Chapter 119: He Has Returned

"Am I ambitious and ruthless?"

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man did not flare up. Instead, he flashed a sinister, ambitious smile, his expression filled with deep, hidden meaning as he asked back in an unnervingly calm voice.

"True, I, Cao Fu, am certainly no saint, but how much better are the ancestors of your Leng family? Do you think I don't know, or that others in the martial arts world don't know, about the bloody deeds committed by your ancestors alongside the villains of Jianbei Mountain City?"

The man who called himself Cao Fu looked on with eyes full of disdain.

Hearing this, Leng Xuan did not offer a rebuttal; his gaze merely dimmed.

Cao Fu continued, "The monstrous slaughter carried out by your great-great-grandfather, Leng Qianqiu, more than a hundred years ago, is still whispered about in the martial arts world today. Do you really think the world will forget?"

His eyes grew more disdainful, bordering on a manic intensity as he added, "I, Cao Fu, am merely following in his footsteps, paying tribute to your great-great-grandfather. Hahaha!"

Leng Xuan's expression became even more complex at these words.

"And let me tell you this, boy: your great-great-grandfather, Leng Qianqiu, is the person I have admired most in my life. But I will never be like him, turning into a hypocrite in my old age. I, Cao Fu, will surely surpass him and complete the great ambition he failed to achieve: to unify the martial arts world!"

Cao Fu’s gaze was as sharp as a hawk’s and as sinister as a wolf’s.

An ambitious warlord. The temperament of a true tyrant was on full display. This was the cruelty of the martial arts world, and it was also its dark allure—drawing generation after generation of masters to follow in one another's footsteps on the path to hegemony.

"...After my great-great-grandfather grew old, he gave it up and sought to make amends for the mistakes he had made. His descendants, including myself, have always been trying to atone for those past errors. If you truly admire him, you should stop now!" Leng Xuan finally spoke again.

But his words sounded hollow and weak.

"Wrong!" Cao Fu snapped. "The dark path is the dark path; you can never wash it clean. Your great-great-grandfather caused immense carnage and enjoyed the taste of power and strength to his heart's content. Do you think the world will be grateful to him because he stopped in his old age? No one will!"

He continued, "The most pathetic thing about your great-great-grandfather was that he stopped just when he was about to unify the martial arts world—perhaps even seize the empire itself—falling short of the final goal. But that is also one of the reasons I am grateful to him."

Cao Fu’s tone shifted, his eyes gleaming with intense brilliance. "He left me the opportunity to surpass him, and I will surely surpass him to become the greatest lord the martial arts world has ever seen!"

Cao Fu’s pride was boundless—a pride that required endless blood to serve as its backdrop.

Leng Xuan lowered his head, unable to say another word. Facing such a resolute and ruthless tyrant, any argument was futile.

"Today is your last chance. If you are still unwilling to hand over the *Jianbei Heavenly Scroll* and the *Great Freedom Sword Technique*, I will not waste another moment on you." Cao Fu’s voice grew calm. He rested his chin on one hand and added, "You have the time it takes to burn one stick of incense to consider it."

A murderous aura silently permeated the cell. With that, Cao Fu signaled to the guards on both sides. Naturally, the various forms of torture were about to commence.

...

Inside the "Immortal’s Drunkenness" tavern, cold light flashed in Fang Junmei's eyes. Aside from the details regarding Shu Chuchu, he had already gathered the gist of the rest.

The innkeeper, himself a martial arts expert, had been keeping an eye on Fang Junmei despite not staring directly. Sensing an inexplicable fluctuation in Fang Junmei’s aura, he felt a sense of unease.

*Swish!*

Time was of the essence, and Leng Xuan was in mortal danger. Fang Junmei tossed a piece of silver on the table, stood up abruptly, and headed for the door.

"Where are you going, sir? Is the food and drink not to your liking?"

The innkeeper, seeing this, walked over with a fawning smile, blocking Fang Junmei’s path.

"Get lost!"

Fang Junmei let out a cold shout. Two beams of light, sharp as swords, shot from his eyes, piercing straight into the innkeeper’s soul.

The innkeeper felt as if two real swords had been fired from Fang Junmei’s eyes, aimed directly at him. With nowhere to hide, the blood drained from his face in an instant.

*Thump, thump, thump!*

He stumbled back three paces uncontrollably and fell onto the floor.

Fang Junmei walked past him.

*An expert! This guy is an expert! What is he doing in Angry Tiger Mountain City?*

Only after a long while did the innkeeper regain his senses. He looked back in a hurry, but Fang Junmei was nowhere to be seen.

...

The path to the summit was guarded by elite soldiers. Fang Junmei moved in a straight line toward the prison. Wherever he passed, the guards felt only a blur before their eyes, like a ghost drifting by, and then they could perceive nothing else. It left them suspicious and on edge, yet they could find nothing.

Several hundred yards were covered in a few blinks.

At the entrance to the dungeon, two burly guards with prominent temples stood watch with swords in hand.

"Who goes there? Halt!"

"This is a restricted area of the sect. Do not trespass!"

Seeing Fang Junmei appear so mysteriously, the two were initially shaken to the core, but their duty compelled them to shout.

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Fang Junmei remained expressionless. He flicked his fingers twice, and two golden beams of energy shot out, piercing through the guards' foreheads. The speed was so great that they had no chance to dodge.

They fell to the ground with wide eyes, dying without ever knowing what kind of person they had provoked.

He reached the door and opened it. More guards were waiting inside, and upon seeing this stranger, they attacked without a word. Fang Junmei continued to flick his fingers, effortlessly killing the guards.

Soon, there were no guards left.

This dungeon was built underground. It was dim, smelled of decay, and was filled with empty cells, as if they were mere decorations. It showed just how ruthless the Angry Tiger Mountain City was—unless necessary, they left no one alive.

Fang Junmei walked straight to the end. A hundred yards away, there was a staircase leading down. At the bottom was a solitary iron room—the cell holding Leng Xuan.

The commotion above had clearly been heard by the expert guarding the stairs. Before Fang Junmei could reach the bottom, a lean, gray-robed old man with one eye appeared silently at the top of the stairs.

"Who are you? You have some nerve, trespassing into the restricted area of Angry Tiger Mountain City!"

The gray-robed old man had clearly not seen Fang Junmei’s earlier display of lethal finger strikes, or he would have fled as far as he could. He was clearly an expert himself, speaking with an arrogant, condescending tone.

By now, Fang Junmei could see the situation inside the cell below. His face turned as cold as ice, and his internal energy accelerated instinctively.

*Swish!*

With a whistle of wind, Fang Junmei drifted forward like a ghost, appearing in front of the gray-robed old man in the blink of an eye.

The old man was terrified by the man's terrifying speed, his skin trembling and his body turning cold in an instant. As Fang Junmei closed in, he threw a heavy punch directly at the old man's chest, right over his heart!

*Bang!*

After a dull thud, the gray-robed old man didn't even have time to scream. He coughed up a spray of blood and was sent flying back against the wall.

His gaze dimmed, and his breath faded away. His chest had been caved in; his heart had been shattered by Fang Junmei’s punch!

This was the gap between a mortal expert and a cultivator, especially one as extraordinary as Fang Junmei.

...

After killing the gray-robed old man, Fang Junmei continued downward. He soon reached the door of the deepest cell, the "Bugu" sword already in his hand.

The cell door was still locked, showing that Cao Fu had been very confident in the gray-robed old man, never imagining that he would encounter a problem he couldn't solve.

Fang Junmei pushed the door open.

*Swish, swish, swish*—a flurry of gazes turned toward him.

Cao Fu was still sitting carelessly on his chair, while Leng Xuan’s body was covered in over a dozen new, long bloody gashes, his frame trembling uncontrollably from the torture he had endured.

Seeing Fang Junmei, everyone’s eyes filled with astonishment. Several guards flashed forward to attack.

*Clang!*

Fang Junmei drew the "Bugu" sword. It moved as if a dragon were swimming through the clouds—effortless, flowing, and filled with a sense of carefree ease.

Cries of agony erupted one after another.

With a few casual swings, he pierced through the foreheads of the guards. These guards were experts personally trained by Cao Fu, yet they could not withstand even a single move from Fang Junmei.

*Swish!*

Realizing Fang Junmei’s strength, Cao Fu’s face turned pale with shock. He sprang up, leaped to Leng Xuan’s side, and grabbed him by the throat!

Leng Xuan, meanwhile, looked dazed. His shock was not only due to Fang Junmei’s appearance but also the sword technique he had just witnessed.

"Who exactly are you? What grudge do you have against me, Cao, or against our Angry Tiger Mountain City?"

Cao Fu shouted, having lost his earlier calm, tyrannical composure.

Fang Junmei looked first at Leng Xuan, then at Cao Fu, and said calmly, "Since you know so much about Leng Qianqiu, you should know that he had a junior brother."

"You are..."

Cao Fu’s heart shook upon hearing this, and he said in disbelief, "Are you the successor of that vanished junior brother of Leng Qianqiu, Fang Junmei?"

Upon hearing Fang Junmei’s words, Leng Xuan was also struck with disbelief, a flicker of joy rising in his eyes.

Fang Junmei smiled slightly. "I am not his successor. I am Fang Junmei!"

...

At these words, both men’s hearts were shaken to the core.

"How is that possible? How can you still be alive, and so young?" Cao Fu stammered.

Leng Xuan, after his initial shock, stared intently. Looking at Fang Junmei’s distinct, handsome eyebrows, a brilliant light ignited in his pupils.

*It’s him, it’s him... Great-great-grandfather, great-great-grandmother, he has caught up with time, he has caught up with the passing years... He has returned.* Leng Xuan thought to himself.

"Look closely. This is the *Great Freedom Sword Technique* you wanted!"

Fang Junmei looked at Cao Fu, his gaze turning sharp. He spoke coldly, his "Bugu" sword pointing forward, his murderous intent rising sharply.