The Grand Chancellor's Mansion, Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower.
This was a forbidden area within the Grand Chancellor's Mansion, guarded with such severity that it was several times stricter than even the Shadow Prison. The moment Su Muyu stepped within ten zhang of the tower, an arrow landed right in front of him. The arrow struck the ground with tremendous force, kicking up a cloud of dust, and nearly half of its shaft buried itself into the earth.
An arrow of such power could easily slice a man in half if it struck true.
Su Muyu raised his head slightly. It seemed the Shadow Sect still harbored experts they were unaware of. Before entering the sect, the Water Official had warned them—though the Shadow Sect's displayed strength seemed insufficient to pose a threat and was no match for the Dark River, this was likely a deliberate facade. Within the sect, many first-rate masters might still be lurking.
On the third floor of the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower, a man lowered his bow and muttered, "Who is this? He noticed me."
"Unknown. If he were from within the sect, he wouldn't dare trespass here," a guard frowned. "What is he doing?"
Su Muyu took a few steps forward, grasped the arrow's tail, and yanked it out of the ground. He tilted his head back and narrowed his eyes.
"Move!" the archer above shouted.
The guards beside him reacted instantly, throwing themselves to the ground.
Su Muyu spun in place with the arrow in hand before hurling it back with a force no less formidable than if it had been shot from a bow.
"Not bad," the archer remarked, drawing his bow again and firing another arrow. The two arrows collided midair—Su Muyu's was split cleanly in half, while the archer's shot straight toward him, this time with lethal intent.
"Fall!" Su Muyu leaped up, slicing the arrow in two with a single stroke of his sword.
"An intruder! Sound the alarm for the Sect Leader! The rest of you, stop him!" the archer barked.
"Aye!" Seven swordsmen leaped down from the tower, charging at Su Muyu as a signal firework exploded in the sky.
Outside the Grand Chancellor's Mansion.
Su Changhe tilted his head slightly. "It seems our Su Family Head has already begun."
"If the Family Head has made his move, then I, Su Zhetian, should follow suit." Beside Su Changhe, the Su Family swordsman Su Zhetian stepped forward, blade in hand.
"Head, we missed our chance to draw swords in Nine Heavens City, but this time, let the two of us lead the way," Su Changfeng said, unsheathing his sword as well.
"All of you, stand down!" A towering figure wielding a Horse Chopping Sword landed, cleaving the mansion's gates to splinters.
"Mu Ci Ling!" Su Zhetian leaped back, deflecting the flying debris with a swing of his sword.
"Hahahaha! Scum of the Shadow Sect, come out and meet your doom!" Mu Ci Ling laughed heartily.
Grand Chancellor's Mansion, Council Hall.
Luo Tianxiang rushed in frantically. "Dark River people are storming in, led by a red-clad swordsman!"
"Report! A signal arrow was fired from the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower—someone must have broken in!" Another shadow guard arrived in haste."Leader! The Water Official has broken someone out of prison with the help of a woman skilled in disguise! Su Muyu has already left the Shadow Prison!" Another shadow guard rushed in hastily.
"They simultaneously attacked the Langya King and assaulted the residence of the Imperial Father-in-law. What is their goal?" Luo Tianxiang asked in confusion.
"I fear the assault on Fengxiao Temple was a feint, while the siege against our Shadow Sect was their true long-planned move." Yi Bu clenched his fists. "Dispatch all our forces to deal with them, and inform the Three Elders to head to the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower."
"Why the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower?" Luo Tianxiang questioned.
"Because what Dark River fears has never been the martial might of the Shadow Sect, but the fact that we hold all their secrets. If they destroy the records in the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower, they can vanish completely and establish a truly new Dark River." Yi Bu sighed softly. "This time, we've lost the bet."
"You bet they would submit to threats for freedom, but you fail to understand that the very reason they've come this far is because they've never feared threats, allowing them to move closer to freedom." A man in white robes landed before Yi Bu. "I warned you long ago, Leader Yi."
"Compared to them, you are indeed a better trading partner, but alas, the ones who hold the Sleeping Dragon Sword are them." Yi Bu rested his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"I advised you from the start—the moment Su Muyu arrived at your residence, you should have killed him." The white-robed man turned, a cold smile on his pale face. It was none other than the former head of the Mu Family, Mu Zi Zhe.
"In that case, had you simply killed them during the Surname Conferral Ceremony back then, none of today's events would have happened," Yi Bu retorted.
"Indeed. Today, I shall complete what was left unfinished that day." Mu Zi Zhe walked out slowly. "Kill Su Changhe, reclaim the Sleeping Dragon Sword, and lead Dark River myself. Then, I shall return to make another deal with Leader Yi."
Outside the Ten Thousand Scrolls Tower.
Su Muyu was locked in combat with seven swordsmen. The more he fought, the more astonished he became—each of these seven was no weaker than the Crow. Yet, since entering Heaven Revelation City, the Shadow Sect had given him the impression that the Crow was second only to Leader Yi Bu in strength. The archer on the third floor, however, was clearly even stronger than the Crow.
"Such an exquisitely refined sword technique truly exists in this world." The archer, too, grew increasingly amazed as he watched. He drew his bowstring taut, aiming at Su Muyu below, but still found no opening to strike.
While engaged with the swordsmen, Su Muyu also kept an eye on the archer above. A momentary distraction, however, allowed one of the swordsmen to find a gap, slicing through his sleeve.
"Now!" The archer released the string instantly. The arrow shot forth with a piercing whistle, hurtling toward Su Muyu.
Su Muyu smiled. His sword abruptly shifted, forcing the man before him to retreat violently. The arrow ultimately pierced straight through the swordsman's chest.
That earlier opening had been deliberately left by Su Muyu! He had used the archer's arrow to break the sword formation that had trapped him for so long. Now, with only six swordsmen left, the formation was riddled with flaws. Su Muyu swung his sword relentlessly, driving the remaining swordsmen into retreat."This is getting more and more interesting." The archer drew his bow in quick succession, firing three arrows to momentarily force Su Muyu back, then leaped down from the third floor. "State your name."
"Dark River, Su Muyu," Su Muyu declared clearly. "And yours?"
"Shadow Sect, Xie Zaiye." The archer spun his longbow lightly in his hand. "I've heard of you—Umbrella Ghost."
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