"Gulp."
Zhu Yiqun swallowed hard, his expression dazed as he muttered, "That's way too fierce… Compared to him, the old man is downright gentle."
Song Changsheng was equally stunned. A late-stage Foundation Establishment blood demon was just beaten to the point of complete annihilation? Even if his own old man had made a move, it wouldn't have been much more devastating than this.
"Second Senior Brother, don't let those blood demons get away," Zhuang Yuechan shouted at the burly man, clearly used to such scenes.
"Hahaha, don't worry, Little Junior Sister. Did they dare to lay a hand on you? I'll twist off their heads and give them to you to kick around like balls!" the burly man replied with a savage grin as he charged after the fleeing demonic cultivators.
His methods were as simple as they were brutal catch up to the target, slam his large hand down on their head, twist hard, and voilà: decapitated.
Each one met the same fate as if he planned to give the heads to Zhuang Yuechan for her to kick around for fun.
Zhuang Yuechan's pretty face darkened. Her eccentric senior brother might go through with such a thing.
"Uh… Fellow Daoist Zhuang, your senior brother is really… something," Zhu Yiqun muttered, lost for words as he watched the man curse while twisting heads like it was a sport.
Song Changsheng was also speechless. This was probably the most unrefined Foundation Establishment cultivator he'd ever seen not only was he brutally violent, but his language was appallingly foul, completely at odds with the demeanor of a proper cultivator of the righteous path.
...
Roughly half an hour later, the burly man returned, drenched in blood and carrying over twenty freshly severed heads. With an air of indifference, he strutted over to the group like he owned the place.
He tossed the heads down at Zhuang Yuechan's feet, grinned wide to reveal two rows of yellowed teeth, and said cheerfully, "Junior Sister, here they are! How do you want to kick them to vent your anger?"
Looking at the gruesome pile, Zhuang Yuechan couldn't help but bring a hand to her forehead. What kind of karmic debt did I accumulate to end up with a senior brother like this…
"What did you bring these back for? It's disgusting," she said through gritted teeth, taking a deep breath to steady herself.
Realizing from her tone that he'd messed up, the burly man hastily grabbed the heads and flung them aside. Scratching his head awkwardly, he laughed and said, "Alright, alright. I'll remember that for next time."
Zhuang Yuechan shot him a glare and then turned to the others. "This is my second senior brother, Niu Dazhuang."
"Niu Dazhuang… what a… simple name," Zhu Yiqun muttered, suddenly feeling like his own name wasn't so bad after all.
Unlike Zhu Yiqun, Song Changsheng felt the name sounded oddly familiar. He thought hard, and then blurted out, "Niu Dazhuang? The chief disciple under the Second Lord of Luoxia City?"
"Hey, this young fella's pretty well-informed! You've even heard of old Niu!" Niu Dazhuang beamed, showing no airs of seniority.
"Luoxia City… the one where all three city lords are Nascent Soul cultivators?" Xu Yunhe's eyes widened. That place was a paradise for rogue cultivators!
"Yep! You've got a good eye, kid. Shame about the missing arm, but don't worry, you've still got a shot at Foundation Establishment," Niu Dazhuang said as he gave Xu Yunhe a nod of approval.
"If Senior Niu's master is the Second City Lord, then Fellow Daoist Zhuang, your master must be…" Zhu Yiqun trailed off as realization dawned, looking at Zhuang Yuechan in astonishment.
Zhuang Yuechan nodded and replied, "My master is the First City Lord, Mu Guibai."
Receiving confirmation, Zhu Yiqun immediately gasped sharply. Mu Guibai was the most formidable cultivator in the Qi Kingdom below the Golden Core stage! Rumor had it that even Golden Core elders would show him some respect.
"Fellow Daoist Zhuang, you kept a low profile," Zhu Yiqun said with a wry smile. Compared to her, both his old man and the Song Clan were hardly worth mentioning.
"Oh come on, enough about who's hiding what. Junior Sister, aren't you going to introduce these folks to me?" Niu Dazhuang waved his hand impatiently.
Zhuang Yuechan nodded and said, "This is Fellow Daoist Xu Yunhe he's a skilled swordsman, quite rare among rogue cultivators.
And this is Fellow Daoist Zhu Yiqun, a medicinal cuisine master. He's taken good care of me during this time."
Upon hearing this, Niu Dazhuang immediately raised his palm broad as a fan and slapped Zhu Yiqun's shoulder hard several times, saying boisterously, "At first glance, you looked like a sneaky little rascal, but I guess I judged you wrong. You're alright thanks for looking after my Junior Sister."
Zhu Yiqun nearly fell apart under the slaps, but he still forced a smile, though it looked like he was grinning through the pain.
"Junior Sister, what's this fella's name? He seems pretty decent too," Niu Dazhuang said, pointing his thick, carrot-like finger at Song Changsheng.
Zhuang Yuechan's gaze turned complicated. "This is Fellow Daoist Song Changsheng, he…"
"Hold up," Niu Dazhuang interrupted her for the first time, narrowing his eyes as he stared at Song Changsheng. "Your surname is Song? Are you related to the Song Clan from the Wangyue Mountains?"
His tone was suddenly unfriendly, and Song Changsheng felt a chill in his heart. Could he be an enemy of the clan? But his grandfather had never mentioned any conflict with Luoxia City...
He wanted to avoid answering, but his identity was no secret. If they were enemies, there was no running from it. So, bracing himself, he replied, "I am indeed a member of the Song Clan."
"What?" Niu Dazhuang's eyes went wide, and an intense aura of hostility radiated from him. The pressure weighed heavily on Song Changsheng's chest.
"Senior Brother, what are you doing?" Zhuang Yuechan immediately stepped in front of Song Changsheng, locking eyes with Niu Dazhuang.
"Junior Sister, you're defending him? You said you wanted to gain experience outside, and none of us neither your masters nor I objected. But now you're mixed up with someone from the Song Clan? If I'd known, I would never have let you leave!"
Niu Dazhuang glared at her, speaking harshly to her for the first time.
Zhu Yiqun and Xu Yunhe were completely dumbfounded. Weren't things just fine a moment ago? Why did it suddenly feel like they'd run into a mortal enemy?
"Senior Brother, I know what you're thinking, but Fellow Daoist Song saved my life. I won't let you hurt him. And besides, our master made it clear we and the Song Clan stay out of each other's business. Are you planning to disobey her orders?"
Zhuang Yuechan looked up at Niu Dazhuang's fierce face and spoke firmly.
"You! Fine, I won't touch him. But you're coming back with me today. You're not to have any more dealings with the Song Clan!" Niu Dazhuang huffed out two streams of white air from his nostrils, grabbed Zhuang Yuechan's hand, and turned to leave.
Zhuang Yuechan couldn't resist him and was pulled onto his flying sword, disappearing into the sky in a streak of light...
A long moment passed before Zhu Yiqun sighed, patted Song Changsheng's shoulder, and said, "Don't bother looking. They're long gone.
Didn't the Song Clan always do business with Luoxia City? What's this about 'staying out of each other's business'? I'm starting to get confused."
Faced with Zhu Yiqun's question, Song Changsheng simply shook his head, bewildered. "I don't know either."
"Well, forget it then. Let's clean up the battlefield. They didn't take anything lucky for us." Zhu Yiqun rubbed his hands together and began scavenging through the corpses.
-support me in Patreon for more chapter, 85+ chapters in there
patreon.com/LordoftheReader