Volume 1, Chapter 53: The Four Great Scholars of Jiangnan!

"Then this concubine will take her leave." Lady Fan did not drag her feet at all; after a decisive bow, she turned and walked away.

Luo Huzi's real name was Luo Dashan. He was not of Houlan bloodline himself; rather, he had captured a Houlan orphan named Lou Yu, and only by utilizing this orphan could he unlock the Houlan ruins and reap exorbitant profits.

It was not until her lips parted from his, and the flowing air brought a hint of moist coolness, that he snapped back to his senses.

Ye Zexiu smiled sheepishly, then slowed his pace and gradually stuffed all the tissues inside.

With that, Madam Wang gave a few instructions to the chieftains and then briefed me on their plan. Following that, I saw them pick up their hunting rifles and follow behind me one by one, maintaining enough distance so that Old Man Wang would not discover them.

Chen Nuan's flawless and delicate face was very close to Ye Zexiu's, and her naive, charming appearance made his heart skip a beat.

Gu Ruoxi's hand was already red and swollen, with a layer of grease on it—likely from the soup spilling onto her hand earlier.

Seeing this, I couldn't help but quietly breathe a sigh of relief, feeling fortunate that I didn't have to muddy these waters.

Upon entering, to the left was the dining room, where a rectangular mahogany dining table was placed, and further left was the kitchen. To the right of the entrance was the living room, with a coffee table set up in front of the sofa.

However, this particular morning felt a bit unusual. When the time set by Li Chen arrived, Emma still hadn't come to wake him up.

Ian was still somewhat confused about his long-term goals; he had never thought about becoming the Pirate King or searching for Roger's One Piece—those things were far too distant. But he had a very clear view of his short-term goals.

Of course, the two of them, Dongfang Mo, had nothing to worry about. Even if those four reported the matter to the city lord of Baiyan City, that person was merely an early-stage Infant Transformation realm cultivator and posed no threat whatsoever. Leaving aside whether they could find them in the first place, even if they did, they would merely be coming to court death.

Even the person involved, Zhao Liancai himself, did not realize that those events had passed in the blink of an eye, spanning a full decade.

"Th-this... what is going on?" Doruni bewilderedly shook the Log Pose on his wrist, assuming it had broken.

Arriving outside the Taiyi Dao Palace, Dongfang Mo certainly could not take Jia Fang's words completely at face value. He thoroughly searched the entire Taiyi Dao Palace multiple times, but from beginning to end, he found no abnormalities, nor did he see any Infant Transformation realm cultivators other than Jia Fang.

It felt almost like a fantastical scene from an anime about football... What kind of standard was this?! Professional football player level!?

"General Cao Jingzong's army is currently stationed outside the city. His Majesty did not do this during his previous personal expeditions, which must mean— His Majesty is worried about something." Ling Xiao seemed not to hear Yan Fei's address, simply continuing to speak on his own.

Of these ten swords executed by Lin Yang, the first two were wielded by Li Xiaoyao quite differently from Lin Yang; for instance, while Lin Yang chopped straight down from above, Li Xiaoyao swept horizontally. After the third sword onward, Li Xiaoyao's executed moves became identical to Lin Yang's.

As for the original regulations, they were somewhat frivolous; one could tell at a glance that the person who drafted them was shallow and inexperienced.

Yet Lin Feng felt embarrassed; how could a brother look at his younger sister's chest? It was shameless, utterly and extremely disgraceful.

Later on, I learned that only those who had opened their Qi meridians could possess such speed. Ordinary martial artists could never achieve it, even if they practiced for a lifetime.

Contrary to the expected scene of being bounced back, a peculiar power rippled outward from the stone monument, forming an invisible wave. This change left everyone present looking utterly shocked.

"It's just a dead man's grave, damn it, it's given me bad luck all over. Let's go, let's keep searching. Since you said it's around here, it's ten to one still here. If it weren't for your sake, I would have left long ago. Damn it, having me dig up graves—this is a major deed that harms one's virtue!" I cursed and muttered.

"Going to the Ghost Market comes at no ordinary price," said Quan Xisha. Clearly, he still had much left unsaid, but I didn't press for details. Besides, we were still a long way off, and our current plan was to intercept Yuan Shuai and locate his whereabouts.

As for Xia Meng, she did harbor some affection for her, but if Xia Meng were to die—even if it were because of her—she wouldn't feel a shred of sadness.

Seeing that Yuying was ignoring him, the lavishly dressed young master found it awkward to continue chatting her up. Turning his gaze to Li Weidong, who was grilling food on the ground, the young master rolled his eyes and walked toward him.

The man in historical costume laughed even more heartily, covering his face in gales of laughter, until the middle-aged uncle patted him on the shoulder, after which he toned down his exaggeration.

It could be said that this was the ultimate reward for all men under heaven; how could one not go crazy over it?

"So it's a formation," Zhang Tao thought to himself, feeling the true qi inside his body begin to stagnate. Zhang Tao was slightly surprised; this Undead Blood Formation truly possessed unique marvels.

The utterance of a single name caused Meixie, who had just moments before dismissed even Martial Saints, to tremble all over, a look of terror on her face as if she had seen something exceptionally terrifying.

Long Yanhan nodded. Seeing Lin Qingcheng cooperate so readily, she finally breathed a sigh of relief, having expected that it would take considerable effort to convince him.

To entertain them with the highest standards of the East Yue Continent—after all, since friends had come from afar to lend their aid, how could there be the slightest trace of discourtesy?

"Haha! We're not playing this! We're playing cards!" Director Cheng pulled a brand-new deck of poker cards out of his bag.

"Everyone, stop shouting. The keys are right on them." A member of the Nangong clan suddenly pointed toward Weiwei and Xuanyuan Yinglan, who had arrived a short while ago, wearing a bizarre and shifting smile.

Jiang Baixuan shook his head, looking at Weiwei, who was narrowing her eyes and advancing steadily, and said helplessly.

"This number, this number! How about it?" The stall owner shook his head and changed the offer to seven.

And all of this was precisely what Tigre wished to see. Chu Yang had now undoubtedly become the mysterious trump card of the Qingtian clan; the deeper this trump card was hidden, the greater the impact it would deliver when finally played, and the maximum degree of fatal blow could be dealt to the enemy.