Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Horse Stepping on Red Lotus, The Roadside Inn

“If someone really rode out of Huangtong Mansion City to chase me, it would likely be Master Lin, Leader Lei, and Yu He,” Zhou Heng looked ahead, pondered briefly, and thought to himself, “Whether it is or isn’t, I’ll know once I catch up.”

“Giddy up!!”

With a fierce shout, the date-red horse he was straddling bolted off. It was like a gust of date-red wind, charging into the distance.

It must be said, this horse definitely qualifies as a steed of a thousand miles.

In every aspect, it far exceeded a normal horse.

But even with such speed, it was probably still hard to catch up to those three horses ahead.

After all, judging from the traces of the hoofprints, those three horses had been galloping for quite some time, and with the date-red horse’s normal speed, it surely wouldn’t catch up.

However, Zhou Heng still had something he had never had the chance to use.

A reward he obtained from opening the Fortune Bag.

“Red Lotus Horse Gear [Copper]: Hidden yet visible, as if a lotus blossoming amidst flames, incomparably resplendent. It can be equipped on a horse, granting it the ability to spout fire, tread on water, and triple its running speed.”

Clip-clop-clip-clop!

The sound of hooves was crisp and clear, as the date-red horse sprinted furiously, but as it galloped with Zhou Heng on its back, flames of crimson suddenly flared around it.

The flames rose with the wind, like red lotuses wrapping around the horse, and beneath this fiery shroud, a suit of golden armor as if crafted from golden threads appeared out of thin air, extravagantly reaching the pinnacle of opulence.

The flames and golden armor covered the date-red horse entirely, save for its eyes and mouth, leaving no vulnerable spot unguarded. The blazing flames burned fiercely, the heat of the red fire intense, and the speed was now thrice as fast!

When the date-red horse reached its maximum speed, the flames burned even more fiercely, seemingly about to sweep over Zhou Heng, but he was not the least bit panicked.

The flames coiled and spiraled around him like obedient servants, not daring to approach even slightly, and even covered his body with a layer of crimson armor, complete with a helmet crowned by a red lotus.

Although the Red Lotus Horse Gear is said to be wearable by horses to grant them special effects, the rider is actually the true user of the gear.

Therefore, the effects of the Red Lotus Horse Gear also extended to the rider.

When the flames soared to their peak, Zhou Heng was clad entirely in Red Lotus armor, entirely shielded. Even the helmet only left his eyes open to the outside world.

At this moment, Zhou Heng and his horse were both shrouded in the fierce red lotus flames, appearing to be a scene not of this world, as if a celestial steed of fire was being driven by a god.

Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!

The intense heat generated fierce heatwaves, causing gales to rise everywhere the date-red horse and Zhou Heng passed.

Thus, the two of them almost formed a bundle of swiftly running red flames, moving as if flying along the road, resembling a blooming red lotus that soared with speed.

Along their path, all who saw the date-red horse were amazed, filled with awe. Many people couldn’t help but rub their eyes, questioning if they had seen wrongly.

Too fast!

Too splendid!

What kind of horse was this, to be bursting with fire all over its body?

And that rider, he seemed to be clad entirely in flames too, donning red armor, like a god!

It was incredible!

…

Lin Cang, Lei Xiuyan, and Yu He had left the city together.

They shared the same purpose.

To catch up to Zhou Heng, stop him, and prevent him from doing something foolish.

What a joke, to challenge the Chang Xing Sect alone was no different from seeking death. Did he really think he was invincible?

They had to stop him!

Yet, even though the three had hastened their pace, by their original estimations, they should have already caught up to Zhou Heng, but they hadn’t seen any sign of him along the way.

Now, it was around noon, with the September sun still scorchingly hot.

Lin Cang and Lei Xiuyan, with their considerable martial arts, could endure it; but Yu He, who was not yet at Entry Rank and just recovering from injuries, was struggling.

By coincidence, they spotted an inn ahead.

Therefore, the three decided to take a brief rest inside and to ask whether the innkeeper had seen Zhou Heng.

But upon approaching the inn, Lin Cang felt something was amiss, his face showing confusion as he scrutinized the surroundings. “Strange, when did an inn open up here?”

He had passed by this place more than two months ago.

Back then, it was nothing but wilderness and withered trees—what inn?

How could an inn have been built in such a short amount of time?

“Master Lin suspects something’s afoot?” Lei Xiuyan frowned as he spoke. Having roamed the martial world in his early years, he was sensitive to such rapid changes, realizing that this could very likely harbor danger.

“Possibly,” Lin Cang nodded slightly, his expression turning serious as he said, “However, if there really is an issue, then we must go and find out. Zhou is inexperienced in the ways of the martial world. Even if his martial skills are strong, he could still fall victim to a trap.”

“You mean to say that if there’s something wrong with this inn, it could have ensnared Zhou Heng?” Yu He was shocked and anxiously exclaimed, “Then we should hurry over and check. What if we’re too late and Zhou Heng has been chopped up into dumplings! ”

“You kid, I told you to cut down on the story-telling at tea houses, but you won’t change,” Lin Cang flicked Yu He’s forehead and said, “Rest assured, it probably isn’t that serious; it might just be an ordinary inn after all.

“Leader Lei, Yu He, let’s just stay vigilant. Being overly paranoid can arouse suspicion. In any case, we’re only stopping for a short break to gather some information.”

“Hmm, staying alert should keep us out of danger,” Lei Xiuyan nodded in agreement and said, “Let’s go.”

After that, the three dismounted.

After tying up the horses, they entered the inn.

The door was open, and the three of them walked straight in without the attendance of a waiter. There were few patrons in the lobby, making it somewhat desolate, and most of them had only asked for a cup of tea.

It seemed that they were only here to shade themselves from the midday sun, sipping tea to cool off.

However, the inn was indeed cooler than the scorching heat outside, truly refreshing the spirit and invigorating the mind.

The three found seats and sat down.

Only then did someone come to greet them.

Not a waiter, but a sultry woman with a graceful figure, dressed in red silk and green clothes.

She appeared to be in her thirties, with beautiful features and a mature charm. Her figure was exquisite, with an ample bosom not typical of an ordinary woman.

Yu He was immediately entranced by her.

However, Lin Cang and Lei Xiuyan’s brows furrowed, their hearts filling with increasing vigilance, even preparing to take action at any moment.

“Sirs, are you here to escape the heat?” the woman’s voice was soft and alluring, and her every movement was seductive. She smiled and said, “Although we do serve meals here, we do not provide them to those who are not lodging guests. We only offer tea.”

“How much for the tea?” Lin Cang asked sternly.

“One copper for a cup of cold tea and one tael for a cup of hot tea,” the woman replied with a smile, looking toward Lin Cang. “Which would you prefer?”

“What?” Yu He, shocked by the price, regained his senses and glaring at the woman, frowned and said, “What kind of hot tea are you selling at one tael per cup? Are you insane?”

“Because the cold tea is made from the blood of the dead, it’s not worth much,” the woman’s eyes suddenly gleamed with a green light as she began to laugh, “but the hot tea is freshly drawn from the living!!”

“Attack!” Lei Xiuyan shouted, and sprang into action.

He opened his fingers into a claw and reached for the woman’s neck, his attack swift as thunder and mighty as a thousand catties, snapping her slender and tender neck in one strike.

Thud!!

The woman’s head flew off, and blood gushed out like a fountain, immediately filling the entire lobby with the stench of blood.

Those seven “patrons” who were quietly sipping tea all turned their heads, their eyes gleaming an oily green as they looked toward Lei Xiuyan, Lin Cang, and Yu He.

At first, the flesh on these “people’s” faces seemed normal.

But then, the skin on their faces began to rapidly rot and fall off, and even their eyeballs rolled out of their sockets, held by just a thread of flesh that had not snapped.

“What…what is this!?”

Lei Xiuyan, in disbelief, gazed at the scene before him, which went far beyond his understanding of normal affairs. He had ventured through the martial world before, encountered shady inns, but never something like this.

“Innkeeper, Yu He, run!” Lin Cang made a split-second decision, attempting to flee with his companions.

Bang!!

But at that moment, the door of the inn, which had been wide open, swung shut on its own, blocking Lei Xiuyan and the others’ path.

But Lin Cang didn’t stop. Instead, he quickened his pace, intending to break through the wall of the inn with his immense strength, determined to escape at all costs.

However, as soon as he sped up, he felt a sudden tightness around his neck, someone had grasped him from behind and lifted him up into the air.

Lei Xiuyan quickly dodged with Yu He and prepared to attack the “person” who had captured Lin Cang.

But then, he clearly saw that the “person” was the very hostess whose neck he had snapped earlier, and whose head had flown off!

The one who had caught Lin Cang was her headless corpse!

And the hostess’s head was being held by her own other hand, blood continuously flowing from the severed neck, yet her green eyes still stared intently at Lei Xiuyan and Yu He.

“You, you!?”

Lei Xiuyan was horrified to the core, but as a Seventh Rank Warrior, his courage was not that of an ordinary person. Even faced with such incredulity and extreme horror, he was still able to circulate his Inner Qi and exert his Martial Arts!

Boom!!

This time, Lei Xiuyan’s punch landed on the upper body of the headless corpse of the hostess. Accompanied by the explosion of robust Inner Qi, the upper body of the headless corpse burst like an explosion, turning into a mess of flesh.

Naturally, both arms disappeared without a trace, leaving only two hands falling to the ground.

Lin Cang managed to break free and hastily retreated to Lei Xiuyan’s side, looking at the half-body corpse and the head that was still staring at them with fear and uncertainty.

“Let’s go!” Lei Xiuyan roared, attempting to flee with Lin Cang and Yu He.

But at that moment, the head inexplicably rose into the air, with a ghastly blue flame burning at the severed neck, blocking Lei Xiuyan’s path, opening its mouth to reveal a long tongue and a mouthful of sharp teeth as it began to shriek angrily.

“You cannot escape, you mustn’t escape, or the Great King will not forgive us. Stay with me, become my hot tea supply, wouldn’t that be nice!?”

Immediately afterwards, buds of flesh began to grow from the severed neck of the head, growing larger and faster, miraculously forming a new exquisite body in the blink of an eye.

“Hiss hiss!”

Lei Xiuyan, Lin Cang, and Yu He couldn’t help but step back in shock, staring incredulously at the woman before them… not knowing what kind of creature she was.

“Humans, your strength is commendable, but I am no match for you,” the woman said as she brushed back her dark hair, proudly showing off her body with a smile. “Yet you will never be able to kill me.”

“…”

The three were silent, sweating cold sweat. The woman’s unimaginable regenerative ability had completely surpassed their understanding, leaving them in despair.

Clip-clop clip-clop clip-clop!!

Just then, the sound of urgent horse hooves came from outside the inn, and a surge of red flame light shone through the windows!