"You!" Fear was evident on that man's face as he stared at Huang Xiaolong. He struggled to get up from the ground as fast as he could.
Before he made his move, he had investigated carefully and knew Huang Xiaolong had broken into the Xiantian realm, and not too long ago at that. Though he defeated Xie Puti, no one really truly minded that point. Yet he who had the Violet-pupils Bat, battling during the advantageous nighttime still lost!
"Why don't you just admit it, Yao Fei sent you?" Huang Xiaolong's cold gaze pierced through him.
In a sudden move, the black-clad man blurred away, new doppelgangers burst out from his body as he moved, creating twenty-four identical decoys. The Violet-pupils Bat spread its wings to escape.
Multiplying into twenty-four doppelgangers was his limit.
"Trying to escape?" Huang Xiaolong's expression sank. Both hands shaped into claws and tore through the void at the man.
A black mist entity swirled out from Huang Xiaolong's hands, gathering up in midair and transforming into wraith headsㅡa total of exactly twenty-four appeared. Howling wraith heads flew out, each pouncing onto the backs of the enemy's doppelgangers.
Twenty-three out of twenty-four dissipated into wisps of smoke whereas the remaining original body plummeted from midair, issuing a hair-raising scream.
Falling to the ground, the man convulsed in pain, rolling and twisting on the ground due to the excruciating pain. The flesh of his back where the attack landed was an indistinguishable mess, a dark energy rippled beneath the open wound which formed the imprint of a wraith head. The shrieking howl of wraiths echoed endlessly in the dark street.
This was the first move of Asura Demon Claw, Laments of Thousands of Demons. Huang Xiaolong might not practice it diligently, but as years went by and with his increase in strength, its attack power had increased significantly.
At present day, under Huang Xiaolong's control, the Asura Demon Claw's first move, Laments of Thousands of Demons, could form more than thirty wraiths with one attack.
Struck by Asura Demon Claw, the opponent's body will be invaded by thousands of demons negative qi, which was undoubtedly a thousand times worse than Asura Sword Skill's frigid qi.
"I beg you, kill me, just kill me!" Seconds later, tragic screams begging for mercy filled the deserted street. The black-clad man was unable to tolerate the extent of torture and pleaded for mercy from Huang Xiaolong.
"Speak, who sent you?" Huang Xiaolong moved closer to the man, his voice dangerous and low.
"It, it was Guo Zhi!" The man shouted in short gasps.
Guo Zhi!
Huang Xiaolong was stupefied.
"Guo Family's Guo Zhi, the two Guo Brothers, Guo Zhi and Guo Fei?"
"Yes, it's them!" The black-clad man admitted, "I beg you, just kill me, let me die painlessly."
Huang Xiaolong's eyes grew icy upon hearing the man's confession, he did not expect the individual(s) behind this to actually be the two Guo Brothers. The two possible suspects who crossed his mind to have sent this person was either Yao Fei or Zhao Wuji.
Yet, he was thrown a curveball by the Guo Brothers.
Just because he and Xie Puti hindered them twice with the Sapidity Wine incidents, and they dare not lay their hands on Xie Puti, all of their anger was vented at him?
It seems he underestimated the narrow-mindedness of this pair of brothers!
Observing the man flapping like a fish out of water, an idea struck Huang Xiaolong like a bolt of lightning. With a thought, he called out the Linglong Treasure Pagoda and started the Thousand Demons Engulfing Destruction Array inside the Thousand Beast Cauldron. A powerful suction force instantly wrapped around the man and pulled him into the Thousand Beast Cauldron. However, Huang Xiaolong did not start refining the man on the spot. Instead, his body flickered away, leaving the area and returning to Southern Hill Estate.
Once back in Southern Hill Estate, Huang Xiaolong called for Fei Hou.
To refine a mere early stage Xiantian expert was much easier, using Fei Hou's and his battle qi was sufficient enough for the task.
It only took a single day's time before that black-clad man had been completely refined. However, with his Xiantian Second Order strength, the result was only a mid grade five pellet.
For the current Huang Xiaolong, a mid-grade five pellet had already lost its efficacy. When the refinement was done, Huang Xiaolong and Fei Hou left the room.
Moving into the great hall, both of them sat down and Fei Hou took the initiative to speak first, "Sovereign, this black-clad man was sent by Yao Fei?"
Huang Xiaolong shook his head, "It was Guo Zhi and Guo Fei, the two brothers."
"Guo Zhi and Guo Fei brothers?" A trace of confusion was apparent in Fei Hou's eyes.
Hence Huang Xiaolong briefly described Guo Zhi and Guo Fei's identity and mentioned the matter regarding Sapidity Wine.
"Sovereign, do you want us to… ?" Fei Hou suggested in an inquiring manner.
Huang Xiaolong shook his head and waved his hand, saying "Did Yao Fei send anyone to investigate that black-clad old man's clues?"
Fei Hou smiled respectfully as he reported to Huang Xiaolong, "I was about to report to Sovereign that Left Custodian Zhao Shu captured one the day before yesterday!"
"Oh!" Huang Xiaolong also laughed, "Where's the person?"
"He's being held in the Eastside Courtyard's chamber." Fei Hou then added, "I will go bring him over now."
Huang Xiaolong nodded.
Before long, Fei Hou was seen dragging a thin-faced old man with silver hair into the great hall.
The instant the silver-haired old man saw Huang Xiaolong he clamored, "Huang Xiaolong, it's best if you let me go this instant. If not, the Yao Family will ensure you die without a body to be buried with!"
Huang Xiaolong remained indifferent, "Oh really?" Without caring to reply, Huang Xiaolong's fingers shaped into claws. Asura Demon Claw's first move struck the silver-haired old man's torso. The impact threw him out of the great hall, his body crashing onto the ground, tumbling until he reached the great hall door.
This silver-haired old man's actual strength was at Xiantian Ninth Order, but unfortunate for him, his Qi Sea and meridians were sealed by Zhao Shu. In front of Huang Xiaolong, he was no different than a mere mortal who couldn't put up any resistance.
Before one could bat an eye, the thousand wraiths energy invaded the silver-haired old man's body. Raw, agonizing screams resounded from the old man. It did not take long for him to start begging Huang Xiaolong for mercy.
"Spare you? Huang Xiaolong approached the silver-haired old man, and reassured in a frigid voice, "Don't worry, the Yao Family you spoke of will be erased from Duanren Empire soon!" Once he finished saying that, Huang Xiaolong called out the Linglong Treasure Pagoda and had it suck the silver-haired old man inside.
Zhao Shu was not in the Southern Hill Estate at the moment. He took a trip to Duanren Imperial Palace in the morning, so Huang Xiaolong had to wait for Zhao Shu to come back before he could refine the new 'material.'
Around midnight, Zhao Shu returned from the imperial palace and proceeded to refine the silver-haired old man with Huang Xiaolong.
However, Huang Xiaolong didn't take the grade seven pellet for himself this time and placed it into the Asura Ring for safekeeping.
After dealing with the silver-haired man, Huang Xiaolong spoke with Zhao Shu about entering the inner division of Duanren Institute, directing Zhao Shu to speak with Duan Ren about making the necessary arrangements.
"Please be assured Sovereign, this Subordinate will go and tell the Lil' Monkey about it now." Listening to Huang Xiaolong's words, Zhao Shu immediately replied.
Huang Xiaolong quickly waved him down, saying "No need to do it now. You can speak to Duan Ren tomorrow or the next time you see him." To look for the Absolute Soul Pearl, a day or two later made no difference.
"Yes, Sovereign." Zhao Shu obeyed.
"Zhao Shu, do you know a force that refers to themselves as Deities Templar?" Huang Xiaolong suddenly posed the question to Zhao Shu.
In fact, Huang Xiaolong had wanted to inquire about this mysterious Deities Templar from Zhao Shu much earlier.
Haotian and Fei Hou weren't aware of their existence but perhaps Zhao Shu does.
"Deities Templar?" Zhao Shu shook his head, "Never heard of it."
Even Zhao Shu didn't know about it? Huang Xiaolong frowned. Again, the mysteriousness of this Deities Templar had far exceeded Huang Xiaolong's predictions, so much so that even Zhao Shu didn't know anything about it.
"Since Sovereign wants information about Deities Templar, I will also ask Lil' Monkey about it." Zhao Shu added.
Huang Xiaolong nodded in agreement, this was the path to take when there was no other way. It was just that, every time Zhao Shu called Duanren Emperor 'Lil' Monkey', Huang Xiaolong felt awkward.
For the next two days after that, Huang Xiaolong did not leave Southern Hill Estate and instead cultivated there on his own.
In the early morning two days later, Zhao Shu came to report to Huang Xiaolong, "Sovereign, I have news about Deities Templar."