The moment the voice rang out, Wei Wuyan was stunned.
This was totally out of his expectations!
It wasn’t this person’s sudden appearance that had surprised him but rather… With Lang Yilang’s cultivation, he actually didn’t realize that someone was hidden nearby?
Lang Yilang did not move. In fact, he didn’t shift any part of his body at all and yet the aura around him suddenly changed! It became exceedingly sharp, like a piercing arrow leaving the bow!
The heartless and vicious aura of an Interrogation Hall law-enforcement officer which had only just disappeared also came back, making him intimidating and unapproachable once again!
He didn’t turn. He merely questioned calmly, “Li? Li Qingyun?”
The voice burst into laughter. “That’s Master Lang for you indeed! It has been two hundred years since we last met. To think you still remember this old man’s voice!”
Following the laughter, a white-robed elderly man suddenly appeared soundlessly in front of them.
“Li Qingyun, what is the Li Clan doing here?” Lang Yilang asked indifferently, with nary a change in his countenance.
“Hurhur, does Master Lang mean to ask whether this old man heard that sad and heart-stirring past of Master Lang’s?” asked Li Qingyun mirthfully, his eyes narrowed.
These words of his were rather disrespectful. It also admitted that he had been eavesdropping at the side.
Lang Yilang’s expression turned cold. Without much emotion, he asked, “Was it very interesting?”
“Not in particular. Just that I truly didn’t expect Master Lang’s past to be so tragic,” remarked Li Qingyun. “It touched me so much when I heard.”
Lang Yilang let out an odd laugh. “I see, so the Li Clan’s target is me! Li Qingyun, let’s not beat about the bush; tell me the reason why.”
Li Qingyun sighed. He replied, “Master Lang, the purpose for me coming here today is firstly, to assist you in capturing the accomplices of the Extraterrestrial Demon. Secondly, I just wanted to invite Master Lang to the Li Clan for a visit and let us have the honor of playing host to you. We do not have any intentions to make an enemy out of you, much less targeting you. I hope Master Lang does not misunderstand us.”
Lang Yilang held his hands behind his back, looking toward the sky. He asked softly, “What if I say that I’m not going?”
Li Qingyun’s eyes flickered. “Cough, it’s better that Master Lang agrees! This area is secluded, with the mountains tall and potholes deep. Should you get lost here, it’ll be very difficult to find your way back.”
Lang Yilang sneered in response.
Right at this moment, there was a flurry of movement in the shadows. Lang Yilang’s nine subordinates and Wan Renjie etc had also discovered something amiss. They leaped over to where Lang Yilang was one after the other.
After this period of recuperation, Wan Renjie and the others had basically recovered their strength. In addition, not only did these purportedly cold and heartless law-enforcement officers not treat them with hostility, they even gave them water and rations.
This surprised the three of them greatly.
It seemed that Lang Yilang really didn’t have any intention of capturing them and bringing them to justice before he came here. He just wanted to fulfill his long-cherished wish.
Wan Renjie walked over to Wei Wuyan and looked at him questioningly.
Wei Wuyan gave him a sorrowful smile. “I’m fine.”
Relieved, the hearts of Wan Renjie and the other two were set at ease.
Right now, they had 14 people on their side, whereas Li Qingyun was alone on the other side.
“What a grand entourage! Master Lang is indeed escorted by many when he sets out! There are actually nine out of the thirty-six gold-plate law-enforcement officers escorting you!”
Lang Yilang replied indifferently, “Stop babbling and let your men show themselves! I don’t want to listen to your nonsense! The Li Clan isn’t of enough status to make me, Lang Yilang, be a guest of the Li Clan of my own will yet! We’ll let our skills speak for themselves!”
Li Qingyun whistled long and loud into the sky before he guffawed. “How cold of you, Master Lang! Children, come forth and give him your sincerest invitation!”
Following his call, a response suddenly came from all directions. “We invite Master Lang to the Li Clan for a visit!”
A mad flurry of shadows surged forward with a whoosh.
White-clad figures neatly came forward from all four cardinal directions!
Wei Wuyan’s heart sank. There were 200 people on the other side! And every one of them was a skilled expert!
With Lang Yilang’s current cultivation, there was no way he could stand against them!
Lang Yilang’s countenance was chilly. He didn’t speak a single word, but his eyes gradually turned as ruthless as a scavenging vulture!
The Li Clan members surrounded them from all four sides, forming a huge encirclement around them and trapping them within.
Li Qingyun smiled lightly. “Master Lang, the Li Clan has sent a sixth-grade Supreme Martial Artist, a fifth-grade Supreme Martial Artist, two fourth-grade Supreme Martial Artists, five third-grade Supreme Martial Artists, five second-grade Supreme Martial Artists, ten first-grade Supreme Martial Artists, 50 ninth-grade Martial Saints and 140 eighth-grade Martial Saints! With this grand line-up and boundless sincerity, we invite Master Lang to visit the Li Clan and be our guest!”
Lang Yilang sneered mockingly. “This line-up is certainly not modest. However, the Li Clan is not of enough status!”
“Whether or not we are of enough status, Master Lang will come to realize very soon!” A piercing gleam flashed in Li Qingyun’s eyes.
The gap between the strength of both sides was too overwhelming!
Crossing a great distance to get here, Lang Yilang had traveled light and with few attendants. However, the Li Clan had clearly planned and prepared for this for a very long time! And now, after they revealed their line-up, Lang Yilang’s side immediately sank into a dire situation where they practically couldn’t fight back at all!
There was not one bit of change in the countenances of Lang Yilang and his nine subordinates. It was as though they had become accustomed to seeing such a scene and didn’t think much of it. There was nothing but indifference on their faces!
These people had been in charge of the Interrogation Hall for a very long time. All these years, what they did for a living was precisely either torturing or killing people! Over the years, their temperament had long been steeled.
Life and death were something which they had already become accustomed to.
Be it toward the lives of others or their own, they seemed to hold only indifference.
There was an easy smile on Li Qingyun’s countenance, the kind that came from having complete control over the overall situation.
In his eyes, Lang Yilang had no chance of escape!
And in truth, that was the case!
…
Amidst the swirling snow and wind, a white figure drifted toward them quietly and landed a couple of kilometers away. Staying close to the ground, he continued flying forward.
It was Chu Yang!
After trailing the Li Clan party for a few days and confirming the direction they were going in, he found his way here. However, they had an overwhelming advantage in numbers and experts abound, so Chu Yang didn’t dare to leave any traces of his presence.
It was only just earlier when they made their sudden appearance and paid no attention to the area behind them that Chu Yang could take the opportunity to approach the battleground.
And now, as he observed the situation on the other side, Chu Yang’s brows furrowed indistinctly.
This situation was truly outside of his expectations. It was as terrible as it could possibly get!
Even if he added himself to the equation, Lang Yilang’s party had absolutely no chance of victory!
Yet Chu Yang couldn’t just leave it be. Be it for the Purple Crystal mine where the sixth fragment of the Nine Tribulations Sword was or for Wei Wuyan, Wan Renjie and the other two, he couldn’t just sit by and do nothing!
But right now, even as more than ten plans flashed through Chu Yang’s mind in the blink of an eye, not even a single one could do anything for the current situation!
He was truly at a loss!
“What can I do to get out of this predicament?” Chu Yang’s brain went into overdrive. He observed the terrain; this particular area was just filled with forests in the mountains. Although there were high and low grounds in the snow, the difference wasn’t significant. And the worst thing was that there weren’t even any dense forests.
Moreover, this was part of the northwest region. In the eyes of the Li Clan who was native to this area, even the usual ways in which one could conceal himself in the snow were no different from being out in the open!
Furthermore, there was also another matter giving Chu Yang a headache. It was also this exact matter which made him wish he could swear at these Li Clan members for appearing at this timing — Both Wei Wuyan and Lang Yilang had just gotten their revenge and were in a state where they were feeling empty and hollow inside. At such a time, even if others didn’t kill or go after them, they probably already had the inclination to take their own lives.
Yet at this time, they just had to be trapped in an encirclement forcing them to fight to the death and without any chance of survival. To those two, this was no different from someone giving them exactly what they wanted.
It was likely that even if Chu Yang came up with a solution, those two might not necessarily leave!
This was what was giving Chu Yang the biggest headache.
If they really wanted to break out of the encirclement, if Chu Yang worked with them from the outside, there was at least an 80 percent chance of success in breaking out. As for what was to come after breaking out… Whether or not people would catch up to them was something that they could consider again after breaking out.
But the breakout itself… was something that he was confident of!
However, if those two were to be stubborn and adopt an attitude of having nothing to live for anymore… Even if Chu Yang were to help, the most likely thing to happen was just him being implicated by the two of them and losing his life here!
What should he do about this? For a moment there, Chu Yang was so troubled that his hair almost turned white.
The tension in the battleground became stronger and stronger.
“I’m the only one whom you’re after.” Without any change in his expression, Lang Yilang said passively, “Let these four leave first! They have nothing to do with me.”
Obviously, Li Qingyun didn’t wish to create any unnecessary trouble either. He would likely have to pay quite a high price to keep those four here anyway. Nodding, he replied, “Although these four people are the accomplices of the Extraterrestrial Demon, it has nothing to do with the Li Clan. The four of you, if you wish to leave, then please take your leave now.”
“Elder Lang has helped me to take revenge for my deep feud. How can I, Wei Wuyan, leave you and live on dishonorably at this time?” True to Chu Yang’s expectations, Wei Wuyan said with deep emotion, “Brother Wan, the three of you can go!”
Wan Renjie was very much displeased. “Are the three of us people who would cling to life shamelessly because we fear death?” Cheng Duying and Bao Buhuan nodded incessantly. “Big Brother is right!”
In the shadows, a completely speechless Chu Yang hung his head.
These four have such a one-track mind…
I’m really so speechless at them. Lang Yilang and the other nine have worked with each other for many years; they have naturally built up a good rapport among themselves. If all of you were to leave first and leave behind just the ten of them, breaking out of the encirclement would also become a little easier.
If absolutely necessary, I can even make a sudden move and bring Lang Yilang away at the last moment. The Li Clan definitely won’t bear to kill him anyway…
But with the four of you here, I’m really at a complete loss. No matter how powerful I am, I can’t smuggle five people out at one go from under the nose of a sixth-grade Supreme Martial Artist, right…
Aren’t you just trying to worry me to death…
“Fantastic! Such loyalty and devotion! What good men of the martial world!” Sneering, Li Qingyun declared, “Since you don’t know what’s good for you, this old man shall make true your honorable reputation and let the four of you be heroes!”
With a flourish of his arm, he shouted, “Hack these four into eight chunks!”
From among the Li Clan members, four people came forward quietly. Bowing, they said, “Your permission, please!”
“Permission given!” Li Qingyun gave his permission.
Then, the four of them spun around neatly and strode toward the other side. Their target was Wei Wuyan and the other three!
With a cold and unfeeling expression, Lang Yilang hollered, “How dare you touch the people that I, Lang Yilang, want to protect! Gold-plate officers! Kill the four of them!”
Black robes fluttered and flashed about. The nine gold-plate officers struck out at the same time!
A big battle was about to break out at any moment.
Li Qingyun shouted, “Don’t worry about the law-enforcement officers’ status; kill them all! Lang Yilang is the only one I want alive!”
With a long howl, more than 200 Li Clan members struck out simultaneously!
