strictlysupreme Chapter 66 Wang Hu's Execution
Chapter 66 Wang Hu's Execution
In the early morning of the third day after the battle, before the morning mist had fully dissipated in Qingyang City, three dark figures stood like ghosts against the wall of the West City Martial Arts Alliance branch. Dewdrops condensed on the blue bricks, and the chill seeped into their bones through their clothes. Lin Chen, his fingertips glistening with dew, traced three marks on the cold wall, his voice low and menacing: "Wang Hu returned to the city through the No. 3 secret passage last night at the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), bringing three Blood Shadow assassins into the branch. Qingyue, you take ten men and block the back door; Zhao Lei, you guard the exit of the secret passage. Anyone coming out from there, kill them without mercy." As his fingertips traced the brick seams, he distinctly smelled the lingering stench of blood at the base of the wall, thick and pungent, like poison seeping from the ground.
"Understood!" The two nodded simultaneously, their figures flashing and disappearing into the mist. Su Muyue gripped the array flag tightly in her hand, her beautiful eyes filled with worry: "Lin Chen, Li Xuanfeng took his confidants to the West Gate early this morning. Could it be a deliberate attempt to lure us away from our prey?" In the morning mist, the stray hairs at her temples were ruffled by the wind, her fingertips clenching the silk of the array flag, her knuckles turning white.
"He did it on purpose." Lin Chen's lips curled into a cold smile, the mist condensing into frost between his teeth. "He wanted to use Wang Hu to kill me, and then pin the blame on the Blood Shadow Legion. Unfortunately, he miscalculated—Wang Hu is a piece of trash, not even worthy of killing me." Before he finished speaking, he lightly leaped over the courtyard wall, his body as light as a feather, landing without stirring up a speck of dust. Only the grass on the wall trembled slightly, as if disturbed by an invisible sword aura.
Inside the branch's main hall, candlelight flickered. Wang Hu sat cross-legged in a grand chair, toying with a blood-red dagger in his hand. The blade reflected the dancing firelight, resembling a venomous snake. Opposite him stood three shadowy assassins shrouded in black robes, wisps of black mist seeping from beneath them, like maggots wriggling on rotting flesh.
"Are you all ready?" Wang Hu chuckled sinisterly, his laughter echoing in the empty hall. "At midnight tonight, Elder Li will open the west gate and let Xue Wuhen's army into the city. At that time, the three of you will head straight for the Demon-Suppressing Tower, kill Lin Chen, and steal the Starry Heart-Protecting Mirror. After the deed is done, each of you will be rewarded with a thousand taels of gold, and each will also be given a Demon Clan Body Tempering Pill!" As soon as he finished speaking, a soft laugh escaped his throat, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.
The leader of the Blood Shadow assassins said in a hoarse voice, "Commander Wang, rest assured, the three of us are all at the mid-stage of the Meridian Opening Realm. Lin Chen is still seriously injured and will surely die. But... will Elder Li really keep his promise?" Beneath the black robe, a pair of scarlet eyes flickered in the darkness, like two solidified beads of blood.
"Of course!" Wang Hu patted his chest, the chair legs scraping against the ground with a screeching sound. "Elder Li is Lord Qin Cang's confidant! When Lord Evil Lord unifies the world, he will be the regent of the human race, and I will be the city lord of Qingyang City! If you follow us, you will enjoy endless wealth and glory in the future!" Before he finished speaking, and before the smile in his throat had faded, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine, as if he had been licked by a venomous snake's tongue.
"Is that so? Then I must congratulate you." A cold voice suddenly came from outside the door, like a cold blade piercing the air.
Wang Hu's expression changed drastically, and he abruptly stood up: "Who?!" The chair back crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. He drew his long sword from his waist, the blade reflecting his distorted, terrified face.
The door creaked open, letting in a gust of cold wind carrying morning mist. Lin Chen walked in slowly, his body swirling with silver starlight, like a silver river encircling him. With each step, the dewdrops on the floor tiles shattered into tiny ice crystals, blooming into frost flowers. His eyes, as cold as millennia-old ice, fixed on Wang Hu: "Wang Hu, you colluded with the evil race, betrayed your compatriots. Today, you must pay for this life."
"Lin Chen!" Wang Hu was both shocked and furious. He drew his long sword from his waist. "How did you get here?!" As the blade was drawn, it was accompanied by a mournful dragon's roar. The black aura emanating from the blade condensed into a hideous ghost face, which was the mark of the evil race's poison.
"You can let the wolf into the house, but I can't clean up the mess?" Lin Chen walked towards him step by step, his boots scraping against the floor tiles, sending sparks flying. His voice was icy, each word striking Wang Hu's heart: "You think Li Xuanfeng will really protect you? He's just using you as a pawn. Once you kill me, he'll immediately kill you to silence you, and then claim to the world that you colluded with the evil race and killed me." The candlelight in the hall flickered, casting his shadow on the wall, like a sword-wielding god looking down on an ant.
"You're talking nonsense!" Wang Hu roared, his voice trembling but his voice weak. The blade slashed out a black light as it trembled. "Elder Li promised me! He wouldn't lie to me!" The floor tiles shattered where the blade struck, cracks spreading like a spider web, but they didn't even touch Lin Chen's clothes.
"Stubborn to the end." Lin Chen was too lazy to waste any more words with him. He flashed and appeared in front of Wang Hu in an instant. Wang Hu only felt a blur before his eyes, and a cold air was locked in his throat—it was Lin Chen's hand with fingers like a sword.
"You're courting death!" Wang Hu roared, his longsword whistling through the air as he slashed towards Lin Chen's head. This strike concentrated all the power of his early-stage Meridian Opening Realm cultivation, the blade emanating a faint black aura, clearly coated with the deadly poison of the evil race. Wherever the blade passed, the air was corroded, producing a sizzling sound, as if flesh and blood were boiling.
Lin Chen neither dodged nor evaded, his right hand forming a sword-like shape as he lightly touched the blade. His fingertips precisely struck the back of the blade, like a dragonfly skimming the water. "Clang—!" A metallic clang resounded, extinguishing all the candles in the hall. Wang Hu felt an overwhelming force surge through him; his longsword instantly flew from his hand and embedded itself deeply in a nearby pillar. Before he could even react, the wooden pillar shattered, and Lin Chen's hand was already pressed against his chest.
"Pfft—!" Silver star power erupted, piercing through Wang Hu's chest like a silver dragon. His chest caved in instantly, spitting out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs. He flew backward, crashing heavily against the wall. He collapsed to the ground, convulsing like a tattered sack, his eyes filled with unbelievable terror: "You…you've broken through to the mid-stage of the Meridian Opening Realm?"
"Too late to realize this now." Lin Chen walked up to him, looking down at him. His boots crushed the splattered blood droplets, which froze into ice under the pressure of the star power, making a crisp, crackling sound. "Speak! Who is Qin Cang? What is Li Xuanfeng's relationship with him?" Star power condensed into a blade at his fingertips, hovering between Wang Hu's throat, its chill penetrating to the bone.
A sinister smile appeared on Wang Hu's face, and black blood gushed from his throat: "You'll never know... that Lord Qin Cang will avenge me! You will all die!" Before he finished speaking, he bit his tongue and was about to detonate his dantian and self-destruct.
"Trying to self-destruct? Did you ask me first?" Lin Chen's eyes turned cold, and a beam of starlight shot out from his fingertip, precisely piercing Wang Hu's dantian. "Ah—!" Wang Hu let out a shrill scream. His dantian shattered, his cultivation completely destroyed, and he collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud. The black aura around him dissipated, revealing a face corroded and pitted, a clear sign of the backlash from the evil poison.
Seeing the situation was dire, the three Blood Shadow assassins exchanged a glance and simultaneously pounced on Lin Chen. Three blood-red daggers stabbed at Lin Chen's vitals from three different angles, their angles cunning and ruthless. Their black robes fluttered, creating a foul stench, like crows swooping down to catch their prey.
"A mere grain of rice dares to shine?" Lin Chen sneered, his figure spinning in place, silver star power forming a whirlwind around him. Wherever the star power passed, black robes were torn to shreds, revealing the assassins' rotting bodies—they were actually living corpses modified by evil magic. "Clang clang clang—!" Three short swords were simultaneously deflected, crashing against the wall and turning into dust. Lin Chen waved his right hand, and three star power sword energies shot out, instantly piercing the foreheads of the three Blood Shadow assassins. The three didn't even have time to scream before collapsing to the ground, turning into three puddles of black water, the stench filling the entire hall.