Super Allrounder

Kapitel 41

He looked around the hall and said again, "'The Traceless' organization has been a menace to the martial arts world for many years and has a long history of bloodshed. Baili Prefecture must investigate and punish them to give the world an explanation."

Qiao Fenglang laughed loudly: "Young Master Qingyi speaks so succinctly. But I can't help but be curious and must ask: how did you find out all the grudges and intricacies involved? And how did you know that I am the master of 'Wuhen'? As far as I know, Baili Prefecture has been investigating the origins of 'Wuhen' for ten years without any leads. How did you suddenly have divine assistance and even find my 'Wuhen' headquarters?"

Baili Qingyi smiled and said, "To paraphrase an old saying, if you don't want others to know, then don't do it in the first place. Although Brother Qiao's plan is meticulous, it is not without flaws."

Qiao Fenglang coldly snorted: "What flaw? She's just a woman, a woman that neither of us could bring ourselves to eliminate completely." He pointed at Mu Li.

Mu Li suddenly realized: "Xiao'er, it's Xiao'er! No wonder you, Baili Qingyi, were so enthusiastic. So all your pretense and sweet talk were just to use Xiao'er to find out the truth! Baili Qingyi, you are so despicable!"

Qiao Fenglang glanced at Mu Li with disdain: "What right do you have to call someone despicable? If we're talking about exploitation, who hasn't exploited Xiao'er? My innocent sister—no, now it's Madam—is the one who exploited her. All of this was just an unexpected disaster for her. Her mistake was getting involved with you and me. Don't you think so, brother?"

Mu Li was terrified: "You... what do you intend to do?" He brandished his longsword, "Hand over Xiao'er immediately, or my Qiao Gang... my Qiao Gang and the Nine Villages and Eighteen Sects will not let you go!"

Qiao Fenglang casually took out a short dagger and carefully wiped it: "No need to rush. Since I have set up this wedding banquet today, I have naturally made full preparations. Neither you nor the young master in blue should expect to step out of my 'Traceless' place."

As soon as he finished speaking, the short dagger in his hand shot out like lightning, embedding itself three inches in front of Mu Li's feet in a slightly protruding stone slab. Before anyone could react, the entire hall suddenly shook violently, and except for the area where Qiao Fenglang was standing, the rest of the ground collapsed, and everyone screamed as the hall plummeted straight down.

Baili Qingyi instinctively felt a fierce, upward-blowing wind beneath his feet; it turned out that there was a cliff below the hall! His extraordinary crisis response allowed him to quickly and cleverly draw a long whip from a person beside him. With a flick of his arm, one end of the whip hooked onto a protruding rock on the ceiling of the hall, while the other end wrapped around a pillar beside him. The downward momentum of the entire ground was slightly halted by this momentary pull. Just before the whip could no longer bear the weight and was about to break, three more whips wrapped around the rocks. Holding the dangling whips, Baili Qingyi used the momentum to leap away, and then unleashed a palm strike using all the skills he had ever possessed.

The panicked cries of the crowd abruptly ceased. At this critical moment, Baili Qingyi single-handedly used her palm to push the falling foundation away from its straight downward trajectory, causing it to plunge more than ten feet to the side into the cliff face!

However, the foundation still couldn't withstand the weight of so many people, and it broke in two from the middle. One half fell to the bottom of the cliff, while the other half remained on the cliff face. Mu Li and the others managed to grab onto the edge of the foundation and slowly climbed up to the safe half. Looking at the bottomless, misty cliff bottom, they breathed a sigh of relief in terror.

Qiao Fenglang coldly glanced at Baili Qingyi, who was dangling in mid-air, gripping a long whip tightly, and sneered, "Young Master Qingyi, I still underestimated you."

Baili Qingyi looked at the people who couldn't escape to the safe half of the foundation in time and had to fall with the other half. Her eyes turned cold: "I underestimated you. I didn't expect that you would kill even your 'Wuhen' group in order to kill me."

Qiao Fenglang laughed triumphantly: "Of course, otherwise how would you, Young Master Qingyi, have fallen into this trap?" He glanced at Mu Li with disdain, "That incompetent fellow is not worth my time and effort."

Baili Qingyi leaped to Qiao Fenglang's side, her face extremely serious: "What other tricks do you have up your sleeve?" If this was all Qiao Fenglang had to offer, he wouldn't be worthy of being the treacherous and ruthless master of "Traceless".

Qiao Fenglang nodded approvingly, "Young Master in blue really understands me." He tilted his head slightly to look at the struggling crowd below, "Young Master in blue, why don't you guess what would happen if an explosive were detonated up there right now?"

Even though Baili Qingyi had experienced countless trials and tribulations, she couldn't help but feel a chill upon hearing these words.

As if sensing Baili Qingyi's thoughts, Qiao Fenglang turned away casually. Once the explosives detonated, everyone below the cliff would inevitably fall like beans spilling from a bamboo tube during the powerful earthquake. Given Baili Qingyi's character, he wouldn't refuse to save them, but in this situation, he himself was barely able to protect himself, let alone save others. He refused to believe that he couldn't risk Baili Qingyi's life.

Baili Qingyi narrowed her slender eyes and suddenly lunged forward with unpredictable movements, pointing the tip of her sword directly at Qiao Fenglang's heart before he could react: "You dare?"

Qiao Fenglang looked down at the long sword pressed against his chest and suddenly sighed: "The martial arts skills of the young master in blue are indeed something I could never catch up to even if I practiced for another twenty years. It's just a pity that the person controlling the explosives will not hesitate for the slightest because of my life or death."

He looked up, as if calling out softly, or perhaps talking to himself: "Master, what are you waiting for?"

What? Baili Qingyi suddenly looked up. On the cliff not far away, due to the collapse of the hall, the stone walls had crumbled, revealing a large area of crystal wall.

※ ※ ※

"You saw everything?"

Inside the secret chamber, the strange man straightened his sleeves and leaned down to look Yin Wuxiao directly in the eye, his eyes hidden beneath his mask.

"They... fell down?" Yin Wuxiao's voice trembled.

"What did you say? Say it again!" Yuwen Cuiyu shouted anxiously, her back to the crystal wall.

"They... fell off the cliff..." Yin Wuxiao murmured to herself. Due to limited visibility, she could not see what was happening below the cliff, but could only see the ground in the hall sinking.

"What?" Yuwen Cuiyu's face turned ashen. "Who? Who did you say fell off the cliff?"

"Are you satisfied now? Isn't what you wanted them to kill each other? Are you satisfied now?" Yin Wuxiao looked at the strange man with a mixture of sorrow and anger.

“Satisfied?” the strange woman repeated, feigning surprise. “No, far from it.” She pointed to another handle by the bed. “Do you see that? Do you know what will happen if I press it?”

"What consequences?" Yin Wuxiao felt a sense of foreboding.

“Explosives, of course it’s explosives.” The strange man chuckled coldly. “What in this world is more interesting than explosives? As long as I pull this handle down, all those ‘Wuhen,’ all those Qiao Bang, all those Qiao Fenglang, all those Mu Li, all those Qingyi Gongzi, will vanish into thin air, as if they never existed in this world at all.”

"What good will it do you to do this?"

"Hmph, watching them perish together is the greatest benefit to me."

"No...you shouldn't do this." Yin Wuxiao struggled to raise his upper body slightly. "What about your hatred? Who do you hate? Who wronged you? If you kill indiscriminately like this, what's the point of all your previous love and hatred?"

"Silly girl, silly girl..." the strange man laughed, "How did I teach you? Love and hate, they're all superfluous!"

Yin Wuxiao was stunned.

She suddenly looked behind the strange man: "Mansi, you've come!"

The strange man was startled and turned around abruptly, only to find no one behind him.

"Hmph, you think you can use this as an excuse to stall for time? Too bad, you can't fool me. The mechanisms in my secret chamber are unparalleled in the world. Not to mention Shi Mansi, even if the Old Man of Tianshan himself came, he wouldn't be able to get in!"

"Really? I don't think so," Yin Wuxiao said with a calm smile. "Then tell me, where has your good disciple gone?"

"What?" The strange woman was shocked to realize that Yuwen Cuiyu, who should have been pinned behind her, had disappeared.

"No, impossible, no one can get into this secret room... but she couldn't possibly have broken through her acupoints on her own... Who? Who is it? If you have the guts, come out. What kind of hero hides like this? Come out! Come out!" the strange man shouted like a madman.

"Didn't you say that no one can enter this secret room? Since there's no one, it must be a ghost, it must be a ghost! Guess whose ghost it is?" Seeing her going crazy, Yin Wuxiao quickly added fuel to the fire.

"Shut up!" the strange man roared in a panic, slapping Yin Wuxiao across the face with a loud, crisp sound. "Don't try to scare me! You little brat, do you think I don't know your tricks? You think you can fool me and escape? You're dreaming!"

"You don't believe me?" Yin Wuxiao ignored the blood gushing from his mouth. "Then who's behind you? Is it your uncle? Uncle, please save me!"

"Qiao Baiyue?" The strange man couldn't help but turn around, but there was still no one behind him.

"You're lying to me! There are no ghosts here! I don't believe you!"

"Can't you see him? He's right there! Look, he's got a knife, he's about to stab me!" Yin Wuxiao shouted.

"You..." The strange man struggled in fear and confusion, his body already dodging before his reason could react.

Yin Wuxiao laughed loudly: "Didn't you not believe me?"

The strange woman gritted her teeth: "Whether there are ghosts or not, I'm going to ignite this explosive today! I'll blow you all up first and see what that old ghost Qiao Baiyue can do to me!" She leaped up and reached out to pull the lever.

The situation was critical. Before he could catch his breath, Yin Wuxiao blurted out, "Aunt Yun!"

The water chestnut flower knows my fragrance and jade.

The strange man was struck dumb upon hearing the sound.

What did you call me?

Yin Wuxiao slowly raised her gaze, fixing her unwavering eyes on the strange man. If her shout in desperation just now was merely to stop the strange man's mad act of igniting the explosives, then the strange man's current reaction was enough to confirm her judgment.

“I said, Aunt Yun.”

"You..." The strange man took two steps back. "What nonsense are you talking about? What Aunt Yun? Who is your Aunt Yun?"

“You don’t need to deny it! My uncle told me it was you, Aunt Yun, it was you.”

"It wasn't me! It wasn't me!" the strange woman screamed, as if provoked. She backed away and turned, shouting at the empty air and ceiling, "Qiao Baiyue, you bastard! Even in death, you can't let me have peace?!" She spun around angrily, but still couldn't see a single person. "I'll kill you! I'll kill you all!"

Yin Wuxiao vaguely felt the ropes binding her being silently loosened. She turned her head slightly, and what came into view was Shi Mansi's magnified face.

"Shh..." Shi Mansi hid behind the stone platform and gestured to her to be quiet before continuing to untie her restraints.

While Aunt Yun was in a frenzy, Yin Wuxiao mouthed to her: Where is the exit?

Shi Mansi pointed to an inconspicuous brick in the corner and mouthed in response: Don't worry, I left a mark.

"Don't worry about me, go get reinforcements first!" Yin Wuxiao urged her urgently. The reason Aunt Yun hadn't noticed Mansi was because she was currently delirious. Once she regained her senses, they would all die here together!

However, it was too late to signal. Shi Mansi's pupils dilated as she stared ahead.

"So it was you." Aunt Yun finally noticed her. "How did you know the location of the secret chamber's mechanism?"

Shi Mansi chuckled and withdrew her hands, which were untying the knot, while backing away, she still couldn't help but be defiant: "You underestimate me too much. I don't even care about this kind of trap."

Aunt Yun looked at her, her eyes flashing with anger, but then she suddenly laughed. She reached out and took off her mask, revealing her fair skin and beautiful face, untouched by the ravages of time.

"You're quite stubborn, let's see how long you can keep it up."

She clenched her left fist and made a claw with her right, attacking Shi Mansi with unpredictable moves.

"Wow!" Shi Mansi hurriedly responded, shouting as she struggled to keep up, "I only said I understand mechanisms, I didn't say I'm a martial arts expert!"

Watching the two exchange blows, Yin Wuxiao was extremely anxious. Although she did not understand martial arts, she could tell that with Aunt Yun's skill, Mansi's rudimentary skills would not last more than twenty moves against her.

Suddenly, Yin Wuxiao felt a sense of liberation in her left hand. She looked up and saw that the one who had finally freed her from her restraints was Yuwen Cuiyu, whose acupoints had been released by Mansi.

“You…” Yin Wuxiao looked at Yuwen Cuiyu in surprise, then at the two people in the battle circle, his pleading was all too clear.

Yuwen Cuiyu avoided her gaze.

"Don't even think about it, I won't make a move."

"If you... if you don't intervene, we'll all die here!"

A hint of a smile flashed in Yuwen Cuiyu's unfocused eyes: "What difference does life or death make to me?"

"Even if you don't think about yourself, you should think about Brother Fenglang. Don't you want to ask him yourself whether he ever truly loved you back then?"

“…” Yuwen Cuiyu glanced at her, “I don’t want to.”

"Aren't you curious? Or are you afraid to ask? You're afraid the answer will make everything you've done seem even more absurd."

Yuwen Cuiyu looked at her again: "You're about to die, and you still have the mind to meddle in other people's business?"

"I... I can't just stand by and watch this absurd thing happen, even if I die right now! Someone has to stop it!"

Yuwen Cuiyu remained silent for a long while: "Where is your young master in blue? Didn't he come? Don't you trust him?"

“This has nothing to do with whether you believe it or not. You can’t always put your hopes on others. I have to do something!” Yin Wuxiao used her last bit of strength to grab Yuwen Cuiyu’s hand: “Please!” She looked at Yuwen Cuiyu with an unyielding determination in her eyes.

Yuwen Cuiyu's lips twitched slightly, and a ripple finally appeared on her emotionless face.

“…Okay, I’ll help you.” She stepped forward, then turned back and left with a single sentence:

"Miss, you're living a life that's too tiring for you."

Suddenly, a rumbling sound came from the mechanism being forcibly opened, and a familiar black figure leaped into the secret room, joining the battle and surrounding Aunt Yun with Shi Mansi and Yuwen Cuiyu.

It's Cen Lu!

Yin Wuxiao felt a little relieved. With Cen Lu around, even if the three of them combined their strength, they couldn't contend with Aunt Yun. But at least Cen Lu would risk his life to protect Man Si.

So now there's only one problem: how to dismantle this explosive device.