Chapter 100: Battle of Heroes

Gu Mo now fully understood Yang Qingtong’s helplessness. Such blatant and open framing truly rendered a person powerless.

Yang Qingtong, however, was already accustomed to this. She had experienced such situations countless times. Whenever she was besieged by righteous martial artists, she tried to explain herself, but each time, members of the Moon Worship Cult would interfere, making her explanations seem increasingly weak and futile. Every righteous martial artist killed by the Moon Worship Cult along the way had been blamed on her.

At this moment, chaos erupted not only within the inn but also on the streets outside. The Moon Worship Cult couldn't have arranged only a few people to stir up trouble; to frame someone effectively, they naturally had to orchestrate the events flawlessly to prevent suspicion.

"Kill them!"

In that instant, no one believed Gu Mo or Yang Qingtong, and no one was willing to listen. Many righteous martial artists charged toward Gu Mo and his companions.

Although they knew that the vast majority of these people were deceived and attacked them out of ignorance, Gu Mo and his two companions held nothing back, fighting with deadly precision in every move.

"He who kills shall be killed." This is an unyielding law of the martial world. Regardless of whether one acts for justice or evil, once you step into this world, pick up a blade, and take a life, the reasons for killing or being killed cease to matter. There is no right or wrong, no question of worth, only winning or losing.

The scene was extremely chaotic, with people constantly pouring in from outside.

As the Moon Worship Cult members saw Gu Mo and his two companions fighting fiercely against the righteous martial artists, they knew their objective had been achieved. Pang Mingshan, their leader, signaled his subordinates.

Pang Mingshan loudly called out, "Hall Master Gu, Hall Master Yang, time to leave!" Immediately, several Moon Worship Cult members threw smoke bombs. In an instant, thick smoke billowed like a surging tide, rapidly filling the space. The pungent smell caused everyone to cough, and visibility became completely obscured, making it impossible to see one's own hand. The inn abruptly fell silent, as no one dared to strike, fearing they might accidentally injure the wrong person.

In a corner of the inn, Gu Mo struck down a martial artist with a single palm, then scoffed, "You think you can just run after framing us? Dream on!"

Immediately, Gu Mo pushed off the ground, his figure soaring like a black eagle, weaving effortlessly through the smoke. Being blind, he relied on perception rather than sight, so the thick smoke filling the inn made no difference to him.

Lightly tapping his toes, he executed the "Ladder Cloud Ascent" technique, leaping through the wreckage of tables and chairs as if on level ground. In the blink of an eye, he had caught up to the Moon Worship Cult members. He quickly flicked his fingers, sending several steel beads shooting from his fingertips with sharp force. With a few soft thuds, they precisely struck the back of the cult members' knees. The cultists screamed, collapsing to their knees and losing their ability to move.

Pang Mingshan, who had been leading the escape, had already flown onto the roof of an inn across the street. Gu Mo instantly soared upwards, his palms rapidly swirling, faintly glowing golden. He launched a distant palm strike; the palm wind howled like a roaring dragon, sweeping toward Pang Mingshan's back. Pang Mingshan felt an irresistible immense force surging from behind him; he tried to dodge, but it was already too late.

With a thunderous "Boom!", the palm strike squarely hit Pang Mingshan's back.

Pang Mingshan spewed a mouthful of blood, flying backward like a broken kite. He crashed heavily into the inn's back wall, demolishing it, and lay motionless in the rubble, barely clinging to life.

Meanwhile, on the long street outside the inn, someone loudly declared, "That bastard Gu Mo is trying to escape! Everyone, put in your effort, don't let him get away!"

The voice belonged to the scholar who had been drinking in the inn earlier. Known as the "Golden Cup Scholar," he was a genuine scholar with a xiucai degree. However, after repeatedly failing the provincial examinations, he spent his days drowning his sorrows in drink. Despite this, his family's inherited sword technique was remarkably potent, allowing him to establish a reputation in the martial world and become a renowned first-rate master in the region.

"Who are you calling a bastard?" Gu Mo roared in fury, channeling his internal energy. He struck out with a palm, and a dragon's roar echoed as the fierce palm wind swept toward the Golden Cup Scholar, so mighty that it directly shattered the scholar's long sword.

The Golden Cup Scholar spat blood and flew backward. Just as he was about to suffer a secondary impact by crashing into a stone pillar, a Daoist priest appeared behind him and propped up the scholar's back with his palm. Unexpectedly, the force was far greater than he anticipated, and he was sent flying backward along with the scholar. Nevertheless, he served as a buffer, saving the Golden Cup Scholar's life.

"Villain, cease your insolence!"

At this moment, Fan Yixiong, the leader of the Iron Fist Gang, pursued them, roaring as he charged toward Gu Mo. Simultaneously, several other renowned martial artists converged, including "Iron Arm Divine Ape" Zhao Meng, "Life-Taking Blade Overlord" Sun Lie, "Thunder Sword Shadow" Qian Yizhi, and more. In total, nine well-known first-rate masters attacked, with numerous other righteous martial artists following behind.

"Perfect timing!" Gu Mo roared, unleashing his right palm with sudden force. It was "Arrogant Dragon Regrets" from the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms. This seemingly simple strike contained endless hidden power; the palm wind roared forth like a surging torrent, directly charging into the densest part of the crowd.

Fan Yixiong, leading the charge and renowned in the martial world for his iron fists, felt a surge of surprise at the terrifying might of Gu Mo's palm strike. Nevertheless, he had absolute confidence in his own fists and met it head-on without any evasion.

However, the instant their fist and palm met, Fan Yixiong's arm was directly bent backward by the force, striking his own chest. He flew backward like a broken kite, crashing to the ground, screaming incessantly, both his fists utterly pulverized.

Immediately after, Gu Mo spun around, unleashing both palms simultaneously with "Flying Dragon in the Sky." His figure leaped high, and between his palms, two colossal dragons seemed to coil and soar, sweeping outwards in all directions with an overwhelming force. Wherever the palm force reached, the blue flagstones on the ground exploded, sending shards flying. "Iron Arm Divine Ape" Zhao Meng and "Life-Taking Blade Overlord" Sun Lie fought together to resist; however, Zhao Meng was so profoundly shaken by the powerful palm force that his blood surged, and his arm broke. Sun Lie, unable to maintain his grip, dropped his blade, and it plunged into his own thigh.

Gu Mo showed no mercy, seizing the momentum to unleash another "Dragon Appears in the Field." He suddenly leaned down, slamming both palms heavily onto the ground. A powerful palm force rapidly spread from the earth; wherever it passed, the ground instantly fractured, creating massive fissures. Again, many masters lost their footing, tumbling and spitting blood.

Gu Mo continued without pause, unleashing strike after strike. Faced with Gu Mo's incredibly potent Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, the heroes' fear surged like rampant weeds. Yet, Gu Mo appeared tireless, growing stronger with every blow, relentlessly pushing the heroes back and scattering their once-tight encirclement.

Soon, on the long street, the dense crowd of righteous martial artists began to retreat like a receding tide. Including the Golden Cup Scholar, a total of ten first-rate masters of the martial world had been defeated by Gu Mo during the siege; some were dead, others crippled.

At this moment, the heavy snow continued to fall. The martial artists on the long street, numbering no less than three hundred, were utterly intimidated by Gu Mo alone; no one dared to advance further.

Suddenly, a voice from the crowd declared, "This blind Gu is ferocious, but those two women can't possibly be as fierce, can they? I heard that blind Gu and his sister, Gu Chudong, rely on each other. If we capture Gu Chudong, then blind Gu will surely surrender!" "That's a valid point," another agreed. "While it might not align with martial ethics, there's no need to adhere to such ethics when facing a demonic deviant like blind Gu." "Where is Gu Chudong?" someone else inquired. "She's in that inn over there," a voice responded. "I remember Divine Whip with a Thousand Hands Shen Wanren, Master Jingxin, and Daoist Lingxu, along with several other masters, haven't come out. Gu Chudong and Yang Qingtong must already be captured!"

However, just as the righteous martial artists turned their gaze toward the inn, sounds began to emanate from within the still-smoky building. Unbeknownst to them, the inn's main door had already been tightly sealed. They could only hear a succession of shrill, terrifying screams from inside, each piercing sound sending shivers down their spines.

Suddenly, with a resounding "bang!", the inn's door was violently burst open, and thick smoke billowed out like a surging tide. Immediately after, several figures stumbled out, looking utterly disheveled and desperate.

Upon closer inspection, they were none other than Divine Whip with a Thousand Hands Shen Wanren, Master Jingxin, and Daoist Lingxu. These three were all renowned first-rate masters in the martial world, usually majestic and dignified. Yet now, their clothes were tattered, their hair disheveled, and their faces were etched with both horror and disbelief.

Shen Wanren's long whip was snapped in half, falling limply to the ground. Master Jingxin's monk robes were ripped in several large gashes, revealing her inner garments. Daoist Lingxu's coronet was missing, and his disheveled hair danced wildly in the wind.

Their steps were unsteady, and they clung to each other, their eyes wide with terror, stumbling desperately as if pursued by some monstrous beast.

As everyone watched in stunned silence, a dark figure shot out from the inn like a specter, landing steadily in front of the three.

A chilling aura emanated from her. She carried no weapon, yet her hands were blood-red like jade, with wisps of crimson internal energy swirling around them.

Master Jingxin and the other two exchanged glances, then immediately struck. Shen Wanren's whip lashed like crashing waves, Master Jingxin's whisk transformed into countless silver threads, and Daoist Lingxu's long sword glinted with a chilling light.

Gu Chudong did not dodge, facing them bare-handed. Her jade hands flew, and crimson internal energy surged, instantly clashing with the trio's combined assault.

In the blink of an eye, with several sharp "crack" sounds, and amidst the astonished cries of the many righteous martial artists on the long street, Shen Wanren's long whip, Master Jingxin's whisk, and Daoist Lingxu's long sword were all torn to shreds by her bare hands.

The three wore expressions of horror. Before they could even react, Gu Chudong struck out with both palms, imbued with colossal internal energy, directly hitting all three in the chest.

The three flew backward like broken kites, crashing heavily to the ground, dead.

This scene once again plunged the righteous heroes on the long street into stunned silence.

They had just been plotting to use Gu Chudong to restrain Gu Mo, only to find in the blink of an eye that Gu Chudong herself had emerged.

At that moment, shrill screams continued to echo from within the inn. A short while later, silence descended, and Yang Qingtong emerged, carrying a long sword still dripping with blood. She was entirely drenched in it.

The three stood side by side in the center of the long street. Hundreds of righteous martial artists were silenced by their presence, an oppressive stillness preventing anyone from uttering a word.

Then, at a certain moment, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Hero Shang Buyu of the Canglan Sword Sect has arrived!" Instantly, the crowd surged with renewed energy. Soon after, similar invigorating news for the righteous faction continued to spread: "Fourth Master Chang is here too!" and "Village Master Yin has arrived!", among others.