Chapter 149 What's there to be afraid of? Is the little bit of affection he received really so insignificant...?

boom--

The torrent in the middle of the river suddenly exploded, and the shattered reefs and water splashed in all directions.

The raging storm had just swept over Xu Qian, who had barely escaped with his life. Still dizzy and disoriented, before he could even regain his footing, a fist-sized rock came hurtling towards him. Xu Qian's legs trembled violently, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud, narrowly avoiding a fatal head injury.

Xu Zhangfang leaped into the air, stepping on the splashing water and cracking rocks. Facing Bai Yuan who was flying towards him, the Autumn Strike Blade in his hand whistled through the air. The man who had almost died at the Ghost Gate Pass just a moment ago was not flustered, and even calmly said, "I have been waiting for your arrival for a long time."

As Bai Yuan swept past, huge waves rippled outwards, and the force of the palm strikes split the Yellow River beneath their feet: "Xu Fu, you've been hiding in the gutter for so long, you've finally decided to crawl out and show yourself to the world."

Xu Zhangfang suddenly flashed past Bai Yuan's palm strike like a blur, and smiled nonchalantly: "I'm ashamed to say that ever since Your Excellency capsized in the ditch, I've been navigating the righteous path with ease."

Clearly, Xu Zhangfang knew how to annoy people: "Your Excellency has been keeping you hidden away these past few days, keeping me waiting quite a while."

The Autumn Decision Blade swept past Bai Yuan's palm strike, buzzing and sizzling with dazzling light like shattered stars. Dense inscriptions appeared on the blade, flashing like fleeting shadows as they swept out with the palm strike from Bai Yuan.

Bai Yuan sneered: "You've tried that same old trick on me over and over again..."

"It's just a little trick, not worthy of being presented in a refined manner. If I were to use it, you would surely make a fool of yourself in front of your esteemed presence." Xu Zhangfang had no qualms whatsoever and shamelessly interrupted, "I am truly a humble servant with little influence, and I fear I cannot persuade you to come. So today, I can only take a small gamble."

The inscriptions, like fleeting shadows, surrounded Bai Yuan, and in the blink of an eye, they covered the riverbed in layers, like adding fuel to the fire, causing the river's resentment to boil, like a pot of boiling soup.

"What are we betting on?" As soon as Bai Yuan landed, the raging waves beneath his feet instantly froze into ice, sculpting the madly leaping monsters into ice sculptures, and sharp, spear-like ice spikes pierced out as Xu Zhangfang landed.

With icicles growing everywhere beneath his feet, of varying heights, Xu Zhangfang panicked and ran blindly. His Autumn Strike Blade cleaved through a cluster of sharp spikes that could pierce a person, cutting through the icicles like inscribed blades on the river's surface, producing a tooth-grinding sound like sawing teeth grinding against bone.

He had the privilege of witnessing the deep affection between Bai Yuan and Zhou Yaren in Ruicheng. Xu Zhangfang said, "I bet you can't bear to hear the rumors and die."

Sure enough, he guessed right. Bai Yuan wouldn't abandon Zhou Yaren in her life-or-death situation, so she would most likely show up.

Zhou Yaren, who was standing on the shore, was caught off guard by these words. His blurred vision stared straight at Bai Yuan, but unexpectedly, his heart, which had been wounded by Bai Yuan, received some comfort from Xu Zhangfang's words.

If Bai Yuan had even half the ability to deceive people as Xu Zhangfang, they wouldn't be arguing with each other at this critical juncture.

The question, "Who do you think you are?" made Zhou Yaren feel extremely hurt. He had no right to be her boss. It was only thanks to Bai Yuan's reminder that he was able to recognize and correct his own position.

Zhou Yaren's small stomach couldn't hold a boat, and her heart wasn't much bigger than a fist; she couldn't withstand the barrage of slander from Bai Yuan.

Bai Yuan did not respond to Xu Zhangfang's words, nor did he personally admit that he was reluctant to let him die, so Zhou Yaren became so extreme that she wanted to die.

He died unjustly, shouldn't we be a little more lenient towards him, even just a little bit sad for him, like she was towards He Yan? Yes, when He Yan self-immolated, she was able to go up and hug him and say some kind words, so why is it that when it comes to him, she has such a cold and heartless attitude?

They didn't even give me a friendly look.

On what grounds?

Why did he get this in return? Is the little bit of affection he received really so insignificant?

The more Zhou Yaren thought about it, the more he cared. He couldn't help but care, and he cared more than ever before, his mind shrinking to the size of a pinhole.

Bai Yuan, his body gleaming with frost, a chilling aura surging beneath his fingers, aimed straight for Xu Zhangfang's vital point: "You've gone to great lengths to find me, and now that I'm here, do you have the guts to kill me?!"

Suddenly, floating inscriptions appeared in front of Xu Zhangfang, deforming and elongating into blades that slashed straight toward Bai Yuan's palm.

Bai Yuan abruptly stopped, his figure swiftly disappearing amidst countless inscribed blades of light.

Xu Zhangfang sighed in a feigned manner: "Alas, I am of mediocre talent. Even if I steal the lifespan of the Undying and enjoy this long life, I have no outstanding skills. I have only practiced some unorthodox methods, which I am afraid will not meet Your Excellency's approval. I am afraid I will have to make a fool of myself again."

There was no point in hiding or making excuses in front of those in the know, so Xu Zhangfang openly laid his cards on the table.

These remarks stirred up Zhou Ya's emotions.

Xu Zhangfang, no, Xu Fu.

He burned the immortal people to make elixirs, and then greedily pocketed the completed elixir of immortality. Xu Fu flattered his superiors and deceived his subordinates, then used a trick to escape, and then spread rumors criticizing the emperor, until the First Emperor was furious and punished him. Even though these sorcerers who could not offer the elixir of immortality had a thousand mouths, they could only end up being accused of spreading heresy and misleading the emperor.

After all, without the guidance of Yin Sui and the Undying People, who could find the boundless secret realm above the East Sea?

You can't explain it clearly just by talking.

Xu Fu, whether openly or secretly, used others or did it himself to silence all those who knew the truth.

After living in anonymity for hundreds or thousands of years, all the old people died out, and the overlord who unified the world also hurriedly left the stage. His incompetent descendants could not control this great country and cause. The glorious Qin Dynasty was conquered and overthrown by the new regime. The First Emperor, who believed that his virtues were equal to those of the Three Sovereigns and his merits surpassed those of the Five Emperors, could no longer punish him. No one recognized the alchemist Xu Fu who went to sea to seek immortality.

People have come and gone, one generation after another, born, growing old, sick, and dying. Only he, a remnant of the Qin Dynasty, has watched dynasties fall and rise again, generation after generation, in this eternal world. Humanity has declined in all sorts of self-destructive ways, only to pick up swords and spears and step over the corpses of its ancestors to strive for revival. In this way, one generation after another takes the stage, life goes on endlessly, and history repeats itself again and again, a story that is both fascinating and heartbreaking.

He could only sigh longingly at the stage others were performing on, but of course, he also had his own path to walk.

Throughout this long period of time, he schemed and plotted, not only picking up scrap metal like the Autumn Execution Knife, but also discovering countless unjust grievances that he could plunder.

Even a fool, someone with mediocre talent and ability, can achieve some success by spending hundreds or thousands of years on one thing. That's why Xu Zhangfang accumulated a modest fortune.

Xu Zhangfang pieced together a unique and ingenious array of punishments from the countless unjustly killed criminals. It contained all sorts of ancient injustices, and the extreme punishments he created were tailor-made for innocent victims. As the saying goes, one thing can subdue another, and Xu Zhangfang understood this principle well. This array was a perfect replica.

Without thorough preparation, he would not dare to wait for your arrival here.

He was going to play the part completely, and the person he was supposed to be listening to was just a target he used to lure out the innocent. His opponent was full of weaknesses and too easy to manipulate; he only needed to use a little trick to capture him easily.

Centered on the perilous Ghost Gate, raging waves carried an endless stream of inscribed runes—these were the runes of punishment. The runes twisted and stretched, weaving the taut ropes and shadow whips into chains of punishment, connecting the vengeful spirits in the great river, spreading out in all directions.

"Thanks to Tingfengzhi, I was able to trouble you with this task." Xu Zhangfang manipulated the magic seals to activate the array. "I also have to thank him for his great help in scattering these punishment talismans into the earth river."

Thanks to the blind master's determination to kill him and his relentless efforts in creating such a grand spectacle, the power of the Ghost Gate was not to be underestimated. Xu Zhangfang made a decisive move, taking advantage of the situation to throw the punishment talisman in, which was both time-saving and labor-saving, and could help him bring the punishment array to its fullest potential.

He could use the evil spirits in these rivers for his own purposes; it was practically a freebie, and he wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of it.

As Zhou Yaren stared at the inscriptions forming a net-like chain of punishment, which, combined with the Ghost Gate Formation he activated, enveloped Bai Yuan like a cage, he nearly collapsed to his knees. Zhou Yaren could never have imagined that his actions would become Xu Zhangfang's greatest asset in dealing with Bai Yuan.

Xu Zhangfang blatantly lied, and his words, which were enough to distort the truth, made Zhou Yaren his accomplice.

Back then, Xu Fu also made up a story on the spot, fabricating things out of thin air. As a result, A Zhaosu became an accomplice in harming his own kind with Fang Xiandao, took the blame, and was banished to the Boundless Secret Realm for eternity, becoming a prisoner serving his sentence in the human world.

The chains of punishment stretched as far as the eye could see, a colossal array encompassing mountains and rivers, moving like living snakes, endlessly extending for tens of miles.

Like dumplings being dropped into a river, the vengeful spirits surged wildly up and down, rushing one after another towards the innocent.

Zhou Yaren, trembling with fear, tried to block him, not even realizing her voice was shaking: "Innocent!"

"What are you afraid of!" Bai Yuan waved his sleeve, and a chilling aura suddenly threw Zhou Yaren back to her original position. "This is none of your business."

Bai Yuan glanced at Zhou Yaren and knew that the blind man's character was worrying: "If you listen to what he has to say, then you can bear a share of all his crimes."

Xu Zhangfang snatched the knife that Zhou Yaren had used to kill him, sharpened it, and turned to slash at Bai Yuan. The blind man stood there, feeling remorseful because the knife was his.

It's like he broke into someone's house, committed murder and arson, used the owner's knife and firewood, and even dragged the original owner into the mess to share the blame.

Bai Yuan wasn't that foolish. Even without Zhou Yaren's intervention to activate the Ghost Gate Formation, Xu Zhangfang would still have made the same arrangements, absolutely no less impressive.

His actions were malicious and intended to sow discord.

Bai Yuan's black hair was frosted with white, and his entire body exuded a chilling aura. The vast, ghostly realm beneath his feet instantly froze, its shrieks and hisses abruptly cut off, strangled in its throat, frozen into bizarre and ferocious forms. The torrent of water turned to ice in the blink of an eye, freezing everything in all directions. In an instant, the chilling aura raged, turning the surrounding ten miles into a pale and desolate scene.

Lin Mu couldn't help but shiver.

Xu Zhangfang was wary of her because she was someone who could shake the earth with a single stomp of her foot, which is why he had racked his brains for so many years to figure out how to deal with her.

Click, click, click...

It was as if millions of insects and ants were gnawing inside the hard ice layer.

Cluck, cluck, cluck...

Cracks appeared in the frozen ice, and the inscriptions spread out bit through the ice, bursting out from countless pale and ferocious fissures.

A series of explosions erupted beneath Bai Yuan's feet, and countless stalactite lights shot into the sky, forming a battle array in mid-air.

For Bai Yuan, being wronged is like being cursed; she will be bound by the injustice.

These punishment symbols were all drawn by Xu Zhangfang based on the injustices he had suffered, and arranged to form a place of punishment, attracting thunder and lightning to strike down.

Bai Yuan glanced at it only once before heading straight for the lightning bolt that resembled a executioner's blade.

The cold light swept across the battlefield like a whirlwind sweeping away snow, leaving the ground cracking nine feet deep wherever it passed.

With a deafening roar, the entire landscape trembled violently, and the canyon shook as if an avalanche had occurred. A biting wind and snow raged everywhere, the icy river seemed to be turning over, and a cold, demonic hand seemed to reach out from the void, flicking its finger and cleaving the heavens and earth with a single stroke, causing the land to crumble and mountains to collapse.

The array of punishment symbols in mid-air shattered into pieces within the cold sword...

Before Xu Zhangfang could even feel smug, the elaborate punishment array he had erected crumbled unexpectedly above his head...

His expression crumbled at that moment.

How is that possible?!

Xu Zhangfang found it hard to believe.

At the same time, Lin Mu, who was unsteady on his feet, stumbled and grabbed onto a boulder. Just as his scalp was tingling with fear, a dark shadow suddenly flashed before his eyes. Lin Mu's expression changed drastically, and he blurted out, "Ting Feng Zhi!"

Even without Lin Mu's warning, Zhou Yaren had already sensed the murderous intent.