Chương 43: Reunion with Elder Huang, 4 Severely Injured Martial Artists, Blood Needle Cries Out

"This Blood Soul Needle truly lives up to its reputation as an artifact of an evil cult!"

Cang Lian looked at the red steel needle on the ground, now calm, still feeling lingering fear.

Although it is incredibly powerful, it is indeed too eerie.

The night I acquired it, before I had a chance to study it in detail, I was surprised to find that it, like the Blood Fiend Blade, would actively absorb blood.

He walked over, found a clean rag in the corner, and carefully picked up the Blood Soul Needle.

He tried to wrap it in layers of cloth to prevent his body from coming into direct contact with it.

Sure enough, after he wrapped the cloth in three or four layers, the stinging sensation and the blood-sucking phenomenon stopped.

"fine……"

Cang Lian breathed a sigh of relief and carefully placed the Blood Soul Needle, wrapped in cloth, into the inside pocket of his coat.

Now that a year has passed, Chu Zhaoxue is busy with countless affairs and probably no longer thinks about this missing divine weapon.

Carrying it with him, even though he was only at the peak of Ming Jin, having this trump card was equivalent to having the strength to challenge An Jin martial artists of a higher level, and his survivability and combat power had both achieved a qualitative leap.

This time when returning to the Cang family, Cang Lian decided to keep it close to her body.

……

At the National Martial Arts Hall base, apart from martial artists who are out on missions, others are generally not allowed to leave without permission unless there is an urgent matter.

But the end of the year is a special time.

The base will give everyone seven days of annual leave so that they can reunite with their families.

Cang Lian touched her empty pockets and made up her mind.

This seven-day holiday will give him a legitimate reason to go back to the Cang family and collect some "New Year's money".

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Cang Lian boarded the military truck that traveled between the base and the city.

The wheels rolled on, leaving the cold concrete fortress far behind.

In the afternoon, when the familiar Cang Mansion, a blend of Chinese and Western styles, came into view again, Cang Lian's eyes became complicated.

In just a few days it will be Lunar New Year's Eve. Red lanterns are hung at the entrance of the mansion, and servants are coming and going, their faces filled with festive joy, creating a strong sense of the New Year atmosphere.

Cang Lian didn't look at it much; she couldn't fit into that so-called harmonious atmosphere anyway.

He wore a loose, dark overcoat, deliberately slowed his pace, adjusted his breathing, and restrained his energy and strength to the extreme, making him look like an ordinary, slightly tired young man.

He walked straight across the courtyard toward the familiar accounting office, intending to ask for some silver dollars.

The accountant was a seasoned veteran. Upon seeing Cang Lian, a barely perceptible glint of shrewdness flashed in his cloudy eyes. He adjusted his reading glasses and said with a forced smile, "It's Young Master Lian. Please have a seat, I'll go get it for you."

Cang Lian knew that he was going to ask Madam Shen Peiyu for permission.

Sure enough, as he expected.

Deep within the Cang Mansion, in the small building where Cang Hong lived, the telephone rang crisply.

While trimming her nails, Shen Peiyu gracefully answered the phone. After listening, she looked at Cang Hong, who was leisurely reading the newspaper on the sofa.

"What is it?" Cang Hong asked in a flat voice without even looking up.

"Cang Lian, you're back to get the money." Shen Peiyu's tone carried a hint of barely perceptible contempt.

"Give it to him." Cang Hong turned a page of the newspaper without looking up, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.

"He really thinks he's some precious young master of the Cang family, always so quick to withdraw money." Shen Peiyu pursed her lips, but ultimately didn't say anything more. She picked up the phone and gave a few instructions to the accountant.

Cang Lian received the money as he wished, a full five hundred silver dollars, which was much easier than he had imagined.

He carried the heavy money bag in his hand, and without lingering for a moment, turned and left the mansion that made him feel somewhat suffocated.

Upon arriving at the mansion's gate, the familiar rickshaw drivers greeted him warmly, calling out, "Young Master Lian!"

"Brothers, thank you for your hard work." Cang Lian smiled politely, glanced around at them, and then asked, "By the way, where's Old Huang? Did he go out pulling a cart today?"

An experienced craftsman who knew him well sighed and said, "Alas, the day after you left, Master Huang quit without explaining why, and just left."

"He's quitting?" Cang Lian's heart tightened, and he pressed, "Where is Elder Huang living now? Do you know?"

Another driver quickly pointed in a direction: "It seems he moved to the slums in the south of the city, in the 'no man's land,' next to that abandoned Guanyin Temple. It's easy to find."

After hearing this, Cang Lian took out five silver dollars from his money bag and handed them to the men who had just spoken: "This is a small token of my appreciation. Please take it and have a cup of hot tea to warm yourselves up."

"Oh my! We can't accept this! Thank you so much, young master! Thank you so much, young master!" Everyone was both surprised and delighted, and thanked him profusely.

Cang Lian didn't say anything more and went straight to the address they gave her.

After passing through several bustling streets and turning into a dilapidated alley, the air here seemed to carry a damp, musty smell.

Sure enough, in front of a simple courtyard built of blue bricks and broken tiles, he saw that familiar figure.

Old Huang was facing away from the door, solemnly examining the health of several people in the courtyard. His back looked somewhat hunched in the bleak winter sunlight.

Hearing footsteps, he turned around, and when he saw that it was Cang Lian, his old face immediately lit up with surprise and joy: "Young Master! What brings you here?"

"I came back during my annual leave. I heard you weren't pulling the cart anymore, and I was worried about you, so I came to see you." Cang Lian's gaze swept over the people in the courtyard, then he asked, "By the way, Old Huang, why did you suddenly quit? Did the Cang family make things difficult for you?"

Old Huang's expression instantly turned extremely solemn. He pulled Cang Lian aside and lowered his voice, "Right after you left, young master, that very night, a Japanese woman came to me. She used 'hypnotic interrogation' on me and asked me many questions about you. After that, I felt I couldn't stay in the Cang family any longer, so I simply quit."

"A Japanese woman?!" Cang Lian's expression changed slightly. He hadn't expected that the Cang family would be so persistent.

"It seems I've dragged Elder Huang into this."

"Young master, what are you saying!" Old Huang waved his hand, a simple smile returning to his face.

"Young master, you gave me fifty silver dollars, which, together with my own savings, is enough for this old man to enjoy his retirement. But you, young master, must be careful out there."

Cang Lian nodded, then turned his gaze to the others in the courtyard: "By the way, Elder Huang, who are these gentlemen?"

He looked around and saw that there were four people in the courtyard.

Two men and one woman: a middle-aged man, a young man, and a girl of about sixteen years old.

In addition, there was an old man, frail and elderly, sitting with his eyes closed against the wall.

Although the men were dressed in poor, worn-out clothes, the resolute look in their eyes, the exposed necks, and the well-defined knuckles of their fists gave them an extraordinary air, clearly indicating that they were martial artists.

In particular, the old man who was resting with his eyes closed gave Cang Lian an extremely dangerous feeling, just like when he first saw Hong Jiuru and Yuan Ye, who were unfathomable!

"Dan Jin?"

These two words struck him like a thunderclap, and his heart skipped a beat!

"It's quite a coincidence," Old Huang explained.

"I've been pulling a cart and living in the mansion for years. When I came back this time, I found that they had taken over this old house. Seeing how pitiful they were, all looking like they were seriously injured, I didn't kick them out and let them stay here with me."

"Young Master!" The men felt Cang Lian's gaze and looked over, calling out to him respectfully.

"You're too kind, everyone!" Cang Lian nodded, then glanced at them again, only to find that they did indeed look unwell.

Despite being a martial artist, he was extremely weak, with a sallow complexion and pale lips, looking like he was terminally ill.

"What's wrong with them?" Cang Lian asked curiously.

Old Huang sighed, his expression grave: "There's an evil aura within them, destroying the foundation of their martial arts. That aura is very sinister, like a leech, it sucks blood and is extremely difficult to remove!"

"Blood sucker?!" Cang Lian's heart skipped a beat. He walked up to the girl, ignoring her astonished look, and reached out, placing two fingers precisely on her wrist.

The instant they made contact, a chilling, violent, and murderous aura surged from his fingertips straight into his mind!

"This is?"

Cang Lian was astonished to discover that this aura... was exactly the same as the aura on the Blood Fiend Blade and the Blood Soul Divine Needle!

At the same time, he noticed that the Blood Soul Needle inside his coat, through the fabric, was emitting a very faint buzzing sound. It was actually vibrating, like a beast that had smelled its prey, restless and eager.

"It's yearning... to devour? Could the Blood Soul Needle really devour the bloodthirsty energy within them?!"

Cang Lian's heart stirred slightly, but she remained outwardly calm.