Tianlong: Starting with Mantuo Manor as fertilizer

Chapter 65 Dali

Xu Zhu?

Isn't this kid at Shaolin Temple?

Xie Bu Ruo left Shaolin earlier and was unaware that Xu Zhu had followed Xuan Bei to Dali.

Worried about the condition of the medicinal herbs and wanting to see the IOU, he went to the Shennong Gang's headquarters.

Several corpses lay in the courtyard, and the storeroom was in complete disarray, with medicine shelves overturned and various herbs scattered all over the floor.

When Sikong Xuan and Xie Buruo saw this, their eyes widened in shock. They rushed forward, picked up the herbs from the ground, and held them in their hands.

"My medicine! My medicine!"

The medicinal herbs they purchased were quite expensive.

Sikong Xuan spent a fortune.

His heartache was understandable, but he didn't expect Xie Buruo next to him to be even more heartbroken than him.

Sikong Xuan felt a warmth in his heart: "Young Master Xie is a good person, always quick to help those in need!"

Little did they know that Xie Ruo was a loser if he didn't gain any advantage.

At this point, he had long regarded the Shennong Gang as his private property.

Seeing the precious medicines scattered everywhere, severely damaged, he was naturally heartbroken.

After grieving over the medicinal herbs, the two went to check on the body of Protector Liu in the house.

His eyes were wide open, and he died with his eyes still open.

Sikong Xuan wiped his face for a long time, but couldn't get him to close his eyes.

After a period of questioning.

The herbs were damaged, but the money was not lost at all.

The only thing that was lost was an IOU.

Sikong Xuan frowned.

"Killed someone just to get that IOU? Was it the monk who stole the medicine who did it?"

As soon as the words left my mouth, I realized they were wrong.

After all, no matter how you look at it, Protector Liu died from poisoning, and the one who did it was a master of poison.

Although he is not as good as himself, he is far superior to the other members of the Shennong Gang.

Xie Buruo looked around the scene and asked Sikong Xuan if there were any other clues.

Sikong Xuan pointed to the remaining poison powder on the ground.

"Protector Liu is skilled in using poisons, which is why I left him to guard the area. In the Dali region, there are only a handful of people whose poison skills surpass his."

Xie Bu Ruo asked, "Who are they?"

Sikong Xuan listed them off as if they were his own treasures: "Gan Baobao the Pretty Night Demon, Qin Hongmian the Asura Blade, and Zhong Wanchou the Horse King."

"But it was definitely not these three who did it. Pretty Yaksha and Shura Blade are from the same school and are skilled in throwing knives and poisoned arrows."

Xie Bu Ruo asked, "What about Zhong Wan Chou?"

Sikong Xuan said, "If Zhong Wanchou makes a move, Protector Liu will have no chance to fight back."

Xie should think about it for a while; he already has a guess.

The medicinal herbs that Xu Zhu took could be bought at a pharmacy; there was absolutely no need for him to come to the Shennong Gang to steal them.

Those medicinal herbs were used to treat internal injuries.

It is clear that someone in Xu Zhu's group has suffered internal injuries, and they are probably quite serious.

They dare not go to the pharmacy to buy medicine because they are afraid that their whereabouts will be tracked.

Xu Zhu then infiltrated the Shennong Gang, stole a few medicinal herbs, and, feeling guilty, left behind an IOU.

It's unclear whether the person tracking him guessed his thoughts.

It was only after Xu Zhu left behind an IOU that it was passed on by the disciples of the Shennong Gang that the enemy came knocking on their door.

Xie Buruo was the first to suspect that the injured person was Xuanbei.

After all, in the original story, Murong Bo kept a close eye on Xuan Bei, waiting for an opportunity to harm him.

But upon further reflection, I rejected this idea.

If Murong Bo were to injure Xuan Bei, who would be able to save him from his clutches?

It's usually the bystanders who get hurt.

I would rather receive the kindness of being taught the arts by Xuancheng.

Xuanbei could be considered half of his senior uncle.

While at Shaolin, Xie Buruo had considered whether he should inform Xuanbei to be more cautious.

But it's just a thought.

Murong Bo was always elusive, and no one knew when he had been spying on them.

If he were to go and tip him off, and the man saw it, it would be like lighting a lantern in a latrine – a death wish.

Although I didn't have the chance back then, I do now.

Xie Bu Ru had a sudden thought and instructed Si Kong Xuan.

"Take Liu Hufa's body and invite some martial arts practitioners from Dali to go to Shenjie Temple in Luliang Prefecture and cause a ruckus."

They claim that a Shaolin disciple stole medicine and committed murder, and they demand justice.

Shenjie Temple is a branch temple of Shaolin.

As expected, Xuanbei should be arriving at Shenjie Temple soon.

Although Sikong Xuan did not understand his meaning, he did not ask any further questions.

Xie Buruo was his savior and also possessed the antidote to the Life-and-Death Talisman.

If he wanted to live a peaceful life from now on, he would have to rely on the other party, so he immediately accepted the order and did as instructed.

He ordered people to prepare a coffin and lime, and to place the body inside.

As for fellow martial arts practitioners, they are not hard to find.

Ma Wude, Master Jiaye, the head of the Ailao Mountain sect, and others are still lingering nearby.

The Shennong Gang controlled most of the medicinal herb business in southern China.

Whether seeking medicine to heal injuries or wishing to prolong life, martial artists in Dali inevitably have to deal with them.

Therefore, Sikong Xuan had a large local influence, and he managed to gather everyone together in less than half a day.

Ma Wude and his group were always busybodies.

All expenses along the way would be covered by Chief Sikong, and everyone readily agreed, with some even wanting to bring their families along.

"The Shaolin monks are absolutely outrageous!"

"Don't worry, Chief Sikong, we'll be absolutely fair and efficient!"

Xie Buruo never showed up; everything was handled by Sikong Xuan.

Just before his departure, he came to the coffin of Protector Liu, opened the coffin lid, and placed three medicinal herbs: Poria cocos, Angelica sinensis, and Angelica pubescens.

He had done everything he could for his senior apprentice.

Whether Xuanbei can understand the warning and escape this calamity depends on his own fate.

Before Sikong Xuan set off for Shenjie Temple, Xie Bu Ruo had already gone ahead and headed towards Dali.

The city of Dali is densely populated, with bluestone paving the main streets and bustling markets.

After entering the city, Xie Buruo asked for directions.

After walking about two miles, they arrived at a large mansion.

Two large flags stood in front of the mansion gate, each embroidered with the words "Zhennan" and "Baoguo".

The four golden characters on the plaque above the mansion read "Zhennan Prince's Mansion".

He didn't see the grand welcome Zhu Danchen had mentioned, but instead encountered two acquaintances at the gate of the mansion.

It was Wang Yuyan and Mu Wanqing who had traveled a thousand miles to find their relatives.

The two were stopped at the gate by the gatekeeper.

"Is the Prince of Zhennan someone you can see whenever you want?"

"I still want to see His Majesty."

"Don't think that just because you're pretty you can do whatever you want."

"Please leave!"

As he spoke, the gatekeeper was about to close the gate.

Mu Wanqing, with her fiery temper, couldn't tolerate it and raised her hand to shoot the other person into a sieve.

Fortunately, Wang Yuyan intervened and prevented a tragedy.

Xie Ruo smiled slightly upon seeing this scene.

These two people.

One was a country girl who didn't even know who the Emperor of Dali was.

Another young lady who never leaves the house and knows nothing of the world.

You're still too young!

Xie stepped forward and stopped the two who were surprised by their sudden encounter.

"Get out of the way, let me handle this!"

He knew very well that the mansion was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers at this moment, welcoming his elder brother, the heir apparent.

The gatekeeper, intimidated by Xie Buruo's appearance and imposing manner, swallowed hard.

"And who is this young master?"

Xie introduced himself, saying, "I am a close friend of Young Master Duan!"

The gatekeeper paused, nodded, looked at the three people outside the gate with sympathy, took out a few copper coins from his pocket, and stuffed them into Xie Buruo's hand.

"You three should split it up. The Crossing-the-Bridge Rice Noodles in Dongfang are pretty good, go try them."

Then, with a bang, the door was slammed shut.

Seize, seize, seize.

After a moment of stunned silence, Xie Buruo, who hadn't used hidden weapons in a long time, unleashed a barrage of fire at the gate of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion.

Wang Yuyan tried to dissuade him, but to no avail.

Mu Wanqing pointed at Xie Buruo and burst into laughter.

earlier.

Duan Yu and his companions had just descended the mountain.

Then he saw a young monk carrying someone on his back rushing toward him from a distance.

Several men in yellow shirts, carrying steel knives, were hot on their heels.

The two monks were Xuzhu and Huizhen.

They originally traveled with Xuanbei all the way to Dali.

Upon arriving in Dali, I heard about the many evil deeds of the Four Evils.

As they were passing through a village, a woman was abducted by Yun Zhonghe.

Xuanbei is a Buddhist disciple. Now that he knows about this matter, how can he stand idly by?

He immediately led his best men to pursue and intercept them.

Worried about delaying the journey and causing unforeseen circumstances, he ordered Huizhen and Xuzhu to go to Dali first to inform the four villains of the Duan family of their revenge.

The two of them were truly unlucky; they had just received their orders to head south when they stumbled upon Ye Erniang abducting children.

Huizhen has a strong personality and is Xuanbei's personal disciple, so her martial arts skills are not weak.

Despite having long heard of Ye Erniang's infamous reputation, they were not afraid at all.

He grabbed a hand shovel upside down, shook off Xu Zhu, and gave chase.

However, the difference in martial arts skills between the two sides was too great. After a short while, he was injured by a single palm strike and could only flee in haste.

Ye Erniang liked cats catching mice, and she searched slowly and steadily from behind.

Unexpectedly, Xu Zhu secretly arrived and rescued Hui Zhen, who was hiding in the tall grass.

Ye Erniang learned Shaolin internal martial arts.

Others who sparred with her were unaware of her abilities.

Huizhen, however, was a direct disciple of Shaolin, and immediately sensed the blow after being struck.

Fearing that the matter would be exposed, Ye Erniang immediately gave chase with all her might, determined to silence her.

Given her martial arts skills and experience, catching up with the two should have been a piece of cake.

Unfortunately, Xu Zhu was followed far behind by Xiao Yuanshan.

He felt a great sense of satisfaction seeing the mother and son kill each other.

He felt even more certain that training Xuzhu to deal with Xuanci was the right thing to do.

After that, he secretly intervened on several occasions to help Xu Zhu erase his traces and escape.

Little did Ye Erniang know the truth behind it all.

She didn't know that Xu Zhu was a simple-minded monk, and thought he was a cunning person full of ingenious schemes.

Fearing that the two might escape, he quickly summoned his men and, with everyone's help, began a search.

Upon seeing someone committing violence in the road, Duan Yu immediately ordered his four guards to rescue the person.

"Get out of the way, let me handle this!"

Zhong Ling, however, stood in front of the crowd.

Holding a throwing knife, she strode away.