Chapter 169: One Against a Hundred

Watching the strange man crouch down with his hands over his head, Xiao Chunzhu let out a breath of relief.

Because he had discovered that the opponent was very strong, his hard qigong extremely difficult to deal with.

If it really came to a fight, he would be at a disadvantage.

But now, the other side had surrendered without the slightest hesitation.

Watching the local soldiers swarming in around him, Xiao Chunzhu felt an inexplicable sense of security.

As a man of the jianghu, he used to be very afraid of seeing soldiers appear before him.

That meant that humiliation was about to arrive.

But now, he had become one of the officials and soldiers. Watching a few hundred men simply surround a master, an opponent who didn't even dare resist, a strange, wonderful sense of satisfaction welled up inside him.

So this is what it feels like to use numbers to bully the few, to crush people with power.

"What is your name?" Xiao Chunzhu looked at the crouching strange man.

"This monk's dharma name is Lianhua."

"Those cases in this city where people were drained of their blood and qi and died—was that your doing?"

"No."

"Liar. If it's not a guai, besides your Earth Store Buddhist Sect, who else could do such a thing."

The man raised his head, the grey, withered look in his eyes growing more obvious: "It really wasn't this monk's doing… this monk also came here because of this matter."

"So you know who it is!"

"Yes…"

"No need to tell me." Xiao Chunzhu cut him off: "If you have something to say, tell it to our County Commandant."

……

When Li Lin received the news, he was on the roof laying tiles together with two women.

He washed his hands, changed into his official uniform, and went to the county office.

Xiao Chunzhu was already waiting there.

"County Commandant!" He strode over, cupped his fist, and said.

Li Lin nodded and said: "You found a lead this quickly—you've worked hard."

"Thank you, County Commandant, for the praise."

Li Lin went into the prison and saw the disheveled man sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"Who are you?" Li Lin walked over and asked.

"This monk is Lianhua."

Li Lin frowned: "I once heard of a monk called Lianxing."

"That is my senior brother!" The man was very surprised: "How does the official know him?"

"I don't know him, I've only heard his name, that's all." Li Lin looked at the man and asked: "What did you come here for, and what does it have to do with the previous murder cases?"

Lianhua sighed, stood up, put his palms together and said: "Normally family scandals should not be spread abroad, but since the official is the local parents' magistrate, this monk will speak plainly. The killer is my junior brother."

"Your junior brother? Not you?" Li Lin raised an eyebrow.

Lianhua gently shook his head: "Not me. What I cultivate is an external art. The Earth Store cultivation method is what my senior brother and junior brother are more skilled in."

"Then what did you come here for?"

"To cleanse the sect."

Li Lin raised an eyebrow, and said to Xiao Chunzhu beside him: "You keep leading men to patrol outside… until you find that other person."

Lianhua looked at Li Lin and said: "If you find my junior brother, please let me out. I can lend you a hand."

"We'll see when the time comes."

Li Lin left the prison, and then he was stopped by Jiang Jili.

"County Commandant Li, I heard a candidate has already been chosen for the new County Magistrate."

"That fast?"

"After all, we're next to Yue Commandery. Many things get priority."

Li Lin asked: "Do you know who it is?"

"Not sure, but I heard one thing." Jiang Jili's tone paused, then he said: "The Fang family is going to form a marriage alliance with the Huang family."

Li Lin nodded slightly: "I know about this."

Fang Fengyi and Huang Ling, of course.

Last time he was in Jincheng, he had been targeted by Fang Fengyi.

"The Fang family…" Jiang Jili's voice sounded very low: "are not easy people, and of course the Huang family isn't either. The union of these two families may not be a good thing for you."

Li Lin smiled and said: "Thank you, Deputy Magistrate, for the reminder."

Jiang Jili looked at Li Lin's calm manner, said nothing more, cupped his fist, and left.

The marriage between the Huang family and the Fang family was certainly for political benefit—Li Lin was very clear on that.

But what did that have to do with him!

Li Lin turned around and went home, continuing to lay tiles on the roof.

Once the outer shell of the house used for disguise was done, the next step would be to lay the spirit-gathering stones.

Another day passed, and Li Lin and the two women finished tiling the little house together.

The three of them looked at this small black-tiled, yellow-walled little house, and felt a sense of satisfaction after labor.

And at that very moment, Xiao Chunzhu sent a government office Runner to report that they had found the murderer.

He was leading men to surround him right now.

Li Lin grabbed his red-tasseled spear and hurried over at once.

From time to time, a firework bloomed across the sky — these were the signal flares sent up by the local militia.

Li Lin glanced at it, then vaulted onto the rooftops and raced toward Chengnan.

His Lightness Art was already quite well practiced; it took him no time at all to reach the scene.

At least a hundred local militia had gathered here, along with thirty government office Runners.

Xiao Chunzhu was also present.

But at this moment, Xiao Chunzhu's expression was rather ugly.

Standing opposite him was a man gaunt as a skeleton.

He wore no upper garment, only a ragged pair of short trousers.

His body was caked in filthy black mud, and as for his face… it was hidden behind long, tangled hair like wild grass.

Even his eyes couldn't be seen.

Li Lin used his Lightness Art to land on the rooftop.

His appearance immediately drew everyone's attention.

Quite a few government office Runners hurried over to him at once and formed a protective ring around him.

Xiao Chunzhu retreated to Li Lin's side, gasping as he said: "County Lieutenant, this man is very strong — a real headache."

Li Lin looked around and saw several government office Runners lying in pools of blood, and quite a few local militia in the same state.

"Is that fellow Lianhua's junior brother over there?"

"Should be!" Xiao Chunzhu said. "Should we let that Lianhua out? Isn't he the one who wants to clean house? He could help."

"Don't be stupid — you believe everything he says?" Li Lin snorted.

Then a duotou directed the sword-and-shield men forward. Though that skinny fellow's body was thin, it was terrifyingly tough.

At the same time, dozens of glaives hacked down at him; his body merely staggered back a little, then with a violent swing of both arms, over a dozen sword-and-shield men were sent flying.

Archers posted on high ground loosed arrows… the man shielded his eyes with one hand; the shafts struck his body but bounced off to the side.

Xiao Chunzhu charged in, his single longsword splitting into two, brandished in a dazzling flurry of light. A continuous clatter of clanging rang out, and then he fell back again.

"This man's hard qigong is formidable…" Xiao Chunzhu said helplessly.

At that moment, a certain duotou directed the local militia on the high ground to leap down with a hooked copper-wire net and trap the skinny fellow. They had just been about to topple him when, to everyone's shock, with a metallic twisting sound that set teeth on edge, the skinny fellow exerted his strength and tore the copper net apart.

Moreover, the skinny man stepped forward two paces, seized a militiaman, and clamped one hand over the man's head.

The militiaman's eyes rolled back to show the whites, his face rapidly turning blue-green, as though something had been drained out of him.

Just then, over a dozen long spears thrust out at once, all pressing into the skinny fellow's body and shoving him backward.

Two more spears stabbed toward his eyes.

To protect his eyes, the skinny fellow had no choice but to cover them with both hands, and only then released the militiaman he had been gripping.

The militiaman scrambled and crawled back into the militia formation.

Li Lin watched for a moment, then said: "Xiao Chunzhu, later you'll go all out to protect me, understand?"

Xiao Chunzhu nodded rapidly: "Yes!"

(End of this chapter)