Chapter 19
The patter of raindrops continued .
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The rain filmed the whole world with a layer of mist, leaving everything blurred and grey .
In the small alley, raindrops kept hitting the black stones of the street, splashing high .
Yi Yue, holding the umbrella, had a look of disbelief on her foxy face .
Ni Yu’s eyes were wide, too . Her mouth was in the shape of an “O” as she gazed at the handsome man wearing a straw cape and hat in front of them .
This guy… How dare he say something like that?
The Young Master was nothing if not petty . This wouldn’t end well .
1Lu Fan narrowed his eyes . He looked at Han Lianxiao through the filter of rain pouring from the edge of the oil-paper umbrella . Han Lianxiao’s smile became hazy .
Lu Fan laughed . He clapped his hands softly .
“That makes sense . I’m just a paralyzed scholar who appears to know nothing more than poem-writing and girl-chasing . It is bold indeed for me to ask for a favor like that of you,” Lu Fan responded .
Han Lianxiao raised his eyebrows a little .
Everyone said that because of his paralyzed legs, Lu Changkong’s son was easily irritated and bad-tempered . Yet, based on what Lu Fan had just said, it seemed that the rumors were unreliable .
He actually seemed like a very good-tempered guy .
“Since you have made such an accurate evaluation of yourself, Young Master Lu, you might as well get out of the way . ” Han Lianxiao motioned gently with the wooden flute .
His voice was soft, but his tone was cold and heartless .
Nie Changqing staggered to his feet .
Blood was still leaking from the corner of his mouth, and his face was pale from the cold rain .
“Young Master Lu, I appreciate that you came to help, but this is my problem . It won’t do you any good to get involved . ”
Nie Changqing’s voice trembled a bit .
“Yet I do have only one favor to ask you, Young Master Lu . I humbly beg that you take my son . He’s just a child . He’s innocent . ”
Sitting in his wheelchair, Lu Fan held his chin with one hand and flipped some raindrops off his thin woolen blanket with the other .
The little alley was cramped and extremely narrow, just like the dark, cloudy sky above it .
“Junior Brother Nie, now you are drawing Young Master Lu into something he doesn’t need to be involved in . His Excellency’s order was to take you and Shuang’er back . Particularly Shuang’er . His Excellency has been missing him a lot . ”
Han Lianxiao flipped the raindrops off his wooden flute as he spoke .
Although his voice was still cordial, the authoritative tone was hard to miss .
Nie Changqing’s face reddened with anger . He stared at Han Lianxiao, his eyes growing wide and intense .
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No wonder Han Lianxiao had shown up here . He had come for Nie Shuang!
Slap!
Lu Fan struck one of the armrests of his wheelchair, producing a loud cracking noise .
The explosive sound was like a clap of thunder in the rainy little alley .
Ni Yu jumped .
Yi Yue was startled too . Ning Zhao, who stood at the very front of the group, raised her Cicada Wing Sword a little . Her Qi and blood, along with her Spirit Qi, stirred . Her long silk dress and obsidian hair seemed to dance in the air .
Lu Fan raised one hand to slightly dab the corners of his eyes .
“A father’s love is like no other . This kind of love always kills me . It reminds me of my kind father, who is now waiting for me to come home, safe and sound, and have a meal with him .
“It also reminds me of the saying, ‘When the tree wants to remain still, the wind keeps blowing; when the child wants to take care of the parents, they’re long gone . '”
Lu Fan looked down with his eyes full of sorrow . Then he looked back up and eyed Han Lianxiao . A dangerous smile crossed his lips .
“I almost forgot to ask where you came from, sir . In Beiluo City, what gave you the courage to refuse to do me a favor?”
Lu Fan’s voice echoed in the narrow, rainy little alley .
Han Lianxiao frowned and stared at Lu Fan . The atmosphere in the alley was growing tenser with every passing second .
Lu Fan’s stare made Han Lianxiao shiver .
Clenching his wooden flute tightly, he forced that budding chill to evaporate with his inner power, which was burning like a furnace .
“You hear ‘Song of the Waves,’ you see Daoist Number Nine, Han Lianxiao . I’m with the Daoists, one of the Hundred Schools of Philosophy,” Han Lianxiao said .
Slap!
As soon as Han Lianxiao finished his sentence, Lu Fan slapped at the armrest again .
“D*mn it! Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”
“Judging from the pretentious way you carried yourself, I thought you were one of the Gold and Silver Guards sent by the Imperial Adviser from the Capital City to take Mr . Nie out . You had me worried!”
“A Daoist? Who the heck do you think you guys are? How dare you refuse to do me a favor in Beiluo City, my home?”
Leaning against the wheelchair, Lu Fan sneered at the man in contempt .
The alley was suddenly silent .
Nie Changqing stared at Lu Fan in shock .
He wasn’t sure if Lu Fan was pretending he didn’t know where Han Lianxiao came from, or if he truly had no idea .
Regardless, could Lu Fan have been any more of a snob and a bully?
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A grin flashed across Yi Yue’s foxy face . Ni Yu rolled her eyes . The Young Master was always like this, no matter what the situation .
Ning Zhao raised her sword . A string of raindrops fell off the tip of it . She pointed it right at Han Lianxiao .
Han Lianxiao’s smile faded away . He stared at Lu Fan, seemingly confused about why Lu Fan was acting so presumptuously .
What did he have up his sleeve? This entry-level Grandmaster maid?
“Young Master Lu, what are you doing?” Han Lianxiao’s tone became cold and annoyed .
“You talk too much . ” Lu Fan gestured with his hand . “Sister Ning, take care of him . ”
Buzz…
As soon as Lu Fan finished his sentence, the sword in Ning Zhao’s hand started vibrating . Two streams of Spirit Qi in her Qi Core flared up like a flame in a furnace .
It was as if the sword was cutting the curtain of rain in two .
The blinding sword leapt for Han Lianxiao like a lightning bolt .
Raindrops continued to fall from Han Lianxiao’s rain hat as the man ignored Ning Zhao’s charge . Instead, he kept his eyes on Lu Fan .
“A Grandmaster maid . Lu Changkong has made some interesting arrangements for you, that’s for sure . This maid’s got some power . I heard that outside of Beiluo City’s gate, her sword held back four Grandmasters…”
Han Lianxiao’s face lit up again with a broad, amused smile .
He gently raised his wooden flute .
“Young Master Lu, you are not a Grandmaster yourself, so you may have some misunderstandings about the power of Grandmasters . As for the mysterious and powerful Hundred Schools of Philosophy, you know even less . Next to nothing, in fact . ”
“As for this maid of yours… Even though her Qi and blood seem pretty special, that doesn’t give you the right to act with such outrageous arrogance . ”
Crack!
Han Lianxiao’s wooden flute flashed out to meet the point of Ning Zhao’s sword .
When they came into contact, Ning Zhao felt a chill run down her spine . Her eyes darkened .
The wooden flute suddenly split right where it met the sword .
Numerous tiny wooden strips laced themselves around the sword and ended up locking all of Ning Zhao’s joints .
She couldn’t move at all .
Ning Zhao’s umbrella fell to her feet . The rain began to soak her whole body .
“When it comes to fighting experience, this maid of yours is a mere First Resonance Grandmaster . She’s no match for me,” Han Lianxiao said blithely .
He clasped his hands behind his back, completely ignoring the bound Ning Zhao .
As a First Resonance Grandmaster, it would take some time for her to escape the trap . Han Lianxiao had asked an expert who specialized in mechanisms to craft the mechanical lock in his wooden flute .
He started walking again, water splashing out from each step in miniature waves .
He locked his eyes on Lu Fan, stepping toward him . Arrogant superiority and cold pride radiated from the man . He looked like some deity who was prepared to act as judge, jury, and executioner for Lu Fan .
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Nie Changqing raised his butcher knife .
Han Lianxiao casually slapped the knife away, barely stirring his Qi and blood to do so . It flew up into the air before clattering back to the ground .
Han Lianxiao didn’t even look at Nie Changqing . In his eyes, Nie Changqing was worthless .
The tendons in his hand were destroyed, and his Qi and blood were pretty much dead .
The once-powerful Grandmaster swordsman was now no better than a First-Tier martial arts practitioner .
Han Lianxiao didn’t have time for that . Instead, he kept walking toward Lu Fan with that same smile on his face .
“The heavy rain, a narrow alley, and a perfect night for killing . I’ve got the right time, place, and people around me . With everything in my favor, nobody will even know it if I kill you . ”
“If I don’t, it’ll be like wasting a perfect chance granted by heaven!”
Han Lianxiao’s voice grew more chilling and creepy with every word . He made no effort to conceal his intent to murder them all .
“Now, let me introduce myself one more time . I’m Han Lianxiao, Daoist Number Nine, a Fifth Resonance Grandmaster . ”
He suddenly stomped .
Boom!
Water sprayed away from his stomp in seven-foot-high fountains, as if creating a storm .
Yi Yue’s face changed dramatically . She grabbed her whip and hopped in front of Lu Fan .
But Han Lianxiao merely struck the rain with the flat of his hand, sending countless tiny raindrops into Yi Yue . She flew back, spitting out blood .
Now that Han Lianxiao had decided to kill Lu Fan, he wouldn’t hesitate at all .
He was from the martial arts world, and Lu Fan was the son of the city master of Beiluo City, part of the emperor’s forces .
Once he took action, there was no way out .
He couldn’t afford to leave any evidence behind .
Though the Great Zhou Dynasty was in the middle of a crisis, the Imperial Adviser was still holding the Hundred Schools of Philosophy in check .
Han Lianxiao stared straight at Lu Fan in the wheelchair . Such sweet rosy lips and glowing white teeth!
In his eyes, Lu Fan was pathetic . In the face of death, the cripple couldn’t even run in fear
because of his paralyzed legs .
“Die!” Han Lianxiao roared .
With a straightforward slap, he sent the raindrops before him hurtling forward . As the raindrops flew, he prepared to cut Lu Fan’s throat with the edge of his fingers as a blade .
In the wheelchair, Lu Fan knitted his eyebrows tightly . The rain came at his face in the wind like tiny cold knives . His clothes were soaked . Behind him, Ni Yu’s legs shook as she clutched the oil-paper umbrella in her arms .
But she didn’t run .
She was simply staring at the frightening monster that Han Lianxiao had become .
Lu Fan breathed out and slowly closed his eyes .
Ning Zhao had failed, which was unexpected . But that wasn’t all he had .
He could have given Ning Zhao more Spirit Qi . However…
This time, Lu Fan decided otherwise .
He focused his consciousness .
On the stats page, he withdrew five points from his 6 . 5 points of Soul Strength .
He could exchange one point of Soul Strength for 10 wisps of Spirit Qi .
Instantly, Lu Fan’s Spirit Qi was boosted from zero to 50 wisps .
Then Lu Fan opened his eyes .
He looked straight into Han Lianxiao’s eyes as Han Linxiao dashed toward him . Lu Fan’s expression was impassive, unshakeable .
His Qi Core was like a furnace .
His consciousness was waving inside him . Lu Fan used the cultivation method of Daoist Spirit Transmission he had revised for Nie Changqing with the All-Method Furnace .
In the next second, Lu Fan could feel a reaction from the 50 wisps of Spirit Qi in his Qi Core .
Lu Fan still appeared to be sitting quietly in his wheelchair, yet 50 wisps of light blue Spirit Qi started flowing around him, intertwining .
Boom!
A tremendous pressure came out of nowhere .
When that pressure landed on Han Lianxiao, it drove him instantly to his belly on the wet ground in the little alley .
The ridiculous pressure made it almost impossible to look up .
One side of his face was pressed tightly against the ground, where water splashed up nonstop as if trying to get away from him .
His whole body was pinned to the ground . He couldn’t move .
He was shaken .
“What… what is happening?!”
Han Lianxiao’s eyes were full of disbelief, as if he had just seen a ghost .
In the center of the whirling Spirit Qi, Lu Fan gently wiped off the droplets of water that had landed on his thin woolen blanket . He glanced at Han Lianxiao, who was pinned to the ground with his legs splayed out awkwardly behind him .
Lu Fan casually leaned back into his wheelchair and gave the man a half-smile .
1“I’m a cultivator . This is Spirit Pressure . ”
“An insignificant trick . ”