Li Musheng glanced at Zheng Yunfeng's body falling into the street furrow below.
Though he had never had any particular regard for Falling God Peak to begin with, a Peak Master being this lacking in ability was still somewhat unexpected.
Li Musheng shook his head, then withdrew his gaze and went back to refining the Azure Dragon Profound Darkness Scripture.
At the current rate, by the time he had finished with Falling God Peak, the Azure Dragon Profound Darkness Scripture should also be ready for completion.
At that point, once he had obtained the power of the Vermilion Bird Bone, he should be able to improve himself by just a little more.
"One should always compare oneself to oneself. Comparing oneself to others is pointless."
...
What happened above the Hundred Fragrance Pavilion had been felt clearly by everyone throughout Hundred Refinements City.
Zheng Yunfeng had suppressed the entire city with his terrifying martial presence and sky-filling killing intent, then struck with the force of thunder. His fearsome fist intent flooding down from above had looked as though the entire city of Hundred Refinements was about to be razed to rubble.
Yet all of this had come without warning, and vanished even faster.
Just when everyone had been trembling in place and bracing for whatever the Hundred Refinements Peak Master would unleash, everything simply dissolved in an instant, and Hundred Refinements City returned to stillness as though nothing had happened at all.
"This is bad. Something has happened to the Peak Master!"
A martial artist in the Hundred Refinements City City Master's residence quickly realized what had occurred, and immediately called out, "Quick. Send word for reinforcements at once!"
...
On the small hill outside Hundred Refinements City.
The hemp-robed elderly man and Lin Xunner stared at Hundred Refinements City as it settled back into silence in the darkness, clearly standing motionless for quite a long while before slowly coming back to themselves.
"Grandfather, if I am reading this correctly, did the Hundred Refinements Peak Master just... cease to be?"
Lin Xunner suddenly looked at the hemp-robed elderly man, and the expression on her small face was clearly somewhat rigid.
The hemp-robed elderly man was quiet for a moment, his expression shifting with unreadable thoughts, then said, "Zheng Yunfeng's fist intent shattered and his aura dissolved. He clearly lost. But..."
He did not continue. He only looked toward the city, his expression deeply complicated.
At that point Lin Xunner reached up and rubbed her own stiff face, then picked up where the hemp-robed elderly man had left off, "But neither of us saw that person act, and even if he did act, Zheng Yunfeng and the other party only exchanged a single move. And to kill the Peak Master of Hundred Refinements Peak within a single move... is that something that could actually happen?"
Silence fell between them, and at that moment neither of them seemed able to answer the question.
Though they had seen all of it with their own eyes, and the facts were telling them it had actually happened, they still found themselves unable to truly accept it.
At that point the hemp-robed elderly man's expression shifted, and he suddenly withdrew his gaze. An expression of barely contained excitement rose on his aged face, and he said, "Xunner, whatever else may be said, Zheng Yunfeng is dead. For us, this is an opportunity that comes once in a thousand years."
Hearing this, Lin Xunner, who had still been somewhat blank, immediately came back to herself. In an instant she snapped her head around to look in the direction of Hundred Refinements Peak.
In that moment, an equally intense expression of excitement rose on her pale face, and an extraordinary killing intent began to slowly radiate from her, as she said, "With Zheng Yunfeng and the Hundred Refinements Peak Chief Elder both dead, Hundred Refinements Peak has virtually nothing left that poses a threat to us. This is exactly the time for us to act and take our revenge."
With that, she and the hemp-robed elderly man exchanged a look, and both immediately understood what the other had decided. Without the slightest hesitation they descended the hill at once and moved quickly toward Hundred Refinements Peak.
On the dark mountain path, the hemp-robed elderly man carried Lin Xunner and moved at speed, while Lin Xunner looked back at Hundred Refinements City as it grew further and further behind them, her dark eyes flickering with thought.
Lin Xunner's heart was far from calm at that moment. She never could have imagined that the opportunity for her to avenge her elder sister would be handed to her by that insufferable person.
...
On the mountain road between Falling God Peak and Hundred Refinements Peak.
The three elders from Falling God Peak's main peak looked at each other, their expressions both shocked and deeply grave.
The slightly heavyset elder turned around, folded his hands in a bow toward the young man in the carriage, and said with a troubled expression, "Young Sect Master, Zheng Yunfeng has actually lost."
They had all seen the scene above Hundred Refinements City just now. The sky-reaching golden column had collapsed, and Zheng Yunfeng's True Qi had dissolved. That said everything that needed to be said.
Even if they found it impossible to believe that Zheng Yunfeng, a Peak Master, had been defeated by that other party, and that it had all happened so quickly, the fact was the fact, and whether they could accept it or not they had to.
The young man who was the grandmaster's head disciple was quiet for a moment, his gaze looking through the night toward the direction of Hundred Refinements City. A faint ripple crossed that young face, and he said, "That the Great Li court would dispatch a martial artist of such strength, I am not entirely surprised. But that the other party would act now rather than keeping this as a final trump card is something I find genuinely difficult to work out."
Hearing this, the three elders exchanged glances, all of them with unusual expressions.
Then one of the elders bowed and addressed the young man, saying, "Young Sect Master, this martial artist in Hundred Refinements City is formidably powerful. Even Zheng Yunfeng is no match for him. Should we still proceed?"
Another elder spoke up, saying, "Young Sect Master, I recommend we immediately send word back to the peak for reinforcements. Only the grandmaster and a few of the honored elders could likely bring this person down."
The young man looked at the three elders, then without dismissing their suggestions said quietly, "The three of you go back to the peak and consult with the master. I will continue on to Hundred Refinements City and take a look at this martial artist who defeated Zheng Yunfeng in a single move."
At those words, all three elders were immediately alarmed, and hurried to say, "That must not happen. Hundred Refinements City is extremely dangerous right now. The Young Sect Master must not take such a risk."
But the young man seemed entirely unconcerned, and waved a hand, saying, "Do not worry. You may all rest easy. That person cannot harm me. Go and do as I have said."
With that the young man said no more, lowered the carriage curtain, and the carriage continued driving toward Hundred Refinements City. Only the three elders remained behind.
"We must return to the peak and report to the grandmaster at once. We cannot let anything happen to the Young Sect Master."
The three elders exchanged a look and without any hesitation immediately turned back toward the main peak.
...
"Why did that golden column suddenly go out?"
Among the Tianjin Guards advancing in secret toward Star Control Peak, many people were looking at the sky ahead and let out cries of surprise.
At the same time, Commander Fu Qiwen and Hu Rui'an, riding side by side behind them, both had furrowed brows and unusual expressions.
Being at a greater distance from Hundred Refinements City than those closer to it, Fu Qiwen could not observe as clearly, but he could still faintly sense that Zheng Yunfeng had been defeated.
"A single move? He defeated the Hundred Refinements Peak Master, who had refined the true intent of the fist path and stood at the summit of the Great Li martial world's fist arts, in a single move?"
Fu Qiwen murmured quietly, the look in his eyes dim and unreadable, carrying both shock and disbelief.
At that point Hu Rui'an beside him suddenly let out a sigh, saying, "His Highness did not even use any fist art technique. And it seems no one could even see how His Highness acted at all before Zheng Yunfeng was done for."
"His Highness is always this way. Every time he acts it is like an antelope with its horns caught in the branches. There is simply no way to find any trace of it."
Hearing this, Fu Qiwen turned to look at Hu Rui'an, and his eye twitched slightly. He felt inexplicably that what his old subordinate had just said carried the faint air of a slap across his face.
With that thought, Fu Qiwen was quiet for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Rui'an, are you certain it was the Eighth Prince who acted, and not some hidden expert behind him?"
Hu Rui'an turned to look at Fu Qiwen and gave a solemn nod, saying, "I know the Commander finds it very difficult to believe. In truth I was exactly the same at first. But His Highness is unlike anyone or anything we have ever known. He is a one-of-a-kind existence, and absolutely cannot be understood through ordinary standards."
At those words, Fu Qiwen drew a long breath, and turned to look in the direction of Hundred Refinements City. He suddenly recalled the moment when Li Musheng had accepted the task of destroying Falling God Peak.
"Your Highness, could it be that I have been mistaken about you all along, and that your confidence has always, from the very beginning, come entirely from yourself?"
...
"The Falling God Peak Master struck for only a moment and then suddenly stopped. What happened?"
The down-and-out scholar watched the sky growing dark ahead of them and said with a puzzled look.
The other three also wore expressions of puzzlement and disbelief. They had been doing nothing but following the large black cat as quickly as possible and clearly had no idea what had actually happened.
At that point the large black cat crouching ahead let out several meows, as though responding to the scholar's confusion.
The elderly man Wu Yong and the down-and-out scholar immediately looked at the two Lin sisters, clearly hoping for a translation.
Seeing this, Lin Tang furrowed her brow slightly and said with some hesitation, "Little Sister says the prince has already acted and killed the Hundred Refinements Peak Master."
"But... she says we were too slow, and she missed the main event because of us. She says if she had known, she would not have brought us along."
Hearing this, the elderly man Wu Yong and the scholar Sui Zhen looked at each other, clearly unable to quite believe that the Hundred Refinements Peak Master was simply dead.
At that point Sui Zhen quietly asked Lin Yuer, "How reliable is what Momo said?"
Before Lin Yuer could answer, the large black cat turned back and let out two meows, then simply continued forward on its own, disappearing into the dark trees ahead.
Lin Yuer turned to look at Sui Zhen and said with a sigh, "Little Sister says believe it or not, if you have the nerve then do not follow her, and she does not want to bother with us anyway."
As she spoke, Lin Yuer turned to look at her elder sister, and Lin Tang thought briefly, then said, "Little Sister may be willful, but she has never deceived us. Perhaps the prince truly did act just now, and if that is the case, Hundred Refinements Peak is without question a point of entry for us."
"With the Hundred Refinements Peak Master dead, we can use Hundred Refinements Peak as a way to infiltrate Falling God Peak's main peak."
Hearing this, the elderly man Wu Yong furrowed his brow and considered for a moment before speaking, "If the Hundred Refinements Peak Master truly died at the prince's hands, that person will without question become Falling God Peak's primary target. That is extremely dangerous for us. We must not act rashly."
The other three fell quiet for a moment. Lin Yuer thought it over and said, "It is dangerous, but it is also an opportunity. If that prince draws Falling God Peak's senior martial artists out, we can watch from the shadows and wait for the best possible moment to enter Falling God Peak."
At those words, Lin Tang gave a nod, and the elderly man Wu Yong and the scholar Sui Zhen both thought it over before eventually nodding as well, saying, "Then we follow Momo and see whether a suitable opportunity presents itself. But everything must be done with the utmost caution. Under no circumstances reveal ourselves unless absolutely necessary."
With that, the four of them finally stopped hesitating and set off again in the direction the large black cat had gone.
...
In the darkness of the night, a carriage sat stopped on a small slope.
Inside was Falling God Peak's Fifth Peak Master, Ouyang Mingqi. Seated in the coachman's position was an elderly man.
"Zheng Yunfeng has lost. Does the Peak Master still wish to continue to Hundred Refinements City?"
The elderly man composed the shock on his face and turned to ask.
The man inside the carriage was quiet for a moment, then said with flat indifference, "My martial cultivation and Zheng's are not greatly different. Yet he could not withstand that person's single move. Going now would serve no purpose. Better to let the main peak's grandmaster resolve it."
Hearing this, the elderly man in the coachman's seat gave a slight nod, and as he turned the carriage back toward the Fifth Peak, said with feeling, "The Great Li court's foundation is still formidable. Their move against us this time was clearly carefully prepared. Before any large-scale engagement has even occurred, we have already lost a Peak Master. This is a severe blow to our sect."
Inside the carriage, Ouyang Mingqi showed no trace of emotion, saying with cool indifference, "Do not worry. Our sect's foundation is not something the Great Li court can shake. Martial Brother Zheng's death is a regrettable loss, but taking down our Falling God Peak cannot be done by this person alone. The Great Li court is still far from that."
And as his words faded, the carriage rolled into the night, drawing further and further from Hundred Refinements City.
...
Jade Wave Peak.
Yumian Jiao's mirror image hovered above the jade palace, looking toward Hundred Refinements City in the distance.
Then her entire half-real, half-illusory figure shook and wavered violently, a sign that her state of mind was far from calm.
"Martial Brother Zheng has actually lost?"
Yumian Jiao's mirror image murmured to herself, and then she watched the dark sky ahead for a while, and when no further movement came, the last trace of hope in her heart went out entirely.
"The Great Li court would dispatch such a martial artist against Hundred Refinements Peak? Only the main peak can resolve this now."
Yumian Jiao naturally had no intention of going to avenge her martial brother Zheng Yunfeng.
On the contrary, she knew this matter needed no action from her. What she needed to be concerned about now was the Tianjin Guards's coming assault on Jade Wave Peak.
She had approached Zheng Yunfeng for help before, having believed it would be more than enough to deal with the Great Li's former Commander whose days were numbered.
But no sooner had the arrangement been made than Zheng Yunfeng had met with an accident, and now she had to find another solution.
Yumian Jiao turned something over in her mind for a moment, then seemed to reach a decision. Her mirror image condensed into a streak of clear light and flew off into the night.
...
Hundred Refinements City.
After Zheng Yunfeng fell, the City Master's residence began sending people in every direction with urgent requests for reinforcements.
Li Musheng sitting on the roof of the Hundred Fragrance Pavilion was naturally happy to see this happen. He only felt that Falling God Peak's people were surely not foolish.
After seeing a Peak Master fall, most of them would probably not dare to come.
Still, Falling God Peak could not simply ignore him, and whoever came to Hundred Refinements City next would likely be considerably more formidable.
And before long, a carriage appeared outside Hundred Refinements City.