Chapter 20: Battle with the Flying Dragon

Tang Tianhao landed, his face flushed, the redness extending all the way down to his neck. He immediately understood that he had been poisoned. In truth, he had sensed something was amiss during the pursuit, but he couldn't simply stand by and watch Lady Tang being abducted.

Immediately, Tang Tianhao attempted to circulate his internal energy to expel the poison. However, as soon as he began, his blood circulation reversed uncontrollably, and he spewed out a mouthful of black blood.

Feilong said with a smile, "Master Tang, you mustn't circulate your energy! You've been poisoned with Energy Dissolution Powder; the more you circulate your energy, the faster the poison will take effect!"

Just then, Gu Mo, Gu Chudong, and Tang Buyi also caught up. Tang Buyi, leading the way, held a long sword. Seeing Lady Tang lying unconscious on the ground, his eyes burned with fury, and he roared, "You scoundrels! Release my mother at once, or I'll tear you limb from limb!"

"Go!" Tang Tianhao, sword in hand, blocked Tang Buyi and urged, "Quickly, get out of here!"

"Father, are you injured?" Only then did Tang Buyi notice the bloodstains at the corner of Tang Tianhao's mouth.

Before Tang Tianhao could reply, Feilong, from the opposite side, chuckled, "Young Master Tang, you truly are as unlearned as the rumors say. The poison hasn't even fully taken effect on you yet, which shows how pitifully low your cultivation is. What right do you have to threaten to tear me limb from limb?"

"Poison?" Tang Buyi's heart instantly sank.

"It's Energy Dissolution Powder. The deeper one's cultivation, the more potent the poison, and the faster it spreads when you circulate your energy. They deliberately lured me here to force me to use my energy. Now, the poison has spread throughout my entire body. I'll fight them with all my might in a moment; you three must escape quickly and find Grandmaster Shen!"

Hearing Tang Tianhao's words, Gu Chudong, who was behind them, also paled, especially upon hearing that the deeper one's cultivation, the more severe the poisoning. He immediately looked at Gu Mo in alarm.

"Brother!" Gu Mo remained expressionless and shook his head slightly.

"Hey, you blind man!" Feilong looked at Gu Mo and Gu Chudong and said, "I hear you've been looking for me, planning to claim my head for a reward?"

Gu Mo nodded slightly and replied, "Yes. And are those two behind you also wanted criminals? If so, I can take them all."

"Hahahaha..." Upon hearing Gu Mo's words, the man and woman behind Feilong burst into laughter. The man was unsightly, with a large red birthmark on his face that looked like swollen skin from a burn. The woman was very alluring, wearing heavy makeup. After a few laughs, she said, "Blind man, you're quite handsome. Big sister will give you a swift end later. Oh, by the way, big sister is also a wanted criminal. My name is Wu Huan, not very famous, and the imperial court's bounty isn't high, just a mere one hundred taels. And this unsightly fellow next to me is much more famous than I am; his nickname is 'Crimson-faced Beast,' and his name is Yang Tang. His head is worth two hundred taels!"

Just after the alluring woman named Wu Huan introduced herself, a system notification immediately sounded in Gu Mo's mind. It announced a new target: Wu Huan, a two-star wanted criminal, with a reward of a max-level 'Ladder Cloud Ascent' movement technique. It also identified another new target: Crimson-faced Beast Yang Tang, also a two-star wanted criminal, offering a reward of a max-level 'Fingersnap Divine Art'.

"Such good people!" Gu Mo realized the conditions for the system to issue missions: first, tasks of a commissioned nature with a direct objective; and second, the host must know the person is a wanted criminal to trigger the mission. Otherwise, even if he met them face-to-face, the mission wouldn't activate if he didn't know they were wanted. This Wu Huan was a formidable expert. The system's rating had two criteria: the wanted criminal's influence and their strength. Wu Huan wasn't very famous, certainly far less renowned than Crimson-faced Beast Yang Tang, or the Iron Arhat and Master Kuxin whom Gu Mo had killed previously. Yet, her system rating was two stars, even higher than Master Kuxin, indicating her martial arts skill was exceptionally high. Gu Mo thought this Wu Huan wasn't so bad after all. He was currently lacking a movement technique, and Wu Huan had conveniently offered her head.

"Alright, stop flirting," Crimson-faced Beast Yang Tang, clearly annoyed with Wu Huan, snapped, "This kid still hasn't shown any signs of poisoning, so his cultivation must not be very deep. It's damn strange how he managed to kill that monk and nun before. I'm going to kill him right now!"

"Wait," Just as Yang Tang was about to act, Feilong stopped him, saying, "I want to play with this kid. Damn it, a blind brat who hasn't even fully grown wants to kill me, and he even chased me all the way here, searching for me everywhere. I'm going to toy with him until he dies!"

"Why don't you let me have him?" Wu Huan said, "I find this blind little brother quite interesting, and he's handsome too. Especially his calm and collected demeanor, which I absolutely adore. I want to flay him and keep his skin as a precious treasure!"

Gu Mo listened as the group openly discussed who would kill him, finding the sensation somewhat peculiar. At that moment, Tang Buyi and Gu Chudong, standing beside him, were already showing signs of the poison, and Gu Mo's face also began to flush red.

"Attack!" At the same time, Feilong and the other two suddenly struck. These individuals had appeared to be wasting time with idle chatter, but in reality, they were experienced martial artists with strong vigilance. They had merely been stalling, waiting for the poison to take full effect on Tang Buyi and the others before making their move. Although they didn't really pay much heed to the young ones, having long years of experience in the martial world, they remained extremely cautious, knowing full well the principle that even a lion uses its full strength when hunting a rabbit.

"Quick, go!" Tang Tianhao suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. Forcing his internal energy, he swung his long sword and charged towards Feilong and the other two.

"Brother Gu, let's go!" Tang Buyi knew his father was desperately buying them time to escape. Although he longed to stay and fight alongside his father, he understood that remaining would only hinder him and offer no chance of survival. If even one of them could escape and call for reinforcements, there would be a possibility of survival.

Therefore, without hesitation, Tang Buyi displayed a rare understanding with his father, Tang Tianhao. He suddenly pulled a hidden weapon from his pocket and flung it towards Feilong and the other two, then grabbed Gu Mo and Gu Chudong and ran away.

Gu Mo: "Huh?"

"You won't escape!" Feilong descended from the sky, landing directly behind the group. Wielding a steel saber, he was like a dragon emerging from the sea, his blade whistling, unstoppable. The air seemed to be sliced by the sharp edge, producing a "hissing" sound as he brought his saber down on Tang Buyi, who was in the lead.

However, just as the steel saber was about to strike Tang Buyi's back, a Tang saber appeared, blocking Feilong's blade. With a clang, sparks flew. Feilong was forced back several steps, looking at Gu Mo in shock, his face filled with surprise: "You actually weren't poisoned..."

Before Feilong could finish speaking, Gu Mo charged forward with his saber.