Chapter 228
Chapter 228 Father and Son
On the night the third young lord escaped from the dungeon, Gu Shenwei was ready to force Luo Ningcha to hand over the last board.
It was the second half of a midsummer’s night, as the sounds of chirping insects gradually ceased. Gu Shenwei was fully dressed in night clothes and sitting on his bed, wondering on how he should deal with Luo Ningcha before he suddenly heard a faint whistle in the distance, a signal that the killers in the castle used to exchange information.
Gu Shenwei leaped out of the room, and Lotus, who was protecting the Miss in turn, almost showed up at the same time as him. “You stay,” Gu Shenwei said as he jumped onto the roof and ran towards the inner chamber.
The whistle soon stopped. Very few men were awakened, and there was also no large reaction discernible in the inner chamber. Only those who knew the killers’ rules and observed patiently would notice that there were black shadows flying by now and then, all heading in the same direction.
This was when Gu Shenwei knew that Shangguan Yun had escaped from the prison. It had been five days since he sent the wire saw, so no one knew why the third young lord had waited so long to make his move.
Gu Shenwei temporarily changed his mind and sneaked all the way to the courtyard where Shangguan Fa lived. Luo Ningcha, who was still dreaming pleasant dreams, could never have imagined that she had fortunately escaped a disaster unhurt.
Gu Shenwei had been waiting for Shangguan Yun to make a move, which was more important than getting the Daoless Scroll.
The Unique King was not as heavily guarded as Gu Shenwei had imagined it would be and with the whistle, there were even fewer killers now. But Gu Shenwei still moved forward step by step, carefully observing every possible ambush spot before he climbed onto a roof and huddled in a shadow, merging into the ridge of the building.
Will Shangguan Yun come directly for revenge? Does he have a long-term goal? Will he simply run away?Although Gu Shenwei had only met the third young lord twice and knew little about him, he was certain that Shangguan Yun would choose the first option.
The Unique King had lost all his internal energy, and there was no better chance of revenge than tonight. Gu Shenwei hoped that Shangguan Yun could carry it out for him, or at least dig out Shangguan Fa’s secrets.
If it were three years ago, Gu Shenwei would have insisted on killing his enemy with his own hands
no matter what. But now, looking at his grand aspiration of revenge from the killer’s perspective, he was more willing to kill with the safest means.
Gu Shenwei watched intently but still wasn’t able to find any of Shangguan Yun’s traces. When he finally found the third young lord, the other side was already standing under the tree in the middle of the courtyard. Gu Shenwei didn’t even know how long he had been there.
Dressed in the same clothes he wore in the dungeon, Shangguan Yun held the trunk with one hand while looking at the ‘hot chamber’ where his father lived.
The killers on guard also discovered the anomaly. But they did not ask or shout. Three people unsheathed their narrow sabers and slowly approached Shangguan Yun from the back in a fan-shaped formation.
Shangguan Yun didn’t move as if he was unaware of them. When the killers were within seven steps of him and about to attack, he took the initiative and attacked first.
Shangguan Yun spread out his arms and suddenly turned around, causing a gust of wind, which rolled up a few leaves on the ground. The thick leaves on the tree also rustled with the wind.
The killers were hit by the leaves, flew backward, and heavily fell to the ground, none getting back up.
Although it was a little far away and the moonlight wasn’t very bright, Gu Shenwei, with just a glance, could still tell that the killers were not dead, but had rather fainted or were stricken at their acupoints.
Shangguan Yun still doesn’t want to kill, Gu Shenwei thought. He probably had to rely on himself to clean up the mess.
The small battle had alarmed many people, and countless black shadows dashed to the yard from all directions. Just a few steps from Gu Shenwei’s hiding spot stood two killers. Fortunately, all of their attention was focused on Shangguan Yun in the yard and they didn’t notice the lurker under their noses.
“Leave.” An order came from the hot chamber, and it was the Unique King’s voice. The surrounding killers retreated as quickly as they came. In the blink of an eye, there were only two Avengers left; one in the yard while the other lurked on the roof.
“You are still so soft-hearted.”
The Unique King pushed open the door and walked out. Dressed in his long, loose robe, Shangguan Fa showed a dignified expression, even though he already appeared old and weak. In Gu Shenwei’s impression, he was very tall and strong. Even the last time he saw him, he seemed to be able to fill the whole room. Now, looking from afar,
afar, he was merely a scrawny, ordinary old man who had to support himself with difficulty.
Do it now, do not hesitate, and do not talk nonsense. The killer on the ridge wished he could control the Avenger under the tree and instill the idea into his mind. Unfortunately, Shangguan Yun opened his mouth, his voice full of hate, but he was wasting the most precious opportunity.
“Yingwu is dead.”
“Yingwu? Man or bird?” Shangguan Fa appeared a bit impatient, as if a debater had waited a long time for an equal opponent, but was greatly disappointed by the lack of vigor in the first words of the opponent after their first meeting.
“You don’t even remember her?”
“That woman? I remember her now; my son once tried to kill his father for a woman. So many years have pa.s.sed, but you still love her?”
“Not ‘once’.” Shangguan Yun’s sleeves ballooned, the leaves around him rattled, and everything within a few steps seemed about to float.
Instead of retreating, the Unique King took a step forward. “So little killing aura, it’s even inferior to those of the disciples of East Castle. Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, Shangguan Yun!”
Shangguan Yun attacked. Countless pebbles picked up by a gust of wind flew out at the Unique King.
Gu Shenwei’s delight lasted for only for a moment, and he knew at once that it was just a flashy move. The pebbles pa.s.sed by Shangguan Fa and fell on the door and windows, causing crackling sounds. The momentum was impressive, but it wasn’t lethal at all.
Shangguan Fa contemptuously looked at his son, “In another month, you will lose the chance to kill me forever, don’t you want to seize this moment?”
In the face of his father’s goading, Shangguan Yun didn’t lose control again but instead calmed down. His voice had returned to its former state, gentle and low, a bit cynical. Gu Shenwei could even imagine the crooked smile and his slightly tilted mouth corner, so he began to wonder whether he should kill the Unique King himself.
“There’s always a chance. You can kill me at any time, but didn’t you become soft-hearted too?”
“Having ten sons is my dream.”
“Haha, ‘have ten sons and you will become a real king.’ You still believe Immortal Peng’s nonsense?”
It turned out that Shangguan Fa’s superst.i.tion stemmed from Immortal Peng. Recalling Shangguan Yun’s words that the Unique King had once practiced kung fu with that dwarf, Gu Shenwei became more and more confused. Why didn’t Shangguan Fa kill him? It wasn’t the Unique King’s style to let go of a killer simply because of
because of a few words from his daughter.
“Immortal Peng is a liar, but his fortune-telling is accurate.”
“Big brother died, fourth brother died, and even your fortune-teller, Immortal Peng, is dead. And you are still obsessed with your dreams?”
“I know, but it doesn’t matter. I can have more sons if I want. What occupies my mind is that teenager, cruel and merciless. I hope that one of my sons can be like him.”
The father and son actually talked about Servant Huan, and Gu Shenwei’s heart raced a bit.
“Heh, having a killer-like son … the first thing he will do is kill you and take the throne.”
“Do you think the people of the Shangguan family will be afraid of such things? I am only worried that my son is not ruthless enough to keep the t.i.tle of the Unique King.”
“So you tortured me, to force me to become as cold-blooded as you?” Shangguan Yun’s voice turned stern. Gu Shenwei still remembered the angry third young lord, and his appearance was almost the exact opposite of the Unique King’s.
“Yes. Among all my sons, you resemble me the most. Not only in the appearance, but also in my youth’s temper. So I allowed you to wander Jianghu, guided you into the Essence Pavilion, thinking that you would follow my steps sooner or later. Unfortunately, you were too addicted to the easy life and actually fell in love with a woman.”
“Don’t you talk about her!” Shangguan Yun’s sleeves swelled again.
“Why not? That woman, Yingwu, right? Now that I recall her appearance, her skin was as smooth as water. She begged in my arms, and it was a bit fresh at first, but I was soon bored after listening too much, so I taught her a lesson …”
A fierce gale sprang up and even the killer lurking on the roof felt a gust of wind.
But as Gu Shenwei had predicted from the start, Shangguan Yun had missed the best time, or perhaps there had never been a best time. Shangguan Yun was revealing his despairing madness by choosing to challenge at the door instead of a prudent a.s.sa.s.sination.
Four green-faced a.s.sa.s.sins suddenly showed up as if they had come straight out of the wall. They waved their sabers and blocked in front of the Unique King before disappearing.
Shangguan Yun really had the intention to kill now. As soon as his first move was blocked, he made the second move. But he had just flicked his finger before he was. .h.i.t by a green-faced a.s.sa.s.sin falling from the sky.
The green-faced a.s.sa.s.sin, who had been hiding in the tree,in the tree, launched a deadly strike, but his saber was a bit slow. He had made a deep scar on the target’s chest but wasn’t able to cut off the head. This, however, was fatal to himself.
Shangguan Yu hit the green-faced right in the face. The mask broke into pieces, and the a.s.sa.s.sin, like a falling leaf floating horizontally in the air, paused for a moment before falling heavily to the ground.
With blood gushing from his chest, Shangguan Yun’s legs softened and knelt onto the ground. No one could kill the Unique King, and even when he lost all his power, he was still protected by loyal green-faced a.s.sa.s.sins.
“You’re the only one who has had two chances to kill me,” Shangguan Fa said coldly. His son was already unable to speak. “You should feel lucky that losing my power has weakened my murderous heart and made me unable to kill as willingly as I used to be. However, I’m glad to see that you have finally made an attempt to kill. I’m very disappointed to see that you have not improved your kung fu and were actually stabbed by a green-faced a.s.sa.s.sin. Cherish your hard-earned little life and go back to the dungeon. Never let me see you again.”
Shangguan Yun swayed twice before he slowly collapsed, his head resting on the corpse of the green-faced a.s.sa.s.sin.
Gu Shenwei waited for another long while. It was not until Shangguan Fa went back to his room, the killers cleaned up the scene, and the night was about to end that he finally carefully followed the same way he came to return to the eighth young lord’s courtyard.
To kill the Unique King, one must get around those green-faced a.s.sa.s.sins. Gu Shenwei hadn’t found a solution yet.
It was Servant Huan’s turn to ‘protect’ the Miss, but Lotus nodded to him to show that she could do another shift. She was an ideal a.s.sistant. She never asked what Servant Huan was doing.
Gu Shenwei began to consider whether to ask for Lotus’s help or not before he fell asleep. In another month’s time, the Unique King would completely recover his power. Gu Shenwei would not forgive himself if he missed this once-in-lifetime opportunity. He wanted to try it at least once, and if he could lure the Unique King out of the inner chamber… His mind drifted further and further away. He recalled that when the big young lord died, Shangguan Fa had appeared at the funeral, but the fourth young lord hadn’t been able to receive such an honor.
Gu Shenwei gradually sorted himself out. What he lacked now was just an appropriate bait.