Chapter 28

Shen Qing knocked the blood-colored sword qi apart with a single slash, then coldly looked at Wang Xiu.

"Hey, where did this wild dog come from, causing trouble on my turf and still wanting to kill someone?"

Wang Xiu saw the silver flying-fish robe on Shen Qing's body, but he remained arrogant.

"Kill him? He looks filthy, like a stinking beggar—what's the big deal if I kill him?"

"How much is a human life worth?"

The laborer behind Shen Qing, upon hearing this, silently lowered his head.

In the next moment, the knife in Shen Qing's hand moved; in an instant, four overbearing knife lights appeared in the air and swiftly slashed toward Wang Xiu.

Su Jiudie and the members of the Huangsha Gang all widened their eyes; they simply couldn't react to when Shen Qing had drawn his blade.

Even before they could see the full extent of the knife lights, they heard the exceptionally crisp sound of flesh and bone being sliced.

Fresh blood spattered; Wang Xiu's four limbs were cleanly severed, his mouth gaping wide as he continuously spat out blood foam.

Shen Qing walked forward, his expression unusually calm, as if what he had just chopped was really just a wild dog.

He lifted his foot and stepped on Wang Xiu's face: "How come? Isn't the life of an ox or horse also a life?"

"I'm tired after a day's work, and now I have to be chopped by you at night?"

"Heh..." Blood kept pouring from Wang Xiu's mouth; his condition was dire, but finally the arrogant look vanished from his face.

He was afraid—afraid of Shen Qing, and afraid of dying himself.

"I was wrong... I know I was wrong... I don't want to die..."

"I'm willing to pay compensation... please don't kill me..."

Wang Xiu's voice even carried a hint of a sob; previously he was the one who decided others' life and death, yet today he himself was about to die.

"Hahaha." Shen Qing laughed, his laughter unusually refreshing, as if he were joking with an old friend.

"What you said—you will definitely have to pay the money, but I'm also taking your life."

Having said that, a long blade pierced straight through Wang Xiu's heart; then, with a light kick, he lifted the money pouch from Wang Xiu's waist and gave it to the laborer.

"Fang Ming, find someone to drag this corpse back and hang it at the gate of the hundred-house office."

Fang Ming hurriedly summoned two colonels, having them drag back both the corpse and the severed limbs to the hundred-house office.

Thereafter, Shen Qing turned his gaze to the Huangsha Gang disciples trembling off to the side.

Several disciples, upon meeting Shen Qing's gaze, felt as if they had seen a flood beast; their legs went weak and they knelt directly on the ground.

"Sir, it was Wang Xiu who attacked us; we were merely... defending ourselves passively."

Shen Qing waved his hand.

"Take these few back as well."

When Shen Qing shifted his gaze, the few felt as if a burden had been lifted; in the short span of two sentences, their backs were already soaked through with sweat.

They scrambled and crawled toward Fang Ming, cooperating fully so that the colonels could bind them with iron chains.

Now they had only one thought: to escape Shen Qing's sight.

Shen Qing then approached Su Jiudie, who was kneeling on the ground, still holding Zong Fang in her arms; her white robe had been completely dyed red by blood, her eyes bloodshot as she looked at Shen Qing, her voice trembling.

"Sir, I was just trying to stop Wang Xiu."

Shen Qing said nothing, merely looking at Zong Fang.

Zong Fang at this point had more exhalation than inhalation, but the fatal wound was not the one in his abdomen.

For a martial artist of the acquired realm, opening a blood hole in the abdomen is like an ordinary person breaking a bone—painful but not fatal.

What was truly lethal was that bloody sword qi from Wang Xiu; since Zong Fang's inner strength was inferior to Wang Xiu's, that sword qi was wildly ravaging his interior.

And Zong Fang's inner strength was as useless as an incompetent husband, unable to protect anything.

Shen Qing slightly bent over, placed his finger on Zong Fang's nape, and infused a domineering true qi into his body.

With that, the roles of attack and defense were reversed.

That bloody sword qi instantly turned into a wronged little girl, easily toyed with by Shen Qing's domineering true qi.

One moment it was pinched into a human shape, the next moment pinched again into a human shape.

Not long after, the bloody sword qi was pinched until it burst.

After confirming there was no mistake, Shen Qing straightened up.

"It's fine; he won't die."

In the next moment, the lying Zong Fang suddenly coughed up two mouthfuls of fresh blood.

His brow twitched slightly, he slowly opened his eyes, and at once saw Su Jiudie weeping, her face like a pear blossom drenched in rain.

Zong Fang managed to pull out a faint smile, speaking weakly.

"Junior sister... I just seemed to have seen my great-grandmother."

Su Jiudie burst out laughing with a 'pfft', but quickly came to her senses.

It was Shen Qing who had saved her senior brother; she hadn't yet thanked him, so she hastily lifted her head.

But there was no trace of Shen Qing anywhere around.

Changshui Street.

The Huangsha Gang Elder Jinji, holding a three-foot sword, gazed at the dilapidated hut before him and said lightly.

"Sun Qian, hand over the cultivation method, and I'll spare your life."

After his words fell, a long time passed with no reply; the few guarding outside exchanged glances and slowly approached the hut.

In the next instant, several hidden weapons shot out violently, aiming at the faces of those few.

This crude ambush could not penetrate their defenses; they knocked the hidden weapons away and lunged toward the hut.

But just as they neared the hut, they heard a muffled boom, and thick smoke billowed out, engulfing the hut and several surrounding houses.

In the next moment, some hoarse voices sounded, accompanied by a sinister laugh: "If you want it, then I'll give it to you."

Having said that, three sheets of paper flashing with a faint golden light flew out of the mist and landed precisely in the hands of the three people.

But there were six people present, and the atmosphere instantly became awkward.

The three who had received the golden paper also tightened their grips on their weapons.

Jin Ji glanced at the paper in his hand, and his expression changed slightly.

"Don't be fooled, everyone—this scripture is fake!"

"What!"

The other two who had taken the scripture hurried to check it, and at that critical moment a black shadow shot out of the mist—it was none other than the rogue cultivator Sun Qian.

At the same time, Blackwater Gang elder Peng Chun also drew his sword and attacked, but his target was not Sun Qian; it was Yellow Sand Gang elder Jin Ji.

Ji Ji casually swung a sword to block it.

"Peng Chun, you idiot, what are you doing?!"

Peng Chun gave a cold laugh.

"Real or fake, as far as I'm concerned it's real—hand it over."

"Idiot!" Jin Ji snapped, flicked the paper with a finger and threw it to Peng Chun, then drew his sword and moved to pursue Sun Qian.

But in the blink of an eye, Sun Qian burst out of the gap in Peng Chun's defense and had already vanished.

Jin Ji's face darkened unusually; he turned to look at Peng Chun, his eyes full of fury.

"What a Blackwater Gang—incapable of success but ample in failure!"

Peng Chun said nothing, merely lowering his head and silently looking at the paper in his hand.

Meanwhile, Sun Qian hurried through Longwater Street, took off his robe, and casually grabbed a grey cloth garment from a rack on one side and put it on himself.

At the same time he scooped up some yellow mud from the ground and smeared it on himself, dressing up as a destitute beggar.

He then came to a narrow alley and sat down against the wall.

He seemed to be waiting for someone's arrival.

After a long while, a slight stir came from the street corner; Sun Qian turned his head, his eyes widening slightly, and saw a silver-robed figure appear at the corner.

A faint killing intent flickered in Sun Qian's eyes, but he quickly gathered his thoughts, lowered his head, and waited for Shen Qing to pass through this street.

Shen Qing's steps were swift; he passed through the street in just a few breaths. To be safe, Sun Qian didn't raise his head, and only after a long while, when Shen Qing's footsteps had completely faded, did he slowly lift his head.

But as he lifted his head, Sun Qian was so frightened he nearly fainted.

Shen Qing had somehow already stood before him, bending over with his head lowered and smiling at him.

Shen Qing's voice was as gentle as a spring breeze, but to Sun Qian it sounded no different from the voice of King Yama.

"Who are you waiting for? Would you like to come to my hundred-household office?"