Chapter 440: Chapter 409 Siege_1

“Is this the only trick you have up your sleeves?”

Xu Mu gazed at the ruins of the distant city, speaking indifferently.

At that moment, a dense crowd of figures rose from the ruins.

At the same time, shadows appeared from several other directions, though they were somewhat distant.

These people stood their ground, not immediately advancing.

Clearly, they were shocked by Xu Mu’s methods too.

They had chosen to use explosives, largely due to their fear of Xu Mu’s formidable power.

Although the County City was teeming with martial experts and had the advantage in numbers, it was not difficult to defeat Xu Mu with this advantage. According to the two that had returned, Xu Mu possibly had attained a strength nearly at the Grandmaster level.

Slaying someone of such strength would not be difficult, but it would be far from easy to capture them.

If their siege could not kill him, then all their efforts would be wasted. When it was time to face Xu Mu’s retribution, unless a Martial Arts Grandmaster was in their midst, none could bear it.

As for Yin Wen’s life or death, that was just her ill fortune.

Wasn’t it natural to sacrifice the individual for the greater good?

Why didn’t they ask the Martial Arts Grandmaster to directly suppress the situation with force?

They would have enjoined his support, but the journey was long. Even if he agreed, he wouldn’t arrive immediately.

On the other hand, a Martial Arts Grandmaster was not a dog they owned; he wouldn’t simply come at their beck and call.

Given the influence of the County City Martial Alliance and the official authorities, getting a Martial Arts Grandmaster to help would be exceptionally troublesome unless they were being attacked by enemy nations, which would put everyone in the city at risk. Only then would a Martial Arts Grandmaster come to their aid without any hesitation.

As of now, they had only lost a County Magistrate—mere ants in the eyes of a Martial Arts Grandmaster. Just this reason alone would not suffice to summon a Grandmaster’s presence.

If Martial Arts Grandmaster were so easily summoned, he probably would have been worn out long ago.

A Martial Arts Grandmaster not only possessed immense power, but also held strategic importance; he would not leave the area he protected unless absolutely necessary.

Moreover, Xu Mu’s arrival at the County City was too expedient. Kang Fuxing and the man in the golden robe had only just returned. They had barely prepared, and the explosives used earlier weren’t originally intended for Xu Mu, but were standard supplies of the city, used as a last resort against empire elites or martial arts criminals that they couldn’t settle with.

Given such a violent explosion, apart from a Martial Arts Grandmaster, no one else should have been able to withstand it.

Even a Martial Arts Grandmaster would likely not have remained unscathed, let alone rescue three people and a falcon under such circumstances.

Therefore, the onlookers were somewhat baffled and unsure of how to proceed.

“Such a violent explosion would not have left him unscathed. He must be bluffing to buy himself time for recovery. If we attack now, his death is certain!”

A middle-aged man clad in a cyan official’s robe, his face stern and his manner authoritative, confidently uttered these words.

The man, Ye Jianteng, was the Prefectural Governor of the County City, the highest-ranking official. He was the mastermind behind the explosion.

Beside him stood a man in his sixties or seventies, someone who seemed to hold equal rank.

The elderly man had white hair and a slightly hunched back, lacking any commanding presence. He looked completely ordinary, but his eyes were not dull or cloudy like most old men’s, but instead were clear and pure. His dark gaze was unfathomable, giving off a sense of foreign wisdom.

This old man, Wu Chengbo, was the President of the County City Martial Alliance. As a Martial Emperor peak expert, he was undisputedly the strongest individual in the city.

In discussing stature and rank, his might even be higher than Ye Jianteng. In this world, a martial artist of the same level generally held a higher status than an official.

However, because Wu Chengbo was of advanced age and had no interest in power, he yearned only for peace and lived to enjoy his remaining years.

Faced with the current sudden crisis, his original intention was to avoid alarming the enemy and just report the incident.

But Ye Jianteng had taken a different stance.

Ye Jianteng was in his prime and had significant networks behind him. His future was full of potential.

While others saw dealing with Xu Mu as a crisis, Ye Jianteng, with his strong desire for power, saw it as an excellent opportunity to earn merit.

Hence, the minute he got the news, he started making various plans.

It was precisely because he made the arrangements that they were able to mobilize a significant part of their forces in such a short time.

In the crowd, the Kang family was also present, including Kang Fuxing, who had just returned and barely had time to catch his breath, was also mingling among the people.

He too had made a great contribution by using explosives this time.

What was originally thought to be a sure deal, had now turned into a massive reversal of fortune.

Not only did Xu Mu block it, he was completely unscathed.

A shadow had formed in his heart. When Ye Jianteng was calling for a mass attack against Xu Mu, he began to silently retreat.

“You all have no idea how powerful this monster is. Are you eager to go up and die?”

Retreating along with him was the man in the golden robe, who came to the county city with Yin Wen; he too was shadowed by fear.

If it wasn’t for his status, he wouldn’t even have wanted to participate in this event.

Luckily, his injured status spared him from standing at the forefront. So now, as he quietly withdrew, nobody noticed him.

“I always feel that this guy’s strength is somewhat eerie, it’s better not to provoke him!”

Additionally, the act of bombing Yin Wen with explosives was too shameful for him. To avoid an awkward encounter with Yin Wen, he simply didn’t go up at all.

Naturally, he hoped that their side would win, but there was a lingering unease in his heart.

“Kill him!”

Ye Jianteng still held some prestige, and he had his confidants mixed in the crowd. Under their leadership, some hot-headed and uninformed people charged with them.

“A reward of ten thousand taels of silver to anyone who can kill this man!”

Ye Jianteng played his trump card again.

Under heavy reward, there must be brave men.

Those who were originally sane, were now tempted to join the charge.

One gamble, and perhaps they wouldn’t need to strive for the rest of their lives.

Besides, with so many people charging, it’s uncertain who would be the unlucky one. Moreover, the other party might not actually start a massacre.

This is probably the so-called illusion of luck.

Wu Chengbo watched the frenzied crowd charging, his brow furrowed slightly. He wasn’t naive like Little White. For Xu Mu to emerge unscathed from such a violent explosion, his strength must be terrifyingly strong.

Even if he had exhausted a lot of energy to resist the explosion, a dying worm will still struggle. It might not be easy to take his head.

But now, with the crowd in a frenzy and Ye Jianteng giving his full support, he didn’t dare interpose.

What if Xu Mu really couldn’t handle it?

If he suddenly intervened and Xu Mu got away, all the blame would probably fall on him.

I’m old now, better to live my life peacefully!

Anyway, with my strength, even if the other party is a half-step Martial Ancestor, they can’t do anything to me!

If I can’t beat him, can’t I run away? He had quite a bit of confidence in his speed.

At the center of the battlefield at this moment, facing the surging wave of martial artists, Yin Wen, Yang Jiang, and Zhang Ergou, all had tense expressions.

Facing the entire world alone, the psychological pressure was incredibly high.

Although they felt that they had a great chance of winning, an army of ants killing an elephant, looking at the dark mass of people, they couldn’t help but feel a touch of guilty conscience.

As for why Yin Wen was nervous?

She naturally put herself on the enemy’s side. She couldn’t help it that she was almost killed and instinctively considered this group of people as enemies.

Compared to the three’s nervousness, Xu Mu simply formed a seal with his hand.

The figure behind him appeared again, forming the same seal, then slowly opened his mouth.