Chapter 25: Ambush

Hearing more secrets, some of which he already knew—or rather, he knew even more than that. Wang Lin planned to visit the Scripture Pavilion once again. For the past three years, apart from sending one letter, he had not been in contact with Elder White-Brow.

The walk to the Scripture Pavilion was not far. As soon as he entered, Elder White-Brow led him into a secret chamber. He had already prepared clear tea, clearly anticipating Wang Lin’s arrival.

...

From the wedding until my father’s accident, I had not touched a drop of water or a morsel of food. It had been over a day since I last ate; I should have been starving, yet smelling the aroma of the meal, I felt no appetite at all.

Zhou Yinglong finally erupted in fury. His hawk-like eyes seemed capable of piercing through Zheng Huaisha. With a single kick, a faintly visible shadow of blood instantly tore through Zheng Huaisha’s body.

Meanwhile, Wu Qimeng maintained her cold, saintly expression. The long sword in her hand shielded her entire body, constantly parrying Tang Yan’s onslaught. A black figure and a yellow figure continued to clash intensely between heaven and earth. The onlookers nearby had long since retreated; such a level of combat was enough to shatter their courage, and they fled in all directions.

Even though he could clearly see what was happening, Wu Yu still couldn’t escape the arrangements made by Yu Chen. He didn’t believe Yu Chen possessed such terrifying calculation abilities, but reality slapped him hard in the face.

Three days later, the Underworld King tossed and turned in the Underworld Palace, sensing vaguely that this might be his final struggle. Yet, in his heart, a sliver of fantasy remained, hoping to turn the tide of defeat and restore his position as the Underworld King.

Xi Liu did not stand on ceremony. After donning her soul armor, her silhouette became much clearer. The smoke-colored armor enveloped her entire frame, with sharp barbs extending from the joints, giving her a heroic and valiant appearance. For a moment, Xi Liu felt her strength surge; she glanced at the trembling vengeful spirits and charged forward without hesitation.

I desperately wanted to call Ye Shengyin to tell her about my grievances and frustrations, but thinking of her messy history with Jiang Junxiu only gave me a headache.

When I found the hospital ward, I checked with the nurse first and learned that Grandma Ye had initially been admitted due to a persistent fever, and it was only later that they discovered she had tuberculous meningitis.

Given Xu Xian’s current wealth, eighty taels of silver was no longer a significant sum. Since this carp spirit had such a deep connection to Fang Zhongyong, he naturally could not sit idly by.

Bai Suzhen’s eyes were like clear water, her face flushed with a rosy glow, gazing at him with an indescribable, affectionate charm.

"Tiansi is not a rabbit! Tiansi is a 'rabbit horse'—can't a horse eat a carrot?!" Tiansi’s speed was not even fully unleashed, but catching up to Jiang Yankong was effortless. With a kick of his legs, he appeared in the air behind Jiang Yankong, snapping the carrot into his mouth.

Only then did the crowd see that the two black shadows were matte-black hexagonal metal plates. In an instant, they multiplied from two to four, four to sixteen, and sixteen to two hundred and fifty-six, completely encasing the strategist.

Distracted, his control over the true form of Tortolla faltered. The tearing space affected his own body, causing blood to flow from his seven orifices once again.

"This is the Purifier. He’s taking good care of me; I’m staying at his place now, which saves me the rent," Gambit said with a frown, forced to puff on his cigar.

Shaolin warrior monks never struck the first blow, and every attack was upright and honorable, bordering on a sparring match. But these bandits used every trick in the book: hidden weapons, heavy crossbows, volleys of arrows, and all manner of traps and underhanded tactics—it was impossible to guard against them all.

Don't let Lu Bu’s usual arrogance fool you; it wasn't that he feared no one. The existence of Zhang Chao was something he truly dreaded.

In truth, it wasn't that he didn't want to act; after all, he shared a bond with Yuan Fengxian. He simply didn't want to fight a battle he wasn't sure of winning. Even if he were to act, he would have to wait for Gu Tianxi to emerge from seclusion. He could tell that acting now would undoubtedly be suicide.

However, he no longer cared about that. While those two might obtain infinite benefits, Li Yunqi believed his own strength would rise with the tide. Who was weak and who was strong could only be determined through combat. Facing such a great opportunity, he could not turn back.

Chen Shi had completely come to view the events before him as a life-or-death battle. His mind cleared of distractions, and thoughts flashed through his head like lightning.

Yi Jie smiled and replied, "It's fine, I can handle it. Don't worry. When I first took Wang Xiao out of prison, I hardly imagined he could return alive, but the end result was a happy one for all. That’s enough, isn't it?"

"Damn it, are you playing with me? Do you think I'm joking!" Kelan roared in anger, snatching a machine gun from his subordinate and aiming it directly at Gong Jing’s head.

Along the way, there were constant signs of people camping, and some campfires were not yet fully extinguished. As the journey progressed, the group’s anxiety grew.

Professional leagues place great emphasis on mentality. Once confidence is lost, the subsequent matches can be even more disastrous; there are far too many such examples.

During the time we spent together, I found her to be quite decent—at least she never brought up taking revenge on me again. So, the next question was: should I tell her about Jessica’s plans to deal with the vampires?

I’ll let Lin Debang investigate this matter. I had Shizuko open the website about evil spirits for me. On the homepage was the image of a demon, but I couldn't understand what was written below.

"I am a disciple of Cheng Yujing from the Worry-Free Immortal Sect," Ren Tian said, extending his palm. The elder of the Green Water Gate looked on in disbelief as he saw Ren Tian’s palm covered in a thick layer of pale yellow spiritual energy. Seeing that the elder no longer blocked his path, Ren Tian leaped onto the fighting arena.

However, looking at the strength of a warrior-level combatant, the gap between an eight-star Essence Refining Realm cultivator and an ordinary person who hadn't even reached the one-star Opening Aperture Realm was as wide as a chasm.

To evaluate Lin Hao’s current behavior: he was a gentleman on the surface, but deeply repressed on the inside.

"Found it!" Still holding his sword, Saeko Busujima revealed a mature, beautiful smile not far from them.

Hiding behind Wu Yue and seeing that no more sound blades were coming, Jiang Yunfei let out a sigh of relief. Feeling embarrassed by his earlier display, he immediately began to jeer and mock them again.

There was simply no common ground between the two; one was raging fire, the other freezing ice. How could they possibly transform into one another?

Liu Guangzhi took out some money and gave it to the jailer, saying, "Let us search for ourselves!" The jailer agreed and went back to drinking alone.

Waking up suddenly, it felt like a dream. Xi Zhi realized she was lying on her own bed, with a red wedding dress and jewelry laid out beside her. She understood in her heart that when dawn broke, it would be the tenth day of the tenth lunar month.