Second update for today! There won't be one this afternoon, so apologies for the late notice. Everyone, please don't wait up for me anymore. Thank you all for the birthday gifts; I feel truly blessed! I’ve already received over seventy cards and more than two hundred well wishes. And then there are all your generous tips and monthly passes. Never before have so many people celebrated my birthday with me; for a moment, my nose actually stung with emotion. Thank you again, my brothers! My sisters! May you all be blessed with happiness and success!
The Xi family has always been a direct bloodline of the Imperial House. My grandfather has always been fiercely loyal to His Majesty, and our Tang family is bound to follow His Majesty’s lead without question.
Tang Yuan frowned, looking deeply troubled: “Grandfather fought side-by-side with His Majesty back in the day. If His Majesty truly intends to move against the Jun family, my grandfather…” Tang Yuan gritted his teeth: “He will absolutely stand with His Majesty!”
“I understand!” Jun Moxie clapped Tang Yuan reassuringly on the shoulder. “I won't harm him!”
“Thank you!” A huge weight lifted from Tang Yuan’s heart.
“Oh? The fatso has finally learned to say thank you to me? You’re getting quite something now. Are you feeling a bit better internally?” Jun Moxie eyed him sidelong.
“Heh heh, we’re buddies. I really didn’t want to tell you that just now, but we’re brothers, so naturally, I’ll side with you.” Tang Yuan’s expression became intensely serious.
“Fatty, you know my greatest wish is for my family and brothers to live in peace and joy. Your family is naturally included in that. As for saying thank you and all that—it’s all unnecessary between us,” the Young Master chuckled heartily.
“We are good brothers, brothers for life!” Wait a minute… The fatty’s originally serious, plump face instantly shifted, and he awkwardly scratched his scalp. Suddenly, he grew quite nervous: “Third Young Master, you absolutely cannot let the family know about that matter, especially not Sun Xiaomei…” Otherwise, I’ll have no face left to show anyone!”
“What can’t be known?! You mean… that thing you did? This is terrible!” Jun Moxie jumped up in surprise. His expression was filled with the realization that she already knew— “Aiya, what a mess this has turned into! I thought you two lovebirds…” It’s fine, I thought… Ugh! This is my fault, my fault! How could I be such an idiot?”
Tang Yuan initially thought he was joking, but when he saw the genuine distress on his face, realizing it wasn't an act, a terrible sinking feeling began in his heart. His plump face slowly darkened, and he slid down against the wall, leaning weakly, asking with a sliver of desperate hope: “Is it really?”
“Of course, it’s true! I wouldn’t lie to you about something like that!” Jun Moxie looked utterly regretful. “Aiya, look at my big mouth…”
With a thud, Young Master Tang finally collapsed onto the ground. His eyes glazed over, on the verge of tears, he mumbled: “It’s over, I’m finished…”
Jun Moxie said mournfully: “Hurry and go spin some convincing lies now; it might not be too late. When I left, she was just preparing to head over to the Tang residence.”
“Ah?” Tang Yuan, despite his massive bulk of over five hundred jin, suddenly sprang up in a perfect catfish leap, his face filled with utter despair. He let out a tragic cry toward the heavens: “Mother! Why is my life so bitter? Xiaomei!” Then, he shot off like a locomotive running on full steam, disappearing in a few deafening thumps.
Jun Moxie let out a soft chuckle, beckoned a maid to bring tea, crossed his legs, swinging his feet idly, and began humming a tune: “Back when my crew first set sail, just over a dozen men, with seven or eight guns…”
Suddenly, he frowned: “There’s a serious problem with these lyrics! How could a dozen men only have seven or eight guns? Were some of them female soldiers?”
Suddenly, Tang Yuan’s distant shouts drifted back: “It really was nothing! I swear to heaven! It was truly nothing! If you don’t believe me, ask Third Young Master… I just wanted to see you!” It’s really fine! If I’m lying to you, may I become impotent on my wedding night! You have to believe that much, right?”
Then came an enraged, fiery voice, sputtering with indignation: “If nothing happened, why did you tell me to apologize? And why did you beg me not to tell anyone? If you tell, you’re dead? What exactly did you do that makes telling mean certain death? Where is Jun Moxie? Where is he? Call him out! No! I’ll find him myself! I’m going to get a clear answer!”
Then came the sound of heavy thudding footsteps, mixed with Fatty Tang’s screams and desperate pleas echoing in the background: “My dear mistress, my only mistress… Mother! Please spare me this one time!”
“If you did nothing wrong, why are you begging for mercy?”
“I… I…” “Third Young Master! Ah, you’ve ruined me, you’ve played me to death! Oh, my dear mother!” Fatty Tang wailed to the heavens.
Jun Moxie chuckled wickedly. Serves you right, buddy, for dragging my mood down so heavy. Now let your wife give you a good lesson. With that, he composed his face into an expression of righteous indignation and walked out, shouting: “What is all this commotion? He just went out for a round at a courtesan house! Is it worth making such a fuss? It truly baffles me!”
Sun Xiaomei froze for a moment, then turned and grabbed Tang Yuan’s ear: “What? Fatty! You told me you were accompanying Third Young Master to the Dugu family! Turns out you were out drinking at a pleasure house! Good for you! Very good! You are very good!”
Tang Yuan was nearly in tears, how could he explain? Explaining was wrong; not explaining was even worse. He was completely trapped. He stretched his neck and cried out: “My beloved wife! Just look at my belly… How could I possibly be drinking at a pleasure house? Which girl would even agree to sit with me? I’d crush her just by sitting down!”
Jun Moxie burst out laughing, threw over his shoulder, “Hmm, I suddenly remembered something,” then, with a flicker of movement, he vanished without a trace, making his escape.
Behind him, only the sounds of interrogation mixed with kicks and punches could be heard.
Jun Moxie felt thoroughly delighted. He let out a long sigh and darted out onto the street. Suddenly, he sensed someone trailing him from behind. He sped up, took several sharp turns, and then activated the Yin-Yang Evasion Technique, vanishing instantly in broad daylight.
Although his physical body could no longer be seen, he remained in his original spot, having merely retreated into the air itself. After a long moment, finding no anomalies to the front, back, left, or right, Jun Moxie began to wonder if he was being overly suspicious. Suddenly, a rapid streak of green light flashed, and Jun Moxie was instantly enveloped by a profound, chilling coldness emanating from all directions. It felt like being pinned down by a venomous snake while traversing a dense forest—a shiver of coldness ran from the crown of his head down his spine to his heels!
It was as if an incomparably deadly, exotic viper was coiled above him.
This sensation was surprisingly familiar to Jun Moxie! In that instant, he remembered the scene in the Heavenly Punishment Forest when the Cold-Blooded Sovereign, Lei Wubei, battled the Serpent King, Qianxun!
The Serpent King’s aura was precisely this chilling and menacing the moment she first appeared!
In that single moment, Jun Moxie understood a great deal…
That streak of green light scanned the surrounding fifty zhang of space with lightning speed, then suddenly shot straight up into the sky with a swish, ascending more than a dozen zhang high. Its sharp eyes surveyed the surroundings for a long time before it slowly drifted down. With a wave of its sleeve, the green light flickered and instantly vanished.
Jun Moxie watched, feeling a sense of familiarity—it was the younger sister of that white-robed girl, the green-robed girl Mei Qianqian!
Jun Moxie was now certain. This Mei Qianqian was the Serpent King of the Heavenly Punishment Forest!
Qianxun!
From the moment he saw the two sisters on the road, he felt something was amiss. Later, upon arriving at Tianxiang City, they had inexplicably vanished. Now, they were tracking him. What were they planning to do? What designs did they have on him? Or perhaps on the entire Jun family?
The movements of a supreme sovereign, the supreme Beast King of the Heavenly Punishment Forest, traveling thousands of miles from the core of the forest to follow him to Tianxiang—had they somehow discovered his secret?
Jun Moxie’s thoughts churned. The aura of the Hongjun Pagoda activated, and the divine sense of the Creation-Opening Divine Art locked onto a direction, pursuing invisibly!
That ethereal green light flickered several times, changing direction at least dozens of times in the blink of an eye, before shooting out toward a location outside the city like an arrow fired from a powerful crossbow, swoosh!
The Serpent King Qianxun’s profound speed was truly staggering; in the air, she seemed to transform into a phantom streak of a meteor. Her green gown even appeared on the verge of igniting from the friction.
Even in the bright light of day, the Serpent King showed no caution, confident that if it were an ordinary person, they wouldn't even notice her if she passed right by them! At best, they would only feel a faint, cool breeze pass by, and nothing else.
She was confident that even a highly cultivated Xuan Qi master, provided they hadn't reached the Heavenly Xuan level, still couldn't see her! Even a Heavenly Xuan practitioner would need to prepare beforehand, adjusting their essence, energy, and spirit to their peak state, focusing all their attention into their eyes, and concentrating wholly on the path she was about to take to possibly detect her!
If someone truly wanted to track her…
The Serpent King Qianxun was confident that in a short time, even the universally acclaimed master of lightness skill, Ying Bokong, might not be able to catch her!
This was the Serpent King’s innate divine speed!
A speed far beyond the comprehension of ordinary humans!
In an instant, the Serpent King Qianxun had left the city.
Most remarkably, when leaving the city, the Serpent King swept right over the city wall, as if the five-to-six-zhang-high fortifications were merely flat ground to her. She shot straight out like an arrow loosed from a bow!
Indeed, for the Serpent King, the city wall was just flat ground!
The Serpent King soared dozens of zhang through the air without drawing any support, her speed undiminished. But as her body drew closer and closer to the ground, at the moment she reached the lowest point, her toes lightly brushed the grass surface—swish—and she accelerated again!
Behind her, a single withered blade of grass trembled faintly…
“Truly worthy of being the Serpent King Qianxun!” Jun Moxie, hidden and following, praised inwardly. If she were human, such speed and flexibility could never be achieved so naturally. He believed even Ying Bokong could not manage it, because Ying Bokong was, after all, human!
This was a unique innate ability belonging only to the supreme Beast Kings of the Heavenly Punishment Forest!
It simply couldn't be learned!
The Serpent King galloped onward. In just a moment, she was about ten li from the city. Seeing the dense forest ahead, where the woods were gradually growing thicker, she suddenly stopped her slender body—a complete, abrupt halt mid-gallop—and then shot back up into the air like a firework rocket, soaring upward!
In that split second, she spun around sharply, and a face, pure yet imbued with seductive charm, appeared in the air. Her green robes fluttered, her sleeves danced; she possessed both the detachment of an immortal and a sharp, cold killing intent!
Her eyes were distinctly black and white, filled with boundless killing aura, fixed on the area behind her! The Serpent King’s presence swept out overwhelmingly! All the flowers and trees within several hundred zhang before her were pressed flat in unison!
She had detected the presence of a tracker!