Chapter 383: The Scapegoat Dukedom Federation
Chapter 383: The Scapegoat Dukedom Federation
"The Southern Secret Martial World seems to be in trouble. It's said that a Secret Spirit Master lost control and caused a massacre, resulting in the deaths of many martial artists and Secret Spirit Masters."
"It seems the Secret Spirit Masters of the Blood Rose Society were the first to suffer. All members turned into dried corpses, dying in a most tragic manner. No one knows what kind of secret technique was used."
"Yes, even the president has gone missing. That was a True Spirit Realm Secret Spirit Master, a being comparable only to True Martial Rank martial artists. And in one of the rooms, they found an even more terrifying scene. You wouldn't believe it."
Two martial artists from the Mad Lion School, after completing their daily training, were sitting aside to replenish their water and chat casually.
Li Xiang happened to pass by and overheard a few words. Initially, he didn't pay much attention, but after a few steps, a thought popped into his head: 'The Blood Rose Society isn't far from Qingwu City, right?'
Li Xiang had never heard of a Secret Spirit Master losing control before. It wasn't that the martial artists were deliberately spreading rumors, but because the perpetrator was a woman, and women couldn't become martial artists.
Therefore, the only women with extraordinary powers were Secret Spirit Masters.
However, the news was mixed with truth and falsehood, and no one knew the exact situation. After all, even ordinary members were chatting about it, indicating it wasn't a major issue.
"Senior Brother, Master is looking for you."
Li Xiang, who was thinking about the situation in Qingwu City, was pulled back to reality by the commotion and saw his junior brother.
"What does he need?" Li Xiang followed the other person, asking what was needed, which was quite normal. He couldn't just go without any questions.
"I'm not sure. Uncles and aunts are also there, and it seems quite serious." The junior brother shook his head, indicating he didn't know.
Soon, they arrived at the Mad Lion School's council hall, which surprised Li Xiang: "Junior Brother, did you bring me to the right place? Why are we here?"
He noticed that the council hall, which was usually unguarded, now had people on duty, clearly indicating it wasn't a trivial matter.
Otherwise, the council hall would be open, and important discussions wouldn't take place there unless the matter was significant and far-reaching.
"No, Master and the others are waiting for you inside." The junior brother also didn't know the situation, clearly just one of the disciples assigned to find Li Xiang.
Seeing this, Li Xiang didn't ask too many questions and walked straight into the council hall.
"You're here, take a seat." His master saw Li Xiang enter and gestured for him to sit.
There weren't many people in the room, only twelve in total, all True Martial Rank martial artists, the high-ranking members of the Mad Lion School.
Soon, the head of the school nodded: "Li Xiang, when you went to Qingwu City to avenge Zhang Bai, you can be at ease. I'm not asking about any private matters, but I want to know if you recognize this person."
He then passed over a photograph. Although this era was still in the steam age, photography had already been invented, though the quality wasn't great.
The photograph showed a person with closed eyes, as if they were sleeping.
When Li Xiang saw the photograph, he was startled but quickly calmed down: "I've met him. He was a small shop owner, a powerful person. I once challenged him without knowing my place, and later—"
At this point, Li Xiang didn't hide anything. Since the head of the school had this photograph, he must have some knowledge of the matter.
"You're lucky to be alive. It seems you were hiding this, but it's fine. This supreme martial artist is already dead." The head of the school sighed, not blaming Li Xiang, knowing he didn't want to bring trouble to the Mad Lion School.
"Dead? How is that possible?" Li Xiang was bewildered. How could such a person die so easily?
"I won't hide it from you. When we found him, he was already a corpse, but he looked lifelike. The martial will within him remained unextinguished even in death. Even our Mad Lion School's strongest figure from the past might not have matched him."
"The place where he was found was in the Blood Rose Society's warehouse. The exact cause of death is unknown, as many things became untraceable due to the death of all members of the Blood Rose Society. However, it's certain that the destruction of the Blood Rose Society might be related to this corpse."
The head of the school didn't withhold any information, as this matter was too sudden and significant.
"Then what about the body now? It shouldn’t have fallen into our hands, right?" Li Xiang asked curiously.
"Of course not. That place is within the Southern Secret Martial World's territory. How could it fall into our hands? It was supposed to be kept by the Martial Alliance, but they don’t have much authority. They can only mediate. Such a significant benefit would never fall into their hands. It ended up in the hands of the Southern Spirit Elephant Stream."
"The other party seems to want to uncover the secrets of this supreme martial artist. However, I think it’s highly unlikely. According to those who saw the body, the terrifying aura was so overwhelming that everyone felt they couldn’t breathe, even after death. Imagine how terrifying it must have been when he was alive. He was probably invincible!" the head of the school said solemnly.
Since the body was in the hands of the Spirit Elephant Stream, there was nothing they could do. Not to mention, the Mad Lion Stream was a Northern Secret Martial World stream, and rashly intervening could provoke an attack, even leading to a large-scale conflict between the Northern and Southern Secret Martial Worlds, which no one wanted to see.
Moreover, even without these factors, the Spirit Elephant Stream was stronger than the Mad Lion Stream. Therefore, they had no choice, especially since the Mad Lion Stream, though powerful, was not the strongest stream in the Northern Secret Martial World.
"Isn’t the destruction of the Blood Rose Society related to this supreme martial artist’s body? Don’t they fear the same fate?" Li Xiang suddenly thought of this.
Hearing this, the others couldn’t help but laugh. "You’re getting yourself tangled up. Can the Blood Rose Society compare to the Spirit Elephant Stream? It was just a small organization. Only the Starry Sky Society, a major Secret Spirit Master organization, can match the Spirit Elephant Stream."
This made Li Xiang realize his mistake. He had indeed gotten himself confused, not considering the power disparity. Moreover, the Spirit Elephant Stream, being a martial stream, understood the supreme martial artist better than the Secret Spirit Masters. They knew that dissecting or disturbing such a powerful body could lead to their destruction.
"Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. The Secret Martial Exchange this year is canceled. The Martial Alliance has issued a notice, so tell your fellow disciples not to bother preparing," the head of the school said.
"What’s going on?" Li Xiang hesitated but finally asked.
"A powerful force is hunting martial artists and Secret Spirit Masters. They are very strong, possibly at the True Martial Rank or True Spirit Realm. They have no sense of martial virtue."
"I suspect it’s the Dukedom Federation. According to the information from our spies, they seem to be researching a type of super soldier. Just by injecting a vial of a potion, one can bypass decades of cultivation and gain immense power."
"In this world, the only force capable of opposing our martial artists and Secret Spirit Masters is the Dukedom Federation. Although they were forcibly split into the Dukedom Federation to curb their power, they have never stopped trying to reclaim their authority."
The head of the school wasn’t just muscle; he had thought a lot about this. Only a major force could carry out such large-scale captures of martial artists and Secret Spirit Masters.
So, it was obvious. The only major force capable of this was the Dukedom Federation.
"So you suspect that if we really organize the Secret Martial Exchange, we would be wiped out. But the Dukedom Federation, no matter how strong—"
"Ah, you’re still too young. Have you heard of firearms? Besides their super soldiers, ordinary firearms can indeed be avoided by someone like you. However, the Dukedom Federation has more than just ordinary firearms. Otherwise, why would they have been split into a federation rather than being completely destroyed? Because they have firearms that even True Martial Rank martial artists can’t resist. The only issue is the wide range, which could affect ordinary people."
"But if they are truly desperate, who knows? So, the situation is unpredictable, and the Secret Martial Exchange can only be temporarily canceled."
The head of the school didn’t hold back, not intending to hide anything from Li Xiang, who was one of their own.
This made Li Xiang struggle to adjust his perspective. In his eyes, the Dukedom Federation had always had a low presence, not as significant as the Martial Alliance.
Only after receiving this explanation did he understand that a low presence doesn’t necessarily mean weakness; it could also mean they are lying low and being discreet.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
