A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

The night in Lingzhou City was destined to be an eventful one.

Many people are waiting on this night.

The ordinary people in the city were all hoping that the inexplicable fear they felt that night would pass quickly. Ever since the bell rang, they had been filled with apprehension.

Ordinary people don't ask for anything else, they just want some peace and stability.

They kept their doors and windows closed, not daring to come out, especially when large groups of soldiers appeared in the city, their fear intensified.

Some people even carry kitchen knives or sticks and hide in the shadows of their homes, ready to defend themselves against intruders at any time.

The officials in the yamen were also waiting.

The prefect is waiting for the Prince's mansion to make a move. Once the Prince's mansion makes a move, he can rightfully eliminate him. But if it doesn't make a move, then he can only wait for the Prince to make a mistake.

So all the officials, big and small, from the yamen were present, and even Magistrate Huang was not spared; he was forcibly carried over by two yamen runners.

He was also afraid that the prefect would impeach him.

The main function of the yamen runners was to guard the yamen and to announce to each household by banging gongs and drums that they should not go out at will.

The four great constables were also waiting, waiting for the prefect to issue the token, and then they would lead their men into the Prince's mansion to arrest the heir.

The eldest, second, third, and fourth brothers were all wearing armor.

The armor wasn't issued by the government; it was made at their own expense.

The armor worn by the constables was not uncommon, but its quality was unreliable, and it was made of very thin leather.

They were not far from the palace, guarding the area with the soldiers.

The evidence gathered from various files and victims is sufficient to prove the heinous crimes of the Prince's heir. Murder was commonplace, abduction of women was commonplace, usury that drove people to their deaths was commonplace, running gambling dens that ruined families was commonplace, and most importantly, the heir even ate people.

Yes, it was cannibalism in the truest sense.

In a fit of rage, he once killed a maid in his household who had overturned a glass cup at a banquet, steamed the meat, and invited the rest of the household to eat it together.

Those people in the mansion who ate meat were actually the legendary demons.

This prince's mansion, though magnificent and beautiful in appearance, was actually a living hell where people ate human flesh and drank human blood. Evil spirits roamed inside.

This is also the place that the Four Great Constables vowed to eradicate.

If only the prefect had been more decisive.

Their official positions are both a powerful tool for them to punish evil and promote good, and an obstacle to their actions.

Everything has its advantages and disadvantages.

Prince Zhu Houfei was also waiting.

Waiting for the last news from the man in the black cloak.

He sat in the main seat of the hall, his expression no longer calm and composed; his brows gradually furrowed. He leaned on his sword, supporting himself on the ground, his hands tightening their grip on the hilt.

It's almost 1:45 AM now, and the man in the black cloak has been gone for an hour and a half. The tolling of the bell has been silent for a long time, indicating that the battle is over. The fact that he hasn't arrived by now can only mean one thing.

The man in the black cloak is dead.

He knew that such people would fight to the death and would not flee; it was their duty. However, he still harbored a glimmer of hope and decided to wait until three quarters of an hour later before launching his attack.

Time flowed slowly, like a gentle stream, making a soft, murmuring sound. This sound, like a death knell, permeated the hearts of everyone in the hall.

They knew that following the prince would mean certain death, but they had no other choice. Death was often the best possible outcome, while the experience itself was the cruelest reality.

It's tough!

A quarter of an hour passed quickly.

Still no news came. Prince Zhu Houyi decided to launch an attack. He wanted to drag the entire city of Lingzhou down with him and his son.

He suddenly stood up.

As he stood up, his armor made a rustling sound.

"Pass on the order—"

"Oh!"

The two voices rang out almost simultaneously.

A figure crashed through the front screen in the courtyard in front of the main hall, flew straight in, and slammed heavily onto the floor of the main hall, spitting out a mouthful of blood. The person was already dead.

It was that messenger.

Everyone suddenly looked towards the front courtyard in front of the lobby.

Shouts and shouts, along with the clanging of swords, came from that direction.

But soon, everything quieted down.

A young girl with flowing skirts slowly walked into the front courtyard, looking at the person in the middle of the hall from afar, the sword in her hand slowly dripping blood.

"Guo Lanying!"

Prince Zhu Houyu gritted his teeth and said to the girl.

"No, no, should I call you princess? Haha... It's a pity your father couldn't win the competition and even chose the wrong side. He deserves to die!"

"You killed my adoptive parents."

Guo Lanying bit her lip and said, word by word.

"So what if he's killed?"

Prince Zhu Houfei laughed heartily.

"If you want revenge, then come on over! I'm right here. If you have the guts, come and kill me."

"I'll take your life!"

Guo Lanying was indeed enraged. With a light step, she shot towards Prince Zhu Houyi, who was standing in front of the main hall. Just as she reached the edge of the hall, a dark shadow suddenly descended from the sky.

Guo Lanying's sword energy swung like raindrops scattering flowers.

"Stab!"

The large net that fell from the sky was easily torn apart by Guo Lanying's sword energy.

Without pausing, she thrust her weapon toward the prince.

She wanted to plunge the sword into his chest herself, to see if his heart was truly black or rotten. How could anyone be so cruel?

"Protect the Prince!"

Everyone in the lobby immediately started shouting.

The figure suddenly swayed wildly.

When Guo Lanying leaped into the main hall, only the Prince was standing there with his sword.

The lobby entrance was packed with people.

Almost everyone ran away in an instant.

Guo Lanying was stunned.

She was almost about to draw her sword, but instead of rushing forward, these people fled immediately. They fled frantically because they saw that in the girl's vengeful eyes, there seemed to be only the Prince.

The prince was also taken aback.

These beasts! Even dogs that are raised will bark wildly at the enemy before they die. Are these people even worse than dogs?

What happened to our promise of being bound together by shared interests, sharing life and death, and advancing and retreating together?

We agreed to be good friends and bad friends together, right?

"Ha ha--"

The prince could no longer contain himself and burst into laughter.

I never expected it to end like this.

Guo Lanying looked at him coldly: "Laugh, laugh, but you won't be laughing for long. Your son is dead, and you'll go down to join him..."

"What's wrong with that? Death is death, and in the next life I will come back to overthrow that position, or I can sit in it myself, and I will sit in it even better."

"Are you worthy?" Guo Lanying sneered. "Master said, when a person dies, it's like a lamp going out. Thinking about the afterlife is pointless. Now that you're dead, all that's left is a shell, which will rot into mud. There's no such thing as a present life or an afterlife..."

"Your master? Haha, how utterly ridiculous! You are a princess of the Great Xia Dynasty, yet you debase yourself by calling a Taoist priest 'master,' willingly stooping to such lowliness..."

The prince said sarcastically.

Guo Lanying: "My grandfather was an immortal."

The prince wanted to mock him further, but... he was an immortal!

Guo Lanying took a step closer: "If I kill you, I'll cut open your chest, dig out your heart, and see if it's black or rotten. How could you kill more than thirty innocent people from your entire family?"

"They deserve to die!"

"No, you deserve to die!"

Guo Lanying didn't want to waste any more words. She had wanted to question the Prince in front of him about why he would poison innocent people, and why, as a fellow member of the royal family, he could be so cruel to her.

But seeing the prince's expression, he knew that asking would be pointless.

Some people, once they become tainted by power and ambition, gradually lose their humanity.

"Go to hell!"

Guo Lanying thrust her longsword forward, aiming it at the prince's chest.

"Ding!"

Her longsword thrust out, but was blocked by another sword.

An old man with a pale face appeared beside the prince.

He was the Prince's old steward.

"Anyone who stands in my way will die!"

Guo Lanying's blocked longsword suddenly unleashed sword energy, which shot out from all directions, and one of the sword energies immediately invaded the old steward's body.

It pierced through his body instantly, and a spurt of blood gushed out.

The old steward was struck by the sword energy and was sent flying backward.

Guo Lanying took a step forward, brandished her long sword, and looked towards the Prince, but he had already disappeared.

A chill suddenly rose from the top of my head!