Chapter 496 — Blades Drawn and Bows Bent
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
Wu Chengtian heard someone speaking up for Wei Zhao and insulting him, and was instantly enraged. He was about to retort when he saw that it was a pretty, delicate young girl, and somehow the curses would not come out. All he could manage was: "Don't stick your nose into this — this has nothing to do with you!"
"The young one's ill-mannered, and the old one's ill-mannered too?" Feng Xiaoxiao curled her lip. "Hey, old man, your grandson has no manners at all — aren't you going to teach him?"
"What did you say, you little chit?" A flash of anger crossed Wu Gonggao's face. He stared at Feng Xiaoxiao with a cold, baleful look, and his clenched fist opened into a palm. As head of the Iron Hand Wu family, to have a junior dare speak to him like this — if he did not teach her a lesson, where would his dignity be? Where would the Wu family's dignity be?
"You — what are you going to do, you old man?" Feng Xiaoxiao was startled. Though she knew no martial arts, she could clearly sense the killing intent radiating from Wu Gonggao.
An expert at the early Mystic Rank! Wei Zhao's heart tightened. Wu Gonggao, like Wu Chengtian, was one of those external-style body cultivators, so Wei Zhao could not sense the energy stored within their bodies — only when they circulated their external-style mental methods could he gauge their level of strength.
He had not expected the old man to be this formidable. Wei Zhao shifted his stance unconsciously and gave a wry smile.
At any rate, Feng Xiaoxiao had just spoken up for him. Whatever her motives, Wei Zhao could not simply stand by and do nothing — that would be far too dishonorable. So the moment Wu Gonggao made a move, Wei Zhao intended to block it for Feng Xiaoxiao. The man might be an early Mystic Rank expert, but Wei Zhao possessed peak late Yellow Rank strength and had cultivated the Xuanyuan Dragon-Slaying Art, so he was confident enough of taking one blow from an early Mystic Rank expert. Whether he could win was another matter, but he could certainly protect himself.
He was, it turned out, acting unnecessarily — for the instant he moved, a middle-aged man appeared swiftly before Feng Xiaoxiao, fixing Wu Gonggao with a calm stare: "Elder Wu, do you mean to strike my daughter?"
Wu Gonggao started slightly, and his expression changed at once. Feng Tianlong — how could he fail to know him? Wu Gonggao drew a deep breath and knew there would be no fighting today. Any thought of teaching Feng Xiaoxiao a lesson was now utterly impossible.
What made Wu Gonggao wary was not Feng Tianlong's mid Yellow Rank strength — in the eyes of an early Mystic Rank expert, a Yellow Rank expert was nothing but a floating cloud. Nor, of course, was it Feng Tianlong's background. The mysterious Investigations Bureau was indeed a mysterious institution, with authority so vast it made one's tongue click. But that was so for ordinary people. Toward such a family as the Wu, it might not be an enemy, but it was certainly nothing to fear.
What truly filled Wu Gonggao with dread was that man who had withdrawn from the jianghu more than a decade ago and never emerged again — Feng Tianlong's former captain. That man had once been a member of the Investigations Bureau's special service team; he had led Feng Tianlong on missions, and the bond between them ran deep.
Had it been anyone but Feng Tianlong, Wu Gonggao might not have shown him face. But Feng Tianlong's face could not be denied. In that man's eyes, to say nothing of an early Mystic Rank expert like himself — even an Earth Rank expert, he feared, would be dispatched in a single blow.
Though he did not know that man's true strength, of one thing Wu Gonggao was certain: offend him, and the Wu family was finished — it would take no more than a single day.
"Phew..." Wu Gonggao let out a long breath and laughed awkwardly. "So it's Captain Feng. Why would I ever lay a hand on your daughter? I was only joking!"