Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 79 - Undercurrent

After Nangong Qi dodged Liu Wuxie’s attack, he and Bi Gongyu stopped. They were stumped as they looked at Liu Wuxie.

“What?! Did you say he’s dead?!” Nangong Qi was horrified and skeptical of Liu Wuxie’s words. Despite yelling for a long time, he didn’t get any response.

“Don’t bother making a futile effort. He’s dead, and it’s your turn now!” Liu Wuxie interrupted Nangong Qi. Even if Nangong Qi damaged his vocal cords by yelling, Yun Lan wouldn’t come back to life.

“That’s impossible! Brother Yun is in the Marrow Cleansing Realm. How could you have possibly killed him?” Nangong Qi’s face became sinister. He was in disbelief that Yun Lan had died, and even Bi Gongyu was taken aback.

Lei Tao staggered as he fell to the ground because what Liu Wuxie said was too impactful.

“You talk a lot!” Liu Wuxie didn’t want to waste time with Nangong Qi and unleashed another attack with his blade. He said, “Pavilion Master Bi, I’ll hold him down, and you kill him.”

As Liu Wuxie raised his blade, he shot forth like a cannonball, dragging a long afterimage in his path. His blade was enveloped in blade intent aimed at Nangong Qi’s neck. This left Nangong Qi in shock, and he could vaguely guess why Yun Lan died in Liu Wuxie’s hands.

The blade intent was like a massive prison trapping Nangong Qi in it, and this wasn’t any inferior to an attack from someone in the pinnacle of the Spirit Cleansing Realm. All Liu Wuxie had to do was hold Nangong Qi down for Bi Gongyu to find an opportunity.

“Wuxie, help me hold him down for three breaths, and I can take his life!” Bi Gongyu wasn’t a soft-hearted person and began brewing his attack.

“Okay!” Liu Wuxie was confident he could accomplish his goal. With the help of the Ghost Eye, Nangong Qi’s movements appeared to slow down in his vision as he executed the Blood Gleam Blade Art, targeting Nangong Qi’s vitals.

“You think you can hold me back by yourself?” Nangong Qi wanted to flee and started to retreat. Yun Lan was dead, and it was practically impossible for him to kill Bi Gongyu, Liu Wuxie, and Lei Tao by himself.

“You’re far weaker compared to Yun Lan!” Liu Wuxie sneered. As he attacked the blade in his right hand, he unleashed a fist technique with his left. His simple fist technique carried immense power that caused the surrounding trees to creak from shockwaves alone.

“What true essence is that? How can it be so strong?!” Nangong Qi panicked with fear on his face.

Liu Wuxie’s desolate true essence was at least ten times denser than before. As soon as it appeared, both Nangong Qi and Bi Gongyu were shocked. Liu Wuxie’s true essence felt like a beast opening its jaws to bite down on Nangong Qi.

“Fuck!” Nangong Qi immediately realized something wasn’t right and wanted to escape by opening a gap.

“Nangong Qi, you can die now!” But just when Nangong Qi was about to escape, Bi Gongyu’s attack had arrived. A terrifying palm arrived, descending from the sky. This was a rare palm seal technique, which was much stronger than ordinary martial techniques.

“Y-You comprehended the Mountain Seal?!” Nangong Qi was so horrified that he couldn’t speak.

“At least you have some eyesight!” The palm crashed down like a mountain. As Liu Wuxie controlled Nangong Qi, he couldn’t escape, no matter how he tried.

When the palm descended, Nangong Qi was horrified and didn’t have much time to think. Cracking sounds came from his body, with the Mountain Seal shattering a few of his bones. As Nangong Qi tried to resist the Mountain Seal, he begged, “I surrender! Please don’t kill me!”

Nangong Qi didn’t want to die. He had been persuaded by Shangguan Cai, who had told him and Yun Lan that they could make a fortune by killing Liu Wuxie and forcing him to reveal the refining technique for the Golden Spirit Pill.

Nangong Qi and Yun Lan naturally took it seriously. They traveled all night before they finally caught up with Azure Billow City’s party, ambushing them. Who could’ve thought that this would be the result? If they knew, they wouldn’t have come no matter what.

As for taking revenge? Fuck that. If his disciples were killed, he could always take in more. What was most important to them was obtaining the Golden Spirit Pill’s refining method and Liu Wuxie’s alchemy knowledge. Those were fatally alluring to them, so they pursued Liu Wuxie.

“It’s too late to beg for mercy now!” Bi Gongyu sneered. There would be endless troubles in the future if he allowed Nangong Qi to leave, and he had to kill him today, no matter what.

As rumbling sounds came, Nangong Qi did his best to resist the Mountain Seal, and a terrifying shockwave swept out with them at the center. Nangong Qi suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood, staining his clothes red. He looked terrifying, covered in blood.

Liu Wuxie seized this opportunity to make his move. He dashed forward and sliced through Nangong Qi’s neck before he could react, turning him into a pile of skin. No one noticed, not even Bi Gongyu, because the shockwave was still present and obscured their vision.

However, the Ghost Eye saw everything clearly. This was how Liu Wuxie could find Nangong Qi’s position and take his life.

When the dust cloud settled, a huge crater appeared, created by the Mountain Seal. But strangely, Nangong Qi had disappeared.

“What a powerful palm technique that obliterated Nangong Qi,” Liu Wuxie flattered, lying straight to Bi Gongyu’s face.

Bi Gongyu’s forehead creased with wrinkles. He knew his own strength and knew that his attack could only seriously injure Nangong Qi at best, not obliterate him from existence. But if Nangong Qi couldn’t escape, where did he go?

Bi Gongyu ultimately turned to look at Liu Wuxie because only one possibility was left. Nangong Qi’s disappearance must have something to do with Liu Wuxie, but he had no evidence to back up his speculation.

“Pavilion Master, are you guys alright?” Lei Tao came over and asked with concern.

“We’re fine.” Bi Gongyu said, having only suffered minor injuries. Liu Wuxie appeared unharmed, but his soul sea had sustained severe damage and would take more than a day to recover, meaning he couldn’t use his soul energy during that time.

The carriage was destroyed, and the four horses were killed. So they could only walk back to Azure Billow City now.

“It looks like we can only travel back on foot now!” Lei Tao said helplessly. Traveling on foot would naturally be slower than the carriage, and they could probably return to Azure Billow City the day after tomorrow.

“I’m in a hurry, so I’ll go ahead,” Liu Wuxie said, executing the Seven Dipper Steps and dashing off into the night.

“Lei Tao, take your time since you’re injured, but I’ll accompany Wuxie to avoid any dangers.” Bi Gongyu patted Lei Tao’s shoulder.

“Pavilion Master, don’t worry about me. I’m fine. You should hurry up and accompany Young Master Liu back first,” Lei Tao said. The one-month deadline was approaching, and tensions were likely high in Azure Billow City. Liu Wuxie had declared that he would annihilate the Wan Clan within one month, and if he didn’t return in time, he would break his oath.

Thus, Bi Gongyu left Lei Tao by himself and rushed back as well. There could be ambushes along the way, and it was safer for him to stay with Liu Wuxie.

“Pavilion Master, there’s no need for you to follow me. We don’t owe each other anything,” Liu Wuxie said, slowing his pace. Bi Gongyu’s actions touched him because he didn’t have many friends since he came to the True Martial Continent. Song Ling could be considered one, and Bi Gongyu could be considered another now.

“What’s there to be polite about between us?” Bi Gongyu smiled.

Liu Wuxie and Bi Gongyu hurried along, no longer dwelling on their previous thoughts. Despite being in the Xiantian Realm, Liu Wuxie’s speed was not slower than Bi Gongyu’s, which greatly surprised the latter. Liu Wuxie ran day and night without slowing down, relying on his desolate true essence. On the other hand, Bi Gongyu was already panting from exhaustion.

“Let’s take a break before continuing our journey!” Liu Wuxie suddenly stopped. There was a teahouse ahead, and they both rested briefly.

“If we continue at this speed, we can return to Azure Billow City tomorrow morning!” Bi Gongyu was indeed tired.

......

In the Xu Clan back at Azure Billow City, all the higher hierarchy of the clan were gathered in the main hall. Even Xu Yishan, responsible for guarding the mine, had rushed back. But strangely, Xu Yilin wasn’t in the main hall, and Xu Yishan presided over the meeting.

The mantra given by Liu Wuxie must’ve had an effect, and Xu Yilin was likely attempting to make a breakthrough into the Marrow Cleansing Realm now.

“Second Master, all three of our oil mills caught fire in the past few days, and one of our weaponry workshops was attacked. It must be done by the Wan and Tian Clans!” Deacon Lan said furiously. The conflict between both sides had increased recently, and all the deacons were summoned back to prepare for an attack from the two clans.

“Issue the order to strengthen the patrol and report immediately if anything happens!” Xu Yishan had no better solution for the time being because the two clans had been launching sneak attacks, and everyone from the Xu Clan was exhausted.

“Roger that!” Everyone left the main hall after receiving instructions from Xu Yishan.

......

In the main hall of the Tian Clan, a group of people had gathered. Among them were not only high-ranking members of the Tian Clan but also those from the Wan Clan. However, everyone’s attention was focused on several middle-aged men seated at the front. These men were not only strong, but one of them was even in the Marrow Cleansing Realm.

It was thought that there were no experts in the Marrow Cleansing Realm in Azure Billow City other than the City Lord, Qi Enshi. So when did another expert in the Marrow Cleansing Realm appear in Azure Billow City?

“Brother Tian, everything is prepared. The deadline will be tomorrow, and it’ll be the day the Xu Clan will perish!” Wan Rongzhe said viciously.

Because of Liu Wuxie, the Wan Clan’s colosseum business had plummeted. As a result, they lost a lot of potential gold coins, and the Wan Clan could finally take revenge for it.

“Excellent! After the Xu Clan is destroyed, we will divide their territory and slowly take over the Song Clan. At that time, our two clans will have a monopoly over Azure Billow City,” said Tian Qisha, his eyes flashing with a hint of coldness as he had long awaited this day.

“We still need to rely on Brother Xue Yang to destroy the Xu Clan. When they are destroyed, the Xue Clan can have 70% of the resources obtained,” said Wang Rongzhe as he looked at the Marrow Cleansing Realm expert, who was a member of the Xue Clan.

“I’m not entirely here for the Xu Clan’s resources, but revenge. Some of our men disappeared in Azure Billow City, and there’s a high likelihood that the Xu Clan killed them. So just do your thing tomorrow,” Xue Yang waved his hand.

Xue Yang was not concerned with the resources of a small city like Azure Billow City and did not believe there would be any valuable resources there. However, several men from the Xue Clan had been sent to Azure Billow City and had all disappeared, which was why Xue Yang had come to investigate. After conducting his investigation, he identified the Xu Clan as his target.

The Xue Clan had their own unique marks, which they would leave in places they had visited. These marks were found in the three oil mills belonging to the Xu Clan, indicating that the Xue Clan members had most likely left them behind before their deaths. Upon his arrival, Xue Yang naturally discovered these marks.