417 Xunyang City's First Answer

As expected of the world's third-ranked assassin, Liu Qing's movementtechniques were truly abnormal. Just as Chen Changsheng spoke to him, Liu Qingturned into a puff of smoke and vanished into the rain. When he reappeared, hehad gotten extremely close to the buckskin horse with its silently bowed head.And yet…his sword still pierced into Chen Changsheng's body! Su Li had taught Chen Changsheng three swords, and now he used all three ofthem. He was growing increasingly proficient with them, and that feeling ofliving and dying together was growing ever more unyielding, so much so that ithad reached the realm that he could call upon it at any time. No one knew howmany more uses of the Mount Li Sword Style's final move Chen Changsheng's trueessence could support, but he managed to persist until this point. Blood spurted out from below Chen Changsheng's ribs and then was speedilywashed away by the pouring rain. His face was pale and his expression wasrather wooden, as if he could no longer feel the pain. But in fact, hisspiritual sense was still quickly turning, calculating what this terrifyingassassin's next move would be. At the same, he had to keep track of the battleoccurring at the other end of the street between Zhu Luo and Wang Po. This was a requirement of the Intellectual Sword. The time of day, theterrain, the surroundings—everything must be calculated. Chen Changsheng staredat that assassin's ordinary and unremarkable appearance, always thinking thatthere was some problem with his calculations. He didn't understand why hisblood would abruptly lose all its scent, and even less understood why hisopponent's sword was not as frightening as he had imagined. After bathing in dragon blood, his body's strength far exceeded that of oneobtained from a perfect Purification. For Liu Qing's sword to so easily piercethrough was already a testament to its power, but according to ChenChangsheng's calculations, Liu Qing's sword should be even more frightening. Hehad already suffered seven strikes, yet he could still stand in the rain andhadn't collapsed. Why was this? Those seven strikes had all happened in an instant, so rapidly that even therain only had time to accumulate a little on the pieces of broken walls. Boththose distant spectators, as well as the people hiding elsewhere in XunyangCity, had no time to react. As the torrential rain washed the long streets,only the figures of five people and one horse could be seen in the gloom. Wang Po stood in the rain, his metal blade having cleaved countless cracks inthe space in front of him in order to resist that endless light coming fromthat end. The edges of those cracks were already extremely bright, illuminatinghis body. Those lights were all Zhu Luo's sword glows, as gentle as themoonlight, yet impossible to hide from. Every sword glow that landed on WangPo's body left behind a straight cut, allowing blood to flow out. He had already become a man of blood. An even more torrential rain would stillfind it impossible to wash away the blood. Besides the sound of the rain, there was no other sound in the streets. Therain crashed down like thunder and was very noisy, but those people surroundingthe scene felt that it was actually very quiet. Liang Wangsun, Liang Hongzhuang, and those people who were willing to pay anyprice to kill Su Li were silently waiting for Chen Changsheng to fall down. XueHe and Hua Jiefu, representatives of the two great powers of the Great ZhouImperial Court and the Orthodoxy, continued to maintain their silence. Thosepriests and soldiers that had hidden themselves within and without Xunyang Cityalso remained quiet. It was because of Wang Po's silence and perseverance, because of ChenChangsheng's determination. Everyone knew that the Saints desired Su Li'sdeath, and Zhu Luo was only implementing the will of the Saints. Wang Po andChen Changsheng could be considered the strongest experts of their respectiveage groups, but when compared to the Saints, in the end, they were but meremortals. Their current opponents were experts whose strength and cultivationfar surpassed theirs, but they relied on their wills, and the explosivestrength of theirs that was difficult to describe in words, to persist. Seeingthose two figures in the rain, who could not be moved? Wang Po was a powerful figure of Scholartree Manor. Chen Changsheng was thesuccessor of the Orthodoxy. There was no friendship between them and Mount Li,and they originally should have even been competitors, but in order to let SuLi survive, they had battled with the will of the Saints up to this point. Whydid they act this way? They did not like Su Li's temperament. If this were anyother time, they probably would not fight for his life in such a manner, butfor now, they would not allow his death. Su Li should not be heavily injuredfor the sake of the war between the humans and demons and then be killed by thehuman world. This was a betrayal, a truly shameless action. In this matter, Wang Po and Chen Changsheng firmly believed that they were inthe right and it was the Saints that were wrong. Then, in this matter, it was their choice that was sacred and inviolable. Their reasoning was just this simple, but to carry it out was extremelyarduous. Su Li sat on the horse, watching the figure of Chen Changsheng in front of himand the figure of Wang Po even further away. That carefree emotion about himhad disappeared to some place quite some time ago. Until Wang Po and Chen Changsheng fell, Su Li would not die—this was the jointconclusion of everyone in Xunyang City. Wang Po's death would inevitably shakethe south and its impact would be massive, but if it was for killing Su Li,this was a price that could still be paid. The problem lay with the fact thatno one hoped to see Chen Changsheng die. Chen Changsheng was the Principal of the Orthodox Academy, the successor ofthe Orthodoxy. The Pope wanted Su Li to die, but he absolutely did not wantChen Changsheng to die. It was just that the Pope sitting in the Li Palace inthe faraway capital probably could never have imagined that Chen Changshengwould lay down his life for the Li Palace's most powerful enemy. From Xue He to Liang Hongzhuang, from Xiao Zhang to Liang Wangsun, from themilitary fort to Xunyang City—Chen Changsheng had battled the entire way.Although he had been on the verge of death several times, ultimately, he didnot truly confront the menace of death precisely because no one wanted him todie. Now it was different. Liu Qing was an assassin. Although he also did notwant Chen Changsheng to die at his hands, he had already been paid and killingSu Li was his mission. These people that highly valued money, such as Zhexiu,all prioritized completing their mission. This point was even more importantthan their own lives, so it was naturally more important than some otherperson's life. In the first seven strikes, Liu Qing had tried not to kill ChenChangsheng. However, he had realized that if he did not kill Chen Changsheng,he really would be unable to kill Su Li…so he must kill him then. Liu Qing's expressionless face gazed at Chen Changsheng and then once again hestabbed forward. Only this time, his sword was not aimed at Su Li but directlythrust at Chen Changsheng. Upper level Star Condensation assassins were a raresight. Just how frightening would a certain kill strike from this sort ofassassin be? Before Chen Changsheng had even taken on the blow, he wasassaulted by the darkness of the night, as if this strike had obliterated thelight. Chen Changsheng knew that he was about to die. He had lived day and night withthe shadow of death for several years, and he was most sensitive and mindful ofdeath. But now, he didn't much care for it, or perhaps it was better to saythat there was no time to care for it. No one could change this matter. The still-not-recovered Su Li could not, andthe man of blood bitterly enduring in the rain that was Wang Po also could not.Hua Jiefu and the other priests naturally wanted to block this attack from LiuQing, but they only had time to shout. Currently in Xunyang City, there was only one person that could prevent ChenChangsheng's death. That person was Zhu Luo. He was a legend that had stepped into the Divine Domain. Although his swordglows had been blocked by Wang Po on that side, as long as he was willing topay the price, he could still think of a way to reach the other end of thestreet. Suddenly a crack appeared in the rain clouds, and light burst forth. In therain on the streets, it seemed like the Moon of the demons had appeared. Itseemed like a ghost, and yet it was also real. The metal blade was incomparably firm in the storm. Zhu Luo was still at thatend, but another middle-aged man with his hair draped over his shoulderssuddenly appeared in front of Su Li. It was a mystical existence that wasalmost a complete copy. Moon in Water: this was a movement technique, and could even be called adivine art. At the most critical moment, this supreme expert of the continent had finallyexecuted his most powerful technique. He extended his hand and grabbed Chen Changsheng, tossing him to the side andleaving Su Li for Liu Qing. It was just this sort of simple appearance, a simple toss, and a simplepermission. Zhu Luo had resolved all difficulties. He would permit Chen Changsheng to live. He would permit Su Li to die. In addition, the one to kill Su Li would be this assassin. It would havenothing to do with him. Even if he was Zhu Luo, for his hands to be stained with the blood of theJunior Martial Uncle of Mount Li would also bring troubles. He was truly worthy of being one of the Storms of the Eight Directions. The storm enveloped Xunyang. Originally, this situation had always been in his grasp. It was simply impossible for Chen Changsheng to avoid Zhu Luo's hand. He saw Liu Qing's sword plunge past his body and stab at Su Li. He knew that there was nothing he could do. He was somewhat depressed and then exhausted. Yet at this point, he suddenly realized that someone was laughing. No, it was more accurate to say that there were two people laughing. The first person to laugh was Liu Qing, his laughter somewhat strange. The person to laugh next was Su Li, his laughter somewhat sorrowful andcomplex. Why were these two people laughing? Just who truly had a hold over thesituation? The instant that Liu Qing's sword did not pierce into Su Li's body but insteadpierced into Zhu Luo's phantasm…