Main Story, Volume Two, Chapter Ninety-Three: An Unexpected Ending

The leader gave a sharp command, and the others all activated their magical implements at once, hurling out masses of flame. The flames gathered together into a colossal fireball, its power multiplied tenfold.

The fireball shot straight toward Yu Mu. At such close range, there was nowhere to dodge. Yet at the sight, a flicker of delight rose in Yu Mu’s eyes.

Silently forming a spell with his hands, Yu Mu cried, “Repel!”

As if word and law were one, the hat behind him instantly swelled to the size of a tabletop and shielded him from the front. The fireball struck the brim, burst apart at once, and streamed away along either side of the pointed crown.

With a low roar, Yu Mu behind the hat had already become a bear. The hat flew up, and Yu Mu opened his mouth to喷 out a blaze of fire. The men opposite had never imagined such a turn of events; in an instant they were swallowed by the inferno. All except the leader were reduced to ashes.

He too had been burned grievously, yet he stared blankly and murmured, “Such terrible fire...”

Then he fainted.

These disciples of the Fire Poison Way were masters of flame. They had played with fire their whole lives, never imagining they would perish in a sea of fire. What a bitter irony.

When the smoke cleared, Yu Mu was already gone.

In the crowd, he had resumed his shapeshifted disguise and slipped among the people.

The grand market was certainly not a place he could visit anytime soon. For now, the most urgent thing was to find somewhere to hide. He had killed several disciples of the Fire Poison Way this time; ruthless vengeance would surely follow. What was more, he was already their sworn enemy.

After much thought, Yu Mu made his way to the little inn where he had once stayed.

He knew no other place, and he did not wish to trouble Aunt Goose again or seek her protection. This inn was the only place left to him.

By the time he arrived, night had already fallen. He took a room and settled in.

This time, Yu Mu learned from his previous mistake. He could not set up a barrier, but he had another trick.

He transformed part of his body into a tree trunk and turned its branches into vine-like tendrils. Fine as silk, they spread across every entrance. With this arrangement, no slightest disturbance could escape his notice.

It was much like a spider laying its web.

After finishing the setup, Yu Mu fell into thought.

His trail was already exposed. Going to the grand market now would be no different from walking into a trap. The Free Alliance held great power in this city and would surely send people searching everywhere for him.

It seemed best not to linger here any longer. He should leave at once.

Then—

A faint movement stirred the air at the window.

Someone!

Yu Mu was startled. Had the enemy found him so quickly?

The intruder’s movement technique was exceptionally skillful. If Yu Mu had not made these preparations, he would never have noticed him.

Outside the window, the figure moved again. This time Yu Mu sensed it even more clearly, for the man was already pressed against the window, peering inside in secret.

That movement was somewhat like Yan Xiaosan’s. Could it be an assassin?

At the thought, Yu Mu’s heart jumped. In his mind, an assassin was far more dangerous than those disciples of the Fire Poison Way.

He dared not be careless. Quietly, he withdrew the vines and formed a net-like trap just beneath the window, waiting for the intruder to fall into it.

The assassin saw that Yu Mu was sleeping soundly, apparently without anything amiss, and so sprang into the room, landing squarely in the vine net.

His foot suddenly gave way. Realizing at once that he had stepped into an ambush, he hurriedly gathered strength to leap again. But these tendrils were part of Yu Mu’s own body and were absurdly sensitive. How could they let him borrow any force?

It felt as though he had stepped on a lump of cotton. Not only did he fail to launch himself upward, but the sudden weakness beneath his feet also threw him off balance. At that very moment, countless vines shot out from every direction and, in the blink of an eye, had wrapped around his limbs.

Though he broke free almost immediately, a rush of wind came over his head. He looked up in alarm, and a thick club was already before his eyes.

With a dull thud, the assassin’s vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

Yu Mu secretly sighed in relief. It was his first successful ambush with a club to the head. This man, in experience and assassination skill alike, was far inferior to Yan Xiaosan by an immeasurable degree.

Yu Mu did not even look at the assassin’s identity, nor did he intend to kill him. He had already slain several disciples of the Fire Poison Way; if he further enraged the assassins, he might never escape this city.

From Yan Xiaosan, he had asked about some of the assassins’ rules.

Along the way, Yu Mu had won Yan Xiaosan’s full trust, and Yan Xiaosan had revealed his identity completely.

He was from the assassin organization called Thorn, and the assassins who had appeared here all came from that same group.

The organization was vast and extremely dangerous. The reason an assassin would try to kill him had nothing to do with personal grudge; it was simply because of a mission.

Under ordinary circumstances, assassins took missions and completed them alone. Only for especially major assignments would they team up for a kill.

Clearly, Yu Mu’s identity was nowhere near worthy of being called especially major.

Moreover, when assassins carried out missions, whether they were captured or killed, their organization would never step in on their behalf. It could only be said that their skills were not good enough. However, if someone voluntarily stepped forward to avenge them, the organization would not interfere either.

That was why Yu Mu had only knocked him unconscious and dared not kill him casually, lest he invite even greater danger.

He could not remain in this city for another moment.

Without any hesitation, Yu Mu leaped out of the room. In the cover of night, he ran full tilt toward the city gate.

Before a single cup of tea’s time had passed after Yu Mu left, more than ten people flew over the little inn.

They came menacingly, each carrying a magical implement. The leader even held a large piebald dog on a leash.

Oddly enough, the dog stood upon the flying implement as steady as a mountain. If Yu Mu had seen it, who knew what he would have thought.

The dog sniffed the air, then barked furiously in the direction Yu Mu had fled.

“Damn it! We’re too late. That brat has run off. Quickly—after him!”

At the leader’s command, the group raced after Yu Mu in hot pursuit.

Yu Mu ran all the way. In the midst of his flight, a sudden unease stirred in his heart. Acting on instinct, he looked back, and in the pitch-black night he saw a cluster of figures moving in the distance.

Yu Mu was greatly startled.

How had they found him so quickly?

Faintly, a few barks drifted over.

So that’s how it is!

Understanding dawned at once.

The pursuers were rapidly closing in. In this situation, escape was already impossible.

Yu Mu looked around and spotted several large trees at the intersection ahead. His eyes turned, and he ran toward them.

“Hm? Why does it seem like Big Flower has lost the target?” The leader, hovering above the crossroads, scanned the surroundings.

“According to the message left by the young alliance master, this fellow is a demon. He may have some special concealment art. Let’s go down and search,” said one of the men. Looking at the dog that was still barking without cease, he added darkly, “Better to kill the wrong one than let him go. Burn it.”

“Yes!”

Just as the underling was about to act, the dog ran around the tree several times, sniffed beneath it, and then lifted a hind leg, actually taking a piss.

The leader flew into a rage. “You stupid mutt, so you were just pissing. You’ve given us all a needless scare!” He grabbed the leash and turned to leave.

The others snickered inwardly, but none dared show it. One by one, they turned around as well, pretending to search the area.

No one noticed that as the willow catkins drifted down, a puff of pink mist had settled onto the dog’s body.

The leader, still unaware, dragged the dog along, never realizing that the dog’s eyes had already turned blood-red, its tongue lolled out of its mouth, and saliva streamed down in torrents.

Then, with a wild bark, the dog suddenly burst into action, leaping onto the leader’s back and clamping its jaws onto the back of his neck.

“Ah—!”

A piercing scream tore through the night.

The others were shocked at once. “What happened to Hall Master Li?”

When they finally saw the dog crazily savaging him from behind, every one of them turned pale. “Why has Big Flower suddenly gone mad?”

“Could it have rabies?”

“That’s bad. I’ve heard rabies is contagious.”

“Shut your mouths!” the small leader roared. “Hurry and save Hall Master Li! What are you all babbling about?”

Only then did the others react, rushing forward to rescue Hall Master Li.

But Big Flower was no ordinary dog. It was a demon beast that had been tamed and was already in the late Golden Core stage. It had been assigned by the sect as the guardian beast of the hall, and its strength was formidable beyond measure.

Now, further provoked by the pink mist, its power had increased again. How could these small fry tear it away?

Seeing that the dog could not be pulled off, and unwilling to harm its life, the small leader had no choice but to circle around to the front, planning to pry open the dog’s jaws and save the hall master.

The place the dog had bitten was a vital point. After a frenzy of tearing and biting, it had already sent its venom into the hall master’s body, and the poison had reached his brain.

At this moment, Hall Master Li had become exactly like the dog.

“Hall Master, you...”

The small leader had barely noticed that something was wrong with the hall master when those hands suddenly clamped tightly around his throat. With a violent wrench, the head was torn clean off.

Blood sprayed through the air.

Yet Hall Master Li was like a bloodthirsty monster. He stretched out his crimson tongue and licked at the rain of blood falling around him.