“Have you heard? The Hatred-Hating Ancestor has escaped!”
“Who hasn’t heard that? It has spread all across the rivers and lakes. Are you people gathered here in Spring Town precisely because of this matter?”
“Alas! All of us came here on account of this. That Hatred-Hating Ancestor is far too vicious! Back when he went berserk and entered the demonic path, goodness knows how many people he slaughtered. From the capital all the way south, he killed everyone he laid eyes on! Hundreds and thousands dead! His cruelty was utterly abnormal.”
“Such a vicious villain, why wasn’t he just killed back then?” someone asked with a puzzled expression.
“You juniors don’t understand; you have no idea how terrifying this fellow is. The Hatred-Hating Ancestor possesses formidable martial arts, ranking third on the Mystic Ledger. At the time, the top ten masters of the rivers and lakes joined forces to barely suppress him, yet they still could not manage to kill him. Left with no alternative, the ten masters locked him away in the Heavenly Prison of the White Lotus Temple.”
“As the number one prison in the rivers and lakes, the Heavenly Prison is guarded by countless White Lotus monks under rigorous rules. How many years has it been? Nearly a decade, right? Not a single mishap has ever occurred before. Who knows how the Hatred-Hating Ancestor managed to break out!”
“Those details aren’t the main point. What matters most right now is where the Hatred-Hating Ancestor has escaped to! If this fellow isn’t captured quickly, the rivers and lakes are bound to plunge into another bloody storm!”
“Who knows where he went? Everyone only knows that his shadow is nowhere to be found inside the Heavenly Prison, and beyond that, absolute zero.”
“That is precisely why heroes like us need to go and investigate! For so many years, it has been no easy task for the White Lotus Temple to guard the Heavenly Prison. As righteous people of the pugilistic world, anyone with a shred of a sense of justice will naturally step forward to lend a hand!”
Amidst a crowd of chivalrous martial artists, Lu Fenghuo sat at a table clad in a deep crimson robe with unremarkable features, holding a handful of melon seeds and blending in perfectly.
After leaving Listening Snow Manor, Lu Fenghuo had not caught sight of Fu Yunming and his companions.
Just then, a major event shook the rivers and lakes.
The Hatred-Hating Ancestor had broken out of prison!
Consequently, Lu Fenghuo made his way to Spring Town.
Figuring there was a decent chance he might run into the demonic monk and the others.
The crowd of martial heroes in the inn chattered with high passion and boiling blood. After finishing their breakfast, they formed a group and headed toward the White Lotus Temple, hoping to search the Heavenly Prison for clues.
Lu Fenghuo tagged along behind them to watch the spectacle.
Following the breakout of the Hatred-Hating Ancestor, the White Lotus Temple had relocated all the remaining criminals out of the Heavenly Prison. The old site of the Heavenly Prison was now completely empty, with only a few monks keeping watch at the entrance.
Upon stating their purpose, the monks permitted the martial heroes to enter.
However, the group of heroes failed to turn up any clues whatsoever.
At the entrance of the Heavenly Prison stood a massive, winding peach tree. Being winter, the peach tree had shed all its leaves, leaving only hundreds of crimson ribbons tied to its branches, fluttering in the wind.
A young man stood beneath the peach tree.
He was dressed in a dark black inner tunic with a long sword hanging at his waist. He possessed shoulder-length black hair, delicate and clean-cut features, and a stern, cold expression.
Seeing this person, the martial heroes automatically gave him a wide berth.
Lu Fenghuo casually grabbed a bystander. “Young hero, this junior has a question and wishes to seek your instruction. Who is that person by the entrance? Why does everyone detour around him when they see him?”
The man proved quite enthusiastic. “That person at the entrance is one of the Three Swordsmen of the Peach Blossom Forest. If I’m not mistaken, he should be Wei Jia? Yes, that must be him! He has a bizarre temper and is a total freak. Little brother, if you see him, you had better make a wide detour!”
Lu Fenghuo understood immediately.
Wei Jia stood beneath the peach tree.
He had been here investigating for over three days, yet still had nothing to show for it.
Dark fury surged within Wei Jia’s black pupils.
Hatred-Hating Monster, just where on earth have you crawled off to?!
Why can’t I find a single trace left behind by you, no matter how thoroughly I search the Heavenly Prison?
Hatred-Hating, you are destined to be sliced into a thousand pieces by my hand!
You are destined for eternal damnation and doom!
Damn it!
Damn it all!
Where on earth did you hide yourself?!
White Lotus Temple!
It’s all the fault of the White Lotus Temple!
If not for the White Lotus Temple, if not for the Heavenly Prison, he would have already smashed the Hatred-Hating Monster into ten thousand fragments long ago!
Wei Jia’s handsome face brimmed with burning hatred and fury. His eye sockets turned red with rage, and he lashed out with a kick against the roots of the peach tree at his feet.
He infused his kick with internal energy, instantly cracking open a split in the massive root.
The tree root was exceptionally thick, easily the size of a man’s torso.
That was still not enough to vent his fury.
Wei Jia delivered several more kicks, each one executed with immense force.
Before long, the tree root was kicked clean off.
Lu Fenghuo:
Young hero has remarkable martial arts.
Lu Fenghuo originally intended to walk away, but upon laying eyes on this peach tree, a vague sense of familiarity washed over him. It felt as though it had been mentioned in the plot of some specific location.
Lu Fenghuo stepped forward.
With the root kicked away, the base of the peach tree was left in utter disarray.
Fresh soil flew everywhere.
Lu Fenghuo picked up a withered branch from the ground and began digging into the newly turned earth.
He had a lingering intuition that something was buried beneath this peach tree.
Meanwhile, Wei Jia had yet to vent his rage.
He leaped directly onto the stump of the peach tree and began wreaking havoc on the remaining roots.
Thus, the two of them proceeded side-by-side: one trampling, one digging.
The surrounding onlookers:
Were these two out of their minds?
Could Wei Jia’s madness be contagious?
The onlookers silently backed away by a considerable distance.
Finally, Lu Fenghuo seemed to strike something solid.
His spirits instantly lifted as he poured more strength into his hands!
The object slowly emerged into full view.
It was bone-white and perfectly round.
Taking a closer look.
Holy shit!
An infant’s skull!
Frightened out of his wits, Lu Fenghuo recoiled backward by a massive margin!
He whipped his head around to scan the crowd.
And suddenly locked eyes with a familiar figure!
Dark red monastic robes, deep-set and handsome facial features.
Who else could it be but the demonic monk?
Lu Fenghuo hurried over to hide behind Fu Yunming, and once safely behind him, blurted out, “That is truly terrifying! You scared the life out of me!”
Fu Yunming tilted his head, suppressing a smile, and ultimately managed to hold it in.