Chapter 1021


Chapter 129: A Sudden Intrusion, Sparks Flying

Looking at Shangguan Hong’s troubled expression and then at the other several disciples of the Jing Shen Sect who had gathered with various looks on their faces, Teacher Mu pondered for a moment before shaking his head and sighing.

“Although it seems to me that the most suitable way to handle this situation right now is to take advantage of the other party’s willingness to save themselves and stop this competition, it looks like you all aren’t planning to give up, are you?”

“Yeah, youthful arrogance, especially since you all carry unique skills and legacies, thinking you’re all youth geniuses with numerous trump cards?”

“In the past, you all challenged opponents across realms, defeating those older and more experienced foes, and now suddenly being beaten twice by peers without any suspense must be quite infuriating; you probably feel it was just luck for them, or that you didn’t give it your all.”

“I can understand this.”

Thinking it over, Teacher Mu suggested, “It’s indeed not suitable for Shangguan Hong to intervene; as you said, the age gap is too significant. Even if you, as the chief, win against the exhausted opponent, it wouldn’t feel justified. If you lose, it would be a severe blow to the reputation of the Jing Shen Sect. So, in this case…”

He turned his gaze to the only young girl among the group, with black hair and black eyes, her long hair tied in a simple swallowtail braid. She was of above-average looks and build but not particularly eye-catching.

“Swallow, you are of middle age among the third generation and the only disciple whose overall strength can come close to Shangguan Hong’s. You should step in and restore some face for the sect.”

“I’m not asking you to defeat all three opponents; just winning one match will suffice to avoid an all-out loss. Aside from that unique ability, I allow you to use all your trump cards in this spar.”

The girl called Swallow frowned slightly; though she appeared only sixteen or seventeen, her demeanor was notably composed and steady. Rather than blindly following her teacher’s orders, she voiced a question.

“But Teacher Mu, you should know I’m not good at direct combat. Many of my true trump cards are lethal moves effective enough to kill. It’s one thing to fight for life and death; this is just a spar—is it necessary to go that far?”

Teacher Mu looked at her meaningfully.

“Are you really not good at it? Swallow, you’re the most composed among this generation of disciples. Not only does your talent stand out, but you also have your own opinions and wisdom. You’re better at hiding your secrets. Is what you’ve shown so far really everything you have?”

The swallowtail girl frowned again but stayed silent, waiting for what the other would say next.

“In the Ancient Spirit Realm, strong individuals are abundant, and geniuses aren’t limited to just a few of you. No matter what kind of talent you possess or how high of a peak you might reach in the future, the fact remains that you still haven’t really grown. That’s an undeniable truth. Your team is still far from being in sync.”

“The unexpected development of this spar, while surprising, is also a rare opportunity. You’re all about to head to the Endless Ruins Sea. Even I might not be able to protect all of you there.”

“I hope you can showcase your true strength in this battle, so everyone can know each other better and unite as one. This way, you’ll have better odds of surviving the dangerous journey ahead… What do you think?”

“…”

After a moment of silence, Swallow shook her head.

“I’m not trying to hide my abilities from everyone. It’s just… okay, if Teacher Mu believes it’s better this way, I’m willing to give it a try, but to be honest, the other party likely hasn’t fully shown…”

Just as she was about to finish her sentence, a sudden thunderous sound of galloping hooves echoed down the official road!

“Rumble rumble rumble!!!!!”

Everyone turned to look, only to find a troop of heavily armored cavalry, their horses also clad in tough armor, charging in large numbers.

There were thousands of them, and their figures surging down the official road resembled a black cloud pressing down on the city. Even before they got close, it was enough to make one’s breath hitch in fear. Yet, despite their vast numbers, their formation remained impeccable as they galloped forward, clearly a trained elite force.

Whispers quickly spread among the crowd.

“Isn’t that the Black Scale Army?”

“Yeah, how could the elite troops of Mo Sect be here? Are they hunting down some notorious bandits?”

“Don’t say that; I’ve actually heard that recently, the Holy Sect and the Guardian Four Element Sect have been quite active. It seems like they’re up to something big, trying to capture and clear out some rebel elements—could it be related?”

“Who knows… Anyway, it’s not like it has anything to do with us common folks.”

With this unexpected turn of events, Hen immediately stopped concerning herself with the trivial duel and quickly returned to Miss Vilyric and the others.

Because those black-armored cavalry were clearly heading straight for them.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before the well-trained black-armored cavalry surrounded the nearby tea house tightly. A few customers who saw their aggressive approach hurried to leave to avoid trouble, only to be blocked quickly by the Black Scale Army, who used glinting spears to force them back.

Then, amidst the encirclement of the many Black Scale Army soldiers, a commander dressed in armor, looking like he held a significant position, strode into the tea house courtyard.

He removed his helmet, his expression was cold as he scanned the crowd.

“What are you all doing? Gathering to cause trouble? Such audacity! Who is the owner of this establishment?!”

Seeing the unfriendly demeanor of the newcomer, a well-dressed, short and fat man hurriedly emerged from inside the shop, wiping sweat as he approached the commander.

“Com-comander… I… I am the owner of this tea house. We haven’t caused any trouble; it’s just that guests from both sects had a disagreement, so they used my place for a bit of sparring… You know, this kind of thing is pretty common in Qiguo. It’s usually just friendly exchanges…”

“A little sparring?”

The black-armored general eyed him skeptically, then glanced at Miss Vilyric and the others, along with the disciples from the Jing Shen Sect, a mocking smile on his face.

“A little sparring shouldn’t sound like thunder roaring and bright lights shooting into the sky, sending our Black Scale Army horses here running in all directions? Seems like the sparring partners possess quite impressive strength.”

“Uh, uh… it was just… haha, perhaps it was an accident, just an accident! Everyone here can attest to it, Commander, I assure you we have no intention of causing trouble…”

“Hmph.”

With a snort, the black-armored commander ignored him, striding directly to the center of the venue and surveying the densely packed crowd around him.

“Anyone uninvolved, step back three paces!”

The onlookers were startled and hurriedly retreated, leaving only a few figures protruding clearly from the crowd.

Those figures were of course Miss Vilyric’s group and the disciples from the Jing Shen Sect.

The commander glanced over the barely dozen individuals in the two groups, lazily waved his hand.

“Arrest all these troublemakers!”

“Yes!”

“I dare anyone to try!!!”

The soldiers advanced, preparing to follow orders and capture Miss Vilyric and the others, but before the Priestess could react, the chief disciple Shangguan Hong suddenly shouted, a fierce aura brimmed from his dual pupils, instantly freezing all the Black Scale Army members in place as they looked at each other in confusion.

The black-armored commander seemed startled too but quickly narrowed his eyes, a hint of threat and icy intent creeping into his voice.

“You… don’t plan on resisting capture, do you? Openly confronting the Black Scale Army within Qiguo is tantamount to rebellion, you rabble! Think carefully about the consequences!”