Starting from the imperial palace guards, his clones spread all over the world.

Chapter 498 I'll Avenge You (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

The poisonous miasma, like a thick fog, heavily enveloped everything.

Zhao Xiling paced back and forth listlessly, the withered branches and leaves under her feet making a soft crunching sound.

Beside her stood the female Xuanluan Guard, her posture upright, like a sturdy poplar tree; the bodyguard Ding Feng followed closely behind, his hands gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.

Canxin patrolled and defended the perimeter; Jiang Duanchao sat cross-legged in meditation; Gu Jinfu sat on a small stool with his eyes closed, seemingly dozing off.

suddenly!

Xuanluanwei, Canxin, Jiang Duanchao, and Gu Jinfu were all touched by an invisible hand at the same time, and their expressions changed simultaneously.

Their eyes instantly sharpened like eagles', as if they had sensed something extremely important and dangerous.

Canxin reacted quickly, immediately bending down and lying on the ground, pressing his ear close to the ground, listening intently with a serious and focused expression on his face.

Seeing this, the surrounding martial artists couldn't help but feel curious.

Their gazes all turned to Canxin, their eyes filled with doubt and speculation.

However, seeing Canxin's serious and earnest demeanor, everyone tacitly chose to remain silent, and no one dared to step forward to disturb him, for fear of breaking the strange and tense atmosphere.

A moment later, Canxin slowly stood up and reported to Zhao Xiling:

"Princess, there is a loud noise coming from underground in the distance."

"Judging from the rhythm and vibrations, it doesn't sound like natural sounds, but rather... two masters fighting underground!"

Looking across the entire martial arts world, only martial artists at the same third-rank level possess such strength, and only those who can be called masters by Canxin.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiling frowned slightly, a look of confusion on her face.

A loud noise from underground?

She strained her ears and tried to listen, but heard nothing but the sound of the wind and the rustling of leaves.

So she turned her gaze to the female Xuanluan Guard, her eyes questioning.

Xuanluanwei nodded slightly, her eyes firm, clearly her judgment aligned with Canxin's.

Such a sound originates underground and travels a long distance to reach here, becoming extremely faint, making it difficult for ordinary martial artists to detect.

Only a martial artist at the third rank with extraordinary senses could detect such a subtle movement immediately.

Then, Zhao Xiling quickly scanned the crowd with her eyes, her displeasure evident, and asked:
"Where has the Great Teacher gone? Why hasn't he returned yet?"

Now, the groups that went out to explore have all returned one after another, and the teams are bustling with people, but Liang Jin is nowhere to be seen.

Not only Liang Jin disappeared, but even Shen Cangming, known as the "Cangming Sword" and renowned in the martial arts world, vanished without a trace.

Shen Cangming and Liang Jin are both third-rank masters, so it's almost impossible to guess who was fighting underground just now.

This finally made Zhao Xiling realize that something was wrong. Her eyes first looked at Gu Jinfu, and then fixed on Jiang Duanchao, her tone carrying a hint of questioning:
"Could it be that you've harmed the Great Teacher of Virtue?"

"I have repeatedly instructed that no one is allowed to cause any trouble before things are resolved here!"

Gu Jinfu remained in a meditative posture with his eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to everything around him.

Now he pretended not to hear Zhao Xiling's words, pretending to be asleep without even lifting his eyelids, and did not respond at all.

Jiang Duanchao forced an unnatural smile onto his face, his eyes flickering uncertainly. He immediately tried to laugh it off.

But Zhao Xiling wasn't about to let him off so easily. She jumped straight in front of Jiang Duanchao, staring intently at him, and asked again:

"is that you?"

Seeing that he couldn't avoid it, Jiang Duanchao could only awkwardly chuckle twice and explain:
“Princess, although I have a personal grudge against the Great Teacher, we are now at a crucial moment to serve Your Highness.”

"I am a person who clearly distinguishes between public and private matters, so how could I abandon public duty for private reasons?"

Seeing this, Zhao Xiling turned her gaze, pointed at Ye Xianqing, and said loudly:
"That's you!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianqing almost choked on his own saliva, his face turning pale and then red.

He hurriedly stood up, bowed respectfully, and replied:

"Your Highness, even if I had the will, I would not have the ability."

"After all, the Great Master is highly skilled in martial arts, while I am of low skill."

"Furthermore, the sect leader and I have been here all along, as everyone has witnessed. How could we possibly plot against the Great Teacher of Virtue?"

As Ye Xianqing spoke, he and Jiang Duanchao exchanged a glance.

Of course, they had wanted to deal with Liang Jin for a long time.

In their eyes, Liang Jin was a thorn in their side, someone they couldn't bear to part with.

However, the two of them had also realized that Zhao Xiling did not want her top subordinates to fight amongst themselves.

Even back at Shenlu Peak, Zhao Xiling went so far as to suppress Jiang Duanchao's anger and prevent him from attacking Liang Jin.

Since open methods didn't work, the two naturally resorted to covert ones.

Their greatest advantage, the Purple Cloud Sword Sect, is that they have many friends in the martial arts world.

Asking a few friends to help out is naturally not a difficult task for them.

In particular, Shen Cangming, the "Cangming Sword," and Jiang Duanchao are both swordsmen and have a good personal relationship.

With a third-rank expert like Shen Cangming taking action, it would be best if Liang Jin could be killed directly.

Even if he couldn't kill Liang Jin, injuring him to test his true strength would be a favor Jiang Duanchao would do for him.

Now that a loud noise is coming from underground, it goes without saying that the two have started fighting.

This outcome was exactly what Jiang Duanchao had anticipated.

At this time.

Suddenly someone shouted excitedly:
"found it!"

"Your Highness, we have found the Abyss of Calamity!"

As the shouts rang out, a group of people slowly emerged from the poisonous miasma.

Clearly, they were the ones who brought this exciting good news.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiling's eyes lit up, and her attention was immediately drawn to it.

She ran quickly toward the group of people, eager to find out what was going on.

Clearly, although she cared about the Great Teacher, compared to what she was here to do, the Great Teacher was nothing.

Ye Xianqing couldn't help but turn her head to look in the direction Liang Jin had left. There, poisonous miasma filled the air, like a sea of ​​death, and nothing could be seen clearly.

Whether it's Liang Jin, Wen Hengrong's group, or Shen Cangming, they've all been gone for half a day, but so far there's been no movement.

This inevitably made Ye Xianqing feel somewhat heavy-hearted, and a trace of unease quietly crept into his heart.

soon.

After confirming that her men had not gone to the wrong place, Zhao Xiling decisively issued the order:

"Everyone, prepare to depart immediately!"

"You have half a quarter of an hour to pack up, then we'll head to the Abyss of Calamity!"

Her voice was clear and powerful, carrying an unquestionable authority.

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately sprang into action, packing their belongings and preparing to depart.

Clearly, Zhao Xiling couldn't care less about Liang Jin. In her heart, this mission was the most important thing, concerning her duty and future.

Just as everyone set off, a figure suddenly emerged from the thick, poisonous miasma.

The warriors reacted immediately, drawing their swords in preparation, the blades gleaming coldly in the dim light.

But what emerged from the poisonous miasma was a beautiful and alluring woman.

Her figure was graceful, like a flower swaying in the wind, and every gesture she made seemed to bewitch people.

This woman was none other than Wen Hengrong.

Seeing this, Ye Xianqing immediately addressed the crowd:
"It's one of our own!"

Upon hearing this, the wary warriors slowly sheathed their swords.

Wen Hengrong was covered in blood, which had dried and left dark red marks on her clothes.

Her beautiful face was filled with panic, and her eyes were filled with fear, as if she had just escaped from hell.

She ran to Ye Xianqing, panting heavily. She looked around, trembling all over, but didn't say a word, as if she had some concerns.

At this moment, Zhao Xiling, sitting in the sedan chair, looked over and questioned:

"What are you doing?"

Her voice was impatient; she was in a hurry to get to her destination and didn't want to be delayed by such a trivial matter.

Ye Xianqing hurriedly said to Zhao Xiling:
"Your Highness, there's a small matter here. I can stay and handle it."

His tone was respectful yet urgent, trying to reassure Zhao Xiling so she could leave.

Zhao Xiling waved her hand impatiently:

"Then hurry up and come over when you're done!"

"By the way, if the Great Teacher and the others come, bring them along too."

Having said that, she urged the sedan chair bearers to continue on their way.

Ye Xianqing immediately promised and guaranteed.

Zhao Xiling didn't delay. With a wave of her hand, she led everyone to continue their journey into the poisonous miasma.

Soon, the martial artists had all left.

Only Jiang Duanchao, Ye Xianqing, and Wen Hengrong remained on the spot.

"what happened?"

Ye Xianqing immediately asked Wen Hengrong, his eyes filled with curiosity and worry.

Wen Hengrong immediately replied:
"Elder Ye, something has happened."

"That great teacher is even more powerful than we expected."

“He was clearly poisoned by my Fragrant Bone Powder, but he was still incredibly powerful and killed everyone who came with me.” “If it weren’t for the sudden appearance of Shen Cangming, the ‘Cangming Sword,’ he would have killed me as well.”

"He fought fiercely with Shen Cangming, and in the end, both of them were severely injured and it is unlikely that they will be able to fight again for a while."

"Upon seeing this, I hurriedly ran back to report the situation to Elder Ye."

When Wen Hengrong said this, her face was full of fear, and her body was trembling incessantly, as if she had been terrified by the Great Teacher's terrifying combat power.

As she finished speaking, her tone softened, and then she looked at Ye Xianqing with hopeful eyes, as if she saw him as her lifeline, her eyes filled with pitiful vulnerability.

The beauty's longing eyes made Ye Xianqing's heart race.

Ye Xianqing has a penchant for women. A while ago on Shenlu Peak, he stopped his companion Han Lingxiao from killing Jiang Lengxue because he was attracted by Jiang Lengxue's beauty and wanted to take her into his bed.

His willingness to be Wen Hengrong's backer was simply because he wanted to taste Wen Hengrong, this juicy and delicious piece of meat.

"How badly is the great and virtuous teacher injured?"

Ye Xianqing pressed on, his eyes gleaming with greed.

He couldn't help but think about how to make good use of this situation and take down Wen Hengrong in one fell swoop.

Wen Hengrong nodded in reply:
"He was struck by three swords from Shen Cangming, one in the shoulder, one in the waist, and one in the abdomen. Now is the perfect opportunity to kill that Great Teacher of Virtue!"

aside.

Jiang Duanchao listened to Wen Hengrong's words and couldn't help but sneer inwardly:
"How could someone as ordinary as you poison the great teacher of virtue?"

"That good-for-nothing Shen Cangming can actually fight the Great Teacher of Virtue to a standstill?"

Jiang Duanchao's eyes revealed disdain; he knew Liang Jin all too well.

Those who can cultivate martial intent possess unwavering resolve and will not be easily swayed by beauty.

Liang Jin not only condensed martial intent but also reached the third rank, making him a formidable rival to Jiang Duanchao.

As for Shen Cangming, the "Cangming Sword," a second-rate swordsman who possessed a high level of skill but lacked actual strength, Jiang Duanchao never considered him to be comparable to Liang Jin.

Now Wen Hengrong says that Liang Jin has been poisoned again, and that he and Shen Cangming have both suffered heavy losses.

These words instantly aroused Jiang Duanchao's suspicion.

He turned his head slightly, only to see Ye Xianqing staring at Wen Hengrong's unsightly figure, which made the contempt in his eyes even stronger.

As the saying goes, a beautiful waist is a deadly weapon; the more beautiful a woman is, the more likely she is to bring trouble.

Especially for a woman like Wen Hengrong, who relies on a combination of seductive and poisonous techniques to harm people, it would be perfectly normal for her to lie.

Immediately, Jiang Duanchao said in a deep voice:
"Elder Ye, I'll leave this matter to you. I'll go and meet up with the princess first."

"Since the Great Teacher is at his last gasp, then this opportunity to make a contribution is entrusted to you."

With that, Jiang Duanchao prepared to leave.

He was now almost certain that something was wrong with the matter.

Jiang Duanchao had long disliked Ye Xianqing, and now that Ye Xianqing was foolishly trying to die, so be it.

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianqing was quite tempted.

If he were to actually manage to kill the Great Master of Virtue while he was at a disadvantage, his reputation and status in the martial arts world would undoubtedly reach a new level.

And it's also a perfect opportunity to win over the beauty Wen Hengrong, killing two birds with one stone!
Wen Hengrong, on the contrary, was startled.

Her main intention this time was to lure Jiang Duanchao, but she didn't expect that the old man was so cunning that he didn't fall for the trap.
The princess and her group have only just left. If Jiang Duanchao is not lured away, the great battle between Liang Jin and Jiang Duanchao will inevitably be interfered with by many experts.

If she goes back like this, she won't be able to explain it to Liang Jin.

Just as Wen Hengrong was getting anxious.

suddenly!

Then the poisonous miasma surged again.

Then, a figure staggered out of the poisonous miasma.

Everyone turned to look.

The person who came this time was actually Shen Cangming!

Shen Cangming's steps were unsteady, as if he might collapse at any moment.

He had barely reached the crowd when he collapsed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

His chest was deeply caved in, clearly indicating that he had suffered an extremely heavy blow.

His white beard was stained red with the blood he had vomited, and he looked like he was on the verge of death, clearly seriously injured!

Upon seeing Shen Cangming appear, Jiang Duanchao finally stopped in his tracks.

Jiang Duanchao was seen scrutinizing Shen Cangming, his eyes flickering as if he were pondering something.

Then, a look of panic crossed his face, and he hurriedly ran to Shen Cangming's side to help him up, asking with concern:

"Brother Shen, what's wrong with you?"

As Jiang Duanchao asked questions, he pressed on Shen Cangming's pulse to check his injuries.

Shen Cangming's face was ashen, and he said weakly:
"Sect Leader Jiang... that Great Teacher of Virtue... has actually condensed martial intent!"

"I miscalculated... I got punched by him... but he wasn't much better off..."

"I desperately stabbed him three times... My sword energy is raging inside him, he can only heal temporarily... That's how... I escaped..."

Shen Cangming's voice was weak and intermittent, each word seemingly uttered with all his strength.

As Jiang Duanchao listened, he had already ascertained the extent of Shen Cangming's injuries.

Shen Cangming was indeed seriously injured. Although his condition had temporarily stabilized, he had almost lost his fighting ability in a short period of time.

Jiang Duanchao pondered Shen Cangming's words, then narrowed his eyes slightly and asked:

"You mean, the Great Teacher of Virtue has already been wounded by you?"

"And the injuries are quite severe?"

His eyes revealed a hint of expectation and hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianqing became even more excited, as if he could see the dawn of success and fame.

Wen Hengrong and Shen Cangming both confirmed the situation; the Great Teacher was indeed seriously injured!

The opportunity to make a name for yourself is right in front of you!

Ye Xianqing immediately volunteered:
"Sect Leader, there's no time to lose! I'll go and finish off that Great Teacher of Virtue right now!"

As he spoke, Ye Xianqing was about to take action, his feet already eagerly moving forward.

Jiang Duanchao shouted angrily:
"Halt! Let Brother Shen finish speaking!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Xianqing stopped in his tracks, puzzled.

He was puzzled. Hadn't Jiang Duanchao given him the task of killing the Great Teacher of Virtue before? Why was he dragging his feet like this now?
Since Jiang Duanchao had spoken, Ye Xianqing could only listen patiently, though he felt anxious, as if a cat was scratching at his heart.

Shen Cangming spoke:
“That’s right… The Great Teacher is now too weak to fight… He won’t fully recover without resting for ten days to half a month.”

Jiang Duanchao fell silent for a moment upon hearing this.

Could it be... that the Great Teacher is really injured?

After all, Shen Cangming is different from Wen Hengrong.

Shen Cangming has been famous in the martial arts world for many years and has a great reputation in both the legitimate and illegitimate circles. In particular, he has a good personal relationship with Jiang Duanchao.

The "Cangming Sword" carries considerable weight in the martial arts world.

Most importantly, he had absolutely no reason to deceive Jiang Duanchao!
Deceiving Jiang Duanchao would do Shen Cangming no good whatsoever.

If Shen Cangming really dares to do that, then he will lose an extremely important connection, which would be a very serious loss!
Shen Cangming might even gain an enemy he can't afford to offend!

Shen Cangming showed no signs of being threatened.

Shen Cangming is currently by Jiang Duanchao's side, but the Great Teacher of Virtue is not here.

Jiang Duanchao pondered many things in a short period of time, but he could not figure out the reason why Shen Cangming would deceive him.

At this time.

Shen Cangming suddenly reached out his thin, bony hand and tightly grasped Jiang Duanchao's palm, his nails almost digging into Jiang Duanchao's skin:

"Sect Leader Jiang, please, you must avenge me!"

"That great teacher is so young... yet he possesses such extraordinary talent. If given time... he will surely become a great threat!"

"This child... must not be allowed to live!"

Shen Cangming's eyes were filled with hatred and despair, and he spoke with great solemnity and seriousness.

These words struck a chord with Jiang Duanchao.

Jiang Duanchao is not afraid of Liang Jin now.

However, he was afraid of Liang Jin in the future!

The terrifying talent Liang Jin displayed in martial arts made Jiang Duanchao restless and wished for Liang Jin's early death every day.

Now, if Liang Jin is really injured...

That's an opportunity!
A golden opportunity to strike while you're down!

At the same time, it is also a fleeting opportunity.

If Liang Jin was injured and worried that someone would take advantage of his vulnerability, he would choose to flee from Zanglong Ridge immediately.

If he were to find a place to hide away and cultivate for a few years before emerging from seclusion, with his monstrous talent, he would likely reach an astonishing and unattainable height in martial arts.

When Jiang Duanchao is old and frail, how will he be able to deal with Liang Jin's revenge?

If Liang Jin escapes today, he will live in worry and anxiety every day from now on.

Therefore, if Jiang Duanchao misses this opportunity, he will probably regret it for the rest of his life!
Finally, he made up his mind:

"Don't worry, Brother Shen!"

"You were hurt like this because you were trying to help me."

"I will personally avenge you!"
(End of this chapter)