Chaotic World Book

Wan Dongliu was clearly impotently raging and making empty threats — where did he get the qualification to lead troops northward?

Where there are people, there is the Worldly Society. Inside any power group, there are all sorts of intricate relationships, especially for those Jianghu forces united by the personal charisma of their leader. Once the dominant leader fell, they could potentially collapse in an instant, with top brass each carving out their territories, divvying up interests, and even coveting the position of the leader.

Although Wan Dongliu was regarded as a young Hidden Dragon, he hadn't yet made it onto the Human List, with insufficient prestige. With so little time, apart from someone crazy like Zhao Changhe, which Hidden Dragon over the age of thirty could now make it onto the Human List? Not dropping off the list would be good enough...

Wan Dongliu was not much younger than Tang Buqi, and in another two months, he too would likely be dropped from the list. However, his current ranking was worth mentioning.

Among his peers, most of those at the front had gone on the Human List, some behind had risen in rank, some who reached the age limit had been dropped, and some had already perished in the Worldly Society — the Hidden Dragon List was always the most changeable ranking. Now, the number one Hidden Dragon was Xuan Chong, number two was him, Wan Dongliu, and number three, unexpectedly, was a girl named Cui Yuanyang, the youngest person in history to reach the top three of Hidden Dragon.

War has always been the ultimate test for people.

For a normal young generation member of the Worldly Society, Wan Dongliu's achievement was really quite commendable, but clearly not enough to control the million-strong Cao Gang, let alone keep under control those arrogant warriors and officials from rebellious Aristocratic Families amidst the backdrop of this war and division.

If things were so simple that the son had but to call and hundreds would answer upon the father's death, Wang Daoning would not have had to attack Wan Tianxiong and been done with it; he would have found him and killed him long ago.

Now, Wan Dongliu was extremely troubled. He didn't even know if the next assassination attempt might come from his own uncles. If it hadn't been for his control over a large part of the Four Symbols Sect's foundation stabilizing the situation, the Cao Gang might have already been in chaos, let alone leading troops northward.

Having heard that Zhao Changhe had crossed the river northward, he couldn't care to attend to his father. He ran to the river crossing outside the city to intercept him, just to get this friend to come up with ideas and help. He hadn't expected the Venerable and the Holy Daughter to be there... Their presence made things much better, as after all the Cao Gang was subordinate to the Four Symbols Sect; with the Venerable's arrival, that was a reassurance pill.

Wan Tianxiong had been assassinated in Yangzhou while he was arranging river defense, guarding against an attack from Tang Buqi. The attack coming from the north had been completely unexpected.

Luckily, it was close. Zhao Changhe entered the Wan Family estate and immediately saw Wan Tianxiong lying on the bed looking like a dead man; he wasn't even breathing.

The Turtle Breathing Technique, inherited from Xuanwu, not even Xuanwu himself used... In the environment of the Martial Arts world where the Chaotic World Book reported nonsense, this move was somewhat useless, but it just happened to buy time for Wan Tianxiong until the rescuer arrived.

Zhao Changhe felt his pulse and looked inside, his expression looking quite grim.

Indeed, his chest cavity was crushed, his ribs completely broken, and his heart and lungs had suffered extremely serious damages; under normal circumstances, this would have been a blow that killed instantly. The Wang Family's Sky-clearing Sea Suppressing Palm was so domineering that once Wang Daoning reached the Imperial Realm, the power was truly capable of suppressing the Cang Sea.

Wan Tianxiong maintained a trace of life through his profound cultivation and the Turtle Breathing Technique, but what use was that? The absence of a heartbeat theoretically meant he was already a dead man and not brain dead yet, this wasn't something that an elixir could cure, and the Rejuvenation Technique wasn't at the level of bringing back the dead.

Zhao Changhe pondered for a moment and still fed Wan Tianxiong a little Blood Turtle Blood. This stuff possessed incredibly strong life force, and combined with the Rejuvenation Technique, it was still worth attempting to repair his organs. Of course, repair alone couldn't guarantee life, but it was worth a shot.

"San Niang."

"Mm."

"There is an extremely powerful presence of the Water Element wreaking havoc inside Uncle Wan's chest. Can you help draw it out?"

"Okay."

In front of a stunned Wan Dongliu, the Xuanwu Venerable, like a dutiful wife, did whatever Zhao Changhe told her, touching a finger to her father's chest.

After a while, a hazy water sphere gathered in the Venerable's hand, and then dissipated without a trace.

From this action alone, she was a top-tier, abnormal powerhouse; handling the Water Element Power with ease, like plucking flowers — aside from the true Xuanwu Venerable, perhaps only the former Dragon King Hai Pinglan could achieve this. The Wang Family's focus was on suppressing with this force, not using it, there was a subtle difference.

The true Xuanwu Venerable... Why did she appear so obedient?

Wan Dongliu watched as if in a dream, turning towards the Holy Daughter sitting beside him. Xia Chichi looked somewhat worried, sitting there and watching, concerned about the life and death of a great general of the sect, seemingly oblivious to the events unfolding before her.

Wan Dongliu rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was hallucinating from the shock of his father's near death.

But soon he had no time to think any further.

Zhao Changhe's forehead broke out in large beads of sweat, his complexion grew paler and paler, a sign that he was pushing his soul power to its utmost limits.

Continuing this way, he himself might suffer a soul injury.

Wan Dongliu pursed his lips, a certain indescribable feeling suddenly arose in his heart... if it was for the public good, with the Venerable Holy Daughter present, Jianghuai was already destined not to fall into chaos. Zhao Changhe didn't need to risk his own safety; nobody could blame him if he failed to save someone.

And if one considered it from a darker perspective, his father, after all, was not like him having been a devotee of the Four Symbols Sect from a young age. For the Four Symbols Sect, his father might not really be one of their own, and perhaps even an unstable factor that would need to be replaced sooner or later, it would be convenient if Wang Daoning did the job... Logically, failing to save his father would be most in the Sect's interest.

But he was still fighting. For what reason then?

Looking at San Niang and Xia Chichi, they both seemed to want to say something yet hesitated, and ultimately remained silent.

"Wan brother." After an indeterminable amount of time, Zhao Changhe suddenly spoke, his voice unconsciously a bit hoarse.

Wan Dongliu startled to his feet: "Present."

"If... your esteemed father remains lying like this forever, can you... accept that?"

Wan Dongliu stared at him blankly, his lips moving twice, unsure of how to answer.

Zhao Changhe said wearily: "I've done my best, with my cultivation not being sufficient... Could I have a bit more time? Perhaps there's a chance to try again."

Wan Dongliu took a deep breath and checked his father's breath.

The Turtle Breathing Technique had been dispelled; the breathing was resuming, albeit extremely faint, but it was indeed there...

Wan Dongliu's mind went blank for a moment, only to hear Zhao Changhe continue: "I'll prepare some more elixirs... Later on, have someone assigned specifically to feed him food and medicine. As long as he does not die, there's hope."

As long as he does not die, there's hope.

Wan Dongliu, a stalwart man, inexplicably felt a tinge of soreness in his nose, and said in a low voice, "Zhao brother's kindness, I shall remember."

Zhao Changhe shook his head, simply saying, "We are friends."

Wan Dongliu pressed his lips together and said nothing.

Zhao Changhe's hand trembled slightly as he took out an elixir from his ring and swallowed it, clearly having exhausted himself. After properly regulating his breath for a good while, he spoke softly, "As for the matters in Jianghuai, would it be alright for San Niang to oversee things here temporarily?"

San Niang asked, "What are you planning?"

"I'm not familiar with the affairs here, my presence wouldn't be very effective. You're the right person for the job..."

"I don't know how to do it either."

"Just wear the mask and stand there, that's enough; your very presence is sufficient. Leave the rest to Dongliu. When it's all sorted out, whether to head straight for Langya or to Puyang, we'll have to play it by ear."

San Niang pouted: "And you?"

"Wang Daoning has suddenly reached the Imperial Realm and now heads south to eliminate potential threats; at this point, it's highly likely he has headed to the Capital City... We never considered this development before, and I don't know what else he's relying on, daring to go to the Capital. But since he dares to, he must be quite confident." Zhao Changhe rubbed his head tiredly: "Wan Uncle's assassination took place the night before last; with Wang Daoning's speed, maybe he's already nearing the Capital City by now. I must leave at once, or I might regret it."

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PS: The original plan was for Zhao Changhe to try his hardest but still not bring Wan Tianxiong back, and Wan Dongliu to take over the Cao Gang leadership. He was meant to be a disposable character, and his death should have been beneficial to the Four Symbols Sect. But today, I didn't feel like writing it that way. Let him lie there; so long as he's not dead, there's an infinite hope.

That feeling this morning of typing while tears fell... quite strange... really too familiar, a friend that we joke with every day. Sigh. Made you all laugh.