Chapter 77: Chop! Slice! Mince!

Night fell, the full moon hung high.

Ancient Well Town.

People came and went, laughter and chatter.

Under Luoshui City's jurisdiction lay an ordinary small town, considered part of Luoshui City's western district; true to its name, in recent years it has been tranquil, like an ancient well without ripples.

All major cases avoided this place; only scattered minor incidents occurred, making it a veritable utopia.

And the Drunken Spring Pavilion was the liveliest spot in town, frequented only by masked men.

Outside the Drunken Spring Pavilion, eighteen-year-old constable Chen An disguised himself as a patron and sneaked inside.

He had long suspected the Drunken Spring Pavilion was problematic; although the men who entered said it was fine, some of them later showed signs of weakened qi and blood.

But whenever he brought this up to the constable chief, the chief dismissed it and told him not to meddle.

But eighteen is the age of hot-blooded youth, and for Chen An he was overly hot-blooded; upon encountering any criminals, he would rush in and strike, never mind whether it was excessive—he just attacked.

So Chen An gritted his teeth and decided to investigate on his own.

As soon as he entered the Drunken Spring Pavilion, several flirtatious girls came over and linked arms with him: 'Sir, you look unfamiliar, a rare guest!'

'Which sister have you taken a liking to?'

'Or perhaps you like them all.'

Chen An, unused to this, blushed right up to his ears and casually pointed at one.

'You.'

The surrounding girls laughed: 'Turns out you're a novice—come, come, tonight let the older sister properly teach you.'

Saying that, she took Chen An's hand and led him upstairs, found an empty room, and went inside.

However, Chen An kept scrutinizing the Drunken Spring Pavilion's layout along the way, hoping to spot any abnormality; he found none, but instead noticed his own constable chief and a few fellow officers.

Chen An muttered a curse: 'Damn, no wonder they didn't want me to investigate here! You bastards!'

Before Chen An could observe further, the girl had already pulled him into the room; before he could react, she tugged at her sash and her clothing fell to the floor like gauze.

Chen An's face flushed again instantly, his breathing grew ragged: 'What are you doing?'

The girl rolled her eyes: 'Putting on airs, why else would you come here if not for this? Come sit down, let the older sister teach you.'

Chen An kept backing away until he reached the door; seeing no retreat, in desperation he slapped the girl's shoulder with a palm, knocking her unconscious.

Only then did the room grow quiet; Chen An finally breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly circulated his inner energy to calm himself.

After a while, the redness on his face gradually faded; Chen An went to the window, opened it cautiously and peered down—from here he could overlook the Drunken Spring Pavilion's rear courtyard.

Suddenly, he saw an exceptionally beautiful woman—the Drunken Spring Pavilion's top courtesan, White Flower Maiden—apparently conversing with a richly dressed man.

Chen An seemed to catch a whiff of conspiracy, lifted his foot onto the windowsill intending to drop down and eavesdrop.

But then he turned back, lifted the unconscious girl onto the bed, covered her with a blanket, then lowered himself from the window and headed toward White Flower Maiden.

Not long after, he drew near White Flower Maiden and could hear their conversation.

White Flower Maiden said: 'Chief, tonight we are to perform a blood sacrifice on Ancient Well Town, right?'

The Chief nodded: 'Not bad—after the hai hour we begin; tonight we will complete the blood sacrifice and awaken the Sect Leader!'

White Flower Maiden smiled: 'After tonight, the Sect Leader will become a Grand Master, right?'

'Exactly! Tonight we will use the blood of all Ancient Well Town's people to help the Sect Leader break through to Grand Master and cultivate Divine Art!'

Chen An, hiding behind the rockery, turned deathly pale! There really is a major case!

He must hurry and inform the Embroidered Uniform Guard! Although it's less than half an hour until the hai hour, he still wants to try! If that fails, he'll notify the whole town to evacuate!

Actually he has another option: pretend ignorance, go home, grab his family and flee directly! Half an hour would be enough time for him to run, but he never even considered that.

Chen An turned to leave, intending to return to the constabulary and send a carrier pigeon to the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but before he had taken two steps he slammed into a chest! It was the Chief, who slapped Chen An's chest, throwing his meridians into disarray.

The Chief snorted coldly: 'You don't really think we haven't noticed you, do you? Our plan is just too boring, we're looking for some amusement.'

White Flower Maiden stepped forward and patted Chen An's cheek: 'Yo, isn't this the new constable from the office?'

Chen An collapsed to the ground, a trickle of fresh blood escaping his mouth, his eyes filled with rage.

'Who exactly are you? Why are you doing this! What have we in Ancient Well Town ever done to offend you?'

The Chief laughed heartily: 'We bear no grudge; it's simply because you are too weak!'

'No need for more words! I will make you the last person to die in Ancient Well Town; you will personally watch our Sect Leader break through to Grand Master—this is your honor!'

Chen An gritted his teeth: 'Don't you fear heavenly retribution?'

The Chief and White Flower Maiden exchanged a glance and burst out laughing: 'Heavenly retribution? What is that? If it existed, we'd still be alive now?'

The Chief seized Chen An's head in one grip: 'Kid, you need to understand— in this world, strength is the true way!'

Chen An's anger could no longer be contained; eighteen is indeed the age of a newborn calf unafraid of tigers, and he spat a mouthful of blood-tinged saliva straight at the Chief.

'Pah! You bunch of curs really think you're something, huh? Just a pack of rats living in the sewers!'

'What difference would killing me make! The Great Wu dynasty won't let you off!'

'You know the Embroidered Uniform Guard, right? The newly arrived Captain Dushi Yanluo Shen Qing in Luoshui City—you know him, right? This is his territory; he'll come find you!'

Shen Qing didn't realize that in just a month since arriving in Luoshui City he had already gained quite a following, and Chen An was one of them.

Chen An roared.

'He will come, he will hack your filthy bodies to pieces—chop! slice! mince!'

The Chief's face darkened; he slapped Chen An's face, sending him flying sideways, who knows how many bones broke.

'Shen Qing? Just a mere Captain! Once our Sect Leader breaks through to Grand Master, a mere Shen Qing? If he doesn't come looking for us, we'll go look for him!'

Just then, the rear courtyard gate was kicked open, Black Dog burst in, instantly spotted the Chief, and his eye sockets reddened in a flash.

'Beast! I've finally found you!'

The Chief laughed loudly, seized Chen An's face and turned it toward Black Dog: 'Come see, the Embroidered Uniform Guard really did come because you called for them—but a mere Major, what can they do?'

Immediately after, Lin Zikai entered.

The helm master didn't think much of it: "It's just a small flag..."

Before his words even fell, the Jinwu Guard Colonel Jiang Ruohai, his face dark, walked into the rear courtyard with four subordinate officers of the Jinwu Guard.

The helm master's face darkened.

Finally, the White Tiger leapt into the courtyard, and on its back was Shen Qing wearing a scarlet‑blue flying fish robe; Shen Qing's voice was flat.

"I heard you're looking for me?"

The helm master's face went white in an instant: "Zhen... Pacification Commissioner?"

The White Tiger raised its head and let out a tiger's roar that echoed through Ancient Well Town!

Along with the tiger's roar, Shen Qing also moved, a flash of red light flickering in the air—so fast that nobody could react.

Two sounds of flesh being cut rang out, and the helm master and Bai Hua were sliced in half at the waist, collapsing to the ground; their screams echoed through the entire rear courtyard.

Shen Qing grabbed Chen An's arm and hauled him up.

Although Chen An still had blood in his mouth, his eyes shone as he stared fixedly at Shen Qing's face.

"Are you... the World-Passing Yama?!"

Shen Qing smiled and handed him a handkerchief.

"Wait a moment, first chop it off, then later cut it open and mince it."

Having said that, Shen Qing walked over to the helm master lying on the ground, severed in two.

"I've come to find you—are you satisfied?"

"Since you're satisfied, then answer me one question." Shen Qing squatted before him, smiling with a gentle spring breeze, like an old friend.

"Where is the sect leader you speak of?"