Chapter 387: Having a Younger Brother is Great

Fu Xing?

Xu Xiaoshou turned his head for a quick glance and immediately burst into laughter. This guy was exactly the one he had bumped into by chance at the Dan Tower that day—the self-proclaimed hero who tried to save the beauty but ended up making a fool of himself, and then forcibly shoved an invitation at him. The young master Fu himself.

"You boy, why are you so late?"

"I thought you'd suddenly show up at the door to welcome me," Xu Xiaoshou said with a tsk tsk of mock disappointment. He was utterly amazed at how obsessed this guy was with the Ten-Section Sword Finger. Honestly, it was surprising that Fu Xing hadn't rushed over right away to show it off.

Fu Xing hurried forward, clearly excited and about to throw his arms around him in a hug. But halfway through extending his hands, he suddenly remembered something and awkwardly pulled them back.

"Shou Ge!"

"It's not that I didn't want to come get you—it's just that I had some urgent matters to handle and couldn't get away."

Xu Xiaoshou waved it off. "No big deal, no big deal. I was just kidding." He chuckled lightly, then turned to look at Wen Song, who was standing off to the side with a dark expression.

"You've finished with your other business, but there's still some trouble here."

"Look, this old man actually dared to make a move right here—and he was going after me."

"If he attacked, how could I possibly defend against it?"

"I definitely couldn't block it, but even if I couldn't, I'd have to try. What would I use to block? My hands, of course! But could hands block it? Of course not!"

"So... my hands would be ruined!"

Fu Xing's eyelids twitched twice, and he grimaced, baring his teeth slightly. How could he not understand what Xu Xiaoshou was getting at? This was clearly Xu Xiaoshou using the "Ten-Section Sword Finger" to pressure him. But that didn't stop him from feeling thrilled inside. The fact that Xu Xiaoshou was willing to tease him like this meant he was serious about teaching it to him, right?

He immediately put on a stern face and turned to Wen Song.

"What's going on here?"

Wen Song was completely stunned. If he had harbored any thoughts of revenge earlier, they were now entirely replaced by shock. How could Xu Xiaoshou be connected to young master Fu? Fu Xing was nothing like Fu Yinhong! Everyone knew that the city lord Fu Chengzhu stayed out of worldly affairs, yet the city lord's residence had flourished in recent years. Whose credit was that? Of course, it was this talented and wealthy young man standing before them—Fu Xing, who excelled at everything except alchemy.

Wen Song's heart sank to the bottom.

"This... it's all a misunderstanding."

He forced out those words with a flushed face, feeling like he could crawl into a crack in the ground. But for the sake of his family's White Cave spot this year, he had to grit his teeth and bear it.

"Misunderstanding?"

Xu Xiaoshou raised his voice slightly, drawing everyone's attention. The young man then lifted his chin a bit, fixing a deep stare on Wen Song for a long moment. Afterward, without saying more, he patted Fu Xing on the shoulder.

"You handle this."

Wen Song staggered back a step. This silence was more terrifying than any words could be.

With that, Xu Xiaoshou stepped past the crowd and strolled away.

Mu Zixi watched from behind, shaking her head. That annoying Xu Xiaoshou was as troublesome as ever! If she weren't on the same side as him, she'd probably be driven crazy by his sharp tongue. Even just putting herself in someone else's shoes for a second made her feel a surge of frustration. Who wouldn't be so angry they'd spit blood?

As she thought about it, the young girl's eyes sparkled with admiration as she looked at the youth's retreating figure.

How truly annoying!

"Wait for me!"

Fu Xing glanced at Xu Xiaoshou and realized that if he didn't sort this out properly today, his chances of learning the "Ten-Section Sword Finger" would go up in smoke. After all these years, this was the only real sword technique connected to the Eighth Sword Immortal—he couldn't afford to miss it.

"Ah." He looked at Wen Song and sighed inwardly. Why did you have to mess with this oddball? If you want to die, there are better ways! Don't you know that even Association President Shi Ti is helpless against this guy?

Everyone cleared a path, and Xu Xiaoshou followed the not-yet-fully-closed passage out of sight. The rest was up to Fu Xing—he had no interest in playing games with some grandmaster peak nobody.

His goals for this trip were just two: intelligence on the White Cave and the whereabouts of Zhang Taiying. Even with the added bonus of collecting passive values, he couldn't lose sight of those.

"Where has Zhang Taiying gone?"

"Hasn't he shown up yet?"

Xu Xiaoshou wasn't sure, since Xin Gugu hadn't sent any messages yet, and he didn't dare ask. What if the guy was in the middle of a fight? One message from him could throw everything off.

"If Zhang Taiying isn't here, maybe I can scout the route ahead and set a trap."

The idea excited Xu Xiaoshou. The city lord's residence was massive—like a real labyrinth. And once all the experts gathered, security elsewhere would loosen up. If he planned this out with A Jie and the soon-to-arrive Xin Gugu, they might actually pull it off.

As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest. Who would suspect someone plotting against the throne right in the heavily guarded city lord's residence? Even if word got out, people would just think the plotter was insane!

Xu Xiaoshou wasn't insane; he was crystal clear. With Fu Xing around, as long as he didn't go too far, no one could stop him. If things really blew up, he'd just call in backup... or perhaps...

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the two sets in his ring—these were his new acquisitions.

One was a big black robe with a mask and gloves, leaving only the eyes exposed.

The other was a ragged hemp shirt covered in dry grass, old and tattered, complete with a straw hat.

Heh, playing the tiger to eat the pig—how fitting!

The crowd watched Xu Xiaoshou leave, their eyes filled with admiration. To casually decide the fate of a grandmaster peak expert—that was the power of authority and strength.

"Looking closely, Xu Xiaoshou's back does have a certain commanding presence."

"Yeah, yeah. He's just an innate stage, but I feel an overwhelming sense of inevitability."

"Heh, it's not just you. Even Elder Wen Song couldn't stand against that kid's stride. He's really something—I must have misjudged him."

"Misjudged?"

Someone murmured, then sighed softly: "How nice. I wish I had a brother like that—someone to call me 'ge,' shield me from storms, and clean up my messes..."

For a moment, everyone fell silent.

"Received envy, passive value, 343."

"Received admiration, passive value, 226."

"Received resentment, passive value, 66."

Xu Xiaoshou smiled as he looked at the data in his info panel—it felt almost dreamlike.

"Passive value: 24,006."

Terrifying!

From behind came a few angry roars, clearly Fu Xing dealing with things, pulling everyone's attention back.

Xu Xiaoshou clasped his hands behind his back, feeling the moonlight so refreshingly cool.

"Little shimei!"

"Hmm?"

"Tonight might see some big events—you'd better get ready."

"Mm."

"By then, you might see a miraculous shelter."

"Oh."

"Why are you so calm?" Xu Xiaoshou asked, surprised.

"Heh."

Mu Zixi laughed. I've followed you all the way down the mountain—who do you think I am? I know your style all too well. If this city lord's residence dared to take you in, it's already on borrowed time. You've just finished off one person, and now you're plotting again?

"Where are we going?" Mu Zixi asked.

Xu Xiaoshou smiled mysteriously.

"Pulling radishes."

"Don't get it? Digging pits!"