Chapter 142 Borrowing a Knife to Kill

After Ling Tianzhi finished speaking, he flicked his finger, and the oppressive aura that had permeated the surroundings vanished instantly.

Ishin looked in doubt and alarm, his mask mostly shattered, yet he did not dare to harbor the slightest bit of resentment. Ling Tianzhi was simply too strong—so overwhelmingly powerful that he had been left with no power to fight back whatsoever!

Though both were at the Divine Vigor realm, the gap between them was immense! Ling Tianzhi had not even made a physical move, yet he had utterly routed Ishin. The latter had not even been able to execute a single offensive technique, forced instead into a desperate, continuous defense; and even so, his entire body was covered in injuries.

Ling Tianzhi had beaten him just as easily as he had beaten Jiang Xiaotian!

Only now did Jiang Xiaotian realize that there were distinct tiers of strength even within the Divine Vigor realm. Clearly, this immediate superior of his belonged to the exceptionally formidable category—he was outrageously powerful!

"You're this strong?" Jiang Xiaotian asked, his tone laced with utter astonishment.

Ling Tianzhi chuckled. "Did you think I was all talk like you? Anyway, I actually do have something to discuss with you, and it involves Japan as well. Let's go."

How could Jiang Xiaotian be willing to just leave?

"What about him? You're just going to let him go like this?" Jiang Xiaotian pointed at the injured Ishin. This bastard had beaten him to within an inch of his life; if not for the Dragon Saliva, he would have died a dozen times over. Now that they had finally managed to cripple this fellow, they were just going to let him walk away?

Ling Tianzhi rolled his eyes at him. "What else do you expect to do with him, murder him in cold blood? I don't have the guts to break the law. Look at him, he's in no shape to do anything right now. Teaching him a lesson is enough. If you really want him dead, go ahead, I won't stop you."

Are you kidding? Divine Vigor experts were not that easy to kill! Besides, this was a Japanese national, and Ling Tianzhi held an extraordinary position; he could not take the lead in committing unlawful acts.

Jiang Xiaotian glanced at Ishin and did not dare to make a move. A starving camel was still bigger than a horse; once away from Ling Tianzhi's protection, Ishin could snuff him out with a flick of his wrist.

Yet he remained deeply unreconciled, while Ishin glared at him with unblinking hatred, likely still searching for an opportunity to strike.

"What are you staring at? Hurry up and get lost, or do you really want to die?" Ling Tianzhi barked, glaring Ishin back.

The Japanese man gritted his teeth, consumed by a bottomless resentment. Fury seemed on the verge of erupting from his eyes. He could not swallow this humiliation, but with Ling Tianzhi present, he was no match for them no matter what!

And when he caught Ling Tianzhi's look of utter disdain—as if looking at garbage—Ishin's rage flared even higher, making his entire body tremble with anger!

He muttered a few phrases in Japanese, then forced himself up, leaning on his sword. The face hidden beneath the mask suddenly broke into a bizarre, eerie smile.

"I know who you are too—the Flying Sword of Huaxia! Being able to eliminate you here would be a supreme blessing for Japan!" His tone was bizarre and warped, sounding like a ghost.

Ling Tianzhi glanced at him, growing somewhat impatient. "This brat says he wants to kill you, do you believe him? Stop spouting nonsense here, take your Flowing Flower Sect and crawl back to Japan, or else all of you will be staying here permanently!"

Yet his threats seemed to lose their effect entirely in that instant. Ishin stood up with a shudder, ripping open his clothes to reveal a torso of corded muscles and a robust physique.

Scars covered his body entirely, old wounds mingling with new ones in a horrifying, shocking spectacle.

Jiang Xiaotian and Ling Tianzhi exchanged glances, neither knowing what madness he was up to now. But as Ishin's aura grew increasingly violent and concentrated, Ling Tianzhi suddenly realized what was happening, and even his expression changed dramatically. "Not good! He's going to self-destruct!"

"Hahaha! To drag the Flying Sword down to hell with me, this life of mine was well spent!" Ishin's expression twisted into something monstrous and terrifying. The surrounding air grew heavy in an instant, and an ominous premonition enveloped Jiang Xiaotian!

A Divine Vigor expert's self-detonation was enough to send him straight to the netherworld. Even Ling Tianzhi could not guarantee his own safety, let alone protect anyone else!

He was going to trade his own life to wipe out everyone present!

However, a martial artist's self-destruction was nearly impossible to stop through external force alone. Ling Tianzhi furrowed his brow deeply; he felt the grave crisis at hand, yet he still had to find a way to keep Jiang Xiaotian alive!

This was precisely why he had stopped short earlier—he had feared the Japanese lunatic would lose his mind and resort to a suicide explosion!

With a flick of his mind, several flying swords plummeted from the sky, instantly encircling Ishin. But the latter seemed to have anticipated this and immediately retreated!

"Hahaha! Run! Run! Japanese men are not afraid to die, as long as death has meaning! Let's see which of you can escape!" Ishin shrieked尖声. The power churning within his body grew increasingly chaotic and uncontrollable, threatening to detonate at any second!

At that moment, however, Ling Tianzhi suddenly looked toward the distance in astonishment. He recalled his divine sword, and then grabbed Jiang Xiaotian in a tight embrace.

The latter was dumbfounded once more. "What are you doing again? Quickly kill him! Otherwise, both of us are going to die here!"

Ling Tianzhi let out a sorrowful sigh. "Nothing we can do. To think that I, a dignified sword immortal of my generation, would end up dying alongside a brat like you. How tragic!"

Jiang Xiaotian was so angry he nearly coughed up blood. Having no idea what kind of madness had seized the man again, he began to struggle fiercely. "Damn it! If you want to die, don't drag me down with you! Let me go!"

"Run where? When a Divine Vigor expert self-destructs, even your truly can hardly escape with his life. Do you really think you can outrun it? Just wait quietly for death. I told you not to provoke him, and look—this is the consequence."

Jiang Xiaotian was nearly driven mad with rage. "Weren't you the one who provoked him?! He's trying to trade his life for yours! You're so amazing, now let me go, let me go—!"

Yet Ling Tianzhi refused to loosen his grip. "If I die, I'm dragging someone down with me as a cushion!"

Amidst their frantic bickering, a strange sound suddenly echoed through the air. Following closely, that oppressive, suffocating aura vanished with a deafening roar, and Jiang Xiaotian instantly felt a sense of immense relief.

He looked suspiciously toward the side, only to see a woman holding a sword in one hand, walking over leisurely.

She looked to be in her thirties, but she was exceptionally well-preserved; from afar, one could easily mistake her for someone in her twenties. Most importantly, the pressure she exuded was by no means small—her cultivation was so profound that even Jiang Xiaotian could not see through it. Yet another Divine Vigor expert!

Even more jaw-dropping, however, was the fact that her other hand was gripping a severed head—none other than Ishin's!

At this moment, his mask was completely destroyed, his eyes wide in eternal shock and disbelief, filled with horror and incomprehension!

Jiang Xiaotian hung his jaw open, thinking he was seeing things.

"A-Auntie, who might you be?" He swallowed hard.

The beautiful matron cast a curious glance at him before her expression returned to cold indifference. Glaring past him at Ling Tianzhi behind him, she chided, "Well, well! What a brilliant scheme of using a borrowed knife to kill! So you were the one driving this suicidal Japanese man in my direction?"

Ling Tianzhi chuckled sheepishly, offering neither confirmation nor denial.

As a fellow Divine Vigor expert, he had sensed this beautiful matron's approach long ago and had deliberately manipulated his swords to herd Ishin toward her. If she didn't deal with the threat, she would have been doomed as well.

However, the words Ling Tianzhi uttered next nearly caused Jiang Xiaotian's jaw to drop a second time.

"Hehe, hello Grandma! Grandma is mighty!"

"Boom!"

As soon as Ling Tianzhi finished speaking, he was blasted flying by a surge of formidable energy. The miraculous part was that Jiang Xiaotian, who stood directly in front of him, remained completely unscathed, unaffected by the shockwave at all.

Such exquisite control over vital energy could only be described as miraculous. Furthermore, being able to send Ling Tianzhi flying with a blow from afar—could this person possibly be ordinary?

"Flippant tongue!" The beautiful matron scoffed, then looked at Jiang Xiaotian again. "You must be Jiang Xiaotian, right? The boy who has my little granddaughter so hopelessly infatuated."

Jiang Xiaotian froze. Who was this? She already had a little granddaughter? Besides, there was no way he would ever go hitting on underage girls.

"No, Auntie, is there some kind of misunderstanding?"

Hearing Jiang Xiaotian address her as "Auntie," the beautiful matron could no longer conceal the delight blooming on her face.

Meanwhile, Ling Tianzhi had crawled out from wherever he had landed, creeping back to Jiang Xiaotian's side. "Hey, you don't even recognize the savior you summoned? She is the founding ancestor of the Ouyang family! And you called her Auntie—even I have to call her Grandma!"

"Boom!"

Ling Tianzhi was sent flying once more. This time the force was even greater, whistling right past Jiang Xiaotian's head, and he could vividly feel the terrifying potency of that strike.

Yet Jiang Xiaotian remained dazed and in absolute disbelief. This woman was actually the founding ancestor of the Ouyang family?

Looking closer, the Ouyang sisters did indeed share a few facial similarities with her, though they had inherited her best traits, surpassing their predecessor.

Still, astonishment gripped him. How was this possible? She looked far too young!

"G-Grandma?" Jiang Xiaotian tested the word out cautiously.

The beautiful matron's expression tightened. With a wave of her hand, Ling Tianzhi, who had just returned, was sent hurtling through the air yet again.

"Ouyang Feng! Why are you hitting me?! He's the one who said it!"

"And who brought him here? Is this how you guide the younger generation? It seems I need to go have a chat with your master!" Ouyang Feng snorted in irritation.

In truth, the more she looked at Jiang Xiaotian, the more annoyed she became. Why did this brat have the exact same temperament Ling Tianzhi had when he was young?

Especially that cheeky, smiling expression of his—just looking at it made her want to strike him!