Chapter 153

Huh~ Huh~

The mountain wind blew.

Above the collapsed ruins, the atmosphere was taut as a drawn bowstring.

Xu Congtang's thin fingers clamped like iron tongs around Lu Tang's throat, his fingertips sinking slightly into the flesh, making Lu Tang's breathing grow ever more difficult, his face swelling purple.

Xu Congtang himself was at his last breath, mortally wounded and dying, yet his eyes burned with final madness.

"Little brat… cough… throw away that damned sword! Then, swallow these two!" Xu Congtang, with his other trembling hand, painfully fished two small porcelain vials from his chest, pouring out two pills of vastly different colors.

One was gray-white, emitting a scent that relaxed muscles.

The other was dark yellow, radiating a strange medicinal power that suppressed energy fluctuations.

"These are 'Soft-Bone Pill' and 'Suppressing Qi Pill'! Swallow them, and I'll let your friend go! Otherwise… cough… collect his corpse right now!" Xu Congtang roared, blood continuously oozing from his lips—he was clearly drained and near death, sustained only by a vengeful obsession.

Chen Mu coldly glanced at the two pills; if he swallowed them, he would immediately become as weak and limp as Lu Tang, his sinews soft and qi stagnant, a lamb awaiting slaughter.

Xu Congtang was dreaming too sweetly.

Without even extending a hand, Chen Mu's expression remained unreadable as he asked in a low voice, "Who are you? What grudge do you hold against me that you devised this poison scheme?"

He had suspicions, but needed confirmation—and more importantly, a chance to distract his opponent.

Indeed, upon hearing "grudge," Xu Congtang grew even more agitated, spitting venomous roars: "Who am I? You damned bastard, you beast! I am Xu Yibai's father! My son was the most highly regarded man under the July Altar Master of the 'Heavenly Alliance'! And in Nan Yun Fucheng, you, this dog of the Town Martial Office, mercilessly cut him down! This grudge is unbridgeable!!"

"Xu Yibai? Heavenly Alliance?"

Hearing this, Chen Mu frowned slightly, as if struggling to recall, then shook his head, his tone flat, even indifferent: "No recollection. Many members of the Heavenly Alliance have died in my hands. Nameless riffraff—I can't remember them all."

This casual remark stabbed like the sharpest blade straight into Xu Congtang's heart!

The son he had searched for everywhere, spent decades of savings on, and vowed to avenge at any cost—was now, in his enemy's mouth, merely a "nameless riffraff I can't remember"?!

"You… you… puh—!"

Xu Congtang trembled violently with rage, his heart overwhelmed by fury and grief; he spat out his final vital blood, and his grip on Lu Tang's throat loosened abruptly from sheer fury and bodily collapse.

Now!

Chen Mu's eyes flashed with cold light; his left hand, long clenched within his sleeve, shot up!

Shh! Shh! Shh!

Three emerald willow-leaf daggers, like venomous snakes pursuing souls, lined up in a straight path and crossed the short distance in an instant!

Shh~

The first one struck and knocked his limp arm aside.

Puff!

The second pierced straight through his wrist.

Hssst~!

The third, shrieking shrilly, drove straight through Xu Congtang's forehead and exited through the back of his skull.

Xu Congtang's face, still frozen in rage, stiffened abruptly; the madness, venom, and resentment in his eyes solidified, then rapidly dimmed, finally collapsing lifelessly to the ground, utterly silent.

【Corpse detected. Retrieve?】

"Yes!"

"Cough, cough, cough~!"

Lu Tang, freed from the grip, collapsed to the ground, coughing violently, gasping for air, his face filled with the relief of survival and weakness.

Chen Mu hurried forward, checked Lu Tang's condition, and found he had merely been pinned by acupoints and forced to ingest the Soft-Bone Pill—his body was weak, but no fatal injury; only then did he exhale in relief.

In the next instant, his fingers flew like lightning, unsealing Lu Tang's locked acupoints; then he channeled qi to protect Lu Tang's vital organs.

"Chen… Chen Brother… thank you for coming." Lu Tang's voice was hoarse as he struggled to speak, his face filled with guilt: "It was my carelessness… I've dragged you into this…"

Chen Mu shook his head, helping him up, his tone tinged with regret: "No, it was I who dragged you into this. He came for me—you were caught in my crossfire. Thank heaven you're unharmed; otherwise, I could never forgive myself."

As for the escaped Dong Fu, Chen Mu was not overly concerned.

The mastermind was dead; a runaway dog like him would not dare show his face again for a long while.

"Brother Lu, wait a moment."

Supporting Lu Tang, he walked to a nearby pillar and steadied him.

Chen Mu returned, retrieved the willow-leaf daggers, then searched the corpses of Xu Congtang and Huang Xiande, taking all useful items.

Only then did he support the weakened Lu Tang and leave the ruined villa, returning to Tai'an Fucheng, where he immediately sought the best physician for treatment.

Lu Tang had already suffered internal injuries, and had been forced to ingest the Soft-Bone Pill and Suppressing Qi Pill; though the pills' effects would fade over time, he still needed several days of rest to fully purge the toxins and restore his original qi.

Chen Mu felt deep guilt and decided to temporarily remain in Tai'an Fucheng to care for this friend who had suffered because of him.

……

Two days later, Lu Tang's condition had stabilized and he was resting quietly in his room.

Chen Mu was meditating in the courtyard when he heard a knock.

Dong~ Dong~!

"Coming."

Chen Mu rose and hurried over; opening the door, he found Tong Yuanshan—the current second-in-command of the Tai'an Fucheng Town Martial Office.

Tong Yuanshan had a Solemn Countenance, tinged with urgency.

"Salute, Elder Chen! My lord, something has happened at the government office—I've come uninvited out of necessity; forgive my intrusion." Tong Yuanshan bowed hastily, his voice urgent.

"No need to apologize. What has happened at the government office?" Chen Mu invited Tong Yuanshan into the courtyard and asked.

"It's like this."

Tong Yuanshan first bowed respectfully, then replied: "For some reason, over the past few days, a flood of outside martial artists has poured into the city—mixed crowds of all kinds, from all sects and backgrounds. Internal security pressure has skyrocketed; fights, provocations, and disturbances have increased several-fold compared to before!"

"The people at the prefectural office are weak in strength and limited in numbers."

"And our Town Martial Office is also short-staffed. After Elder Pei… after Pei Renguang's incident, the higher-ups have yet to appoint a new commander—I'm utterly overwhelmed, stretched thin to the breaking point."

At this point, Tong Yuanshan looked toward Chen Mu, bent at the waist and cupped his fist, his tone sincere. "Lord Chen, although you are only an Inspector, before the newly appointed person in charge arrives, your official rank is the highest. Your strength, my lord, is also plain for all to see."

"Right now the city is in chaos, fighting breaks out frequently. This subordinate humbly requests that my lord temporarily take up station at the Martial Guard Office, help hold the seat and direct operations, suppress the situation, to prevent great disorder from arising?"

Having spoken, he bowed to Chen Mu all the way down.

"…"

Chen Mu listened, his brow slightly furrowed.

He was an Inspector, not a Guard Captain. However, the purpose of the Martial Guard Office was precisely to maintain stability; with the city's public order in turmoil, he truly could not stand idly by.

Moreover, such a great number of outside martial artists suddenly flooding into Tai'an Prefecture — the matter itself reeked of something fishy!