Urban Martial Saint

Being able to preserve Aomuhan’s life was already considered a luxury for Ao Wuchang. So now, hearing Helian Tiehua say that his martial arts were merely abolished, Ao Wuchang felt nothing but gratitude, with not a trace of objection.

Of course, this time, the feud between Ao Wuchang and the Bai Family was thoroughly cemented. Among the Seven Families, the few strongest clans had always been disobedient to Huangfu Ziyu. Ye Qing saved Aomuhan’s life this time; the Ao family would certainly stand on Huangfu Ziyu’s side in the future, which was very beneficial for Huangfu Ziyu’s control over the entire Seven Families.

Helian Tiehua personally took action, severing several of Aomuhan’s meridians, abolishing Aomuhan’s martial arts. Of course, if someone could reconnect his meridians, there was still a chance for him to practice martial arts again. But repairing meridians is not an easy matter. Currently, unless Ning Qianshu and Bai Li Xi were involved, no one could achieve this. And Ning Qianshu and Bai Li Xi would certainly not help such a minor character like Aomuhan to repair his meridians.

Several subordinates carried Aomuhan away, only then did Helian Tiehua sit back in his original place, sweeping his gaze over everyone present, and stated in a deep voice: ”Aomuhan’s matter has already sounded a warning bell for all present here. I hope everyone will guard your own family members, and don’t let your guard down. If someone gets exploited again, next time it won’t be as simple as abolishing martial arts!”

After dismissing all members of the Seven Families, Helian Tiehua summoned Shen Tianjun and other masters, and the group sat down once more in the hall. Helian Tiehua recounted the earlier events, finally stating gravely: ”Aomuhan has already relayed our situation entirely to Shen Qianyue. Based on this situation, the Corpse Ghost Dragon surely knows our status here and knows that Master Shijia is present. Do you think the Corpse Ghost Dragon will employ some covert maneuver?”

Before anyone could respond, Shijia directly stated: ”You don’t need to worry about this, with me here, whatever underhanded tricks he tries, they won’t work. With me here, I can absolutely guarantee your safety!”

Everyone glanced at Shijia, and the confident demeanor of this fellow dispelled the group’s anxiety.

”Master, how are you going to handle the Corpse Ghost Dragon?” Shen Tianjun asked, ”Will you still use the Sea of Suffering Great Array?”

”Of course not using the Sea of Suffering Great Array!” Shijia replied: ”The Sea of Suffering Great Array cannot trap the Corpse Ghost Dragon; after using it once, its effectiveness isn’t great. If I use it a second time, I estimate it wouldn’t trap him for even an hour.”

”Then how do you plan to deal with him?” Ye Qingqi asked, always feeling Shijia’s ways were unreliable.

Shijia glared and said: ”What? Without the Sea of Suffering Great Array, I can’t deal with him?”

Ding Lianshun said: ”That’s not the case, Master; we all know your capabilities. But the Corpse Ghost Dragon’s strength is even stronger than last time at Xi Hang. Know your enemy and know yourself, only then can you surface victorious in a hundred battles. At least give us some mental preparation. For instance, is there anything you need us to do?”

”Oh, you don’t need to worry about that, do you think I would personally run over here to meet my demise!” Shijia waved his hand and said: ”Besides, it’s not just me alone fighting him; there’s another person coming to assist me. When we join forces, don’t mention the Corpse Ghost Dragon being at only thirty percent strength right now, even in his full strength period, we could still put up a fight!”

”Really?” Everyone was surprised, leaving Ye Qingqi to ask: ”Who is this master you’re talking about?”

”Is there such a skilled master in the world?” Shen Tianjun also exclaimed.

”Could it be a reclusive master like Luan Ping?” Ding Lianshun asked curiously.

”Not likely, right?” Ning Qianshu also frowned and said: ”How many such reclusive masters can there be?”

”That remains to be seen. In the previous era, martial arts were flourishing, and peak masters were abundant, far exceeding the number in our current era. Most of these people wished to prolong their lives and hid away from the public eye. The few peak masters who appeared with Luan Ping earlier were only a portion; who knows if even stronger masters are hidden?”

Everyone was incredibly astonished, engaging in fervent discussion and speculation about which master Shijia was referring to.

”You’re all mistaken!” Shijia sat beside with an expression of proud satisfaction, crossed his leg, pointed to Ye Qing, and said: ”This person, Ye Qing has seen!”

”I’ve seen him?” Ye Qing was stunned, and everyone looked at Ye Qing in unison, eager to know who this master was.

Ye Qing quickly ran through all the top masters he had encountered in his mind, but realized that the most powerful individuals he had met were all here. There was also a Purple Robe Lama, very formidable in strength, but his current whereabouts were unknown. Moreover, the Purple Robe Lama’s power was just on par with Shen Tianjun’s group, inadequate to stop the Corpse Ghost Dragon together with Shijia. After pondering, the only possibility seemed to be Divine Doctor An Shiping. However, according to Divine Doctor An Shiping’s claims, he should no longer be among the living.

Unable to think of it, Ye Qing looked at Shijia and asked, ”Who is it?”

”Hehe...” Shijia smiled mysteriously and said: ”You’ll know who it is when he arrives tonight. Alright, Buddha Master won’t chatter any further with you. Tonight will be a tough battle, I’ll go get some rest first, gather energy to cope!”

Shijia stretched lazily and directly went to his room to rest. The people remaining sat in the hall, looking at each other, unable to guess who Shijia referred to.

”Junior brother, do you know who senior brother was referring to?” the Wolf Monk suddenly asked, inquiring the Joyous Monk sitting next to him.

Everyone also looked towards the Joyous Monk. The Joyous Monk has always been with Shijia, so he should be quite clear about the situation here.

The Joyous Monk shrugged, saying, ”How should I know!”

”You’ve been with senior brother all the time, haven’t you noticed anyone he’s been in contact with recently?” the Wolf Monk asked curiously.

The Joyous Monk replied, ”He hasn’t seen a single familiar face lately, who could he be in contact with?”

”Oh?” The Wolf Monk was also taken aback. Even the Joyous Monk didn’t know, which made him start to suspect if Shijia was fooling everyone.

While he was still puzzled, the Wolf Monk suddenly remembered something and quickly said, ”No, wait, did senior brother not see any familiar faces when he returned to Xiaolin Temple?”

”What’s unusual about that?” replied the Joyous Monk. ”Xiaolin Temple has long been a ruin, seeing any familiar faces there would be strange.”

”That’s impossible, isn’t it?” the Wolf Monk said. ”Wasn’t there an old man guarding Xiaolin Temple? Ever since Xiaolin Temple was destroyed, he’s been living there. Did you not see him when you went back?”

”Ah?” The Joyous Monk was confused, saying, ”There’s an old man guarding Xiaolin Temple? Really? I haven’t seen him at all. In decades, I’ve gone back several times, and I’ve never seen anyone.”

The Wolf Monk responded, ”Yes, there’s someone there. He lives in the chambers at the back and usually looks after the gate of Xiaolin Temple. Didn’t you see him?”

The Joyous Monk shook his head, which now puzzled the Wolf Monk. When he left Wan Yan Manor, he first returned to Xiaolin Temple. There, he met the old gatekeeper, and from him learned about the Bloody Monk’s bloodshed at Xiaolin Temple. Because of the old man’s words, the Wolf Monk began to suspect that there had been issues behind the Bloody Monk’s massacre at Xiaolin Temple years ago, and he has been investigating ever since. Now, with the Joyous Monk saying they’ve never seen the old gatekeeper, the Wolf Monk was perplexed. Could it be just a coincidence that every time the Joyous Monk returned to Xiaolin Temple, the old man wasn’t there?

”Senior brother, did you see incorrectly?” the Joyous Monk said. ”There are only the four of us brothers left at Xiaolin Temple now. After Xiaolin Temple was destroyed, senior brother returned to count, and none survived. There’s no way any gatekeeper could have survived. Besides, there’s no such person guarding Xiaolin Temple!”

The Wolf Monk was completely baffled and fell into silence, unable to make sense of the situation. It seems, to clarify the situation, he must return to Xiaolin Temple again and find that old man.

Although Shijia spoke with confidence earlier, everyone still dared not be careless and discussed how to deal with the Corpse Ghost Dragon. In fact, faced with overwhelming power, they didn’t have any viable strategies, only discussing where to hide those without the strength to resist.

Everyone was busy, but Shijia was carefree, sleeping until past eight o’clock at night. He yawned as he walked into the hall, where everyone sat with vigilant expressions, waiting for the attack of the Corpse Ghost Dragon.

Seeing Shijia emerge, Ye Qing couldn’t help but say, ”You’re finally awake. It’s been dark for quite a while, and the Corpse Ghost Dragon might attack at any time now. If you didn’t get up, I was considering dragging you out.”

Shijia glanced at the night outside and replied, ”What’s the rush? Even if the Corpse Ghost Dragon intends to come, it won’t be at this time. It’ll probably take more than two hours to arrive!”

”How do you know?” everyone was surprised, wondering if Shijia could predict his movements even though the Corpse Ghost Dragon had already separated from the Heavenly Dao.

Shijia replied, ”I’m guessing.”

Everyone was speechless, and Ye Qing said, ”You’re just talking nonsense!”

”No, this isn’t nonsense. Talking nonsense means making guesses without any basis. But my guess is grounded!” Shijia said.

”What basis?” Ye Qing asked.

”It’s simple!” Shijia explained. ”The Corpse Ghost Dragon practices sorcery, which is a type of evil technique, usually performed at night. Therefore, his cultivation power is strongest at night, especially between ten o’clock and five in the morning. If he’s coming, it’d certainly be after ten. Now it’s only a bit past eight, so there’s more than two hours left!”