Chapter 224

　However, after this commotion, Zhang Wuji naturally could no longer stay with Emei, so he ended up with his uncle, Yingye Wang. Yin Li’s identity was discovered by Yingye Wang, and the two quickly clashed. Wei Yixiao seized the opportunity to capture Yin Li.

　　Upon seeing this, Zhang Wuji immediately took a deep breath of his inner energy and ran after her, wanting to save his cousin.

　　Fortunately, although Wei Yixiao was skilled in light-footed martial arts, he couldn’t leave no trace in the sand after carrying someone in his arms, and a footprint was still left in the desert.

　　Zhang Wuji made up his mind: “If he rests, I won’t rest; if he sleeps, I won’t sleep. I’ll run for three days and three nights, and eventually catch up with him.”

　　But running for three days and three nights under the scorching sun and through the yellow sand was no easy feat. By evening, he was parched and drenched in sweat.

　　Strangely enough, his feet showed no signs of fatigue. The Nine Yang Divine Skill he had accumulated over the years was gradually unleashed, and the more effort he exerted, the more energetic he became.

　　Parched, Zhang Wuji drank his fill of water in a spring and ran without stopping, following Wei Yixiao’s footprints.

　　As the night deepened and the moon shone high in the sky, Zhang Wuji was suddenly filled with fear, lest the blood-sucked corpse of Zhu’er suddenly appear before him.

　　Just then, he faintly heard footsteps behind him. He turned around but saw no one.

　　He dared not delay and ran as fast as he could, but the sound of footsteps immediately followed behind him.

　　He was greatly surprised. He looked back and saw no one. Upon closer inspection, he realized there were three footprints in the desert. One was Wei Yixiao’s, one was his own, but whose was the other?

　　Turning back, all that remained in front of him was Wei Yixiao’s footprint.

　　There’s no doubt that someone is following me, so why can’t I see them? Could it be that this person has the ability to become invisible?

　　Full of doubts, he took off running again, only to hear footsteps behind him once more.

　　Zhang Wuji called out, “Who is it?”

　　A voice behind him asked, “Who is it?”

　　Zhang Wuji was taken aback and shouted, “Are you a human or a ghost?”

　　The voice also asked, “Are you a human or a ghost?”

　　Zhang Wuji turned around quickly and this time saw only a shadow of the person on the ground behind him. He realized that it was someone with incredible speed hiding behind him and shouted, “Why are you following me?”

　　The man said, “Why should I follow you?”

　　Zhang Wuji laughed and said, “How would I know? That’s why I’m asking you.”

　　The man said, “How should I know? That’s why I’m asking you.”

　　Seeing that this person didn’t seem to have much malice, otherwise, having followed him for so long, he could have easily killed him at any moment, Zhang Wuji asked, “What’s your name?”

　　The man said, “I can’t say.”

　　Zhang Wuji asked, “Why can’t I say it?”

　　The man said, “If it can’t be said, it can’t be said. What’s the point of reasoning? What’s your name?”

　　Zhang Wuji said, “I…I am called Zeng Aniu.”

　　The man said, “What are you doing running around like this in the middle of the night?”

　　Zhang Wuji knew that this was a person with extraordinary skills, so he said, “A friend of mine was captured by the Green-Winged Bat King, and I have to go and rescue him.”

　　The man said, “You can’t save him.”

　　Zhang Wuji asked, “Why?”

　　The man said, “The Green-Winged Bat King’s martial arts are stronger than yours; you can’t beat him.”

　　Zhang Wuji said, “Even if we can’t beat him, we still have to fight him.”

　　The man said, “Very good, that’s ambitious. Is your friend a girl?”

　　Zhang Wuji said, “Yes, how did you know?”

　　The man said, “If it weren’t for the young lady, why would the young man be willing to risk his life? Isn’t it beautiful?”

　　Zhang Wuji said, “It’s very ugly!”

　　The man asked, “And you? Aren’t you ugly?”

　　…

　　Looking at Shuobude, who was showing off in front of Zhang Wuji, and Zhang Wuji, whose mind and scheming were still unclear, Zhang Weihua knew very well that the time had come. Cheng Kun was about to appear. Besides Xiao Zhao, Zhang Weihua’s other target was Cheng Kun.

　　As the saying goes, “the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind,” Cheng Kun was determined to kill Zhang Weihao. He had always been extremely disgusted by such traitors and sellouts.

　　Because this scoundrel can be completely replaced by Obito Uchiha, or even more outrageous.

　　Mingming Yang Dingtian was the aggrieved party. You cheated on him and even angered him to death. Yet you still harbor resentment and seek revenge, destroying the entire Ming Cult and even betraying the eight major sects of the Central Plains, allowing the Mongol Yuan Dynasty to invade and causing widespread suffering in the Central Plains. No normal person would allow such a scoundrel to continue living.

　　However, Cheng Kun is notoriously good at hiding and very difficult to kill, so Zhang Weihao can only follow the plot. First, he wants to intercept Xiao Zhao, and second, he wants to kill Cheng Kun. He will never let such a scoundrel live a day longer like in the original story. He can just kill the old silver coin directly. Why waste words with him? I’m not that stupid Zhang Wuji.

　　…

　　Just as Yang Xiao was displaying his divine power by using the Great Shift of the Universe to fight six opponents, Cheng Kun, just like in the original story, suddenly made a move. A sharp finger force pierced the “Divine Path Acupoint” on Yang Xiao’s back. He then quickly struck again, injuring Zhou Dian, Peng Yingyu, Tie Guan Dao Ren, and Shuo Bu De.

　　Upon spotting the gray-robed man who had launched the sneak attack, Leng Qian immediately struck out with his palm.

　　The man parried with his hand, and Leng Qian snorted, his voice tinged with pain.

　　Yang Xiao took a breath and leaped forward, intending to help Leng Qian, when he suddenly felt a chilling aura rushing upwards from the “Shendao” acupoint. In an instant, it traveled through all the acupoints of the Du meridian in his body, including the Zhuzhu, Taodao, Dazhui, and Fengfu acupoints.

　　Upon seeing this, Yang Xiao immediately sensed something was wrong. The enemy was not only highly skilled in martial arts but also had a vicious heart. He seized the moment when he, Wei Yixiao, and the Five Wanderers were withdrawing their strength and launched a lightning-fast surprise attack. Yang Xiao had no choice but to quickly circulate his inner energy to resist. This cold energy was completely different from the “Frosty Cotton Palm” that Wei Yixiao had used. It felt like a thin thread of ice, but wherever it traveled to, it caused a tingling or numb sensation.

　　If facing the enemy head-on, Yang Xiao would not allow the finger force to penetrate his body with his internal energy. Now that he has been ambushed, he can only endure it for the time being and help Leng Qian defeat the enemy.

　　He stepped forward, raised his right palm, and was about to strike when suddenly his whole body shuddered violently, and the force in his palm vanished without a trace.

　　By this time, Leng Qian had already exchanged more than twenty blows with that person, and it was clear that he was no match for him.

　　Yang Xiao was extremely anxious. He saw Leng Qian kick out with his right foot, but the other man stepped forward and blocked his arm with a finger. Leng Qian swayed and fell backward.

　　Yang Xiao was filled with shock and anger. He mustered all the remaining internal energy in his body and slammed his right elbow into the gray-robed man’s chest.

　　The gray-robed man flicked his left finger, striking Yang Xiao’s “Xiaohai” acupoint on the bottom of his elbow. Yang Xiao immediately felt cold, numb, and unable to move an inch.

　　The gray-robed man said coldly, “The Left Envoy of Light lives up to his name. He was hit by my ‘Phantom Yin Finger’ twice, yet he is still able to stand.”

　　Yang Xiao said, “Your finger-flicking skill is a Shaolin technique, but this so-called ‘Phantom Yin Finger’ internal energy… Hmph, Shaolin doesn’t have such a vicious martial art. Who are you?”

　　The gray-robed man laughed and said, “This humble monk is Yuanzhen, and my master’s Dharma name is ‘Kong’ above and ‘Jian’ below. This time, the eight major sects besieged the Demonic Sect, and you died at the hands of Shaolin disciples. It was not in vain.”

　　Yang Xiao said, “The eight major sects are enemies of my Ming Cult. It is only when we fight to the death with real swords and spears that a true man should act. I only see the name of the Divine Monk, who is benevolent and chivalrous, spread throughout the world. Who would have thought that there would be such a despicable and shameless person as you under his command…” At this point, he could no longer hold on, his knees buckled, and he sat down on the ground.

　　Yuanzhen laughed heartily and said, “Winning by surprise and deception is the way of the world, it’s been that way since ancient times. I, Yuanzhen, alone defeated seven of the Ming Cult’s top masters, are you still not convinced of your defeat?”

　　Yang Xiao shook his head and sighed, “How could you sneak into Bright Peak? How did you know about this secret passage? If you could show me, I would die in peace.”

　　He believed that Yuanzhen’s successful sneak attack was due to his superb martial arts skills, but the main reason was that he knew the secret passage to Bright Peak, crossed more than ten sentry lines of the Ming Cult, and made a sudden and undetected attack, which allowed him to defeat the seven masters of the Ming Cult in one fell swoop.

　　The Ming Cult had operated its headquarters at Bright Peak for centuries, relying on its perilous cliffs and natural defenses, making it virtually impregnable. However, disaster struck from within, catching them completely off guard and leading to their utter defeat. Suddenly, a few words from Confucius in the Analects came to mind: “When a state is in disarray and cannot be defended, and yet plots are made to wage war within the state, I fear that the Ji Sun clan’s worries lie not in Zhuanyu, but within their own walls.”

　　…

　　Zhang Weihao was still very curious about Cheng Kun’s true level and combat strength, mainly because the original work was too vague, and the gap between the upper and lower limits was so huge that it was astonishing.

　　At his peak, he could rival one of the Three Elders of the Dao, and be stronger than Yang Xiao and Fan Yao. Unless the Xuanming Elders joined forces, they would not be a match for Cheng Kun. However, his skill level was quite low, perhaps only on par with Xie Xun when he was blind, and possibly even inferior to the White-browed Eagle King, at the level of an ordinary Dharma King.

　　Now Zhang Weihao has an accurate assessment. Before the Illusionary Yin Finger technique was broken, Cheng Kun’s strength was no less than either of the Xuanming Elders, thanks to this powerful and ruthless finger technique. He was definitely a master of the Innate Realm, and a master of the Innate Realm who had mastered a unique and deadly technique. This was very important.

　　The reason why those masters on the weapons ranking list are so powerful is precisely this.

　　Having a trump card or unique skill is crucial in a duel between experts of the same level. Therefore, Cheng Kun, whose skill was broken and who could no longer use the Illusionary Yin Finger, was only at the level of an ordinary innate master, roughly on par with the White-browed Eagle King and the Golden-haired Lion King.

　　In fact, Zhang Weihao had considered whether or not to let Zhang Wuji master the Nine Yang Divine Skill, but in the end he did not make a move in advance. After Cheng Kun was defeated, he took the lead and followed him into the secret passage, pulling Xiao Zhao, who was dressed in red, into the secret passage, not giving Zhang Wuji a chance to go down into the secret passage and shine.

　　Who told this Xiao Zhao to actually be the red-clad Xiao Zhao, the version played by Chingmy Yau? Zhang Weihao naturally wouldn’t give Zhang Wuji any chance. If you dare to come down and try to steal my girl, I’ll kill you, the male lead of Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber, beforehand.

　　Xiao Zhao in Red (Chingmy Yau)