Chapter 114: Jiang Zhenglong's Other Identity

Although Luo Tian was merely walking ordinarily, the light sound of his footsteps rang in Yuan Zhou’s ears like thunderclaps.

“Is it my turn?”

Yuan Zhou swallowed hard, his face ashen. He knew well how poorly he had performed just now—only slightly better than the recently deceased Zhao Yishui.

At this moment, if Senior Brother Luo wanted to vent his anger by killing him, Yuan Zhou, though unwilling, would have no choice but to accept it.

Still, perhaps if he pleaded a little, humbled himself completely, things might turn out fine. After all, he hadn’t committed any great act of rebellion.

Surely Senior Brother Luo would spare him?

“Junior Brother Yuan, do you have any questions about cultivation?” Luo Tian approached with a relaxed expression.

“No! No, no questions at all!” Yuan Zhou, who had been standing, suddenly felt his legs weaken and his soul nearly fled. “Thank you, Senior Brother Luo, for your kindness. I have nothing to ask.”

After Li Yang killed the remaining bandits, he returned to Luo Tian’s side. Hearing Luo Tian’s question, he suspected that perhaps Luo Tian intended to kill Yuan Zhou next.

Thinking about it, although Yuan Zhou had shown no trust or hope in Senior Brother Luo at the critical moment, Li Yang felt slightly nauseated. Yet this fellow was different from Zhao Yishui—he still had his limits. Even witnessing Luo Tian’s remarkable comeback, he never thought of taking action.

By rights, his crime did not warrant death.

“Junior Brother Yuan, judging by your condition, you’re not far from a breakthrough. Why don’t I guide you a bit?” Luo Tian still persisted. He hadn’t been able to instruct anyone recently, and for some reason, felt an itch in his heart. Moreover, the experience Zhao Yishui had contributed earlier didn’t lessen Luo Tian’s internal energy at all; if anything, it grew stronger.

That was how Zhao Yishui had died!

Clenching his teeth, Yuan Zhou resolutely decided not to accept Luo Tian’s guidance. No matter how good it was, he couldn’t take it.

Power was important, but not more than life.

At that moment, Yuan Zhou’s mind seemed to freeze. He never considered that if Luo Tian truly wanted to kill him, no words would be necessary.

“Senior Brother Luo!” Seeing Luo Tian’s anxious expression, Yuan Zhou panicked completely and knelt down with a thud. “Please don’t kill me! I—I never made a move before. It was all Zhao Yishui’s idea!”

“Senior Brother Luo, Junior Brother Yuan truly did not act rashly earlier,” Li Yang quietly advised.

Luo Tian rolled his eyes. “Junior Brother Yuan, when did I say I wanted to kill you?”

Don’t kill him?

Yuan Zhou, who had bent down ready to kowtow and beg for mercy, froze in place. Slowly straightening up, he looked up at Luo Tian’s serious face. “Senior Brother Luo, you won’t kill me? Really?”

“Really. Why would I kill you?” Luo Tian asked calmly. Though he had no fondness for Yuan Zhou and held a poor impression, it was not to the point of needing to kill him.

“But Senior Brother Luo, you just killed Zhao Yishui.”

Yuan Zhou was unsettled and couldn’t help but ask. He feared Luo Tian might suddenly deliver a fatal blow, though his own strength was not enough to warrant a sneak attack by Senior Brother Luo.

“Junior Brother Yuan, I deeply regret and mourn what happened to Brother Zhao,” Luo Tian’s face showed a few forced traces of sorrow. “The battle was fierce; Jiang Zhenglong and I were both at our most perilous moments. Yet Brother Zhao feared nothing and charged forward to help me.”

Li Yang listened, captivated.

Yuan Zhou, still unable to rise, was overwhelmed, his mouth agape as if he had just encountered something shocking. His eyes widened, and his breathing became heavy and involuntary.

What on earth had happened? Why did Senior Brother Luo seem deranged, spouting nonsense?

“But Jiang Zhenglong, as a Pulse Flow Realm cultivator, was extremely powerful. When he realized Brother Zhao’s intention, he willingly risked being struck by me to kill Brother Zhao with his palm!”

Luo Tian tried hard to inject appropriate emotion into his words but failed utterly. He gave up and let the story of Zhao Yishui’s heroic sacrifice to save his senior brother and valiantly hold off the enemy become a bland, flavorless account. “Brother Zhao gave his life but allowed me the chance to kill Jiang Zhenglong. His death was well deserved!”

A breeze swept by, carrying a chill. The rustling leaves, amid the blood-soaked ground littered with corpses, imparted an eerie, sinister atmosphere.

“But, Senior Brother Luo—” Li Yang stammered, “that Zhao Yishui fellow was clearly—”

“Senior Brother Luo is right! Truly, his death was well deserved!”

Yuan Zhou suddenly sprang to his feet, his face alight with excitement, shouting loudly. Rather than genuine agreement, it sounded like a sudden outburst of pent-up emotion after narrowly escaping death. “Junior Brother Li, didn’t you see the scene Senior Brother Luo described? Brother Zhao sacrificed his youthful life to save us. We must bury him here as soon as possible!”

This fellow was no fool.

Luo Tian nodded slightly at Yuan Zhou.

Although killing clan disciples was strictly punishable by sect law, Luo Tian was not at all worried that Yuan Zhou would reveal that a Qi Condensation Realm cultivator like himself had killed a Pulse Flow Realm expert. Regardless of the factors involved, that was an undeniable fact.

If Yuan Zhou dared to spread that Luo Tian had killed Zhao Yishui, the sect itself might well move to eliminate him.

After all, sect laws serve the cultivators, but with the four great families controlling the sect, as long as their interests weren’t affected, the life of a mere outer disciple meant little to anyone.

As for Yuan Zhou, feeling he had uncovered a small secret of Luo Tian’s, he dared not threaten him. Undoubtedly, he was now considered “one of their own,” so he relaxed.

Li Yang was not too foolish either. After a moment’s thought, he came to his senses.

Without hesitation, Luo Tian took possession of Jiang Zhenglong’s remaining belongings and gave Zhao Yishui’s possessions to Li Yang. As for his own wounds, they were only superficial. The cultivator’s vital energy naturally nourished the body, and with time, the injuries would heal fully.

Among the spoils, the pure gold spear alone was quite valuable.

“Do not tell anyone what happened here, especially Jiang Zhenglong’s name. Pretend you’ve never heard of him,” Luo Tian said, taking a deep breath. This was the fourth son of the Wan Feng City clan leader, and dying so mysteriously at the hands of a disciple from the Divine Yang Sect was no trivial matter.

If the truth came out, it might bring deadly retribution—and that possibility was not small.

“Senior Brother Luo, should we also conceal the cultivation level of this Jiang, the bandit leader?” Yuan Zhou asked slyly. Now he was thinking about how to get closer to Luo Tian. Whether or not he could receive cultivation guidance was secondary. Having shared this experience, they at least had a basis of camaraderie. Once familiar, everything would be easier.

Jiang Zhenglong? Bandit leader?

Luo Tian suddenly seemed to recall something, standing there lost in thought without speaking.

For some unknown reason, when he first heard the name, Luo Tian felt it was familiar—he had some impression of it but just couldn’t place it.

Now, with the bandit leader identity attached, Luo Tian finally remembered that this name had appeared once in the notes he obtained from Sun Huangkun.

It was likely that Jiang Zhenglong controlled a significant portion of the bandit gangs around Wan Feng City—possibly most of them!

With the backing of the clan leader’s fourth son, it was no wonder these bandits ran rampant. Clearing them out completely would be nothing short of a fairy tale.

“No need to conceal that. But do not spread any other information, including names or weapons!” Luo Tian then looked at Li Yang and asked quietly, “Found anything?”

Li Yang shook his head slightly.

Yuan Zhou, unsure of their conversation but intimidated by Luo Tian’s serious expression and tone, didn’t ask further. Instead, he silently began tidying the battlefield. The fellow disciples’ bodies were all buried underground, and at Luo Tian’s instruction, Jiang Zhenglong’s corpse was also given a proper burial by Yuan Zhou.

With a light sigh, Luo Tian thought the time was right. Without bothering to return to Wan Feng City, he headed straight toward the sect’s direction.

The elite disciples of the four great families—the living experience points—they had to find a way to harvest them now.