Chapter 53: Muddy Waters
Suddenly, several dark shadows flew out of the crowd and rushed towards Wu Tianfeng on the stage.
The sudden change caught everyone's attention, and Wu Kaiyuan and others all focused on Wan Jiede, but surprisingly no one stepped forward to stop him.
A flash of cold light, Wu Tianfeng let out a mournful cry, and his right hand fell off at the wrist. His right hand and the treasure map that was about to be placed in the fire pit fell to the ground together.
"Tianfeng!" Wu Kaiyuan let out a mournful and piercing cry, swiftly turning the arrowhead, shooting an arrow at the pale-faced black-robed man in front. His heart sank to the bottom of an icy valley, a searing pain that tore his heart apart. Wu Tianfeng was the sole heir of the Wu family's three generations, and yet he had been mutilated right under his own eyes, his right hand severed!
Wu Kaiyuan was both pained and enraged, this arrow concentrated his strongest power and spiritual energy, carrying a sharp whistle that almost tore through the air, spinning at high speed, rubbing against the air to produce a faint flame.
A pale-faced middle-aged man counterattacked with a single sword strike, accurately striking the arrowhead. Although the arrow was knocked far away, he felt wave after wave of power surging into his body like a tide, and only managed to dissipate these energies after making several more false strikes, his wrist aching dully afterwards.
"Soul Archer!" The middle-aged man's face turned pale, and he was also shocked. He didn't expect that Cang Feng City still had a soul-level archer hidden, almost taking him by surprise. He quickly stuffed the treasure map into his bosom and shouted, "Let's go!"
"Think it's that easy to leave? Kill them!" Wu Tianfeng bellowed, his anger burning brighter than ever. Although he had taken note of the middle-aged man's sword skills, which were certainly no weaker than his own, he couldn't care less at this moment. Upon hearing his command, the thugs and experts from the Wu and Pang families, who had been summoned from Honglin City, charged towards the middle-aged man from all directions. The two sides clashed immediately, and the hall was filled with flashing knives and swords, as well as an atmosphere of killing intent.
The middle-aged man picked up the drawing from the ground with one hand and shouted: Go! Then he quickly retreated backwards.
In the hall, the sound of swords and knives, the summoner's incantations, and the sharp whistling of arrows filled the air, accompanied by cries of pain, and a thick bloody smell wafted out. Zhuge Mingyue and Ling Feiyang hid in the corner, watching the chaotic battle. As for Wan Qi Lao Yezi and his group, they naturally went into sneak attack mode, taking advantage of the situation to strike from behind! They secretly stabbed a few times, then retreated to the side, pretending it wasn't them who did it.
Zhuge Mingyue crouched down, pulling Ling Feiyang along, and slipped into the backstage area. The backstage was already empty, as everyone had joined the battle. The auction would only take place after it was over, so all the items were still there. As a result, Zhuge Mingyue picked up some small but valuable items from the previous auction. For example, a large black pearl necklace, or a string of gemstone bracelets... Many people had the same idea as Zhuge Mingyue and also snuck in to take advantage of the situation. As soon as Zhuge Mingyue saw these people coming in, she took Ling Feiyang and slipped away. They had already taken most of the small but valuable items, so what was the point of taking the larger ones? They were too conspicuous, and carrying them out would make them a target for others.
At last, three figures rushed out of the hall. They were the pale-faced middle-aged man and Beast Tooth Xiao Ding's trio. Their clothes were stained with blood, and they had obviously suffered a lot of injuries. As soon as they rushed out of the hall, Wu Kaiyuan and several thugs he had invited from Honglin City also poured out in succession. Compared to their opponents, their situation was not much better. Except for Wu Kaiyuan, the others were all injured, but the ferocity and killing intent on their faces were even more intense.
Two groups of people rushed out of Cang Feng City one after another, but no one noticed that in the corner of the wall, a low and mysterious voice sounded, and a faint light appeared. A wind leopard with cloud patterns all over its body, larger than usual, emerged from the light. Zhuge Mingyue jumped onto the back of the wind leopard, pulled Ling Feiyang up, and whispered: "Chase!" Wan Qi Chen and Xue Zihao stared blankly, while only Wan Qi Jingde followed behind, sprinting with all his might.
The olfactory sense of the cloud-patterned leopard, although not comparable to that of the raccoon dog, is extremely keen as the king of leopards. Under the guidance of Zhuge Mingyue's spiritual direction, it sniffed the residual scent in the air and set off with all its might towards the outside of the city, leaving behind a fleeting shadow, like a dark cloud floating close to the ground.
In the Dragon Mountain Range, a middle-aged man leaned against an ancient giant tree, bandaging his bleeding wounds. His pale face turned even whiter due to blood loss. He didn't expect that the master of the Wu family was a high-level Soul Master, and he had also invited the notorious outcasts from Honglin City. To avoid Wu Kaiyuan's lethal Soul Guiding Arrow, even his mid-term Soul power was no match for these fierce thugs. Furthermore, Wan Jiede's late-stage Sky power unleashed a furious full-strength slash, causing internal injuries that left him gasping for breath and coughing violently at times.
Beast Tooth and Xiao Ding had already disappeared, and the pursuing soldiers following them were also led elsewhere. Years of fugitive life had given them experience and skills in escaping and tracking that ordinary people could not match, so it was really not easy for those Wu family members to keep an eye on them.
Not far away, on a ten-meter-high treetop, under the cover of a leafy branch, Zhuge Mingyue and Ling Feiyang were tightly hugging the trunk, carefully looking down. The hurricane was lying on the tree trunk below them, lurking there. It's normal for leopards to climb trees, right?
Zhuge Mingyue held her breath, not daring to move a muscle. She had seen not only the middle-aged man but also Wu Kaiyuan's shadow following closely behind. As a high-level soul master, it was not easy to evade his pursuit. With their abilities, even if Yunwen Fengbao's strength was formidable, it did not necessarily guarantee Zhuge Mingyue's safety. After all, she didn't have the wind leopard's speed and defensive power. So she remained vigilant, waiting for an opportunity.
"Wu Kaiyuan, once this task is completed, I, Xiao Qianhe, will make sure that not a single chicken or dog from the Wu family remains!" The middle-aged man, having tended to his wounds, stood up with a limp and muttered to himself fiercely.
"Unfortunately, you won't have that chance!" Wu Kaiyuan emerged quietly, holding a strong bow, with intense killing intent bursting in his eyes. The terrifying scene of Sunzi Wutianfeng's severed arm and gushing blood was still vivid in his mind - he was the only heir to the Wu family's three generations of single transmission! Wu Kaiyuan really wished he could tear the enemy in front of him into pieces. Moreover, even if he spared his opponent, the other party would absolutely not let things go so easily; only by killing him would the Wu family have a chance at peace.
"You think you can kill me? With your early-stage soul power?" Xiao Qianhe sneered, he was a mid-stage soul power user. At their level, the difference between early and mid-stage was like the difference between a towering giant tree and a small blade of grass.
Wu Kaiyuan didn't say a word, focusing his mind and shooting an arrow that flew in a strange trajectory, swift and fierce, the signature technique of a Soul Archer - the Soul Guiding Arrow. Wu Kaiyuan also knew the gap between their strengths, but he was full of confidence, Xiao Kaiyuan's body was covered in wounds, already at his last gasp, while he himself was unscathed, as long as he didn't give his opponent a chance to catch his breath, the scales of victory were actually completely tilted in his favor.
Xiao Qianhe remained still, his eyes slightly closed, seemingly oblivious to the Soul Guidance Arrow's erratic flight path. Just as the arrow was about to change direction and pierce his throat, he suddenly opened his eyes, his body twisting in an unbelievable manner, passing through a phantom shadow, and somehow dodging the seemingly unavoidable attack. With a large stride, he charged forward. The Soul Guidance Arrow, on the other hand, pierced through the phantom shadow and flew backward.
"Hmph!" Wu Kaiyuan coldly snorted, Xiao Qianhe had dodged this arrow, but what about the other few arrows?
Just as Xiao Qianhe was about to rush up to Wu Kaiyuan's face, several almost completely transparent arrows suddenly appeared in front of him!
Shadowless Arrow! This is the Shadowless Arrow that Wu Kaiyuan spent a lot of money to have someone craft, and when combined with his exquisite shooting technique, it was shot out under the cover of night, and indeed, it was silent and soundless, making it impossible to defend against.
Wu Kaiyuan quickly retreated, trying to pull away from the distance, close combat has never been the strong point of an archer.
Xiao Qianhe was clearly disrupted by the sudden arrows, but did not make any defensive or evasive moves as Wu Kaiyuan had expected. Instead, he merely paused for a moment before charging forward again without hesitation.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Several consecutive explosions, almost completely transparent arrows shot into Xiao Qianhe's shoulder at the same time, and it was actually an explosive arrow! A large hole of flesh and blood appeared on Xiao Qianhe's shoulder, but he didn't even hum a sound. His pale face became even more ferocious and cruel, and his speed underfoot accelerated.
Wu Kaiyuan was indeed very powerful, but after all, he was just a family head and hadn't been through many real life-and-death struggles. Compared to these desperate fugitives, he was far from being ruthless. Seeing this, he was shocked to the bottom of his heart, and his footsteps also became disorderly at the sound.
"Old man, you're going against the wind and blood, looking for death. Once you're dead, I'll take good care of your Wu family, clean up your precious grandson, don't worry, they'll all come to join you soon, not one will be left behind!" Xiao Qianhe approached Wu Kaiyuan, his dagger fiercely inserted into Wu's heart and pushed forward with force, saying cruelly.
The host of the Wu family, Wu Kaiyuan, will never be seen again in the future.
Xiao Qianhe kicked away Wu Kaiyuan's corpse and sat on the ground panting. Suddenly, he raised his head and looked at a large tree not far away, let out a cold laugh, and swiftly flew towards it.
He found Zhuge Mingyue and Ling Feiyang!
Digression
The close combat ability of Mingyue is going to get stronger soon~ Yeah, it's a pretty cool kung fu.