Chapter 80: The Assault

Inside the hall, the reactions of those present varied greatly upon witnessing the scene. The one closest to Shen Zhongzhu, You Zhong, immediately sensed danger when he noticed golden threads in the air weaving themselves into bamboo patterns. Yet, by the time You Zhong moved, it was already too late; the speed at which the golden bamboo patterns fell onto the puddles on the floor far surpassed his own thoughts.

The bamboo tips swelled abruptly, piercing straight through You Zhong’s feet just as he turned around. Blood poured onto the bamboo, giving the golden threads an eerie, lustrous green glow.

There were two others standing somewhat near Shen Zhongzhu. Their reactions were much swifter than You Zhong’s. The moment Shen Zhongzhu stepped over the threshold, they had already launched their attacks.

One formed his hand into a claw, swooping down with the speed of a falcon, his five fingers sharp and poised for Shen Zhongzhu’s throat.

The other, from who knows where, produced an iron cudgel. The cudgel had nine sections, each engraved with runes, and he brought it crashing down toward Shen Zhongzhu’s crown.

Shen Zhongzhu lazily raised his phoenix-like eyes and patted the pale-yellow gourd at his waist, its mouth half-open.

Immediately, the man who had formed his hand into a claw felt his body go limp and weak; he fell from the air. Fortunately, as he landed, he regained his senses and a pair of brown wings suddenly sprouted from his back, carrying him to the slanted red beam above.

Otherwise, he would have been riddled with holes by the golden bamboo tips.

Meanwhile, as Shen Zhongzhu nonchalantly patted his gourd, the other man with the iron cudgel suddenly quickened, raising the cudgel high and bringing it down with force onto Shen Zhongzhu’s head.

A crisp crack resounded.

Did it hit?

You Zhong, fighting through the pain of his pierced feet and sweating coldly, wondered as he watched.

A sharp whistle cut through the air. Li Xiaoyan suddenly stepped forward, his slender blade slashing upward, feet treading lightly atop the rising bamboo tips, moving as if on level ground, entirely unhindered by the bamboo array.

"You’ve observed me closely these last twenty years," Shen Zhongzhu’s figure slowly materialized in midair. Turning, he smiled at Li Xiaoyan. A thin cut appeared on his neck, and suddenly blood gushed forth in a torrent.

"Bai Lihong!" Li Xiaoyan’s dark face showed no hint of triumph as he shouted toward the gaunt man in a pale-yellow robe, now slumped on the water’s surface.

Though bamboo tips covered the array, none pierced beneath Bai Lihong; the golden bamboo threads circled around him instead.

"Don’t shout! I know what to do!" Bai Lihong replied coldly, untying the silk sash at his waist and flinging open his robe. Inside, on either side, were closed eyes.

As he opened the robe, the left eye opened first, revealing a golden pupil that shot forth a beam of light, illuminating Shen Zhongzhu’s figure for all to see.

But it didn’t stop there. Bai Lihong shook the robe again, and the right eye suddenly opened, though it held no pupil. Instantly, Shen Zhongzhu found himself unable to move.

A flash of the blade—Shen Zhongzhu’s head was severed from his body.

The middle-aged man seated on the rosewood armchair suddenly opened his mouth. A strange, sinister wind issued forth, sucking Shen Zhongzhu’s head and body inside.

But soon, the man frowned and spat. Out tumbled a tiny bamboo figurine, decapitated.

Suddenly, the golden bamboo threads on the puddle near the threshold twisted and intertwined, spinning into a human shape—it was Shen Zhongzhu, just as before.

"This little one is the weakest among you, just barely touching the threshold of Refining Essence into Qi. In your terms, a mere novice at the Initiate Realm," Shen Zhongzhu said airily, twisting his neck and glancing sidelong at the stunned You Zhong.

"If I’m not mistaken, that should be a Nine-Talisman Iron Cudgel. Even the lowest grade of such a weapon requires one to have mastered the art of Refining Essence into Qi. Below the Profound Spirit Realm, you cultivators have two lower realms—ah yes, Transcending Mystery and Spiritual Clarity. This one is somewhere between those two."

He reached out and flicked the cudgel as it came down again, the touch of his finger against the iron producing a ringing, metallic sound.

Each segment of the nine-part cudgel shattered in turn.

The man wielding the Nine-Talisman Iron Cudgel instantly spat a mouthful of blood and was hurled backward. Fortunately, Li Xiaoyan caught him in time; had he landed in the bamboo-tipped puddles, the consequences would have been dire.

"Li Xiaoyan, there’s no need to say more. You may practice only physical arts, and though martial artists don’t measure their progress by realms as cultivators do, based on your strike just now, I’d place you at the Transcending Mystery Realm," Shen Zhongzhu said with a lazy smile to Li Xiaoyan, then glanced at Bai Lihong, who was adjusting his robe.

"My father is a master of one of the twelve towers of Lingyun Tower, his cultivation already at the Divine Roaming Realm!" Bai Lihong exclaimed as Shen Zhongzhu’s gaze landed on him.

"No need to shout. I know you have connections in Lingyun Tower. That fine magic treasure you carry makes it quite clear," Shen Zhongzhu replied with a slight smile.

"Now, only two demons remain. The eagle demon on the beam is nothing special—he can’t withstand my demon-collecting gourd. But the one who just tried to eat me, now that’s worth discussing," Shen Zhongzhu said, glancing at the eagle demon on the beam before looking down at the unmoving, middle-aged man seated in the rosewood chair.

"You’re no ordinary priest," the man said, meeting Shen Zhongzhu’s gaze.

"And you’re no ordinary demon," Shen Zhongzhu replied, his phoenix eyes narrowing with a slight laugh.

The man’s black hair began to turn green, growing wildly like a forest savage. He crushed the golden bamboo tips beneath his feet, and his eyes turned blood-red and ferocious.

"But I’m not here to trouble you. Tell me—aside from burning the archives of the Warden’s Office and releasing the souls of your kind whose bodies were destroyed, what else have you of Lingyun Tower done on this Sangyu Island?" Shen Zhongzhu’s phoenix eyes opened fully, his voice calm as he addressed the transforming man.

"Treasure hunting," Li Xiaoyan replied evenly.

"What treasure?" Shen Zhongzhu asked, turning his gaze to Li Xiaoyan with a faint smile.

"The Sea-Calming Pearl," Li Xiaoyan answered.

"The Sea-Calming Pearl?" Shen Zhongzhu’s heart filled with dread.

"What other Sea-Calming Pearl could there be? Naturally, the one the Divine Emperor reforged from the Western Buddhist heavens and bestowed upon the Dragon Clan of the Eastern Seas," Li Xiaoyan replied, looking steadily at Shen Zhongzhu.