Chapter 383 I Do Want to Protect This Fool
At the beginning of the turmoil in Mount Qingcheng, there were actually plenty Taoists siding with Dao Zhen.
After all, Dao Zhen’s master, Dao Chongyang, was known as the Taoism Master. He did have a ton of true followers and admirers. But Dao Zhen himself was not at all that superb. To that day, those who patronized him at the beginning were either dead or disbanded. The last remaining people still helping Dao Zhen were those who truly wors.h.i.+ped Dao Chongyang and the orthodox diehards in Mount Qingcheng. There were less than 10 supporters left around Dao Zhen. But each of them had exceptional strength and was determined to fight with Dao Chong and the others to the last moment.
Dao Zhen’s cultivation was undoubtedly the highest among those people.
But as he had been attacked and seriously injured at the beginning, his current combat ability was very low.
To protect him, his fellows tried several times to force their way out of the blockage but failed. Some were even gravely mutilated. In the end, Dao Zhen and his loyal followers were cornered back to the doorstep of the inn.
At the moment, Dao Zhen felt the burning of guilt and fury.
Those decent men had followed him up to that day, but he had been muddling away his days, h.e.l.l-bent to retreat. That instead brought more harm to those who were truly loyal to him.
“Aargh…” A waiter of the inn wailed. He had obtained the full achievement in the Natural Realm. But with Dao Chong and his men striking nonstop, the waiter had been covered in wounds. As a sword pierced through his belly, he was instantly maimed and lost the strength to continue fighting.
The rest of Dao Zhen’s team were all severely injured and barely able to resist the enemies anymore.
Dao Chong burst into a fit of violent laughter. “Hahaha, today is the day I take the credit. Kill them! Spare none!”
The Taoist behind him, young or old, were all eager to scramble for the credit. Those who were around Dao Zhen were all thorns in the flesh to Head Dao Ling. Thus, getting any of their head chopped off would mean a great contribution. That was the last chance to take the reward.
However, just as the Taoists was ready to charge forward and wipe out Dao Zhen and his men at one fling, a stranger’s voice fluttered out from the inside of the inn—
“Hey, stop fighting, everyone… Let me reason this out for you.”
From the hall of the inn came a handsome young man with short hair and valiant bearing. He had thick brows and big eyes. At the moment, he was clapping his hands at the door, a.s.suming the posture of a peacemaking man.
“Who the h.e.l.l is he?”
That question immediately wedged its way into Dao Chong and his men’s mind.
And the second remark they thought of was “Just kill him regardless of who he is”.
But then, an inconceivable change occurred.
Although the short-haired, valiant-bearing juvenile seemed to be clapping his hands randomly, it seemed to carry a magical power. The clapping was perfectly ordinary, but when it came to their ears, it sounded like clear bell, giving them a strange sense of shock and bewilderment. They felt their hearts began to beat with the rhythm of the clapping, which was rather weird and uncomfortable. Also, their internal qi became slightly stagnant, no longer flowing smoothly down their veins.
Dao Chong and his men involuntarily came to a halt.
Pairs of curious eyes were set on the short-haired young man.
That juvenile was, of course, Li Mu.
“Haha, that’s right, here we are talking! Anyway, you can fight all you want, but can you please keep a low profile and pick a suitable place? There are still people dining in the inn eating. Don’t you worry you are disturbing…” Li Mu fired that nonsense off the top of his head.
“Who the h.e.l.l are you? Dare to b.u.t.t in the affairs of Taoists from Mount Qingcheng! You…” cursed a hideous, middle-aged Taoist next to Dao Chong. He was at the first stage of the Celestial Being Realm.
But before he finished his swear—
“Swoos.h.!.+”
A shot of broadsword light blasted past.
The head of ferocious Taoist at the first-stage Celestial Being Realm flew to the air.
Li Mu snapped, “I least thing I desire is that someone cut me off when I’m reasoning things out.”
Dao Chong and the others all gasped. In a round of terrified shrieks, they subconsciously took a few steps back as they felt a chill rising behind their necks.
It was incontrovertible that the jet of broadsword light was fired from the fingertip of that short-haired young man. It flashed into the air, like a gleam of light blooming at dawn. However, it vanished in just a second, leaving no trace behind. Even the energy fluctuations it issued were quite obscure. But just as that jet of light shot out, the head of that peerless master at the first stage of the Celestial Being Realm flew to the air.
That was a first-step Celestial Being! Not some n.o.body at all! He could not be killed that effortlessly. After all, Celestial Beings were one of the few standing at the top level of martial arts practice in that world.
But someone just killed him as easily as killing a pig.
“What kind of strength does that young man have?”
The atmosphere of the scene was altered all of a sudden.
“Who are you?” Dao Chong stared at Li Mu in a seemingly threatening manner.
Li Mu mused for a few moments and replied, “Merciful Buddha… Er, Boundless G.o.d, I am Zhang Sanfeng, from Wudang Temple on Mount Wudang.”
Dao Chong and the others were dazed.
“Judging by the young man’s wording, he seems to be a Taoist as well, doesn’t he?
But where is that Wudang Temple and Mount Wudang? Why haven’t I heard of those before?”
At his rear, Zhao Ji, Yuan Hou, and Qing Feng were also a little puzzled. They registered that Li Mu planned not to disclose his true ident.i.ty… That was understandable. If the t.i.tle Lord Taibai Li Mu came out, all of them would be dumbstruck, but that would also arouse much unnecessary attention and incur troubles. This time their mission was to rescue those on Mount Oxhead. Li Mu sure wanted to lay low, so it was quite normal for him to use a fake ident.i.ty.
Only the Huskie took on a disgusted look, tilted its head, and said, “How brazen you are!”
Because it knew well that Zhang Sanfeng was a renowned Taoist on Earth.
Dao Chong looked unconvinced. He unblinkingly stared at Li Mu, feeling that the juvenile was rather weird and unlikely to be a real Taoist. Despite that, he remarked, “Turns out that you are Taoist Zhang Sanfeng from Mount Wudang. Now that you are also a Taoist, I think you must have heard of us Mount Qingcheng. This Dao Zhen is a traitor of our faction. We are chasing after this traitor, but why did you intervene and kill our man?”
Li Mu blurted, “Oh Boundless G.o.d, he cut me off when I was about to tell you some reasons. So, I had to shut him up.”
Dao Chong went totally speechless at that.
That was an overbearing explanation!
Several other Taoists also looked irked.
“Zhang Sanfeng is more unscrupulous than us Mount Qingcheng! He just killed an expert in the Celestial Being Realm simply because he cut in on his speech… That’s too reckless!”
“Such being the case, we would like to apologize to you. Please pardon us.” Dao Chong bowed to Li Mu, and then suggested, “We will capture this traitor. Taoist Zhang, could you please stay out of this?”
He had really swallowed his pride by saying that.
For one thing, Dao Chong had been appalled by the strength Li Mu just demonstrated and knew he had dim odds against him. For another, his priority that day was to kill Dao Zhen and eradicate his followers. None of the other issues mattered. All he wanted to do was to sc.r.a.pe that credit and go back to pick up his reward.
Anyway, he had more than enough time to find out about the true ident.i.ty of that Zhang Sanfeng and deal with him after this was finished.
Mount Qingcheng had all the brilliant Taoists in the world. So, why should he worry about punis.h.i.+ng a young Taoist n.o.body knew?
Hearing Dao Chong’s words, Li Mu was quite upset.
“How come you are so spineless?
“I’ve finished off one of your Celestial Beings, but you simply took the fault like that?
“Nowadays, those bad guys no longer care about saving face or maintaining dignity?
“If bad guys like you always confess their sins and take the blame, then, how can a knight like me find an excuse to help the weak and extend justice by getting rid of them all?”
Li Mu refuted, “That’s not gonna work. If an apology is enough, why do we need police… er, punitive government organs?”
He was clearly picking a fight.
“You…” Dao Chong choked. He also realized that the juvenile was here to stir up trouble. His face immediately darkened. Then, he gritted his teeth and said, “Taoist Zhang, don’t push your luck. You are clearly protecting Dao Zhen! That’s a gesture against us Mount Qingcheng!”
Li Mu, however, roared with laughter.
When he got over the laughter, he put on a solemn face and admitted, “You got me. Right, I do want to protect this fool!”
With that, he pointed at the young innkeeper.
Dao Zhen, along with his wounded companions, had been gripped by despair. But to their great surprise, the event took such an abrupt turn. Li Mu’s strength had awed them. Given that Li Mu had just killed a Celestial Being in a trice, he could not be just a n.o.body. Seeing that Li Mu had stepped up for them, Dao Zhen was quite grateful. But as he heard Li Mu called him a fool, he took on a rather awkward expression and wondered for what reason Li Mu began to round on him.
Dao Chong ground his teeth in exasperation. Then, deciding to put his foot down, he started, “You are making an enemy out of we Mount Qingcheng. Zhang Sanfeng, do think this through. The power of the most renowned Taoism faction is not something anybody can fend off. Head Dao Ling has inconceivable powers. He is the new Taoism Master. I advise you not to court death.”
Li Mu snorted. “This time, I do want to weigh the so-called most renowned Taoism faction. Since Dao Chongyang died, Mount Qingcheng has fallen to a laughing stock, and Mount Xuankong has been occupied by a bunch of short-sighted idiots. Who does that Dao Ling think he is? He merely dares to bully his own men. How dare he declare him the new Taoism Master? That’s hilarious!”
“Kill him!” Dao Chong ordered as he drew his sword.
“Kill!”
Growling, the Taoists raced forward.
Li Mu remained still at the doorstep of the inn.
With a stir of his mind, wisps of intangible broadsword qi shot out, which looked like the silvery reflection of the sun in a rippling lake at fall. In the tracks of broadsword qi, the weapons the Taoists grasped snapped as if they were forged with paper. In the meantime, their bodies were cut into pieces as well…
Once coming into contact with that intangible broadsword qi, all those Masters, Great Masters, Natural Experts, and Celestial Beings noiselessly cracked in chunks like turnips diced by sharp knives. The cuts were perfectly smooth. A second later, as flames flashed, they were all burnt to ashes and dispersed in the wind. No the smell of blood came out. On the contrary, the slaughter seemed as flitting and elegant as the fireworks.
“He is that powerful?” Dao Chong felt his blood curdled.
Without another word, he turned tail to flee.
The strength Li Mu displayed was too potent, completely beyond his comprehension.
“You have no way to escape.”
Li Mu launched one more strike relentlessly.
A flash of broadsword light zoomed out. Although it was fired after Dao Chong broke into a run, it instantly reached the Taoist and penetrated his body. With the flames rising, Dao Chong sensed his vigor of life was flowing away beyond help. Then, his form began to evaporate bit by bit. No power could reverse the process. All he felt was the befalling of death.
“You… will… regret this.” Dao Chong uttered those words with the last bit of strength he could muster before turning into ashes.
Li Mu gave a cold laugh but made no reply. Then, he drove the intangible broadsword qi to the field. All the experts from Mount Qingcheng stationed around the inn were crushed into dust in no time. None of them survived Li Mu’s attack. As those Taoists were so cruel as to plan to ma.s.sacre all the people in the county, Li Mu decided not to be soft on that matter and started butchering in large numbers.
“Yuan Hou, go take out that army outside the county. Spare none of them!” Li Mu shouted.
Those military men of the Northern Song had colluded with the Taoists from Mount Qingcheng and planned to raid Green Hornet Gorge, rob the treasures, and a.s.sault the women there. They were even worse than the bandits. None of them were worth living in the world.
Yuan Hou nodded respectfully before turning into a jet of gold light to start the killing.
Dao Zhen and his men watched all that with widened eyes, forgetting the pain in their flesh.
“He is so powerful!
“Even a Sage could not top him!”
They just witnessed a young man burn Dao Chong and the other six Celestial Beings, a score of top-ranking Natural Experts, and more than 30 Natural Experts into ashes. They could not help wondering where the juvenile named Zhang Sanfeng was really from. Sure enough, an expert like him should not have remained unknown to the public.