Chapter 233: The Troublemaking Mouth

Chapter 233: The Troublemaking Mouth

Before Lu Lian could act, a young man beside him had already leaped to his feet, brandishing his sword and pointing it at the lamas. He shouted angrily, "Where did you filthy bald thieves come from? You're making such a racket that my ears hurt! This inn reeks of you. Can't you let people eat in peace? If you know what's good for you, get out now, or don't blame my sword for being merciless!"

The tip of his sword gleamed with a cold light, clearly indicating it was no ordinary weapon. However, it was unclear how skilled he was.

Just as this thought crossed everyone's mind, the lama holding the black Buddha statue suddenly stopped chanting. He slowly rose, staring at the young cultivator who had spoken. With an angry snarl, he tore off his cloak, revealing a mangled chest, and then ripped a piece of flesh from between his ribs. He placed it over the black Buddha statue and began to chant rapidly under his breath.

No one had ever seen anything like this before, and the entire room erupted into chaos. No one knew what the fat lama was doing, but only Lu Lian calmly warned:

"Quickly destroy the flesh Buddha in his hand, or it will be too late once he finishes his incantation!"

The sword cultivator hesitated for a moment, then immediately attacked, but it was too late. The black Buddha statue in the lama's hand suddenly floated up and expanded several times in size, becoming as large as a real person. It had a fierce face, six arms, and four heads, each holding a different hellish implement: a scythe for tongues, a spoon for gouging eyes, and a spiked hammer for breaking bones. It approached step by step, as if coming to life.

The sword cultivator seemed to have some skill, likely trained in a prestigious sect. He swiftly attacked the lama chanting behind him, but the black Buddha roared and lunged forward. Its arms lengthened rapidly, grabbing the cultivator's shoulders tightly. Two hands wielded blades, striking his skull, while the other two held weapons aimed at his abdomen, as if trying to dissect him alive.

"Be careful, Senior Brother!"

The three men and one woman at the neighboring table all turned pale and immediately drew their swords to help. They moved quickly, attacking the black Buddha's limbs, but their swords bounced off as if hitting a wall of iron, nearly flying out of their hands.

The sword cultivator fighting the black Buddha was even more terrified. His spiritual energy was being suppressed, and his shoulders were gripped so tightly that his fingers dug into his flesh and bones, immobilizing him.

In desperation, he bit his tongue and spat out a mouthful of golden blood, then struck the black Buddha as it turned its head to dodge. He quickly retreated.

The chanting lama sneered, "Where do you think you're running? I need more flesh! More flesh!"

The black Buddha, as if receiving an order, moved like a spider, crawling swiftly towards the cultivator. The lama was thin and dark-skinned, resembling a dying old man, making him look more like a black monkey than a Buddha.

The sword cultivator had just used his life-saving blood, leaving him with little spiritual energy left. Seeing the black Buddha approaching, he turned pale and raised his sword defensively, his panic evident. He wondered if this would be the end for him today.

Suddenly, Lu Lian, who had been sitting quietly, grabbed the corner of the table and the chopstick holder, and with a swift movement, sent a palm strike. His voice was deep and calm, overpowering the lama's chants, lifting the spirits of everyone present:

"What evil spirit dares to kill in the mortal world?! You've lived long enough!"

Strangely, though he did nothing but point, the black Buddha suddenly let out a painful roar. Its face twisted and changed, as if countless faces were crying out in agony. Finally, its form dissolved like black smoke, pouring into the chopstick holder.

"Whoosh!"

The chopstick holder flew back and landed precisely next to Lu Lian. He flicked his hand, and a pool of foul-smelling black water appeared inside.

Without looking back, Lu Lian tossed the black water onto the ground behind him, coldly eyeing the shocked lama:

"To dare practice such evil arts, killing you ten times wouldn't be enough!"

The lama screamed in a distorted voice, "You dare destroy my flesh Buddha?! I'll make your bones into ritual tools and ensure you never reincarnate!"

As he spoke, the other three lamas around the table stood up. One beat a human skin drum, another blew a human bone flute, and the third rushed towards Lu Lian, raising a bone-tipped knife above his head. Under his cloak, his face was rotting, revealing white bones, a terrifying sight.

"The drum and flute sounds have a strange power, making one dizzy and causing intense pain. If not for his high cultivation, the sword cultivator would have bled from his orifices. Seeing this, he quickly threw a golden arrow from his pouch, shouting, "Scholar, quickly dodge!"

Cultivators always carry life-saving artifacts when traveling. The golden arrow shot out like a streak of light, turning mid-air and piercing the lama's head. However, the lama's movements merely slowed slightly before returning to normal, and he swung his knife down viciously.

The corpse puppet prepared to attack, but Lu Lian held him back, gripping the air with his other hand. The bone knife froze mid-air, unable to move further.

The lama gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, "Who are you? Tell me your name!!"

Lu Lian sneered, "Does a dying man deserve to know my name?"

With a forceful strike, the lama flew back and crashed into the wall. Lu Lian flicked his finger, sending a cluster of white moonlight, which instantly engulfed the lama in flames, burning him to ashes—no, not even ashes remained, as if he had never existed.

"Whoa—"

Everyone was stunned, the room falling silent. This young scholar had incredible strength, killing without a trace. Where did this powerful cultivator come from?

Seeing this, the other three lamas' faces turned pale, realizing they were facing a formidable opponent. They turned to flee, running faster than rabbits, scrambling towards the door.

"Where do you think you're going!"

Lu Lian coldly shouted, flicking three more clusters of light, which chased the lamas, engulfing them in white flames, leaving nothing behind.

The inn fell silent, a pin drop could be heard. Some stared dumbfounded at the scene.

Ignoring the shocked gazes, Lu Lian righted the chopstick holder at the table corner. In a hidden gesture, he concealed a tiny blue fragment under his fingernail, a fragment of a soul.

"Senior Brother, are you alright?!"

Finally, the sword cultivator's junior sister came to her senses and helped him up with a few junior brothers.

"Cough... I'm fine... Those lamas are quite formidable. I don't know what kind of evil arts they practice. If it weren't for this gentleman's help, I might have lost my life."

Liu Lianqing coughed violently, his face pale, clearly shaken. Wiping the blood from his lips, he carefully examined the person who had saved him, leading his junior brothers and sisters to bow respectfully, saying, "Gentleman, I am Liu Lianqing, the senior disciple of Feixing Sect. We are here on our master's orders to attend the Sword Inquiry Conference. Thank you for saving us. Words cannot express our gratitude; we will repay you someday."

The others also bowed, expressing their gratitude.

So they were from Feixing Sect, one of the top three sects. No wonder people say the art of swordsmanship is declining, and geniuses are rare. These young cultivators seemed skilled, but in a one-on-one fight, they were at best mediocre. If Feixing Sect, a major sect, was like this, imagine the smaller sects.

Lu Lian sighed inwardly and returned the bow. Dressed like a scholar, he smiled warmly, putting everyone at ease: "It's nothing, just a small favor. No need to talk about repayment. Those lamas are from Xiyu's Blood Chan Sect. They practice an evil method of self-destruction. That black flesh Buddha must have killed many to be formed. As disciples of prestigious sects, it's understandable that you were caught off guard."

Liu Lianqing, eager to befriend Lu Lian, sat down with his junior brothers and sisters after getting permission. They ordered new dishes and drinks, exchanging names and becoming more familiar: "Brother Lu, you're quite skilled. Which sect do you belong to? And..."

He glanced at the fortune-telling banner Lu Lian had set aside, pointing awkwardly, "Why are you doing fortune-telling here?"

Lu Lian pointed to the corpse puppet, smiling, "My brother and I wander the world without a fixed abode or sect. Hearing about the Sword Inquiry Conference, we wanted to see the talents gathered. Unfortunately, we ran out of funds on the way, so we started fortune-telling to earn some money."

Hatehong, Liu Lianqing's junior sister, immediately untied her pouch and pushed it across the table, filled with valuable high-grade spirit stones: "Brother Lu, meeting is fate. Please accept this if you don't mind. This town is remote, and the villagers are poor. Disciples of major sects can calculate their fortunes themselves, so you won't get many customers here."

Lu Lian had set a high price for his fortune-telling, but it wasn't outrageous. In the current realm, spirit stones were the hard currency, making gold less valuable. A thousand gold coins could barely buy a small bag of high-grade spirit stones, if anyone wanted to exchange them at all, since gold was only useful for jewelry.

Liu Lianqing echoed, "Brother Lu, please accept this if you consider me a friend."

He believed that Lu Yan was no ordinary talent, hardly inferior to his own father. How could such a person be short of money? The fact that he neither stole nor robbed was already admirable.

Lu Yan thought to himself, "Disgust? Disgust what? I love making friends with the rich." He waved his folding fan vigorously: "Since Brother Liu and Miss Henhong have such good intentions, I won't refuse. However, I don't take advantage for free. How about I offer each of you a divination as a gift?"

These people clearly seemed like wealthy young nobles just starting their training, naive to the dangers of the world. In a short time, Lu Yan had extracted all the information from them.

It turned out that this Sword Inquiry Conference, where all the prestigious sects gathered, was secretly led by the Wuwang Sect. They had agreed to leave most of their disciples in ambush outside the town, while a smaller group of inner disciples would participate in the conference. At any sign of trouble, they would signal with fireworks to coordinate an attack on the demonic realm.

Liu Lianqing clearly didn't take it seriously and laughed casually: "Friends don't need to be so formal."

Lu Yan lightly waved his fan, sipped his tea, and wore a half-smile: "If Brother Liu doesn't want it, that's fine, but you can't refuse on behalf of Miss Henhong. What if she has something she wants to divine or someone she wants to find?"

The last sentence carried a profound meaning, and Henhong lifted her head in surprise.

Lu Yan pretended not to notice and asked with a smile: "So, Miss Henhong, do you have anything you'd like to divine?"

Henhong hesitated, biting her lower lip. She was much more perceptive than Liu Lianqing and found Lu Yan enigmatic. She said hesitantly: "I... I want to find someone. Could Lord Lu help me divine his whereabouts?"

Liu Lianqing frowned slightly upon hearing this, seemingly disapproving but held back due to Lu Yan's presence.

Lu Yan said: "Please tell me, and I'll give it a try."

Henhong whispered: "It's my father. His surname is Mo, and his name is Yunjie. He disappeared when I was young, having been secretly harmed by someone from the demonic realm. Despite extensive searches, we've found no trace of him. I want to know if he's still alive, or..."

Lu Yan calmly replied with one word: "Alive."

The faces of the Feixing Sect members changed at once, and Henhong lost control of her emotions, standing up abruptly: "Lord Lu, are you sure?! If Father is alive, why hasn't he come to find me?"

Lu Yan: "He is trapped and cannot move."

Henhong was shocked again, her eyes widening, and her hands clenched tightly at her sides as she trembled: "Then... Where is he now?"

Lu Yan: "In the dungeon beneath the Jiuqu Mountains of the Huangsha Sect."

"Bang—!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a man at the next table angrily overturned the table, pointing at Lu Yan and shouting: "Bullshit! Where did this pretentious scholar come from, daring to slander the Huangsha Sect? Are you courting death?!"