White-Robed Chief

Murong Liang squawked as he drew his sword from its scabbard before pointing it at the tip of Chu Li’s sword.

The other two men pounced on Chu Li as well. Each of them was going to attack with a fist and a palm respectively. The two men and Murong Liang were all Innate Masters.

Chu Li let them hit him however they liked.

“Bang! Bang!” The two men were sent flying away.

The tip of Murong Liang’s sword clashed against Chu Li’s sword before it was flung out of his hand.

The tip of Chu Li’s sword traveled downward and stabbed into Murong Liang’s dantian.

“Er…” Murong Liang’s eyes widened in disbelief. His body stiffened as he struggled to process the situation.

Chu Li raised his sword, and it pierced right through Murong Liang as if he was the meat on a skewer.

Chu Li stared at him for a moment and withdrew his sword.

Blood spurted out of Murong Liang’s abdomen, and he crumpled onto the ground heavily.

“Murong!” The other two men called out.

They did not expect Chu Li to be this vicious. The long sword had pierced straight through his abdomen, and he was barely holding on to life.

Chu Li announced, “He’s not dead. I have merely crippled his Martial Art. Bring him home and give him some medicine.”

Then, he turned and left.

Murong Liang came here tonight with the intention to kill him, so there was no reason for him to be merciful. He was gracious enough to not take his life but only dispel him of his Martial Art.

Moreover, he wanted to simplify things as efficiently as possible. The whole thing would be much easier if he could lure Murong Chun out and defeat him on the spot.

“Zhuge Tian!” Zhou Hange exclaimed.

Chu Dazhi was also glaring at him furiously.

The two youths helped Murong Liang up. They were flustered and did not know what to do.

Chu Li turned and spared them a glance before shaking his head. “Murong Liang, do you dare to say that you didn’t plan to kill me?”

Murong Liang’s face was pale as he gave him a scornful glare. “Zhuge Tian, just you wait!”

“To ambush me in the middle of the night… If I didn’t dodge this piece of rock, I would’ve become mincemeat by now. What brutal tactics! I really want to ask you: why are we enemies again?” Chu Li said.

“Zhuge Tian, we were only fooling around!” Zhou Hange spoke in a deep voice.

Chu Li burst into laughter. “You’re fooling around, and so is Chu Dazhi, but Murong Liang wasn’t!”

The two men shook their heads.”Don’t you make unfounded claims!”

Chu Li sighed again and smiled. “Men should be bold enough to take responsibility for their own actions. Murong Liang, say something!”

“… That’s right. I wanted to kill you!” Murong Liang said through gritted teeth.

Chu Li asked, “I did you no wrong. Why do you want to kill me?”

“Because you’re an embarrassment to Crouching Bull Mountain. You’re not worthy to become the young lord of Crouching Bull Mountain!” Murong Liang gritted out the words.

Chu Li said, “You think I’m not worthy, and you yourself are the one who’s more worthy to become the young lord of Crouching Bull Mountain. Am I right?”

“That’s right!” scoffed Murong Liang.

Chu Li shook his head and sighed. “How naïve! In any case, I’ve dispelled your Martial Art. You have to start from the beginning once again.”

“Zhuge Tian, I won’t forget this!” Murong Liang snarled.

Chu Li flashed him a smile. “You won’t forget this? Are you going to ask your dad for help?”

“My father will have your Martial Art dispelled!” Murong Liang roared. “He’ll break your limbs and make you a handicapped man for the rest of your life!”

Chu Li burst into laughter. “We’ll see if your dad is capable of doing so. Elder Murong is said to be very powerful. I hope to witness it!”

“Just you wait!” Murong Liang clenched his teeth.

Chu Li turned and walked away. He closed the door and returned to the courtyard.

Zhou Hange and Chu Dazhi exchanged glances. They turned their attention towards Murong Liang who was still bleeding profusely and hurried to carry him away.

The two carried Murong Liang to a courtyard. Pushing the doors open, they called out, “Elder Murong! Elder Murong!”

A middle-aged man was practicing martial arts in the yard leisurely. The flower petals around were dancing and twirling along with his fist force.

He was slender yet lean. His arms and legs were thin. They looked as though a light bent would cause them to break. His eyes were filled with bright and vigorous as if they could see right through one easily.

He got up and took a look at Murong Liang before applying a few pressure points to seal the bleeding. Then, he checked his meridian before shaking his head. “The dantian is destroyed. His Martial Arts is gone!”

Murong Liang frantically asked, “Father, can it be treated?”

“It’s untreatable.” Murong Chun shook his head. “The dantian is completely destroyed. This is the work of a master. Who did you offend?”

“Elder Murong, it’s the young lord.” Zhou Hange said.

“Zhuge Tian, the young lord?” Murong Chun turned and looked at him.

Zhou Hange nodded. “We were planning on ambushing him but didn’t expect him to possess such a powerful Martial Art. It took him one stab to destroy Murong’s dantian. We couldn’t save him in time!”

“The young lord was actually this powerful?” Murong Chun frowned.

Zhou Hange said, “We attacked him, but he didn’t even flinch and simply flung us away.”

Murong Chun let out a sigh, shaking his head. He looked at Murong Liang and said, “You didn’t do your homework on him before making a move. Let this be a lesson.”

“Father, my Martial Art!” Murong Liang exclaimed, utterly dissatisfied. “What about my Martial Art?”

“You have to start cultivating all over again,” said Murong Chun. “Nothing to make a fuss over. Recovery will take just over a month. Once the dantian is healed, you can start your cultivation. This time, you better take things slow. Don’t rush into everything you do.”

“Father, aren’t you going to avenge me?” Murong Liang called out. “My Martial Art is going to be dispelled just like that?”

“You offended the young lord. It was good of him to not kill you!!” snorted Murong Chun. “Avenge you? You want me to fight the young lord? Are you really an idiot? It’s so embarrassing to have you as a son!”

Murong Liang said, “Am I just going to let my Martial Art be dispelled?”

“Yes, it has been dispelled just like that. Who would’ve thought you’re an idiot? Take this as a lesson!” Murong Chun shook his head. “Hange, Dazhi, you guys can go home. Remember to stay away from the young lord in the future.”

“Yes.” The two of them nodded obediently.

Although Murong Chun was friendly, they always made sure not to overstep their boundaries around him. They dared not speak inappropriately.

Once the duo left, Murong Chun shook his head and stared at Murong Liang. He pointed at him and growled, “I can’t believe you had your Martial Art crippled by him. How embarrassing!”

“How was I to know Zhuge Tian was this good?”

“But you’re a Grandmaster!” Murong Chun snapped. “If you were an Innate Master, then it’s understandable. Don’t tell me that pretending to be an Innate Master had caused you to actually fight like one?”

“Father, Zhuge Tian’s swordsmanship was too fast. I couldn’t even react in time,” Murong Liang shook his head and seethed. “I had already been stabbed before I could use all of my force to fight him!”

“He’s that quick?” Murong Chun frowned.

Murong Liang continued, “I don’t think even you would be able to defeat him.”

“Mm?” Murong Chun’s eyebrows knotted even deeper.

Murong Liang said, “And I’m not exaggerating. It’s the truth—his swordsmanship is too fast!”

“If you put it like that, it seems as though he’s trying to provoke me. He wants me to fight him.” Murong Chun nodded slowly. “If he beats me, then everyone will be impressed by his strength. His position as the young lord will be secured.”

Murong Liang was surprised. “He’s targeting you?”

“This young lord shouldn’t be underestimated.” Murong Chun stroked his chin and smiled. “Things just got a little more interesting.”

“Father, this person should just be killed right away to avoid any accidents happening again,” Murong Liang suggested.

Murong Chun shook his head. “We can’t kill him just yet. Everyone would know it was my doing because you just made an enemy out of him.”

“Humph, do you think he did it on purpose?” Murong Liang gave a wry smile. “Just so father wouldn’t dare to kill him?”

“That’s the most plausible explanation,” replied Murong Chun.