Urban Martial Saint

Looking at Shijia’s solemn demeanor, Ye Qing put away his playful thoughts and asked softly, ”Master, what should we do about the Purple Lotus Karma Fire on the child? Could it really never be extinguished in his lifetime?”

”Why are you in such a rush?” Shijia replied, ”The Purple Lotus Karma Fire is on him, not you. Besides, the child has already fallen into a deep state of Zen Meditation Realm, which seems to be related to the Karma Fire. Such a meditation state is hard for most people to enter. Since he’s in it, don’t wake him up lightly; it’s immensely beneficial for him.”

”How long will he sit then? He hasn’t eaten all day!” Ye Qing said.

Shijia replied, ”When the Buddha meditates, ten years is just a blink of an eye, and he never spoke of eating or drinking. This child has only been sitting for a few days, why eat?”

”The Buddha is the Buddha, but he is not the Buddha. The Buddha doesn’t starve, but could he starve?” Ye Qing said urgently.

”Ah, I say you’re really clueless. I’m with the Buddhist Sect, wouldn’t I know?” Shijia said, ”Trust me, it’s fine, just let him sit like this. He won’t starve. If he dies of hunger, I’ll pay for it with my life, how about that?”

Ye Qing looked helplessly at Shijia. He could never fully believe this old man’s words. However, in this situation, he couldn’t wake up the Broom Star, so he’d have to leave it be.

”Don’t worry, since he’s in a Zen Meditation Realm, when he wakes up, there’ll surely be a way to resolve the Purple Lotus Karma Fire,” Shijia patted Ye Qing’s shoulder and said, ”Besides, with the Karma Fire on him, it’s like he has armor. Even the Corpse Ghost Dragon wouldn’t dare attack him!”

”That’s true,” Ye Qing nodded. He was about to speak when he suddenly recalled something and said urgently, ”Wait, you... you just placed your hand on his head, why are you fine?”

Shijia replied, ”Nonsense, I, the Buddha Master, was long ago burned by the Purple Lotus Karma Fire, my Karmic Power completely incinerated, leaving only this pure Buddha body. Now even if you throw me into the Purple Lotus Karma Fire, it wouldn’t harm me in the slightest!”

”Really?” Ye Qing looked at Shijia in astonishment, not expecting that this old man had such an experience. Ye Qing was well aware of the pain from being burned by the Karma Fire. For Shijia to have already burned through his Karmic Power was truly no simple feat.

”When have I ever lied to you!” Shijia scoffed, leading Ye Qing out of the room, closing the door behind them, and whispered to Ye Qing, ”Young Ye, you need to be careful. You can’t tell anyone about this child’s situation. If it gets out, it will definitely be very troublesome!”

”I know!” Ye Qing nodded. Given that it concerned the life and death of the Broom Star, he certainly wouldn’t be careless.

As they spoke, the two of them had already walked to the hall. As they entered, they saw Helian Tiehua storming in from outside. Behind him, two people were dragging someone in, and that person was none other than Ao Wuchang’s son, Aomuhan!

Aomuhan’s hair was disheveled, his nose bruised and face swollen, looking as if he’d just been beaten. With a frightened expression, he looked at Ye Qing upon entering the hall, with a trace of resentment in his eyes, yet mostly fear.

The two men dragged Aomuhan into the hall and tossed him directly onto the ground. Aomuhan struggled to stand up but was kicked behind the knee by someone nearby, forcing him to kneel directly.

Looking at Aomuhan, Ye Qing frowned slightly. He had previously suspected Aomuhan of using underhanded tactics against Li Lianshan, so he was on guard against him. Unexpectedly, Helian Tiehua had brought him so quickly.

”Great General, what’s going on?” Ye Qing asked curiously.

”Sigh,” Helian Tiehua sighed heavily and said in a deep voice, ”On my return, I felt that there were issues within the Seven Steering Committees of the Hong Alliance, so I specifically assigned some people to watch those suspicious individuals. Turns out, I was right, Aomuhan was secretly reporting to Shen Qianyue!”

Ye Qing’s expression turned cold as he looked at Aomuhan and said sternly, ”So you’re saying that the incident with Li Lianshan last time was also his doing?”

”It seems it must be,” Helian Tiehua replied coldly, glancing at Aomuhan. He said sternly, ”Aomuhan, confess honestly, did you deliberately set up Li Lianshan last time?”

Aomuhan quickly quivered and said, ”Uncle Helian, I... I really don’t know what happened with Li Lianshan, it really has nothing to do with me...”

”Still stubborn at this point!” Helian Tiehua slammed the table and said angrily, ”I’ve assembled people from the Seven Families, and soon they’ll publicly judge you. It won’t be as easygoing as I am. Let’s see how long you can remain stubborn then!”

Aomuhan visibly shuddered. He knew very well what a public trial by the Seven Families entailed.

Before long, Ao Wuchang rushed in from outside first. He had received the message from Helian Tiehua and had come back immediately. Seeing Aomuhan kneeling in the hall, his expression changed as he hurried over and said, ”Great General, what on earth has happened? Muh Han, what has he done to make you so angry?”

”If it were only me he angered, it wouldn’t matter. As his elder, would I hold a grudge against a junior?” Helian Tiehua said solemnly, ”He hasn’t angered just me, but the entire Seven Families, the entire Seven Rudders of the Hong Alliance, and all the people of Huaxia!”

”Huh?” Ao Wuchang said in shock, not understanding why Helian Tiehua was speaking so seriously.

At this moment, members from the other Seven Families arrived one after another. Seeing the situation on site, everyone was taken aback, not knowing what had transpired.

”Enough, let’s wait until everyone is here before discussing.” Helian Tiehua waved his hand and said, ”You all sit down first.”

Looking at his son kneeling in the middle of the hall, Ao Wuchang felt a deep sense of reluctance in his heart. However, he also understood Helian Tiehua’s character, knowing that his son must have committed some unforgivable mistake, which was why Helian Tiehua convened the Seven Families for a public trial. In this situation, Ao Wuchang could only sit down in the side with everyone else, praying fervently that his son wouldn’t do anything too outrageous, otherwise, even he wouldn’t be able to protect him!

In less than five minutes, members of the Seven Families all assembled. Along with them came Shen Tianjun and a group of martial elites. Now everyone was collectively dealing with the Corpse Ghost Dragon, discussing matters concerning it.

Once everyone was seated, Helian Tiehua stood up directly, repeating to everyone the words he had said to Ye Qing earlier. Finally, he produced a cassette tape, saying in a deep voice, ”The contents of this tape are his words when calling Shen Qianyue. He told Shen Qianyue everything about us, including Master Shijia’s arrival. Now, the Corpse Ghost Dragon knows all our secrets!”

Upon hearing this, the originally unaware crowd erupted in fury. Especially the members of the Seven Families, who stood up one by one to angrily reprimand Aomuhan.

Aomuhan sat on the ground, his expression one of indescribable terror. Even his words had been recorded, leaving him no room to deny.

Ao Wuchang sat helplessly beside him, never imagining it would be this matter. He knew all too well the severity of the situation; as a father, he absolutely could not protect Aomuhan!

Helian Tiehua looked at Aomuhan, speaking solemnly, ”Aomuhan, everyone is here now. I’ll ask you again: Did you do the last incident with Li Lianshan?”

”I... I didn’t...”

Just as Aomuhan uttered these three words, Ao Wuchang suddenly stood from his seat, rushed over to him, and slapped him several times without a word, shouting angrily, ”Tell the truth!”

Ao Wuchang struck him particularly hard, and after several slaps, Aomuhan’s face was swollen on both sides, with blood oozing from the corners of his mouth and nostrils.

Having been slapped by his father several times, Aomuhan was visibly bewildered. After a while, he finally came to his senses, looking fearfully at his father, then at everyone present. Ultimately, the overwhelming pressure was too much for him, and he burst into wails.

”About that incident, I... I didn’t mean to, it was Bai Qinghuan, he... he framed me, I was tricked by him...” Aomuhan cried out.

”What?” The Patriarch of the Bai Family immediately stood up, pointing angrily at Aomuhan, ”What does this have to do with Qinghuan? Don’t spew slander!

Ao Wuchang glared at the Patriarch of the Bai Family, saying in a deep voice, ”Why are you in such a rush? Listen to him finish!”

”He’s smearing my Bai Family, am I not allowed to justify myself?” The Patriarch of the Bai Family replied angrily.

”Whether it’s slander or not will be clear after hearing him out. You’re so quick to refute, are you feeling guilty?” Ao Wuchang retorted not willing to back down.

”Who are you calling guilty?”

”I’m talking about you, what’s wrong with that?”

”Say it again...”

The two family heads started to insult each other right on the spot, the atmosphere was so charged, it seemed they might start fighting at any moment.

Helian Tiehua frowned deeply, suddenly gritting his teeth and roaring, ”Sit down, all of you!”

Helian Tiehua’s inner strength was formidable, and this roar from his Dantian was like the roar of a lion, deafeningly loud. The two who were arguing were startled by the sound, flinching in unison and taking a step back. They looked at Helian Tiehua in surprise, then glanced at each other, and ultimately could only return to their seats in a huff.

The Great General had a mighty presence; even the heads of the Seven Families dared not challenge him.

”Right and wrong will be clear once he finishes speaking. Why are you in such a rush to shed responsibility!” Helian Tiehua glared at the two, then turned to Aomuhan, saying in a deep voice, ”Aomuhan, continue. Remember to speak thoroughly, explain every detail clearly. Don’t let any wrongdoer escape, but also don’t falsely accuse any good person!”