Chapter 103: The Greatest Farce Under Heaven

In just over ten minutes, the entire clubhouse, which had thirty-four people, was reduced to thirty-four cold corpses. Not a single soul escaped; even their spirits were refined and absorbed by West Ya Zi. Afterwards, Chu Tianfeng wandered through the various buildings, cleaning up the battlefield. After all, this was the old stronghold of the Tomb Robbers’ Sect, and it would be unreasonable if there wasn’t at least one or two million in treasure.

Cao Zhengming did not disappoint him. Half an hour later, he successfully located a large safe. Perhaps Cao Zhengming was too obsessed with cash, for inside the safe, there was nothing but cash—Chinese yuan, Hong Kong dollars, US dollars—every kind imaginable. Just the yuan alone amounted to over eleven million, nearly filling Chu Tianfeng’s ring. After months of poverty, suddenly seeing such an enormous sum left him almost overwhelmed. Should he buy a building? Or a car? Or maybe...

“Quick, leave! A Yuan Tian stage martial artist is coming!” Just as he pondered, West Ya Zi’s anxious voice suddenly echoed in his mind. Startled, Chu Tianfeng abandoned all thoughts of property or vehicles, leapt to his feet, and fled at top speed. With his current strength, even facing a late-stage Transformation Qi expert was tough, let alone a Yuan Tian stage martial artist. So he fled as far as he could.

Moments later, where Chu Tianfeng had stood, there appeared an elderly man with half-white hair. The man was in his seventies, with a gaunt face and sharp eagle-like eyes. He gazed thoughtfully in the direction where Chu Tianfeng had vanished.

“Elder Mo, what’s the situation?” a hoarse voice called from afar, followed by a burly figure who hurried swiftly to stand before Elder Mo. This man was also elderly, about the same age as Mo, but with a squarer face.

“This person’s movement technique is truly strange. He might indeed be Chu Tianfeng’s fellow disciple,” Elder Mo shook his head.

“No matter who he is, he dared to attack our West Gate Jewelry Center. The Tomb Robbers’ Sect will never let this go,” the square-faced elder said with hatred.

At that moment, another figure ran up from behind—a middle-aged man, even more burly than the square-faced elder, with a face full of coarse flesh, looking fierce.

“Sect Master Cao, Young Sect Master, and Yuan Young Master...” the burly man approached the square-faced elder, filled with unease, hesitating to speak.

“What did you say?” Elder Mo was shocked. In a flash, he grabbed the burly man by the collar. Though powerful, the burly man’s cultivation was far inferior, and he didn’t even have time to dodge.

“Elder Mo... Yuan Young Master is... inside,” the burly man stammered, scared out of his wits.

“Hmph!” Elder Mo flicked his hand and dashed toward the central building. The burly man was thrown to the ground, terrified but too afraid to complain.

“What happened to Yuan Gong?” the square-faced elder had a bad premonition.

“Sect Master Cao, Young Sect Master... he’s dead too,” the burly man answered dejectedly.

—

Obviously, the square-faced elder was the Tomb Robbers’ Sect Master, Cao Zhengming.

“What?” Cao Zhengming nearly lost his footing.

“The Young Sect Master and the Three Eagles were all found dead in the backyard, with many…” the burly man glanced at Cao Zhengming’s pale face and forced himself to continue, “…many blood holes.”

Ah—

Cao Zhengming let out a furious roar and stumbled toward the central building.

Inside, bodies lay scattered in disarray, blood soaking the floor.

Suddenly, a thunderous roar echoed from the rear hall.

“It’s over!” Cao Zhengming’s heart sank. He knew the dead were not just his son. Among them was the son of Master Yu Shigui, head of the Heavenly Master Sect, whose life was far more precious than his own son’s.

Sure enough, when Cao Zhengming entered the rear hall, he saw Elder Mo holding one corpse, stunned. Two other middle-aged men were there as well; one of them held another cold corpse. On the floor lay four more bodies—three well-known faces, the Three Eagles who often accompanied him, and one bodyguard who had been with the Yuan Young Master.

Trembling, Cao Zhengming approached the middle-aged man and took his son’s stiff body, tears streaming down his face.

Seeing Cao’s grief, Elder Mo finally regained composure.

“Sect Master Cao, this matter is grave. You must come with me to An City. Otherwise, Master Yu may not be satisfied,” Elder Mo said, gently setting down the corpse and stepping out of the rear hall.

Cao Zhengming had no choice but to suppress his sorrow, hand over the body to the middle-aged man, and follow Elder Mo to the backyard.

“Sigh, we were all deceived. The enemy clearly had two groups: one to sneak attack the West Gate Jewelry Center and lure us away; once we all rushed there to assist, the other attacked our headquarters,” Cao Zhengming lamented, wiping away his tears.

“That’s right. They must have planned this for a long time. Their target was your Tomb Robbers’ Sect. Our Zhiyuan Sect was just an unfortunate bystander,” Elder Mo agreed.

If Chu Tianfeng heard these two evaluating his actions tonight, he would surely laugh out loud. He had no idea Elder Mo from the Heavenly Master Sect was also at the Golden Gate Clubhouse, nor had he planned any diversion tactics. The talk of two enemy groups was utterly ridiculous. Simply put, he was blinded by greed, enticed by the Golden Gate Jewelry Center’s wealth. Otherwise, he might have stormed straight into the Golden Gate Clubhouse.

“I truly feel guilty about Yuan Young Master. Even if Elder Mo doesn’t say it, I will personally apologize to Master Yu,” Cao Zhengming said, pulling out a pack of cigarettes, offering one to Elder Mo with both hands.

Elder Mo accepted the cigarette and nodded approvingly. “Good. I hope this won’t affect the cooperation between our two sects. After all, opportunities like this only come once every thirty years.”

“Yes, the Peach Blossom Valley secret realm opens once every thirty years. We definitely shouldn’t miss such a chance,” Cao Zhengming lit his cigarette.

The smoke calmed Cao Zhengming’s emotions somewhat.

“Well, it depends on the equipment you’re preparing,” Elder Mo exhaled a smoke ring, his face grave.

“Rest assured, Elder Mo, we’ll have those glasses by the end of the year at the latest,” Cao Zhengming replied, exhaling smoke.

“How’s their performance? Reliable?” Elder Mo asked again.

“American black technology. They’re quite impressive. According to our Black Tiger, the glasses are magical, combining telescopic and lens effects. They can penetrate thick fog and adjust focal length like binoculars to see several miles away,” Cao Zhengming said.

“That’s good. With that, the Fog Zone will be ours,” Elder Mo nodded. “What about the other gear?”

“Guns are trickier. You know China strictly controls firearms, especially toward year-end. So far, we’ve only obtained ten sets; the rest will take more time,” Cao Zhengming said cautiously.

Elder Mo took another puff and slowly exhaled. “You must hurry to secure more guns before year-end. Most of our disciples have never used firearms. They’ll need time to train.”

“Yes, yes,” Cao Zhengming hurriedly agreed. “Tomorrow I’ll send Red Tiger and Blue Tiger to Myanmar to escort the shipment personally.”

“Hm,” Elder Mo’s gaze drifted off, his voice seeming distant. “Any news from the Wang family recently?”

Cao Zhengming thought briefly. “The Wang family has also acquired many glasses overseas, but their glasses are average—just fog-penetrating, nothing special, similar to other sects’.”

“What about personnel?”

“Wang Lianyao might participate in the A-group competition. He’s reportedly in seclusion, possibly breaking through to the peak of Transformation Qi. If so, he may be unbeatable in the A-group.”

“How many are in the B-group?”

“About six. They ordered ten glasses total; after four for the A-group, six remain.”

“Interesting—the same number as us,” Elder Mo retracted his gaze, a hint of mockery on his lips.

“I suspect the B-group competition may be fiercer than the A-group. Many sects send elite disciples disguised as unaffiliated participants,” Cao Zhengming said respectfully. “So far, only the Dragon and Phoenix families haven’t hired outsiders or sent disciples to the B-group.”

“The Dragon and Phoenix families aren’t to be feared. They cling to tradition. Though currently strong, they’ll soon be surpassed by other sects.”

“That’s true. These old sects and families are declining.”

“Enough of that,” Elder Mo flicked his cigarette away. “You’re being targeted by Chu Tianfeng’s fellows. I suggest you disperse your people, break into smaller groups—to avoid them and to gather intelligence.”

“Wise advice, Elder Mo. I’ll do just that,” Cao Zhengming said, taking a deep drag and crushing his cigarette beneath his foot.

“Besides the Wang family, focus on Huangshan and Hengshan. Mu Xiangdong and Ge Changfeng are as cunning as ghosts. I fear their schemes.”

“They’ve always been aligned. In the Fog Zone, they’ll unite against us.”

As everyone knows, the Huangshan and Hengshan sects share a thousand-year-old bond. It would be strange if they didn’t cooperate.

Elder Mo scoffed dismissively. “Even if they join forces, what then? No matter how skilled, they fear firearms. If we prepare well, the Fog Zone will be their tomb.”

“To be safe, I’ve prepared one more thing. Other sects won’t leave the Fog Zone alive—it’ll be harder than climbing to heaven,” Cao Zhengming said, a trace of pride on his face.

“Oh? What is it?”

“I brought several sets of invisibility suits from the island nation. They’re unique, reflecting ambient light. In uniform lighting, they render the wearer nearly invisible to the naked eye.”

“Hm, good work. I’ll inform Master Yu and have him commend you.”

“Well...” Cao Zhengming glanced toward the rear hall, his face troubled. “I don’t dare claim credit. If it only soothes Master Yu’s anger somewhat, I’ll be grateful.”

Elder Mo looked toward the rear hall and sighed deeply. “Store their bodies for now. After Master Yu has seen them, we’ll give them a proper burial.”