Chapter 298: The Hunting
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Meng Qi nodded. “When facing a sneak-attack of such a master, it’as difficult not to kill him due to the force of Qi.”
He showed a hint of innocence because he had not meant to kill him.
“He’s wearing the Fire Lord mask… Civil Star… Are they together?” Jiang Hengchuan frowned, gazing at the flames as they slowly extinguished. “No. Last time, someone deliberately framed Civil Star… Maybe he found that we’re not fooled, so he used the same tricks to come at us again. Unfortunately, he’s inferior to you and died by your sword.”
Vice Chief Chen Yasong and Green-ribbon Arrester Dai Fei both felt that there was something wrong with the issue regarding the Dajiang Gang Xiang host Chu Guan, so they did not report it to their superior. They felt that they might be scolded and lose their promotion if they reported this shoddy judgment.
Of course, Chen Yasong could not hide the sudden death of such a Xiang host, so he reported it to Hechuang Head Altar. However, he merely stated the facts without adding his opinion to let his superiors to make the judgment and decisions.
Meng Qi thoughtfully said, “Judging from his skills, he seemed to be Fire Lord of The Myths.”
According to the information offered by “Five Emperors’ Knife” Qing Yu, there was an 80% chance that he was the real Fire Lord. With the logical trap before, Meng Qi was surer that Civil Star was the driving force. But the number of people from “The Myths”, and whether there were accredited members remained unknown.
“To pose as the Fire Lord, he certainly would imitate his moves.” While examining the surrounding area, Jiang Hengchuan casually said, “Who on earth are Civil Star and Fire Lord exactly? Why aren’t they famous in Jianghu? And why does someone want to frame them?”
Meng Qi pursed his lips and said, “You probably should ask them.”
“If I knew, why would I spend so much time investigating them?”
“Master Su, the last time you’re framed, you’re almost hurt by me. Today you’re ambushed again. Fortunately, he’s not strong…” Jiang Hengchuan frowned and turned to Meng Qi. “They’ve attacked you again and again. It can’t be a coincidence. Can you figure out the reason? Maybe it’s an important lead.”
Meng Qi thought for a while and decided to disclose a bit of information. “It’s very dangerous in Maoling. Like you, many young masters came here after receiving notes or letters, but I came here without reason. Maybe that’s why I became the target of others. They think I’m a thorn in their side, or an uncontrollable chess piece, so they’re in a hurry to kill me.”
“But why did the mastermind even try to kill me after I entered Maoling city and survived the trap? Normally, he should have turned me into his chess piece as well.”
Jiang Hengchuan froze. After a moment of silence, he said, “This has all been beyond my expectations. It’s likely you’re involved in a vortex.”
After a pause, he said, “Master Su, I want to tell you something.”
“I’m all ears.” Meng Qi responded curiously.
Jiang Hengchuan chose a proper tone and said, “Maoling is one of the biggest cities in the world. Its position is very important. Numerous masters come and go here. I’m afraid that the majority of them are not invited. Why would the mastermind think that you would disrupt his setup? And why would he kill you? If you’re right, I’m afraid that countless masters would be killed in Maoling city.”
“Maybe it’s because I’m listed in Ranking List of Young Masters.” Hearing his words, Meng Qi suddenly felt something was weird.
“Or my identity as a Secret-searching Nark has become apparent to the mastermind?”
“No.” Jiang Hengchuan firmly shook his head. “Numerous former masters who were listed in Ranking List of Young Masters, or late bloomers, come to Maoling. There’re many people who are stronger than you. Isn’t it usually better to avoid any trouble?”
Meng Qi solemnly nodded. “You’re right.”
“Master Su, please think about whether you did something that has caused some misunderstanding. For example, you might have done something that made him think that you’re prepared to disrupt his plans.” Jiang Hengchuan guessed.
Hearing this, Meng Qi suddenly thought about something. “Actually, I did!”
Jiang Hengchuan looked quite excited and waited for Meng Qi to speak.
“When I was in Hero Tower, ‘Five Emperors’ Knife’ Qing Yu said to me, ‘I didn’t expect you to come.’ I was confused, so I told him that I had come there just as he did.” Meng Qi tried to remember every word. “Others might not know who had been invited, but the mastermind must know. Clearly, he didn’t invite Killing Blade, yet I showed up knowingly. So they must’ve suspected that I came here on purpose.”
Jiang Hengchuan was somber yet excited. “Your reply might cause a misunderstanding. Was there anyone else who heard you? Would they publicize this?”
After thinking, Meng Qi said, “Few masters can enter the fifth floor of Hero Tower. There’s only ‘Five Emperors’ Knife’ Qing Yu present at that time. He’s invited and he’s not likely to tell others. Oh! The boss of Hero Tower, ‘Bizzare Man’ Ren Pingsheng, was also there…”
As Meng Qi was about to finish, he had a thought.
“It might be Bizzare Man…” Jiang Hengchuan also became serious.
“There’s no evidence. We have to take it seriously.” Meng Qi felt puzzled but he could not figure out where the problem was. It should be Qing Yu or Ren Pingsheng…
Jiang Hengchuan exhaled. “It makes sense.”
Meng Qi picked up the bronze ring of Fire Lord. “I should check the real identity of Fire Lord.”
Fire Lord’s strength was extraordinary. Even without Peerless Godly Kung Fu, he ranked in the top 30 of Ranking List of Young Masters thanks to his realm. But as a member of a secret organization, his Kung Fu, and weapons that he normally used, were likely different from those of his real identity. That was probably why he had never listed in Ranking List of Young Masters. Thus, it was difficult to find out his real identity. They could only have begun the investigation using the material of his weapons and their unique traits.
“Ok.” Jiang Hengchuan nodded. “We need to find Eight-armed Flying Dragon and the others first.”
Eight-armed Flying Dragon and Three Eagles of Cloud Ridge left confusing tracks when they left, so Meng Qi and Jiang Hengchuan spent a lot of time asking neighborhoods to no avail. It was late, so they bade farewell to each other to sort out their information.
While walking, Meng Qi thought about the Fire Lord and “Bizzare Man” issue. He also pondered the reason Master Wang asked You Shaohui to act like he was on a show. It grew darker as he walked. The wind of the autumn night was chilly.
Suddenly, he stopped and tapped his head. He scolded himself. “Why don’t I ask Qing Yu? Maybe he told others?”
Meng Qi laughed and then changed his direction. With a knife and sword on the back, he walked to a quiet lane and went to Yellow Court Temple.
The lane was quiet in the daytime. Nobody could be seen at night here. The shadows of trees which lined the walls were like evil ghosts. They looked terrifying. The dim moonlight added the eeriness.
Meng Qi had met real “evil ghosts” and zombies before, so he was not afraid at all. Subconsciously on guard against any sneak-attacks, he strode on.
When he had walked half the distance, a cold wind blew which shocked him. He suddenly felt that there might be some danger, and proceeded cautiously.
Unlike the sneak-attack of Fire Lord in the afternoon, he totally depended on his senses and his perception of danger. He could not sense any movement, figure or breath of an enemy. It seemed that it was only his imagination, and that there was nobody behind him!
As Meng Qi moved forward, a cold wind brushed his neck. It felt like someone was about to crush his neck.
Without turning back, Meng Qi drew Heaven Inflicted Pain. Unleashing his genuine Qi and momentum, he wielded his sword as if he was slashing at thousands of armed forces.
However, Meng Qi hit nothing but the air. His senses were right. No one was behind him!
However, the sense of alarm in Meng Qi was still escalating. He moved another step forward, and he felt the coldness again. He was terrified since he seemed to have just dodged a deadly attack!
“He has attained Oneness of Heaven and Men, and hid in the surroundings. Is that why I wasn’t able to sense him?”
“By using heaven and nature, he knew my flow of genuine Qi and my muscle reaction time. Is that how he avoided Heaven Inflicted Pain?”
The fight with Jiang Hengchuan had made Meng Qi react quickly. He activated the Inner World as some of his genuine Qi was repressed, but nothing strange was shown in his muscles.
He wielded Heaven Inflicted Pain again to no avail. There seemed to be no enemy.
Suddenly, Heaven Inflicted Pain jumped and lashed out.
“Poof!”
It hit something as hard as a diamond. A strong force flew toward Meng Qi. It was much stronger than his inner force.
The dark gold glow surrounding him was flowing, which helped him defend some of the force. At the same time, Meng Qi used the Immortal Pressing Art and made use of the force to attack. He turned around with momentum.
“Why…” a strange voice said. Then it was quiet again.
Meng Qi turned around and was about to attack, but he saw no one. There were only dim moonlight and the shadows of the trees.
If Meng Qi had not hit that hard object, he would have probably thought that it was just a nightmare.
He was sweating like a pig. He felt more scared than when he had killed Fire Lord and ran away from Jiang Hengchuan. If he had acted slowly or he had not accomplished the primary level of the inner world, his neck would have been crushed!
“He’s stronger and more violent than Jiang Hengchuan. I couldn’t have hit him with one move. He’s like a wolf…” Meng Qi sighed. He did not know why the man had attacked him!
Quickening his pace, he was more aware. After walking down the lane in a hurry, he arrived at Yellow Court Temple. After greeting the guard, he entered Qing Yu’s yard.
Upon stepping inside, Meng Qi suddenly froze. Under the moonlight, Qing Yu sat on the stone as if he were waiting for Meng Qi.
However, his hair was tousled. There was a deep scratch on his left shoulder and it was bleeding.
While cleaning his wound, Qing Yu calmly asked, “Why are you here?”
“Who hurt you?” Meng Qi seemed to think of something.
Qing Yu snorted, “I was bitten by a wolf.”
“Wolf King Tie Sheng?” Meng Qi finally knew who the enemy was!
After treating his wound, Qing Yu put on his clothes. “Yes, it’s him, a wolf that loves to hunt down masters. His arrival was beyond my expectations.”
“‘Wolf King’ Tie Sheng, a new outstanding figure in the grasslands, loved hunting like a wolf. Sometimes, he killed without any special reason. Maybe it’s just because he thought they’re good. However, he’s not completely out of his mind for he didn’t offend the major powers in the grasslands. Yet unexpectedly, when he arrived in Maoling, he attacked the heir of the Xuan Tian Sect and me …” Information on “Wolf King” Tie Sheng appeared in Meng Qi’s mind. He said, “We should inform Six Fan School and masters in Maoling to kill this wolf.”
Qing Yu nodded. “Yes, we should take this hunter seriously. Did he really think there’s no one stronger than him in the Great Jin Dynasty?”
“He can hide easily. When he offended those on the Exterior level, he immediately hid himself. Even if he killed the heirs of major sects, or legitimate sons of aristocratic families, no one could find him if he retreated back to the grasslands.” Meng Qi desired a fight with him, but knew his strength was at about the level of Jiang Zhiwei.
The grassland was at war with North Zhou Dynasty and Great Jin Dynasty. If Tie Sheng killed heirs of major sects, or legitimate sons of aristocratic families, he would be appreciated by Great Khan Gu Erduo.
Gu Erduo was so strong that he was a man that could hardly be found for five hundred years. On an adventure, he acquired “Heaven’s Earth-eliminating Skill”, claimed “Heaven Punishing Precious body”, and ranked first in Celestial Rankings!
Actually, he was not stronger than Moderation Cultivator, the divine monk Kong Wen, or Master Lu. However, with the help of the Peerless Godly Weapon “Heaven-killing Axe”, he was absolutely stronger than those Dharmakayas who only had ordinary magical arms. Besides, Changsheng Denomination “Da Man”, a Dharmakaya from the grasslands, had joined forces with him when fighting against the Central Plains’ Dharmakaya.