BOOM!!!171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXnSiisbiso
Another violent impact drove Lu Sheng stumbling backward. Blood surged uncontrollably up his throat and burst past his lips, splattering darkly across the ground.
A red silk ribbon snapped out from the carriage, coiling around his waist—only to be burned away in an instant by the scorching heat of his inner Qi.
BAM!171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWrNWF5nmtG
The lady in red flickered to his flank, her lantern slamming into his right shoulder.
“CREAGHH…”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE2CmjIezI1
A guttural, indistinguishable roar tore from her throat as she darted around him, striking at his head, his torso, his limbs.
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM.
With each crushing blow, blood erupted from Lu Sheng’s mouth in violent spurts.
“Hit harder! It’s too light! Hehehehe…” Despite the relentless pounding, Lu Sheng showed no hint of fear. Saber in hand, he blocked when he could, but more often than not, he simply absorbed the attacks with the sheer hardness of his body.
“You know how I killed her back then? I struck much harder than you are now. I split her in half, right down the middle! She thought she could recover—but I suppressed her with my inner Qi. I made her feel pain worse than hell! HAHAHAHAHA!!!” He roared with manic laughter, froth and blood bubbling past his grin.
“CREAGH!!!”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgqrDpEElvn
The lady in red’s frenzy intensified. She hammered her lantern into him again and again, her free hand clawing at his flesh. Dark, purplish-black nails tore open his skin, leaving glistening streaks of blood.
CHI!171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSblaA5QQk9
A chunk of flesh was ripped from the left side of his waist. The wound darkened immediately, turning purplish black—yet the Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill surged forth to suppress the spreading poison.
Lantern in one hand, claws in the other, she attacked with wild, unrestrained madness.
Suddenly, a flare of red light burst from her arm. A thin layer of scarlet frost glazed over her skin, and her speed and strength spiked dramatically.
“CREAGH!!!”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdTBUuOBwOB
Her claws, now a blur of purplish-black light, streaked toward Lu Sheng’s chest like lightning—aiming to tear out his heart and liver in vengeance for her sister.
The lady in red was already swift—now, with her speed multiplied, she moved far too fast for Lu Sheng to properly evade. All he could do was shift his body a fraction off-center.
CHI!171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvq1BZJFuOC
Her claw speared straight into the right side of his chest, plunging in deep like a sharpened spike. At the very last moment, Lu Sheng’s slight twist diverted the strike just enough to spare his heart.
Blood frothed out of the wound in thick bursts. The force of the blow sent him staggering back more than ten steps, each exhale bubbling with blood as oxygen forced its way through the gash in his chest.
“CREAGH!”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Qzbz65DhW
Releasing her lantern, the lady in red drove her other hand into his abdomen. Lu Sheng’s entire body spasmed from the impact. Snarling, he clamped both hands onto her shoulders like iron shackles. No matter how violently she writhed, she could not break free from his crushing grip.
“I’ve got you…” He lifted his face—matted with blood, filth, and madness—and revealed a twisted, feral grin.
SZZZZZZ…171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbosFZCCUU
Steam curled upward from their bodies as boiling blood vaporized under the blazing heat of his Ultimate Crimson Qi.
“ROAR!!!” With the raw cry of an untamed beast, Lu Sheng suddenly rammed his knee into her torso.
BAM!!! BAM! BAM! BAM!!!
The lady in red shrieked—a thin, pitiful wail like that of a terrified infant. Her torso collapsed inward under the brutal strikes. White smoke streamed from her body and seeped out of her facial orifices.
“Didn’t you have a good time smashing me earlier!?” Grabbing her by the hair, Lu Sheng slammed her head into his own.
BOOM!171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91xLlWTJ4X
A gaping crater burst open in her skull. White fluid and thick smoke spurted from the wound as she writhed in agony, desperately trying to break free. But Lu Sheng held fast, then hurled her backward into the trunk of an old roadside tree.
With a deafening crack, the trunk split down the middle.
“HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWeGDuqf2Cd
Lu Sheng cackled like a mad demon as he hammered his fists down on her head, pounding it into a bloody, collapsing mess. Her skull burst like a crushed melon, white smoke billowing relentlessly from the ruined mass.
“DIDN’T YOU COME TO KILL ME!? COME ON! COME ON! COME ON!!!”
His fists rained down without pause, each blow fueled by surging inner Qi.
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!!!
Dozens of strikes connected, each as heavy as iron, each fed by the frenzied tide of Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill replenishing his Ultimate Crimson Qi. His entire body blazed like a furnace.
By the time the strikes ceased, the lady’s head and neck had already been reduced to charred, shapeless pulp.
With one hand, Lu Sheng wrenched her claws out of his flesh and lifted her into the air, suspending her beneath the roiling dark clouds.
Though her body dangled lifelessly, the lady in red clung to the last thread of consciousness. Her trembling hand reached weakly toward Lu Sheng’s arm.
“This is the price to pay if you seek to kill me!”
RIP!!!
With a single brutal jerk, he tore her shattered head from her body. A length of spine still dangled grotesquely from the severed neck.
White goo splattered across his body in thick globs, but Lu Sheng didn’t react at all. Instead, he threw his head back and unleashed a wild, unrestrained laugh into the stormy sky.
On the ground nearby, the red lantern rolled to a stop—its eerie glow flickering once before extinguishing completely.
…………
In the depths of a dark, gloomy forest, the thick canopy smothered the sunlight, casting everything beneath it into a muted gray twilight.
A manor stood hidden within the woods, its red roof tiles weathered yet vibrant, suggesting the presence of a large household. Rows of red lanterns hung from every eave, lining both the exterior and the courtyard in a crimson glow.
By the old stone well in the courtyard, a lady in a white dress stood motionless beneath a paper umbrella. She appeared to be staring into the well, as though studying her own reflection far below.
The umbrella, held low, concealed her face entirely. Behind it, a waterfall of inky-black hair tumbled straight down her back. The red umbrella—painted with delicate plum blossoms—seemed even redder beneath the glow of the lanterns.
“Zhen Family… they’ve killed many of us… what… should we do…” A faint, muffled female voice drifted from beneath the umbrella, halting and uneven.
“They’re the ones who truly obtained the Scarlet Dragon Tribulation. Then they misled countless factions with false news and clever deception. Now they strike with all their strength—clearly well-prepared.” The reply came from inside the well, hoarse and sly. “They’ve already destroyed three of our bases. And now they confront our Anomalies directly. Zhen Xun… he’s quite the figure. Impressive.”
“Shall I… kill him myself?” the lady under the umbrella asked, her voice trembling with hesitation.
“You are not his match. The Zhen Family’s boldness comes from their confidence in the Scarlet Dragon Tribulation,” the voice in the well continued. “We can control only so many Anomalies. To think they were all wiped out… We can only wait and observe for now.”
“Alright…” the lady murmured softly.
She lingered by the well for a moment longer. When the voice finally faded, she turned and drifted toward her bedroom within the manor.
Before entering, she paused and gazed up at the lanterns hanging along the corridor ceiling. Among the rows of glowing red, at least fifteen had gone dark, leaving a long stretch of shadow swallowing the walkway.
“Defeated and dispersed… fifteen of them? Even the one… sent after the mortal… gone too… they’re really wiping us out…” Her voice was still strange, still wavering.
“Zhen Xun… sooner or later I’ll eat you…”
A faint gust of wind whispered through the hallway, and the space before the bedroom fell empty once more.
…………
Lu Sheng pressed a hand against his chest. The scent of scorched flesh curled into the air, and before long the wound had fully cauterized.
In his other hand, he gripped his saber. Blood trickled from between his fingers, dripping slowly down the hilt. Wedged between his palm and the handle was a simple silver hairpin.
It was the kind of hairpin sold on any street corner—plain, cheap, weighing almost nothing.
He had taken it from the lantern lady.
When she died, her entire form dissolved into smoke, leaving behind only scraps of clothing and the extinguished lantern. Among these remnants, Lu Sheng found the silver hairpin. Curious, he had let a drop of blood fall upon it and discovered that it was saturated with absorbable Yin Qi.
Now, that Yin Qi seeped steadily into his palm. Thin, but continuous.
A burning throb spread through his chest. The outer wound had stopped bleeding, and the inner injuries were being repaired by the Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill. Working in tandem with the Ultimate Crimson Mantra, he first pressed the injured arteries and veins together, then sealed them with a surge of blazing inner Qi. The Yin-Yang Jade Crane Skill followed swiftly, knitting the rest of the wound from within.
Throughout the fight, most of his Qi had gone into suppressing toxins; the amount used purely for offense had been minimal.
On the ground nearby, only a heap of red garments and the carriage remained. The lantern atop it was dark. The black horse that had pulled the carriage stood frozen like a lifeless statue, blood seeping from its orifices—it had died upright.
Leaning on his saber like a crutch, Lu Sheng began trudging after the fleeing carriage team, step by step.
After a short while, the sound of approaching hoofbeats cut through the air. He lifted his head to see Jade Lotus galloping toward him, followed by two disciples.
Jade Lotus’s eyes widened the moment he saw Lu Sheng—bloody, staggering, barely holding himself upright.
“Yu~~~”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj4Dr5hSAw4
All three riders leapt from their horses at once.
“External Head!!”
“External Head, are you alright!?”
The three disciples rushed to his side, reaching out to steady him.
“I’m alright. Why’re there only the three of you? Have arrangements been made in the city?”171Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡheaCAnjnhU
Before departing earlier, Lu Sheng had instructed Jade Lotus to secure Mountain-Edge City—clean up his territory, keep watch for anything strange, and, if something happened, immediately quarantine the area and cooperate with the yamen’s peacekeeping efforts.
“All’s well in the city. External Head, how did you get so badly injured? Who in the region could harm you to this extent!?” Jade Lotus’s expression darkened as he quickly fetched medicine from his waist pouch.
“I’ll do it myself.” Lu Sheng took the pouch from him, pulled aside his robes, and revealed the wounds across his chest and abdomen. He sprinkled the medicinal powder over them, rubbing it in with steady, deliberate movements.
“It’s a long story… and not something you need to know. Let’s head back first. My family’s right ahead. You three go on to the forbidden zone.”
Seeing the purplish-black wounds, Jade Lotus and the two disciples inhaled sharply. The discoloration was unmistakable—poison.
“It’s nothing. Looks like poison, but I’ve already sealed the area with inner Qi. Once we’re back, I’ll just carve out the flesh.” Cold sweat dotted Lu Sheng’s forehead as he spoke, enduring the pain without changing expression.
“I’ve still got some antidotes here…” Jade Lotus offered cautiously.
“No need. Ordinary antidotes won’t do anything for this.” Lu Sheng could already sense that the poison was vulnerable to Yang-attributed inner Qi. After burning through a considerable amount of Ultimate Crimson Qi, he had prevented it from spreading deeper. As long as he returned quickly to excise the poisoned flesh and sterilize the wounds, he would be fine.
“Alright then, I’ll ride with External Head. You two share a horse and follow behind,” Jade Lotus ordered at once.
“Yes, sir!”
With their plan set, the four mounted their horses and rode hard after the others.
Before long, the carriage team came into view—still moving steadily ahead, without any sign of alarm among them.
Lu Sheng remained on horseback, refusing to dismount. His face had turned ghostly pale, all color drained from his features. As he rode past the carriage team, he moved so quickly that his Old Dad, Lu Quanan, didn’t even recognize him before he disappeared from sight.
Along the way, Lu Sheng kept his gaze sharp, sweeping the surroundings to make sure the road ahead was safe for the carriage team. He clenched his teeth against the searing pain, enduring it until they finally reached Mountain-Edge City. Only after instructing the sect disciples to go and receive his family’s carriage did he allow Jade Lotus to help him into the Golden Jade Greenhouse.
The place had gradually become Lu Sheng’s base of operations. He had even hired workers to construct a new building within the compound as a place for him to rest.
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