CHAPTER 576: FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY-SIX, WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS

Swoosh!

Just as all the disciples of the Jade Pot Sect were losing hope, an unusual sound suddenly came from where Yun Xiao and Yao Shi were, followed by a streak of black light appearing in their eyes.

"That... That is..."

In such a moment of despair, any change was undoubtedly a glimmer of hope, especially for the many disciples of the Jade Pot Sect, and when they saw that swirling black garment, they felt a faint sense of familiarity.

"Is this... the Jinghong Umbrella?!"

Compared to those younger disciples of the Jade Pot Sect, Yun Xiao was much more familiar with this black light. Even though the black umbrella spun rapidly, he recognized its details with just a glance.

After recognizing that it was the Jinghong Umbrella, Yun Xiao couldn’t help but reveal a very strange look in his eyes, suddenly recalling the first time he saw the Jinghong Umbrella in a mountain range within the Lingtian Empire.

At that time, Yun Xiao was being pursued by the Great Elder of the Lingyun Sect, Yu Qian, and was blocked by the Crown Prince of the Lingyun Sect, Nie Qianqiu, with Ran Xing. When he was in despair, it was this sudden appearance of the black umbrella that pierced Yu Qian through the heart, saving his life.

But what happened afterward was beyond Yun Xiao’s expectations. The black-garbed woman, Shen Xingmou, who wielded the Jinghong Umbrella to save his life, only did so because she didn’t want him to die at the hands of another, and turned out to be yet another immensely powerful enemy of his.

The moment he saw the Jinghong Umbrella, for some reason, Yun Xiao suddenly had the notion that the Qingshan Sect’s Second Elder, Yao Shi, who was out for his life, was about to run into bad luck.

Thud!

Sure enough, as Yun Xiao had predicted, before the Elder of the Qingshan Sect even realized what the object was, the Jinghong Umbrella moved without wind, its surface suddenly snapping shut, and then the tip shifted sideways, penetrating Yao Shi’s chest at an incredible speed and drilling out from his back.

Yao Shi’s cultivation was not much stronger than that of Yu Qian, the Great Elder of the Lingyun Sect, so his fate was no different from Yu Qian’s, and he died in exactly the same manner.

"How could this..."

One moment he was reveling in the thrill of killing Yun Xiao, the champion genius of the Hidden Dragon Conference, and the next, he had a gaping hole punctured through his chest, and his heart exploded. For a brief moment, Yao Shi was still unable to come to terms with reality.

Bang!

No matter how reluctant Yao Shi felt, the life in his eyes quickly dissipated. His powerless body fell to the ground with a soft thud, which, although quiet, was like a large stone breaking the calm surface of a lake, suddenly quieting the surroundings.

Even the experts who had been overwhelmingly dominating the forces of the Jade Pot Sect and the Luo Sect stopped their actions at this moment. Their gazes turned in unison toward somewhere, where a strange black umbrella floated in midair.

This black umbrella, like Yun Xiao’s Dragon Taming Sword, seemed unremarkable at a glance, yet every cultivator who saw this black umbrella dared not to even breathe too heavily, fearing that any slight noise might provoke its attack.

Didn’t they just see Yao Shi, a Peak of Spirit Vein Realm cultivator, get pierced and killed by that black umbrella without even a chance to react? This power must at least belong to an expert of the Earth Rank Third Realm, right?

Especially those who had witnessed the final battle of the Countries Hidden Dragon Conference with their own eyes. They now had a sneaking suspicion, as the image of that domineering and peerless black-garbed girl emerged in their minds, now impossible to dismiss.

Swoosh!

As everyone’s attention was on the black umbrella, a slender silhouette in black suddenly appeared beside it. The eyes that were exposed outside the black veil seemed to flicker with an indescribable light under the broad daylight.

"It really is her!"

As soon as the black-garbed woman appeared, whether it was Yun Xiao or the various Elders of the Jade Pot Sect, or the powerful individuals from the five major forces who came to besiege them, each of them inwardly acknowledged the obvious.

On that day, on the arena of Baiyue City’s square in the Imperial City, the black-garbed woman Shen Xingmou defeated Meng Liyang and Qian Sanyuan in a single move—with such dominance. It was unexpected that she would appear here again today.

And thinking of this woman’s attitude towards Yun Xiao, Yan Chun, Li Feng, and others all showed expressions of intrigue, but also set down much of their worries—at the end of the day, the enemy of your enemy may not be your friend, but isn’t necessarily your enemy either.

"Sigh, when it rains it pours!"

Yun Xiao’s face showed a bitter smile, feeling not the slightest joy at having escaped death at Yao Shi’s hands. But in the face of an expert of the Heavenly Rank Third Realm, he simply didn’t bother to be so strained, muttering to himself softly.

"True to being the young lady of the Star-picking Tower, she managed to stay on the Hidden Dragon Continent for so long!"

Yun Xiao, now composed, lifted his head to stare at Shen Xingmou’s eyes that resembled a sky full of stars, and with a smile, he somehow uttered a remark of admiration—showing no sign of being in desperate straits.

"I knew it, that girl Yun Wei couldn’t possibly still be around, so today, I, Shen Xingmou, will claim your life!"

Shen Xingmou’s eyes showed neither sorrow nor joy; however, the words she spoke seemed to subtly convey a sense of relief. In fact, before this, she was not certain whether Yun Wei was still at the Jade Pot Sect.

For some time, Shen Xingmou had been lurking around the Jade Pot Sect, but without being sure that Yun Wei had left, she was not willing to make a move lightly. With someone of the same Heavenly Rank Third Realm strength as her, she didn’t have absolute confidence that she could kill Yun Xiao.

But just now, at the critical moment when Yun Xiao was caught in a dire situation and destined to die, Yun Wei still did not appear, which really explained some things.

Since Yun Wei wasn’t here, who else on this small Hidden Dragon Continent could possibly be an obstacle to Shen Xingmou? She had long declared that Yun Xiao’s life was hers to take. What was Yao Shi but something she could easily obliterate?

"Ha ha, it turns out to be Miss Shen of the Shen Family. I am Yan Chun, the Commander of the Xuantie Army of the Xuanyue Empire!"

Just when Yun Xiao didn’t know how to respond, Yan Chun actually called out at this moment, with extremely polite words, obviously trying to curry favor with this Heavenly Rank Third Realm expert.

Yan Chun was the confidant of the newly appointed King Xuan Jiuding, who knew all too well his kingship was obtained under questionable legitimacy and desperately needed a solid backing. Who else on the Hidden Dragon Continent, or even the Tenglong Continent, could be more formidable than Shen Xingmou?

"What are you, to speak to me?"

Little did Yan Chun expect that Shen Xingmou’s cold gaze would suddenly cast over him, and as her stern voice sounded, the Commander of the Xuantie Army felt as if he had been struck hard by a gigantic hammer, involuntarily retreating several steps.

"Pfft!"

A mouthful of crimson blood violently spurted from Yan Chun’s mouth, causing the bodies of all present to tremble in unison. The power of a single phrase was so terrifying—Heavenly Rank experts are indeed fearsome.

"Yun Xiao’s life is mine, Shen Xingmou’s—anyone who dares to snatch it will end up just like him!"

With a single sentence severely wounding Yan Chun, Shen Xingmou turned her head, pointing first at Yun Xiao, then at Yao Shi of the Qingshan Sect’s elder with a gaping hole in his chest, her tone brooking no doubt.

Even Li Feng, the Sect Master of the Qingshan Sect, only dared to fume inwardly at this moment, without any intention to avenge the Second Elder, as that could very likely lead to the instantaneous extermination of the entire Qingshan Sect.

In the face of absolute power, all scheming is futile. It can be said that with Shen Xingmou’s arrival, she had the entire situation under control. Whoever she wanted dead would have to die, without her even lifting a finger—just a word would suffice.

Fortunately, Shen Xingmou’s target was only Yun Xiao, which allowed the numerous strong cultivators who had come to besiege the Jade Pot Sect to breathe a sigh of relief, even the critically injured Yan Chun’s eyes sparkled with hope.

"Miss Shen’s command, we dare not disobey!"

Yan Chun, despite severe internal injuries, mustered the courage to speak again, and this time, Shen Xingmou no longer paid him any attention, much to everyone’s delight.

It seemed Shen Xingmou truly had only Yun Xiao as her target. Both Li Feng and Yan Chun thought to themselves that after this terrifying woman killed Yun Xiao and left, the Jade Pot Sect would still be doomed today.

In this way, Shen Xingmou would have killed just an elder of the Qingshan Sect, not significantly altering the day’s events, and also helped them to eliminate the unpredictable Yun Xiao—thus, all endings would be joyful.

Indeed, Shen Xingmou had no intention of meddling in the power struggles of the Hidden Dragon Continent. Even as a prodigious disciple of the Star-picking Tower from Li Yuan Realm, getting too involved in the Hidden Dragon Continent could bring her a lot of trouble.

Shen Xingmou’s target was indeed only Yun Xiao, but when she turned her gaze, she saw that this boy in coarse clothing was also staring at her. His face might be pale, but there was not a trace of fear in it.

"Miss Xingmou, I believe you are so eager to kill me because of the Blood Moon Jade, right?"

Recalling the first time he met Shen Xingmou when she mentioned something about it, Yun Xiao directly verbalized his guess, believing it to be quite accurate.

"Actually, Miss Xingmou, you don’t have to be so obsessed with it. The Blood Moon Jade was never a possession of the Star-picking Tower; to act so is hardly the way of a gentleman!"

His tangential words caused Shen Xingmou to frown slightly. How was it that this kid had no sense of impending doom whatsoever? Couldn’t he change his excessive talking habits?

"When did I, Miss Shen, ever claim to be a gentleman? Besides, after I kill you, the Blood Moon Jade will naturally return to my Star-picking Tower!"

Shen Xingmou was aware of her own background and certain secrets, and she supposed Yun Wei must have told this boy in front of her already, so she wasn’t too surprised.

Their exchange made the already tense atmosphere at the scene turn somewhat peculiar, and their simple conversation left everyone confused, completely in the dark about what this so-called "Blood Moon Jade" actually was.

But relatively speaking, the people of the Jade Pot Sect were worried, whereas the five attacking forces added a bit of patient waiting; however, the words that Yun Xiao said next caused their expressions to drastically change.