Chapter 124: Those Who Break Their Word Shall Be Punished by Salt

"Bluebeard" is dead!

He died with eyes wide open!

Lu Xiaofeng's gaze turned to Fang Yufei, and he let out a long sigh. "One jade from the west, one from the north; when two jades meet, all is lost. Fang Yufei, you are the true boss of the Black Tiger Hall. Bluebeard was merely a scapegoat."

"Oh."

Fang Yufei said calmly.

"I've suspected it for a long time. Chu Chu, Chen Jingjing—they grew up with Fang Yuxiang, yet not one of them ever mentioned Fang Yuxiang had a brother."

Lu Xiaofeng said.

Fang Yuxiang was never Fang Yufei's sister.

"And we are good friends."

Lu Xiaofeng leaned back in his chair. "All these years, you never told me you had a sister—so beautiful."

Fang Yufei couldn't help smiling as he glanced at Fang Yuxiang beside him. Now that Bluebeard had revealed his last words, Fang Yufei had no choice but to drop the act. "Truth is, I do have a sister—but I sold her to a brothel long ago."

Lu Xiaofeng's face fell… this made him even more of a monster.

Fang Yufei pulled out the Rakshasa Card and tossed it carelessly to the Three Friends of Winter. "Between us, everything is settled now."

The Three Friends of Winter had come all this way for the Rakshasa Card, yet now that they held it, they did not leave.

Fang Yufei shook his head. "One misstep, and the whole game is lost. It seems today, I must die."

"Of course!"

The Three Friends of Winter said coldly.

Fang Yufei looked at Lu Xiaofeng. "You stayed here because of Gu Qing's wager, didn't you?"

Lu Xiaofeng's face darkened. He could never replicate what Gu Qing had done to Fang Yufei, so he pulled out an old trick. "You're not my friend. I don't have friends like you."

Lu Xiaofeng severed ties outright—now sleeping with Ding Xiang's aunt was no longer an issue, and he didn't need to replicate Fang Yufei's fate.

Fang Yufei sighed, sounding deeply disappointed. "Then I don't understand why you're still here."

In this scheme, Fang Yufei never plotted against Lu Xiaofeng. Lu Xiaofeng joined halfway, following Chu Chu, and ruined Fang Yufei's plan entirely.

Lu Xiaofeng was an intruder, not a pawn. The misunderstanding is cleared—he can leave now.

"Because I must collect a blood debt."

Lu Xiaofeng said: "Now add your sister's share to it."

Lu Xiaofeng prepared to beat Fang Yufei severely.

Fang Yufei calmly drew his weapon: a strange glove, studded with backward-pointing barbs and tiger claws—all too sharp for Lu Xiaofeng's fingers to catch. Once fitted, he looked at Lu Xiaofeng. "I've long wanted to duel you."

Like Jin Jiuling in the original story, who studied Lu Xiaofeng's Finger of Spiritual Response and forged a hammer to counter it, Fang Yufei's glove was chosen only after deep study of Lu Xiaofeng's techniques.

The barbs were coated in deadly poison—any scratch would kill instantly.

Those in the room scattered to either side, clearing space for Lu Xiaofeng and Fang Yufei. In an instant, Lu Xiaofeng's figure drifted like mist, while Fang Yufei's hooked claws became streaks of silver, lashing toward him.

Lu Xiaofeng spun swiftly, unable to counter, and in the blink of an eye, they exchanged countless blows.

"Fang Yufei has studied Lu Xiaofeng's martial arts extensively—he's left Lu Xiaofeng with no chance to strike back."

Han Mei of the Three Friends of Winter remarked.

"No, right now, Flying Jade Tiger holds the advantage—but he keeps missing, only exhausting his own momentum."

Gu Song countered. "Lu Xiaofeng, though he seems to be darting about without attacking, is gathering power. When he strikes, it will be earth-shattering."

People at this level could perceive far more than ordinary eyes could see.

Han Mei watched, then sneered. "Even you can be wrong." In that instant, Han Mei drew his sword and thrust it toward Lu Xiaofeng's back as Fang Yufei pressed him!

Attacked from front and back!

No retreat possible!

But in that split second, Lu Xiaofeng moved like lightning—two fingers pinched Han Mei's sword, his body twisted, then released. The blades of Han Mei and Fang Yufei clashed, their momentum colliding—and Han Mei's sword pierced Fang Yufei clean through.

The outcome stunned both Han Mei and Fang Yufei.

In this affair, Fang Yufei and Han Mei had conspired together as allies. Even if the situation shifted suddenly, they were not alarmed—both their martial skills were enough to kill Ku Zhu and Gu Song.

But Lu Xiaofeng was too unpredictable.

Or rather, the greatest variable was that "Bluebeard" had spoken his dying words—plunging everything into chaos.

Fang Yufei turned his head toward Bluebeard's corpse and saw, to his shock, that the body and chair had somehow moved to the corner, Bluebeard's eyes still wide open, unblinking in death.

Gu Song and Ku Zhu immediately demanded Han Mei's reason.

"I'm old. I've lived long enough. I finally want to take one last gamble—to become the sect leader."

Han Mei said.

Being old was precisely when one should fight hardest.

"Is there hope?"

Ku Zhu sneered.

"Whether there's hope or not, I won't endure your arrogance anymore."

Han Mei killed himself.

Gu Song and Ku Zhu remained silent, staring at the dying Fang Yufei, the victorious Lu Xiaofeng, and Fang Yuxiang beside them, ready to die with him… They planned to kill them all.

Lu Xiaofeng sighed deeply. "I know. I can't run either."

Gu Song and Ku Zhu sneered. "We've heard you, Lu Xiaofeng, can use the Left-Right Mutual Combat technique. How does it compare to Gu Qing's?"

Gu Qing, atop the Purple Forbidden Peak, used Left-Right Mutual Combat to fight Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng to a draw, making his name famous—and sparking countless imitations and debates.

Gu Song asked this to find out: can Lu Xiaofeng alone block two swords?

Lu Xiaofeng shook his head. "I alone cannot block two swords. Only Gu Qing could."

"Where is Gu Qing?"

Gu Song said.

"Gu Qing has always been here!"

As Lu Xiaofeng pointed, Gu Song and Ku Zhu were stunned by something utterly impossible, defying reason—something that chilled even their old bones.

"Bluebeard" had returned. He rose from the chair and walked slowly into the hall. Fang Yuxiang, who had murdered him, had already pulled out her suicide handkerchief—but now, seeing "Bluebeard" approach, she froze in terror.

How could "Bluebeard" come back to life?

"What are you?"

Gu Song barked. He did not believe this resurrected "Bluebeard" was Gu Qing.

"I suppose I'm the boss of the Black Tiger Hall now."

"Bluebeard" stroked his chin. "After all, your earlier deduction that I was the boss made perfect sense." In this world of Lu Xiaofeng, the boss of any gang often played the mystery game—many members didn't even know who their leader was.

As long as Gu Qing impersonated well, he could easily take control of the Black Tiger Hall.

(End of Chapter)