Chapter 325
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“Piaomiao Sect? Escaped? A petty thief???”
Though the voice was soft, how keen were Zhang Xiaohua’s senses at this moment? Even without extending his divine sense, every movement within his surroundings was nearly within his grasp. And now, these seemingly ordinary words, strung together, struck his ears like a bolt of lightning flashing across the night sky.
Zhang Xiaohua might not have officially joined the Piaomiao Sect, but ever since he left Guo Village and entered Pingyang City, everything he encountered had been inextricably tied to the Piaomiao Sect. Even the cultivation techniques he now practiced had all been salvaged from the Piaomiao Sect’s Library Pavilion. To say he felt no deep connection to the Sect would be sheer falsehood.
And now, someone dared to call disciples of the Piaomiao Sect “petty thieves” right in front of him? How could he possibly endure that? What’s more, the words “escaped” only stirred his endless curiosity.
Without making much of a show, his figure lightly floated down from the back of the Sibu Xiang. In the blink of an eye, he rose again and made directly for the crest of a nearby slope. Throughout the entire motion, there wasn’t the slightest hint of mortal dust—he moved as effortlessly and naturally as a breeze brushing through a willow tree, harmonious and graceful.
Zhang Xiaohua landed atop the high slope, his figure merging perfectly into the surrounding landscape. If not for someone witnessing it with their own eyes, it would be utterly impossible to see or even sense that someone had just appeared on that hillside.
Lying prone against the slope, Zhang Xiaohua quietly poked his head over the edge and looked down. On the other side of the hill, a large open space spread out below. Three men in fitted martial garb stood there, brandishing longswords and broadsabers, encircling a young man of about twenty-four or twenty-five years old in a triangular formation. That young man clutched a longsword, its tip quivering slightly. His brocade robe was already in tatters, many places revealing bare flesh and bloodied wounds. The clothing around the wounds was filthy and soaked with grimy blood. Though he had long since reached his limits under the three-man assault, he still refused to yield. At this moment, the trio seemed to be questioning him further, giving him a moment’s reprieve.
One of the men laughed and said: “Kid from the Piaomiao Sect, we’ve been following you for so long, and yet you actually managed to spot our flaw. Heh, so why aren’t you running now?”
The young man didn’t reply, instead seizing every moment to regulate his breathing, trying to recover his depleted inner strength.
Another man mocked: “Don’t waste your efforts. Do you really think we brothers can’t tell what you’re doing? Even if you fully recover your qi, how could you possibly be a match for the two of us?”
The third chimed in: “Let him rest. In a moment, he’ll use his Piaomiao Steps to slip from our grasp and flee back to his sect’s lair.”
“Hehe, that’d be perfect. We’ll just tail him, didn’t we want to find out where their hideout is?”
Hearing this exchange, Zhang Xiaohua furrowed his brow even deeper. “What on earth is going on?”
At this moment, the young man from the Piaomiao Sect seemed to realize the situation was hopeless. He stopped trying to recover, lowered his sword tip, and smiled: “They say in the martial world that the Heaven’s Way Alliance acts in the name of justice. Yet today, you outnumber me and show no shame at all.”
“Martial world rumors?” The three men laughed. “Have you got lard in your head? You actually believe those rumors?”
“Besides, in the jianghu, strength is what matters. If your Piaomiao Sect was strong enough, the rumors would revolve around you. Would you have let yourselves be caught out and your entire sect destroyed by us?”
A buzzing sound filled Zhang Xiaohua’s head, leaving him dazed.
“The sect was destroyed. Could it be that the entire Piaomiao Sect has been wiped out? What about Second Brother?”
In that instant, Zhang Xiaohua thought of his second brother, Zhang Xiaohu. He almost stood up to ask what had happened, but then reconsidered, surely the destruction of the Piaomiao Sect wasn’t something that happened today. What good would it do to panic now? Better to wait and see.
Sure enough, the Piaomiao Sect disciple spoke in a sorrowful voice: “If you want to condemn someone, you’ll always find a pretext. You’ve coveted our Piaomiao Sect for a long time and just needed an excuse to swallow us up. All that talk about secret martial arts manuals is nothing but lies you made up.”
“Heh, whether there were secret manuals or not isn’t for small fry like us to know. But the fact that your Piaomiao Sect has been destroyed? That’s undeniable.”
“Sigh, worthy of a sect with heritage-even surrounded, you still managed to escape from Piaomiao Manor. Brother, how have these three years in hiding treated you? Why not come with us to the Heaven’s Way Alliance? Then you could walk the martial world openly. We brothers swear on our lives, you’d have a place of honor in the Alliance!”
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaohua was even more shocked: “The Piaomiao Sect has already been destroyed for three years, that’s exactly the time I spent on the deserted island! I wonder if Second Brother managed to escape like this man did. Hm, once I save him, I’ll ask and find out.”
With that thought, he quietly drew the small sword from his robe, using his divine sense to keep it hovering in the air, waiting for the right moment.
The Piaomiao Sect disciple smiled and asked: “May I ask what positions the three brothers hold in the Heaven’s Way Alliance?”
“This?” One of them hesitated, then said, “We are all disciples of the Jinyu Hall under the Sixth Alliance Leader, Ban Fugui, of the Heaven’s Way Alliance. If you come with us, we’ll definitely report it to the hall master and credit you with a great merit.”
The Piaomiao disciple considered for a moment and said: “It’s not that I don’t trust the three brothers, but your positions seem rather low. How can you guarantee my safety?”
“You…” One of them looked annoyed, but another laughed: “Little brother, you don’t know this, but all the sects have a secret agreement, all disciples in the sect know it. As long as you’re a remnant of the Piaomiao Sect, oh, of course, if you’re willing to abandon the dark and join the light, then you’re not included. If you’re willing to defect to any sect, your life will be spared. If you can provide information on the whereabouts of others, you’ll be rewarded based on how many fugitives are captured. That’s why we can so readily promise you this.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is. You’ve really gone to great lengths.”
“Little brother, since we’ve said this much, and it’s getting late, why not put down your sword and let us seal your acupoints? Come back to the hall with us, and you’ll be able to earn great merit for your new sect.”
“Sigh, fine. Since it’s come to this, a wise bird chooses the right tree. I have no choice but to make a decision.”
With that, he reversed his grip and handed over his sword. The man before him smiled: “Little brother, you’re smart. If you’d done this earlier, we wouldn’t have had to chase you for so many days.”
After saying this, he reached out to grab the sword hilt.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiaohua was a bit surprised. Since this Piaomiao Sect disciple had managed to evade pursuit for so many days, he must be a person of strong will, how could he surrender so easily?
Sure enough, before Zhang Xiaohua could finish this thought, the situation in the field suddenly changed. The disciple gripped the blade tip, and with a sudden squeeze, blood gushed from his palm. Seemingly oblivious to pain, he swung the long sword straight at the man’s arm at such close range that the man had no time to react. His face changed drastically, and it looked as if he was about to lose an arm. Just at that moment, another sword flashed out from the side, blocking the strike right in front of the man’s arm. With a loud “clang”, the Piaomiao disciple’s sword was knocked back. His wounded hand throbbed in pain, his grip loosened, and the sword spun out of his grasp.
The Piaomiao disciple snatched the hilt with his left hand, seemingly unconcerned about the blood streaming from his right palm.
The Heaven’s Way Alliance disciple who had blocked the attack laughed: “Clever boy, I knew there was something fishy here. After being chased for so many days, how could you just surrender so easily?”
The disciple who had nearly lost his arm gritted his teeth and snarled: “Senior brother, enough talk! As long as we keep him alive, we can get anything we want out of him. Even if we can’t, that’s for others in the hall to handle. All we need to do is capture him, and it’s a great merit.”
The other two laughed loudly: “Junior brother is absolutely right.”
Seeing there was no longer any room to maneuver, the Piaomiao disciple said nothing, gripping his sword in his left hand and thrusting forward. The three Heaven’s Way Alliance members had already prepared for this and gave him no chance. Blades flashed, and within a few moves, the disciple suffered several more wounds. If they hadn’t wanted to take him alive, he would have already perished.
Realizing this, the Piaomiao disciple spun his sword in a wide arc and, with a desperate move – “Night Battle Eight Directions” – forced all three back. Glancing up at the night sky, he gave a bitter laugh and said: “Sect Master Ou, in this life, I was a disciple of Piaomiao Sect. I hope in the next life I can still serve under you.”
After saying this, he drew the longsword back with his left hand, preparing to cut his own throat!
The three attackers were shocked and rushed forward to stop him, but it was already too late.
At this critical moment, something shot in from the distance, a flash of dark light struck the Piaomiao disciple’s sword. With a crisp “crack”, the longsword was split cleanly in two.
The object, its momentum undiminished, flew off at an angle and stabbed into the ground. In the dim light, it looked like a dagger.
“Who’s there?”
Startled, the three Heaven’s Way Alliance members turned to look.
On a nearby hillside, a thin figure stood up from the ground. Then, displaying the peerless qinggong technique “Grass-Stepping Flight”, he drifted down like the wind and, in the blink of an eye, appeared before everyone.
Only now could the crowd see clearly: it was a tall, slender youth, about fifteen or sixteen years old.
Entering the clearing, the newcomer ignored the three Heaven’s Way Alliance members and fixed his gaze on the Piaomiao disciple, asking: “What did you say? What happened to the Piaomiao Sect?”
The Piaomiao disciple, stunned by the dagger that had shattered his sword and the youth’s extraordinary lightness skill, not to mention his surprisingly young age, found himself speechless when he saw the youth’s intense stare.
Meanwhile, the three Heaven’s Way Alliance members subtly shifted their positions, widening their encirclement to quietly include the newcomer as well. One of them cupped his fists and asked: “May I ask which sect this young hero belongs to? We are disciples of the Jinyu Hall of the Heaven’s Way Alliance, conducting official business here. May I ask you to…”
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