SWNOVELXO Chapter 321 Inquiry
Zombies besiege the city!
The explosive news spread out from Yangzhou as the center, and even in this Chaotic Era, it caused a severe shock!
Yangzhou, the top trading hub of the Great Sui Dynasty, had half fallen into the mouths of the zombies; such a catastrophe, even in this chaotic time, was extremely eye-catching.
The coup initiated by Yuwen Huaji in the past did not even result in one-tenth of the casualties suffered this time!
The call for the crusade against the Heavenly Demons from beyond seemed to gradually become a consensus worldwide, regardless of factions and even transcending the boundaries of good and evil!
This situation, which could summon an army of the undead and turn the living into the dead, indeed exceeded the sensory threshold of normal people—and even the Demon Sect could not accept it!
Only the Yin Gui Faction announced to the outside world that this was not the doing of Tao Yu, and as the Saint Heir of the Yin Gui Faction, Tao Yu would continue heading north as planned.
In due course, he would meet with the heroes from all over to discuss this matter...
...
The five-toothed warship, with five decks rising up to twelve zhang high, could accommodate a crew of eight hundred warriors.
Its five masts stretched full sails, and the ship sped along the current of the Yangtze River like a galloping horse.
This was the ship Du Fuwei confiscated from Yuwen Huaji previously; having witnessed Tao Yu's divine might, he chose to lend it for his journey.
The sailors and soldiers aboard were veterans who had participated in the battle against the zombies, and they revered Tao Yu as a divine figure.
They had personally witnessed the calamity in Yangzhou and knew how he had turned the tide.
The rumors from the outside world were truly causing them outrage.
At the moment, all of them were holding back their anger.
However, compared to them, Tao Yu was much more relaxed, not letting these trivial matters affect his mood.
"This ship is quite awesome..."
Tao Yu stood at the prow, feeling the stature of the five-toothed warship comparable to the vessels of later times, watching the sea breaking waves below, his expression somewhat contemplative.
At this moment, Tao Yu was completely in a state of Unity of Heaven and Man, transcending the state of Grandmaster, using Yuan Force for Acceleration while inhaling and exhaling the Qi of Heaven and Earth.
Feeling the intake of Free Energy from the world, Tao Yu felt some regret.
"This Yuan Force Acceleration can't create something out of nothing; the Free Energy of this world can only maintain about seven times my current speed at most. If I go any faster, the efficiency starts to drop drastically."
But because of the consumption concerns of strength and techniques, Tao Yu had been using only five times the speed, so he didn't have to worry about that for the time being.
However, as his strength increased and the absorption rate accelerated, it might drop to five times, or even lower.
"There's no need to worry about that for now, but I wonder if there will be some more fun on the road."
Tao Yu was already aware of his reputation, and the Yin Gui Faction also had special pigeons that could find ships. Wen Caiting continued to maintain some contact with the outside world and exchanged intelligence.
For the Yin Gui Faction, they had always been everyone's target; now with the addition of Tao Yu's incident, it really didn't matter!
They were already the most detested sect.
Having witnessed Tao Yu's display of power, Bai Qing'er and Wen Caiting knew that the Yin Gui Faction was bound to this path!
Not to mention that they fully understood: these zombies weren't their doing.
Even if it were their doing, so what? What if they were enemies of the whole world?
Could the three Grandmasters standing together survive a strike?
When the fist is big enough, the truth becomes irrelevant.
It's just like how the Buddhist Sect now controls public opinion; whether it was done by 'Heavenly Demons from beyond' is just as irrelevant.
If they think it was, then it was!
Conversely, it is the same...
"My lord, Zhong and Ziling have caught two sturgeon. Elder Wen is personally cooking them. Shall we go and have a taste?"
Bai Qing'er approached Tao Yu and asked softly.
"Let's go. The Child of Destiny is indeed favored, even when it comes to fishing."
Tao Yu smirked.
He had tried fishing while cultivating, but his state of Unity of Heaven and Man was too perfect, hiding his bait perfectly and failing to catch anything.
The three guys beside him had continuous catches, and Tao Yu moved to the bow of the ship to out of sight, out of mind.
Though fishing yielded no catch, he could still eat.
When the time came, he would steal all their food, leaving them in tears.
"Hmm?"
Just as Tao Yu turned around, a slight movement from his Spirit Perception, unified with Heaven and Man, made him turn sideways and look ahead.
A flatboat was seen coming downstream, heading toward the five-toothed large ship.
There was only a sailor and an elegant young man standing at the bow of the boat.
The handsome young man held a folding fan and was dressed in white. He looked elegant and was likewise gazing at the grand ship.
However, he seemed not to notice Tao Yu, who was one with Heaven and Man.
But the fact that Tao Yu felt a slight sensation indicated that the young man's objective was indeed himself.
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"Ha, an unwelcome guest just in time for the meal."
Bai Qing'er, hearing Tao Yu's remark, also looked in that direction.
Her vision couldn't make out the appearance of the visitor, only noting a small boat vaguely approaching along the river.
"Even not recognizing the awe the young master commands in Yangzhou, to dare approach after the Young Master's battle on the streets of Luoyang? Could there be an ambush on both sides?"
Bai Qing'er looked around; the area was not a narrow waterway, so it didn't seem there would be any blockage.
"Never mind him, let's eat fish first."
The boat on the river didn't seem to be arriving that fast, and Tao Yu was not about to wait for them…
…
"This piece is mine, darn it…"
"Ah, stolen again, don't just look at me, the fish is so big…"
"…"
Tao Yu's chopsticks moved like shadows, his Yi Sword Technique reaching the pinnacle of its art; with his state of Unity with Heaven and Man, vulnerabilities were everywhere. He wreaked havoc at the dinner table, giving neither Kou Zhong nor Xu Ziling a chance to eat meat.
Yet under Tao Yu's formidable pressure, the sword skills of Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were also slowly improving.
It was at this moment that the ship's steward came running over respectfully and said,
"Master Tao, the 'Amorous Gentleman' Hou Xibai wishes to come aboard to visit. May I know your intentions?"
"Since he has come, let him aboard."
Tao Yu was also curious about why this fellow came here alone.
Though Hou Xibai was known as Shi Feixuan's number one fawning follower, it wasn't likely he had come alone just to face death.
Based on Tao Yu's own accomplishments in Luoyang, Hou Xibai was simply not his match.
Soon after, Hou Xibai arrived in the hall and saw everyone present.
He didn't appear to have much hostility, facing two opponents with Grandmaster achievements as well as Kou Zhong among the younger generation as renowned as he, without any sign of fear.
When it came to grace and poise, as long as he didn't run into Shi Feixuan, this fellow was actually quite acceptable.
"Hou Xibai greets everyone here. I apologize for the intrusion."
"If you know it's rude, speak quickly. Don't disturb our meal."
Tao Yu took another tender piece of meat and put it in his mouth, savoring the delicious and tender flavor of fish that burst on his taste buds, then slid smoothly down his throat.
Hou Xibai wasn't annoyed by these words; their reputation meant that those who sought them out were often ill-intentioned.
But this time, he had been entrusted by someone. Even if it were a dragon's lair or a tiger's den, he had to pay a visit.
"On behalf of someone, I wish to ask Young Master Tao, are you responsible for the living dead tragedy?"
Hou Xibai solemnly clasped his hands together.
"How dare you!"
Before Tao Yu could respond, the ship's captain who accompanied him glared fiercely,
"If not for Master Tao, escaping with a quarter of Yangzhou City's population would have been fortunate. You ungrateful wretches dare to accuse Master Tao, truly undutiful…"