Chapter 1400: Cause and Effect (Part 2) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
"Where do you think you're going!"
Black and gold lightning exploded on the only path.
The murderous intent rushed straight to his face, aiming to seize Shen Tang's vital points.
No, he was after Tan Ting. After just two exchanges, he was fairly certain that the reinforcements Tan Ting had brought were extremely troublesome, and he was no match for them. He now had only one option: to make the most of Tan Ting! Tan Ting was the biggest weakness of the reinforcements!
With cheetahs blocking her path in front and pursuers shooting arrows from behind, Shen Tang also had to protect Tan Ting and avoid damaging the mountainside. These multiple factors combined made her extremely constrained. Even with her exceptional agility, there was nowhere for her to dodge. With a flick of her wrist, her silver whip instantly became as gentle as water; the seemingly soft cloth was actually more resilient than a heavy shield, blocking a dense rain of arrows.
"Again? You scoundrel!"
Shen Tang was distracted by blocking the arrows, which inevitably caused her to neglect the cheetah.
The latter seized the opportunity, slipping into the gaps in the "cloth" with a cunning, sharp angle, his claws attacking Tan Ting. Before he could succeed, Shen Tang delivered a leg whip strike. Unfortunately, it missed a vital spot and was dodged.
"A petty person?"
The cheetah let out a low, hoarse laugh, with its own reverberation.
"Did Tan Mengyuan manage to make some decent friends during his trip?" His mocking tone made Tan Ting's face turn pale. The cheetah lurked in the shadows, its eyes flashing with murderous intent. "I regret keeping such a close eye on you. I should have let you be so clever this time and taste what it's like to fall from the sky into the eighteenth level of hell."
He knew that Tan Ting wouldn't accept her fate so easily.
They also knew that Tan Ting had ways to secretly contact reinforcements.
But he was certain that Tan Ting's reinforcements would push him into an even deeper abyss—betrayal, assassination, scheming… Tan Ting was far too valuable to be exploited. Faced with absolute profit, Tan Ting's past relationships with them were utterly meaningless. The martial artist, while trying to stop Shen Tang, noticed Tan Ting's suddenly erratic breathing.
"Are you trying to contact the Tan family?"
A mocking smile, almost human-like, appeared on the cheetah's face.
"Do you think your sister's arrival here is something her husband's family can decide for her? She is, after all, a woman of the Tan family. Before her coming-of-age ceremony, she lived and ate at the Tan family's house. If she could fetch a good price, shouldn't she be entitled to a share? Without the Tan family's permission, would her husband's family dare to do this?"
Tan Ting's hands were trembling.
A chill ran through my entire body.
The martial artist's words pierced through the dense rain of arrows, relentlessly drilling into his brain, extremely sarcastic: "When the Tan family discovered that both of your birth mothers had that kind of bloodline, they must have been grinning from ear to ear."
Previously, there was no choice; you just used whatever was available.
If the child was born to a woman of the Tan clan, the carrier would still have Tan clan blood.
Isn't this better than a carrier without Tan bloodline?
Given the choice, no one wants to choose a stranger as their carrier.
Shen Tang felt her shoulder being wet with warm liquid, followed by a strong smell of blood: "Meng Yuan, are you injured?"
Countless images flashed through her mind—the protagonist carrying someone to safety, while a supporting character is shot in the back but endures the pain without uttering a word, ultimately dying after escaping. Could it be this melodramatic?
"My lord, it's alright."
He had only suffered too many blows in a short period, triggering internal injuries and causing him to cough up blood from sheer anger. He wasn't stupid; he naturally understood the martial artist's implication—if the master hadn't come, and Tan Ting had secretly sent out a distress signal, those who received it would either not come, or if they did, they would only trample on his grave. What he couldn't accept even more was that the Tan family was also involved.
He and his sister were worse than abandoned children.
This realization was a significant blow to Tan Ting.
He had always known that the central branch was no idyllic haven, but rather a place rife with power struggles, intrigue, and scheming. He hadn't expected it to be such a den of iniquity. Tan Ting didn't consider himself a saint, but compared to these people, he was practically a bodhisattva!
Warrior: "Your Majesty?"
Having eavesdropped in the stone chamber, the martial artist wasn't quite sure how Tan Ting addressed this rescuer. Now, so close, he finally understood and was taken aback. According to the information, Tan Ting had been traveling north for many years, losing contact for a long time along the way, and reconnecting when he entered the Kang Kingdom. As long as Tan Ting hadn't switched allegiance, there was only one person he could address as "Master."
"Shen Youli?"
impossible!
In the moment the martial artist lost his focus, the long whip transformed into a cloth, suddenly wrapping around the cheetah's tail. Seizing the opportunity, Shen Tang slammed the large mass against the stone wall before being flung towards the pursuing soldiers. After several twists and turns, judging from the air, the exit was not far away.
Shen Tang accelerated with a sliding tackle.
Guards stood watch at the cave entrance. A dozen or so men had heard the commotion and formed a battle formation, ready for action. But they underestimated Chen Tang. They saw almost tangible martial energy fly out from her palm, like a dragon emerging from the sea, with towering waves threatening to engulf everything. While their bodies were still in mid-air, their internal organs were already being crushed into a ball by an invisible force, followed by a blinding cloud of blood mist.
With one hand, Shen Tang grabbed Tan Ting and broke through the blood mist with the force of piercing through the clouds.
He said urgently, "Mengyuan, protect yourself."
The hunt has truly begun.
She was confined to the narrow cave, unable to move freely, and her clothes were torn in several places by the martial artist, but thankfully she wasn't seriously injured. Shen Tang was so focused on escaping that she felt incredibly frustrated.
The silver whip gradually stretched and lengthened, transforming into her usual longsword: "Now, have you scum decided how you want to die?"
The martial artist looked up and met Shen Tang's murderous gaze.
He sneered and raised his hand to strike.
"Gather the troops; do not let the two of them escape!"
As long as Tan Ting remains a burden, it's impossible for this formidable reinforcement to wipe out our entire force in a short time.
Almost no one questioned the martial artist's orders.
The few who objected worried that with a large number of men being diverted to fight the enemy, the women being held captive might escape, leading to punishment from their superiors. However, reason told them their worries were unnecessary. Aside from the secluded terrain and steep mountains, the labyrinthine interior alone made escape impossible for the women. Even if they did escape, they wouldn't be able to get down the mountain.
Shen Tang tossed Tan Ting up and down with one hand.
"Mengyuan, hold on tight, I'll carry you to godlike victory and crush them!"
Finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, Shen Tang's mood visibly improved, and she didn't notice Tan Ting's furrowed brows.
Tan Ting remained silent, relying solely on the power of words to assist her.
Just as Shen Tang stopped using a pine branch on a hilltop for leverage, a black-gold light followed closely behind, and several other mid-level martial artists joined forces to attack. Although Shen Tang was not afraid of this onslaught, he couldn't help but sigh, "Wealthy families are truly powerful and influential."
If this setup were given to Shen Tang, his early entrepreneurial journey would be incredibly smooth and comfortable, practically a dream team for startups. A lineup every novice dreams of, yet in someone else's hands, it's used to guard a group of women and children—given the aristocratic families' penchant for having multiple hideouts, there must be more than one similar stronghold. Doesn't this mean there are similar garrisons in other places as well?
Just then, a six-dot crimson die flew in from all directions with the force of thunder. At first glance, Shen Tang thought Kang Shi had crossed space to catch up, but upon closer inspection, she realized the die belonged to one of the martial artists. Gamblers these days are all so unique.
Thud—
The surface of the die flashes red light.
The next instant, violent martial energy exploded outwards from the center of the dice.
Thump thump thump—
Five more explosions.
"Let's see how you handle this move!"
The man took the cloth bag off his back, reached inside, and frantically pulled out dice, scattering them handful by handful at Chen Tang, the explosions deafening. Just as he was laughing triumphantly, the laughter abruptly stopped. A snow-white "cloth" had somehow appeared wrapped around his neck.
His eyes flashed with a strong will to survive and terror.
It still couldn't stop the sharp blade from piercing his neck. His usually indestructible neck was like a decoration, easily broken with a light cut.
"None of you will escape today!"
The best rescue is to eliminate all the enemies.
A numerical advantage is nothing more than a number in the face of absolute strength.
In the chaos of battle, blood and flesh flew everywhere, heads rolled, and broken blades swiftly and skillfully severed heads from various tricky angles. If this world were a game, Shen Tang's name would surely be stained crimson. She multitasked, wielding a longsword and whip with one hand.
The silver whip trembled slightly each time it took a life, like a vicious venomous snake that had been starving for years—its thirst for blood had long reached its peak, and its hunger would return in an instant after being satisfied.
A hundred or so corpses fell off the cliff and were instantly smashed into a bloody pulp.
Tan Ting secretly kept an eye on the Cheetah Warrior.
There was a vague unease, but I couldn't quite put my finger on what was wrong.
He decided to follow his instincts and not let his lord suffer: "My lord, shall we retreat first? I am worried that things may change."
Shen Tang asked, "What?"
Is a powerful expert about to attack?
Although she didn't realize it, she chose to trust Tan Ting's judgment.
She wanted to run away, but the enemy wouldn't allow it.
Left with no other choice, Shen Tang leaped into the sea of clouds below, followed by a dozen or so martial artists who jumped down in pursuit. The two sides clashed on the cliff face, sword flashes and whip crackles, and after only a dozen or so moves, several more corpses were left behind. The most troublesome of them all was the cheetah martial artist.
The steep cliff was a bit of a problem for others, but for him, it was like returning to his home turf. His speed increased rather than decreased, and he moved like the wind. Don't underestimate the power of a big cat's claws; they can certainly annoy Shen Tang. After another entanglement, only a few pursuers remained. The others were either killed by Shen Tang with a single blow or tricked by Tan Ting and fell to their deaths.
Shen Tang stepped onto the stone wall.
"Chase them any further? Are you out of your mind?"
He said that, but he was thinking something to himself.
Is Meng Yuan's judgment reliable or not? No formidable enemies have emerged yet; on the contrary, Chen Tang has almost wiped out these troublemakers who were rising in rank. Since the fighting has come to this point, why not turn back and wipe out the remaining small fry as well?
Let's press on with this effort, so we don't have to come back to rescue them.
The cheetah's claws easily embedded themselves in the stone wall.
Upon hearing Shen Tang's words, he withdrew his Martial Spirit Totem, which gradually twisted and returned to human form, a strange smile appearing on his face.
Tan Ting demanded, "What are you laughing at?"
How can you still laugh at such a critical moment?
The cheetah warrior's companions were also nearly killed by Shen Tang. The cheetah warrior was the strongest among them. Since he had stopped, it would be pointless for them to rush forward without any support. Therefore, they also cautiously chose to stop.
The cheetah warrior said, "Meng Yuan, do you remember what I told you—you'll soon find out who disappoints and chills you more?"
Tan Ting had some recollection of this.
Although he had been tortured and was delirious at the time, unable to hear clearly, he remembered hearing those words. Tan Ting replied coldly, "Things have come to this point, what could possibly chill me more? You're just trying to say that I, Tan Mengyuan, misjudged people back then, thinking those I thought were reliable were all demons and monsters, aren't you? We have different paths, so we can't work together. What's so disheartening about losing a few people who are on different paths?"
His like-minded people are not here, so there's no need to feel sorry for him.
He wouldn't be surprised if anyone turned against him now.
Unexpectedly, the cheetah warrior revealed an even stranger, mocking smile, his tone playful: "Meng Yuan, don't speak too definitively."
If you make promises you can't keep, you won't have a way to save face later.
Shen Tang naturally helped his own people.
"Are you trying to prolong your life with nonsense?" That won't change their future of becoming victims of your sword. "You're going to die anyway, so you might as well just give me your necks."
The cheetah warrior didn't even glance at Chen Tang.
The King of Kang Kingdom would travel a thousand miles to rescue someone; it seemed impossible. Naturally, he didn't believe Shen Tang was "Shen Tang." Besides, there were more important things to do right now: "Don't be so impatient, Tan Ting, listen—what's that sound?"
His low, husky voice seemed to carry a certain allure.
Tan Ting subconsciously focused her attention on her ears.
Shen Tang reacted faster than him.
She abruptly turned her head to look at the mountain she had just seen: "An explosion?"
There was no mistake, she clearly heard an explosion!
Seemingly in response to Shen Tang's guess, a series of rapid explosions followed, originating inside the mountain! A flash of inspiration struck Shen Tang, and a thought arose in his mind. He guessed that these people had already moved the woman and then conveniently blew up this stronghold.
This guess is reasonable.
The cheetah warrior, as if he possessed Gu Chi's mind-reading skills, mocked arrogantly: "No, all the manpower has been transferred here to hunt you down, where would we find manpower to move around?"
In other words, the women are still around.
Shen Tang's face darkened: "You destroyed the body to cover up the crime?"
The cheetah warrior watched with schadenfreude as his comrades, disregarding their serious injuries, chased after the body like madmen. He didn't move, and neither did Shen Tang: "You two think this looks like you're trying to destroy the evidence?"
The explosion was irreversible from the very first bang.
There is no point in attempting a rescue.
Tan Ting shouted, "Are you crazy!"
The martial artist chuckled and said, "Mengyuan, this is nothing. Crazy? I wouldn't dare to claim the top spot. Just because I've been whipping you and putting you in torture devices lately doesn't mean you think I'm responsible for all the bad things. As your old friend, I've tried my best to protect your life and innocence, so it's only right that you suffer a little for it."
Shen Tang seemed to sense something and turned to look in a certain direction.
The mountain wind was biting there.
A stream of water flew out from the collapsing exit, hooked onto the pine branches on the cliff, and leaped to the next mountain peak at an astonishing speed.
The colorless water gradually transformed into a substantial person.
Upon seeing the two people clearly, Tan Ting felt as if she had been struck by lightning.
The martial artist's voice was still drilling into my ears.
"I want these high and mighty people to suffer and bleed, while your sister wants to completely liberate these women. She naively thinks she can persuade these women to follow her example and destroy their wombs, thus losing their value and perhaps finding a glimmer of hope. If they refuse, then they must die!"
Rescuing them is useless; there's nowhere in this world for them to go.
Death is the only option.
The rising dust shattered the mountain mist.
Using shrimp to catch small fish, and small fish to catch big fish. Bringing in the Kang Kingdom's forces wasn't to deal with these stationed troops, but rather to lure them away from their stronghold.
Shen Tang: "..."
The mountain collapsed.
∑(っ°Д°;)っ
The update has been added.
PS: This devout woman is willing to offer ten pounds of her own flesh in exchange for Nezha's 20 billion ascension to the throne!
(End of this chapter)
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