Chapter 135
Chapter 135: Taken Down with One Blade
A fierce wind screamed through the streets. Shangguan Qing Qing, dressed in a crimson robe, surged with martial Qi beneath her feet. She moved swiftly, nearly becoming a crimson blur as she raced ahead.
Her beautiful, heroic face was now filled with urgency and cold determination.
She relentlessly hurled her throwing knives, even though each blade was deflected by the Qi armor shielding Sha Wen Shan and his two companions. Still, she refused to yield and continued her relentless attack.
At that moment, beneath the roof of a nearby shop, a sharp flash of sword light suddenly burst forth.
A young man in white darted forward, his gaze cold and ruthless. His sword thrust sharply ahead, its blade glinting like the swift flicker of a serpent’s tongue, aimed straight at Shangguan Qing Qing’s throat.
Her eyes widened, feet halting instantly as she bent backward to narrowly dodge the sudden strike.
Swiftly, she raised her hands, sending two throwing knives flying toward the young man’s face.
The young man promptly raised his sword to deflect them, sparks erupting in a harsh clash of metal as each knife was knocked away.
He sneered contemptuously.
“With your pitiful strength, you dare rescue someone from my father’s grasp? You won’t be leaving here!”
Without hesitation, he changed his sword stance and swiftly targeted Shangguan Qing Qing’s vital points.
Her expression grew anxious, but she had no choice but to halt her advance, dealing instead with the young man’s relentless attacks.
At the same time, Sha Wen Shan glanced back briefly, his fingers curled into iron claws. He tore effortlessly through the wall of blades in front of him and seized Qin Hao’s broad blade directly.
Qin Hao’s expression changed abruptly, hastily circulating martial Qi to withdraw his blade. Yet the force from Sha Wen Shan’s grip felt as immovable as a mountain; Qin Hao couldn’t budge his blade at all.
Two middle-aged men swiftly approached from behind, placing their palms heavily upon Qin Hao’s shoulders. Instantly, Qin Hao felt his martial Qi being completely suppressed. It froze in his meridians, refusing to circulate no matter how desperately he struggled.
Qin Hao’s heart sank as he realized he had become a helpless fish on a chopping board, powerless and at the mercy of his enemies.
“Hand over the other half of the map, and perhaps I will spare your junior sister’s life,” Sha Wen Shan demanded bluntly as he disarmed Qin Hao, seizing the broad blade.
Qin Hao frowned deeply, casting a glance toward Shangguan Qing Qing who was still fighting the young swordsman. He responded, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It seems you want a taste of my White Sand Gang’s torture,” Sha Wen Shan threatened, narrowing his eyes. He swiftly grabbed Qin Hao by the collar and began dragging him toward a nearby blacksmith’s forge.
But at that precise moment, a rough voice abruptly echoed through the street:
“Wait.”
Sha Wen Shan paused, turning sharply toward the sound. Standing quietly upon a broken wooden beam atop a damaged shop was a humble coachman dressed plainly in coarse cloth. The man’s features were ordinary, and in his hand he held a broken blade.
Sha Wen Shan frowned, about to speak, but the next instant, the coachman already swung his blade.
Blade-light spilled forth, shattering brilliantly like silver sparks from a broken vase. The dazzling fragments enveloped Sha Wen Shan and his two companions entirely.
“Seeking death!” Sha Wen Shan hissed coldly, quickly sealing Qin Hao’s pressure points before tossing him to a subordinate. Then, together with the two middle-aged men, he launched synchronized attacks, sending forth fearsome claw shadows and palm strikes to break through the shower of fragmented blade-light, charging toward the coachman.
Cao Gao Shan lowered his gaze slightly, turning to glance at the only open window on the second floor of the inn behind him.
“Young master, please watch,” he murmured.
In the blink of an eye, Cao Gao Shan’s blade had already swung forth silently.
The air trembled violently. Broken tiles on the rooftop, shattered from previous battles, jumped erratically.
A giant Blade Shadow, nearly a dozen feet long, appeared silently before Cao Gao Shan. Dominating and fierce, the radiant Blade Shadow cleaved through the air, descending swiftly toward the cobblestone street below.
This strike was impossibly fast. From the moment the Blade Shadow emerged until it vanished, Sha Wen Shan and the others couldn’t glimpse even a trace of its path.
Instantly, the claw shadows and palm strikes shattered completely. Sha Wen Shan and his companions, caught mid-leap, were hurled downward even faster.
Boom!
The trio crashed heavily onto the stone pavement, the tremendous impact shattering the ground, sending stones and dust exploding into the air. A deep crater appeared, nearly waist-deep.
“Cough… cough!”
Violent coughs echoed from within the pit. Sha Wen Shan and his companions lay there, blood seeping from the corners of their mouths. Each bore deep, horrifying blade wounds reaching down to their bones. Cao Gao Shan’s single strike had nearly sliced them in half.
Now gravely wounded and filled with agony and dread, the trio had completely lost their ability to resist.
From the second floor of the inn, Hu Rui An observed all of this. He stared at Cao Gao Shan’s figure with astonishment, murmuring uncertainly:
“When did his martial dao improve so much? He’s nearly touched the threshold of Half-Step Heavenly Union.”
Beside him, Millenary Commander Wu Shang also voiced admiration, “Brother Cao’s ‘Que Blade Slash’ has grown incredibly powerful. Yet…this blade strike, I don’t recall ever seeing him use before.”
On the rooftop, Cao Gao Shan turned back toward the window where Li Mu Sheng stood. Anxiousness rarely seen appeared on his weathered face as he asked carefully:
“Young master, how was that strike of mine?”
“Far from good enough,” Li Mu Sheng replied plainly, shaking his head.
Cao Gao Shan froze briefly, a stunned look crossing his face. Yet he quickly straightened, standing humbly atop the broken wooden beam, lifting his rough hands respectfully toward Li Mu Sheng as he spoke, ashamed:
“I will strive to improve.”
At these words, Hu Rui An and the others glanced curiously at Li Mu Sheng. Ever since Cao Gao Shan had eagerly volunteered to act, they had grown puzzled about the exact relationship between Li Mu Sheng and Cao Gao Shan.
Their confusion now only deepened.
It seemed Cao Gao Shan respected Li Mu Sheng greatly, though clearly not due to Li Mu Sheng’s royal status. It felt more like a student seeking his teacher’s approval.
Yet this notion was clearly puzzling—Cao Gao Shan was a Great Martial Grandmaster, while Li Mu Sheng, despite his confident words, possessed no martial Qi at all.
This strange contradiction filled Hu Rui An and the others with disbelief.
Meanwhile, the young man in white cried out sharply upon seeing his father defeated by a single blade strike. He hastily abandoned Shangguan Qing Qing, rushing toward the crater in the street.
Rather than pursue him, Shangguan Qing Qing immediately darted away, searching urgently for her senior brother, Qin Hao.