Chapter 24: The Wolf and the Cunning

  The sun rises and sets, and a day passes in the blink of an eye. The people of Qinglong Town still go out late and return early, locking their doors before sunset. The tragic events that have lasted for half a year have shrouded this once prosperous and rich coastal town like dark clouds, hiding the happy smiles on people's faces.

  The night was deep, and a crescent moon slowly emerged from behind the clouds, its gentle light cool as water, pouring down on the young man sitting on the rooftop. The sea breeze blew gently, causing the jade belt at the back of his head to flutter and roll in the air. Xuan Zhen took off his long sword and scabbard, holding them in his arms, waiting quietly.

  Every household's lamp went out one by one in this waiting time, and even the sound of the house below gradually disappeared. Occasionally, a child's murmur could be heard, and it seemed that Mrs. Xiang had left her daughter alone in the outer room as promised. Xu Zhen lowered his eyelids and smiled slightly. Although Xiang San's wife was angry on the surface, she still prepared good wine and food every day, and even saved a pack of tobacco from abroad for him a few months ago. Is this the benefit of having a family?

  The salty sea breeze blew from the east, and the moonlight illuminated the rooftops as if they were undulating mountain peaks. The sound of waves crashing against the shore faintly echoed in his ears, and at this quiet, deserted hour, only the distant roar of the surf accompanied him.

  Xuan Zhen closed his eyes and sat upright on the roof, with spring water stretching across his knees. Taking advantage of this rare quiet time, he had already quietly started his heart method, true energy flowing slowly in his meridians, but his breath was getting weaker and weaker, gradually disappearing into the world.

  At this moment, a strong gust of wind suddenly rose from the ground, carrying countless dust and dirt, making it impossible to open one's eyes. When the wind subsided, Xuanshen covered his face with his sleeve, narrowed his eyes and looked around again, only to see that everything was pitch black, and nothing could be seen clearly.

  Just now, that strange gust of wind seemed to have shaken the clouds in the sky, and the dark clouds covered the originally clear sky, not even a gap was visible. The crescent moon had also disappeared somewhere.

  Just then, a strange humming noise entered his ears. Xuan Zhen concentrated and listened carefully, feeling that the sound was getting closer and closer, as if it was flying straight towards him. Before long, he saw a huge shadow sweeping over the rooftops, appearing before his eyes.

  That black shadow was long and thin up and down, but to the left and right, each stretched out a wide piece, like wings constantly flapping. Xuān Zhèn's heart already knew it was probably that Gū Huò bird coming to steal Xiàng Yuàn's daughter, one hand grasped the sword hilt, one hand had quietly pinched up the incantation, waiting for the demon to approach, then he would strike and kill it.

  That dark shadow came extremely quickly, and in an instant it had moved from the east end of the town to above the shipyard. Xuan Zhen operated his eyes again and saw that what was suspended in mid-air was a woman, with long hair flying wildly behind her head, and between it a snow-white pointed face, round eyes wide open, lips purple-red, where there should have been two arms grew a pair of huge wings, flapping wildly in the air, making a strange "whooshing" sound. The woman's lower body had a pair of legs that were bare, but the hidden parts were covered with crimson feathers, which didn't hinder the view too much.

  The bird flew to the top of the three houses, circled once and then dived down. Xuān Zhèn saw his chance and let out a soft shout, immediately drawing out the Spring Water Sword, its sound ringing clear and loud, shooting out like a bolt of lightning, straight and true, piercing through the strange bird's chest, bringing up a burst of blood flowers.

  Only a shrill cry was heard, even more mournful and unbearable than the one last night. The Spring Water Sword was filled with Xuan Zhen's true energy, unstoppable in its momentum. The bird didn't have time to react before it was struck by his move, and all that could be heard were the dripping sounds of blood hitting the wooden eaves, undoubtedly from the seriously injured bird.

  His eyebrows furrowed slightly, and with his right hand raised two fingers in front of his chest, he made a forceful slash. He was muttering to himself at first, but gradually grew louder: "The spirit comes from all directions, the sword is the origin, condensing energy to form shape, this is the residual light!" The Spring Water Sword resonated with his intention, and in an instant, it trembled violently in mid-air, producing dozens, hundreds of shallow sword silhouettes.

  This Qianfang Can Guang Jian is an extremely difficult move in the Qionghua Sword Technique, and those who are not skilled enough cannot activate it. Xuan Zhen intended to kill this bird with one strike, so he used nearly half of his true strength to condense on the sword, but saw that the sword shadows in front of him were gathering more and more, forming a large piece of dense sword group, shining green light, like a vast starry sky, surrounding the bird from all sides, and the sword tip was pointing towards the beast.

  Xuan Zhen was about to utter a "break" when he saw the sound of breaking air continuously, sword lights like rainbows and lightning, residual marks in the air condensed into a light net. The crow's mournful cry continued, apparently not lightly injured. The dripping sound gradually turned into a gurgling sound, although it was not dead, but also almost on its last breath.

  The sword shadow dissipated one after another, leaving only the Spring Water Sword floating in mid-air. With a flip, it flew back to Xuanshen's face with incredible agility. He grasped the sword hilt, gazing at the increasingly low black silhouette, listening to the growing weakness of the wing flapping sounds above his head, and silently curled up the corners of his lips, revealing a faint smile.

  Who would have thought that at this moment, another strange gust of wind blew in his face, and the dust gradually obscured his eyes. Xuán Zhèn hurriedly waved his sleeve to block his face, and when he looked up again, he saw a huge black shadow sweeping over the rooftops, flying towards the east outside the town. The bird had used its last bit of strength to escape from under his sword.

  This battle has already startled the snake in the grass, if we let it return to the mountain, I'm afraid that bird won't be so easy to find again. If we wait for it to leave and this demon beast comes out to wreak havoc again, it will only become more brutal and ferocious. Xuan Zhen thought of this, how could he let it go so easily? He immediately shouted loudly and leapt onto the Chunshui sword to chase after it.

  The wounded bird's flying speed was no longer as swift as before, and Xuān Zhèn caught up with it in just a moment. He blocked its way on the sandy beach to the east. The bird saw that it couldn't escape, so it became furious, let out a sharp cry, flapped its wings, and flew straight at him.

  Xuan Zhen leaned back to dodge the incoming wing, his left palm facing upwards with five fingers splayed, and his right hand changing through several gestures. A small whirlwind began to gather in his palm, spinning continuously. With a swing of his long sleeve, he sent the gust of wind straight at the Gu Huai bird. The strange bird let out a startled cry, seemingly sensing the dense spiritual energy within the wind, and hastily flapped its wings to retreat backwards.

  Just then, a strong gust of wind rose from the sea, and many white foams emerged from under the water, followed by a loud splash. A jet of black water shot out in front of the seagull, forming a continuous barrier that flowed constantly. The whirlwind crashed into the water curtain, and the waves were so flexible that they only splashed up some water flowers and dissipated the strong wind into nothingness.

  That water screen not only protected the bird, but also blocked the way between Xuan Zhen and the demon bird. Before Xuan Zhen could cast another spell, splashing sounds came from the black water as two red claws suddenly emerged, each claw having sharp nails a foot long, gleaming with fresh blood, looking terrifying, and swiped at Xuan Zhen's chest and abdomen.

  Xuan Zhen immediately flipped over, jumping down from the sword, his feet landing softly on the sandy beach. At the same time, Chunshui Sword emitted a loud roar, accompanied by a powerful gust of wind that broke through the waves, and charged into the black water barrier with unstoppable force.

  The blue light was shining brightly, the sword was ringing with joy. In the water, something was chirping and shouting a few times, and then that piece of water suddenly lost its energy and fell into the sand with a gurgling sound, seeping into the ground. On the sandy beach, a dark figure remained, crouching on all fours, its whole body black as coal, and when it raised its head, a pair of shiny little eyes sparkled, and it seemed that the black water was under its control.

  Xuan Zhen stood one zhang away, gazing at the demon beast and the adjutant bird beside it. The adjutant bird had just exhausted its energy and lay motionless on the sandy beach, unknown whether it was dead or alive. Looking again at the black demon beast, its forelimbs were propped against the ground, surprisingly longer than its hind legs by more than half. Its two scarlet front claws were curved like hooks and sharp as awls, obviously razor-sharp at first glance.

  This shape, this manner, isn't it just like the auspicious omen he spoke of the other day?

  It was as if a bolt of lightning had flashed through his mind, and Xuán Zhèn stood stunned for only an instant before he understood. The children in the town were indeed stolen by the Gū Huò Niǎo to play with, but it was this Líng Xiàng that ripped them open and devoured their livers and brains!

  Unexpectedly, these two monsters were in cahoots with each other, bringing disaster to the region. Thinking of Yu Shi's tearful eyes and her desperate expression as she wished to die for her child, thinking of Xiao Bao lying in his small coffin covered in blood, Xuan Zhen felt a surge of anger in his chest. Chun Shui Jian understood his intentions and let out a long cry.

  The elephant was intimidated by the sound of the sword, and for a moment it did not dare to move. Xuanshen knew that the elephant's deadly intention lay in its two claws, just like a bird with broken wings had no way out. He immediately wielded the Spring Water sword, each strike aiming at the two red sharp claws. The elephant's control over the water waves was already broken by the Spring Water, and it had nowhere to hide. Its claws could not get close to Xuanshen's body, nor did they have any room to maneuver. On the contrary, the Spring Water sword was astonishingly powerful, striking the elephant left and right, making it stumble.

  Only a few loud noises, several thin and sharp red shells fell into the sand. The elephant let out a painful cry, as if its claws had been cut off, curled up into a ball. Xuanyin was angry that it had dealt with those children so cruelly, and his actions were even more ruthless. With a forceful wave of his sleeve, the Chunshui sword shot straight down from mid-air, pinning the elephant to the sandy beach.

  Xuan Zhen heard the rustling sound gradually weakening until it disappeared, and then he slowly walked over. It was only then that he could see the true appearance of the creature, which indeed resembled a small child, except its skin was dark red and eerie to behold. When he looked at the Gou Nü bird again, it had already bled out and died.

  After expending all that effort, he finally managed to get rid of those monsters. Although Xuán Zhèn felt exhausted, his heart was filled with great joy. He stretched out his hand and pulled out his sword, seeing the tip stained with the monster's blood. Then, from his bosom, he took out a snow-white silk handkerchief, intending to wipe the blade clean.

  Who would have thought that at this moment, the elephant on the ground suddenly opened its eyes, revealing a fierce glow in its eyes. Another paw came over with lightning speed, and Xuanshen felt it too late. Although he countered with a sword and pierced the elephant's skull, his calf had already been scratched three times. His clothes were torn to shreds, not to mention the deep wounds.

  Xuan Zhen only felt a burning pain on his leg at first, but soon it became numb and he couldn't feel anything even when he pressed the wound with his hand. He realized that the elephant's claw had severe poison on it. He tried to use his true energy to force out the poison, but unexpectedly the numbness spread along with his true energy throughout his body in an instant. Chun Shui lost her true energy support and fell to the ground with a thud. Xuan Zhen's vision blurred and he also collapsed onto the sand.

  Just at this moment, a light and nimble footstep sounded, extremely clear in the dark night, as if someone was slowly walking down from the embankment. Xuān Zhèn's whole body stiffened, but since the demon beast was dead, he wasn't too worried, only wondering in his heart: So late at night, who could it be?

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