"Find the dungeon!" Butcher Zheng said urgently, draped over Lu Xuan's shoulder. "The entrance must be well-hidden, but we should be able to find it if we look carefully!"
Lu Xuan didn't speak, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he stared motionlessly out the window.
Butcher Zheng also noticed something was wrong and immediately fell silent, beads of sweat trickling down his forehead.
Time trickled by. Footsteps sounded from outside, and a figure emerged from the rain, strolling into view at the hall's entrance.
Lu Xuan crouched slightly, poised to strike, his right hand gripping the Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword tightly.
The newcomer was an old man with white hair and a beard, dressed in fine embroidered clothes. Though he had clearly walked through the rain, not a single drop of water was on him!
'A Grandmaster?'
'No, he might be even stronger!'
Sensing a terrifying aura several times, even tens of times stronger than Ji Bochang from the Inspectorate, Lu Xuan narrowed his eyes. 'Could this be a Grandmaster who has reached the ninth stage of the Jade Tower and pioneered his Acupoints?'
"And who might you be, sir?" he asked softly.
The old man smiled.
"Chu Shuangtian, Master of the Soaring Snake Martial Arts Hall..."
VMMMM!
The instant he finished speaking, Lu Xuan drew his sword without hesitation. He poured all of his qi and blood into the Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword. Though he couldn't unleash even a ten-thousandth of its true power, as a mere Martial Master, he managed to slash out a beam of Sword Qi!
The crimson-hued Sword Qi tore through the air, arriving in an instant. It left a long, shattered gouge in the ground wherever it passed!
The old man looked slightly surprised, but then he chuckled and casually extended his palm, clenching it into a fist.
The surging Sword Qi was extinguished in an instant.
"I mean you no harm!" Seeing the young man raise his sword again, Chu Shuangtian said quickly, "I'm not here for the White Elephant Martial Arts Hall."
Lu Xuan hesitated but didn't speak, merely staring fixedly at the old man as he secretly gathered his power.
Meanwhile, Butcher Zheng, on Lu Xuan's back, was trembling like a leaf. He knew better than anyone what being the master of a major martial arts hall signified, and he knew even more what the name "Chu Shuangtian" represented!
If the mayor was the public ruler of East Sea City, then this man was the one who held power in the shadows!
Chu Shuangtian seemed to sense the young man's distrust and sighed.
"Young friend, the foundation of your Slaughter Technique is extraordinary. Its source likely stems from the methods of a Celestial Human, or perhaps even an Earth Immortal. That sword of yours also appears to be a Supreme Treasure, but the gap between you and I is simply too vast."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"I have been a Grandmaster for a decade. My entire being is a unified, Primordial whole—a nearly perfected vessel. You, on the other hand, have not even reached the Grandmaster realm and cannot even commune with the most basic Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi. If I truly wished you harm, you wouldn't stand a chance."
As he finished speaking, Chu Shuangtian gently pressed his hand down behind him. A giant palm print, formed from a convergence of mystical light, materialized in mid-air. The palm print descended, and the hundred-meter training ground disintegrated into fine powder that scattered on the wind.
He didn't stop there. He once again gathered the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi and pointed a finger gently.
Primordial Qi poured into Butcher Zheng's legs, and in mere moments, his broken bones had healed completely!
Butcher Zheng jumped to the ground and stomped his feet. He said in a daze,
"Just like that? I'm healed??"
Lu Xuan was silent for a moment before finally speaking.
"Thank you... Then may I ask, sir, for what purpose have you come?"
"To befriend you, of course!" Chu Shuangtian said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "With talent like yours, why wouldn't I? We have no grudge against each other... You could also see it as an investment, young friend."
Lu Xuan and Butcher Zheng were both stunned. They never expected him to be so... so frank.
At that, Elder Chu smiled again.
"Why don't you go rescue your people first, young friend? We can discuss the details later, you and I."
Lu Xuan hadn't forgotten the reason he'd come. He nodded decisively.
"Alright!"
With that, he began to search carefully for the dungeon's location, while Chu Shuangtian watched silently from the side.
Chu Shuangtian couldn't help but glance at the right hand he had used to extinguish the Sword Qi. A thin scratch, slowly seeping blood, had appeared on his palm.
'Such heaven-sent talent...' Chu Shuangtian sighed to himself.
...
「In a private dungeon beneath the White Elephant Martial Arts Hall.」
Sister Zheng gently patted Xiaobao's back, consoling her.
"It's okay, everything will be alright, everything will be alright..."
Though she spoke the words, the despair in her eyes was palpable, so thick it nearly spilled over.
It wasn't just her. Xiaobao and the twenty or so other women from the shantytown locked in the dungeon were all numb with shock, sobbing in terror.
They could all foresee their futures. The more attractive among them might become handmaidens or slaves for a wealthy family. For the rest, there was likely only one destination: a brothel.
"Sister Zheng..." Xiaobao sobbed, wiping her tears. "Without me, what will Grandpa do...?"
Sister Zheng gave a wan smile, her gaze distant. 'That's right,' she thought. 'Without me, what will Old Zheng do?'
Suddenly, the dungeon door opened. The women huddled together in a panic. Xiaobao shrank into Sister Zheng's arms, peeking out timidly.
When they saw who it was, their faces turned deathly pale.
Bai Kai'an.
The young man, whose kind face belied a vicious heart, hummed a little tune as he casually shut the dungeon door and strolled over with a grin.
He glanced around, his eyes sweeping over the women before finally settling on Xiaobao, who was still in Sister Zheng's arms.
"Well now, little girl. There you are."
Xiaobao was terrified, tears streaming down her face. Sister Zheng clutched her tightly, shielding the girl behind her.
"What do you think you're doing?!"
"What am I doing? Finishing what I started, of course... Right here should be good. With dozens of pairs of eyes watching... how thrilling!"
As he spoke, Bai Kai'an stared greedily at Xiaobao's pale thighs. He laughed aloud and reached out to grab her.
"You—" Sister Zheng summoned her courage and was about to scream at him when, suddenly...
RUMBLE... RUMBLE... RUMBLE!
The entire underground dungeon trembled three times, shaking dust from the ceiling.
Bai Kai'an froze. He glanced up in surprise but thought nothing of it. Just as he was about to continue, the dungeon shook again.
This time, the tremor was accompanied by a muffled sound from beyond the iron door and through the thick earth. It was impossible to make out, but it put Bai Kai'an on alert.
"What's going on?" He frowned, thought for a moment, then turned back to Xiaobao with another grin. "Daddy will come play with you again in a little bit!"
He then swaggered over to a nearby chair, casually pulled out his phone, and dialed a number, planning to ask one of his underlings upstairs what was going on.
Sister Zheng let out a soft sigh of relief and patted Xiaobao's back. In her daze, her mind began to race.
'In that muffled sound... I thought I heard the names Lu the Kid and Old Zheng... I must be hearing things.'
At that thought, the despair returned to her eyes.
"Why isn't anyone picking up?" Bai Kai'an frowned. "What the hell is going on up—"
He never finished his sentence.
BOOM!!!
The entire dungeon shook violently, dirt and dust raining from the ceiling!
Then, to everyone's astonishment, the dungeon ceiling split open with a deafening CRACK, revealing a massive fissure!
What... what was happening??
As everyone stared, hearts pounding, at the massive fissure that had split open above them,
bright red blood began to drip from the crack, one drop at a time.
Silence.
It was followed by a scream!
The scene was so horrifying that the hair on the shantytown women's arms stood on end. Even Bai Kai'an, the calmest among them, began to tremble.
'What in the hell happened up there?!' A terrible premonition washed over him as the blood flowing from the fissure grew heavier and heavier...
Suddenly.
Footsteps echoed from beyond the iron door.
Bai Kai'an's scalp went numb. He scrambled backward, diving into the crowd of women. The twenty or so women panicked as well, while Sister Zheng held Xiaobao in a death grip, her horrified gaze fixed on the dungeon door.
No one could blame them. The entire situation was too bizarre. The dripping blood had already formed a small pool on the floor!
'Just how many people died up there...?'
The oppressive atmosphere grew heavier until the only sounds in the dungeon were gasps and pounding hearts. Then, the footsteps outside the iron door came to a sudden halt, and everyone's heart leaped into their throat.
CREAK!
The door swung open, and three figures walked in side-by-side. In the lead was an old man with white hair and a beard. Beside him was a stocky middle-aged man who, despite the bloodstains on his legs, walked as if he were uninjured.
The last was a young man holding a long sword, his eyes as bright as stars.
"Brother Xuan!"
"Lu the Kid!"
"Old Zheng!!"
Cries of surprise rose one after another. Sister Zheng and the others were stunned, then overjoyed, unable to believe their own eyes. They thought they must be hallucinating!
"Woman!"
Butcher Zheng waved his hand, tears of joy streaming down his face.
"You're safe... You're safe..."
He wasn't the only one; all twenty-odd women from the shantytown burst into tears, but this time, they were tears of joy.
Amid the sobs and surprised cries, one figure began to tiptoe away, trying to slip out unnoticed.
"That's him!" Butcher Zheng roared. "That's the one, Lu the Kid! Get him!"
The color drained from Bai Kai'an's face. He channeled his qi and blood to his legs and shot forward, trying to make a break for it.
Lu Xuan merely lifted an eyelid and exhaled sharply.
An arrow of compressed air shot out, piercing Bai Kai'an's left leg. He collapsed to the ground with a horrific scream.
Sister Zheng, Xiaobao, and the other women stared, dumbfounded, looking at one another in utter disbelief.
"Stay back... Stay away from me!" Bai Kai'an clutched his left leg, panting in terror as he watched the young man walk toward him.
"I have no quarrel with you, sir! I left the White Elephant Martial Arts Hall a long time ago! None of this has anything to do with me..."
Lu Xuan stood over him, looking down. He stared until a chill ran through Bai Kai'an's entire body.
'This is the pathetic creature who destroyed the shantytown?'
The young man sighed softly, reached out, and brushed his hand over Bai Kai'an's head.
Bai Kai'an froze as if struck by lightning. His vision blurred, then filled with red... and he died on the spot.
The entire dungeon fell deathly silent. Everyone stared blankly at the young man, feeling as if they were trapped in an unreal dream.
'Someone they knew so well has suddenly transformed into a lofty, powerful figure, a legendary Cultivator... It's...'
After a long silence, Xiaobao asked blankly,
"Is that... is that Brother Xuan?"
Sister Zheng nodded numbly, her expression dazed.
Just then, Lu Xuan turned aside.
"Uncle Zheng, take everyone home first. I'll be back later."
Butcher Zheng glanced at the old man, who was resting with his eyes closed, and understood immediately.