Pure Yang Temple of Eternal Life. In the blink of an eye, the Spider Shadow assassins had all withdrawn, leaving only Su Muyu standing alone in the courtyard. He gently adjusted his mask and said softly, “Come out.”
The door of the Taoist temple was gently pushed open, and Xie Changze and Xie Jinke walked in from outside.
“As expected of the renowned Umbrella Ghost, we were confident that we hadn’t made a single sound, yet you still sensed our arrival.” Xie Changze said with a smile.
“The wind has shifted,” Su Muyu said calmly.
Xie Changze was taken aback for a moment, then nodded in agreement. “Truly extraordinary.”
Su Muyu tilted his head slightly. “The Xie family’s Ghost in Purple Boots and Blade Demon shouldn’t be here.”
Xie Changze took a step forward. “Our family head heard that the Patriarch was seriously injured and is anxious to bring him back to the main hall for treatment.”
Su Muyu extended a finger and drew a faint line in front of Xie Changze. “Do not cross this line. The Patriarch is fine, everything is well. Please return and report to the Xie family head that his concern is appreciated. The Patriarch is guarded by the Spider Shadows, so there’s eveno need for him to worry.”
Xie Changze looked behind Su Muyu. Ever since he entered, he had been trying to sense the presence of anyone else in the temple, but aside from Su Muyu, he could detect nothing. Frowning, he said, “Is the Patriarch all right? Please allow me to see the Patriarch to confirm. If I go back without confirmation, it will be hard to explain.”
Su Muyu said indifferently, “Your difficulty in reporting back has nothing to do with me.”
Xie Changze’s pupils constricted slightly, and he said coldly, “Could it be that the Patriarch is truly injured, but you, as his Kui, are deliberately concealing it with ill intentions, preventing us from providing timely treatment?”
“That’s a plausible reason, but for it to hold, there’s only one possibility,” Su Muyu said, with a hint of killing intent in his tone.
Xie Changze stepped forward, crossing the line that Su Muyu had just drawn. “I have to kill you!”
“Exactly.” Su Muyu spread his sleeves wide, and the killing intent intensified abruptly.
“It’s said that you’ve recreated the Eighteen Sword Formation created by the first Su family head, Su Shiba. I’ve heard much about it and would love to see it for myself!” Xie Changze drew the flexible sword from his waist and thrust it directly at Su Muyu’s chest.
“My sword formation is not for everyone to see!”
Su Muyu extended two fingers and directly clamped Xie Changze’s flexible sword. With a gentle flick of his fingers, the entire blade vibrated violently. Xie Changze felt a sharp pain in the webbing between his thumb and index finger, and the weapon in his hand almost slipped out. Wanting to retreat, he hurriedly withdrew the sword, but it was too late. Su Muyu had already grabbed Xie Changze by the throat with one hand.
Before becoming the Kui, Su Muyu was known as the strongest of the current generation of Su family disciples. Xie Changze considered himself one of the best among his generation of the Xie family. While he didn’t believe he could defeat Su Muyu alone, he didn’t expect to be defeated in just one move.
But fortunately, he didn’t come alone.
Blade Demon, Xie Jinke, was already behind Su Muyu, his golden ringed broadsword raised high. He swung it fiercely towards Su Muyu’s head. Su Muyu pressed Xie Changze to the ground with one hand and then bent down. A crisp sound rang out as Xie Jinke’s sword struck the oil-paper umbrella but could not penetrate further.
“There’s something wrong with this umbrella!” Xie Jinke shouted.
Xie Changze drew a dagger from his waist and thrust it toward Su Muyu’s chest. Su Muyu lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot and retreated three steps back. Leisurely, he said, “Even with the two of you together, you’re not qualified to see my sword formation.”
Xie Changze got up and retreated to Xie Jinke’s side. “That umbrella is his sword!”
“I’ll handle this!” Xie Jinke shouted angrily, his broadsword dancing wildly. The fierce energy of his strikes shook the entire Taoist temple, and even the statue of Lüzu inside the main hall trembled, seemingly about to fall at any moment.
“The Wind Dancing Blade of the Xie family,” Su Muyu said as he took the oiled paper umbrella from his back and clashed it with Xie Jinke’s broadsword. Both of them simultaneously took a step back.
“You should regret not using the Eighteen Sword Formation from the start.”
At some point, Xie Changze had appeared behind Su Muyu. He swung his flexible sword forward, wrapping it around the paper umbrella that Su Muyu held.
Su Muyu tried to break free, but he found that Xie Changze’s flexible sword was several times stronger than before, and he couldn’t shake it off for the moment.
“You…” Su Muyu said in a deep voice.
“When facing the Umbrella Ghost, one must always have a backup plan,” Xie Changze sneered.
Xie Jinke stopped and, with his broadsword in hand, charged towards Su Muyu with large strides.
“A message for Old Master Xie.”
Su Muyu abruptly waved his hand, and the oil-paper umbrella suddenly opened. Xie Changze’s flexible sword instantly shattered into dozens of pieces, which Su Muyu then flung towards Xie Jinke. Xie Jinke hastily switched from offense to defense, swinging his broadsword to deflect the shards to the ground
Su Muyu spun around, the tip of his umbrella pointed at Xie Changze’s throat.
“What message?” Xie Changze asked in a low voice.
“If you stop now, then the Patriach can pretend not to have seen anything that has happened during this time.” Su Muyu retracted the umbrella. “You can leave now, and deliver the message.”
Xie Changze breathed a sigh of relief. “You’re not going to kill us?”
“Fellow members of the Dark River are family.” Su Muyu said indifferently.
Xie Changze let out a disdainful laugh and exchanged a glance with Xie Jinke. Then, with a light tap of their feet, they swiftly retreated from the Taoist temple.
“It seems those two from the Xie family are truly incompetent, they couldn’t even force you to use your Eighteen Sword Formation.”
A voice tinged with mockery suddenly rang out from outside the courtyard.
Su Muyu sighed. His sigh was one of genuine helplessness, for the person he least wanted to see at this moment was the one standing before him.
Su Changhe of the Dark River’s Su family.
“Good brother, long time no see.” Su Changhe walked in from outside the courtyard.
Su Muyu shook his head. “At a time like this, you’re the last person I want to see.”
“The old man asked me to give you a message,” Su Changhe said lazily. “You’re the leader of the Spider Shadows, but you’re also a disciple of our Su family.”
“The Kui is a ghost among men. I belong to the Dark River, but not to any single family.” Su Muyu’s voice remained calm.
Su Changhe curled his lip. “You’re always so serious, it’s no fun at all. “
“When you were a nobody, you practiced swordsmanship diligently from dawn to dusk. When you became an assassin, you completed every mission flawlessly, without a single mistake. Now, even as the Kui, you remain so conscientious. Your Patriarch is on the brink of death, and yet you still insist on being buried with him?”
“The Patriarch is fine. You shouldn’t spread such rumors lightly,” Su Muyu said in a deep voice.
“Don’t talk to me about this,” Su Changhe interrupted Su Muyu impatiently. “The Patriarch was struck by Second Master Tang’s Snowfall Plum Blossom. He’s practically half-dead, otherwise, he wouldn’t have come here looking for some junior disciple of Xin Baicao.”
“Kill him and bring the Sleeping Dragon Sword. Our master will take the position of Patriarch. You can choose to continue being the Kui, return to the Su family, or even attain what you desire most—freedom.”
“Freedom?” Su Muyu murmured.