Translator: Myriea_ActiasLuna Editor: Nou
As the sounds of those two slaps rang out, it was as though a paralysis curse had been cast on the Myriad Beasts disciplesâthey were so scared that theyâd immediately frozen. The red-dressed girl was being held ransom at knife point, and the dagger had already pierced half an inch deep. A simple movement would easily slice open her neck, and even cultivators would have difficulty surviving that. At a time like this, not even those in the ninth tier had the confidence to free the girl under such circumstances, and no one dared to make any rash movements.
As for the red-dressed girl, whether it was because of the slaps sheâd received or out of fear towards the dagger inside her neck, she had pretty much lost any hint of nerves and stood quietly in front of Fang Xing, too scared to make even a single movement. The manual in her hands dropped to the ground, and the manualâs title was clearly visible on the front: âChunâhwa â Sagacious Yang.â
So this was the so-called âYin-Yang Unification TechniqueââŠ.
It hadnât been a lie , technically speaking, but the Myriad Beasts disciples were still shocked. Who would have imagined thatâeven with so many of them hereâa timid-looking boy would be able to fool them and take their little shimei ransom by using a book of erotic pictures?
The embroidered-gown youthâs face was a steel-blue, and his words seeped through clenched teeth as he spoke, âI promise if you donât let go of Little Shimei, I will cut all of you into a million piecesâŠ.â
âCut your uncle, why donât you go and cut some for me right now?â Fang Xing coldly laughed. âItâs summer, but youâre wearing such a thick robe like an idiot. Am I supposed to think youâre strong?â
The embroidered-gown youth ground his teeth in hatred, and it was though flames were about to jump out from his eyes. âYou!â How dare this boy call him an idiot? Not even in his dreams would he imagine such a thing. Furthermore, he was only wearing this gown because of a little problem heâd come across during his cultivation practice; who would willingly want to wear something like this?
âBoy, do you really think I donât dare to kill?â the youth asked in a foreboding manner as he sent an unfriendly glance towards the Qing-Yun disciples, considering grabbing another one to gain more leverage before negotiating terms with Fang Xing.
Fang Xing snickered. âWhy not? Go for it. I wonât be worried at all about anyone other than Shijie Feng Qingwei.â
Within the group of Qing-Yun disciples, suddenly a few of their glances were sent towards Feng Qingwei, who was so frightened that she hid behind Xiao Jianming. âThatâs⊠thatâs a bunch of nonsense!â she spoke in a quavering voice.
Xiao Jianmingâs gaze chilled. He placed his hand on his iron sword and took a step forward, with Xu Linyun doing likewise. Both of them saw a clear opportunity now; since both sides had a hostage in hand, the two of them didnât have to stay their hand any longer.
âShidi Fang, come over behind me!â Xu Linyun softly suggested while holding onto her long sword.
Fang Xing smiled. âThe nicest is still Shijie LinyunâŠ.â As he spoke, he began to walk towards her while lifting the red-dressed girl.
The Myriad Beasts disciples knew that the Qing-Yun disciples wanted to protect Fang Xing, but since the boy had one of their own as a hostage, the Myriad Beasts disciples did not want him to go over. They wordlessly moved in front of Fang Xing to block him off, but Fang Xing just smiled and suddenly cut two thin lines on the girlâs left cheek in the shape of an X, sending a shiver down the spines of her fellow disciples.
âA good doggy doesnât stand in peopleâs way. Get out of my way, or Iâll poke out her eyes!â Fang Xing coldly declared, and it did not sound like he was joking. Those who stood in his path in an effort to stop him all immediately moved aside. Physical scars on her face could be easily cured, but if the eyeballs were taken out, it would be far more problematic.
âWahâ!â The red-dressed girl had felt the heat on her face, and the knowledge that she had been marred by the scorching cuts only added to her growing fear and caused her to cry out. Because of her ability and shrewdness, she was typically quite fearless, but facing someone as vicious and ruthless as Fang Xing had frightened her back into a timid picture of what she truly was: a little girl.
âHaw hawâŠ.â Xiongnu grew enraged when he heard the little girlâs cries and dashed towards Fang Xing, but he was caught by two of the Myriad Beasts disciples who were afraid he would spark Fang Xingâs anger. âDo not act blindly!â Although the girl might be their âlittle shimeiâ, her actual status was much higher. She was more akin to their master, and if anything were to happen to her, none of the Myriad Beasts disciples here today would keep their lives, a fact Fang Xing had known well in advance after talking with the golden crow.
Even though Xiongnu was stopped, he continued to make that same noise in an unusually violent display. Fang Xing released a cold laugh before making his way towards the Qing-Yun disciples and calling out towards the two Myriad Beasts disciples, âLet him come at me!â
âHuh?â The two Myriad Beasts disciples who had stopped Xiongnu were both surprised, yet Fang Xing waved the dagger in front of the red-dressed girlâs eyes and repeated, âI said to let him come at me!â
The two of them did not know what Fang Xing intended to do, but they did not dare to disobey out of fear heâd truly stab the dagger into the girlâs eyes. Xiongnu was a mutated Mahn, and although his strength was extraordinary, his intellect was low. Once the two disciples moved to the side and he saw that there was now no one to stop him, he immediately dashed towards Fang Xing with one goal in mind: to save his little master.
As Xiongnu came closer, Fang Xing suddenly gave Wu Xiangtong a cold command: âKill him!â
âAll Duanzhen disciples, listen up! Take out the Crossbow of Spirit Machine and the Red Copper Chain. As per Shixiongâs command, kill!â Although Wu Xiangtong was at first a little surprised, he soon made the command without daring to disobey Fang Xingâs orders.
All of the Duanzhen disciples jumped forward in unison, four holding a fiery-red copper chain that they threw to the ground, tripping Xiongnu before coiling it around him. Another Duanzhen disciple worked on the Crossbow of Spirit Machine, half-kneeling with the weapon aimed at Xiongnuâs head while two more Duanzhen disciples stood on either side to protect him.
Xiongnu anxiously looked at the red-dressed girl, the noise from his mouth not stopping at all. It was at this time that the crossbow suddenly let out a loud sound and a fierce ray of light shot forth from it.
Xiongnuâs large head was split open like a ripe watermelon, causing blood, brain, and shattered bones to scatter onto the ground. This time, not only were the Myriad Beasts disciples left startled, but even some of the Qing-Yun disciples began to shiver.
âXiongnuâŠ.â The little girl weakly held out her hands towards the headless Xiongnu, whose hands were still reaching out towards her.
âHahaâŠâ Fang Xing loudly laughed, dragging the girl by the neck into the center of the crowd while looking smugly towards the embroidered-gown youth from afar. âOne of your lives for one of ours. Now that weâre even, letâs talk about how we can resolve this situation!â
âLet go of Shimei Qiaoqiao, then everyone leaves and minds their own business!â the embroidered-gown youth demanded.
Fang Xing smirked. âMind your uncleâs business! You need to do better than thatâŠ.â
The embroidered-gown youthâs gaze was as sharp as a sword. âWhat do you want?â
âWell, come and hand over all your storage sacks!â
Dumbfounded, all of the Myriad Beasts disciples looked at each other in dismay while cursing the boy a million times in their minds. The embroidered-gown youth glared towards Fang Xing with unrestrained rage and bloodthirst flickering across his eyes, yet Fang Xing maintained a smirk and looked right back without any sense of fear.
After a long while, the youth finally softly sighed. âGive him your storage sacks.â
The Myriad Beasts disciples were so angry that they gritted their teeth, but they still took out their storage sacks and threw them to the ground. When Wu Xiangtong saw this, he looked towards Fang Xing as if to ask whether Fang Xing would prefer for him to pick them up.
âLet the Shanhe disciples go and fetch it!â
The Qing-Yun disciples looked towards Fang Xing in confusion. âWhy is that, Shixiong Fang?â a Duanzhen disciple asked.
Fang Xing laughed. âBecause I wouldnât feel sad if they died!â
The Duanzhen disciples immediately grew quiet as the Shanhe disciples took on sorrowful expressions.
Feng Qingwei turned towards Fang Xing and yelled, âYou actuallyââ
âJust go and fetch it, they do not dare to move!â Xiao Jianming impatiently interrupted before sheâd even finished her sentence. Heâd noticed as well that the girl Fang Xing had captured was no ordinary disciple, or else it would not have caused all of these people to become so concerned. Worst-case scenario, even if the Shanhe disciples were to be captured, the value between the hostages would still be vastly uneven and the Myriad Beasts wouldnât dare to make any unreasonable demands.
Helpless, the Shanhe disciples cautiously walked towards the Myriad Beasts disciples and picked up all of the storage sacks. Fortunately, although the Myriad Beasts disciplesâ looks were not friendly, none of them dared to make a move, allowing the Shanhe disciples to retrieve all of the storage sacks and return back to the crowd. Fang Xing then had the Duanzhen disciples take all of these storage sacks, and no Shanhe disciple dared try to stop it.
âCan you let her go now?â the embroidered-gown youth asked. Although he showed a calm expression, beneath his gown was a layer of sweat.
Fang Xing snickered. âIf you were me, would you let her go?â It had taken quite some effort to capture her for ransom; there was no way he would let her go so easily.
The embroidered-gown youth began to grow agitated as Fang Xingâs unreasonableness proved far beyond his expectations. âWhat exactly do you want, then?â
Fang Xing smirked. âIâd like you all to taste something!â He then turned towards Xu Linyun. âShijie Linyun, can you make a cauldron of poison pellets that will prevent them from being able to use Qi for a short period of time?â
Although a little surprised by the request, Xu Linyun considered it for a quick moment before replying, âYes, give me an hour!â
The embroidered-gown youthâs expression dropped, and he couldnât help but to raise his voice as he asked, âYou want to force-feed us poison pellets?â
Fang Xing coldly smiled while placing the dagger against the red-dressed girlâs neck. âOf course. How else will I know youâll cooperate once Iâve let her go? But thereâs no need for you to worry; I only want you to take a poison pellet thatâll temporarily keep you from using Qi. Thereâs no need for too many people to take the pellets, eitherâonly you and the other two in tier nine are a requirement. As for any remaining pellets, just hand them out to whomever!â