Free Web NovelChapter 313: Chapter 164: Cuizhu Mountain Villa
This time, the dozen or so martial siblings had left their mountain sect specifically for Fang Shuwen.
However, their sect’s orders were to mediate the situation and convince Fang Shuwen to lay down his arms.
The group of martial siblings’ first stop was Anyue City, but they came up empty.
Afterward, they heard Fang Shuwen was heading north, which was how they had tracked him here.
They had wanted to cross the river but were frustrated by the lack of boats. As they walked along the bank, they spotted several large ships adrift on the water.
Naturally, their curiosity was piqued.
The senior brother in the lead immediately waved his hand.
"Let’s go take a look. We can negotiate with the captain to ferry us across. Worst case, we’ll just offer more silver."
His junior martial brothers and sisters behind him nodded in agreement. A few of them then used their Lightweight Technique to land on the ship’s deck.
Before they could even look around, a thick stench of blood assailed their nostrils.
The lead senior brother’s expression changed instantly.
"Stay sharp!!"
The disciples from the Cyan Sheep Sect didn’t dare let their guard down, stepping cautiously into the ship’s cabin.
Inside, they found the cabin littered with corpses in disarray.
Some lay dismembered on the floor, torn to shreds. Others had their heads seemingly stomped through the deck planks, and still others were hanging from the ceiling.
The gruesome scenes they encountered were horrifying, leaving the Cyan Sheep Sect disciples deeply shaken.
"This... this... these are men from the Eight Liujing Stockades!?"
One of the more worldly disciples recognized their identities.
This revelation only made their hearts sink further.
The Eight Liujing Stockades were well-known figures in the Green Forest Dao. Who on earth did they provoke to end up so brutally massacred?
After searching the entire ship, they found not a single survivor.
They quickly moved to the next ship.
Xun Shou had sent out eight ships in total. They checked every last one, and all were wiped out completely. Not a single person was left alive.
After their search, the group from the Cyan Sheep Sect stood on deck, staring at one another, utterly dumbfounded.
The ruthlessness of the killer was far beyond anything they had anticipated.
Just then, ships suddenly approached from the distance.
The Cyan Sheep Sect disciples all looked up and saw that the newcomers were also from the Eight Liujing Stockades.
One disciple couldn’t help but worry aloud.
"If they see the carnage on this ship and think we’re the ones who did it, what are we going to do?"
The senior brother in the lead shook his head.
"We’ll explain the situation clearly. If they refuse to believe us, there’s nothing more we can do."
"Besides, this is a good opportunity to ask them just who this group was trying to deal with."
’In truth, he already had an answer in mind, but without concrete proof, he refused to believe it.’
’Fang Shuwen’s killing spree in Anyue City could, arguably, be seen as a necessity.’
’But the men of the Eight Liujing Stockades were clearly no match for him, yet he still didn’t spare a single soul.’
’Could a man like that really be swayed by our group’s attempt at mediation?’
’Would he even give the Cyan Sheep Sect that much face?’
As it turned out, the junior disciple’s concerns were not unfounded.
Seeing the group from the Cyan Sheep Sect on their ships did indeed cause a misunderstanding with the men of the Eight Liujing Stockades.
However, the Cyan Sheep Sect members were all highly skilled in Martial Arts, and the Water Thieves of the Eight Liujing Stockades were powerless against them. It was only when the senior brother stepped forward to negotiate that the two sides finally had a chance to speak.
"I am Li Chengfeng of the Cyan Sheep Sect!
"I invite the leader of the Eight Liujing Stockades to step forward and speak."
"So you are the esteemed disciples of the Cyan Sheep Sect. No wonder you are so capable."
A burly man stepped out from one of the ships and said in a booming voice:
"Since this wasn’t your doing, it seems we were the reckless ones."
"When we have time, we will visit the Cyan Sheep Sect to offer our apologies."
Li Chengfeng replied at once.
"An apology won’t be necessary. However, I do have a question I hope you gentlemen from the Eight Liujing Stockades can clarify for me."
"If I may ask, who exactly were you trying to deal with today?"
"And why did it end in such a tragedy!?"
"Who were we dealing with?"
The burly man snorted.
"Who else but that Demon Evil God, Fang Shuwen!!"
"The Eight Liujing Stockades will remember the blood feud from this day! In the future, we will fight him to the death!!"
Li Chengfeng fell silent. ’Just from the gruesome sight on these ships, I can tell what kind of man Fang Shuwen is.’
’It’s not a question of whether the Eight Liujing Stockades wants to fight him to the death. Once he’s free, he might just decide to pay a visit to your stockades.’
’Then, you won’t even have the choice to live.’
The thought gave Li Chengfeng a throbbing headache.
The Cyan Sheep Sect maintained a semi-reclusive status, always hoping that matters in the Jianghu could be settled with peace as the highest priority.
’The Eastern Domain and Northern Domain have no major conflicts between them. How did things escalate to this point?’
’If Fang Shuwen had a personality that could be reasoned with, things might be manageable.’
’But from the looks of it now, convincing this man... would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens.’
’With just my group of martial siblings, it will be nearly impossible to persuade him to leave the Northern Domain.’
’This matter... I’m afraid we’ll have to ask the sect elders to intervene.’
Li Chengfeng sighed internally. ’That uncle and nephew duo, Ye Wucheng and Ye Bai, really deserve to die!’ he suddenly thought.
’If Ye Wucheng hadn’t gone and stirred up trouble in the Eastern Domain for no reason, how could they have provoked a homicidal maniac like Fang Shuwen?’
’I wonder where that man is now?’
...
...
Fang Shuwen was currently in a bamboo forest.
It was Fang Dabao who had found the bamboo forest. For it, seeing bamboo was like a cat seeing a fish—utterly irresistible.
However, as the two people and one "treasure" followed the path to its end, they discovered a mountain villa deep within the bamboo forest.
Looking up, a plaque hung high above, inscribed with the words: Cuizhu Mountain Villa!
The name and the bamboo forest complemented each other perfectly.
Fang Shuwen observed the villa’s architecture; it didn’t look like a temporary structure. He walked up to the entrance and knocked on the door.
After a long moment, a somewhat aged voice called out from within.
"Who is it?"
With a CLICK, a small peephole on the main gate slid open, revealing a pair of ancient eyes.
Fang Shuwen adjusted his smile to appear as gentle and refined as possible, then clasped his fist in a salute.
"Sir, my apologies for the disturbance. I am a traveler passing through and was hoping to find lodging for the night. I was wondering if you might be able to offer me that convenience?"
