Book 2 - Fame Spreads - Chapter 61 - Old Fox’s Quick Wits

Chapter – 61 Old Fox’s Quick Wits
The Reclining Moon blade that was shining with a radiance like that of the scorching sun suddenly chopped down, and countless rays of light expanded around within an instant, engulfing the four tenth layer experts ahead.
The four entangled individuals suddenly felt an extremely strange sensation.
Under the illumination of sunlight, Reclining Moon blade was flickering with a dazzling radiance. However, this intense radiance gave them a feeling like that of clouds and soft winds.
This blade didn’t seem as mighty and fierce as one would imagine.
In their perception, this blade transformed into a sea of clouds; layers upon layers of clouds that were twisted and warped around each other, combining to form a sea of clouds that pervaded in between a lofty mountain range.
Rain Cloud Soaring Technique; He Yiming had comprehended this Xiantian technique by watching the mountain rain and mist covered valleys and combining it with his experiences with Rain Cloud Imprint and the cloud-like mystical agility Xiantian technique revealed by Xiao brothers.
When he’d initially comprehended this technique, it was merely an agility technique. However, confronting the suicide squad of two hundred men that were as resolute as a mountain and as fierce as a tiger unexpectedly allowed him to once again feel as if he was treading a summit.
At that instant, he seemed to have entered the realm of enlightenment once again and experienced that omnipresent mountain rain and boundless sea of clouds and mist.
It was under these conditions was he able to eventually succeed in merging this feeling into his blade technique. The frightening Reclining Moon Blade waved like clouds; like mist; like rain. After blowing through the powerful formation of two hundred men, it again blew towards the two peak tenth layer cultivators.
If one were to say that previously, it was the two old men who wished to keep Guan Qing and Guo Shaofeng occupied, after He Yiming’s appearance, the situation completely flipped. The two horse bandits tried with all their might to trap the two old men. Completely disregarding their own bodies, they kept the two old men firmly locked near them.
After witnessing He Yiming’s blade strike, they wouldn’t dare confront him directly even in the face death.
When He Yiming’s blade strike unfolded, the four battling individuals were simultaneously startled.
They suddenly discovered that their opponents had suddenly disappeared, and not only the opponents, even the companions who had been alongside them had also disappeared.
Clouds and mist filled their surroundings, constituting a maze that they would be eternally incapable of leaving.
He Wude and Xu Yinjie suddenly felt a power, which was neither too heavy nor too light, brushing against them. Subsequently, they involuntarily retreated three steps.
In these three steps, the scene before their eyes had already returned to normal.
Blade light was flickering around them. The clouds and mist from a moment ago had gone distant as if it had been an illusion, leaving behind only a mystical feeling that they would be eternally incapable of forgetting.
Suddenly, the blade light before their eyes completely disappeared. He Yiming’s figure stood like the character ‘八’ with blade out.
A few steps ahead of him, Guan Qing and Guo Shaofeng, the two leaders of Red Cloth bandits who were the masterminds behind the raid on Tai Cang county, tumbled as if drunk before eventually falling down.
Their eyes didn’t have intense hatred or grief, but merely bewilderment and disbelief.
As if they never thought that there could be day when they would die in such a manner.
“Kill….Kill for me……go kill!”
Three deafening cries of kill resounded at the wall, originating from an old man’s mouth.
Lord Master Cheng Zhusheng no longer had his usual calm and steady appearance. He roared as if he’d insane; ninth layer Internal Energy being pushed to the peak.
His middle finger was pointing towards the ocean of horse bandits. With a voice that resounded throughout the Xu castle, being heard even by those hiding in the caves, he roared, “Guan Qing, Guo Shaofeng, Xu Hanbai are already dead, and bandits have dispersed. Gentlemen, kill as much as you can; kill one man, and you shall be rewarded thirty taels of silver.”
Within an instant, every single individual on the wall had his face flushed with excitement. Everybody who was capable of movement completely disregarded their safety and charged ahead, trying to outrun each other for the fear of losing out such a gargantuan credit to their accomplice.
He Wude and Xu Yinjie exchanged a glance. First they were stumped, then a flash of understanding flickered in their eyes. At the same time, they sighed inwardly. Tai Cang’s old fox was after all Tai Cang’s old fox. Such insight and thought process that took multiple aspects into consideration was simply too far out of their reach.
Their gazes shifted and once again fell on He Yiming who was wielding the blade with both hands. Standing under the illumination of rising sun, his youthful figure gave off a majestic aura like that of a high mountains great rivers.
Thinking back to the absolute power he’d revealed a few moments ago, the old men actually begun to revere him a little.
In the Xu castle’s backyard, the few tens of people standing before the rockery looked at each others faces.
Upon hearing that heaven-shaking roar, they had indistinctly felt that something unexpected had happened outside.
However, despite all of their conjectures, they could never have imagined that He family’s sixth grandson He Yiming rushed back in the night and instantly turned the tides of battle.
However, none of them lacked expectations for a miracle to occur. Their movements became slower and slower, and everybody’s vision fell on the members of the second generation who were in lead.
However, He Quanming, Cheng Shine, and Xu Right were hesitating. They too hoped for a miracle, but didn’t dare to put the last hope for their clan’s revival in danger.
He Quanming suddenly stamped his foot and said, “I’ll go take a look. Brother Shine, brother Right, please quickly lead them out.”
“Out of question. I’ll go, you all leave.” Xu Right firmly said.
He Quanming’s brows slightly creased, “Brother Right, our He family still has my elder brother Quanxin. Even if the family lacks me, there won’t be too much trouble. However, can Xu family and Cheng family afford to lose you two?”
Xu Right and Cheng Shine immediately turned silent. They were no fools and understood former’s meaning.
Although the three influential families were sure to suffer, relatively speaking, since He family had the smallest land unlike the massive estate of the other two families, the damage they would suffer would be instead minimal. Moreover, He Yitian and He Yiming had already left. They could serve as the hope for He family’s preservation and revival.
However, Xu family and Cheng family were exceptionally huge. Although their foundation ran deep and they would definitely be able to review with external help, if they were to lose Xu Right and Cheng Shine, two of their core members, they would certainly have to suffer a lot of obstacles on their road of revival.
“Second brother, I can go too,” He Quanyi faintly laughed, “Have you forgot the words father instructed you? You must lead Yihai and Yixuan to safety. In the future, please take care of your sister-in-law and two nieces.”
As the sound of his words fell, his figure had already rushed back like a gust of wind.
He Quanxin reached out with his hand, but surprisingly didn’t stop him. His complexion had instantly turned ashen.
This trip was naturally exceptionally dangerous. Moreover, they all knew that if he found the castle wall already breached and an influx of horse bandits, his only option would be to stay his ground and fight or lure the enemy somewhere else. Retreat was not an option for him, otherwise he would be bringing the enemy here.
Cheng Shine lightly sighed and said, “Go.”
He reached out and gave a light push to Xu Yucai who stood in the front. He who was one of the most outstanding figures among Xu family’s second generation also had an ashen face. However, he didn’t say a word and only stepped inside the dark cave who with the lantern he was already holding.
However, the moment he landed his first feet inside, a deafening roar sounded, “Guan Qing, Guo Shaofeng, Xu Hanbai are already dead, and bandits have dispersed. Gentlemen, kill as much as you can; kill one man, and you shall be rewarded thirty taels of silver.”
His legs suddenly stuck as if being chained by a thousand pounds heavy chain, no longer willing to budge half a step inside.
At the same time, his body turned around and looked at the people above with a gaze carrying boundless hope.
Every one of them revealed incredulous expressions, and the ecstasy which they shared on their faces was hard to conceal.
“It’s my father’s voice. It can’t be wrong.” Cheng Shine excitedly said.
At this moment, how could this authoritative figure of Cheng family could keep any of his cool. His two eyes brightened, twinkling like stars in the night sky.
“How is this possible?” He Quanxin muttered.
Xu Right’s body suddenly trembled. Even with his ninth layer Internal Energy, he couldn’t keep his excitement away from his face.
‘Ancestor, it’s certainly ancestor coming here.” He spoke in almost a trembling voice. It seemed as if these words had drained all of the energy inside his body, and he seemed on the verge of collapsing.
He Quanming and Cheng Shine simultaneously started, then asked with delight and astonishment, “Is it that elder?”
Xu Right sucked in a deep breath and said, “Apart from that elder, is there anybody else who could issue such a roar; apart from that elder, is there anybody else who could kill the four bandit leaders in such a short time, “Ancestor certainly knows that Xu family has run into a catastrophe, and that’s the reason he’s personally rushed over.”
As He Quanxin and Cheng Shine recalled that awe-inspiring roar that brought boundless suppression, both were immediately convinced inwardly.
Among their families, only the legendary ancestor of Xu family could possess such an extraordinary strength.
Cheng Shine’s complexion suddenly changed, “Not good.”
He Quanming and Xu Right astoundedly turned their heads towards him, wondering why would he say not good in regards to this change in the situation.
He Quanming didn’t care much about it, but Xu Right’s face involuntarily sank a little as he inwardly grumbled, “In any case, our two families are still related. Don’t tell me you would really want to see Xu family being exterminated?”
However, he’d barely thought as such when Cheng Shine turned his body and said, “Listen well; the information of Xu family’s secret passage to the back mountains is not to be leaked. Toady, the fact that you wished to escape is also not to be leaked. Now, go and kill as much as you can for me. The prestige of three influential families is not to be tarnished.”
He Quanxin and Xu Right’s faces immediately changed, and a flash of understanding flickered on their faces.
No wonder Lord Master Cheng would shout in such a manner, completely disregarding his image. It turned out that the reason the old man had done this was not that he was too excited, but because he wished to inform them.
The enemy is already dead. If you haven’t escaped, there is no need to do so. Come out and kill enemy, don’t let anyone find out you were trying to escape.
At the moment of the castle’s fall, all the spongers and servants stayed while the masters escaped. Although it was not some catastrophic event, if it was leaked outside, it would be quite disadvantageous for the three families.
At the very least, the spongers and servants that were fighting alongside them today would feel extremely disappointed from their conduct.
Therefore, as soon as Cheng Zhusheng came to his senses, he immediately shouted, and Cheng Shine was definitely worthy to be his son. It only took him a few moments to decipher the hidden message and come up with the solution immediately afterward.
The juniors loudly sounded their agreements and rushed out, seeming as if trying to outdo each other.
They were young and vigorous; obviously not too pleased to act as deserters. Since they obtained a chance to retaliate, they were naturally quite glad and excited. At the very least, they had no desire to be seen as cowards by their peers in Tai Cang county.
Cheng Shine cupped his fists towards Xu Right and He Quanming and said, “Please close the secret passage’s opening, I will leave first.” He then rushed out of the courtyard, leaving behind all the youngsters.
Xu Right and He Quanming helplessly closed the secret passage again and exchanged a glance, thinking inwardly, “Cheng Shine is so cunning at this age, truly worthy of Tai Cang’s old fox’s son. The bloodline of cunning influential family.”
After sorting out the situation, when they hurriedly arrived at the wall, their vision fell on the horse bandits.
However, the white-haired old man possessing the elegance of an immortal they expected was nowhere to be seen. They only saw their fathers and He Yiming holding Reclining Moon blade.
They looked all around for a while but didn’t have any gains.
Xu Right suddenly said, “Why horse bandits are escaping to the two sides. There is not a single person on the main road. Are they blind?”
The three old men simultaneously looked ahead. At the middle of the road was a river of blood and dismembered bodies; an appalling scene of devastation.
They then realized that not a single among several thousand bandits dared to cross over that area of blood and flesh, and all of them took the craggy, mountain paths instead.
The three old men exchanged a glance, and their gazes on He Yiming again changed somewhat.
An ocean of bandits were escaping for their lives, completely losing the will to battle. Not a single one of them had the guts to turn and fight.
Even if chasing after them were not some experts, but spongers who had cultivation bases inferior to theirs, they still didn’t even think of fighting back.
Flee, flee, flee….
Troops in defeat are like a landslide. At this moment, even if immortals came to the world of living, they wouldn’t be able to stop them from fleeing.
The paths on the two sides were craggy and only had two narrow and coiling roads. The horse bandits were trampling each other as they tried to escape, and countless died.
However, at this moment, not a single one among them cared about such issues. Their only thinking was that they couldn’t be the one who ended up last.
In the middle of the horse bandits, there was a group of people. Perhaps among all the horse bandits, they were the only people that could still maintain somewhat of a formation.
This group didn’t contain much people, only a little over thirty. In between four thousand horse bandits, they were not the least bit eye-catching either.
However, among this group, even the least cultivation base was of the seventh layer. In the middle of the group were to two individuals; the only two remaining of the five tenth layer experts.
In the beginning, their speed wasn’t quick at all. After the multitudes of bandits started to flee, they drifted along with them. However, as soon as they left the craggy mountain trail and arrived at the road, their speed immediately quickened, instantly leaving all the horse bandits far behind them. Moreover, like birds startled by the twang of a bow, they rushed straight out of the Tai Cang county’s border without stopping once in between.
“Wife, thanks to that shout of yours. Otherwise, we might not have been able to escape so easily.”
After getting out of dangerous territory, Azure Hanyang sucked in a deep breath and bitterly smiled.
That ‘escape’ cry that brought countless people to their senses originally originated from Sea Huqiao’s mouth, though she shouted in a changed voice that nobody was able to recognize.
The two of them were after all considered as top figures among the horse bandits. Had she not suddenly created a huge disturbance, they would have certainly gained attention from every side, and once that frightening youth’s attention shifted onto them, the chances of their escape would have become next to nothing.
Looking at the clothes on his body that didn’t even look regular, Azure Hanyang inwardly rejoiced. If her wife had not prepared early, they truly would have left their lives there.
As he thought about the conclusion of the other four who were as reputed as him, he couldn’t calm his pounding heart.
Sea Huqiao lightly sighed. Throwing a quick glance behind, she suddenly said, “Husband, this might not be a bad thing for us.”
“You are saying?”
Sea Huqiao faintly nodded and said, “Although life as horse bandits is quite good, it’s not good for long term. Although this time’s defeat was unexpected for us, it may serve as an opportunity to shed off our horse bandits’ identity.”
Azure Hanyang’s lips slightly shuddered, as if he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Sea Huqiao furiously said, “Husband, you saw Guan Qing and rest’s fate. If this person is not satisfied and comes to Atai county to look for us, then what?”
Azure Hanyang’s body trembled once before he immediately said, “Alright, we’ll do as you say and won’t go back.”
Sea Huqiao eased her tone a bit, “In these years, I have already saved enough wealth, we can just leave.”
Azure Hanyang faintly nodded and looked back. He suddenly felt a chill, extinguishing the last bit of his hopes of returning.