binnovel Chapter 302 Defeating the enemy with 1 move
Chapter 302 Defeating the enemy with 1 move
Chapter 302 One Move to Defeat the Enemy
Upon hearing this, Gan Ran and his companion immediately understood the bandits' intentions. Just as Mo Yuming and the others had guessed, they were all after the meteorite artifact. Mo Yuming was the one who brought the spaceship back to the mainland two months ago; the massive explosion that occurred had shaken the entire continent. Although no one discovered anything, many people inevitably thought of the meteorite artifact. To elicit information, the two feigned surprise and deliberately asked:
"why?"
"Why? Heh, why should I tell you? But if you can tell me what you want the bile of the golden turtle for, I might consider telling you why!"
Seeing that Gan Ran and the other man were distracted, the old man in black couldn't help but feel a little smug. The old man who spoke first deliberately spoke loudly.
"Refining weapons, of course. The greatest use of the bile of the Gold-Eating Turtle is for refining weapons. Everyone knows that, so why would I need to say it?" Sikong Nong answered loudly.
"What kind of weapon are you forging? Ordinary black iron treasures don't seem to need the bile of the Devouring Gold Turtle, do they? And you don't seem to be weapon refiners, do you need to buy such a large bottle?" the old man in black quickly asked.
"Whatever weapon you think we can use it to forge, that's what it is! If we can't use it all at once, we'll use it multiple times. Acquired soul weapons, innate spiritual weapons, we can forge whatever we think of. Who would complain about having too many treasures!"
Gan Ran retorted sarcastically. They knew that these robbers weren't after the bile of the gold-devouring turtle, but rather the meteorite iron that the two might possess. So they deliberately spoke with a mix of truth and falsehood.
After Gan Ran said that, the old man in black hesitated to speak again. They knew that Gan Ran and his companion were not to be trifled with, and it would be difficult to get anything out of them. They disregarded all the rules of the martial world and decided to seize the opportunity to take down the two of them first.
"Gold-devouring turtle bile? A whole bottle, haha, what a treasure! Everyone gets a share. You guys go first, and I'll have a share when you're done!" Just as the two old men in black were about to make their move, a tall, middle-aged man dressed in coarse linen clothes, dressed like a farmer, sat down on a bluestone slab not far away. He watched the group fighting with a smile.
The two old men in black, who were about to join the fight, stopped in their tracks and turned to look at the middle-aged man who had suddenly appeared three zhang away. Both men were astonished. Despite their strength and their usually cautious nature, neither of them had noticed how this person had appeared.
"As the saying goes, when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits. You're not the fisherman, so what business is it of yours to be a farmer?"
At the end of the stone-paved road, an old man dressed as a scholar, wearing a coarse blue long gown and holding a curved cane, walked slowly together with a plump old man with white hair and a youthful face, wearing a brocade robe.
"I used to fish when I was young, so I guess I'm half a fisherman! And there's no rule that says farmers can't fish! It's so awkward and out of place for a down-on-his-luck scholar and a money-grubbing swindler to walk together like this. You have the nerve to lecture others? I advise you not to get involved; it's really awkward!" the big man retorted loudly.
"The bile of the Golden-Eating Turtle has nothing to do with one's social status. If you, a farmer, want it, then I, an old scholar, naturally want it too, and as for the unscrupulous merchant, there's no need to say more!"
The old man said slowly.
“Since it’s such a treasure, everyone should have a share. I, Jia Fu, won’t take much, just a small bottle will do, hehe.” The fat old man said cheerfully.
Hearing the three men talking as if they were dividing up spoils, completely disregarding them, the two old men in black were both annoyed and forced to be wary. This desolate path was usually deserted, rarely even frequented by pedestrians, let alone high-level martial artists. The fact that several of them had arrived at the same time was such a coincidence; they would never have believed it was just a chance encounter.
Judging from their attire, the wealthy-looking merchant had the lowest cultivation level, but was at least at the second level of the Heavenly Rank. The old scholar appeared frail, but his intuition told him that his cultivation was at least on par with Gan Ran and the other man, and at least a level higher than the merchant. Even if he was lower than them, it couldn't be by much. What truly made the old man in black wary was the middle-aged farmer. They couldn't even see through his cultivation with their eyes, which meant the farmer's cultivation was at least two levels higher than theirs, at least at the peak of the third level of the Heavenly Rank, and perhaps even higher.
Although the two old men in black were confident that their special skills gave them a certain chance of winning against opponents of higher level, especially those below the mid-level of the third rank of the Heavenly Realm, the middle-aged farmer was clearly beyond their capabilities. Moreover, there were two other people of unknown origin; even if they weren't allies, they were definitely enemies.
The two old men in black exchanged glances, and one of them turned around, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said to the three of them:
"I don't know who you are, but I am very grateful. This Gold-Eating Turtle bile is a forbidden item in our sect. I hope you will not get involved in this mess!"
Upon hearing the old man in black's words, Gan Ran shouted angrily:
"What a joke! A bunch of highway robbers dares to be so arrogant, taking advantage of our misfortune and even thinking it's justified! We rightfully acquired this treasure from the Qin Kingdom's royal family at a high price; how did it become yours? Heroes, if you help us wipe out these lowlifes, you'll all get a share of the Gold-Eating Turtle's bile. These bastards have been following us since Tianxin City, from Runze City to Hexuan City, robbing us several times along the way, and they still haven't given up. Now they've even become brazen!"
"After this, we'll definitely go to the Tianxin City Auction House to demand an explanation. How could a royal auction house collude with underworld thieves to do such shady things! Do they really think we buyers are made of clay? We won't rest until we get a satisfactory answer!"
“What this fellow Daoist said makes sense. Since we’ve already started out as thieves, we shouldn’t try to cover it up with that fig leaf.”
Since you're colluding with the auction house, you're certainly not some nobody. You're probably not short of money, so why are you doing this shady business? This bile from the gold-devouring turtle is precious, but it's not some rare treasure that's hard to find even once in a century. Since you value it so much, why are you putting it up for sale?
I suspect what you're doing isn't just a simple robbery, is it?
The wealthy businessman spoke to the old man in black.
“From a moral standpoint, it seems we should choose the side of justice, which means we have a legitimate reason to fight and we can get the treasure we want. What do you say, farmer?” the old scholar said to the farmer, leaning on his cane.
"Haha, what's with all this talk about morality and ethics? All that fancy stuff. We farmers just know that weeds in the fields have to be removed, no matter how lush they grow. It's not about who's good or bad, it's about the fact that no matter how lush the weeds grow, they don't benefit us. The rice seedlings will produce the grain we want in the fall. If those weeds could produce grain like the rice seedlings, we wouldn't want to remove them."
"Haha, the old farmer is right. Whoever feeds us is our mother. We merchants have always believed that we won't get up early for nothing. We'll help whoever is beneficial to us. As for those cowardly guys, we don't like them either!"
The fat old man also laughed heartily.
The two old men in black glared angrily at what these people said, gritting their teeth as they spoke:
"No one has ever dared to interfere in the affairs of our Blood Wolf Hall. I think you guys are tired of living!"
"Hey, finally dare to reveal your name? What is Blood Wolf Hall? How dare you try to fool me with this? I'm just a barefoot farmer. When I go down to the fields to weed, or when I encounter a wolf blocking my way on the mountain, I'll give it a good whack! I don't care about Blood Wolves or Fortune Wolves."
"Come on, come on, let's have a go at it and see if your wolf's head is harder or my hammer is!"
After the farmer finished speaking, he grabbed a hammer and smashed it at an old man in black.
"Oh dear, you peasant! You attacked without warning. That's against the rules. We'll have to discuss the profits later." The fat old man pulled out a two-foot-long golden abacus from his robes and shook it. The abacus beads made a series of 'crackling' sounds. Beams of golden light shot towards another old man in black.
"Sigh! Now that the farmers have all taken action, I can't just stand by and watch!"
The old scholar sighed and slammed his cane into the ground. A circle of green light radiated outwards like ripples on water. Ten feet away, the black-clad old man who was blocking the fat old man's golden light suddenly sprouted many thorny vines around his feet, like ferocious venomous snakes coiling around them.
While the old scholar, the fat merchant, and the man in black were locked in combat, the peasants had already decided their fate. As the hammer came crashing down, the old man in black tried everything to dodge it, but suddenly he discovered a strange force field surrounding the hammer. No matter what technique he used, he couldn't avoid the blow. All his profound martial arts and skills were rendered useless at that moment; he had no choice but to take the hit head-on. In desperation, he could only muster all his strength, raising a tungsten steel ghost-head broadsword with both hands to block it. However, he never expected that his natal spiritual weapon, crafted with many precious materials and meticulously refined by a master craftsman, couldn't even withstand the seemingly crude wooden-handled hammer. The moment the hammer struck the blade, the thick steel sword shattered like fragile tiles, and his hands, as if struck by a thousand bolts of lightning, were pulverized from his fingers down to his shoulders, turning into two sausages.
"You...you just used that move? What is your cultivation level? How come I couldn't even withstand one of your moves...cough cough..."
The old man in black leaned weakly against the tree trunk, his soft, cotton-like hands hanging limply. He groaned and grimaced. He had fought and killed for over a hundred years, and had seen all kinds of opponents. Since his strength had reached the second level of the Heavenly Rank, he had never encountered such a setback, never felt so powerless. Even against a peak third-level Heavenly Rank opponent, he could withstand a move or two, and even if injured, he could always escape safely from the Brotherhood. But today's opponent was beyond his limits. This seemingly ordinary farmer's cultivation was definitely no less than that of those reclusive old immortals in the hall.
"Me? I just advanced to the mid-stage of the Heavenly Rank. The move I just used was the Force Vibration Domain, which I only recently comprehended. My control over the force is still not very refined, and it hasn't achieved the desired effect yet. That move only vibrated about three hundred times. If I achieve minor mastery, it should be able to reach a thousand times. Moreover, the range of the force field can be further reduced, from the current one zhang in radius to about three chi. This would further reduce the damage to the surrounding environment and prevent so many flowers and plants from being destroyed."
The middle-aged farmer shook the hammer in his hand and said.
"Was that a battle domain? It's said that once you reach the fourth level of the Heavenly Rank, you can comprehend your own battle domain. I never imagined the power of a domain could be so terrifying! ... Cough, cough..."
The old man in black muttered to himself.
The Heavenly Rank is divided into three stages based on strength level: levels one to three are the beginner stage, levels four to six are the intermediate stage, and levels seven and above are the advanced stage. The reason for this distinction after the initial nine-level division is that upon reaching level four, there is a significant leap in strength. Even a peak Heavenly Rank three cultivator is considerably weaker than someone who has just entered the beginner level four. This difference is quite pronounced, unlike the first three levels where some differences are less noticeable. While it's common for a level one cultivator to defeat a level two cultivator, and a level two cultivator to challenge a level three cultivator, it's extremely rare for a level three Heavenly Rank cultivator to defeat a level four cultivator.
On the other side, the fight between the old man in black, trapped by the scholar and the merchant, was much more exciting. Each turn of the merchant's abacus sent dozens of golden beams shooting towards the old man. The old man was equally formidable, wielding his broadsword with the agility of a bucket, deflecting all the golden beams. However, the scholar, attacking from a distance, was caught off guard. Leaves, flung by his magical powers, suddenly transformed into a flurry of flying knives, and crushed grass turned into arrows. Broken branches and vines sprouting from the ground, like venomous snakes or deadly weapons, kept the old man in black constantly on his toes.
The old man in black, whose cultivation was originally a level higher than the merchant's, was instead at a disadvantage due to the scholar's interference. In just a few breaths, he had been slashed several times by flying leaf knives. Seeing his companion defeated in one move, he panicked and his aura became unstable, causing a flaw in his carefully prepared moves. Taking advantage of this, the merchant slapped his abacus with his left hand, sending several abacus beads flying straight at the old man's face. These alloy abacus beads were ingeniously designed; the holes in the middle emitted a sharp whistling sound during flight, interfering with the enemy.
The old man in black hurriedly raised his sword to block the flying projectiles, but these projectiles were just a feint. Although they looked impressive, they didn't have much attack power. The real killing move was the other projectiles that followed. These projectiles were faster and silent, and they attacked several vital points of the body even though they were delayed.
As expected, the man in black was struck when he was distracted, with his knees, dantian, and chest all hit by the abacus. Several bloody holes immediately appeared in his knees and other areas, and the old man in black collapsed to the ground, his momentum completely gone. Instantly, several emerald green thorny vines wrapped around him, binding him into a dumpling.