Urban Martial Saint

As the four of them reached the entrance of the cave, Nalan Jingwei hesitated to enter rashly. After all, this matter involved Du Canglang, and Du’s strength is not much inferior to Fu Qingping’s.

Someone beside Nalan Jingwei walked a little inside the cave, looked around, and said in a deep voice, ”Traces show someone has been here. It seems this is the hiding place of Du Canglang. The cave is quite deep, I wonder if he’s hiding inside.”

Upon hearing this, the other three were also delighted. Now, the four peak masters had gathered, dealing with Du Canglang would be no difficulty; the key was finding him.

”If that’s the case, let’s all go in and search for him,” Huang Yunfeng said in a deep voice. ”I refuse to believe Du Canglang has such great skills that he could handle all four of us!”

”Three people would suffice.” Nalan Jingwei shook his head and said in a deep voice, ”We don’t know if there are forks in the cave. If all four of us entered and chose the wrong path, letting them escape would be for naught. How about you all go in while I guard outside? Even if there are forks inside, they won’t escape through the entrance. If anything happens, I’ll call out to you immediately, how about it?”

The three of them exchanged looks and nodded, agreeing with Nalan Jingwei’s suggestion. Thus, without hesitation, Nalan Jingwei stayed outside while the other three ventured into the cave.

Though the cave was dark, there were no actual forks. However, fearing a possible ambush from Du Canglang hiding in the shadows, Huang Yunfeng and the two proceeded cautiously, alert to any possible attacks while searching. Despite the cave being short, it took five minutes to reach the end, finding nothing along the way.

Reaching the end wall, Huang Yunfeng and the three were puzzled, wondering, ”This is it? Where’s everyone?”

The other two looked around, shocked, but the cave was a straight path forward with no hiding spots. They hadn’t seen Du Canglang or Ye Qing, indicating their absence.

”Could they have already escaped?” an elder said solemnly.

Huang Yunfeng and the other elder exchanged glances, preparing to speak, when a long whistle rang out from outside—it was Nalan Jingwei.

”Not good!” Huang Yunfeng exclaimed, immediately sprinting out. The other two elders dared not delay, following quickly.

It had taken them five minutes to reach the cave’s end, but exiting took less than ten seconds at full speed.

At the cave’s entrance stood four individuals: naturally, Nalan Jingwei and, aside him, Fu Qingping, Huangfu Ziyu, and Wolf Monk. The three watched Nalan Jingwei coldly, especially Huangfu Ziyu, who had already drawn her Sun Shooting Bow, ready to release an arrow at any moment.

Faced with these three, Nalan Jingwei was highly alert, taking no chances. He knew among them, Wolf Monk’s strength was slightly inferior to his; as for Huangfu Ziyu, holding the Sun Shooting Bow, she could safeguard herself against peak masters, thus considered an initial-stage master. Most terrifying of all was Fu Qingping; he alone could defeat him easily.

Thankfully, the other three emerged quickly, standing behind him moments later. With reinforcements, Nalan Jingwei felt relieved; both sides were now on even ground, reducing his worry.

”Senior Fu, your speed truly is swift!” Nalan Jingwei smilingly said, gazing at Fu Qingping, ”We haven’t been here long, and you’ve arrived too. Seems like you’ve been following us.”

”Not following—simply coming to find you!” Fu Qingping glared at the three behind him, ”Hmph, no wonder you’re so bold; you’ve conspired with these two elders.”

The two elders frowned but, facing Fu Qingping, stayed silent. As peers of his era, they understood Fu Qingping’s might and dared not dispute with him.

Nalan Jingwei asked curiously, ”Senior Fu, you’ve come for us? For what reason, might I ask?”

”Nalan Jingwei, stop pretending!” Huangfu Ziyu chastised sharply, suddenly loosening her grip on the Sun Shooting Bow, and an air arrow shot forth. The fierce energy of the arrow was unparalleled, slicing through the air with a piercing whistle.

Facing this air arrow, Nalan Jingwei didn’t even bother to dodge, and the arrow didn’t hit him, only brushing past his body and shooting into the rocky mountain behind him. The hard rock couldn’t withstand the power of the air arrow, shattering on impact, demonstrating the formidable power of the Sun Shooting Bow.

This arrow, Huangfu Ziyu did not actually intend to kill Nalan Jingwei, just wanted to scare him a bit. Nalan Jingwei was so skilled that as soon as Huangfu Ziyu made her move, he knew the arrow’s trajectory, and thus didn’t bother to dodge.

Nalan Jingwei had witnessed the power of the Sun Shooting Bow, so he paid it no mind. However, the three men behind him, including Huang Yunfeng, were startled by its power. They had only heard that the bow’s strength was comparable to that of a Peak Master, but hadn’t expected it to be so formidable. This strike was almost as powerful as their full strength attack.

Previously, everyone saw Huangfu Ziyu without much concern. But this arrow made the three men, including Huang Yunfeng, look at her with newfound respect. With the Sun Shooting Bow, Huangfu Ziyu could at least hold off one of them!

Huangfu Ziyu saw that the arrow hadn’t intimidated Nalan Jingwei, her brow furrowing more tightly, and she said through gritted teeth, ”Nalan Jingwei, last time in Shenchuan City, you and we joined forces to deal with the Corpse Ghost Dragon, and the previous grudges were said to be settled. Whether it’s the Seven Steering Committees of Hong Alliance or the Kill Gate, they haven’t pursued your previous matters. Yet you repay kindness with enmity, and now want to deal with Ye Qing, what is the meaning of this?”

”Miss Huangfu, how is this repaying kindness with enmity?” Nalan Jingwei replied, ”Last time, our grudges indeed were settled. You don’t trouble me, and I never said I would seek revenge on you. Besides, I don’t intend to deal with Ye Qing, I just want to borrow the Buddha’s Relic he has, what’s wrong with that?”

”Nalan Jingwei, don’t you feel embarrassed saying this?” Huangfu Ziyu said in a deep voice, ”You clearly covet the Buddha’s Relic in Ye Qing’s possession, intending to seize it, yet you dare claim it’s just borrowing?”

Nalan Jingwei laughed, ”Miss Huangfu, your words are a bit too much like seeing others with a villain’s heart.”

Huangfu Ziyu angrily exclaimed, ”You are nothing but a complete hypocrite!”

Nalan Jingwei smiled faintly, ”Miss Huangfu, when your grandfather was alive, he didn’t dare speak to me like this. Haven’t you learned to respect your elders during your years at the Shen Family Manor?”

Huangfu Ziyu was even angrier, as Nalan Jingwei was basically saying she was uneducated. Just as she was about to speak, the Wolf Monk interjected, ”Nalan Jingwei, let me say one thing. Ye Qing has saved both me and my senior brother. Thus, anyone worldwide looking to make trouble for him is our enemy. If your Nalan Family seeks to be our enemy, go ahead, but one day my senior brother and I will pay a visit to the Nalan Family!”

Hearing this, Nalan Jingwei’s face also turned grim. His Nalan Family had long been at odds with Xiaolin Temple, and the Joyous Monk already had no small enmity with the Nalan Family, and he never liked anyone from Xiaolin Temple to begin with. Now with the Wolf Monk’s words, he was naturally even more upset.

”Hmph, the master has quite the big talk!” Nalan Jingwei coldly replied, ”Nowadays, I’m certainly not the only one looking for Ye Qing. At this moment, out of ten Acme level masters in the world, nine are searching for Ye Qing. If the master and the Sect Master of the Kill Gate wish to oppose all these people, aren’t you opposing all the Acme level masters under heaven? Hmph, if this was a few decades ago when Xiaolin Temple was still around, perhaps I wouldn’t dare say anything. But now, hehe...”

Nalan Jingwei didn’t continue but was clearly mocking the Wolf Monk. Xiaolin Temple is no longer around, yet you dare speak such big words?

The Wolf Monk’s expression changed as well, clenching his fists tightly, staring intently at Nalan Jingwei, already harboring killing intent. Nalan Jingwei, equally unafraid, met the Wolf Monk’s gaze with cold eyes. Should the Wolf Monk make a move, he would instantly dash out and have a showdown.

Fortunately, at that moment, Fu Qingping finally spoke. He glanced at Nalan Jingwei’s group and slowly removed the Qingping Sword from his back, coldly stating, ”Nalan Jingwei, if the three of us face off against your four, what do you think the outcome would be?”

Nalan Jingwei didn’t expect Fu Qingping to suddenly pose such a question, instinctively starting to calculate in his mind. Fu Qingping’s side had only three people. There’s no need to mention Huangfu Ziyu, as with the Sun Shooting Bow, she could at most protect herself, with one Peak Master to block her. However, defeating her wouldn’t be an easy task either, due to the mystical power of the Sun Shooting Bow. As for the Wolf Monk, he could certainly be suppressed with his own strength. This meant two people would be left to deal with Fu Qingping.

Fu Qingping’s strength was something Nalan Jingwei had witnessed before. If he hadn’t fought Fu Qingping before, he’d certainly think that two Peak Masters would have no difficulty dealing with him. But now, he was as clear as a mirror in his heart. If two Peak Masters were to duel Fu Qingping, it would be courting death. If Fu Qingping were to use that move, Sword Slash the World, even two Peak Masters wouldn’t be enough for him to kill.

So, after a comprehensive consideration, Nalan Jingwei clearly understood in his heart. Despite Fu Qingping’s side having only three people, if it truly came to a fight, their four might not be able to win.