253 Mastery of Chaos Warfare's Sorrow

o a fool. Any member of King Ding’s household left alive is a disaster; my father truly didn’t lie."This must be Princess Consort of the King Ding then I am Prince Yelü Niyu from Beirong, it's an hono...253. Chaos, The Woes of the Elite

253。 Chaos, The Woes of the Elite

"Mo Xiuyao!"

Meng Mu Xiong was both surprised and angry. Although he had never met Mo Xiuyao in person, he knew that the Prince Ding had white hair. Moreover, there were not even one hand’s number of people who could block his full-power attack under heaven and earth. The only man with white hair other than Prince Ding Mo Xiuyao was beyond consideration. The Southern King gazed at the standing白衣男子持劍而立的白衣男子神色複雜，但不得不承認莫修堯的突然出現讓他心中暗暗鬆了一口氣。

Turning his head to look at Xu Qingchen nearby, he said, "Young Master Qingchen is good at scheming." It was so coincidental for him to be here that Mo Xiuyao definitely wasn’t just arriving in Ancheng. But since he hadn’t appeared before everyone until now, it clearly indicated that Xu Qingchen had left a dark card with him. No wonder Xu Qingchen dared to provoke the almost number one expert of the world despite being powerless. Xu Qingchen smiled faintly and did not answer. The Southern King’s heart twitched, then turned towards Mo Xiuyao and said, "Prince Ding is good at choosing his time. If it had been a little later, would both sides losing be better"

Mo Xiuyao calmly replied, "Just now, over a hundred experts came in this direction, so I wasted some time and almost missed the opportunity. Sorry for that."

The others only then noticed that Mo Xiuyao’s white robe was still stained with several spots of fresh blood. The blood had not darkened yet, clearly having been left just now. Ren Qining, who was entangled with four Kirins nearby, his face changed when he heard Mo Xiuyao speak and nearly had an arm sliced off by someone.

"It's good that you've arrived," Ling Tiehan stood up and said. Xu Qingchen frowned and asked, "There are a lot of people" He knew that Ren Qining must have made other arrangements, so he invited Mo Xiuyao to intercept the path leading from outside to the Mengmu family. A few hundred guards could be handled, but for Mo Xiuyao to call someone an expert, they had to be extraordinary.

Mo Xiuyao smiled and said, "No need to worry, Ah Li and Mo Jingli are handling it, I came to take a look first. Young Master Ren, why not stop" Ren Qining frowned and flew out of the battlefield. He knew right away after exchanging blows that these people seemed ordinary but were extremely difficult to deal with. If he had Meng Mu Xiong’s killing blow ability, then there would be no need to worry. But if he didn’t have it, he could only be entangled by them and slowly expend his internal energy until he lost the fight. As he retreated, the four Kirins also withdrew back to Xu Qingchen's side, heavily protecting him.

Ren Qining surveyed the surroundings with a bitter smile. "I am blind to recognize you, I met several times but could not identify Prince Ding and his Consort. Losing this time is not unfair." This confirmed that Mo Xiuyao had indeed arrived in Ancheng earlier.

Mo Xiuyao smiled without sincerity and nodded slightly. "Originally, the king only wanted to walk around for fun, but Young Master Ren made me very surprised, so I stayed longer than planned. Coincidentally, this incident happened today." So, if you hadn't been overly clever by sending people to track me, my lord would have already left long ago. Therefore, your failure today is what you chose yourself. When Ren Qining understood the meaning behind Mo Xiuyao’s words, his face became even more ugly.

"You are Prince Ding" Meng Mu Xiong stared at Mo Xiuyao and said in a deep voice.

Mo Xiuyao raised his head proudly. "Yes, it is this king." In the江湖中，或許算得上一個人物，但是定王府曆代以來從不缺奇才，每一代定王無一不是驚采絕豔的人物，墨修堯又豈會將慕容雄這樣一個除了武功什麼都不會的人看在眼裡。

“好一個定王，老夫倒要看你有什麼能耐！”

Meng Mu Xiong sneered. "Very well then, Prince Ding, let's see what you've got!"

The long sword in Mo Xiuyao’s hand suddenly turned cold as he calmly smiled and said, "You can try to find out.閣主淩鐵寒，還能不能動？”

While they were speaking, Ling Tiehan and the Southern King had already taken the opportunity to replenish their energy. Hearing Mo Xiuyao’s words, they immediately moved their positions, with three of them forming a triangular formation to surround Meng Mu Xiong in the middle. At this time, no one intended to underestimate themselves by fighting alone against Meng Mu Xiong. Furthermore, these three people were not江湖中人，除了淩鐵寒外另外兩個完全不算，自然也不能讓他們守什麼江湖規矩了。弄死對手纔是最重要的。

Ren Qining suddenly inserted himself in between, standing before Prince Zhen'nan with a smile and saying, "The three of you piling up to fight one person is quite undignified. How about this: let me test my skills against Prince Zhen'nan for a while"

Moxiu Yao smiled and said, "Mr. Ren may do as he pleases." After that, he no longer paid attention to others; he slashed his sword out, sending cold silver waves toward Mengmuyong. Ling Tiehan also did not hold back anymore; with a wave of his long sword, sword qi rushed forward. These two men worked together better than either would against Prince Zhen'nan alone. Even Mengmuyong could no longer relax so easily. Meanwhile, Ren Qining naturally started fighting Prince Zhen'nan.

The path leading to the Mengmu Family was also a bloody melee battle. One side wore ordinary civilians’ clothes and wielded all kinds of weapons, but each person had extraordinary martial arts skills. As a result, Moxingli’s guards also seemed increasingly unable to hold their ground.

Moxingli killed an enemy with his sword when he felt a gust of wind behind him and hurriedly tried to dodge only to find it too late. Just as a long sword stabbed toward his chest, a white figure gracefully swept past; the sword aimed at Moxingli’s heart paused for a moment before Moxingli leaped away. Turning back, he saw that person collapse dejectedly on the ground. Not far away, a plain-clothed woman moved like a startled swan but wielded deadly skills with simple and direct moves. In no time at all, there were already three or four corpses in front of her. Moxingli was stunned and looked at Ye Li with a complex expression.

Ye Li cut through one person’s neck; when she turned back around, she saw Moxingli standing behind her and staring at her blankly, causing her to frown and say, "Prince Liliang, can you even pay attention on the battlefield"

Moxingli finally came out of his daze as he looked oddly at Ye Li. “How did you become so skilled” Ye Li rolled her eyes helplessly; she couldn’t understand what Moxingli was trying to say. She turned back around and flicked a knife through an enemy’s wrist before being pulled back by Moxingli once more.

Ye Li frowned, looking back at him angrily and saying, "What exactly do you want" The dark guards from the Ding王府 and the Qilin saw their princess caught up with Prince Liliang and approached Ye Li to separate her and Moxingli from the enemies around them. Seeing this, Ye Li took a deep breath before swinging away Moxingli’s hand solemnly. "Prince Liliang, can’t you wait until after everything is over to talk"

Moxingli looked at her silently in his heart: Would he still be able to find her once this was all done He never believed that as a prince, he needed to charge into battle like ordinary soldiers. So while his subordinates were fighting here, he stood and talked with no shame.

Moxingli stared at Ye Li, saying, "You’ve never told me you’re so skilled." Hearing the implied reproach in his words, Ye Li silently rolled her eyes; she was thoroughly tired of Moxingli’s old topic. It seemed that every time they met, he had to bring it up as if she owed him something. “Does my skill have anything to do with your highness”

While the two were facing off, the combined forces from Prince Liliang and the Ding王府 finally defeated their opponents. Ye Li no longer bothered with Moxingli’s occasional craziness and turned toward the Mengmu Family.

Before she could turn around, a large group of people approached in an orderly manner. Ye Li couldn’t help but frown. Ren Qining wouldn’t be able to hide so many people near Ancheng quietly. Moxingli glanced over and said, "It’s my brother."

Indeed, it was Mo Jingqi coming with his team of elite guards. Ye Li frowned; they didn't have many people this time, so when intercepting Ren Qining's forces, they had chosen to cooperate with Moxingli. This was naturally because the Mengmu Family’s assets in Dazhu were not few and far between, which Prince Liliang had managed to swallow up while taking advantage of the situation. On the other hand, although Moxingli was also unreliable, he still seemed more reasonable compared to Mo Jingqi, who alternated between calmness and madness. It hadn’t occurred to her that the extremely cautious Mo Jingqi would not have left Ancheng when it clearly started to descend into chaos but instead brought his men toward the Mengmu Family. "Why is he here now"

Moxingli scoffed coldly, “What else Of course, he’s come to take advantage of the situation.”

Ye Li's smile was icy, “Take advantage of the situation How can he take advantage of anyone”

By then, Mo Jingqi had already arrived. Seeing Moxingli’s originally smiling face turn grim and twisted when seeing Ye Li, he asked with a frown, "Lady Ding What are you doing here"

Ye Li smiled calmly, “Ancheng belongs to the Western Capital; they haven’t said anything about not wanting this princess. Why can't I be here”

Mojingqi had a probing look in his eyes, "Since Princess Consort Ding is here, Prince Ding must also be around"

Ye Li smiled and said, "Is the Chu Emperor looking for our prince to drink tea together" Mojingqi glanced at Ye Li and the dozen or so guards surrounding her. He then turned to ask Mojingli, "Why are you here, Your Royal Highness" Mojingli solemnly replied, "I happened upon Princess Consort Ding by chance as I came over to join in the fun, isn't that right, Brother" Mojingqi said, "Is that so" His words clearly showed his disbelief of Mojingli’s explanation. Mojingli knew that Mojingqi was suspicious about whether he might have colluded with Mo Xiuyao. He also nodded without further explanation, "Indeed."

"This queen consort will take my leave first and go to the Mengmu Family. If King Li and Emperor Chu still have matters left unfinished, this queen consort will excuse myself for now," Ye Li said with a smile.

Mojingli said, "I also need to go to the Mengmu Family. Why don’t we go together Brother…"

Mojingqi said in a somber tone, "Of course I will have to pay it a visit." While saying this, his gaze lingered on Ye Li. But she didn’t care and walked beside Mojingli casually, speaking with him while heading toward the Mengmu Family without minding Mojingqi's expression. Mojingqi was alone as he walked on the other side of them, looking at both of them with a cold and grim countenance that sent shivers down one’s spine.

Ye Li glanced indifferently at Mo Jingqi beside her who kept staring at her from time to time. She knew what Mojingqi was thinking. He was probably considering whether he could take advantage when there was no one around her and hold her hostage to threaten Mo Xiuyao. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t give him that chance. Glancing at the nearby Mojingli, who was only a step away from her, if Mojingqi ever tried anything, both he and his guards would become her best shield.

Furthermore, given Mojingqi’s personality, as long as he didn’t know which side Mojingli stood on, there was no way that he dared to take any action.

The large-scale battle had already ended when they arrived at the Mengmu Family. Only Mo Xiuyao and a few others were fighting fiercely in front of the Mengmu Family’s door. Powerful sword energy and palm force flew everywhere, breaking trees as well as rooftops around them into pieces.

"Big Brother," Ye Li walked to Xu Qingchen’s side and said quietly. Xu Qingchen glanced at Mojingli and Mojingqi who were following behind Ye Li before looking at the blood stains on her body which she had accidentally splattered onto herself as he sighed softly. After closely examining Ye Li, he asked in a low voice, "Has Xiuyao been injured"

Ye Li shook her head and said, "Big Brother needn’t worry; I am not hurt. How long have they fought for"

Xu Qingchen pondered for a while before frowning and saying, "For about an hour." Ye Li replied, "Mo Xiuyao had met with Mengmu Xiong earlier as well. Since he said that together with the Pavilion Master Ling, they could deal with Mengmu Xiong, there shouldn’t be any problems. But we need to guard against Southern Prince Wang taking advantage of others after the battle." Xu Qingchen nodded and smiled, "That’s exactly what I think. So… let Southern Prince Wang fight with Ren Qining for a bit longer."

The Southern Prince had already been injured when he fought with Mengmu Xiong earlier on. His injuries were even more severe than Ling Tiehan’s. Fighting another battle with Ren Qining would surely exhaust him severely. He wouldn’t have the energy to do anything else after that. Therefore, despite Xu Qingchen watching for a long time, he had no intention of sending麒麟to assist Southern Prince Wang.

It wasn't apparent on Mo Xiuyao’s side, but Ren Qining and the Southern Prince were already nearing their conclusion of battle.

While Ye Li was talking to Xu Qingchen, both of them exerted all their strength in a palm strike. Then, they took several steps back before stabilizing themselves. Ren Qining had a pale face as he frowned, eventually spitting out blood. Although the Southern Prince didn’t spit out any blood, his lips were bleeding and his body was swaying unsteadily. Lei Tengfeng hurriedly stepped forward to support him. Although Ren Qining was almost twenty years younger than the Southern Prince, due to the former's injuries sustained earlier on, it was enough for Ren Qining to feel proud that they could fight each other evenly.

"Father," Lei Tengfeng asked with concern as he supported the Southern Prince. The Southern Prince waved his hand to show he was fine and then looked up at Ren Qining. "Sir Ren, you are very skilled."

Ren Qining, who had also been injured quite heavily, smiled weakly in reply, “Your Highness is too kind.”

Seeing Ye Li standing beside Xu Qingchen out of the corner of his eyes, he could only wryly smile and say, "I have bad eyesight. I did not recognize Prince Ding and Princess Consort Ding. This time was truly busy for no reason."

To put it simply, being too naive or transparent wasn’t a good thing either. If you completely didn’t want anyone to understand you, hiding yourself deeply also meant losing the chance of connecting with others. Any other person like Lei Tengfeng, Mojingli, Tan Jizhi, etc., if they had met Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li on the road even though they couldn’t recognize them at first glance, after careful thought they should still be able to figure out who they were. After all, disguise techniques weren't advanced enough to completely change a person's appearance. But unfortunately, Ren Qining was someone who had never seen Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li before, let alone their portraits from this era that were especially abstract and impressionistic. He might not even recognize them if he saw them in the flesh without the same clothing. If Ren Qining had known earlier on that it was Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li, he wouldn’t have been so careless to act rashly.

Ye Lü had no particular feelings about Ren Qining's frustration. She smiled and said, "Sir, you are too kind. Neither I nor the Prince did not expect to meet such a person as Sir Lin."

Ren Qining's eyes narrowed slightly, staring intently at Ye Lü. He gave a faint smile, turning his gaze back to Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan who were still fighting.

The showdown had reached its critical moment; spectators held their breath subconsciously. Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan exchanged glances before rising gracefully and taking turns stabbing at Mu Gong.

Mu Xing was under immense pressure from both sides, as Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan’s combined strength made them even more formidable than the Southern Prince of Zhen. Both were swordsmen; Ling Tiehan wielded his sword with a grandmaster's elegance while Mo Xiuyao attacked swiftly at critical moments. Even Mu Gong had to admit these two youths were prodigies surpassing himself in their era. What was more, one would take advantage of the other’s downtime for recuperation when attacking. Mu Gong realized that they intended to prolong the fight and exhaust his energy but could not break through this pattern. When both swordsmen simultaneously attacked, Mu Gong felt a hint of weariness. Yet he refused to let them off so easily, splitting his palms open to strike back.

Mos Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan gritted their teeth and advanced instead of retreating, unhesitatingly thrusting their swords at Mu Gong. Of course, Mu Gong’s palms landed on them too; they were both sent flying along with their swords.

"Xiu Yao!"

“Big brother!”

Ye Lü and Leng Liuyue simultaneously cried out, rushing forward to catch Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan as they fell. Up close, Ye Lü could see that Mo Xiuyao was drenched in sweat while his silver hair appeared damp. Ling Tiehan’s face was equally pale; his blue robe back had turned dark with blood while his hand still holding the sword trembled slightly.

Ye Lü called out anxiously, "Xiu Yao, Xiu Yao… Are you okay" Mo Xiuyao panted before smiling reassuringly at Ye Lü and saying, “I’m fine. My sword hit him first.” If not for his initial strike that sapped much of Mu Gong’s energy, the two would’ve been worse off now. At least Mo Xiuyao still had enough energy to taunt Ling Tiehan with a smirk, "Last time you won, this time it was me."

Ling Tiehan smiled helplessly and said, “This time you won.”

The crowd turned their attention to Mu Gong who was similarly on the ground. His injuries were far worse than Mo Xiuyao’s and Ling Tiehan’s. Mo Xiuyao’s sword had pierced his chest while Ling Tiehan’s had sliced through his waist, turning him a dark red with blood. Ye Lü noticed that Mo Xiuyao's sword had gone directly through Mu Gong’s heart; it was astonishing that he could still breathe but clearly he wouldn’t survive.

Ye Lü thought back to how if not for Mo Xiuyao’s initial strike, even with Ling Tiehan’s subsequent attack, Mu Gong would’ve sustained far worse injuries. In the aftermath, it was certain that Mu Gong would have been able to kill one of them easily. At this thought, Ye Lü broke out in a cold sweat. However, she didn’t know that Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan had no choice but to resort to such a risky move. They indeed planned on first exhausting Mu Gong’s strength before attacking him; however, with his nearly half-century worth of martial arts prowess, it wasn't something to be trifled with. While Mu Gong was worn down, they were exhausted more so. If they failed in their initial assault, it would’ve been uncertain who’d wear out whom.

Mu Gong coughed incessantly, blood spilling from his mouth; he glared at Mo Xiuyao and Ling Tiehan with a look of resentment, "Well… well done, Duke Ding. Well done, the Lord of Yanwang Pavilion. I never thought… that I would…" A master swordsman unparalleled in his era ended up dying by two youths' hands. Mu Gong didn’t finish his sentence before he died with open eyes, an unpeaceful death.

Everyone present was silent; Mu Gong was one of the top martial artists today. The passing of a grandmaster always evokes a sense of sorrow.

Ren Qining by the side couldn’t help but change color at this sight before lunging toward the cowering patriarch of the Mu family, slashing his throat without hesitation under everyone’s watchful eyes. Before he could recover from his uncle's death, Mu Gong’s patriarch lost his own life too. With the Mu clan’s patriarch dead, Ren Qining looked more composed and smiled at Mo Xiuyao and the Southern Prince of Zhen: "Duke Ding, Southern Prince of Zhen, how do you plan to get your hands on the Mu family's assets"

The Southern Prince of Zhen frowned and asked, "What does Sir mean by thately accused the Ding王府of having the Imperial Jade Seal in the first place. Now he was suffering for his own actions.Under the cover of darkness, Tan Jizhi calmly faced the black-clothed men blocking h...