Great Zhou Martial Immortal

Chapter 121 Chu Liuxiang and Su Rongrong

Before arriving at Hangu Pass, Lu Chenyuan and Li Lingyue had already investigated the surrounding martial arts forces.

The Xiaohan region is home to two famous factions, both of which are related to the Mujia Sect.

The Wood Armor Sect is renowned throughout the land for its skills in mechanisms, cultivation, and medicine making.

Its founder was a member of the Mohist school, and was a famous hero known as "Wood Spirit Lord" Hua Jianying. Sixty years ago, she came to Xiaoshan and discovered the secret realm "Hundred Flowers Valley". Based on this, she founded the Wood Armor Sect.

The sect adheres to the principle of "using spirit wood as the body and endowing plants with souls," and is skilled in creating mechanical beasts [Green Vine Tiger] and mechanical puppets [Flower Puppet].

These are the pieces that were chopped up on the ground...

"Those who can control the Green Vine Tiger and the Flower Puppet are all elites in the Wood Armor Sect."

Lu Chenyuan crouched down, his fingertips lightly touching the wound on the chest of a doll: "They all died here..."

The wound was long and sharp, clearly caused by a sword. Moreover, the meridians at the wound were completely shattered, and the flesh and bones were torn apart. It was obviously shattered by an extremely powerful sword aura, and even the spiritual wood meridians in the body were broken inch by inch.

"It seems the fighting here is escalating," he said in a low voice. "They may have discovered something hidden inside Hangu Pass..."

After Li Lingyue became alert, Jin Ni waited in the car while she walked over to Lu Chenyuan and glanced at the corpses around them: "You mean, it was Xuanbing Valley that did it?"

Xuanbing Valley is the other of the two factions.

The Xiaohan region is divided into "one family and two factions," both originating from the original Mujia Sect.

The Mujia Sect was once extremely prosperous, but unfortunately, its good fortune did not last long.

Thirty years after the sect's founding, Hua Jianying passed away, and her three disciples went their separate ways.

The eldest disciple, Chu Jingtao, was dissatisfied with the Wood Armor Sect for using flowers and wood instead of refined gold and meteorite iron. The mechanisms they created were vulnerable to both swords and fire, lacking power and proving ineffective in both offense and defense. So, he decided to establish his own sect, leading one-third of his disciples to found the Mysterious Weapon Valley. He embarked on the path of integrating mechanisms into the human body to create "human puppets," forging human armor that was fierce and domineering!

The second disciple, Pei Lingsu, led one-third of the disciples back to the Hedong Pei Clan branch—now the Xiaoshan Pei Clan—becoming the head of the family. Relying on the family's resources, they dominated most of the Hundred Flowers Valley secret realm, becoming the strongest of the two factions within the family.

The third disciple, Su Quan, was the one who ultimately inherited the mantle of the Wood Armor Sect. He was the youngest, but he was highly perceptive. Even though his eldest brother and second sister left, taking two-thirds of the disciples with them, he still managed to protect the last piece of the legacy by relying on the mechanical array left by his master, and has survived until now.

but.

They're almost at their breaking point.

According to the latest intelligence sent back by the Kite Guards, Xuanbing Valley and the Pei family of Xiaoshan are showing signs of forming an alliance—the eldest brother and second sister are sharpening their knives, eyeing the last third of the Hundred Flowers Valley secret realm in the hands of their junior brother.

Hundred Flowers Valley is rich in vital energy and can gather wind and water, allowing spiritual herbs to grow quickly. For this sect's property, the two factions have been fighting openly and secretly for many years, with Xuanbing Valley and Mujia Sect fighting the fiercest!
It's not just about interests, but also about principles.

Chu Jingtao wanted to prove that the path he had taken was correct, so he relentlessly suppressed the orthodox Mujia Sect to show the world that he was not betraying his master and ancestors, but rather forging a new path and surpassing his predecessors.

"It doesn't seem like Xuanbing Valley. It's more like the Pei family's 'Dragon Gate Sword Style'..."

Lu Chenyuan carefully examined the wounds: "Xuanbing Valley integrates mechanisms into the human body, creating puppets. In pursuit of power, they usually attach large and heavy mechanical axes to the body, resulting in wounds from blunt or heavy weapons... Although some have swords attached, the sword wounds on these corpses are thinner and longer, still leaning towards human wielding..."

Li Lingyue nodded: "That's true. The weapon is powerful enough, but the moves are inevitably clumsy. These wounds are from an unusual angle, which does seem more like the work of the Pei family..."

"who!"

Suddenly, a sharp shout came from the woods.

Before Lu Chenyuan could turn around, he felt the soil beneath his feet churn, and several thorny vines burst forth from the ground, coiling around his legs like venomous snakes.

He didn't even bother to lift his eyelids, simply forming a hand seal with one hand, and a flash of golden light appeared at his fingertips—

Qi Refining a Thousand Edges!
Dozens of golden energy blades suddenly materialized from his fingertips. Amidst the crisscrossing cold light, the vines were shredded to pieces before they even got close, and wood chips flew like rain.

"Wow--"

Li Lingyue fawned over him, her eyes gleaming with a sly smile: "Brother Chu is so amazing!" She pretended to hide behind him, then said in a high-pitched voice, "I'm so scared, you have to protect me~"

"..."

Lu Chenyuan sighed inwardly—this dramatic little vixen!

However, since she was putting on such an enthusiastic performance, he didn't mind playing along. With his pockmarked face, he stroked his non-existent beard with feigned seriousness and said leisurely, "Rongrong, don't be afraid. With your uncle here, I'll make sure these scoundrels can't hurt you in the slightest!"

"..."

Li Lingyue's smile froze, she gritted her teeth and punched him lightly, whispering, "What uncle! Didn't you say you're called Chu Liuxiang now? And you told me to call you Brother Chu!"

Lu Chenyuan looked completely innocent: "I've traveled the martial world under countless aliases; Chu Liuxiang is just one of them..."

"Bad thing!"

Li Lingyue was so angry she gritted her teeth: "You're rewriting the storybook and trying to take advantage of everyone!"

As the two were arguing, the killing intent in the forest intensified: "You dare to be so arrogant after killing my disciples! Today I will take your life!" A figure rushed out, and the Xuanmu sword in his hand suddenly shone with a blue light. With a flick of the blade, dozens of sword energies surged forth like raging pythons, the sword's momentum fierce, with the faint sound of wind and thunder!
Lu Chenyuan smiled slightly, and instead of retreating, he advanced, his body suddenly radiating a layer of golden Buddhist light.

The Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill!
The wooden sword struck his arm, producing a sound like metal clashing!

Sword energy burst forth, sparks flew, yet it couldn't even tear his sleeve!

The person who came from the shadows narrowed their eyes. Before they could react, Lu Chenyuan had already struck out with a backhand palm.

"The Great Merciful Hand"!
"Crack!"

The Xuanmu sword snapped in two!

The powerful palm strike continued unabated, slamming heavily into the man's chest and sending him flying backward, crashing through three ancient pine trees before finally coming to a stop.

"puff--"

The man spat out a mouthful of blood, his face filled with horror.

Lu Chenyuan withdrew his palm and stood up, the Buddhist light gradually fading. He smiled and said, "Young brother, don't get so angry, it's easy to hurt yourself... Open your dog eyes and take a good look! Did we kill them?!"

Li Lingyue: "..."

"Second Brother, stop!"

A woman in a green robe emerged from the forest and stood between the two. She was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a beautiful face. A token of the Wood Armor Sect disciple hung at her waist. She first looked around and saw the corpses and broken armor scattered on the ground. Her fingertips trembled slightly, but she quickly calmed herself down. However, the fists clenched tightly in her sleeves betrayed her inner emotions.

"Sister!"

The second junior brother struggled to his feet: "They..."

"Shut up!"

The woman interrupted sharply, then bowed to Lu Chenyuan and the other man, saying, "I am Qin Wuyue, the eldest disciple of the Wood Armor Sect. My junior brother was rash and offended you both."

Lu Chenyuan used superior Shaolin martial arts, and the fact that he could have killed but didn't is enough to show that he was not part of the villains.

Lu Chenyuan brushed the sawdust off his sleeves and said with a half-smile, "Miss Qin is quite sensible, but..." He pointed to the corpses scattered on the ground, "What trouble has your sect gotten into?"

Qin Wuyue took a deep breath, her gaze lingering on the corpses of her fellow disciples scattered on the ground for a moment, her voice slightly hoarse: "Please excuse my poor appearance, there has been some... friction between our sect and the Pei family of Xiaoshan recently."

She deliberately avoided the gruesome corpses, and when she turned to Lu Chenyuan, she had regained her composure: "May I ask how you two are addressed? And why are you here?"

Li Lingyue hid behind Lu Chenyuan and said in a soft voice, "My surname is Su and my given name is Rongrong. This is my... my uncle." She secretly pinched Lu Chenyuan, "We are going to Hongzhou to visit relatives."

"uncle?"

Qin Wuyue's gaze shifted between the two, clearly not believing their explanation—it was one thing for uncle and niece to have different surnames, but the niece was beautiful and the uncle was extremely ugly; besides, how could an uncle and niece be so intimate?

Lu Chenyuan chuckled, his face covered in pockmarks. "My surname is Chu. This girl insisted on coming along to broaden her horizons. I'm sorry to have made Miss Qin laugh." As he spoke, he deliberately adopted the demeanor of an elder and ruffled Li Lingyue's hair.

"..."

Li Lingyue gritted her teeth inwardly, but on the surface she still had to pretend to be obedient.

Qin Wuyue was skeptical. After a moment's hesitation, she suddenly bowed respectfully and said, "Mr. Chu's skill just now must be that of a master of the martial arts world. Now that my Mujia Sect is in such a predicament, would you please come to the sect for a chat?"

Lu Chenyuan raised an eyebrow: "Oh? We're complete strangers, yet Miss Qin dares to invite us to join your sect?"

"To be honest..."

Qin Wuyue gave a wry smile and took out a shattered token from her bosom. "The Pei family has come with great force this time, gathering many capable and extraordinary individuals. Since you were able to easily neutralize my junior brother's 'Azure Wood Sword Technique,' perhaps..."

"Miss Qin thinks too highly of me."

Lu Chenyuan waved his hand: "We're just passing through, we need to hurry on our way to Hongzhou."

Qin Wuyue hurriedly said, "This road is not safe, sir..."

"Senior sister!"

The second junior brother suddenly interjected, "Their origins are unknown, why bother..."

"shut up!"

Qin Wuyue sternly stopped them, then earnestly said to Lu Chenyuan, "Mr. Chu, at least allow us to host a banquet to apologize!"

Lu Chenyuan pretended to ponder, but secretly squeezed Li Lingyue's palm.

Something's off about these people!

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and this is not the right approach.

"Thank you for your kindness, Miss Qin." Li Lingyue suddenly spoke, then said timidly, "However, my uncle's old illness has flared up, and he needs to go to the city for medical treatment as soon as possible..."

Seeing that she couldn't keep them, Qin Wuyue could only sigh, "Since that's the case..." She took out a green wood talisman from her sleeve, "Tingyuxuan in Taolin County is a property of my clan. You two can use this talisman to stay, which can be considered as a small token of our apology."

This time, Lu Chenyuan did not refuse and accepted it directly: "Thank you."

After the members of the Wooden Armor Sect left with the corpses and broken armor,

Li Lingyue's expression immediately changed, and she reached for Lu Chenyuan's waist: "Uncle? Huh?!"

Lu Chenyuan quickly dodged, his face serious, and said, "These people are suspicious!"

Li Lingyue knew he was deliberately changing the subject, so she snorted and decided not to argue with him: "What question?"

Lu Chenyuan frowned as he watched their departing figures: "Don't you find it strange?"

"What's so strange?"

Li Lingyue didn't take it seriously: "Internal strife among martial arts sects is nothing more than a matter of interests, inheritance, or personal grudges." She spoke casually, as if discussing the weather today.

—She really doesn't care.

As Princess Taiping, a peak expert of the fifth realm, she stood too high and saw too far. Whether it was the Mujia Sect or the Pei family of Xiaoshan, in her eyes they were nothing more than the squabbles of the Jianghu. Just as a Kunpeng would not care about the chirping of sparrows, she was too lazy to pay attention to the petty schemes of these people. Rather than pursuing their messy affairs, it was more interesting to act with Lu Chenyuan.

But Lu Chenyuan was different.

In the capital city, where masters abound, he had already developed a cautious nature—he didn't want to experience the loss of the Queen of Gods right under his nose again.

To prevent problems before they occur, we must pay close attention to every little detail.

"That second junior brother is ruthless; every move is deadly."

Lu Chenyuan said slowly, "We were standing next to the corpse, with a carriage behind us. It was clear that we were more like travelers than perpetrators. He didn't even ask any questions and just wanted to kill us to silence us."

Li Lingyue raised an eyebrow: "So?"

"And that 'gentle and quiet' senior sister Qin Wuyue is even stranger."

Lu Chenyuan narrowed his eyes: "When she saw the corpses of her fellow disciples scattered on the ground, her first reaction wasn't grief or anger, but rather to try and win us over. She even knew our identities were questionable, yet she didn't let us go, as if she were desperately grasping at a straw. Isn't that contradictory? Same sect, same situation, one recklessly killing, the other recklessly trying to recruit people..."

Li Lingyue's expression changed slightly, and she finally became serious: "You mean..."

Lu Chenyuan sneered, "One of these two is definitely putting on an act!"

"Could it be... that they failed to kill him, so they resorted to winning him over instead?"

A sudden thought flashed through Li Lingyue's mind: "So, the murderer didn't need to act; Qin Wuyue was just spouting nonsense! She intentionally lured us in... She acted quite well; even I didn't notice anything amiss..."

Lu Chenyuan nodded: "That's true, better than you..."

Li Lingyue turned to look at him.

"Better than me."

Lu Chenyuan decisively changed the subject: "Let's go, let's go see Tingyuxuan that she mentioned."

Lu Chenyuan took out the green wood talisman and laughed, "I estimate they'll take action tonight. Let's see what tricks they're up to first, then sneak into 'Hundred Flowers Valley'... This secret realm that suddenly appeared sixty years ago is probably related to the place where the Divine Talisman Scroll is hidden... The mechanical puppets that Celine saw killing people were also near the Three Sects, so I'm afraid it's not a coincidence."

"Humph."

Li Lingyue was pleased with his understanding and naturally had no objections. She grabbed Lu Chenyuan's arm and whispered in his ear, "'Uncle' has a chronic illness; let's go to the city for treatment."

"..."

Lu Chenyuan's lips twitched, and he turned to look at her: "...Rongrong, have you ever heard of a word?"

"What word?"

"People are addicted to food."

"..."

These four words weren't hard to understand. Li Lingyue blushed, narrowed her eyes, and her fingertips quietly climbed up to the soft flesh of Lu Chenyuan's waist, giving it a gentle twist—

"hiss--"

Lu Chenyuan gasped, but still forced a smile and said, "Rongrong, are you trying to murder your uncle?"

"Ah."

Li Lingyue let go of his hand, then grabbed his collar and pulled him close, whispering in his ear, "Tonight I'll show you who's really 'the one's got the taste'."

A warm breath brushed past his ear, and Lu Chenyuan's Adam's apple bobbed slightly. He thought to himself, "You're only tough at times like this. Once you get serious, you turn into a little coward." Just as he was about to respond, he heard a "thump" from inside the carriage.

The shrunken golden lion was slapping the cold jade carriage wall with its claws, its eyes full of disdain, as if to say: Can't you two do something useful?

"Let's go."

Lu Chenyuan coughed lightly and spurred his horse.

The horse-drawn carriage rumbled along, heading towards Taolin County.

……

Meanwhile, deep in the Xiaoshan Mountains.

Qin Wuyue and her group carried the corpses of their fellow disciples through the dark, dense forest.

Ancient trees reach for the sky, vines hang down, seemingly chaotic, but actually concealing a hidden mystery—

"Three on the left, seven on the right, step on the Gen position."

Following Qin Wuyue's instructions, the group moved erratically, sometimes circling around the trees, sometimes walking on leaves.

If an outsider accidentally enters, they will either trigger the ambush of "Green Vine Tiger" or fall into the illusionary array of "Flower Puppet".

The second junior brother, Xu Qian, was pale-faced, clutching his chest, and followed behind Qin Wuyue, whispering, "Senior Sister..."

Qin Wuyue shook her head slightly without turning her head.

Xu Qian frowned, a hint of impatience flashing in his eyes—he had long been fed up with these pretentious tricks.

After passing through the last maze, the view suddenly opened up before me—

Valley of Flowers!
The valley was filled with exotic flowers and rare herbs, and its springs flowed gently. It should have been a paradise on earth, but at this moment it was shrouded in a chilling atmosphere.

Hundreds of disciples of the Wood Armor Sect stood ready, their faces filled with grief and indignation upon seeing the shattered armor of the corpses.

Qin Wuyue ordered the corpse to be placed on the jade platform, and then quickly walked towards the wooden house in the center of the valley—the place where the sect leader Su Quan was in seclusion.

"Master!"

She pushed open the door and knelt down with a thud, her voice choked with sobs, "The Pei family has gone too far! Today, Junior Brother Geng was murdered while out shopping, and all twelve traps were destroyed!"

Inside the wooden house, a gray-haired man slowly turned around.

His face was thin and frail, but his eyes were bright and piercing, as if they could see right through people's hearts.

—Su Quan, the leader of the Wood Armor Sect.

He glanced at the corpses on the ground, his gaze lingering on the sword wounds for a moment, then said with a look of pity, "Wuyue, give your junior brothers a proper burial."

Qin Wuyue was stunned: "Master! Are we just going to let it go like this? The Pei family..."

Su Quan raised his hand to interrupt: "Pass on my order, seal off the Hundred Flowers Valley formation immediately, and no disciple is allowed to leave."

"what?!"

Xu Qian couldn't help but step forward: "Master! Our fellow disciples have died tragically, how can we..."

"Go back."

Su Quan's voice wasn't loud, but it made Xu Qian freeze.

Qin Wuyue gritted her teeth inwardly—so many people had died and so much armor had been destroyed, yet this old bastard still chose to cower and not come out!

"Disciple... obeys."

She bowed her head in greeting, but her fingers quietly curled up inside her sleeve.

After leaving the cabin, Xu Qian grabbed Qin Wuyue and said anxiously, "Senior Sister, what do we do now? The poison in our bodies is about to take effect!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Qin Wuyue's eyes: "Send those two out first! A stunning beauty and a body-refining expert, just what he wants. Let's buy some time, then we'll try again..."

Xu Qian said urgently, "He's a coward! I don't think he'll come out no matter how many people die!"

"It really doesn't work..."

Qin Wuyue took out a jade bottle from her bosom. The liquid inside was a ghostly green color and shimmered with an eerie light. "Then we have no choice but to take the risk and let Master... stay in the formation forever."

(End of this chapter)