Chapter 1303: 少年将军

Pain.

Unbearable, excruciating pain sliced into the Blind Man's body over and over again, like a slow torture. He wanted to cry out to release the agony, but found he couldn't open his mouth at all. All his organs felt as if they were sealed shut by molten iron; he couldn't open his eyes, speak, or breathe.

Pairs of black hands, marked with curses, slowly emerged from the abyss below him, gently climbing onto his body, as if to completely engulf him.

"—Ah!!"

The Blind Man screamed and shot up from his seat, nearly overturning the dining table.

"?" Jian Changsheng, who was on his eighth plate of chicken, was startled by the Blind Man's scream. He looked up blankly. "What, buddy? Did you get hemorrhoids?"

Jiang Xiaohua silently glanced at the Blind Man, opened a new bottle of wine without a word, and tilted his head back to continue drinking deeply. Two faint flushes of intoxication spread across his cheeks, and the black bandages danced lightly in the breeze over the lake.

"..." With lingering fear, the Blind Man turned his head, as if instinctively avoiding further contact with Jiang Xiaohua, and let out two awkward, dry laughs:

"Just a bit overheated, you know."

While the Blind Man had stumbled against Sun Buming, at least he knew who had acted against him. Jiang Xiaohua was different, however. Apart from endless pain, loneliness, and fear, the Blind Man felt nothing from him. He didn't even know what had just acted against him.

Even after two setbacks, the Blind Man wasn't without his gains. At least he was sure that neither of these two individuals was the "General Star" he had predicted.

In that case...

The Blind Man slowly turned to Jian Changsheng, who sat directly opposite him.

"Gentlemen, are you still enjoying the food?" the Blind Man asked, wiping a nosebleed and smiling gently. "Actually, besides the food, we've also prepared some small gifts for the three of you..."

The Blind Man clapped his hands lightly. One by one, large chests were carried in. As the chests were successively opened, the entire Lake Pavilion was bathed in a golden hue.

Gazing at the numerous large chests of gold, the double-skin milk in Sun Buming's hand clattered onto the table.

As the last large chest was opened, an indescribable aura permeated the Lake Pavilion. It wasn't gold, but a chest filled with bizarre and unusual items. The moment he caught their scent, Jian Changsheng's voracious eating hand paused slightly, and his gaze turned to the contents of the chest with surprise.

"As for this gold, it's a token of our sincerity. I understand that esteemed guests like yourselves may not value such material possessions, so please consider it merely as icing on the cake."

"This last chest contains some of the sacrificial artifacts we've collected over the years in the South Sea Domain. If any of you are interested, please feel free to take whatever you like..."

As the Blind Man spoke, he subtly sensed Jian Changsheng's reaction.

Of the three, only Jian Changsheng was the General Star he had predicted. His demeanor was crucial. The other two seemed closely connected to him. If Jian Changsheng could be persuaded to stay, then a bit of extra expense was irrelevant.

This General Star might not be interested in gold, but it was impossible for him not to be interested in sacrificial artifacts. Such items were rare and highly sought after. Furthermore, it seemed this General Star was someone who frequently operated within the Gray Realm. Carrying a suitable sacrificial artifact at a crucial moment could prevent a lot of trouble.

Just as the Blind Man was brimming with confidence, believing the General Star would certainly be swayed by his sincerity, the atmosphere within the Lake Pavilion underwent a subtle shift.

Jian Changsheng put down his chicken leg;Sun Buming shifted his gaze from the gold;Even the normally detached Jiang Xiaohua silently put down his wine bottle and looked at the Blind Man with a grave expression.

They knew Chen Ling. Chen Ling might arrange a welcoming banquet for them, a grand meal, but he would never send them several chests of gold and sacrificial artifacts.

And to this point,Chen Ling had not appeared.

"Where is Red Heart?" Sun Buming asked in a low voice.

"Red Heart?" The Blind Man didn't immediately grasp it. "...What Red Heart?"

A gentle breeze swept across the calm lake, stirring ripples. An inexplicable chill spread through the Lake Pavilion.

The casualness in Jian Changsheng's eyes was gone, replaced by a sharp, piercing gaze, like the edge of a sword:

"Chen Ling, where is he?"

As soon as the question was uttered, the Blind Man suddenly realized something.

"You... you're from the Twilight Society?!!"

The Blind Man couldn't see faces, and thus couldn't compare them with the wanted posters for Twilight Society members. As for the subordinates he had sent to greet the three, first, Jian Changsheng and Jiang Xiaohua were already so disheveled and dirty that their facial features were indistinguishable. Second, even if some of them harbored vague suspicions, they wouldn't dare mention it. After all, these were distinguished guests whom the South Sea Lord had specifically instructed to be treated with utmost hospitality...

Who would have thought that this invitation would bring three members of the Twilight Society?

"Chen Ling is no longer in the South Sea Domain," Teacher Ye spoke up at the opportune moment.

"The South Sea Lord threatened Chen Ling with the lives of everyone in the Integration Faction, forcing Chen Ling to consume a Vow Gu so that he could never again step into human territory. Chen Ling had no choice but to return to the Ghost Mocking Abyss..."

After speaking, he deliberately added: "Now, this is the South Sea Lord's territory."

Throughout the entire dinner, only one person had been truly clear-headed from beginning to end—Teacher Ye.

Before Jian Changsheng and the others arrived, the Blind Man had told him he was hosting the "General Star." But when he personally saw Jian Changsheng and his companions casually swaggering to the banquet, Teacher Ye had already guessed the misunderstanding.

The Blind Man intended to host the "General Star," while Jian Changsheng and the others mistakenly believed it was Chen Ling who had invited them.

The South Sea Lord forcing Chen Ling away must have surely stirred resentment in Teacher Ye's heart, but he hadn't revealed it. Instead, he had silently endured until this crucial moment, when he finally revealed the truth with a single sentence.

The Blind Man also reacted at this moment and immediately spoke:

"Whether you are members of the Twilight Society or not, the South Sea Lord doesn't care. We are all humans; as long as we can set aside past grievances and unite against the Gray Realm, we are allies!"

Crack—crack...

Crisp cracks emanated from the stone dining table.

Spiderweb-like cracks began to spread across the stone table. Simultaneously, a cold, furious sneer quietly echoed:

"I thought Red Heart had finally had a change of heart and wanted to treat us well here..."

"To think he used children as leverage..."

"Heh heh..."

The next moment, the ancient martial killing intent, like a reawakened volcano, roared as it surged skyward!!

BOOM—!!!

The dining table, laden with dishes, shattered violently. The sharp killing intent directly withered all the flowers in the pavilion. The explosive killing intent actually ripped off the roof of the Lake Pavilion. Ancient pressure churned the lake water, sending furious waves rippling outwards!

Amidst that ancient killing intent, almost solidified into substance, Jian Changsheng's pupils had turned completely black. Plates of armor, coalesced from killing intent, covered his body. His right hand moved to his waist behind him, and a longsword, horizontally sheathed, slowly slid forth...

Jian Changsheng's disheveled hair stirred without a breeze. In that moment, he shed his previous slovenly, beggar-like appearance. The black ribbons connecting his armor whipped wildly amidst the killing intent.

He stood ramrod straight, like a general returned from the slaughter of an ancient battlefield...

A young general!

The young general's lips parted slightly. A phantom of Bai Qi materialized behind him. The two figures overlapped, and ancient killing intent from the deepest reaches of the Martial Dao's ancient repository intertwined with his voice, exploding like thunder over the lake!

"South Sea Lord!! Are you even human anymore!!!"