Chapter 276: The High Priest

Chapter 276: The High Priest

The Chief Attendant clearly didn’t think much of Su Mo.

Being the top fighter in the Eastern Wasteland is one thing, but this is White Tiger City.

Even if you’re a dragon, you’ll have to bow here. Even if you’re the best in the Eastern Wasteland, we’ll handle you however we see fit.

So, the plan to send someone to fetch Su Mo tonight was straightforward.

Only Su Mo would be invited, isolating him from his escort team.

Second, once Su Mo arrived, he wouldn’t be allowed to bring anything into the hall.

Finally… they’d leave him waiting for a few hours.

If Su Mo wanted to leave, he could, but the items… what items?

Would the esteemed Chief Attendant really stoop to stealing a martial master’s belongings?

The plan was straightforward, almost careless.

The Chief Attendant, though, was convinced it would work. To keep Su Mo waiting, he just found a spot to meditate and focus his energy.

His meditation spot was completely isolated, cutting off all outside noise.

So, he had no idea what was going on outside.

Even when Bai Yong rushed to report the incident, the Chief Attendant didn’t sense anything was wrong.

Instead, he berated Bai Yong for overreacting and making a scene.

You can’t entirely blame the Chief Attendant for underestimating the world.

White Tiger City takes pride in its territory and long history, and the Emperor’s Heart Technique is one of the world’s most revered martial arts.

Each has honed impressive martial skills, convinced they’d become famous once they entered the martial world.

The splendor of East City, the so-called ‘hundred flowers blooming,’ is just a bunch of clowns.

The neighboring Wusheng Hall and Fallen Phoenix Alliance have always been dismissed by White Tiger City.

Yet, neither Wusheng Hall nor Fallen Phoenix Alliance has ever challenged White Tiger City.

Over time, they developed a narrow, frog-in-the-well perspective.

They think the so-called masters of the world are overrated, and Su Mo’s title as the best in the Eastern Wasteland is just a fluke due to a lack of real competition.

If they ventured out of their ancestral land, they’d not only dominate the Eastern Wasteland but could easily claim the title of the world’s best.

With that mindset, how could they possibly take Su Mo seriously?

So, they kept delaying, and Bai Yong nearly talked himself hoarse before the Chief Attendant finally left the meditation chamber.

The moment he stepped out, he was shocked…

Where’s the room above the chamber? How could a room that big just vanish?

And the courtyard... it was even bigger than the house. How could it be gone too?

Where am I?

Where is my Chief Attendant’s mansion?

He stood rooted to the spot for a long moment before it finally dawned on him what had happened.

A surge of rage nearly choked him, and he roared in fury, demanding to know who the intruder was.

Overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events, he’d completely forgotten about Su Mo.

Then he saw a massive pillar materialize out of nowhere, and it even spoke to him...

In his confusion, he finally noticed someone trailing behind the pillar.

He nodded vigorously and said, "You’ve come at the perfect time!"

As his voice faded, his hands moved apart and then together, unleashing a deafening tiger’s roar from deep within him.

A faint white glow shimmered on his palms as he thrust both hands directly into the pillar.

The force of his palms shattered the pillar instantly.

The Chief Attendant moved swiftly, his palms striking the pillar as if it were made of tofu.

For a moment, shattered stones rained down in every direction.

As the Chief Attendant, his martial arts were naturally exceptional.

The palm technique he was using, the "Amber Divine Palm," was derived from the "White Tiger True Body Scripture" in the Emperor’s Heart Sutra.

The word "Amber" was a play on words, sounding like "Tiger’s Soul."

Though the moves were simple, they held a profound elegance, and when paired with the Emperor’s Heart Sutra’s internal power, they became unpredictably powerful.

At that moment, his palms moved like lightning, shattering the massive pillar in Su Mo’s hands.

In an instant, he was face-to-face with Su Mo.

As the pillar vanished, the Chief Attendant spread his arms, locking eyes with Su Mo.

When their eyes met, Su Mo felt a faint tremor in his heart.

He felt an overwhelming, deadly aura, and in the Chief Attendant’s eyes, there was a divine majesty, as if he were facing a god.

The Emperor’s Heart Sutra was unfathomably deep, far surpassing ordinary martial arts.

The move the Chief Attendant was using was called "Monarch’s Might"—a technique of unparalleled power.

The monarch here was the Tiger Monarch, whose might was akin to a god’s majesty.

How could a mere mortal dare to look upon it?

A single glance would make one’s heart quake, leaving them feeling as small as an ant.

It would force one to retreat without even raising a hand!

For an ordinary person, even if they could still stand after that look, they’d have no strength left to resist.

But Su Mo was no ordinary man. After a brief moment of shock, he was unfazed and burst into laughter:

"Impressive skill!!"

As the three words fell, he crossed his palms from below and upwards. A dragon's roar erupted from within him, accompanied by the tolling of a bell. Purple light enveloped his palms as he struck out with a single palm!

Purple Sun Divine Palm!

The Chief Attendant's face turned pale with shock. The power of this palm strike was something he had never seen before.

Yet it sparked a surge of heroic spirit in him. With a fierce roar, a tiger's growl erupted from him, almost shaking the entire White Tiger City.

As his aura spread throughout his body, the faint silhouette of a white tiger leaped up behind him.

The white light in his palm instantly solidified. With a sudden thrust of his palm, he clashed with Su Mo's Purple Sun Divine Palm.

The roars of the dragon and tiger echoed through the night!

The collision of the two palms created an earth-shattering explosion.

Those with weaker internal energy would vomit blood just from the sound.

The rampant energy caused continuous tremors, shattering the surroundings into pieces!

The scene was utterly terrifying.

The remnants of the attendants who could still stand were all dumbfounded.

Although the Chief Attendant wasn't the brightest, he was the top martial artist in White Tiger City.

Although the Grand Priestess still held a higher position, she hadn't made a move in a long time, and no one knew the extent of her power. Only the Chief Attendant, with occasional displays of his power, had earned respect.

Yet, who would have thought that today, there would truly be someone with such power, capable of matching the Chief Attendant in palm strength?

The title of the strongest in the Eastern Wasteland was indeed well-deserved!

However, as soon as this thought arose, the next moment, they saw the white tiger silhouette behind the Chief Attendant suddenly dissipate.

He suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and was hurled away like a meteor.

With a loud crash, he landed heavily in the ruins of the Chief Attendant's Residence.

For a moment, it was unclear if he was alive.

Su Mo descended from mid-air, his toes lightly touching a piece of rubble. As he looked around, he glanced at his palm.

There was no pride in his eyes, just a slight furrow of his brow, as if he was somewhat puzzled.

"My lord!!!"

Seeing this, the attendants rushed forward to dig the Chief Attendant out of the ruins.

Yang Xiaoyun, Zhen Xiaoxiao, and Hu Sandao came to Su Mo's side:

"Xiao Mo, are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

Su Mo gently shook his head, then turned his gaze towards the direction of the Chief Attendant and suddenly smiled:

"The Emperor’s Heart Sutra is truly something else."

As he scanned the area, footsteps closed in from every side.

Clearly, the ruckus at the Chief Attendant’s place had caught someone’s eye. Su Mo’s eyes cut through the thick darkness as he landed next to Yang Xiaoyun and the others:

"Yang Xiaoyun, we can’t stick around here. Let’s move."

"Huh?"

Yang Xiaoyun was taken aback—this wasn’t Su Mo’s usual way of doing things.

Whenever trouble started, he’d never bail before it was settled.

But since Su Mo said so, she didn’t push back and just nodded.

Su Mo didn’t say another word, just led Yang Xiaoyun and the others toward White Tiger City’s west gate.

The Chief Attendant had traded blows with Su Mo, and his fate was up in the air.

The other attendants, seeing Su Mo and his crew trying to bolt, weren’t about to let that happen.

They jumped in to block the way, but they were no match for Su Mo and his crew. They got shoved aside.

Word of the chaos at the Chief Attendant’s place spread like wildfire, and in no time, it was all over White Tiger City.

But... the city’s alarm bells, which should’ve gone off, stayed quiet.

Even the ones itching to chase them eventually backed off.

By then, Su Mo and his crew had already made it to the west gate.

Zhen Xiaoxiao went first, pouring all her energy into a charge so fierce the city gate couldn’t handle it.

With a thunderous boom, the gate exploded into bits.

They all poured out, and in no time, they’d covered miles, officially stepping into Wusheng Hall’s turf.

Standing there, Yang Xiaoyun glanced back, confused:

"Why isn’t anyone after us?"

"Isn’t it better that no one’s on our tail?"

Su Mo smiled: "Let’s catch our breath here for a bit."

Zhen Xiaoxiao flopped down with a thump, rubbing her stomach and giving Su Mo a pleading look.

Su Mo had to say, "Xiaoxiao, hang in there. Tomorrow, we’ll hit up a spot and feast like kings."

"Yeah."

Zhen Xiaoxiao kept nodding, already psyched for tomorrow.

For some reason, Su Mo told Hu Sandao to start a fire, pushing back the dark and lighting up the area.

Yang Xiaoyun gazed at the fire and let out a quiet sigh:

"The martial world is vast and unpredictable. One must never underestimate it. White Tiger City, once a quiet and obscure place..."

Their actions are even more reckless and outrageous. I initially thought they were just a bunch of narrow-minded fools, but I never expected there to be a master like the Chief Attendant of the Imperial Court among them.

Su Mo chuckled lightly:

"The Emperor’s Heart Sutra truly has extraordinary power. The Chief Attendant’s martial arts are probably on par with Sect Leader Youquan’s."

Yang Xiaoyun and Hu Sandao both turned to look at Su Mo at the same time.

Even though Yang Xiaoyun already held the Chief Attendant in high regard, she never expected Su Mo to rate him so highly!

"But in a fight to the death, the Chief Attendant probably wouldn’t stand a chance against Sect Leader Youquan.

"Sect Leader Youquan’s martial arts are strange—he has an unyielding energy inside him, so every time I severely injure him, he can recover extremely quickly.

"The Chief Attendant doesn’t have that kind of power.

"While his individual moves are stronger than Sect Leader Youquan’s, in a fight to the death, he’d be the one to die."

"Hmph."

A cold snort suddenly cut through the quiet night.

Yang Xiaoyun and Zhen Xiaoxiao both jumped at the sound.

The voice was right next to them, yet they hadn’t noticed it at all.

As they were about to figure out where the sound was coming from, Su Mo said with a smile:

"You’re not convinced, are you?"

Yang Xiaoyun paused for a moment, then sighed softly.

She couldn’t resist glancing at Su Mo... After trading a palm strike with the Chief Attendant, Su Mo suddenly chose to retreat.

This was totally out of character for him.

While Su Mo was usually kind and generous, when lives were on the line, he’d wipe out the threat entirely.

On their way to Wufangji, there was a mountain stronghold that wouldn’t give up. Despite being outmatched, they tried to ambush and steal the goods using underhanded tactics.

Furious, Su Mo went on a rampage.

He killed all the robbers, then stormed the stronghold and slaughtered everyone inside, sparing no one.

Finally, he burned the whole place to the ground, leaving nothing but ashes.

Back then, Ban Tiankuang from the Red Cloud Temple tried to stir up trouble for Su Mo over this.

But he got himself trapped in the Red Cloud Temple instead.

From this, it’s clear that Su Mo either doesn’t act at all, or he acts decisively.

There’s no room for half-measures.

Thinking back to their journey here, it’s strange that there hasn’t been a single pursuer from White Tiger City.

Even if the Chief Attendant was killed by Su Mo’s palm strike, there’s still the Grand Priestess overseeing the situation.

How could they just ignore such a major incident?

There’s clearly more to this than meets the eye.

And this mystery… might just stem from the person before us.

As his thoughts raced, a voice emerged from the darkness:

"The Youquan True Scripture cultivated by Sect Leader Youquan is merely a patchwork of scraps from the Yin Yang Immortality Tokens and another overseas martial art.

"The first-generation Sect Leader Youquan forcibly merged these two martial arts, hoping to unravel their mysteries and create something unique.

"But in the end… it was nothing more than recycling old ideas. How could it compete with my Emperor’s Heart Sutra?"

By the time he finished speaking, the person had already approached.

Under the light of the fire, it was a woman of indeterminate age.

She held a jade flute in her hand, and though her attire differed from what Su Mo and the others had seen on the remnants' descendants, it was clear it was also of remnants' origin.

"Oh?"

Su Mo glanced at her: "I didn’t expect the Grand Priestess of White Tiger City, secluded in her ancestral land, to be so well-informed about the world?"

"You don’t think that in these hundreds of years, no Youquan Cult experts have ventured to the southwest, do you?"

The woman spoke lightly: "Moreover, after the first Sect Leader Youquan first mastered his martial arts, he came to my White Tiger City to seize the Emperor’s Heart Sutra.

"As a result, he was thwarted three times in his life-and-death crises by our Grand Priestess of that era, and ultimately had to flee in shame. Otherwise, he would have truly died in my White Tiger City."

She didn’t deny Su Mo’s address of her.

"There’s really such a thing?"

Su Mo was somewhat surprised: "It seems White Tiger City is truly extraordinary."

"Of course."

At this point, the Grand Priestess of White Tiger City couldn’t help but glance at Su Mo:

"Since the remnants established themselves, through countless years, we’ve endured the changes of time.

"No matter how the world shifts, only White Tiger City stands firm in the mountains, never faltering.

"Even when the Great Xuan Dynasty’s cavalry swept across the martial world, not a single brick or tile in White Tiger City was harmed.

"Someone as bold as Chief Escort Su is truly the first since the dawn of time!"

Yang Xiaoyun raised an eyebrow, thinking the woman was exaggerating.

Moreover, upon closer thought, it wasn’t difficult to explain.

The reason they could remain unshaken was ultimately their refusal to contend.

The clan possessed unique knowledge to secure their position, and they had no desire to leave their ancestral land to vie with others. Moreover, having been passed down to this day, it was impossible they didn’t have some trump cards as their survival foundation.

By not contending or fighting, forcibly conquering White Tiger City would likely lead to more losses than gains, so naturally, they were left alone.

Perhaps this was the key to their unshakable existence.

Even so, wasn’t the Emperor’s Heart Sutra changed to the Amber Scripture under the pressure of the Great Xuan Dynasty?

If you truly disdain kings and nobles, why bother changing the name?

Upon hearing this, Su Mo smiled:

"So it seems, I bear significant responsibility.

"I wonder why the Grand Priestess did not assist the Chief Attendant and join forces with him against me, but instead secretly intervened, causing him to suffer a crushing defeat?"

Su Mo’s single palm strike that sent the Chief Attendant flying wasn’t just due to his martial prowess.

The Emperor’s Heart Sutra is profound and intricate, and the Chief Attendant possessed exceptional martial skills. Su Mo was excited to face him, curious to see the extent of the Emperor’s Heart Sutra’s mysteries.

That palm strike wasn’t meant to bring the Chief Attendant to the brink of death, but rather to force him back and compel him to use the techniques of the Emperor’s Heart Sutra in combat.

Su Mo wanted to see the marvels of this divine martial art.

But before he could redirect his energy, the white tiger phantom behind the Chief Attendant shattered.

Without it, the Chief Attendant’s energy was instantly drained.

This imbalance left him near death.

As Su Mo landed, he sensed this.

He looked around, realizing someone had secretly intervened, but didn’t know who.

So he took Yang Xiaoyun and the others and left White Tiger City, hoping to test the identity of the hidden figure.

As Yang Xiaoyun expected, no one pursued them.

In White Tiger City, only the Grand Priestess could call off the pursuit after Su Mo’s blow to the Chief Attendant.

This made Su Mo even more curious.

Why would the Grand Priestess help an outsider instead of her own Chief Attendant?

"...This reckless fool."

The Grand Priestess sighed. "He’s narrow-minded and underestimates everyone. His recklessness surprised me.

"Today, I stepped in first to save his life, to prevent your energy from killing him with a single strike.

"Although he is now severely injured, with the Emperor’s Heart Sutra in his possession, it is not so easy for him to die.

"Second... it was also my way of apologizing to Chief Escort Su."