fists.
Dao Xu, a female disciple of the Great Dao Sect, behaved recklessly, daring to fight openly in the bustling city without fear of harming innocent people.
This was something he couldn’t predict, and he could only attribute it to his bad luck.
He stood up quickly, and an old man in black appeared, blocking in front of him. With a punch, the air seemed to ripple, shattering the ice spike that had come through the broken window.
"Master Wan, when inhuman goes crazy, we won’t be able to stop them. We should run!" The old man’s face also grew serious.
"This is the Imperial Capital. Once things escalate, the Immortal Gate elders of the Great Dao Sect should come and put an end to the fight between those two cultivators… but that will be later. If we stay here, we won’t wait until then!"
He was a skilled bodyguard hired by the Wan family, and he had also reached the spiritual refining stage. His responsibility was to protect Wan Ronghua.
But even he didn’t dare to face the sharpness of the Great Dao Sect cultivator, so he could only urge his master to leave quickly.
"Leave? Yes, hurry away!"
Wan Ronghua looked at Qiao Mu in the bustling central market with hatred. With the old man’s escort, they quickly left the tea house and left at the fastest speed.
Just as they stepped onto the street, they happened to encounter a crowd of people running and escaping at the vegetable market.
"Master Wan is here too…" someone’s eyes flickered. This person was the butcher who was slaughtering pigs at the vegetable market before. When the young woman caused trouble, he was one of the first actors to step forward from the crowd.
Now that he saw Wan Ronghua, naturally, he gritted his teeth and followed behind Wan Ronghua with full force.
Right now, there are cultivators fighting at the vegetable market. It is certain that ordinary people who get involved in the aftermath of the battle will die.
As for someone like Wan Ronghua, who is a big shot, he must have experts escorting him. Even if he can’t directly confront the cultivators from the Great Dao Sect, his chances of surviving are higher than blindly running around, right?
Even if the sky falls, someone tall will hold it up!
There are still quite a few smart people like the butcher. Several people are closely following behind Wan Ronghua.
"Why are you following me?" Wan Ronghua widened his eyes, feeling a sudden sense of danger. He felt as if there were sharp thorns on his back, and a piercing gaze landed on him from behind.
With a brave face, he turned around and saw Qiao Mu in the distance, their gazes meeting.
"Hisss…" Wan Ronghua turned around with a forced smile and continued to run away, silently praying that Qiao Mu wouldn’t recognize him.
But of course, this was impossible.
"Wan Ronghua? It’s not a coincidence to see you here." Qiao Mu squinted his eyes, his intentions turning deadly.
If only Wan Ronghua could continue hiding inside the house from afar.
However, he had a skilled spiritual refining expert guarding him, and several people were running on the streets behind him. If Qiao Mu didn’t realize that something was wrong, it would be strange.
"Is he the mastermind behind all this?" Qiao Mu suddenly became interested.
He had initially thought that he had angered some high-ranking official or even Emperor Yonghe himself, but he never expected it to be this wealthy figure from the Imperial Capital.
"If I seek revenge now, it shouldn’t be a problem." He tightly gripped the sword in his hand, filled with a strong desire to kill.
Wan Ronghua has caused trouble repeatedly, how could there be no anger in his heart?
At this moment, the two individuals from the Great Dao Sect, Dao Zhen and Dao Xu, are engaged in a fierce battle.
The thoughts of others are focused on escaping, and the only one who can stop him is the spiritual refining guard by Wan Ronghua’s side.
But this is not a big problem.
Because others are concerned about their lives, their thoughts are focused on avoiding the aftermath of the battle between the two cultivators.
Qiao Mu has never been afraid of death.
The battle between Dao Zhen and Dao Xu is actually a great help for Qiao Mu.
As long as he is determined to chase and kill Wan Ronghua, he should have a good chance of success…
And at this moment, Dao Xu and Dao Zhen in the sky above Cai Shi Kou started to fight for real.
"Senior sister, if you act so recklessly, you will definitely be punished by the sect."
Dao Zhen remained calm and watched the crowd below at Cai Shi Kou fleeing.
Allowing a cultivator to use spells in the busy Imperial Capital would surely result in a great disaster.
As the Mysterious Ice Pearl emitted a brilliant light, a chilling cold spread rapidly, covering the stalls at Cai Shi Kou with frost, which was then swept up into the air by the storm.
"If that’s the case, then don’t hide in your shell. Let’s finish this quickly!" Dao Xu’s expression turned cold, refusing to budge an inch.
With things reaching this point, how could she possibly back down now?
Whether in victory or in punishment, defeating this Junior Brother Dao Zhen would at least bring her some satisfaction…
Not only did she not stop, but she continued to cast spells, invoking the power of the Mysterious Ice Pearl.
Tap tap.
The whole market square was covered in a layer of frost, and the harsh frosty whirlwind grew stronger, threatening to engulf Dao Zhen, who was surrounded by golden light.
Dao Zhen quickly reacted and transformed into a rainbow, narrowly avoiding the frosty whirlwind’s collision with the golden light.
Boom!
The wooden platform at the execution grounds behind Dao Zhen was swept up by the whirlwind, and icy crystal frost swords carved terrifying long trenches on the platform.
With a creaking sound, the wooden platform collapsed and fell to the ground, but before it could hit the floor, it was covered in frost and turned into a big chunk of ice, lopsided and frozen.
The roaring ice storm drowned out the cries and noise of the crowd.
"This is a cultivator…"
Dragon Claw Hu Han’s eyes twitched, and his heartbeat echoed loudly.
He was a well-known martial artist of the 4th rank in Zhong Province, so he had seen and encountered many powerful martial artists.
No matter how much he trained his strength and power, their destructive abilities were limited to that of an ordinary person.
Although his physical body was strong, it was still flesh and blood and couldn’t compare to gold and iron.
Even if his internal strength was strong, it could never compare to that of a cultivator who could easily demolish a prison or a teahouse.
As for Spirit Refining martial artists?
The strength of spiritual refining lies in the mind, but that doesn’t mean their power can surpass that of a 4th rank martial artist or go head-to-head with a cultivator. It is impossible to win in a direct confrontation between martial artists and cultivators.
Moreover, these were just the aftermath of the battle between the two cultivators.
Dao Xu from the Great Dao Sect had to consider the sect’s rules, so even if he didn’t care about the lives of ordinary people, he restrained himself to some extent.
"Why are we martial artists fighting against cultivators… Can I still switch to cultivating in the immortal path now?"
Hu Han felt bitter in his heart. When he was young, he had a passionate spirit to compete with ruthless opponents, but over time it faded away. Now, seeing the huge gap in martial and immortal arts, it shook him deeply.
The icy whirlwind continued to sweep in with lingering force.
At this moment.
In the howling cold wind, there came a few faint cries.
Among these voices were cries of young girls and boys, as well as cries from middle-aged men and women.
Hu Han clenched his teeth but didn’t look back.
He didn’t need to look back to know what had happened from those cries… but he felt helpless.
When he stood before an elderly man with the surname Qiao, he could still uphold justice. But now, he couldn’t even protect his own life. Like a mud statue crossing the river, he couldn’t take care of others anymore.
He dared not look back, afraid that if he did, he would feel unable to endure the guilt and develop a sense of being unwilling to save lives…
While he was gritting his teeth and rushing forward.
A familiar figure, but going against the fleeing crowd, Hu Han quickly and astonishly charged towards the oncoming icy storm.
"Such a fast speed, definitely a martial artist above me…" This thought flashed through his mind, and suddenly his eyes widened:
"That person seems to be…"
He couldn’t help but look back.
He saw an elderly figure, enveloped in a burst of bloody light, exploding with speed, surpassing the crowd, arms wide open, using his flesh and blood to face the aftermath of the icy storm.
This was an old man, his figure seeming thin, but his outstretched arms were like a protective eagle, shielding several civilians who were about to be swept up by the whirlwind.
It was almost instantaneously.
The twin swords within the storm cut through his entire body, blood gushing out.
The blood hadn’t even dripped to the ground yet, and it had already frozen into ice.
The sound of freezing could be heard constantly with a crackling sound.
Not only the blood, but his entire body had frozen like an ice sculpture.
The old man maintained a pose with his arms outstretched, leaving the others with a silhouette, standing there lifelike, like a sculpture.
"Is this person… not that Qiao Shuanglin?"
Hu Han was stunned, his eyes wide open.
Even Dragon Claw, the great hero of Zhong Province, couldn’t help himself and could only escape for his life just now, afraid that he would miss out on saving himself because of saving others. But this old man, who seemed like a provocative lady, was willing to sacrifice himself?
He looked closely, and among the people protected by the old man, one or two faces were slightly familiar, they were among the crowd of onlookers who had accused Qiao Shuanglin earlier…
At this moment, he, just like Hu Han, was frozen in shock, obviously experiencing a tremendous impact in his heart.
"What are you standing there for? Run quickly," Hu Han shouted suddenly, urging the stunned group of three or four to escape.
And he stood still, feeling the tumultuous waves surging in his heart…
"Not saying a word, yet willing to risk his own life for the sake of others?" he murmured.
"And amongst the people he protected, there were even those who had slandered him?"
"Are there really heroes in this world who sacrifice themselves for others and repay hatred with kindness?" Hu Han mumbled to himself.
He couldn’t understand, but he was deeply inspired.
"But how could such a hero possibly stoop to doing something outrageous to a woman on the street?"
And what shocked him even more was yet to come.
While he deeply respected him in his heart, deciding to burn incense for Qiao Shuanglin’s soul after escaping alive.
Crackling sounds suddenly rang out.
A crack appeared on the icy figure, then quickly spread, covering a large area.
"Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method！"
Qiao Mu’s powerful internal strength erupted from his body, and his blood-red aura surged out. He forcefully broke free from the ice sculpture, his whole body boiling with energy.
"What a joke to repay kindness with resentment? Don’t be so sentimental, child," the old man still had his back turned to them, not giving them a single glance. He spoke with an air of arrogance.
"I stepped forward, not for your praise or admiration, so whether you admire or criticize me, I don’t care…Don’t think I’ll sacrifice myself for such shallow reasons."
Qiao Mu’s gaze was sharp as he clenched his fist tightly.
He had understood a lesson early on, that killing is easy, but saving is difficult.
Do we still need to rely on inhuman power to kill Wan Ronghua? Laughable.
Even though Qiao Mu liked to show off in front of people and then brag about himself, he didn’t die just to show off. He died while trying to be impressive, but these are two different things.
"There has always been only one reason for me to willingly go to my death even though I didn’t have to."
"Because there are many unfair things in this world." Qiao Mu raised his head and narrowed his eyes as he looked at the two Taoist priests fighting in the sky.
"And they just happened to come across me."