Nine Star Hegemon Body Art c1-2048
Page 293
Feng Xiao-zi saw that those Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples behind him had confused expressions, and he angrily shouted, “What absolute nonsense! You traitor, you’re trying to smear your sect’s name!”
“Feng Xiao-zi, from now on, I am no longer a member of the Wind Spirit Pavilion. The debt between myself and the Wind Spirit Pavilion is now settled. Neither of us owes the other anything.” Then turning to those other Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples, Meng Qi said, “Everyone, we’ve known each other for many years. I trust that you all know what kind of person I am. I hope you can empathize with me. After all, we still have our emotions from being members of the same sect, and I don’t want to face you on the battlefield.”
Tears poured down Meng Qi’s face. After all, these friends she had been with for so many years had now all of a sudden become strangers. That kind of feeling was something outsiders were unable to comprehend.
“Sister Meng Qi, don’t feel bad! You still have Long Chen, and you still have us.” Lu Fang-er held Meng Qi’s hand.
“Good! Then let me just see what kind of ending a traitor like you will have!” sneered Feng Xiao-zi.
“Stop calling her a traitor! Neither you nor your father is a good person! He only accepted Meng Qi to be used as a daughter-in-law for breeding. For that goal, just how many despicable things have you done?! Just the fact that you have the face to call yourselves the pavilion master and junior pavilion master is already enough to make me sick!” Lu Fang-er finally couldn’t hold back and began to curse wildly while pointing at Feng Xiao-zi’s nose.
No one understood Meng Qi’s suffering and helplessness better than Lu Fang-er. Now she was completely infuriated with Feng Xiao-zi.
“Shut up, slut!” roared Feng Xiao-zi.
Suddenly, a blood-colored saber-image cut across the air, bringing with it endless killing intent, looking like some heavenly blade, one that could cut apart the river of stars.
This saber’s power shook all of heaven and earth. All the murderous aura within the world had been sucked into the saber, and it was filled with an annihilative power.
No one had expected that the always calm Long Chen would now attack. And as soon as he attacked, he launched such a killing blow.
All of heaven and earth changed color from this saber. The person closest to Long Chen, Hua Biluo, felt as if she had fallen into an icehouse.
As for Feng Xiao-zi, he was filled with horror. He realized he couldn’t even move as he had been locked down by some power.
The saber-image slashed down. Blood flew. Feng Xiao-zi’s black leopard had been cut in two, and its blood dyed the ground red.
That was a peak fourth rank Magical Beast. But it hadn’t even had a chance to cry out before it had been killed by Long Chen’s saber.
This saber could rend the heavens, and it shocked everyone. Even Xue Wuya’s pupils shrank. That attack had just been too terrifying.
Everyone was dumbfounded. Feng Xiao-zi was a soul cultivator, and in terms of combat ability, he was on the same level as peak experts.
“Where’s Feng Xiao-zi? I don’t see his corpse.”
“It seems he used a teleportation talisman at the last moment. But it happened too fast, and I didn’t see clearly.”
Those people with lower cultivation bases weren’t even able to tell what had happened. All of them looked at Long Chen with amazement and reverence.
As a soul cultivator, Feng Xiao-zi possessed profound spiritual attacks that were almost unblockable. He was someone who could almost stand shoulder to shoulder with people like Xue Wuya, but in front of Long Chen’s attack, the only thing he could do was activate a teleportation talisman to flee for his life.
If it hadn’t been for that teleportation talisman, perhaps he would have already become a corpse. Thinking of that result, people felt numb. Long Chen really was a monster.
“How regretful. That idiot is always so displeasing, but he actually managed to run,” said Guo Ran.
As for those people by Hua Biluo’s side, their foreheads became covered with sweat. Those people who had faced Long Chen arrogantly were filled with regret.
Now that Feng Xiao-zi had fled, the remaining Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples were all dumbfounded, not knowing what they should do.
“You should go to the side of the Righteous path and prepare yourselves for the upcoming battle,” said Meng Qi when she saw that none of them decided to stand out.
“Yes, senior apprentice-sister Meng Qi.” All those Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples bowed to her.
Meng Qi bitterly smiled. “From today onwards, I am no longer a disciple from the Wind Spirit Pavilion. I am not your senior apprentice-sister.”
“Senior apprentice-sister Meng Qi, no matter where you go in the future, you will always be our respected senior apprentice-sister Meng Qi!” that young lady who had begged Meng Qi before now spoke resolutely.
Meng Qi’s heart was moved, but unfortunately, the Wind Spirit Pavilion was no longer her home. In the future, they might never see each other again.
The Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples went to the Righteous path’s side. They needed to wait for Feng Xiao-zi to return, but they had no idea just where he had been teleported to. If he didn’t return in time for the exit, then he really would be doomed.
Once the Wind Spirit Pavilion disciples were settled, Hua Biluo looked over her people. “We are now friends with Long Chen. I’ve decided to work my way through trials and tribulations with him. But I won’t force all of you. You can choose for yourselves to stay or leave.”
All of them were now given a hard decision. They hadn’t expected to have to make this kind of decision. If they left, they could give up on getting any favors from Hua Biluo. But if they stayed, that was equivalent to becoming enemies with the first monastery and the Yin family.
If this was merely a struggle between the first monastery and the second monastery, they wouldn’t feel any fear. After all, if it was just two monasteries, then when they fought, they would always leave some leeway.
But if they joined Long Chen, then that would change. Long Chen had killed Han Tianyu’s brother and also severed Yin Wushuang’s arm. They all knew that he would definitely try and kill Yin Wushuang. By then, this matter would become much more complicated.
Previously, Hua Biluo hadn’t told them of her decision to join Long Chen. They had to make their own decision at this time.
This would only benefit her. Those who dared to stay at this time were definitely comparatively more devoted, so this was a kind of trial for them.
Previously, Long Chen had told her that her group would definitely have some undercover agents. Although Long Chen had been interrupted by Feng Xiao-zi when he had been about to get the truth, anyone smart would know that the only ones who would send people to infiltrate her group had to be a top expert of the Righteous path, and they had to be opponents with Hua Biluo and Long Chen. So the two names didn’t need to be said.
Long Chen had only done it to give Hua Biluo some proof and to make her careful not to be stabbed in the back by someone.
Although Hua Biluo was very intelligent, when it came to being contemptible and shameless, when it came to using any means necessary, she was far too lacking compared to Yin Wushuang.
Now that Hua Biluo asked them for their decision, over half of her people immediately left. As for those that were hesitating, many of them also chose to leave in the end.
People all cared about profit. When the profit outweighed the danger, people would all like to join you, even if you didn’t need them. But when the danger outweighed the profit, no one would choose to help you when you were down.
Hua Biluo wasn’t surprised by this many people leaving. Her expression was calm. At this time, less than a thousand people remained.
But a large portion of her people were still in the midst of deciding. In just a moment, less than five hundred people remained. At this time, Hua Biluo was no longer able to control her expression.
She
really hadn’t expected for these many people to leave. Not even the rewards she had promised them had managed to move them.
“This kind of situation is very normal. When waves wash sand, they’ll bring away the sand, leaving behind only the gold.” Long Chen comforted her when he saw her disappointment.
“But the gold remaining really is too weak.” Hua Biluo bitterly smiled. She realized that of the people remaining, the majority were just Favored. Most of the Chosen had left.
“Whether gold can shine depends on where you place it. Most importantly, it will always be yours and won’t betray you. That’s the most important part,” said Long Chen.
In the end, there were only just over four hundred people remaining by Hua Biluo’s side. Long Chen said, “The first people who left were all infiltrators, and they took the lead to leave to bring others away as well. As for the last people to leave, they were also infiltrators, and they left because they realized there was no longer any value to being a spy here. So right now you should be happy, as these are your most faithful allies.”
“You’re right. At the very least I don’t need to doubt them. Although they aren’t strong enough, that’s fine. As long as they can survive, I will give them a future.” Hua Biluo smiled.
When disciples from noble families like her went out for tempering experiences, they would always bring around a group of followers. Otherwise, there would be no way to fight against other disciples from powerful families for resources.
Hua Biluo had realized many things she had never thought of before from Long Chen. She saw that the people beside Long Chen were now completely transformed from when they had first entered the secret realm. That made her think of what he had just said: whether gold can shine depends on where you place it. Seeing what levels they had reached told her that talented people were all nurtured to that point.
“Long Chen, come with me. I have a few things I want to say to you alone,” said Hua Biluo.
Chapter 436 Mind Reading Skill - Fake?
“Long Chen, you’ve seen the photographic jade I sent you, right?”
Hua Biluo pulled Long Chen a certain distance away from the others. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the people by his side, but that she was worried about her own people.
“Yes, I saw it.”
“I want to hear your thoughts.”
Long Chen pondered for a moment before saying, “From the current power the two of you have displayed, Han Tianyu is a slight level higher than you. However, if I haven’t misjudged, you’re someone who focuses on defense and should be suited to battles of attrition. Attacking isn’t your strength. So no one would be able to predict the exact odds of who would win if the two of you fought.”
In their last fight, Hua Biluo had intentionally just been trying to probe Han Tianyu’s abilities, while Han Tianyu had also seen through her thoughts, and so neither of them had used their true skills. However, Long Chen had still managed to see that she specialized in defense, causing her to feel some amazement. Long Chen’s sudden rise was not the slightest bit coincidental. Just this sharp vision was admirable.
“Brother Long is correct. My Hua family’s core technique relies on defense and to gain victory through a drawn-out battle. However, Han Tianyu is also crafty and managed to see through my intentions. He only sent out random blows, not revealing the slightest bit of his true abilities,” sighed Hua Biluo.
If Guo Ran and the others were to hear this, they would definitely be scared to death. That kind of terrifying fight had just been probing blows?
“What are your thoughts on Han Tianyu?” asked Hua Biluo.
“Profound and unfathomable.” Long Chen’s expression became slightly grave. “He attacks without any sign so you can’t predict his actions. And did you notice? Each time you exchanged blows, he was only looking into your eyes. He was able to easily predict every single one of your moves.”
Hua Biluo nodded. “That’s right. Each time I tried to attack, he seemed to know exactly what kind of move I was making and was long since waiting for me. That was extremely discouraging. Could it be that he really knows a mind reading skill?”
Thinking of that, Hua Biluo’s expression became a bit unnatural. In their previous fight, her confidence had been shaken as Han Tianyu was just too strong.
The most terrifying thing about him was his accurate predictions. It was as if he could see through all her abilities.
“Mind reading skill?”
Long Chen smiled. He thought of a certain beautiful face with its soul-stealing eyes that could bring about the fall of a nation. At that time, he had also said such words.
Mind reading was a kind of legendary divine art. To be able to read your opponents’ every thought while fighting, it was unstoppable and was one of the most terrifying kinds of abilities.
It was precisely because it was terrifying that there was no one who would want to be enemies with such a person. If whatever they wanted to do was known by their enemy, would they even have a chance at surviving?
“First, let’s not discuss whether there really are people in this world who have mind reading skills. I can guarantee that Han Tianyu does not have that ability.” Long Chen smiled.
“What? That’s impossible. Through some secret channels, I heard that Han Tianyu truly did spend a great deal of time on mind reading skills. It seems he obtained some armor and managed to comprehend something from it. Furthermore, those who fight with him always have the feeling that all their thoughts are seen through, the exact same feeling as mine,” said Hua Biluo.
“For now, I won’t doubt your source. But I am sure that he definitely doesn’t know how to read minds.”
“Did you notice something?” Hua Biluo was taken back by how sure Long Chen seemed.
“It’s just my guess. My guess is based on two things: first, when Mo Nian fought against him, he didn’t have that kind of feeling. Mo Nian is my good brother, and when he told me about his fight against Han Tianyu, he didn’t feel anything strange like that.”
“Oh?” Mo Nian was also a peak expert, and so she naturally knew who he was. Furthermore, it was no secret that Mo Nian had exchanged blows with Han Tianyu. However, she was surprised that Mo Nian hadn’t sensed anything strange.
“Could it be that Han Tianyu was intentionally not displaying that skill?” questioned Hua Biluo.
“If he dared do something like that, I guarantee Mo Nian would have shot him through. You should know that Mo Nian’s archery skills are unrivaled, and no one would dare hold back like that against him,” said Long Chen confidently.
Although he hadn’t interacted with Mo Nian for long, Mo Nian’s archery skills were practically supernatural. Even Long Chen felt admiration for them.
“That was my first clue. The second one is that when he fought with you, he was constantly looking into your eyes. At first I found that a bit odd, but then I realized: this idiot is starry-eyed for you.” Long Chen laughed.
Hua Biluo blushed and rebuked, “Don’t make jokes.”
Long Chen put away his smile and returned to the topic. “In truth, at our level, we don’t fight with our eyes. Our eyes are just supplementary tools that we can’t trust too easily, as eyes are too easily deceived.
“When experts fight, we always trust our spiritual perception and reactions more.
“Since sight is not so important, why would Han Tianyu look at you like that? It’s because as long as he does that, many people, including you, end up being deceived by him.”
“Deceived?”
“Yes. Those so-called mind reading skills are just little tricks. When people blindly bet, there will always be winners and losers. But once someone bets right, their opponent becomes afraid,” said Long Chen.
“But that’s not right. I’ve already investigated, and everyone who ends up fighting with him has this feeling of having all their moves predicted. That’s not just a one time gamble.”
“Good point. Then let me ask you a question. Why is t
hat those people you investigated had that feeling, but Mo Nian did not?
“That is what made me doubt it. Why was that Han Tianyu’s ‘mind reading skill’ failed when facing Mo Nian?
“Let me make a brazen guess: Han Tianyu is simply proficient in almost every kind of martial weapon, and based on the faintest of clues, such as the eyes, shoulders, waist, elbows, and other things, he is able to guess what an opponent will do.
“However, Mo Nian is not a close-range fighter. He has all kinds of ways to use his bow and arrows; he can use the bow itself as a weapon at close range and can shoot out arrows at long range. Due to that, others cannot predict what he is going to do,” said Long Chen.
“Then you mean…” Hua Biluo came to a sudden comprehension.
“There is a ninety percent chance that Han Tianyu is simply a master at using the various martial weapons. The only thing he is unfamiliar with is the bow and arrow. As amongst cultivators, there are exceptionally few who use the bow,” said Long Chen.
Hua Biluo was silent for a long time. Although she found this hard to believe, Long Chen’s analysis was completely accurate.
“If what you’re saying is true, then Han Tianyu really is frightening. Just how much fighting experience does he have to be able to do that?” exclaimed Hua Biluo.
“The reason experts are able to become experts is because they have the determination to get stronger. If you have that kind of determination, then you can come up with all kinds of moves. There was one thing you said that is extremely accurate: Han Tianyu really is frightening. He purposely made up this secret of him knowing how to read minds, when in truth, that was just used to conceal his ultimate killing blows,” said Long Chen.
“His ultimate killing blows? What are those?”
Long Chen shook his head. “How could I know that? It’s not like I know how to read minds. However, just think about it. He used this kind of trick, managing to deceive even you.