Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 512 Tang Sect Storm, Rebirth Plan!
Tang Shiwu was fleeing in a sorry state.

Old Mrs. Tang is cunning, ruthless, and her schemes are intricately linked. She is most adept at kicking someone when they are down.

When Tang Shiwu set off, Old Madam Tang sent her trusted confidants to handle everything from start to finish. Old Madam Tang and Madam Jin had the same talent, and were outstanding in fertility.

The assassin responsible for taking advantage of the situation and silencing the witnesses was Old Madam Tang's nephew, and was the strongest assassin under Old Madam Tang's command, proficient in hundreds of killing techniques.

According to the ranking, they are:

What is the name of the Fourteenth Prince, Tang?
Tang Qigeng, also known as "Seventeenth Master";

Tang Tieshu, the "Eighteenth Master";

Tang De, the "Twenty-Fourth Master";
Tang Shi, also known as "Master Twenty-Five";
These people, due to their bloodline, firmly followed Old Lady Tang, specializing in poisons and hidden weapons. With a wave of their hands, they released hundreds of hidden weapons, and the poisonous mist covered half the sky.

If Tang Shiwu were in good health, he could kill them all in ten moves at most. Unfortunately, Tang Shiwu was seriously injured, his meridians were broken, and he didn't even have the strength to walk.

The wildly arrogant Tang Shiwu could only run away with Tang Bai's help, like a stray dog.

Tang Bai's martial arts skills were inferior to Tang Shiwu's, but far superior to the five assassins. Unfortunately, his opponents were too adept at large-scale group attacks, so he could only defend desperately.

If Tang Bai reveals even the slightest flaw or opening, the "beauty" he has just obtained will perish. Tang Bai gritted his teeth and thought to himself, "You better remember this, don't let me find an opportunity, or I will kill your whole family."

In fact, Tang Bai was hesitant to act rashly, and so were the five assassins. Even if Tang Bai revealed a weakness, they dared not kill Tang Shiwu, otherwise Tang Bai would go into a berserk state, and at least three of them would die.

Who will go to their death?

Who has such a spirit of sacrifice?

The assassin's tactics were very simple: use highly damaging but not lethal methods to attack Tang Shiwu continuously, diverting Tang Bai's attention and taking the opportunity to kill Tang Bai.

The Tang Clan is by no means a monolithic entity.

The same applies to Old Mrs. Tang's trusted followers, including her nephews, nieces, and sons.

Tang Fang is like a good bamboo shoot emerging from bad bamboo, or a green lotus root and white lotus flower growing from rotten mud. Which of these five assassins is not treacherous and scheming, waiting for an opportunity to seize the position of family head?

Furthermore, the main target of these people's schemes was not Tang Shiwu, but the delicate Tang Fang.

Grandma Tang doted on Tang Fang and taught him all the secret weapon techniques passed down from the Tang Clan, including her self-created freehand ink splashing, blank space poem, and landscape chaotic cloak.

If Tang Fang masters these extraordinary skills, he will surely become the head of the family when Old Madam Tang passes away.

No one can compete with Tang Fang.

These three techniques—powerful attack, surprise attack, domain coverage, hidden weapon concealment, and deflecting hidden weapons—are the essence of Tang Clan's hidden weapon techniques and the nemesis of all Tang Clan hidden weapon techniques. They represent the pinnacle of skill and are unparalleled throughout history.

Tang Shiwu is Tang Fang's substitute.

After all, Tang Shiwu was proficient in the Tang Clan's killing weapons, a unique skill that only the sect leader and his successor could practice. Once mastered, one's power could be increased several times over.

Therefore, the situation that one sees is quite different from the situation one is actually in.

Tang Bai gritted his teeth so hard they almost bled.

The poisonous mist of decaying bones spread along the ground like a tide, leaving nothing but withered vegetation in its wake. He had no choice but to carry Tang Shiwu in a princess carry and run away frantically.

Since his debut, Tang Bai has never been in such a sorry state.
All that could be heard was the shrill whistling of hidden weapons tearing through the air. Tang Tieshu's iron caltrops were cunning and unpredictable, bypassing Tang Bai's body and shooting towards Tang Shiwu's calf at an extremely insidious angle.

"Go away!"

Tang Bai let out a low growl, his left leg sweeping out like an iron whip. The "Extinction Leg" brought with it a fierce and powerful force, forcefully knocking away the iron caltrops and clearing a gap.

His right arm muscles bulged, his five fingers formed claws, carrying a chilling aura that seemed to tear the soul apart, as he swiftly grabbed at the silently approaching fine needle, flicking it back with a flick of his finger.

Tang Bai's main internal cultivation technique is called "Avici Path," which is an extremely fierce, malevolent, yin, and poisonous ultimate skill. Its offensive capabilities rank among the top five of the Tang Clan's many internal cultivation techniques, while its defensive capabilities rank among the worst. It can only continuously urge its true energy.

Holding Tang Shiwu in his left arm, he used the Annihilation Leg Technique to parry and strike, while his right hand unleashed four ultimate techniques—fist, palm, fingers, and claws—in an instant to block Tang Shiwu's poison needles.

At the critical moment of life and death, Tang Bai fully demonstrated the qualities of a top master. He used the Soul Separation Palm to deflect force with its gentleness, the Annihilation Leg to strike with its fierce power, the Asura Finger to precisely break through defenses, and the Nine Nether Claw to tear apart and block. He used these four ultimate techniques to their fullest extent in this small space, transforming them into an impenetrable defensive aura that tightly protected Tang Shiwu in front of him.

Each parry caused Tang Bai's blood to surge and his meridians to burn—the poisonous mist and torrent of hidden weapons unleashed by the five opponents together were not something one person could withstand.

In a one-on-one fight, Tang Bai would instantly kill Tang something.

With one against five, Tang has a 90% chance of winning.

However, in order to protect Tang Shiwu, Tang Bai exhausted too much of his true energy and was instead chased and beaten by the five people.

The greatest advantage of Tang Clan martial arts is its ability to attack multiple targets simultaneously.

Hidden weapons were like clouds, poisonous mist like rain, and mercury was poured onto the ground; they were everywhere and reached everywhere, and anyone who touched them would die.

The more a target needs protection, the easier it is for Tang Clan masters to scheme against them. Tang Clan disciples, especially the lineage of Old Madam Tang, despise direct confrontation the most.

They specialize in poisons and hidden weapons, and are skilled at killing silently. If their target is not Tang Shiwu, they will never show themselves and will only launch sneak attacks from the shadows.

"Hahaha! Tang Shiwu, die!"

Tang Qi raised his hand and shot out three more Heavenly Thunderbolts.

This is an extremely powerful hidden weapon created after the Tang Clan and the Thunderbolt Hall formed an alliance. It combines firearms and poison into one, and when released, it can cause three types of damage: fire explosion, poison attack, and flying needle piercing acupoints. The killing range is about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters).

The task Yu Luosha gave Li Shengnan was to investigate the cooperation between the Tang Clan and the Thunderbolt Hall, as well as Zhao Wuji's undercover mission within the Tang Clan, with the target being this kind of hidden weapon.

This item is indeed destined for Li Shengnan.

Qiao Beiming's lineage has an ancestral hidden weapon called the Poison Mist Golden Needle Flame Bullet, which is based on this principle.

However, the power of the Tang Clan's Heavenly Thunder Spear far surpasses that of the Poison Mist Golden Needle Flame Bullet. Even someone as strong as Tang Bai could only leap high to dodge the three Heavenly Thunder Spears, and dared not get any closer.

A murderous glint flashed in Tang Tieshu's eyes.

When facing a master of hidden weapons, one must maintain extremely high mobility. When one is in mid-air, with nowhere to take advantage, even the Wudang Ladder Cloud Leap will be severely restricted.

Tang Tieshu gave him a wink.

Tang De and Tang Shi attacked simultaneously, shooting out a handful of phosphorescent "Bone-Corroding Golden Sand," an upgraded version of Tang Clan's poisonous sand, one qian of poisonous sand worth a thousand taels of gold.

The gold in gold.

Even the three direct descendants of the Tang Clan, Tang Tianrong, Tang Tianyi, and Tang Tianzong, could only afford to use poisonous sand. Such a waste of gold sand makes them even more extravagant than Tang Shiwu.

Tang De and Tang Shi were not spendthrifts. They had heard that before Tang Shiwu's father passed away, he left Tang Shiwu a great treasure, which was entrusted to Tang Ru, the most greedy and profit-hungry member of the Tang Clan, to be kept in the care of. The treasure contained countless precious items.

If we can capture Tang Shiwu and force him to reveal the key and formula for entering the treasure, we can quickly earn back all the wealth we've accumulated over the years, even if it means spending it all.

The five of them made a "gentleman's pact".

Whoever contributes the most gets the biggest share.

It is impossible to divide equally.

Dividing the work equally will only lead to no one putting in any effort.

"laugh!"

Tang Tieshu shot out a scorpion-tail whip.

Tang Shenme and Tang Qi even fired darts and poison needles.

Tang Shiwu's face was ashen, and blood was trickling from the corner of his mouth. Tang Bai was not good at defense, and Tang Shiwu had inevitably been poisoned by the deadly poison during the battle, and his internal organs had been damaged.

Tang Bai, who was doing his best to protect Tang Shiwu, was like a tiger that had lost its sharp teeth. He had great martial arts skills but could only passively take a beating, which was more frustrating than a turtle hiding its head.

"Clap clap clap!"

Three grains of poisonous sand struck Tang Bai's back. The bone-corroding golden sand was intoxicating and easily broke through Tang Bai's robes, burning his skin and spreading the poison into his eight extraordinary meridians.

In an instant, Tang Bai's face turned bluish-black, he swayed and staggered. Tang Shiwu knew he was on the verge of death. If Tang Bai fell, he would surely die. He softly uttered a mantra.

Tang Clan's Deadly Weapon!
Transform the formless energy into a domineering and killing aura.

It can counter Tang Clan's unique skills to a certain extent, including Tang Clan's poisons, and can transform poisons into internal energy.

While dodging, Tang Bai comprehended the mental cultivation technique, blood-red demonic patterns condensed on his back, gradually refining the deadly poison. His eyes flashed with blood-red light, and his right hand resembled a demon king's claw.

"Hmph! The number one assassin of the Tang Clan, now all you can do is cower like a turtle? You're right about your name!"

Tang was defeated, a hundred battles lost, a homeless dog!

Since you're a dog, you'd better lie down obediently!

Never stand up again in this lifetime!

Tang let out a harsh laugh and threw out five bone-piercing nails coated with "numbing powder".

The five of them appeared to be ganging up on each other, and their cooperation seemed perfectly in sync, but in reality, they were exchanging glances.

They are waiting!
Tang Bai's internal energy stagnates, revealing a flaw;
Wait until your companion loses patience and makes the first move;
When Tang Shiwu was on the verge of death, he was defeated by a beast's desperate attack, a blow he could not withstand.

Tang Qigeng's figure moved like a ghost along the edge of the poisonous fog. Tang Shenme's fingertips always held three "throat-sealing thorns" that glowed with a ghostly blue light. Tang Tieshu's scorpion tail whip stabbed at Tang Bai, while Tang De and Tang Shi dodged and weaved.

Whoever loses their temper and kills Tang Shiwu will inevitably suffer a desperate attack from the completely berserk Tang Bai. Even if they don't die... their companions will send them on their way!

If there's one less person, there's one less share of the benefits.

The Asura Finger shattered a patch of poisonous sand in mid-air, and Tang Bai's protective aura sizzled as it was corroded. However, Tang Bai showed no fear; instead, he grew increasingly arrogant, his eyes radiating a palpable killing intent.

Tang Shenmei sensed Tang Bai's change and quickly called to his four companions, "Hurry and make your move! Tang Shiwu has passed on the Tang Clan's killing weapon to Tang Bai. Don't give him a chance!"

Upon hearing this, the four men joined forces to unleash a large cloud of poisonous fog.

A colorful poisonous fog enveloped Tang Bai, leaving the surrounding area barren and lifeless. Even Lan Fenghuang would feel terrified if she were here.

Suddenly!

Blood-red bat wings unfurled in the thick fog.

Tang Bai, his entire body shrouded in blood-red demonic patterns, burst forth from the poisonous fog. His entire body was corroded by the fog, and all his exposed skin was covered in wounds, dripping with blood. He looked only three-tenths human, a veritable bloodthirsty demon king.

"Pfft!"

The sharp claws pierced through Tang Shi's chest and abdomen, and the five fingers gripped Tang Shi's spine. Tang Bai grinned and pulled out Tang Shi's spine, shooting it out as a hidden weapon.

"You will all die! Die! Die!"

Tang Bai had completely fallen into madness, utterly insane, devoid of any reason, only arrogance and bloodlust remained.

Attacking without defending, trading lives for lives, this barren land, once devastated by poison, has been transformed into a living hell.

Tang Bai cultivated the "Avici Hell Path." At the critical moment of life and death, when he was being eroded by poison, he comprehended the Tang Clan's killing weapon. The poison entered his brain, causing him to go into a demonic state and his body to become demonized.

"Die! Die! Die! All of you, die!"

"I will not let you hurt Tang Shiwu!"

"Tang Shiwu is mine!"

"None of you are allowed to hurt him!"

"Die! Die, all of you!"

"Gaba!"

Tang Shenme's neck was snapped by Tang Bai. Tang Bai then swung Tang Shenme's corpse at Tang Qigeng, risking being attacked by the Scorpion Tail Whip, and countered with a Shura Finger.

Demons descend, poisons ravage the world, and bloodlust soars to the heavens.

The battle ended in a very short time.

It was faster than Tang Shiwu had imagined.

Tang Shenme, Tang Qigeng, Tang Tieshu, Tang De, and Tang Shi were all disemboweled by Tang Bai, their bodies left in pieces, as if they had been torn apart by wild beasts, with not a single piece of good flesh left.

Tang Bai's entire body was covered in green, blue, and purple poisonous mist, darts, flying needles, and bone-piercing nails. The scorpion tail whip pierced his left leg, the sun-piercing shuttle shot through his chest and abdomen, and the flying cloud silk followed his pulse point and pierced straight into his dantian.

Two drops of bloody tears flowed from his eyes.

In order to protect Tang Shiwu, Tang Bai was hit by poison sand by Tang Tieshu, his vision went dark, and his left cheek was corroded by the poison, revealing the white bone.

The Tang Clan's weapons are not omnipotent.

Tang Bai was poisoned by dozens of kinds of deadly poisons. Even if he were sent to the Wen family, there would be no way to cure him. Even if Ding Chunqiu were reborn, he could only shake his head at this.

Tang Bai struggled to crawl toward Tang Shiwu.

"I'm dying!"

"I can't hold it anymore!"

I know you hate me!

But you can never leave me!

Tang Bai seized Tang Shiwu's pulse point and poured all his power into him, channeling his true essence into Tang Shiwu. With a scream, the entire battlefield fell silent.

Only Tang Shiwu retained a faint breath.

In a normal duel between martial arts masters, the corpse might be devoured by wild beasts. But when Tang Clan masters fight to the death, the ground is full of deadly poison. What wild beast could possibly eat such a thing?
Half an hour later, Tang Shiwu woke up leisurely. Feeling the power within his body, Tang Shiwu struggled to stand up, staggered away, and sneaked into the woods ahead. He found a large tree branch, leaned on it, and struggled to run away.

There is a safe house nearby, built by Tang Shiwu's older sister, Tang Bingbing. It is very secluded and contains elixirs, fresh water, food, and sharp hidden weapons. The supplies are enough for Tang Shiwu to hide for three months.

Half a day later, Bai Yunfei and Lan Xiaodie, who were chasing Tang Clan disciples, arrived at the scene. Seeing the battlefield littered with corpses and colorful debris, the two dared not land and quickly went to the palace to find Lan Fenghuang, while also informing Li Zhaoting along the way.

The two were transported by white cranes, and their speed was extremely fast.

Not long after, Li Zhaoting arrived with his men.

Lan Fenghuang exclaimed, "As expected of the Tang Clan, their methods of using poison have truly broadened my horizons!"

Li Zhaoting said, "Phoenix, remove all the toxins here to prevent harm to the local people. Also, check the groundwater to prevent the toxins from seeping into the ground!"

Lan Fenghuang said with a bitter face, "The Golden Silkworm Gu is only the size of a finger. No matter how much it can eat, it can't consume so much poison. Li Lang, go and find He Yushou."

At the Miao Jiang Conference, He Yushou, with his pair of toad-shaped treasures, led the crowd and became the successor of the Five Poisons Sect.

The toad is the king of the five poisons. The Golden Toad and the Manggu Toad rank higher than the Golden Silkworm and the Ice Silkworm. When refined into poisonous Gu, it is the strongest "living Gu" in Miao territory.

He Yushou's pair of toad treasures were made from the Crimson-Eyed Ice Toad, which likes to devour poisonous substances. It is skilled at swallowing clouds and spitting out mist, devouring deadly poisons, and can drive poisonous mist with its roar.

He Yushou is even more adept at handling such situations.

Bai Yunfei rode a white crane to pick up the person and quickly brought He Yushou with him. Two toad treasures and a golden silkworm gu kept devouring the remaining toxins. After an hour, the old sect leader Lan arrived with his people and directly shoveled away the soil.

It took three or four hours of back-and-forth work to clean up the battlefield. Only then did everyone have time to examine the corpses. The battlefield was too bloody, and Li Zhaoting was worried that it would frighten Wang Yuyan, so he had to examine the corpses himself.

Fortunately, before his death, Liu Suifeng wrote down all the intelligence related to the Tang Clan that the Power Gang had investigated over the years, so matching them up wasn't too difficult.

Li Zhaoting gently patted his head: "Old Mrs. Tang is ruthless! No! No! No!"

Li Zhaoting said "no" three times in a row. Old Madam Tang must want to kick Tang Shiwu when he was down and take the opportunity to get rid of Tang Shiwu's lineage. However, if she was really in such a hurry, she would not have sent five assassins.

This is a seemingly unorthodox but actually very normal logic: if there were only Tang something, or only Tang Qigeng, Tang Shiwu would definitely die a gruesome death.

When five people act together, it may seem like a powerful alliance that multiplies their strength, but in reality, each has their own calculations, they drag each other down, and they go through the motions without putting in any real effort, making it easy for others to seize an opportunity.

Analyzing from this perspective...

Li Zhaoting thought of the intelligence Liu Suifeng had gathered.

Five direct disciples from the Tang Clan, the Thunderbolt Hall, and the long-established Wen Family secretly formed the "Five Flying Gold" group with the aim of joining forces to seize the position of family head.

The participants included Lei Yixun from the Lei family of the Thunderbolt Hall, Tang Tangzheng and Tang Naxi from the Tang Clan, and the remaining members have not yet been identified. Tang something, Tang Qigeng, Tang Tieshu and others appear to be enemies of Wu Feijin, but in reality they have dealings with each other and are plotting to scheme against Tang Fang to seize three hidden weapon techniques.

Liu Suifeng uncovered part of the plan and even sent an undercover agent to infiltrate Wu Feijin, hoping to reap the benefits.

Unexpectedly, before Liu Suifeng could make his move, the Tang Clan struck first, resulting in the downfall of the Power Gang, the death of Li Chenzhou, and the death of Liu Suifeng in battle, turning all the undercover agents into dead pieces.

This is still a scheme to kill someone with a borrowed knife.

It would be a good thing for Mrs. Tang no matter which one died. At Mrs. Tang's age, the only thing that really mattered was the chosen heir.

Everything else is acceptable to sacrifice.

The Tang Clan has too many branches.

It's like pruning flowers and grass; you need to remove some of it.

It wasn't that Old Mrs. Tang was ruthless, but rather that the family was too large and its finances were insufficient, with the younger generation constantly thinking about breaking out of Sichuan and becoming the overlord of the world.

The seemingly prosperous Tang Clan is actually a 500-pound fat man suffering from multiple diseases that are intertwined, making him appear healthy on the surface.

To cure the illness, one needs to scrape the bone to remove the poison.

Even if the direct line of the Tang Clan is destroyed, as long as a few branches are left, the Tang Clan can continue to exist.

At least, the Tang Clan has a safety net—Tang Fang!
Why train Tang Fang to be a female knight-errant?
The idea was to have her leave the Tang Clan and lead some of the new generation of the Tang Clan to create a new Tang Clan on the ruins of the collapsed Tang Clan. Tang Fang's personality and character would easily win the favor of Tang Songting and others, and would gain the support of the righteous path of the martial arts world. The Tang Clan would then be reborn.

First, we need to "prune" the Tang Clan.

If pruning doesn't work, cut off the branches.

If cutting off the branches doesn't work, dig up the roots.

Dig up the roots, let the trunk die along with all the wood-boring insects, let the lush branches and leaves be destroyed by fire, leaving only the ashes of the grass and wood, and let the spring mud nourish the single seedling.

No wonder it's a family that has been passed down for hundreds of years.

Such ability and spirit cannot be cultivated without a profound foundation. Compared with the Tang Clan, the Wanfu Wanshou Jin family appears far too immature.

Still not right!

Li Zhaoting thought of something.

A super troublemaker that shouldn't be ignored, but has been overlooked because it hasn't appeared for a long time.

Qinglonghui!
The Azure Dragon Society has made many arrangements in Dali.

The assassination of Li Xunhuan was just one part of the plan; the purpose was to divert attention, and whether it succeeded or not was not important.

(End of this chapter)