Great Li Martial God

”Four against one. Does none of you dare?”

Huo Mu’s young voice rang through the courtyard building.

The expressions of Dugu Yan’s group all darkened at once. And at the same moment, Huo Shan could no longer hesitate, and moved to forcibly pull Huo Mu away.

If he waited any longer, with the state his daughter’s head was apparently in, she might truly be left a simpleton for the rest of her life.

”You are looking for death!”

The young man from the Dugu family suddenly erupted with a shout, drew his sword, and charged straight toward Huo Mu.

Huo Shan’s eyes flashed with fury and he raised a palm, intending to slap the young man directly away.

At that, Dugu Yan raised a hand and sent a streak of sword energy directly at Huo Shan, saying coldly, ”Elder Huo, you had best just sit still.”

...

”Just fight normally. Right now you are invincible.”At the same time, that drifting voice reached Huo Mu’s ear. The girl with blood at the corner of her mouth tightened her grip on her silver spear.

Then she fixed her eyes on the young man rushing toward her and moved without hesitation.

She did not know why the hidden master wanted her to fight one against four. She did not know what grounds they had. She did not know whether they would truly help from the shadows.

But fighting one against four at her age was simply too thrilling to resist. Her blood was already boiling.

”That is right. In this moment, I am invincible!”

In the instant Huo Mu’s slender hand drove the spear forward, she said this to herself inwardly.

In this moment, she was without fear. And a person without fear, regardless of their strength or weakness, cannot be defeated.

Clang!

The silver spear tip met the sharp sword edge, and the ringing clash of spear on sword echoed through the entire courtyard building.

And in the next instant, the young man’s sword shattered inch by inch, then burst apart in a shower of iron splinters.

The young man’s figure became a blur as he was sent flying backward, and in moments he had crashed through the wall of the building and disappeared.

At the same moment, whether it was Huo Qifeng, Huo Shan now blocking the sword energy, or the three members of Dugu Yan’s group, none of them had registered what had happened in time.

No one had anticipated that Huo Mu’s spear strike would be so overwhelming, so far beyond any strength she should have had. That Dugu family young man had not lasted even a single exchange.

”This is bad.”

The blue-robed elder was the first to react. His figure vanished instantly and rushed out of the building.

Before long, he returned carrying a young man covered in blood.

The young man had already lost consciousness, and one of his arms, the one that had held the sword, was simply gone, leaving an empty space.

It appeared that the immense force Huo Mu had channeled into her spear strike had blasted his entire arm into a red mist.

”How did this happen?”

Dugu Yan rushed immediately to the young man’s side, his expression a mixture of shock and fury.

The young man was the youngest son of the current Dugu family head. And now he was in this state. How was Dugu Yan supposed to answer for this when he returned?

”It is not just the arm. The meridians and elixir field within his body are destroyed. He will never be able to practice martial arts again.”

The blue-robed elder channeled his true qi to sustain the young man’s life, saying this in a very dark tone.

Dugu Yan froze for a moment, then his entire being surged with killing intent. He spun immediately toward Huo Mu standing with her spear, ”Vicious creature!”

At the same time, Huo Mu herself was somewhat dazed, looking at her own hands in disbelief, ”How am I this strong?”

But before she had time to think further, Dugu Yan had already struck with the force of thunder, his true qi exploding outward, his figure flashing into a jet-black sword light in an instant, cleaving through the space before him.

In almost no time at all he was above Huo Mu’s head, driving straight down, holding nothing back, clearly intent on taking her life.

”Dugu Yan, you dare!”

Huo Qifeng and Huo Shan, who had come back to themselves, were both wild-eyed with fury and immediately moved to intercept him.

”Am I truly invincible?”

Huo Mu suddenly raised her slightly young face and looked directly up at the terrifying sword light bearing down on her head.

There was not a trace of fear in her expression. Instinctively, she raised her spear and drove it upward.

In an instant, the spear shot out like a dragon. A burst of brilliant silver radiance erupted from the spear tip, and thread after thread of dazzling spear light surged out like a tide, crashing upward to meet the descending black sword light above.

In the next moment, the terrifying sword light formed by Dugu Yan throwing his whole body into the strike was shattered and scattered by a single hit.

Then, just like the young man before him, the man was sent flying upward, bursting a large hole straight through the roof of the building.

Everyone instinctively looked up, and could just barely see Dugu Yan’s figure shrinking as it flew higher and higher into the sky.

Huo Shan and Huo Qifeng, who had both been moving to stop Dugu Yan, stood frozen in place, staring at this scene with expressions that clearly showed they had not caught up with what had happened.

At the same time, a blazing brightness erupted in the dark eyes of the small girl Huo Mu.

The master had said she was invincible, and she truly was.

In the next instant, she gripped her silver spear, stepped forward, and turned sharply to face the blue-robed elder holding the young man, saying coldly, ”I said one against four. But you kept coming one at a time. The next one is you, old man.”

The purple-robed girl at that moment, having tested herself against the young man and Dugu Yan, was fully certain that at some unknown moment she had come to possess tremendous and extraordinary power.

As she spoke, the small figure radiated a complete and overwhelming presence. She had no fear whatsoever of the blue-robed elder before her, whose martial cultivation was formidable.

At those words, the blue-robed elder’s expression shifted rapidly across his aged face.

When Huo Mu had struck against Dugu Yan earlier, he had watched intently and examined her situation carefully. And what he found completely beyond comprehension was that he had detected no anomaly from first to last.

Huo Mu was still a teen of only innate realm cultivation, and no unusual Martial True Qi had fluctuated around her. All the power she had demonstrated appeared to come entirely from that slight frame, with no trace whatsoever of anyone else acting on her behalf.

”What is happening here?”

The blue-robed elder murmured unhappily, looked down at the young man in his arms, and then looked at the white-robed girl who had already collapsed against the floor.

”We concede. I can dissolve the sword prison for you.”

In the end the blue-robed elder turned and spoke to Huo Mu.

The situation before him was simply too inexplicable, and he had absolutely no confidence in his ability to overcome this purple-robed girl. His only option was to step back for now.

”Too late. You say concede and that is the end of it? It does not work that way.”

But Huo Mu had no intention of letting them go.

The Dugu family were predatory and ruthless. They had already seized some of the Huo family’s spear manuals through underhanded means, and now they had come directly to pressure the Huo family and try to seize what remained. There was no way she was going to simply let them off.

In the next instant, Huo Mu moved of her own accord, gripping her silver spear with both hands, stepped forward, and charged directly at the blue-robed elder.

”I am so fast!”

In the moment she shot forward, Huo Mu inwardly cried out in astonishment.

She had never imagined she could move this quickly. In the blink of an eye she was already in front of the blue-robed elder.

”You are definitely not this Huo family girl. Who are you really?”

The blue-robed elder’s expression went sharp, and he immediately clutched the young man and retreated out of the building. At the same time he had already become almost entirely convinced that Huo Mu must be a master in disguise. There was simply no other explanation for how an ordinary person could have such formidable power.

”I am who I am. Who else would I be?”

Huo Mu pressed forward with her spear, giving chase without pause, attacking the blue-robed elder again.

At that, the newly recovered Huo Qifeng and Huo Shan exchanged a glance and immediately ran to follow.

Though Huo Mu was frighteningly strong right now, they were still afraid something might go wrong.

Very quickly, the entire courtyard building held only Li Musheng, Li Yuanling, and the others, along with the white-robed girl who had collapsed on the floor.

”I knew you would step in.”

Li Yuanling, who had not said a word throughout, suddenly turned to look at Li Musheng.

Li Musheng just shrugged and said, ”Can’t help it. I dislike watching people show off in front of me.”

At those words, the big black cat, whose eyes had been rolling about busily, immediately stood up straight and let out a series of flattering meows toward Li Musheng, gesturing earnestly with a paw.

At the same time, Li Yuanling glanced at Li Musheng, and a barely perceptible warmth flickered in her eyes. This adopted elder brother of hers was ultimately not the kind of person who had profound martial cultivation yet was cold and indifferent to those around him.

Li Yuanling thought this privately, then looked at the big black cat with some puzzlement, ”What is going on with it?”

Li Musheng glanced at the cat and naturally understood perfectly what it meant.

It had seen how Li Musheng had made Huo Mu this formidable so effortlessly, and wanted Li Musheng to do the same for it, so it could go out and show off.

”Ignore it.”

Li Musheng waved a hand, too tired to bother with the cat.

He then turned his gaze slowly toward the outside of the courtyard building.

Not far away, a gray-robed elder was pushing a wooden wheelchair toward the building.

In the wheelchair sat an old man with white hair and white clothing. His features were not particularly aged, and there was a mild and gentle quality about his eyes and brows, as though he were a scholar who had spent a lifetime among books.

Before long, the gray-robed elder had wheeled the white-haired old man to the doorway of the building.

Li Yuanling had naturally noticed them, and immediately went to meet them, ”Great-Uncle, Second Uncle, you have finally come.”

At those words, the gray-robed elder with thick brows and large eyes clasped his hands in a bow, ”Your humble servant pays respects to Your Highness.”

The old man in white looked at Li Yuanling with a gentle smile, ”My legs no longer work as they should. Please forgive me for not bowing to Your Highness.”

Li Yuanling waved her hand and put on a deliberately stern face, ”I have long since told all of you, we do not need such formalities between us. Otherwise I simply will not come to visit anymore.”

At those words, the gray-robed elder and the white-haired old man both smiled and shook their heads.

At that moment, Huo Shan, Huo Qifeng, and Huo Mu, who had been chasing the blue-robed elder, all came walking back in from outside the courtyard.

”Pity the old one got away. But I drove my spear clean through his abdomen, so the injury should be serious.”

The purple-robed girl said this with the crisp energy of someone who had just come back from something exciting, dragging a blood-soaked young man by one hand. The blue-robed elder, only focused on escaping, had left him behind.

Beside her, Huo Shan was carrying Dugu Yan, who had long since lost consciousness after Huo Mu’s spear sent him flying and he had plunged into a nearby courtyard, where Huo Shan had gone and retrieved him.

”Elder Brother, Second Elder Brother.”

At that, Huo Qifeng saw the gray-robed elder and the white-haired old man, and immediately moved toward them.

He was about to explain everything that had just happened, but the gray-robed elder waved a hand and stopped him for the moment.

Then the gray-robed elder’s gaze rested on Huo Mu for a moment, then shifted to Li Yuanling, and he asked suddenly, ”May I ask what brings Your Highness to the Huo family’s residence today?”

At those words, Li Yuanling’s expression shifted, and she hesitated visibly for a moment. Then she turned to look at Li Musheng in the main hall.

Rather than answering the gray-robed elder’s question, she paused, then introduced each person one by one, pointing from the white-haired old man in the wheelchair to the gray-robed elder and the others.

”This is the Great Li Champion Marquis, Huo Xian.”

”This is former General of the Light Cavalry, Huo Zhen.”

”And this is...”

...

After Li Yuanling had introduced each member of the Huo family, she stopped, then looked at Huo Xian and the others and said, ”That person over there is my adopted elder brother. The Eighth Prince of the current court.”

As she spoke, Li Yuanling looked again at Li Musheng, and the look in her eyes at that moment was rather complex.

Li Musheng raised an eyebrow. He did not take it as presumption on his adopted sister’s part to have revealed his identity. He simply gave the Huo family members a quiet nod.

At the same time, Huo Shan and Huo Qifeng both immediately went still.

The Huo family had long since stepped away from the court, but the loud and much-discussed affair of the true and false princes was naturally something they knew about, particularly since it also touched on their own family.

And the exploits of Li Musheng, they had of course heard about from every corner of Shangyang City’s streets and alleys.

From a prince lost among common people, to a single person destroying Falling God Peak, one of the great sects of the martial world, to becoming a martial prodigy whose name shook the world.

The experiences of this Eighth Prince before them were extraordinary beyond any ordinary measure.

At that point, the gray-robed elder Huo Zhen and the old man in white Huo Xian also both fixed their gaze on Li Musheng.

After a long moment, Huo Xian, sitting in his wheelchair, let out a quiet sigh, ”Looking at Your Highness, I am reminded of my little sister. You and your mother truly resemble each other.”

The Huo Zhen standing beside the wheelchair gave a small nod as well, ”When we heard that His Majesty had found you, we thought about coming to see you.”

”Only, the Huo family as it stands is in no position to help you, and might even bring trouble your way, so we set the matter aside.”

As he said this, Huo Zhen’s gaze drifted briefly to the white-robed girl, who had been slumped in the corner of the building.

At that moment the girl was staring at Li Musheng with eyes full of shock, having just realized from the conversation between them that this ordinary-seeming young man in the building was the celebrated Eighth Prince of Great Li.

She was thoroughly stunned. Li Musheng’s name was known by everyone in the capital.

But in the next moment, Huo Zhen waved a hand, and the white-robed girl’s awareness dimmed, and she quietly slipped unconscious.

The matters between the Huo family and Li Musheng were naturally not something she should be allowed to hear.