373 A Wide Stretch of Land

The heavy snow fell amid the cold wind. It blanketed the entire pine tree forest in white, which was sporadically dotted with green.

There were a few lines of shallow footprints on the soft snow, two of which were almost imperceivable. One seeing the sight might wonder if ghosts had drifted by.

Meng Qi ran across the snowy land so quickly that he seemed like an illusion. However, he didn't use his full strength lest Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall and Redline Lady couldn't catch up to him.

"Though the Moon Village mainly imparts the Tai-yin Devil-Rinsing Scripture, they had annexed and absorbed countless sects and families since ancient times. With their fruitful encounters, their masters possessed many complicated forms of kung fu. Besides the blood relatives of the village head, not many are allowed to practice the scripture. Even if there are, it's probably the accelerated kind that is similar to the training of dead soldiers," Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall said, explaining the overall situation of the village to Taoist Qingyuan who had just come out of the Thousand-mile Mountains.

Redline Lady added, "Under Mr. Moon-washing, the apparent masters from the Moon Village include the Four Big Protectors and Eight Generals. They're all well-known in Jianghu."

"What are the realms of their strength?" Meng Qi asked. As he did, he suddenly swung his knife. With a flash of light, another person hiding behind a pine tree fell. Blood gushed out of his throat, staining his clothes red like a blooming plum blossom.

His feet never stopped moving.

Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall answered, "There are those on the Nine Acupores and Eight Acupores level among the Eight Generals, but in terms of actual battle capability, I'm afraid an old and frail Nine Acupores expert like me can't touch them. The Four Big Protectors..."

He paused because Meng Qi had swung his blade again. With a silver flash, a spatter of blood appeared on the snow.

Trickles of blood gathered and congealed into a single droplet at the tip of his blade. It dripped onto the snow, resembling the image of plum blossoms petals in paintings.

Redline Lady watched everything unfold in a daze. It wasn't that they couldn't detect the Moon Village disciples in the hiding, but they were always slow by a beat to act each time. Just as they were about to take the disciples out, Taoist Qingyuan had already sheathed his knife.

The cruel and merciless Taoist Qingyuan really didn't seem like the average Taoist.

Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall paused briefly before he continued, "Purplesun Sword King and Green-blood Dragon King of the Four Big Protectors are Mr. Moon-washing's Uncle Masters. They're powerful Half-step Exterior Scenery masters, renowned and feared in Jianghu. Water King of Silvery Moon and Red-eyebrowed Saber King have surpassed the normal Nine Acupores level in terms of realms. If they fight with their peers and go all out, unusual phenomena will occur. Both are Mr. Moon-washing's nephews. Many know them because they expect them to become amazing Half-step Exterior Scenery-level masters."

As he spoke, the three of them tread on the snow and darted about with a faint scratching sound. From time to time, knife energy shone along with the passing of yet another life and the blooming of yet another bloody plum blossom. The snow-white ground looked even more chilling.

"If we encounter the Four Big Protectors, I doubt we'd be able to make it to the God-gathering Heights. But there's no need to worry. Heightslord Huangfu has several good and powerful friends such as the moral Immeasurable Immortal and the chivalrous Tower Lord. They're all on the Half-step Exterior Scenery level. Even without involving sects or Precious Weapons, they can only be intercepted by the Four Big Protectors, especially Immeasurable Immortal who belongs to the orthodox profound school. His strength is tip-top among Half-step Exterior Scenery-level masters. Mr. Moon-washing would probably have to fight him personally." Compared to Redline Lady who was a direct and straightforward person, Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall had a good grasp of the situation.

Redline Lady whispered, "I don't understand. It's critical for Mr. Moon-washing to snatch the title of Emperor of Tengen. Why would he hastily act and do something despicable like fishing in troubled waters? Isn't he afraid that Star-picking Immortal, Buddhist Monk Silence, and Sword Shaking the World of the Star Village will make use of it to attack him? Heightslord Huangfu has quite the support from many sects and families..."

"Redline Lady, don't you think it's a bit of a stretch for Mr. Moon-washing to be fighting for the title given his preliminary Exterior-level strength?" Meng Qi's sleeves fluttered in the wind as he trekked across the white snow with his knife in hand.

Redline Lady was stumped for a moment.

Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall had experienced and suffered much in life. He sighed with emotion. "His true intentions lie elsewhere. He's probably competing for the position of Tianyuan Emperor just so he can give it up. He'll use his withdrawal as the 'price' for the tacit consent of Star-picking Immortal and the rest to his 'marriage' of the God-gathering Heights."

He could do that...? Redline Lady was dumbfounded. Being straightforward in nature, she had never liked using tricks and schemes. Mr. Moon-washing seemed like a dark, scary, and cunning old fox. Then there was Buddhist Monk Silence who represented the orthodox path. Would he give his consent just like that?

Politics was just that dirty... Meng Qi tsked to himself. If Buddhist Monk Silence was really a man of great sanctity or a noble Buddhist monk, he wouldn't have participated in the fight for the position of Emperor of Tengen.

A splash of blood soiled the snow with another flash of knife energy, piercing the eye with its redness.

Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall looked at the snow-covered plains before them. "Among the Eight Generals of the Moon Village, Immortal-sealing Sword Lin Buping is the strongest. Next is Bai Zhanlong, who practices the Tai-yin Devil-Rinsing Scripture. The weakest would be Mr. Moon-washing's son and the groom this time, Flower Master Wen Hengshui."

He described each of the Eight Generals in detail as they were the most likely candidates sent to intercept them. The more familiar they knew with their opponents, the more confident they would be in taking them down together.

The weather was cold and the storm was gradually subsiding, but the snow had already piled up thickly. The dark clouds dispersed to reveal the gleaming moon that cast its glow on the snow, creating a chillingly white atmosphere.

The moonlight was clear and bright with a hint of silver in it. A vague and twisted figure suddenly leaped out from the 'light', its hands clawing Meng Qi's back.

Its Qi burst out even before reaching him. Ten bursts of force from its fingers shot out, full of the chilling intent of freezing his blood.

"Be careful..." Redline Lady and Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall cried at the same time. They raised their sword and palm to try and provide aid.

Meng Qi was dressed in Taoist robes with a silk ribbon around his waist. With his back to the figure in the moonlight, he thrust his long saber backward.

The Knife Momentum was perfectly round like the emptiness of the heavens that could hold everything and absorb all changes and airflow. The force from the attacker's ten fingers was silently absorbed. Even the fingers couldn't help grabbing at the void.

The void abruptly burst open, dividing Yin and Yang. The long saber sharply advanced with a slow Knife Momentum that contained countless changes. Each variation was unimaginably fast, sealing off all possibilities of escape.

The attacker had decent strength, but he had first been absorbed into the emptiness of the heavens, destroying his advantage in Body Movements and rendering his moves obsolete. In the face of the oncoming saber, there was nowhere left for him to run.

The knife energy was faint and it seemed to be falling slowly. However, it was like a nightmare for the attacker. He couldn't escape at all. Only when the saber was about to hit him, did he hastily try to counter it with a palm move.

With the gathering of changes and a flicker of knife energy, the saber slipped between his palms. Like a Thunderbolt Python flashing past, it split the attacker's Protective Upstanding Qi wide open.

Clang! The long saber returned to its scabbard. The attacker had his palms pressed together as if begging for mercy, but there was a deep knife mark on his throat. Bright red blood spewed from his wound, tainting the surrounding snow red like plum blossoms that blossomed one after the other.

"Be careful... of ambushes..." Redline Lady and Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall had only finished their sentences when the attacker collapsed. They had just swung their sword and palm out.

What powerful bladesmanship!

What a swift saber!

In the blink of an eye, he had managed to kill a master of seemingly decent strength!

The shock was apparent in their eyes as they glanced at the attacker and Meng Qi.

Meng Qi was very pleased with the bladesmanship he had just demonstrated and thus calmly accepted their gazes.

After crossing swords with Jiang Zhiwei in the Demonworld Fragment, his bladesmanship and swordsmanship had improved even further. He could combine the essence he had derived on his own with the lonely Heaven Blade in any way he wanted, targeted at different situations and different flaws. He was only one step away from having the return of the sword at his fingertips and being able to freely use it.

Since the attacker had possessed decent strength, Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall kicked his body over to identify him.

"It's… Bai Zhanlong!" He was stunned. Bai Zhanlong was the attacker who had died without putting up a fight under Taoist Qingyuan's blade had been the second strongest member of the Eight Generals? He thought the attacker had been just another average Nine Acupores disciple from the Moon Village!

Light snow fluttered down and landed on his face, but he couldn't feel the cold at all. It was as if everything before him was just a dream.

Killing Bai Zhanlong with a casual swing of his hand would probably take the strength of someone on the Half-step Exterior Scenery level. However, Taoist Qingyuan didn't seem like someone who had opened the Hidden Latch of his mid-brows at all!

Redline Lady was in utter disbelief as well. Was it really Bai Zhanlong of the Eight Generals? Taoist Qingyuan had barely even turned around. At most, it had been a partial turn to the side!

"So it's Bai Zhanlong. He's not too bad." Meng Qi took a quick glance at the corpse. It seemed Bai Zhanlong hadn't used any weapons because the Tai-yin Devil-Rinsing Scripture borrowed the power of the moonlight for Form Blending. Besides his thin robes, he wasn't carrying any common items either.

He looked at the red, blooming plum blossoms on the snow behind him before turning his attention on the snow-covered plains before him. He smiled. "Since the Eight Generals have made their appearances, next up will be this wide stretch of land."

Meng Qi then picked up his pace. Like a spirit, he seemed to only caress the snow gently with the tips of his feet.

His robes fluttered in the breeze and his hand rested on his long saber as he ran. He was the very picture of carefreeness.

Redline Lady and Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall snapped out of their trance and gasped in awe. "This is the future Emperor of Tengen..."

...

The God-gathering Heights was situated next to mountains and rivers, backed by snow forests, and covered an extremely wide area.

It was early morning when they arrived at their destination. Since daybreak came later during the winter, the place was slightly darker. The entire manor was well-decorated with red paper hanging everywhere, brimming with the flavor of happy festivities. However, the few disciple servants standing guard overnight all looked terrible. There was not an ounce of joy on their faces.

Far away, they could hear a group of people riding over on horseback. They were beating drums and blowing trumpets, like the procession of a groom on the way to receive his bride.

"Oh no! The Moon Village is trying to quickly resolve things and brought the wedding forward." Redline Lady's expression changed. There was surely a powerful individual among those in the procession. It could even be Purplesun Sword King or Green-blood Dragon King!

Holy Hunchback Beyond the Great Wall paused before saying in a grave tone, "They purposely spread false information about the wedding so Immeasurable Immortal will get the date wrong. Then they'll be able to carry out the marriage in peace! How… How cunning, Mr. Moon-washing!"

Meng Qi held his saber in his left hand and had his sword on his back. With his Taoist robes fluttering in the wind, he looked at the red plum blossoms blooming at the corner of the wall and the thick layers of white snow. He seemed to remember the several brightly-colored 'plum blossoms' he had seen on the way there.

"What has to come will come. Let's go in and find Miss Huangfu first, and see what she has to say," he said calmly.