Chapter 211: Everyone Is Crafty

Chapter 211: None Are Simple

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots rolled through the room, bullets raging forward.

The Buddha wheel behind Longtu’s head—that very wheel short-circuited by a single shot from Zhou You—suddenly blazed with light, spinning wildly of its own accord at terrifying speed.

An invisible fluctuation surged and expanded, sweeping aside every bullet before him.

"Why?"

Longtu’s face was grim. He didn't spare a glance for the figure standing beside Zhou You; his eyes, from start to finish, were locked tight on the youth.

"You want to ask why, after you helped me kill Huixin and agreed to reshape Zhou Sheng’s personality, I still haven't been converted, right?"

Zhou You threw his head back and laughed, laughing until he doubled over.

Until his face flushed crimson, the corners of his eyes wet, did the laughter slowly die away.

"You bastards ruined my family, and now you put on a fake show of making amends, expecting me to be grateful? You tell me, on what grounds?! Ah?!"

*Click-click.*

Face twisted, Zhou You tossed aside the empty Wei Wu Zu, drawing a short blade from his sleeve—only for a hand to suddenly clamp down on his shoulder.

"You go first. I'll handle the rest."

Li Jun’s tone brooked no argument. He stepped forward, blocking Zhou You’s path.

"Jun-ge, I put on an act for so long, listened to this bald donkey ramble for ages, and you won't even let me stab him once?!"

"Stab someone? With that arm strength of yours, even if this monk stood still and let you stab, you couldn't kill him! If I were you, I'd be running for my life right now."

A mechanical hand pressed onto Zhou You’s head, a red eye leaning in close: "This is something you need to learn from He Zangjia. Being a man isn't just about being slick; you need situational awareness. When it's not time to show loyalty, you shut up and listen."

"Old Ma!"

Li Jun suddenly barked a reprimand, cutting off Ma Wangye’s words.

Zhou You pressed his lips tight, not a word spoken, turning and striding quickly out the back door.

Ma Wangye lowered his voice: "This kid's been undergoing conversion for a while now. I'm afraid he might have been... swayed a little."

"Zhou You has his own resolve."

Li Jun glanced at him sideways, voice deep: "If it were you, could you have held out this long?"

"If it were me, I'd have thrown in with someone else long ago. This is the Three Teachings, after all."

Ma Wangye’s tone was mocking, his words dripping with sarcasm.

"Hey hey hey, we're partners right now. Can you not drag me into the insults? The Three Teachings have good people too!"

The Daoist with the ponytail leaned against the wall, a black flying sword rising and falling in his open palm.

"Posers, petty thieves. Your Foreign Transmission and Han Transmission monks are all cut from the same cloth—rotten to the core!"

Longtu’s gaze had followed Zhou You the whole time, only reluctantly withdrawing once the youth's figure vanished completely, turning instead to fix on the three before him.

Displeasure knitted the monk's brows, yet not a trace of worry or fear at being surrounded showed in his eyes.

As if, behind him, reinforcements also waited.

"Hahahaha. I told you that kid's grudge ran too deep, Longtu—you never stood a chance of converting him. Slapped in the face now, aren't you? Toyed with to this extent by a mere Bingjiu ant... I almost feel bad for you!"

Suddenly, a wild laugh rang out from the darkness behind Longtu.

A figure in bright yellow appeared at the doorway.

Peerlessly handsome, not a hair on his head, two rows of precept-scars—brain-machine apertures—sat side by side atop his skull.

The newcomer was none other than the Shaolin Walker, Ji Wu.

Longtu spoke coldly: "He will wake up eventually."

Ji Wu sneered, "Still stubborn. Should've known better than to give Huixin to you. A high monk of the Buddha Seven, wasted just like that."

"Huixin lost Luohan Temple. Did you think you'd let him go? He returns to the Buddha Kingdom sooner or later. This was just making use of trash."

"The key is you didn't even manage to use him, did you?"

Longtu snapped: "Rest easy. If he's useless, worst case, I'll compensate you with a Xuqi Protector Deity!"

"Tsk tsk tsk. Look at them, calmer than us, like they're in their own living room, chatting away."

Chen Qisheng’s lazy voice cut horizontally between the two Buddhist Walkers. He turned to look at Li Jun.

"I told you, these monks are crafty every last one. If you came alone, you'd probably have walked into a counter-ambush."

Ji Wu laughed: "Judging others before oneself—is this the Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master's style?"

Chen Qisheng retorted, "What's wrong with me? Is someone pulling strings, forbidding this Daoist Lord from calling backup?"

"With the Jiazi Blood Feud before you, you now scheme with a tiger—aren't you afraid the bridge will be pulled out from under you?"

"This Daoist walks straight and sits upright. I refine my own pills, forge my own flying sword. Unlike certain shameless baldies who despise the bodies their parents gave them, only coveting others' flesh and blood. Buddha-roots? More like Filth-roots!"

Chen Qisheng turned and spat, "Makes my mouth feel dirty just saying it."

Ji Wu’s face tightened. He stopped bickering with this sharp-tongued Daoist, turning instead to the silent Li Jun.

"I am the Shaolin Walker, Ji Wu. If I'm not mistaken, you should be Li Jun, the one who rose from Chengdu Prefecture, of the Martial Dao Sequence, correct?"

Li Jun was expressionless, seemingly having zero intention of entertaining Ji Wu. He merely tilted his head; the black-robed figure beside him instantly stepped forward, speaking for him.

"So you're Ji Wu? Let's cut the crap—are we jawing here, or throwing down directly to see who cracks whose skull?"

Just dodged a sharp tongue, now comes a foul mouth.

Ji Wu couldn't help but frown deeply. He was a Martial Monk, not a Dharma Monk; arguing really wasn't his forte.

Yet Longtu at his side remained lost in a daze, as if still submerged in the failure of the conversion moments ago, with absolutely no intention of speaking up.

Ji Wu paused, forcing out a sentence: "Right now, both sides have two each. It's evenly matched. Even if you fight, you might not win!"

Ma Wangye flew into a rage at those words, snatching up the sniper rifle named 'Zhaodan'.

"Bald donkey, who you cursing? Not treating Mojia as human, huh? Believe it or not, Grandpa Ma puts a bullet through you!"

The 'Wu' in Ji Wu's dharma name marked a Vajra temperament. After a barrage of verbal artillery from Chen Qisheng and Ma Wangye, rage was already blazing in his heart.

But he knew clearly: now was not the time to 'turn hostile' and manifest the Vajra's wrath.

One had to know—Chen Qisheng, that old cow-nose, was a genuine Old-School Sword Immortal, a half-step from breaking into Dao Six. One-on-one, Ji Wu wasn't sure he could win.

And right now, a Wuqi Lone Walker and a Mojia stood beside him.

The two had already joined forces a step ahead. If he attacked rashly, victory was truly unknown.

Since this 'fishing' attempt failed, he'd bide his time.

This 'prize'—he could claim it later.

Thinking to this point, Ji Wu suppressed his fury, laughing: "Didn't expect the situation to clear up this fast. Since everyone has seen their own karma today, how the fruit is reaped... depends on each's ability."

The words barely fell when the two dissimilarly robed monks stepped back simultaneously.

The instant heels hit the floor, the crisp sound of knuckles tightening and the keen hum of a trembling flying sword rang out together in the room.

Tap.

Ji Wu slowly took another step back; neither fist-force nor sword-light manifested before him.

He curled his lips into a faint smile, his figure gradually melting into the darkness beyond the door.

Li Jun slowly unclenched his fist, asking softly, "No confidence?"

Chen Qisheng shook his head, muttering, "I couldn't locate the position of those two bald donkeys' Buddhist Kingdom mainframes. If we fight and get dragged into a Buddhist Kingdom, it'll be trouble."

"Now that everyone's cards are on the table, trying to catch someone isolated for a flaw... I'm afraid it'll be difficult," Lord Ma leaned on his spear and sighed.

"Relax. Someone won't want to see the situation stagnate like this."

Chen Qisheng grinned, "You guessed it too?"

Li Jun nodded: "Since that person has already intervened to tilt the scales, how could they possibly let this fight not happen?"

"Damn it, what kind of riddles are you two spouting?"

Lord Ma was utterly baffled, his red eyes darting back and forth between the two faces.

"Can someone explain this to me?!"