Chapter 66

At this moment, several elders and Uncle Meng moved their hands away from Shen Tianhu's body. They were all drenched in sweat, their faces pale and weary, clearly having expended a great deal of true qi.

"Many thanks to all the seniors for helping my father expel the poison. How is he now?" Shen Xiang asked, his voice calm, but his heart filled with worry. Shen Tianhu was his father, his family, who had cared for him since childhood. He was very afraid of losing this father.

Uncle Meng said, "Don't worry, the poison has been temporarily suppressed, but it hasn't been completely eliminated. The potent poison has fully entered his bones and meridians, seeping into his internal organs. Fortunately, we managed to suppress the poison in time, otherwise..."

Shen Xiang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then clenched his fists tightly, his heart filled with anger. An invisible aura of killing intent surged from his body.

Shen Tianhu opened his eyes slightly, his voice weak but full of rage: "Those bastards from the Nine Toxins Gang have repeatedly plotted against our Shen family. So I went to settle accounts with them personally and ended up fighting them. After I killed two of their leaders and five elders, I was ambushed by their gang leader. I didn't continue the fight but rushed back as quickly as possible!"

Shen Xiang was stunned, and the elders and Uncle Meng also looked at Shen Tianhu in disbelief!

"Father... actually went to the Nine Toxins Gang alone!" Shen Xiang drew a sharp breath. The Nine Toxins Gang was an extremely vicious organization, primarily using poison to attack. It was a black force that many martial artists feared. Ten years ago, two families sent their top experts, but none of them returned.

Later, the patriarchs of those two families went, but they didn't return either!

"Hmph, what's there to be afraid of? Ever since our Shen family absorbed the Yao family, the Nine Toxins Gang has been opposing us. They've been constantly seizing our goods, and over ten members of our family have been secretly poisoned and killed by them. If we don't eliminate the Nine Toxins Gang, more of our family members will be killed in the future," Shen Tianhu said angrily.

"Don't get angry," Uncle Meng advised.

Shen Tianhu's actions were truly earth-shattering. He had actually killed two leaders and five elders of the Nine Toxins Gang, a significant loss for any gang, shaking the very foundation of the entire organization.

Shen Lüzong walked over and showed everyone a fine needle wrapped in thick cloth, saying, "This needle emerged from Tianhu's arm when everyone was suppressing the poison. Once it pierces the body, it causes numbness and goes undetected. Tianhu's divine sense is relatively strong, so he could sense the condition inside his body and didn't continue the fight, otherwise the poison would have spread more rapidly."

Shen Xiang looked at the needle, his eyes widening, his expression becoming even more serious!

"I've seen this kind of needle before!" Shen Xiang clenched his fist. He remembered that when he fought with Crown Prince Song Nanming, Song Nanming had released such needles, and Leng Youlan had been hit, though the poison wasn't too strong.

"It was that Crown Prince. When Leng Youlan fought him, he released ice needles that poisoned her. When I fought him, he released steel needles, but I burned them with fire," Shen Xiang said, frowning.

He had always been puzzled by the Crown Prince's possession of such things, but now seeing that the Nine Toxins Gang also had them, it was hard not to draw a connection.

"Emperor Song Wu is still quite at ease. Associating with a force like the Nine Toxins Gang would be of no benefit to him, but the Crown Prince might have private contact with the Nine Toxins Gang," Uncle Meng said. He had been the one to remove Leng Youlan's poison and had his suspicions.

"I must find out! Father, where is the Nine Toxins Gang?" Shen Xiang asked, his eyes filled with intense killing intent.

"Ruanfeng Mountain, be careful!" Shen Tianhu knew his son well. Shen Xiang's strength gave him confidence, as he had taken down the powerful Yao family.

"Don't worry, Tianhu's poison can be expelled after some time," Shen Lüzong patted Shen Xiang's shoulder.

Shen Xiang left the secret room, rode out of the city, and headed east toward the capital, where Ruanfeng Mountain was always a gathering place for bandits. It was rumored that a gang had gathered various scattered bandits there, and now that gang was the Nine Toxins Gang!

As soon as he left the city, Shen Xiang noticed someone was following him. He pretended not to notice and continued on his way. After eliminating the Yao family, it was possible that some remnants of the Yao family might seek revenge, but his current strength meant he didn't need to worry about such retaliation.

Entering the forest, Shen Xiang abandoned his horse and ran through the forest, deliberately slowing down to let those following him catch up. What puzzled him was that they had no intention of attacking, only monitoring him.

"Could someone have predicted I would go to Ruanfeng Mountain?" This thought suddenly crossed Shen Xiang's mind. He suspected there might be an ambush ahead.

Deep in the forest, he suddenly realized that those following him had moved ahead of him. Shen Xiang was now certain that someone was lying in wait for him!

Sure enough, after a short sprint, he saw someone sitting ahead!

In front of him was an open area without trees, covered in fallen leaves, but there was a luxurious chair, and on it sat a handsome young man.

"Song Nanming!" Shen Xiang looked coldly at the Crown Prince who had once been crippled by him. Without a large amount of high-quality medicinal herbs, he wouldn't have recovered so quickly.

The only explanation for Song Nanming's presence here was that he had a close relationship with the Nine Toxins Gang. After Shen Tianhu left the Nine Toxins Gang, the gang could have sent a message by eagle, giving Song Nanming enough time to arrive.

Given Shen Xiang's style, after Shen Tianhu was poisoned and left, Shen Xiang would certainly come to avenge him. Song Nanming, who hated Shen Xiang to the core, would naturally try to intercept him on the way.

Shen Xiang immediately understood this. He knew that many members of the Nine Toxins Gang must be around, preparing to use those highly toxic hidden weapons against him, but he remained calm and composed.

As an alchemist, he had long mastered the art of poison resistance. With his Eighth Rank Mortal Martial Realm strength, his perception was extremely sharp, and Song Nanming hadn't managed to ambush him with those fine needles last time.

Behind Song Nanming stood four burly men, radiating pure true qi, clearly palace experts.

"Song Nanming, I never thought you would collude with the Nine Toxins Gang. The Crown Prince of Nanwu Kingdom, actually allying with such a vile force. If this gets out, hah!" Shen Xiang sneered.

"Shen Xiang, still acting so smug at the brink of death? Who will know about my connection with the Nine Toxins Gang when you're dead? Ha... Once I eliminate you, when I become emperor, I will definitely destroy your Shen family. I want to be a true emperor!" Song Nanming said with a mad look on his face.

The emperor of Nanwu Kingdom was a figurehead, responsible for managing the country, but he had no authority to interfere in matters like the conflict between the Shen and Yao families, nor the power to do so, his authority was limited.

Song Nanming, as the Crown Prince, was the next emperor. He was extremely eager for power and didn't want to be suppressed by martial families. So he had to build a good relationship with forces like the Nine Toxins Gang, which he could use to secretly eliminate families that opposed him.

"Attack! He must not leave here alive!" With Song Nanming's roar, a cold wind suddenly swept through the forest!

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