Chapter 149
Chapter 149: Shen Lian Cheng
Upon hearing this, the villa steward’s face lit with joy. He glanced cautiously at Jing Cheng Luo and said, “Our villa master has already instructed us clearly. Since Deer Slaying Manor has joined the Alliance Under Heaven, we naturally become part of it and shall obey the Alliance’s orders, following the Supreme Alliance Leader without question.”
Saying this, the villa steward eagerly stepped forward, wanting to lead everyone into the courtyard.
Yet Jing Cheng Luo suddenly reached out his hand, stopping him. “There’s no rush. It’s safer to wait a little longer.”
Hearing this, the villa steward did not argue, immediately halting. After all, among these people was an expert from the Heavenly Union. A little caution was understandable.
At the same time, far away in the shadows beneath the courtyard wall stood two figures, one tall and one small.
Watching from afar, the Hemp Robed Elder shook his head slowly, saying, “They’ve been poisoned deeply enough already. We have other important matters tonight and cannot risk alarming them yet.”
As he spoke, he decisively turned around and left with the Pink Clad Girl at his side.
The girl said nothing, merely nodding softly and following close behind. But after a few steps, something compelled her to look back again. That one glance caused her to pause abruptly and call softly:
“Grandfather.”
Sensing her odd behavior, the elder also turned back, following her gaze. In the dimness of night, Jing Cheng Luo and the others remained completely motionless, clearly waiting for the poison to take greater effect.
However, without their noticing, another figure had silently appeared among the group.
The sudden appearance of this person startled both the Hemp Robed Elder and the girl.
Very quickly, they recognized him as the young man whom Hu Rui An and the others had called “Young Master” during the day. The girl vividly remembered him, as he had teased her earlier.
In their view, the young man now walked calmly among Jing Cheng Luo and his companions, seemingly unaffected by the poison.
“How is he alright?”
The girl’s dark eyes widened with surprise as she murmured softly.
The Hemp Robed Elder narrowed his eyes, a puzzled expression crossing his face. He clearly remembered seeing Li Mu Sheng drink several cups of Spirit Deer Wine. The Drunken Immortal Poison was incredibly potent—Cao Gao Shan had collapsed merely from inhaling some of its fragrance. By rights, Li Mu Sheng should have been the most deeply poisoned. Yet here he stood, completely fine. This was utterly baffling.
After a moment’s silence, the elder shook his head again and sighed, “We underestimated them.”
In his mind, the only explanation was that Hu Rui An and the others had already seen through Deer Slaying Manor’s poisoning scheme. They likely pretended to be poisoned, using themselves as bait to lure out those pulling the strings behind Deer Slaying Manor.
Considering the present situation, it appeared they had unquestionably succeeded.
The elder imagined Hu Rui An’s face and softly muttered, “This man must truly be a seasoned fisher of men.”
Hearing this, the Pink Clad Girl frowned slightly. She understood her grandfather’s meaning but felt something was still a bit off.
“Let’s go,” the elder said quietly, turning away again. He no longer paid attention to Li Mu Sheng, continuing on their original path.
The girl nodded, glancing back one last time before hurriedly following. Tonight, the pair had more important matters awaiting them.
…
Meanwhile, Li Mu Sheng glanced subtly toward where the Hemp Robed Elder and the girl had departed. Paying them no further attention, he shifted his gaze toward Jing Cheng Luo and the villa steward.
Right now, Jing Cheng Luo’s group and the steward stared at Li Mu Sheng, their eyes wide with terror. They still had no idea when Li Mu Sheng had appeared or how all of them suddenly lost the ability to move.
How had this happened? They felt absolutely nothing.
Just moments before, they had confidently planned to enter the courtyard to capture their targets. Yet now they were fish helplessly laid upon a chopping board, utterly defenseless against this young man who possessed no martial Qi.
“You’re quite clever indeed. Poisoning like this is nearly impossible to guard against.”
Li Mu Sheng raised an eyebrow, not particularly knowledgeable about poisons or medicines, but it hardly mattered. After all, poisons had no effect on him. He could drink all the Spirit Deer Wine he wanted, so long as it tasted good.
Meeting people from the Alliance Under Heaven here was not surprising; it was within his expectations. After all, when they helped Qin Hao against the White Sand Gang earlier, many eyes had watched. It was only natural that news spread and provoked a reaction from the Alliance.
The real surprise was discovering a martial world force like Deer Slaying Manor had secretly joined the Alliance Under Heaven.
However, Li Mu Sheng had no interest in investigating this matter further or wasting his breath on the captives. Instead, he casually unleashed several Life Death Talismans, tormenting the six individuals until they obediently revealed everything he wanted to know.
Poor villa steward had thought the covert Drunken Immortal Poison would guarantee success for the Alliance Under Heaven’s operation.
Poor Jing Cheng Luo had thought victory certain upon seeing how easily he’d poisoned everyone, believing the jade token map was practically in his grasp.
Yet after Li Mu Sheng finished questioning them, he casually took their lives without even granting them a chance to beg for mercy.
Afterward, Li Mu Sheng thoughtfully stroked his chin. This Deer Slaying Manor’s villa master, Shen Lian Cheng, seemed interesting.
He had learned from the steward that Shen Lian Cheng was not only part of the Alliance Under Heaven but had secretly allied himself with Fallen God Peak and even the Great Li Dynasty. Strangely enough, none of these three forces knew about each other, as Shen Lian Cheng had carefully kept each in the dark.
Besides Shen Lian Cheng’s most trusted aides, no one else in the villa—not even his own wife and daughter—was aware of these alliances. According to the steward, Shen Lian Cheng seemed to be quietly preparing something significant, though exactly what it was, even the steward did not know.
Li Mu Sheng sighed. He usually disliked involving himself in such tedious affairs. However, glancing back at the courtyard, where Cao Gao Shan and the others lay poisoned and unconscious, he remembered Hu Rui An. He murmured softly:
“By now, Lord Hu should be feeling the poison’s effect too. I wonder how he’s doing?”
Shaking his head, he took the antidote from the villa steward’s body and flicked droplets precisely into the mouths of Cao Gao Shan and the others, including Murong Xiao Ya who lay inside the house.
Afterward, he turned and headed toward the direction where Hu Rui An had previously disappeared.