Chapter 132: The Black Flame Fire Python

"Snap!"

In a quiet room within a courtyard in Honghui Town, an emaciated old man who had been meditating intensely snapped his eyes open at the faint sound. He quickly raised his left wrist, which was wrapped in a string of prayer beads. Of the six translucent, rounded beads, one was shattered; the other five remained intact, with a faint red glow circulating within them, unharmed.

After several deep, ragged breaths, the old man lifted his fierce eyes, which were filled with fury and disbelief.

"In this place, who could have killed Old Five?"

A moment later, a thunderous roar erupted from the courtyard, reaching the ears of the others in the house: "You useless bastards! Get off those women and get out here! Old Five is dead! Search every inch of this town!"

Meanwhile, in a nearby alleyway.

Xu Wen looked down at the thief’s corpse on the ground with a look of disdain.

"A blinding technique followed by a close-quarters assassination? How reckless."

A mature mage has no need to rely on his eyes to fight, especially in a one-on-one encounter.

The latter was also quite unfortunate... he happened to strike just after Xu Wen had mastered a life-saving, six-star Earth Emperor-level spell. During his time in the underground training chamber of the Imperial Trading House, the two spells he had focused on were specifically for improving his defensive and counter-attack capabilities.

"Blazing Python!"

A six-star Earth Emperor-level spell. In defense, it forms a "Coiled Serpent Array" capable of blocking any attack below a seven-star high-tier spell for four to five waves. In offense, it manifests as three smaller, blazing fire pythons, each with an attack power equivalent to a seven-star intermediate spell.

Using this spell against a single thief was overkill, but for the sake of safety, Xu Wen had been ruthless. The moment he unleashed it, the pythons clamped onto the thief's head and torso, nearly burning him to a charred corpse.

Xu Wen could already make use of a six-star-level corpse. He quickly stored it in his storage ring, cleared the scene, and prepared to leave immediately.

Just then, he sensed a sliver of cold, sinister energy drifting from the corpse and latching onto him. Had he not also been a necromancer, he would never have detected it.

In necromancy, there is a spell that, when cast on a loved one, creates a mental link. If the subject is murdered, this link automatically attaches to the killer, haunting them for forty-nine days. The caster can then follow this obscure mental thread to determine the killer's general location.

Offending such a person often meant that victims wouldn't even know how they died.

Xu Wen would naturally not allow this to happen to him. He swept his mental energy through the surroundings to ensure there was nothing amiss, then released a golden flame to incinerate the sinister mental connection. After hesitating for a few seconds, he turned and entered a nearby inn.

"Brother, are you here for a meal or a room?" a young attendant asked with a smile.

"A room."

"Which type would you like?"

"Take me upstairs to have a look."

"Right away." The attendant didn't mind; it was rare to have guests in this town, so he was happy to be of service.

Upstairs, Xu Wen chose a room facing the alley, paid the fee, tipped the attendant, and sent him away.

Once the door was closed, Xu Wen quietly moved to the window and peered through the gap. Before long, a figure appeared at the mouth of the alley—an archer. Xu Wen recognized him as a member of the Evil Owl, one of the marauders who had been in the White Mist Forest. The archer was highly vigilant, waiting for three companions before moving to surround the crime scene.

"Just here?"

"That's right. The energy signature disappeared here... but it's strange, why aren't there any signs of a struggle?"

"Old Five deserved it; his hobby of stealing was even worse than his obsession with women!" a burly, giant man shouted brazenly, his temper clearly short. Because of the boss’s earlier roar, he had already killed the two girls he had just brought in.

"What a waste."

The other three looked at him, shaking their heads in confusion. They didn't know why he was suddenly so concerned about Old Five, given how often they had clashed over women in the past.

Xu Wen pulled back from the window. "So they really did come."

Originally, he had only wanted to find a quiet, inconspicuous place to cultivate. He hadn't expected this town to be the hideout of the Evil Owl marauders. While surprised, he also began to consider wiping them out completely; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to cultivate in peace.

"Two more haven't arrived—two mages."

Xu Wen pondered for a moment and decided not to act immediately. One archer and three warriors in the alley posed a significant combined threat. Even with his spells, winning one against four would be difficult; the warriors were manageable, but the archer was dangerous.

Staying calm, Xu Wen decided to wait for a better opportunity.

In the alley, the four men searched for a while, found no clues, and turned toward the surrounding shops to investigate.

"Innkeeper! I'm asking you, did any strangers pass through the alley opposite today?"

It was the burly man who had entered the inn. His face was covered in thick, mean flesh, and his voice was filled with murderous intent—so loud that even Xu Wen on the second floor could hear him clearly.

The innkeeper dared not get involved in such a dispute and naturally denied everything.

The burly mercenary grinned cruelly, grabbed the innkeeper by the collar, lifted him off the ground, and hissed through gritted teeth:

"Listen well. One of my brothers just died in there. I'll know soon enough if you're involved. Look into my eyes and answer my questions honestly. If you dare lie to me, I’ll skin you alive right here in this shop!"

"Master, please, spare me!"

"I truly know nothing! Ask the attendants; I leave the outside matters to them..."

The innkeeper's words made the attendants' faces turn pale.

"Very well!"

The burly mercenary pushed, and the innkeeper fell behind the counter.

"You lot, tell me—did you see any strangers pass by today?" He turned his gaze toward the trembling attendants and demanded.

One of them, terrified that the mercenary would actually follow through on his threats, stammered out, "I'll talk! We only saw one stranger today. He's the guest that Little San took upstairs; he hasn't been there long."

Little San, the attendant who had greeted Xu Wen, felt a surge of hatred, but he didn't dare show any resentment, as the burly mercenary had already pulled a bloody, jagged long-blade from his back.

"Just checked in?"

The mercenary's expression shifted, and his voice lowered. Years of living on the edge had made him cautious. An incident had just occurred, and a stranger had checked into a nearby inn—could there really be such a coincidence?

"How old?"

"About fifteen or sixteen." "Fifteen!" "A teenager."

The attendants scrambled to answer, fearing the blade would find them if they were too slow.

The mercenary paused.

So young? A fifteen or sixteen-year-old kid—how could he have killed Old Five, who was rich in combat experience and treacherous schemes?

"Take me up to see."

For safety's sake, the mercenary decided to verify it himself. He pointed at the attendant who had greeted Xu Wen. "You, move!"

The attendant, face white as a sheet, had no choice but to lead the mercenary to the second floor. When they reached Xu Wen's door, the attendant raised his hand to knock.

The mercenary didn't care for formalities. Seeing the attendant hesitate, he growled, "Too much trouble," and kicked the door open.

"Who are you?" A voice filled with 'panic' sounded from inside the room.

The mercenary only saw the figure's back and frowned. He knew this couldn't be the one. With the strength of a three-star, second-tier practitioner, Old Five couldn't possibly have died at the hands of someone like this, even if he were blind.

But what felt strange was that the figure's silhouette seemed familiar... He stood at the door, stunned for a moment, not noticing the attendant running away in terror.

At the same time, a powerful surge of magical energy erupted from the room!

Xu Wen whipped around, his lava staff appearing in his palm. Three thick, black serpent shadows, wreathed in billowing flames, lunged at the mercenary on the balcony.

"It's you!"

The mercenary was startled by the sudden, powerful magical surge. Just as he realized something was wrong, the person in the room turned around, revealing the face of a youth he recognized.

The shock caused him to hesitate for a fraction of a second.

That split-second pause cost him his life!

ROAR!!

The three black shadows transformed into tangible blazing pythons in mid-air. With a flick of their tongues, they opened their massive maws and clamped onto the mercenary, who had been trying to leap into the street after channeling his battle aura.

CRASH!

The sudden battle on the second floor of the inn immediately drew the attention of countless people in the town and alerted the other three searching nearby.

Three black shadows flashed onto the street.

The three pairs of eyes caught the sight of their companion being seized by a black fire python in mid-air. Before they could even attempt a rescue, two more pythons shot out from the room, biting into the mercenary's head and his weapon-wielding arm.

"Save me... AHHH!!"

The mercenary let out a single cry in the air before his body was coiled by the pythons and dragged back into the room on the second floor. Then, there was silence.

"..."

The three men who had emerged from the shops looked at each other in horror!

The spell they had just seen was terrifying! This person must be the one who killed Old Five!

Although they realized this, none of them dared to make a move. The opponent's spell and the brutal efficiency with which he had finished off their companion indicated a strength of at least seven stars. With their current power, rushing in would be suicide. They would wait for their leader to arrive.

The three quickly retreated to the rooftops of nearby shops, surrounding the inn from a distance.

Soon!

A powerful, dark magical energy surged from not far outside the town, approaching rapidly with murderous intent!

The leader of the Evil Owl.

The emaciated old man, gripping a second shattered prayer bead, his face etched with murderous rage!

(To be continued)