Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Encounter
Naturally, Chu Mu was unaware of the conversation taking place in Mingxin Hall.
At this mont, he walked cautiously down the street. His blade was not yet drawn, but his hand was already gripping the hilt.
Whether to use his saber or his fists would be decided in an instant.
Chu Mu was heading toward his own residence. Behind him, in the opposite direction, stood the town’s Northern gate. The fact that they were in completely opposite directions gave Chu Mu a small asure of peace.
After all, the only ones who could stir up trouble in Nanshan Town were those few "rebels" from Qili Village.
And with the man in white still in Nanshan Town, and after the lesson from last ti, the chances of those "rebels" causing a scene in town were clearly not high.
The most likely place for trouble was still the Northern gate.
Chu Mu glanced back. Under the night sky, the blanket of white snow ant his vision wasn’t too restricted, but he couldn’t see the distant gate clearly. He could only make out clusters of flickering torchlight and the faint movent of figures.
’Am I just being paranoid?’
Chu Mu frowned. Just as he turned his head, an anomaly in his peripheral vision made his pupils shrink!
Blood!
Not far ahead of him, starkly visible against the blinding white, were pockmarks of blood.
His gaze shifted. In the dim light, he saw the edges of clothing, and then several bodies ca into clear view.
CLANG!
Chu Mu instinctively drew his saber.
The frigid wind howled like a blade, but there was still nothing before him.
Chu Mu advanced cautiously, his entire body tensed to the absolute limit.
BOOM!
He hadn’t taken more than a few steps when a sudden roar completely shattered the silence of the night.
Chu Mu instinctively turned to look. Over at the Northern gate, sparks erupted and figures flickered. He could faintly hear urgent shouts and even... screams of agony.
Clearly, sothing was happening over there!
Chu Mu stopped. After a mont of contemplation, he broke into a sprint toward his own residence without the slightest hesitation.
’I refuse to believe they’d dare stir up trouble in town again!’
"You little thief, you’re courting death!"
As Chu Mu sprinted, a loud shout erupted from the direction of the Inspection Office. A streak of sword light cut across the sky, and the sight of a figure in flowing white robes using Sword Control entered his vision.
Chu Mu saw it clearly. The man in white rode his sword like a shooting star, crossing several hundred ters in just a few breaths. The sword light then crashed down upon the Northern gate, where the commotion had erupted.
The sight made Chu Mu stop in his tracks once more.
Gritting his teeth, Chu Mu spun around and began sprinting again. This ti, however, he wasn’t heading ho. He was running in the opposite direction, his target now the blood-and-fire-shrouded Northern gate.
"Li Chang’s Cultivation has already reached the Late Stage of Qi Cultivation?"
In the attic atop Mingxin Hall, the man in green robes and Elder Li stood side by side. Seeing the sword light fall, both their expressions grew more serious.
"It seems so."
Elder Li nodded. "He must be preparing to break through to the Great Perfection stage."
"Otherwise, he wouldn’t risk hiding this newly discovered Cold Blood Ore."
"Although Cold Blood Ore isn’t classified as a Spirit Ore, it’s quite rare, so its value is decent."
Qingyi sneered, "All the better that it’s decent. It’ll all be ours anyway!"
"With a Cold Blood Ore deposit, no matter how small, we’ll be able to make a killing."
"Isn’t that much better than you guarding this Mortal Iron Ore for the Li Family all year, just living off the scraps they leave behind?"
Elder Li remained silent.
Seeing this, Qingyi lost interest and glanced around, his gaze finally landing on the approaching Chu Mu.
A mocking look appeared on Qingyi’s face.
"He was running away just a mont ago, and now he dares to charge back in."
"That kid you’ve taken a liking to has so nerve!"
Elder Li’s sowhat cloudy eyes flickered. Seemingly ignoring Qingyi’s taunt, he remarked with feeling, "He knows when to advance and retreat, understands gains and losses, is decisive, and has a healthy dose of fear. That boy is much better than this old bag of bones."
"If you really think it’s a sha, why don’t you guide him onto the path yourself?"
Qingyi studied Elder Li with so curiosity.
"You’ve been guarding this mine for the Li Family for all these years, you must have skimd a fair bit off the top..."
Elder Li said, "Mortal Iron Ore isn’t worth much to begin with, and it’s just the scraps left over by the Li Family. How much could I possibly get?"
With a sigh, Elder Li added, "We’ll see. Besides, now isn’t the right ti."
"To keep this Cold Blood Ore a secret, Li Chang hasn’t even dared to use a Mining Spiritual Artifact. He’s using blood sacrifices to mine it, digging with the lives of mortals. It’ll probably take him several months."
"This kid also holds a public post. If I guide him onto the path, Li Chang might notice..."
As Elder Li was lanting, Qingyi suddenly exclaid in surprise, "Huh... This little rat is tough to kill!"
Amidst the swirling sword light, a youth covered in bloody gashes had actually broken through the obstruction. A black shadow flickered, fleeing for his life!
And the direction he was running...
Was right toward the onrushing Chu Mu.
Seeing the black shadow flicker and flee desperately toward him, Chu Mu almost cursed out loud!
’You should be running out of town, what the hell are you doing running back in?!’
Chu Mu certainly wouldn’t have minded taking advantage of the man in white’s power to kick a man while he was down and see if he could pick up so scraps.
But now, to risk his life fighting this cornered fugitive...
’Impossible!’
Chu Mu skidded to a halt. With no intention of blocking the way, he spun around and ducked into a nearby alley.
His movents were so smooth, it was as if he’d practiced them a thousand tis.
"There he is! Get him!"
"Don’t let him get away!"
What Chu Mu hadn’t expected was that just as he ducked into the alley, Li Jinghong appeared on the street not far behind him, leading a large group of Inspectors. Seeing the desperately fleeing youth, why would Li Jinghong be afraid?
The blood-soaked youth clearly had no desire to clash with Li Jinghong either. With a leap, he vaulted over a wall and into a residence lining the street.
And in the alley just one wall away from that residence, Chu Mu was sprinting, saber in hand.
After running for about two hundred ters, Chu Mu finally slowed to a stop.
The night was still dark, and the dim alley was enough to conceal everything. Chu Mu couldn’t see the specific situation on the street, but he could hear the chaotic sounds growing louder.
’He disappeared for more than half a month. Why has he shown up again?’
Leaning against a nearby wall to catch his breath, Chu Mu couldn’t help but feel puzzled.
If he rembered correctly, after the Qili Village incident, it had also been more than half a month before the youth reappeared. This ti was the sa...
"Hm?"
Just as he was pondering this, a sound ca from nearby. Chu Mu instinctively swung his saber. The first strike missed. Without a mont’s hesitation, he slashed again.
This ti, the blade clearly hit sothing solid, but it felt as if he had struck iron or stone.
Chu Mu was horrified. Only then did he get a clear look at the figure his blade had struck—it was the very sa youth he had been trying to avoid!
...
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