Chapter 423: Chapter 422 Xu Jian Uses Poison
The three of them did not stay overnight in Nan Zhao City.
After the inn’s server had filled the three fine horses with feed, he led them to the trio.
Mounting their horses at the eastern gate of Nan Zhao City, the three rode at breakneck speed toward the direction of the Duanmu Family.
Whenever they were tired, they would rest right on the spot, and if they encountered a village or town, they would fill their stomachs. With a clear goal and unwavering determination to travel, it only took them three days to cross a thousand miles to reach the Duanmu Family’s territory.
"In another two hours we’ll arrive at Muyun City. The horses need a rest," Wang Lei mentioned, feeling the heavy breathing of his mount.
Yang Fei and Xu Jian nodded, and the three of them found a patch of green grass to stop and let the horses graze and rest.
"Yang Fei, do you have any plan?" Wang Lei asked him.
Yang Fei shook his head, "What kind of plan could there be? It’s nothing more than sneaking in quietly first to see if we can find places like the Duanmu Family’s Scripture Pavilion, to look for the Body Seizing Technique."
Wang Lei laughed, "That’s fine. I was actually worried you’d be arrogant enough to attempt a direct assault."
Yang Fei laughed heartily, "I’m not that reckless."
In the past few days, the three of them also encountered many people from the Martial Arts World and even had verbal altercations, but the strength of those they met was insufficient to threaten them. Wang Lei was genuinely worried that this might make Yang Fei underestimate the strength of the Hidden Sect World.
"I have a plan," Wang Lei said to Yang Fei. "But it might not work."
Both Yang Fei and Xu Jian looked at him, the latter asked, "What plan?"
Wang Lei explained, "I used to know someone from the Duanmu Family. His name is Duanmu Cheng, a direct descendant of the Duanmu Family. Although his Martial Arts talent is average, he is deeply favored by the Duanmu Family’s elder and is responsible for internal affairs. He’s good at doing business, and ever since he took over, the family’s coffers have been filling up, giving him a certain degree of influence within the family. We could start with him."
"What do we do?" asked Yang Fei.
Wang Lei said, "Get close to him, and through him, enter the Duanmu Family."
Yang Fei frowned, "If I were Duanmu Cheng, I definitely wouldn’t easily trust three strangers who suddenly approached me, and even if I did, I wouldn’t readily introduce them into the Duanmu Family."
Xu Jian silently nodded in agreement, "That’s right, that won’t work. And to gain Duanmu Cheng’s trust would take too long."
With no other option, Wang Lei said, "In that case, I don’t have a better plan."
Yang Fei’s expression was resolute as he said, "My only purpose in entering the Hidden Sect is to intimidate those ghosts and goblins, to let them know I’m not to be trifled with. If it weren’t for Senior Xu’s need to seek the Body Seizing and Rebirth Technique, I would have taken action against the Duanmu Family directly."
Although he had said earlier he wouldn’t act rashly or underestimate the Hidden Sect’s experts, he also had confidence in himself.
He felt that with his current Realm, even if he couldn’t match the top experts of the Hidden Sect, he still had some assurance of escape.
His legs had been tempered and his speed was now much faster than before, which bolstered his confidence even more.
While their horses rested, the three discussed strategies for a while. Eventually, Xu Jian decided to sneak in quietly to see if he could find the Body Seizing and Rebirth Technique, while Yang Fei would wait for Xu Jian’s investigation of the Duanmu Family’s library before causing trouble for the Duanmu Family.
With their plan set, once the horses were well-fed and watered, they prepared to advance towards Muyun City.
Just then, the sound of neighing came from behind them.
Soon after, a series of whistle signals echoed.
Xu Jian, seasoned in the Martial Arts World, and Yang Fei and Wang Lei, who had spent many years in the Underworld, instantly recognized the sounds as signaling for an encounter.
The three looked at each other, and Wang Lei suggested, "Shall we go have a look?"
Yang Fei was curious as well.
However, Xu Jian shook his head and said, "This world of the Hidden Sect is full of such strife and killing. We have our own business to attend to; best not to invite trouble."
Yang Fei and Wang Lei slowly nodded, feeling that Xu Jian was right. They were about to bypass the area and head toward Muyun City when they realized that dozens of people were encircling them from the direction of Muyun City, including some formidable figures.
With a worried expression, Xu Jian said, "This is bad, it seems like they have mistaken us for the enemy."
Yang Fei’s ears moved slightly, and he could hear whispering from afar, "That woman surely has a backup plan, lucky Mr. Four was prepared, otherwise, they would have escaped."
Although the voice was quite low, Yang Fei’s keen hearing picked it up.
Xu Jian heard it too. He glanced at Yang Fei and whispered, "What do we do?"
"We’re already wrapped up like dumplings, what else can we do but fight our way out?" Yang Fei said with an indifferent laugh.
He understood what Xu Jian was suggesting: to take a detour and flee this place, to avoid entanglements. But Yang Fei had never been one to avoid trouble.
The reason he had held back recently was due to injuries that compromised his fighting ability. Now that his strength had returned, even stronger than before, the pride and confidence of the King of Madmen had also returned.
Wang Lei was well aware of Yang Fei’s temperament and smiled as he drew his steel knife.
Just as they were about to make a move, suddenly a cold and clear reprimand from a woman came from behind, "Scoundrels, Duanmu Cheng breaks his word, trying to betray and devour, huh?"
The voice was cold and melodious, very pleasant to hear.
Wang Lei’s expression changed drastically, and he immediately tensed up, looking towards the forest behind.
Although the voice seemed close, it was actually hundreds of meters away.
Yang Fei also felt that the woman’s voice was somewhat familiar but couldn’t remember who it was. However, seeing Wang Lei’s expression, he immediately recalled the woman in red.
"Go quickly, lest you regret it later!" Yang Fei said with a smile.
Without any hesitation, Wang Lei’s figure flashed as he crouched and made his way into the dense forest behind them.
Yang Fei didn’t expect him to be so decisive and was stunned for a moment before cursing with a laugh, "Fuck, you abandon your brothers for a woman."
Xu Jian chuckled, folding his arms and saying, "I’ll leave these fights and kills to you young people."
Yang Fei laughed heartily upon hearing this, "I’ll leave this place to the senior. My brother is impetuous; I need to go check on him."
Having said that, he turned and left.
Xu Jian smiled indifferently and took no offense.
Dozens of people approached from the front. The one leading them waved his hand and commanded, "Don’t let those two kids escape, chase!"
At his command, the martial artists who had been approaching quietly now revealed themselves, some with the ferocity of thunder, moving through the forest as if flying, others leaping from branch to branch, plucking flowers and leaves in their haste.
As Xu Jian watched these people attempting to bypass him to pursue Yang Fei and Wang Lei, a trace of icy coldness flashed across his deep eyes. With a wave of his hand, a thick smog instantly spread out in all directions.
"Ugh..."
Above Xu Jian’s head, one of the martial artists suddenly sensed something was amiss and covered his mouth and nose, about to warn the others, but he felt weak and fell from the tree, spitting blood upon impact and convulsing a few times before dying on the spot.
"Damn it, it’s... poison... ugh..."
Someone managed to send out a warning, but had overestimated their resistance to poison, collapsing immediately after speaking.
Within a ten-meter radius semi-circular area in front of Xu Jian, in just that instant, nine people had fallen.
Three of them reacted swiftly, retreating quickly. Even though they had only inhaled a small amount of the toxin, their faces still turned black, and they held their breath trying to expel the toxin from their bodies.
How overbearing!
The other twelve, feeling a great threat, no longer dared to approach Xu Jian. One of them, with sharp eyes, fixed his gaze on Xu Jian and spoke with a heavy voice, "Who are you, could you be a senior from the Poison Sect?"
Xu Jian silently noted the term Poison Sect, realizing that in the Hidden Sect World, the Poison Sect was skilled in using poison.
But faced with the inquiry, he completely ignored the man, instead counter-asking, "Why have you come?"