Chapter 89: Chapter 89: A Myriad-Mile Dragon’s Roar, a Heaven-Shaking Change

Fang Shuwen nearly laughed. He shook his head gently:

"A man has to be true to his word.

"You just said you couldn’t. How can you go back on your word now?"

A wave of misery washed over the red-robed man.

He had come here on orders. The reason he’d been so brazen was that he hadn’t considered Fang Shuwen a threat in the slightest.

He never could have imagined that Fang Shuwen’s Martial Arts were so formidable.

Even a combined strike from all the men he’d brought with him couldn’t defeat him.

Though his own palm strike had been hasty, it had been filled with Inner Strength—the culmination of his life’s Power channeled into a single blow.

Yet it had crumbled on contact.

’This man... just what are his origins?’

As misery churned in his heart, he heard Fang Shuwen speak up.

"However, I must admit I’m quite curious about your group. If you’re honest with me, perhaps..." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

The red-robed man’s heart stirred, but then he gave a bitter laugh:

"I can’t. I’ll die if I talk."

"Then start with what won’t get you killed."

Fang Shuwen said nonchalantly:

"Your life depends on the value of your information."

The red-robed man was silent for a moment, then he said:

"We aren’t the only ones in Flying Snow City trying to seize the Seven-String Ancient Chapter.

"The Book Immortal, Murong Qingchen, is there as well, so... we’ve deployed a great number of people.

"I was just ordered to... take care of you as a side task."

"A fine ’side task’ indeed."

Fang Shuwen shook his head and let out a dry laugh.

The red-robed man said hastily:

"We absolutely weren’t underestimating you..."

"Relax."

Fang Shuwen said nonchalantly:

"What you think of me is completely unimportant.

"But I’m not interested in the Seven-String Ancient Chapter. Your information is meaningless to me."

The red-robed man fell silent again before finally speaking:

"But... I don’t dare talk about anything beyond our arrangements in Flying Snow City..."

Fang Shuwen nodded:

"Then talk. I may not be interested in the Seven-String Ancient Chapter, but I never said I wasn’t interested in your intel."

"...We have other experts inside Flying Snow City right now."

The red-robed man paused, glancing at Fang Shuwen’s face. Seeing no change in his expression, he continued:

"Our primary goal, while keeping an eye on Murong Qingchen, is to ambush the people from Jinghua Pavilion...

"They have an agreement with Wu Lingxiao. They’re providing a physician to save his life, and in return, Wu Lingxiao will give the Seven-String Ancient Chapter to Jinghua Pavilion as payment.

"For now, though, no one knows where Jinghua Pavilion’s experts are hidden."

"Jinghua Pavilion..."

Fang Shuwen thought for a moment and said:

"Tell me about Jinghua Pavilion."

"...I don’t know much about them myself."

The red-robed man began to speak without any hesitation:

"I only know that the Pavilion Master of Jinghua Pavilion is named Ye Feihua.

"People often use a couplet to describe him... ’Neither mist nor flower, beyond all sight; a whispered rumor, a fleeting thought, a thousand different faces.’"

Fang Shuwen repeated the two lines to himself, then asked:

"And what does that mean?"

"He is a master of the Non-Flower Attraction, a technique that allows him to transform into anyone in the world.

"The technique is so flawless that even those closest to the person being imitated would not notice anything amiss."

The red-robed man said in a deep voice:

"Therefore, the people of Jinghua Pavilion are often hard to track.

"That’s why there’s a saying: ’Jin Ling is easy to find, but Jinghua is hard to track down.’"

"From the sound of it, are you saying... Ye Feihua is in Flying Snow City right now?"

Fang Shuwen’s heart stirred. He couldn’t help but gaze in the direction of Flying Snow City. It seemed the commotion there was truly going to be something out of the ordinary.

First, the Book Immortal, Murong Qingchen. Now, the Pavilion Master of Jinghua Pavilion, Ye Feihua.

Sure enough, the red-robed man nodded.

"The Seven-String Ancient Chapter is too important. Of course it would attract major figures from the Jianghu."

But Fang Shuwen was still puzzled:

"If they’re so capable, why would they need an escort?"

"...Only the Pavilion Master can use the Non-Flower Attraction. The others can’t.

"Besides, those two physicians only practice medicine; their Martial Arts are average at best.

"They don’t want to attract attention, so naturally they must find a way to blend in with the crowd.

"And as for Ye Feihua... how do you know he isn’t among your traveling party?"

The red-robed man’s words sent a chill down Fang Shuwen’s spine.

He narrowed his eyes for a moment, then smiled:

"Then what about the big shot of your group?"

"He can’t come..."

The moment those words left the man’s mouth, Fang Shuwen’s brow furrowed.

A wisp of green smoke began to rise from beneath the man’s hood. Panic-stricken, the red-robed man tried to struggle to his feet.

Fang Shuwen’s eyes narrowed as he clamped a hand down on the man’s shoulder.

With a surge of the North Nether Divine Technique, the red-robed man felt all the qi in his body rush toward the Laogong Acupoint in Fang Shuwen’s palm.

Including the Fire Force that was erupting within his body.

In a matter of moments, his Inner Strength was completely drained.

He paid it no mind, however. He subconsciously patted his chest, then his arms. He was already severely wounded from the earlier blow, but he ignored the intense pain, crying out in delighted surprise:

"I, I’m actually still alive!!

"Wonderful! I’m still alive!!"

Fang Shuwen clicked his tongue.

"So careless of you. How did you suddenly let slip something you weren’t supposed to say?

"But going by what you said, the person backing you isn’t coming? Is that why he sent you to ambush the people from Jinghua Pavilion, hoping to seize the Seven-String Ancient Chapter?

"But how can you be sure the Seven-String Ancient Chapter will actually end up in their possession?

"And not be taken directly by Ye Feihua? After all, from what you’ve said, his techniques—neither flower nor mist—sound truly incredible."

"..."

The red-robed man was then reminded of the deadly threat standing right before him. Moreover, with his True Qi completely drained by Fang Shuwen, his future looked bleak, even if he had managed to survive.

But he couldn’t worry about that now. He thought for a moment before replying:

"That’s not our responsibility... We’re relying on ’that person’ in Flying Snow City."

"Who is ’that person’?"

"...A very important person.

"Deeply trusted, he was raised from a young age by the side of... our leader. His skills in both literature and Martial Arts are far beyond those of his peers.

"When we meet him, we must obey his orders without question."

Fang Shuwen nodded upon hearing this, and asked again:

"It seems the Divine Fire Seal on you is gone. Why not tell me what those six words really meant?"

"It wasn’t six words."

The red-robed man subconsciously shook his head and said:

"It’s ’A dragon’s roar shakes the heavens across ten thousand li; upon the Ten Directions’ Throne...’"

His voice trailed off, growing slower and slower.

While Fang Shuwen stared in stunned silence, he saw the red-robed man’s head begin to swell, stretching his hood taut.

Acting on instinct, Fang Shuwen shot out a kick, sending the man flying a dozen yards away. Before the body even hit the ground, there was a thunderous explosion.

A rolling heatwave spread in all directions, the red-robed man’s headless corpse already engulfed in a sea of fire.

For a moment, even Fang Shuwen’s pupils couldn’t help but contract.

’I clearly used the North Nether Divine Technique to drain every last bit of True Qi from his body.’

’How was there still a hidden trap?’

’And I was completely oblivious to it?’

"Leaving things half-said... It’s like asking to be struck by lightning."

Fang Shuwen’s brow was tightly furrowed:

"’A dragon’s roar shakes the heavens across ten thousand li; upon the Ten Directions’ Throne...’ What Emperor?"

After a moment of contemplation, Fang Shuwen snorted coldly. With a flick of his sleeve, he returned to Lu Guiyan and the others.