Chapter 200
Chapter 200: Delivering a Head
Hu Rui An’s eyes flashed with shock, clearly not expecting Cheng Zhong’s sudden strike to be so fierce. At the very moment Hu Rui An was caught off guard, Wu Shang on the other side simultaneously attacked, thrusting out a blade of Heaven Thunder directly toward Shen An Ran’s throat.
Shen An Ran’s martial cultivation was weaker than Wu Shang’s, and she had been attacked without any warning. However, her Deer Slaying Blade Art was among the finest blade techniques in the Martial World. Furthermore, with Li Mu Sheng’s earlier guidance, her blade mastery had greatly improved.
Thus, she managed to hurriedly swing her blade in defense, narrowly causing Wu Shang’s sword to veer slightly. With swift agility, she barely dodged the lethal strike. Although she escaped death, the ripple of Sword Qi still hit her, sending her flying sideways across the courtyard.
Just as Shen An Ran was about to crash onto the hard ground, a firm hand pressed gently against her back, catching her securely.
Turning her head, Shen An Ran saw Li Mu Sheng behind her and softly said: “Your Highness…”
Yet before she finished speaking, her palms suddenly surged forward violently. A powerful and terrifying Qi exploded like a tidal wave, slamming directly into Li Mu Sheng’s chest without resistance.
A deafening boom like rolling thunder echoed throughout the courtyard, pulverizing the bricks beneath them into fine dust.
Hu Rui An and the others immediately turned their heads, staring at the sudden and shocking turn of events.
At this moment, a strange, sly smile curled upon Shen An Ran’s lips as she gazed at Li Mu Sheng, but within her eyes flickered shock, doubt, worry, and disbelief—emotions tangled deeply.
Li Mu Sheng merely raised an eyebrow, glancing calmly at the delicate hands pressed against his chest. Understanding dawned across his features, and he lightly said: “I wondered who it was. It turns out someone has come to deliver me a martial technique.”
As these words left his lips, Shen An Ran’s smile froze in place, and she immediately tried to strike again. However, Li Mu Sheng merely reached his hand into the air and grasped firmly.
At that exact moment, a servant standing quietly inside Mei Residence suddenly raised his head, staring in shock as an enormous hand formed from the Qi of Heaven and Earth emerged above him and reached down abruptly to seize him.
Instinctively, the servant exploded with martial Qi, frantically trying to retreat. But to his horror, he found himself trapped by a terrifying current of Qi, unable to move even an inch.
“How… is this possible?” Panic filled the servant’s eyes.
In the next instant, the Qi palm grasped him firmly and carried him high into the air, swiftly transporting him into the courtyard where Hu Rui An and the others stood. The servant was slammed harshly onto the shattered bricks, embedded deep into the dust.
At that moment, Shen An Ran regained control of her body and immediately turned her head toward the fallen stranger, exclaiming in shock: “What’s happening…? Just now, I couldn’t control myself at all… and I even attacked Your Highness?”
Hearing her words, Wu Shang and Cheng Zhong glanced down at their own hands, horror plainly visible on their faces.
“I also wasn’t acting willingly! It felt like someone was manipulating me,” Wu Shang muttered uneasily.
“That wasn’t even my strength just now—I couldn’t possibly harm Lord Hu,” Cheng Zhong added quickly.
Cao Gao Shan, who had remained uninvolved the whole time, was thoroughly bewildered, clearly shaken by what had just happened.
Hu Rui An furrowed his brows deeply, staring intently at the servant on the ground as if realizing something.
Li Mu Sheng slightly narrowed his eyes but didn’t glance toward the fallen servant. Instead, he looked at Shen An Ran standing close before him and calmly said: “Young Lady Shen, since you’ve regained control, shouldn’t you remove your hands now?”
Hearing this, Shen An Ran turned slowly, her watery eyes glimmering innocently as her lips subtly curled upward. Pretending confusion, she withdrew her slender hands from Li Mu Sheng’s chest, softly murmuring a gentle “Oh.” Then, completely at ease, she brushed back her cascading raven-black hair without the slightest embarrassment.
Li Mu Sheng’s eyelids twitched. [If I’d possessed even half the nerve of this young lady in my past life, perhaps I wouldn’t have only had seven girlfriends.]
…
“Who… exactly are you?” Elder Formless, lying on the ground, struggled to lift his head, revealing an exceedingly ordinary elderly face. His entire body trembled as he barely whispered out these words. Li Mu Sheng’s earlier strike had instantly shattered his dantian and meridians, cutting off the puppet threads he’d used to control Shen An Ran and the others.
Despite his formidable cultivation in martial arts and mastery over Formless Divine Art at the Transformation Stage, Elder Formless had been utterly powerless against Li Mu Sheng’s overwhelming strength, captured without a chance of resistance.
Li Mu Sheng withdrew his gaze from Shen An Ran and glanced casually at Elder Formless, stepping toward him slowly: “I suppose you’re here to avenge your disciple. This Formless Puppet Art suddenly reminded me—you two master and disciple still owe me a martial technique.”
As he spoke, Li Mu Sheng flicked out a Life Death Talisman, embedding it deep into Elder Formless’s body.
Earlier, when Elder Formless manipulated Cheng Zhong, Li Mu Sheng had already sensed his presence, though he hadn’t immediately recalled who it was. Only when Shen An Ran suddenly attacked did he finally remember the scholar who had impersonated a prince and his junior sister who had sent out a signal flare before her death.
In truth, Li Mu Sheng had almost forgotten the matter completely, hardly expecting this master to truly come seeking vengeance. What else could he say about this encounter?
It was simply a martial technique delivered from afar—a gift of sincerity over distance.
Immediately, Elder Formless began experiencing the unbearable agony of the Life Death Talisman.
Previously, after hearing from Han Residence that Li Mu Sheng’s group was guarded by an exceptionally powerful expert who had easily killed the Baili Clan patriarch with a single finger, Elder Formless had acted cautiously. He had stayed hidden throughout, waiting until Li Mu Sheng and his companions were most relaxed before acting.
To further conceal himself from that mysterious expert, he had initially used diversion tactics and refrained from directly attacking Li Mu Sheng, using Shen An Ran as his last decisive move. He believed his plan to be flawless.
Yet, he had severely underestimated the most crucial factor: that the very expert who had slain Baili Chang Feng was Li Mu Sheng himself!
Even now, Elder Formless still couldn’t comprehend it. The Great Li’s Eighth Prince wasn’t even twenty yet, yet he possessed martial prowess so overwhelmingly formidable. It was truly inconceivable!