Chapter 23

Shen Lian almost couldn't bear to continue watching. The man in the green robe was too fierce, and Ling Chongxiao seemed to be losing.

But at this critical moment, Ling Chongxiao's abdomen suddenly and unexpectedly caved in, as if it were a thin sheet of paper.

A master like the man in the green robe, every move he made was measured, and he had an extremely accurate sense of timing in battle.

However, he never expected that Ling Chongxiao, who had just been hit by the 'God-Slaying Sword,' would still be able to react with such a move as 'Plucking Chestnuts from the Fire,' even with his high martial arts skills, in such a short time.

The palm force broke through the air, but the palm did not actually touch Ling Chongxiao's body.

The vicious and poisonous force, like a mud ox entering the sea, was completely silent.

Shen Lian suddenly smelled a fragrance, a special fragrance, slightly sweet, invigorating the spirit.

Ling Chongxiao's green eyebrows turned blood red, forming tiny blood beads.

The fragrance came from these blood beads, as his essence blood suddenly condensed and burst, so intensely that even the 'Descending White Tiger' realm could not completely contain the essence.

This showed how powerful the force Ling Chongxiao was about to unleash would be.

Then, Ling Chongxiao's other hand turned into a fist, like a large spear, stretching straight out with the wind.

This sudden change caught Shen Lian off guard, as he never expected that the two, who had been evenly matched, would suddenly have a clear winner, and in such an unexpected way.

The man in the green robe fell like a kite outside the hall, into the rain.

Just as he had killed others countless times in the past, this time the man in the green robe did not survive.

His eyes were filled with blood, his face showing no fear, still bearing the expression of confidence and a hint of satisfaction from his last move.

But these could not change the fact that he had lost, and lost completely.

A wisp of green smoke rose from the man in the green robe's body, floating in the rain, mixed with a trace of blood, which even the heavy rain could not wash away.

A wooden fish was struck, like the morning bell and evening drum, awakening the mind.

The clear and resonant sound of the wooden fish dispersed the green smoke, finally returning to the man in the green robe's body, leaving no trace.

Shen Lian did not sigh or show sympathy, but he felt a strange taste in his mouth.

He was thinking if life could be lived again, would the man in the green robe still walk the same path?

Treating human life as grass, not valuing others' lives, also means not valuing one's own life.

Because of this disregard, he could not last long.

A warm current flowed through his body, and Shen Lian felt his limbs and bones warm up rapidly. When he came to, he found he could stand up.

Ling Chongxiao's green eyebrows had turned into blood eyebrows, but this did not make him look more fierce. Instead, he had the demeanor of a high monk who had cultivated in the sea of blood and demons.

Like Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva among the demons, serene and compassionate.

Especially since Ling Chongxiao was bald, he looked even more like a high monk who had attained enlightenment.

Shen Lian couldn't help but smile.

His gaze fell on Ling Chongxiao's bald head, and Ling Chongxiao, of course, noticed.

He patted Shen Lian's forehead and hummed softly, "Bald head, bald head, no need to worry in the rain, others have umbrellas, I have a bald head. Kid, you shouldn't be impolite to adults."

"Um, I'm not a kid, and your singing is really not good," Shen Lian said seriously.

"Kids never like to admit they are kids," Ling Chongxiao smiled.

Shen Lian didn't expect Ling Chongxiao to have such a mischievous side. It wasn't until he saw Ling Chongxiao's gaze still on the rain and the man in the green robe's body that he realized Ling Chongxiao was just venting his emotions.

After all, the man in the green robe was still his junior brother, with whom he had studied for many years.

The man in the green robe was ruthless, but Ling Chongxiao was not. Shen Lian suddenly understood the difference between the two.

The man in the green robe, 'beyond the path, there is nothing else,' made himself ruthless and indifferent, overly extreme.

Ling Chongxiao, however, still considered himself human, with emotions and feelings, love and hate.

It was hard to say whose personality was more suitable for the path, as although Ling Chongxiao was alive, he had not yet attained enlightenment, but he was certainly more approachable.

******

The news of the man in the green robe's disappearance quickly reached the ears of the old master of the Shen family. No one understood the saying 'if you don't kill the snake, it will come back to bite you' better than the old master.

Therefore, the Shen family immediately went on high alert upon receiving the news.

What made the old man even more uneasy was that when the officials delivered the news, they also casually inquired about Shen Lian.

He found this strange, as he was a meticulous person and knew there must be more to it.

But he never imagined that Shen Lian had slipped away from the people he had assigned to monitor him and then went to see the man in the green robe through the prefect.

The prefect sent someone to pass the message to test whether the old master knew about this. After all, he would never admit that Shen Lian had disappeared from the prison with the man in the green robe.

As for whether Shen Lian was alive or dead, the prefect didn't know either. His only hope was that Shen Lian had entered the prison through him and that the Shen family wouldn't find out.

The prefect worried about this for a long time until he heard the news that Shen Lian had safely returned to the Shen family the next day.

The prefect was relieved, but he still couldn't figure out what had happened to the man in the green robe. He knew Shen Lian had the answer but had no chance to ask.

It wasn't until three days later that the prefect found an opportunity.

That was when the old master of the Shen family suddenly handed over the management of the largest inn in the city, the Tongfu Inn, to Shen Lian.

The signal was clear: the old master was grooming Shen Lian to be the heir of the Shen family.

This all started on that day when the Shen family was on high alert. In the evening, Shen Lian, who had gone out to worship his mother, returned safely, which put Shen Qingshan and the old master at ease.

Along with Shen Lian, several of the Shen family's guards who had been secretly watching him also returned.

They had been secretly following Shen Lian but lost him, fearing severe punishment. One of them went back to report while the others tried to find Shen Lian at the Jialan Temple.

They did find Shen Lian on the mountain, drenched like a drowned rat.

Someone was following a monk with a fair complexion, who was leading Shen Lian up the mountain path.

When they reached Shen Lian, the monk didn't even look at them and simply disappeared.

The rainy day made the mountain path slippery, but the monk seemed unaffected, walking as if on flat ground, and quickly vanished.

One of the guards, curious, asked Shen Lian about the monk.

Shen Lian just smiled and didn't answer, only returning to the Shen family with them.

When Shen Lian returned to the Shen family, he said the man in the green robe was dead, very confidently. No matter how much the old master asked, he wouldn't say more.

However, Shen Lian voluntarily offered to manage an inn, and the old man, not being stingy, agreed, especially since Shen Lian was willing to enter the business world, which pleased him.

Thus, he handed over the management of the largest and oldest inn in the city, the Tongfu Inn, to Shen Lian.

PS: Thank you to Huajin Qianfeng for the 1888 reward, Sky_爆头 for the 588 reward, 1973 for the 200 reward, and Zhuan坑`队友, Kongji Zijikan, Si Nian, Jian Ming Jiu Xiao for their rewards.