All Heavens: Dual Cultivation of Magic and Martial Arts Starting from the Republic of China

Chapter 71 The Banquet Turns into Chaos!

Chapter 72 The Banquet Turns into Chaos!

Liao Xibai is back!

Moreover, he appeared in Wenlong City immediately after returning to China.

What does this mean?

Countless people have their own agendas.

At the very front of the banquet hall, Chen Ji'an personally stood at the entrance to greet them.

When Liao Xibai entered the clubhouse accompanied by Li Junfeng and Feng Xuan, the crowd, who had been talking in hushed tones, suddenly fell silent.

Chen Ji'an strode forward and personally greeted Liao Xibai.

"gentlemen."

Liao Xibai had changed into a clean long robe, his face was still somewhat pale, but his expression was calm and gentle.

He smiled.

"Ji An, this is too much."

Chen Ji'an said solemnly.

"Now that you have returned, sir, you should let the world know."

He didn't try to lower his voice, so many people nearby heard him.

The expressions on everyone's faces varied.

Some people's eyes were filled with excitement, some were deep in thought, and some quietly exchanged complicated glances with the people next to them.

The reporters had already raised their cameras.

Click!Click!

The spotlight kept exploding.

A foreign reporter asked in broken Mandarin.

"Mr. Liao, will you be participating in the relevant political affairs of the Republic of China government again during your return to China?"

Someone nearby immediately whispered a rebuke.

"The banquet hasn't even started yet, how can you ask questions now!"

Liao Xibai smiled and waved his hand.

"It's alright."

He didn't answer immediately, but instead looked up at everyone in the hall.

"Since you all have chosen to meet me tonight, I'm sure you all have many questions in your hearts."

"Liao will give everyone an answer later."

A simple sentence subtly changed the atmosphere in the room.

Many people understand this in their hearts.

He's probably really going to make a statement tonight!

Feng Xuan stood to the side and slightly behind Liao Xibai, his gaze sweeping across the banquet hall without making a sound.

The banquet hall was decorated in a very grand style.

The beams and pillars were tall, the lights were bright, and dozens of banquet tables were placed in the center. Behind the screens on both sides, musicians were preparing to play music, and incense burners were burning in the corners, their fragrance elegant and not pungent.

Luxurious, elegant, serene. Everything seemed perfectly normal.

But Feng Xuan's brows slowly furrowed.

For some reason, he felt a very faint sense of unease from the moment he entered the clubhouse.

It was as if an inexplicable aura of yin energy was hidden beneath the lamplight. But when he tried to sense it more closely, the aura had vanished.

"A technique of concealment?"

Feng Xuan's heart sank slightly.

He didn't make a sound, but quietly took a step closer to Li Junfeng and whispered.

"Brother Li, be careful. Something might be wrong with this place."

Li Junfeng's face was already pale, and his gaze immediately turned cold upon hearing this.

He didn't turn around, but simply moved the five fingers of his right hand slightly.

"I see."

Just then, Chen Ji'an invited Liao Xibai to the main seat.

He personally raised his wine glass, faced all the guests in the hall, and said in a deep voice.

"Gentlemen!"

His voice wasn't loud, but the banquet hall immediately fell silent.

It is evident that Chen Ji'an, as a powerful warlord, held considerable prestige in this city. Normally, the mayor of Wenlong had to obtain his approval before he could do anything.

"Today, I, Chen, am hosting this banquet not for any other reason than to welcome an old friend, a mentor, and someone who has devoted countless efforts to this country."

"Mr. Liao Xibai has returned to China today and arrived in Wenlong."

"I, Chen, can say this in front of everyone—no matter how the situation changes in the future, Wenlong will never let Mr. Liao down!"

These words immediately stirred up waves in everyone's hearts.

This is no longer just Chen Ji'an welcoming his former master.

Instead, they openly took sides!

Zhao Mengqiu held his wine glass, his eyes darkening slightly.

Shen Shuheng seemed to be deep in thought.

Lu Shaotang lowered his head, took a sip of wine, and remained silent.

The three of them are actually connected to Jinling. They are Jinling's spies planted in Wenlong. They know each other's situation on a daily basis and maintain a relatively harmonious appearance.

But starting today—

Liao Xibai sighed softly, but did not stop him.

At this point, if he still tries to cover it up, he will only appear hypocritical.

He slowly walked forward, took the wine glass from Chen Ji'an's hand, but did not drink it immediately.

Instead, he turned around and faced the crowd in the banquet hall.

"Gentlemen."

His voice wasn't loud.

But everyone in the hall was even quieter than when Chen Ji'an was speaking.

"Liao has been away from the country for ten years. He thought that ten years would be enough time for the blood shed back then to bring about a slightly more stable country."

"But on my way back, all I saw was chaos and turmoil, exorbitant taxes, rampant bandits, and people displaced!"

"Some people asked me, 'Since you've been away for so long, why did you come back?'"

"The answer is actually quite simple."

He paused slightly at this point.

The lights in the hall burned quietly.

Countless eyes were fixed on him.

Feng Xuan's unease grew stronger.

He suddenly noticed that the flame of the third glass lamp closest to the main seat in the hall seemed to be dimmer than the two next to it.

It's not that there's not enough lamp oil.

Deep within the lamplight, a faint wisp of blue light could be seen.

Feng Xuan's eyes suddenly narrowed!

at the same time----

On the long street outside the banquet hall.

Fu Ze, Zhao Rui, and Tang Ziming are rushing over.

Fu Ze suddenly stopped and abruptly raised his head.

In his spiritual perception, a chilling aura that had been suppressed deep within was slowly rising from the brightly lit area ahead.

Like a net that had been laid out long ago, it is finally beginning to be pulled in.

Fu Ze's expression changed instantly.

Liao Xibai continued his speech inside the banquet hall.

"—I have returned this time for only one thing: to bring peace back to the people of this country."

After he finished speaking, the room fell silent.

next moment.

The third glass lamp near the main seat flickered gently.

It turned from yellow to green.

Feng Xuan took a sudden step forward and shouted sharply.

"There's something wrong with the light!"

Below the stage, a waiter carrying a wine tray, who always kept his head down and eyes submissive, slowly curled a strange smile at the corner of his mouth.

His right hand silently reached towards the bottom of the tray, where a very thin black sheet of iron was attached.

The metal sheet was only about half the size of a palm, with densely packed tiny runes engraved along its edges. If you didn't look closely, you would just think it was a piece of reinforcing metal from the bottom of a tray.

But the moment the waiter's fingers touched the metal plate, a thin crack suddenly appeared in the center of the plate.

A short, dark tube popped out from inside!

It's not an ordinary pistol; it's more like a concealed mechanism designed specifically for close-range assassinations!

The moment Feng Xuan uttered "There's something wrong with the light," the waiter abruptly raised his hand.

As the tray flipped over, the dark, short tube was already aimed at Liao Xibai's heart!

boom!

Gunshots rang out in the banquet hall.

Almost at the same instant, talismans flew out from Feng Xuan's sleeve.

"Golden light protects you!"

The talisman burned in mid-air, turning into a pale golden halo that barely blocked Liao Xibai's path.

The bullet struck the golden light but did not bounce off immediately.

The bullet had a bluish-black surface, as if it were coated with some kind of evil magic. After hitting the golden light, it made a sizzling sound and pierced through half an inch!

Feng Xuan's face turned pale.

Li Junfeng also moved.

He was already standing beside Liao Xibai, and the moment the gun went off, he took half a step to the side, blocking Liao Xibai's path.

Despite being depleted of qi and blood and suffering from unhealed old injuries, the Grandmaster of Transformation Force still reacted with astonishing speed!

He patted Liao Xibai's shoulder with one hand, releasing his strength to gently send Liao Xibai away.

The bruised bullet finally pierced through the golden light, grazing Li Junfeng's arm as it flew past.

laugh!

The sleeve was torn, and a bloody gash was cut into the skin.

A wisp of bluish-black energy was seen seeping into the flesh from the wound.

Li Junfeng grunted, his qi and blood surged, and he forcefully expelled that wisp of evil energy.

There was not a trace of panic in the waiter's eyes.

When his first attack missed, he didn't run away; instead, he suddenly opened his mouth wide.

A wisp of blue smoke actually came out of his mouth!

As the wisp of smoke appeared, the other two glass lamps in the banquet hall also flickered slightly at the same time.

The flames turned from yellow to blue.

The three green lamps, arranged in a perfect triangle, enveloped the area around the main position.

At this moment, the incense burners in the corner also emitted faint bluish-black smoke.

The smoke wasn't thick; it even looked somewhat mild.

Many guests turned pale and became dazed after just one puff. Some clutched their chests and collapsed to the ground, some screamed, and others, as if they had seen something terrifying, turned and rushed out!

Chaos erupted instantly in the banquet hall.

"assassin!"

"There's an assassin!"

"Protect the gentleman!"

Chen Ji'an's face turned ashen, and almost the instant the gunshot rang out, he drew his pistol from his waist.

boom!

A burst of blood erupted from the waiter's chest, yet he did not immediately collapse.

He swayed slightly, a strange smile still lingering on his lips.

Feng Xuan's expression changed.

"It must be some kind of puppet, not a normal person!"

Before he could finish speaking...

Behind the screens on both sides, several musicians suddenly jumped up.

One person pulled a short gun from a violin case, another slid a dagger from his sleeve, and yet another simply picked up a pipa, the back of which was inlaid with a ring of tiny iron tubes!

Bang bang bang!

Gunshots rang out again.

The banquet hall erupted in chaos.

Magnet lights, oil lamps, blue lamps, and gunfire all blended together in an instant.

Several reporters were so frightened that they lay on the ground. The bodyguards next to Lu Shaotang, the president of the Chamber of Commerce, immediately drew their guns, but dared not fire them indiscriminately.

The head of the Civil Affairs Department, Zhao Mengqiu, turned pale and his first reaction was to hide behind a pillar.

Finance Minister Shen Shuheng was tightly protected under the table by two attendants, his eyes filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

No one expected that the person behind the scenes would be so audacious!

To carry out an assassination so openly and brazenly with so many powerful figures present is nothing short of audacious!

Chen Ji'an roared.

"Seal the gate!"

"Don't fire indiscriminately!"

"Protect Mr. Liao first!"

His personal guards immediately rushed forward.

But just then, Chen Ji'an suddenly noticed that the two guards near the side door were noticeably slower than usual.

One of them even subconsciously looked outside the banquet hall, as if waiting for some order.

Chen Ji'an's eyes suddenly turned cold.

"Lieutenant Wang!"

The man's body stiffened.

Chen Ji'an didn't give him a chance to speak and fired a shot.

boom!

The bullet pierced the opponent's shoulder.

Lieutenant Wang screamed, and the pistol he had just pulled out fell to the ground.

Chen Ji'an said sternly.

"Take him down! Alive!"

The guards then realized what was happening and tackled the man to the ground.

However, the situation in the banquet hall did not stabilize as a result.

More and more blue smoke appeared.

The flickering flames of the three lamps cast distorted shadows in the hall. Those shadows, falling on the walls, seemed to writhe as if they were alive.

It's incredibly weird!

Several guests were so entangled by the shadows that they fell to their knees with a thud and couldn't get up.

Feng Xuan shielded Liao Xibai behind him, drawing his peach wood sword.

"This is an evil formation that uses lights as eyes, cigarette smoke as a guide, and shadows as a binding force!"

Li Junfeng asked in a cold voice.

"Can it be broken?"

Feng Xuan gritted his teeth.

"It can be broken. But we need to find the main light first."

As he spoke, he threw out five more talismans in one go.

The talisman landed around Liao Xibai, transforming into a pale golden halo that temporarily separated the green smoke.

Ke Fengxuan's forehead was already covered in cold sweat.

He had suffered greatly these past few days and had not fully recovered. Protecting Liao Xibai was already difficult enough; suppressing the evil formation throughout the entire banquet hall was simply unrealistic!

Li Junfeng sensed his pressure and suddenly stepped forward.

His blood and qi sank.

Between their chests and abdomens, the thunderous roar of tigers and leopards rolled low.

boom!

A surge of powerful masculine energy suddenly spread out.

The wisps of smoke near the main seat were actually partially dispersed by his vital energy.

But the next moment, Li Junfeng's face turned pale, and a little blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Liao Xibai reached out to support him.

"Junfeng, don't push yourself too hard."

Li Junfeng's voice remained cold and hard.

"Sir, I can still hold on."

Just then, in the corridor on the second floor of the banquet hall, a reporter's assistant who was standing next to the camera suddenly lifted the black cloth covering the camera.

There's no camera case under the black cloth.

It was a short gun that had already been set up!

The gun was pointed directly at Liao Xibai.

The man pulled the trigger.

boom!

The instant the first shot rang out, another shot exploded outside the banquet hall.

boom!

The reporter's assistant on the second floor had his wrist burst open with blood on the spot, his pistol deflected by half an inch, and the bullet grazed the beam before flying away.

Immediately afterwards, the side window of the banquet hall shattered with a loud crash.

A figure crashed through the window frame, covered in river water, smoke, and the stench of blood, and darted into the hall.

Fu Ze has arrived!

Zhao Rui followed closely behind, his two guns still smoking.

As soon as he landed, he fired another shot towards the second floor.

boom!

The reporter's assistant was shot between the eyebrows and fell backward.

Zhao Rui cursed coldly.

"Hiding so high up, do you really think nobody can see you?"

Fu Ze didn't waste any words.

As soon as he entered, he saw three green lamps, four incense burners, and the writhing shadows on the wall.

Under the spiritual vision, the entire banquet hall appeared to be covered by a large, dark blue-green net.

The three green lamps are the most obvious nodes in this network.

Fu Ze raised his hand and flicked it.

The lightning-struck jujube wood dagger transformed into a streak of blue and white lightning, directly piercing the green lamp closest to the main seat.

The lights suddenly flickered, as if sensing danger.

A blurry human face appeared in the flames.

The person's face was open, as if about to scream.

Fu Ze drank it cold.

"Shangqing Cave God, Thunder and Fire Dispel Evil!"

boom!

The dagger pierced the lamp.

The blue flames exploded instantly, turning into a cloud of black smoke.

The first lamp has gone out!

The smoke in the banquet hall immediately thinned out a bit.

Feng Xuan's spirits lifted.

"Young friend Fu, the second lamp on the left!"

Fu Ze lightly touched the ground with his feet and darted sideways.

During the journey, an assassin resembling a waiter suddenly sprang up from under the table, thrusting a dagger straight at his ribs.

Fu Ze didn't even look at him, and gently placed his palm on the other person's wrist.

He transformed his strength with a single turn.

Click!

The assassin twisted his entire arm into a pretzel, and plunged the dagger back into his own chest.

But the man still didn't scream.

Fu Ze frowned.

Something was definitely wrong.

Some of these people were assassins, while others seemed more like puppets controlled by magic!

He didn't stop; the lightning-struck jujube wood dagger had already flown back into his hand.

Beside the second green lamp, a middle-aged guest in a long robe suddenly raised his head, his eyes gleaming with a faint green light.

He suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a tiny black nail.

The black nail pierced the air, heading straight for Fu Ze's brow.

Fu Ze dodged to the side, holding the talisman in his left hand.

"Golden light to ward off evil!"

With a flash of golden light, the black nail was sent flying off course.

Zhao Rui raised his hand and fired a shot.

The middle-aged guest was shot in the shoulder, but his body continued to lurch forward like a puppet.

Fu Ze's eyes turned cold, and he slashed with his lightning-struck dagger.

The second lamp went out!

The shadows in the banquet hall suddenly became chaotic.

Many people who were originally entangled by the shadows finally regained their mobility and scrambled to escape into the corner.

Chen Ji'an seized the opportunity and gave a stern order.

"Guards, protect all the gates!"

"Everyone else, get down!"

"Anyone who dares to stand still or move will be killed without mercy!"

His voice was filled with murderous intent.

The guests in the banquet hall then dared not run around anymore, and they all crouched down in fear.

Tang Ziming also rushed in through the main entrance.

He was followed by several trustworthy soldiers, who revealed their identities as soon as they entered the room.

"Tang Ziming of the Third Battalion is here!"

"All city guards outside, listen up! Seal off the guild hall and forbid anyone from entering or leaving without authorization!"

Some soldiers hesitated.

Tang Ziming raised his gun and pointed it at them.

"Anyone who hesitates will be treated as an accomplice!"

With that shout, the chaos outside the door was finally brought under control.

At this moment, the third green lamp suddenly flew up on its own.

The lamp hung in mid-air, and the blue flames surged.

A cold, eerie voice faintly came from the lamplight.

"Young man—it's you again."

The sound wasn't loud, but it seemed to drill directly into Fu Ze's ears.

Fu Ze's eyes narrowed.

It's that sorcerer from the South Wharf!

At least, it's the same vibe.

Feng Xuan's expression also changed.

"The practitioner is not in the hall! This is a case of transmitting magic remotely!"

In the blue flames, the blurry human face slowly grinned.

"Liao Xibai is really tough. But now that the lights are on, the game isn't going to stop tonight."

Fu Ze's heart sank.

He didn't waste words with the other party.

With a stomp of his foot, he soared toward the third green lamp in mid-air.

Several black smoke chains appeared around the green lamp and wrapped around him.

Fu Ze's left hand burned with talisman paper, while his right hand's magic dagger surged with lightning.

"Heaven and earth are boundless, and the universe borrows their power!"

"Shangqing Thunderfire, break!"

Thunder and fire exploded with a deafening roar.

The black smoke and chains crumbled inch by inch.

The magic dagger plunged fiercely into the center of the third green lamp.

boom!

The lamp shattered, and the green flame went out.

The smoke, shadows, and chilling atmosphere in the banquet hall dissipated rapidly, as if its foundation had been removed.

The chilling voice then vanished.

Only the last sentence lingered in a low, echoing voice.

"Heh, you still lost—"

The banquet hall finally quieted down.

Or rather, let things quiet down for a while.

Assassins, puppets, and wounded guests lay scattered on the ground. Tables and chairs were overturned, food and drink were spilled everywhere, and a flashlight was smashed in a corner. The air was filled with the smells of gunpowder, blood, and lingering smoke.

Liao Xibai remained standing.

His face was pale, but he did not take a single step back.

Everyone who was still conscious was looking at him.

Liao Xibai gently straightened his sleeves, which had been ruffled by the gust of air, his voice remaining calm.

"Please do not panic. Since I dared to return, I knew that someone did not want me to live."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall changed their expressions.

Chen Ji'an could barely contain his anger, but he still walked up to Liao Xibai and whispered.

"Sir, it was my fault."

Liao Xibai shook his head.

"Now is not the time to apologize."

Fu Ze walked to Feng Xuan's side.

Feng Xuan was squatting next to a broken green lamp, his fingertip picking up a bit of black ash, which he then gently sniffed.