Chapter 1022: Luo Duo
The Longqi Kingdom was one of the eight great kingdoms of the Tian Yuan Continent. It stood as an equal to the Qinhuang Kingdom and possessed a history that was several tens of thousands of years long. One could not underestimate its power, while Saint Ruler stayed and protected the imperial palace.
The Longqi Kingdom was just as peaceful as it was every other day. Its majestic and dominating halls filled the imperial palace; a vast and tremendous presence filled the surroundings.
Groups of soldiers clad in armor patrolled the palace, as they moved around with their chests up high as they marched at a unison pace. They silently protected the peace of the palace.
At this moment, two figures that were so blurry that they were almost invisible entered the palace extremely quickly. They silently shot toward the depths. Then, they disappeared into a hall that had been empty for a very long time.
They had completely erased their presence, so they alerted no one with their arrival. Even the Saint Rulers protecting the palace failed to notice the arrival of these two unwelcome guests.
Two disheveled old men in tattered clothing carefully leaned against the door, as they observed the activity outside with great caution. They had completely erased their presence and had even held their breaths. They seemed extremely nervous.
The two old men finally became relieved after they discovered nothing from their observations. At the same time, they collapsed onto the icy-cold ground, as they panted heavily.
“It’s fortunate that we didn’t alert the Saint Rulers in the palace. Situ, your presence-erasing technique really is impressive. We should be able to hide here safely for the next few days,” an old man said through a communication technique. He was weary.
“It doesn’t matter how profound this presence-erasing technique is. The four protectors of the Bloodsword sect will still able to find us. We can’t shake them off no matter what,” replied the other old man with a similar communication technique. They both behaved extremely cautiously, unwilling to even make the slightest noise just in case it would alert the Saint Rulers in the palace.
The two beggar-like Saint Rulers were old man Situ and Mateng. They had suffered from the pursuit of the four protectors of the Bloodsword sect in the past few years, as they ran for their lives.
“The Longqi Kingdom is a subsidiary of the Felicity Empire of the three great empires. Probably even the four protectors do not dare to create a disturbance here. We should be very safe here,” old man Mateng communicated.
Old man Situ nodded in agreement and replied, “You’re right. The four protectors will catch up very quickly. They know we’re hiding here. Despite this, as soon as they approach the imperial palace, the Saint Rulers from the palace will definitely stop them. A great battle might even occur. As they fight, we can keep watch and strike out suddenly to defeat a protector together. That way, we can kill one of them.”
Old man Mateng’s eyes lit up. “That’s not a bad idea. The four of them have basically chased us through the entire continent, so it’s about time for them to pay a price.”
Two days later, four cold-faced, middle-aged men in blood-red robes arrived in the air. They directly traveled toward the imperial palace.
The four of them radiated with an invisible Baleful Yin Force. The temperature would plummet wherever the four of them passed, and it would become as cold as an ice cavern.
“The two of them are hiding in this city. The previous sect master has contacted us with a secret technique. He instructed that once we find the two of them, we must not act rashly. We need to wait for the new sect master to arrive and wait for his orders. Let’s find an inn and rest for now,” a protector said expressionlessly, before entering the city with the three others.
“Who do you think the new sect master is? I can be sure that he definitely has some hatred for the two people we’re chasing, but our Bloodsword sect has already stepped away from the continent for a thousand years. I haven’t heard about any elders in the sect that have some resentment toward them,” a protector said with a deep voice. He was filled with doubt.
“Xue San, shut up. The matter of the sect master is not something we can discuss.” A protector’s face sank, and he immediately glared toward the speaker.
The protector referred to as Xue San immediately shut up.
As the four protectors walked through the streets, their similar appearances and their traces of Baleful Yin Force immediately became the center of attention. All the pedestrians and mercenaries gave way to them. They could already tell that it would be unwise to provoke the four of them, as they had sinister appearances.
The four protectors traveled side by side. They had recovered their usual coldness, which made them seem unapproachable.
At this moment, four pepper-haired old men in white robes appeared on the street. They also stood side by side, just happening to block the paths of the four protectors. They seemed like they had waited there for quite some time already.
The four old men all seemed extremely ordinary. None of them possessed any presences, and they seemed like ordinary people. They attracted no attention even though they stood on the street in such a fashion.
The four protectors immediately stopped, as they were blocked. They stared coldly at the four old men, but none of them said anything.
At this moment, one of the old men clasped his hands toward them and said, “We are the four Imperial Protectors of the Longqi Kingdom. May I ask why the four experts of the Bloodsword sect has come to our Longqi Kingdom?” said the old man nonchalantly. His tone carried a sliver of coldness and an unwillingness to yield.
The Bloodsword sect had already disappeared from the Tian Yuan Continent for a thousand years, but it was still one of the three great assassination organizations. There were no experts within the kingdom that could ignore them when the four of them arrived at the same time, which was why four Saint Rulers of the Longqi Kingdom had immediately arrived to stop them.
“We are the four protectors of the Bloodsword sect. We have come in pursuit of traitors of the human race,” a protector said emotionlessly.
“This is the imperial city of our Longqi Kingdom. There are no so-called traitors. Please leave quickly,” said an Imperial Protector unyieldingly. He did not fear the infamous Bloodsword sect.
“The way the Bloodsword sect does things has never been decided by others.” All four protectors stood emotionlessly as coldness filled their eyes. Slivers of killing intent had already appeared. The traces of Baleful Yin Force on them also became denser. They were clearly in a battle-ready state.
The four Imperial Protectors were indeed very unwilling to give in, but the four protectors were even more so.
The four Imperial Protectors immediately thought of giving in when they saw how inflexible the four protectors were. They knew that if they did not do that, a battle with the four protectors would definitely occur.
“This is our Longqi Kingdom, not your Bloodsword sect. If you forcefully want it that way, you’ll see what happens,” The four Imperial Protectors immediately left after throwing down that threatening sentence. The unique Baleful Yin Force of the Bloodsword sect was renowned throughout the entire continent. Everyone feared it, so the four Imperial Protectors did not want to fall out with them at all.
As he watched the four Imperial Protectors leave, a protector mumbled, “They seem to have very deep hatred for us.”
“In an assassination over a thousand years ago, the king and two Imperial Protectors died at the hands of our Bloodsword sect. Of course they would have resentment for us,” a protector explained emotionlessly.
The four Imperial Protectors gathered together in the imperial palace. All of them were stern.
“I never thought that the people of the Bloodsword sect would appear in our Longqi Kingdom once again. Over a thousand years ago, the Bloodsword sect claimed the lives of two of our Imperial Protectors. We have to avenge them.”
“Over three hundred years ago, Imperial Protector Luo Duo successfully broke through to Saint King. He’s currently an Imperial Protector of the Felicity Empire, while one of the Imperial Protectors the Bloodsword sect killed was Luo Duo’s younger brother. We should contact him immediately and get him to assist us.”
The four Imperial Protectors immediately sent someone through a Space Gate to the Felicity Kingdom to pass on the news of what was happening here to Luo Duo.
On the other hand, the four protectors of the Bloodsword sect settled down in an inn within the Longqi Kingdom. They stayed in there meditating all day long without taking a single step out. They tried to sense the two old men’s precise location, as they waited for the new sect master to arrive.
A middle-aged man in white robes sat on a huge bed within a beautifully-adorned hall in the Felicity Empire. His appearance was ordinary but firm, and he gave off an unwavering feeling. However, he did not have a head full of hair that matched his age. It was completely gray and formed a rather peculiar combination with his face.
The man was Luo Duo. He was a Saint King and currently an Imperial Protector of the Felicity Empire.
A ruddy old man stood courteously before him. He was an Imperial Protector who had hurried over from the Longqi Kingdom. Currently, he was informing Luo Duo about everything regarding the appearance of the four protectors of the Bloodsword sect.
“The Bloodsword sect!” Luo Duo slowly opened his eyes. A sharp light immediately began to flicker in his eyes, together with a surging hatred.
“Imperial Protector Luo Duo, people of the Bloodsword sect have come to our Longqi Kingdom once again. I wonder what should we do. Please instruct us, Imperial Protector Luo Duo,” said the Imperial Protector of the Longqi Kingdom. He clasped his hands, as he bowed courteously.
“What to do? Of course to kill them, to take revenge for my younger brother,” Luo Duo said without any extra thought.
“But the sect master of the Bloodsword sect…” The Imperial Protector hesitated. Very deep fear filled his eyes.
Luo Duo got off his bed and said coldly, “I’ve looked through the information regarding the sect master especially in the Felicity Empire. According to what I know, Houston does not have much more time left, so there’s no need to consider him. There is no one else within the Bloodsword sect that is worthy of the Felicity Empire’s attention other than Houston. And if Houston decides to interfere, there will naturally be someone from the Felicity Empire who will block him.”
“Houston brought the glory of the past thousand years of the Bloodsword sect. Once he disappears, the glory of the Bloodsword sect will become history.”