The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 272 Visitor from the Abyss
Zhao Ti looked at the stone platform in front of him from the shadows. The man on the platform had a dark, gleaming face and his hands were pressed tightly against the black iron cover beneath him.

Then another noise came from under the cover, sounding closer and lasting longer than before, as if something had been snapped.

Sweat dripped onto the man's faceplate as he looked toward the cave entrance, muttering to himself, "Why isn't he back yet?"

Zhao Ti stroked his chin, and another person went to call the guards, but the guards had all been acupunctured by his Illusionary Yin Finger, and it was unlikely that the person could undo it for a while.

In that case, the person would inevitably run to the town for help, and wouldn't be able to return immediately.

He pondered for a moment, intending to leave once he found no trace of Mu Wanqing, but the two of them had spoken in a very strange and bizarre manner, and there were occasional noises coming from below the stage. He decided to see if anything had crawled out before making a decision.

At this moment, the sound from under the black iron cover rang out again. The sound was not only closer but also much louder, and it was intermittent and continuous, unlike the previous sound which would stop for a long time after a brief appearance.

Just a dozen or so breaths later, a light tapping sound suddenly came from under the lid. It was clear that someone was knocking on the other side of the lid. The man above was immediately terrified and didn't know what to do.

Zhao Ti's lips twitched upon seeing this. It was no wonder the man was flustered, as the situation was indeed quite bizarre.

The knocking sound was three long and two short, following a pattern, and disappeared after several repetitions.

Zhao Ti narrowed his eyes. This must be the secret signal agreed upon between the people below and the demonic monk outside. However, the demonic monk was being hunted down in the town and did not come to meet them as scheduled. He wondered how the people below would deal with this.

The black iron cover was incredibly heavy. Even someone with high martial arts skills might be able to move it on flat ground, but since there was an abyss below, it would be difficult to get a grip on it, and it would be quite challenging to force it open.

A few breaths later, a loud "boom" was heard, the sound of metal clashing was harsh and the ground trembled. It turned out that the people below had begun to forcefully lift the lid.

The man covered up was so shocked that he was dizzy and disoriented. Even though he was very powerful, blood instantly flowed from his mouth and nose.

But he dared not leave. His entire body was upside down, with only his palms pressed against the black iron cover. He gathered his inner strength in his arms and pressed down firmly on the bottom.

Then another loud roar was heard. The man shouted and released his inner force, causing his robes to billow like a cloth bag filled with air.

Just a moment ago, Zhao Ti saw that the lid had been shaken open by one corner. Although it was falling now, it was clear that it was not impossible to open it.

"Does this mean they have a blunt weapon?" Zhao Ti raised an eyebrow. If they had a blunt weapon, opening the lid from the bottom up would be much easier. It seems the people underground came prepared and had thought things through.

Then, the huge tremors below continued. The man above finally couldn't take it anymore. After being shaken, he screamed loudly, spat out blood, and flew off the stage.

The huge iron chains that locked the lid broke one by one, and the lid bounced up halfway before falling back down.

The man struggled to his feet from below the stage, his expression horrified as he lunged towards it. But then another loud tremor rang out, and the black iron cover was knocked off its original position, revealing a dark crack underneath.

The man was terrified at the sight and jumped onto the platform. But then he heard a loud crash as the lid slammed to the side. A gust of cold wind blew up, revealing a dark hole that seemed to be sealing away demons.

A cold wind blew onto the man, and he immediately shivered, but then he reacted and slapped his palm into the cave entrance.

His skill was actually quite strong. As the deputy valley master of Changchun Valley, he could also use external secret techniques to temporarily raise his skill to the first level of the Twelve-Story Tower.

Although it is far inferior to the real twelve-story tower, it is still beyond the reach of ordinary martial artists.

However, he was injured by the shockwave from the black iron cover earlier, and he was also blown by the yin wind from the abyss just now, so the power of this palm strike was naturally greatly reduced.

His palm struck down but there was no response. However, after only a breath or two, a huge vajra, gleaming with dark golden light, slammed out.

The vajra is a common object in temples, but most are small in size and used during rituals. No monks use it as a weapon. This is because if it were made into a sword, it would be extremely heavy and its shape would be inconvenient to hold, and even fewer people could wield it. A staff would be more convenient. This object is a ritual implement, not a weapon, and there are no corresponding martial arts techniques for using it.

But this thing protruded from the hole and went straight for the man outside. The man could have dodged it, but if he did, the people below would take advantage of the momentum to come up. He gritted his teeth and swung his palm to meet the pestle.

A loud cracking sound of bones breaking was heard, and the man screamed as he fell off the stage.

He underestimated the weight of the Vajra Pestle. Even without internal force, it was still a heavy weapon. It was very likely that this was the thing that had just lifted the black iron cover. The combination of the person's internal force and the weight of the Vajra Pestle itself was too much for him to handle. Not only did he break his arm, but he also suffered internal injuries.

Just then, a "whoosh" sound was heard, and a large, fat figure leaped out of the cave. It turned out to be a burly and stout monk.

The monk was dressed in a gray robe, had a full beard, broad shoulders and a thick waist, and held a vajra that was five or six feet long and as wide as a washbasin at both ends.

He chased after the man, who was injured and couldn't run far. He caught up with him and smashed the man's brains out with a stick, killing him instantly.

The monk then leaped back onto the platform, glanced into the abyss, and began to survey the surroundings of the cave.

He glanced at Zhao Ti but didn't notice anything. Just as he was about to look into the cave again, he suddenly turned around and looked back at where Zhao Ti was hiding.

Zhao Ti's eyes gleamed as he stepped forward and chuckled, "How did the monk discover me?"

The fat monk's expression was sinister: "Such profound concealment skills. If it weren't for the faint fragrance emanating from you, this humble monk would not have noticed."

Zhao Ti smiled slightly: "The monk has such a sensitive nose."

He stayed with Zhong Ling and was enveloped in her fragrance; he never expected that the monk could smell it.

The fat monk sneered, "You've been hiding and haven't made a move, so you're not from here. Then who are you?"

Zhao Ti said with a half-smile, "It's been so many years, have you forgotten who I am?"

The monk looked surprised upon hearing this: "You are..."

His eyes darted around, and the next moment he suddenly roared, "Damn Kunlun Mountain man, you actually dare to impersonate this humble monk!"

As he spoke, he swung his enormous vajra pestle, leaped over, and rammed it towards Zhao Ti.

Zhao Ti smiled slightly, raised his finger and pointed it, hitting the tip of the pestle squarely. The pestle had immense power and inertia; the man had been directly shaken and broken his bones, but Zhao Ti's finger acted like a stabilizing force, immediately stopping the man from moving.

The monk's expression changed drastically. He was about to speak when he suddenly shivered, his face turned ashen, and he collapsed backward with a thud.

Zhao Ti ignored him, jumped onto the platform, and looked into the abyss. He saw that the bottom was dark and unfathomable, with some red dots flickering in the shadows, indicating that there were still people climbing up with torches.

He pondered for a few moments, and then the demonic monk came up. Changchun Valley was a branch of Kunlun, and had a grudge against the Song Dynasty. If the two sides wanted to fight, let them fight.

He then stepped off the stone platform and drifted away like a wisp of smoke. In an instant, he was out of the cave. Sure enough, the guards outside were standing there dumbfounded, and the other person had not released their pressure points.

He glanced towards the town, where chaos still lingered. After a moment's thought, he headed towards the next cave ahead.

(End of this chapter)