16: The disciples of Tianqin and the Seven Heroes of the Marketplace, when the young master dies, they have no face left!

His hand, gripping the longsword, slowly, finger by finger, loosened its hold.

The longsword, which had carried half his life's sorrow, clanged heavily to the ground, kicking up a few specks of dust.

The mournful cry from the blade ceased entirely.

Dusk was deep, the plum grove silent.

Ximen Chuixue slowly sheathed his sword; its blade was as pristine as ever, unstained by a single speck of dust, save for a single drop of crimson at its tip, which in the dim light resembled a congealed agate bead, full and ready to drip.

He lowered his head slightly, gazing intently at the blood bead, his eyes as pure as if he were admiring a rare work of art.

The blood bead finally could no longer bear its own weight and silently slid down the cold, smooth blade.

Tap!

A soft sound, barely audible.

It fell to the ground, landing precisely on a half-withered fallen leaf, quickly spreading into a small, tragically beautiful plum blossom.

"So beautiful!"

...It was two days later when Lu Jiuyuan, Lu Xiaofeng, and Hua Manlou encountered Ximen Chuixue.

"You look lively and seem to be fine!" The moment he saw Lu Xiaofeng, Ximen Chuixue turned to leave.

"Hey, wait, Ximen Chuixue, this is really big trouble this time. We also fought our way out of layers of encirclement and pursued you because we were afraid something might have happened to you," Lu Xiaofeng quickly said.

"I was afraid they would make a move on you, but now it seems they must have failed!"

"Yan Renying, Xiao Qiuyu, one is not worth mentioning, the other is not bad," Ximen Chuixue said concisely.

"To be called 'not bad' by you, it seems this Xiao Qiuyu is indeed very good," Lu Xiaofeng stroked his small mustache.

Liu Yuhang, Dugufeng, and Xiao Qiuyu were the three top masters beside Shangguan Danfeng.

If Xiao Qiuyu was good, then the other two must also be very good. The value of Lu Jiuyuan being able to kill two of them needed to be raised even further.

The four converged, without further delay, and traveled through wind and dust, rushing day and night towards the Green Robe Small Building.

After two days of rapid travel, when the outline of that city finally appeared at the horizon.

An invisible, chilling aura of death, like a cold spiderweb, had already silently enveloped the only path leading to the city gate.

The two leaders, with white hair and youthful faces, one fat and one thin, wore gray cloth robes and stood with their hands behind their backs, appearing to be seventy or eighty years old.

Their eyes were as calm as an undisturbed ancient well, and their aura was perfectly contained, yet subtly exuded a heart-palpitating sense of oppression.

They were Tian Song and Yun He, the The Two Elders of Mount Shang, who had lived in seclusion for many years and were known as Martial Forest Grandmasters.

Beside the two elders, on the left was a bald old man. This person looked unremarkable but was the renowned Great Hero of Guanzhong, Shanxi Yan.

On the right was an impoverished scholar, known as one of the Two Talents of the Northwest, on par with Fan, and the sole inheritor of the Finger Flicking Divine Skill, Mr. Jian Er.

Looking further to the sides, there were a bun vendor, a beggar, a quack doctor selling wild medicine, a vegetable vendor, a peddler selling pollen, and a fat man selling noodles.

These seven were sworn brothers, and because they lived among the marketplace, they were known as the Seven Heroes of the Marketplace, or the Seven Righteous of Shanxi.

These people shared one common characteristic: all of them were members of the Tianqin Sect.

The The Two Elders of Mount Shang were Huo Tianqing's Senior Brothers, Shanxi Yan was Huo Tianqing's Junior Martial Uncle, and the Seven Heroes of the Marketplace were Huo Tianqing's grand-disciples.

Lu Xiaofeng introduced the people blocking their path to Lu Jiuyuan.

"It truly is a case of the elders coming after the juniors, a whole large family, from top to bottom," Lu Jiuyuan leaned on his sword, his eyes turning cold.

"Shanxi Yan, is there any reason to be discussed?" Lu Xiaofeng asked as they drew closer.

"Ancestral Master founded the Tianqin Sect sixty years ago, and the first great commandment was to respect one's teachers and value the Dao.

Ancestral Master dedicated his life to martial arts, only having a family in his later years.

He had his only Bloodline at the age of seventy-seven.

Huo Tianqing is not only the sole Bloodline heir of Ancestral Master but also the only inheritor of the Tianqin Sect.

We, who have received great kindness from the School, must protect him even if it means being torn to pieces.

If we cannot protect him, then there is no need for the hundreds of people, from top to bottom, of the Tianqin Sect to continue living," Shanxi Yan said with an extremely cold and solemn expression.

"In today's battle, win or lose, all of the Tianqin Sect will die here, to be buried with our Young Lord.

We will go to Grandmaster's presence and personally kowtow to apologize."

"Huo Tianqing, the dignified inheritor of the Tianqin Sect, became a thug, a running dog, and a minion in the hands of a woman, losing all face, and was killed by me in a duel. How dare you still come to kill me?" Lu Jiuyuan took a step forward, sneering, "You have utterly disgraced the Tianqin Sect."

"If our Young Lord were still alive, naturally we would care about face, and the Tianqin Sect would not tolerate defilement.

But with our Young Lord gone, what face does the Tianqin Sect have left to speak of? It is merely to do our utmost to bring you to Grandmaster's presence."

Lu Jiuyuan's hand never left the Guhong Sword hilt.

The cold, hard touch through his palm was like another silent heart, echoing the surging Qi within him, which had not settled from the previous killings and was now ignited by this overwhelming intent to kill, as if his entire being was about to burst into flames.

The cold sneer at the corner of his mouth not only did not diminish but spread into a deeper curve, like cracks appearing on an icy surface:

"What a 'respect for teachers and reverence for the Dao'! What a 'burial'! Huo Tianqing, driven by female beauty, tarnished the Tianqin Sect's century-old reputation.

Instead of correcting him to uphold the School's integrity, you intend to have the entire School buried with him?

If Old Man Tianqin knew in the afterlife, he would probably be so enraged that he'd kick open his coffin lid and strike all you unworthy disciples and grand-disciples down to the eighteen levels of Hell!"

He took a step forward; though not a large step, it carried a resolute sharpness. The Guhong Sword remained in its sheath, but the biting killing intent, like a tangible force, cut towards the Tianqin Sect members standing solemnly before him.

His gaze was as sharp as a needle, piercing directly at the The Two Elders of Mount Shang: "Tianqin Sect? After today, there will be no such name in the Jianghu!

You are nothing but dried bones in a tomb, people selling their heads!"

"Impudent!"

The fat man selling noodles was the first to lose patience; his round body surprisingly shot forward with abnormal agility, the short kneading stick in his hand whistling through the air, striking directly at Lu Jiuyuan's face!

His movement was like lighting a fuse. The peddler selling pollen flicked his wrist, and several points of cold light silently shot towards Lu Jiuyuan's lower body;

The vegetable vendor swept his carrying pole horizontally, aiming for Lu Jiuyuan's legs;

The beggar's broken bowl flew from his hand, and his dog-beating stick jabbed directly forward.

A handful of silver needles slid from the doctor's sleeve, and with a flick of his hand, they scattered like points of cold light;

The bun vendor threw a steamer basket, and he himself leaped through the air, his five fingers forming claws, covering Lu Jiuyuan's head!

The Seven Heroes of the Marketplace, united in spirit, cooperated flawlessly!

Seven completely different weapons, seven cunning and vicious attacks, instantly wove into an impenetrable net of death, covering all of Lu Jiuyuan's vital points!

There were no shouts, only the whistling of weapons cutting through the air and the whooshing sounds of hidden weapons flying, vicious, swift, aiming to kill with a single blow!