Hidden Moth-Chapter 437 - 246: The Staff Resting on the Plum Branch

Chapter 437: Chapter 246: The Staff Resting on the Plum Branch

The street loafer tried his best to act like a regular hooligan, but his voice was somewhat shaky. He had already prepared himself for potentially spending five to thirty days inside, yet he didn’t know what he was afraid of.

He didn’t know, but He Kao knew.

Though Mei Guyu had an eye-catching appearance, there was an invisible aura of aloofness that made people instinctively hesitant to approach her. At noon in the restaurant, an inexplicable circle of empty seats formed around her; ordinary people can also sense things instinctively.

The street loafer hadn’t finished his sentence before he emitted a muffled grunt, clutching his chest and abdomen as he fell to the ground.

Not only him, but the other two were also the same, curling their bodies and lying on the ground, twitching like they were having a seizure. They seemed to be suffering but couldn’t make much sound.

He Kao, who was behind them, was preparing to make a move secretly but had to marvel at the swordsmanship at this moment – such excellent swordsmanship!

Mei Guyu appeared to be casually waving a branch left and right just now, but He Kao saw clearly that she had pierced nine times, each street loafer being hit three times.

The position where the branch struck was the inner side of the left and right knees and the diaphragm between the chest and abdomen. Especially the strike to the diaphragm, it made them lose their breath at the scene, unable to shout loudly.

The two strikes on the inner knees were actually harsher. With He Kao’s Observing Body Skill, he could see that the qi and blood circulation of these people would be disrupted for at least the next month. On the surface, nothing seems wrong, but as they walk, their legs will inexplicably give way, causing them to kneel.

However, this wasn’t considered heavy-handed since it was right beside the street, and going hard wouldn’t be appropriate. Imagine if the branch struck the soft cartilage of the throat or the lower private parts—they probably wouldn’t survive or would be severely injured!

Without using any sort of Divine Techniques, Mei Guyu knocked down three strong men with a flick of her hand, discarding the branch and continuing on her way, as if nothing had happened.

Mei Guyu walked on her own, and He Kao hesitated for a moment, unsure if he should handle the three men on the ground, or how to handle them?

Several elders had advised him to watch for suspicious individuals appearing in Qi Yuan lately, especially questionable sorcerers. If he found any, he should either inform the elders directly or report to the Ancestral Hall through Qian Guran.

These three thugs were not only suspicious but had directly exposed themselves! Should he ascertain their identities and use this as a clue to find the mastermind?

Since the mastermind dared to act like this, they probably have ways to cover up, assuming the Ancestral Hall couldn’t find anything...

Hold on, such a large Magic Sect can’t possibly rely solely on He Kao for everything, right? What if he hadn’t clocked out on time today? Since it’s a setting, there’s no way the top management of the Magic Sect hasn’t arranged corresponding setups.

Thinking about this, He Kao extended his Divine Sense to survey his surroundings, and sure enough, he found something. He then stopped meddling, stepped over one of the thugs, and continued heading towards Sesame Apartment.

On the opposite side of the street, there was someone who had set up an easel, pulled up a chair, and laid out a color palette for painting en plein air.

Many scenic spots have people painting, but is it common on the roadside? Actually, you never know; high-rise buildings in the city are also a key expression of modern art...

Alright then, He Kao felt he couldn’t keep the act going and decided to secretly gripe in his mind.

The painter was an adult man, probably older in age, but he looked quite youthful. Saying he’s forty to seventy years old seemed possible; his features made it difficult to judge.

This person had shoulder-length black hair with waves, flecked with traces of silver, tied in a small braid at the back, giving off quite an artistic vibe. It’s uncertain whether the waves were permed or naturally curly.

He wore a green military coat draped open, with a butterfly-pattern shirt underneath and washed-out taupe jeans on the bottom. This seemingly mismatched outfit surprisingly looked trendy—a classic and stereotypically aged artist hooligan image.

Beside him stood a young lady with an excellent figure, her exquisite facial features seemingly adjusted. Her hands were clasped at her chest, with a look of worshipful admiration directed at Old Li... Old Li, what’s he doing, using art as an excuse to hit on girls?

He Kao surprisingly didn’t recognize him at first glance and only did so on the third look, realizing the person was Li Xiuyuan! You couldn’t blame him for having poor judgment; it was tough to anticipate Elder Li appearing in such an image or manner here.

The girl beside him was just an ordinary person, and Li Xiuyuan also had no detectable Divine Qi and Mana fluctuations, so He Kao hadn’t noted him previously. Now, having recognized him, He Kao couldn’t help but find it eye-popping.

Back then, Elder Jiang secluded himself in Pugang Town for tribulation, known only to Elder Li and Elder Gu, with Gu Chun secretly guarding. Additionally, there was a Grand Array laid down, with the Jade Phoenix Tree as its central hub.

Nowadays, with Mei Guyu stepping into the scheme, the Magic Sect couldn’t have no arrangements, nor could it rely solely on Qian Guran and He Kao if something went wrong. Therefore, Li Xiuyuan appearing in Qi Yuan isn’t surprising, but doesn’t he think this image is too flashy?

After complaining in his mind for a few moments, He Kao suddenly realized that he was stuck in a misconception: not everyone needs to constantly hide some identity as he does, nor does everyone recognize the leaders of the various major Magic Sect.

Most people have not even seen the Sect Law Hall Elders, let alone know their names.

Of the seven elders in the Sect Law Hall, everyone is most familiar with Earth Master Gu Chun. Besides Gu Chun, Kang Rulin and Zong Zheng’s names are also well-known, as they come from very clear backgrounds from an early age.

As for the other four elders—Jiang Suanshi, Li Huazi, Wild Phoenix, Meihua Immortal—their specific names aren’t well-known to most ordinary disciples, and many people wouldn’t recognize them even if they saw them.

He Kao and Li Xiuyuan are so familiar with each other that he recognized Li Xiuyuan only on the third glance when he suddenly saw him today. If anyone could truly recognize Li Xiuyuan, even if out of mere curiosity observing him nearby, Li Xiuyuan would probably have sensed it long ago, wouldn’t he?

For high-ranking experts like these, when you attentively observe them, they are almost bound to notice. Sorcerers from the Xingshen Sect are especially adept at this, let alone the Grand Sect Leader Li.

Since Elder Li is here, someone is definitely going to take over and follow up on the matters concerning those three hooligans, so He Kao didn’t meddle and left directly, yet still secretly noted the appearance and divine qi characteristics of the three hooligans.

He Kao has the means of Yin Spirit Detachment, and as long as the target is within the range of his divine sense, he can track them; it’s best to leave a mark first.

Li Xiuyuan didn’t even lift an eyelid just now, clearly aware that Mei Guyu could handle it with ease.

He Kao only now has a relatively clear understanding of the title "Mei Jianxian."

Being a Tier Six Peak Cultivator, Mei Guyu, even if she lost her divine power, possesses physical qualities, senses, and neural responses far beyond those of ordinary people, let alone her superbly skilful swordsmanship.

Earlier, Mei Guyu merely plucked a twig, not even using her true weapons.

He Kao noticed she was carrying a backpack of the kind many office workers use for laptops, with side pockets for an umbrella or water bottle, but her bag had a stainless steel ruler inserted in the side.

When He Kao goes on site, he often brings a steel ruler, tape measure, and leather ruler, giving an appearance of professionalism with all his tools, but most of the time he uses a smart distance meter, with the rulers only occasionally for calibration.

Carrying such things around isn’t at all conspicuous and can pass through various security checks, but in Mei Guyu’s hands, it’s a massive weapon; ordinary people, let alone typical low-tier sorcerers, are not her match.

However, He Kao remained puzzled, from the perspective of the mastermind, what was the point of sending those three hooligans to test? As he walked, he suddenly realized.

Many people are unfamiliar with Mei Guyu and need to test if she is the legendary Mei Jianxian. Perhaps the test earlier was successful; a young woman of this age and appearance wielding such swordsmanship is highly likely to be the Meihua Immortal herself!

The second result of the test suggests that the Meihua Immortal has likely lost her divine power. Otherwise, dealing with the three hooligans, she actually let them get close and personally used a tree branch.

No wonder people always say He Kao is overly meticulous or has too many small thoughts; on the way back to Sesame Apartment, apart from Mei Guyu’s less-than-a-second action sequence, it was all He Kao’s inner monologue.

Seeing Mei Guyu already at Sesame Apartment’s door, she suddenly stopped and turned around, saying, "He Kao, I must thank you for earlier!"

He Kao was taken aback, "Thank me for what? I didn’t actually help!"

Mei Guyu: "You made a move, thanks a lot!"

He Kao indeed had made a move earlier, he had activated his divine sense, with three small stones by the roadside floating up, although he hadn’t had time to launch them... even if Mei Guyu hadn’t acted, he would have put those hooligans down.

He Kao’s actions were delayed since he wanted to see what Mei Guyu intended to do with the twig she broke off. Mei Guyu evidently noticed this, so although she didn’t use his help, she expressed gratitude, clearly someone of principles.

But why didn’t she smile when she thanked him, is she really just not fond of smiling?

Seeing He Kao in a daze, Mei Guyu spoke again, "There’s no need for this, you don’t have to be deliberate. I can take care of myself, and some matters aren’t related to you, just regard me as a colleague, that’s enough."

Upon hearing this, He Kao realized she might be misunderstanding, thinking he was deliberately "escorting" her after work, whereas he was merely in the right place at the right time.

He Kao couldn’t explain, only answering rather embarrassedly, "Don’t say as colleagues, even if it were an unknown, kindhearted citizen, encountering such a situation wouldn’t stand idly by."

Mei Guyu: "Ordinary kindhearted citizens don’t possess such exquisite artifact manipulation techniques."

He Kao: "These little skills of mine, in front of you, dare not claim to be exquisite? Your swordsmanship just now was truly breath-taking!"

Mei Guyu: "With your delicate manipulation of artifacts earlier, you could actually study swordsmanship, do you want to learn?"

He Kao was stupefied again, unable to immediately respond. Mei Guyu didn’t say much, just looked at him with an inquisitive gaze.

He Kao quickly regained his composure, realizing that when interacting with someone like Mei Guyu, it’s best not to beat around the bush or be overly polite, likely she can see through what he inwardly wants or doesn’t want; otherwise, she wouldn’t ask.

He Kao honestly replied, "I do."

**

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