Chapter 686: Not Entirely Innocent

"I will kill you!"

Ling Zhaixing's eye sockets instantly reddened, the suppressed thing beneath her eyes completely surged up, like a pot of boiling oil splashed out.

Her figure lunged forward sharply.

The movement was so fast it was almost invisible; the hem of her outer robe left a black afterimage in the morning wind, and she, like an arrow released from a bow, shot toward the sickbed where Jiangnan Wang lay.

Her right hand had already slipped out from beneath the outer robe, a thin object clutched between her fingers, flashing briefly in the light—a finely polished, ultra-thin blade.

She surged forward so quickly that Song Dianjun didn't even have time to fully draw his sword; his blade was only half out of its scabbard when Ling Zhaixing's figure already swept past his side.

His Pupils suddenly contracted, and he lunged forward to intercept, but he was half a beat too slow; the blade sliced through empty air.

The air in the room seemed torn by something, emitting an extremely faint, sharp crack.

Ling Zhaixing lunged to the bedside, the blade already aimed at Jiangnan Wang's throat.

But her movement suddenly halted.

It was as if she had slammed into an invisible wall; her body froze midair, her tip of foot less than two inches above the Ground, suspended there, maintaining the forward‑lunge posture.

Her fingers trembled slightly; the blade was less than a palm's length from Jiangnan Wang's throat, yet she could not push it any fraction further.

Her eyeballs shifted within her sockets, slowly moving away from Jiangnan Wang's face to rest on the person beside him.

Jiang Feng stood less than three steps away, maintaining the same posture, one hand hanging at his side, not even lifting it.

A faint trace of resignation crossed his face; his lips moved, and he let out a light sigh.

Ling Zhaixing's body remained rigid in midair, as if an invisible hand had clenched every Bone of her body, rendering her immobile.

She stared at Jiang Feng, the surge of murderous intent beneath her eyes suppressed by something, but the pressure was uncomfortable, like a flame under water pressed down by a palm, still struggling fiercely beneath.

Her chest rose and fell violently, her fingernails digging into her palm, leaving several pale crescent marks.

Jiangnan Wang leaned against the bed, watching the thin blade less than a foot away, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. The gauze on his chest quivered slightly from the recent upheaval, leaking a faint trace of red.

He inhaled deeply; his voice still carried Weakness, yet he enunciated each word as clearly as possible.

"Mr. Jiang, although the Feixing Gang was ordered by me to annihilate the whole family, I believe I did nothing wrong. You may release Miss Ling; I can explain."

Jiang Feng gave him a glance, then turned his head, looking at Ling Zhaixing suspended in midair.

Her lips were tightly pressed, her jaw set into a hard line, her whole being like a volcano about to erupt, being forcefully held down, stifled beneath.

Jiang Feng's voice was even.

"I can let you loosen..."

"But you at least must let him finish speaking."

Ling Zhaixing's gaze fixed stubbornly on him.

Jiang Feng watched her for a few breaths, then raised his hand, pressing down vaguely in the air.

The invisible force that had wrapped Ling Zhaixing disappeared in an instant, like water that had been withdrawn.

Her tip of foot touched the Ground, her body dropped sharply, she bent over and breathed twice, then slowly straightened, stepped back half a pace, and stood between the bed and Jiang Feng.

She turned her head, looking at Jiang Feng; the volcanic-like surge in her gaze had been somewhat suppressed, replaced by something deeper and more complex.

She surveyed Jiang Feng from head to toe, as if meeting him for the first time.

"You..."

Her voice was a bit hoarse, her throat seemed blocked, she swallowed a mouthful of saliva before finishing the second half.

"What exactly is your strength?"

She remembered clearly; the last time she saw Jiang Feng in Jiangcheng, he was indeed strong, but then Jiang Feng was still within human limits.

She could sense the flow of true Qi around him and could judge roughly which Realm he was in.

But the pressure just now, that absolute suppression that prevented even the thought of resistance from arising, had completely exceeded the boundaries she could comprehend.

She looked at Jiang Feng, her gaze containing shock, doubt, and a hint of indescribable fear.

Her fingers curled slightly, retrieving the blade and clutching it in her palm.

Jiang Feng stared at her, offering no reply.

He just Laughter, the corner of his mouth forming a shallow curve.

Ling Zhaixing stared at him for a while, then finally averted her gaze.

She redirected her gaze to Jiangnan Wang on the sickbed; the complex layer in her eyes sank, hatred resurfaced, solidifying into a cold, hard beam of light.

Her voice was pressed low, bearing a tension that seemed about to snap.

"You'd better speak clearly."

Jiangnan Wang leaned back onto his pillow; the earlier action further exhausted his already Weak body. He closed his eyes for a moment, exhaled a long breath, then opened them again.

He looked at Ling Zhaixing, his gaze very calm.

"First..."

He spoke, his voice not loud, yet each word was crystal clear, as if he had prepared them long ago.

"The Feixing Gang burns, kills, loots, and commits every evil. They deserve to die."

Ling Zhaixing's eyes widened sharply, the hatred in her eyes suddenly flared as if ignited by fire.

She stepped forward, her Fist clenched with a crackling sound, knuckles whitening, her whole body trembling slightly with anger.

"You are speaking nonsense!"

Her voice sliced the air sharply, causing the window paper to tremble lightly.

Her lips trembled, her eye sockets reddened further, the thin watery sheen in her eyes flickered, yet she held it back, refusing to let it fall.

"Our Feixing Gang walks the righteous path! Robbing the rich to aid the poor! Master taught me since childhood to follow the right way! On what grounds…"

She could not continue.

Jiangnan Wang looked at her, not rushing to speak, his gaze seeming to fall into Recollection.

"Five years ago, the Feixing Gang seized the disaster relief funds of Jiangbei Qixian. Do you know about this?"

Ling Zhaixing's breath paused for a moment.

Her mouth moved as if to say something, but she didn't speak.

"That batch of tribute silver was the court's allocation to Jiangbei for disaster‑relief funds."

Jiangnan Wang's tone remained very calm, as if reciting an old ledger.

"After the Flying Star Gang robbed it, how many people starved to death in Jiangbei that year—do you know?"

When those words were spoken, Ling Zhaixing's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Impossible! That money was never disaster relief; Master said it was the people's flesh and blood you plundered!"

Jiangnan Wang let out a cold smile.

"If it weren't for that, with your aloof nature, why would you willingly help him steal the transport route map?"

Seeing Ling Zhaixing still refuse to believe, Jiangnan Wang was unsurprised and said directly.

"It was Mu Laoyue who told me, and that time they not only raided, but to ensure the information didn't leak, they slaughtered all the transport soldiers. Is this the chivalrous thieves who rob the rich to aid the poor you speak of?"

Boom!

Ling Zhaixing only felt her brain go completely blank!