The young martial artist who had previously tested Wang Anfeng helped Zhao Zhengyong into the room, where he consud a great deal of quality dicines. Only then did the ferocious wound in his abdon stop bleeding. However, Zhao Zhengyong was, after all, getting on in years and his inner strength was not what it once was. His recent skirmish was extrely perilous, and his vital energy had already suffered so loss.
The youth waved his hand, signalling the servants to leave.
Turning around, Zhao Zhengyong was sitting in a chair, rubbing a waist token with his right hand, his expression fluctuating. The youth stepped forward and waited by his side, whispering:
"Great-Uncle..."
Zhao Zhengyong glanced at him and slowly said:
"I had no idea that within Qingyi Square, such a master assassin had been recruited..."
The young man frowned and said:
"Great-Uncle, could it be that soone deliberately did this..."
The old man shook his head and replied:
"Impossible..."
"The assassin’s token from Qingyi Square isn’t sothing one can obtain solely through martial arts prowess. Moreover, stirring up the situation, who stands to benefit from such thankless efforts? People in Jianghu wouldn’t do such things."
The youth hesitated then said:
"If that person heard enough and then deliberately made a move, leaving behind this token... our actions will certainly be more hesitant, to talk about benefits."
"The greatest benefit, presumably, would go to Tan Tianxiong and Tan Yurou."
Zhao Zhengyong snorted coldly, and looking up to see the sky was already turning bright, he said:
"Didn’t you personally test that young man yesterday? How was his martial arts?"
The youth was taken aback, thought for a mont, and said:
"Since he was favored by that old thief Tan Tianxiong, his martial arts should not be poor. He may lack the deanor of a martial artist, but he does have so thods. When I tested him, though, his external cultivation was inferior to mine, and his lightfoot technique was quite ordinary."
"He must be one of those martial artists who take the unconventional path, with the majority of their martial arts focused on weapons."
The elder harrumphed and then asked again:
"What about the martial artist from before?"
The youth was montarily startled, finally understanding what the elder before him ant. At a loss for words for a mont, Zhao Zhengyong snorted coldly, his right hand slamming heavily onto the table, causing the cups and dishes to rattle nonstop, and said:
"Speak up!"
With a tremble, the youth broke out in a cold sweat, barely managing to say:
"His external cultivation is unparalleled, his fist technique extraordinarily domineering, and both his lightfoot technique and hidden weapons are top-notch in Fufeng."
"You know that!"
Zhao Zhengyong snorted again and with a swish, he stood up, striding over to the youth. Despite his age, he was still unusually brawny and towered above the young man, casting a long shadow. He said:
"Given Tan Tianxiong’s ruthlessness, if he could mobilize such a person, how could you and I remain alive?! Would the Twenty-Seven Allied Gangs still be able to enjoy their days in their lair?!"
"What wishful thinking!"
"So if it’s not Tan Tianxiong’s martial artist, are you trying to tell that the one you tested yesterday is the very assassin who tonight proved superior to ?!"
"A martial artist whose external cultivation is diocre, who specializes in swordsmanship, suddenly beca an assassin who could infiltrate Zhao Manor without a sound, whose fist technique is not inferior to mine, and whose hidden weapon technique and lightfoot movent are extrely eerie?!"
At this mont, Zhao Zhengyong was infuriated, practically cursing out loud. The youth bowed his head, not daring to retort, which only further angered the elder, who shouted:
"How old is the one protecting Tan Yurou?!"
Barely able to speak, the youth finally managed to say after a mont of difficulty:
"At most seventeen..."
"Seventeen, seventeen..."
Zhao Zhengyong muttered to himself, his expression a bit dazed, then suddenly burst into rage, kicking with his foot and shouting:
"Seventeen years old! You know that too?!"
"You know that too?!"
"Are you trying to say that this seventeen-year-old youth has achieved mastery in both swordsmanship and inner strength, in external cultivation and fist arts, in hidden weapon techniques, in all manner of martial arts, innately skilled and prodigiously learned, heartlessly brutal in his attacks, appearing rely a teenager yet already battle-hardened beyond asure?!"
"Do you think what you’re saying makes any sense?!"
"It stinks to high heaven!"
The youth took several kicks in a row, his complexion ghostly, unable to speak.
............
Outside Xi Dingzhou City, thirty li to the north.
The Twenty-Seven Allied Gangs.
The Grand Gang Leader, who appeared to be completely drunk and insensible to his surroundings in the eyes of others, sat at the head table, resting his hands on the hilt of a combat knife. His breath was deep and substantial, with rows of chairs on either side of him.
Sitting there were n and won, cooks, coachn, vendors, beggars, beauties, warriors, Taoists, scholars—various sorts of individuals, too nurous to enurate, yet all ard with sharp weapons and possessing alert spirits, clearly martial artists of no ordinary skill.
The Grand Gang Leader swept his gaze across the lying-down crowd and spoke in a slow voice:
"Number Seven has already gone to Xi Dingzhou."
"The tiline given by Yu Jiu is five days. Within five days, nearby Xi Dingzhou, all the martial artists who benefited from Tan Tianxiong’s grace and followed his commands have been coaxed away by all manner of excuses devised by Yu Jiu. Without his ’shadow ghosts,’ the old tiger is but a sick cat, easily dispatched."
A lovely lady sitting down furrowed her delicate brows and said:
"However, although the old tiger is powerless, he has been avoiding guests these days... If it remains so, we will be unable to do anything to him..."
The Grand Gang Leader sneered and said:
"Yes, but he still has a granddaughter outside, his only kin."
"For the sake of this kin, even the ruthlessly decisive him once clashed with a Sixth Rank, made many mistakes when deploying masters, nearly suffered a great loss of vital energy. As long as we have Tan Yurou in our hands, we need not fear he won’t show up!"
The woman inquired:
"But isn’t there a young martial artist protecting Tan Yurou? The assassins we sent were all subdued with a single move. To accomplish this, it would not be a simple matter..."
Enjoy new tales from .Côm
Suddenly, a person laughed loudly and brazenly:
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