Chapter 50: Unfathomable as Ghosts and Gods

The man in plain clothes, addressed as Daoist Yu, bowed with his hands joined in front of his chest and said:

"I know that you, Martial Recommended Scholar Qin, have suffered some grievances over this past month or so, but there is no news of a withdrawal from the Superintendent yet. If you can endure for a few more days, you will be able to return to normal."

Qin Wuhui said irritably:

"I don't know how much longer this will take! Qingyike has not appeared for such a long time; he must no longer be in Fengyang Prefecture!"

Daoist Yu remained unhurried and calm, saying leisurely:

"That is indeed the case, but the Superintendent's intention is for us to hold out for three more days. If Qingyike has not appeared after three days, we may withdraw from Qin Fu."

"Three days."

Qin Wuhui's face darkened, yet he could not vent his frustration:

"Fine, then I will endure for three more days!"

The Daoist Yu before him was a guest advisor invited by the Jingwu Division from Youxian Temple, as well as a Daoist Arts expert who had already stepped into the Fourth Realm, specifically placed in Qin Fu to deal with Qingyike.

In truth, Qin Wuhui had been fiercely angry and opposed to the situation when he first learned that the Jingwu Division was actually using Qin Fu to make a point and intended to lure Qingyike into assassinating him.

After all, Qingyike had executed the Assistant Prefect Tian Ming and a Protector of the Qinglong Gang in broad daylight before the eyes of the public, and his methods could be called bizarre and evil. Even as a Third Realm Bone Forging Martial Master, he had no desire to provoke such a figure.

However, the Jingwu Division specialized in handling major and important cases, and the Superintendent Suo Helie was an extraordinary bigwig whose authority was such that even the Prefect of Fengyang had no right to interfere. As a mere Martial Recommended Scholar, he naturally could not resist and could only swallow his pride and act as this bait.

And for the sake of capturing Qingyike.

The Jingwu Division could be said to have sent out all their elites during these days. Among the personnel dispatched, not only were there strength-training Martial Apprentices and Tendon Changing Martial Students, but even several Bone Forging Martial Master Colonels had been swapped in as servants and guards in the residence, laying a net of heaven and earth throughout Qin Fu.

Facing Qingyike with such strict preparation, Qin Wuhui had initially been somewhat terrified, not daring to go out at will. He was followed everywhere by the Daoist Yu before him, and his tension was so high that he did not even dare to sleep at night.

But as time passed and over a month went by, Qingyike had vanished without a trace and failed to appear. The tightly wound nerves of everyone in Qin Fu had gradually relaxed, then evolved into irritability.

By now, Qin Wuhui could almost not endure it for a single moment longer; he only wanted to drive all the government officials away as quickly as possible and return to his normal life of indulgence.

"Steward Liu!"

As he spoke, he exhaled a breath of turbid air and called out toward the courtyard:

"Prepare the carriage for me; this master is going to the street to clear his mind!"

As the words fell, a white-skinned, plump middle-aged man over forty appeared at the courtyard gate, his face full of respect as he said:

"Master, do you need me to accompany you?"

Qin Wuhui nodded to show his consent. Steward Liu immediately arranged a carriage and personally attended to his side, riding out onto the street together.

Naturally, Daoist Yu, acting as a personal bodyguard, also boarded the carriage. Besides him, a Jingwu Division Colonel and several subordinates dressed in plain clothes followed secretly along the way to prevent any accidents.

The carriage drove slowly along the main road. In the slightly bumpy carriage, Steward Liu poured tea like a servant, while Qin Wuhui looked at Daoist Yu with slight curiosity:

"Daoist Yu, we will be parting ways in a few days, but I have yet to see much of your Daoist Arts. I wonder, what arts does Youxian Temple excel in?"

Daoist Yu smiled slightly:

"My Youxian Temple is known for the Nightmare Curse and the Flying Star Needle, but it is a pity that Daoist Arts are now in decline and talent is withering; fewer and fewer people know of them."

Qin Wuhui was greatly interested:

"Could you let me see them?"

Daoist Yu smiled slightly: "Of course."

As the words fell, he suddenly turned his head to look at Steward Liu and chanted:

"By the order of the Supreme, let the soul not be lost or tilted!"

Following his gaze and chanting, a strange ripple immediately spread outward. Steward Liu, who happened to meet his gaze, immediately became dull-eyed, sitting stiffly in place like a wooden puppet.

Qin Wuhui was slightly startled and waved his hand in front of Steward Liu, only to see that the other party was completely unresponsive, as if he had lost his soul.

Before he could speak, Daoist Yu explained with a faint smile:

"This is the Nightmare Curse. It can bewilder a person's mind and cause them to fall into deep sleep, nightmares, and hallucinations."

After finishing, he formed a seal with one hand and lightly tapped the center of Steward Liu's brow, immediately causing the other party to return to normal, with an expression of extreme confusion as if just waking from a dream:

"I, what just happened to me?"

Qin Wuhui ignored his question and sighed with some awe:

"These Daoist Arts methods are truly inconceivable. I have learned something new today; I admire you, I admire you!"

"Martial Recommended Scholar Qin is too kind."

Daoist Yu said flatly:

"They are merely trivial tricks. This level of Nightmare Curse can only deal with people of weak will. For a Bone Forging Martial Master like you, it is not difficult to break this technique with your own willpower."

Qin Wuhui pondered: "I have heard rumors that Qingyike might also be a Daoist Arts expert. In your opinion, what realm is this person in?"

The information that Qingyike was suspected to be a Fifth Realm Daoist Arts expert had always been classified and never released to the public; even Qin Wuhui knew nothing of it.

Daoist Yu naturally would not leak this, but said slowly:

"His Daoist Arts cultivation might be slightly stronger than mine, but his ability to create bloody cases and cause a sensation is merely relying on the world's ignorance of Daoist Arts. If he doesn't come, so be it; if he comes to Qin Fu, I have plenty of methods to make him show his true colors."

Regarding Qingyike, who had caused him to lose his freedom for a month, Qin Wuhui was also incomparably hateful:

"It is truly a pity. If that bastard Qingyike hadn't run away, I would definitely have wanted to see him hacked into a thousand pieces and executed by slow slicing!"

As the words fell, the carriage came to a sudden, sharp stop.

Inside the carriage, Qin Wuhui frowned slightly: "What is going on?"

Steward Liu, who was kneeling to serve nearby, immediately pulled open the carriage curtain and poked his head out, preparing to curse, then his eyes narrowed slightly, and he turned back to say in a low voice:

"Master, the mad woman from the Lin Family seems to be in the street ahead."

Qin Wuhui's face sank immediately, and he also pulled open the curtain to take a look. He saw that on the main street ahead, a disheveled woman could be vaguely seen kowtowing every three steps, drawing the bustling crowd to stop and watch.

He immediately said coldly:

"Bad luck, take another road!"

Under the steward's reprimand, the coachman immediately turned around. Daoist Yu also took a look from afar at this time and asked with interest:

"Martial Recommended Scholar Qin, is that mad woman the bait set by the Jingwu Division?"

"Who else could it be but them? To use a madwoman to set a trap, they really have no shame."

Qin Wuhui said with extreme annoyance:

"That madwoman from the Lin Family slanders my reputation on the streets every day. Now, let alone this East City area, I fear the entire Fengyang Prefecture knows that I, Qin, am notorious."

The Daoist did not agree, chuckling in a low voice:

"They are merely lowly commoners, after all. What kind of influence can their gossip possibly have? Once this matter is settled and some time passes, no one will remember it anymore."

Upon hearing this, Steward Liu also sneered:

"Master, rest assured. Once this matter is settled, I will certainly arrange for someone to thoroughly deal with this madwoman so she can never dirty your eyes and ears again!"

"Good."

Qin Wuhui still kept a sullen face and nodded.

However, this chance encounter had ruined his mood, and he did not wander outside for long before heading back to the manor.

After returning.

Drinking tea, practicing Martial Arts, and playing chess with the Daoist—the day passed just like that.

When night fell.

After dining with his three wives and four concubines as well as his relatives, the slightly tipsy Qin Wuhui hugged his buxom concubine and returned to his room after the banquet dispersed.

He reached out with his large hand, just about to strip off the concubine's clothes for a vigorous bout, but she hurriedly stopped him and reminded him coquettishly:

"Master, that Daoist is still in the room next door!"

Qin Wuhui's movements suddenly stiffened, and he waved his hand in extreme disappointment: "Hurry and leave, hurry and leave!"

These past few days, because he was worried about Qingyike showing up, and with the Daoist living in the room next door, he had been unable to sleep with his wives and concubines and was already bursting with frustration.

But no matter how famished he was, he did not have the face to stage a bedroom drama in front of someone like the Daoist.

Seeing his annoyed expression, the concubine giggled and whispered in his ear:

"Master, rest assured. Once they have withdrawn, Xue Mei and I will serve you together, and I guarantee to make you happy and ecstatic."

Qin Wuhui pinched her hard a few times and said excitedly: "Good, I will be waiting for you two!"

Afterwards.

Under her service, he took off his clothes, lay down on the bed, and slowly closed his eyes.

Not long after the concubine left and closed the door, he slowly drifted off to sleep under the slight influence of the alcohol.

And it is unknown how much time had passed.

Qin Wuhui, who had just entered a light sleep on the bed, suddenly gave a start as if he had sensed something, and snapped his eyes open.

However, within his line of sight, moonlight spilled in; the room was empty, dim, and dark, and the doors and windows were all tightly shut, with nothing unusual.

"Strange."

Qin Wuhui, who had woken up for no reason, did not think much of it; he just cursed under his breath, closed his eyes, and prepared to sleep again.

Yet, at almost the same moment, a massive burst of gunfire and sound erupted from the darkness just three feet in front of him!

Bang!

The instant the muzzle flash bloomed, a blood hole suddenly appeared right in the center of Qin Wuhui's brow, and the back of his head was blown away by the massive impact, splattering red and white all over the head of the bed!

Whether one practiced Daoist Arts or Martial Arts, there was absolutely no way to survive being shot in the head; he died on the spot with his eyes wide open in terror, without even a groan.

"Not good!"

And at almost the exact same instant the gunshot rang out.

Just one wall away, the Daoist, who was meditating and cultivating in the next room, suddenly opened his eyes in a wild panic, his figure instantly darting out!

Aside from Daoist Arts, he clearly also possessed Martial Arts; in the span of only one or two blinks, he rushed out of the room, broke through the door and windows, and charged directly into Qin Wuhui's bedroom.

Then, through the faint starlight, he saw Qin Wuhui on the bed with his eyes wide open, pupils dilated, a blood hole already added to his brow, and the head of the bed covered in a bloody, red and white mess!

A Three Realms Bone Forging Martial Recommended Scholar, someone who would take even him some effort to deal with, had just died here.

The smell of blood was thick in the pitch-black room; beyond his shock and anger, the Daoist felt his hair stand on end and his hands and feet turn cold.

Because even while meditating, his mental perception had covered Qin Wuhui's room, and from beginning to end, he had not sensed anyone entering.

Yet, looking at Qin Wuhui's state of death at this moment, it was clear that the person had been standing upright by the bed, and then shot him directly in the head with a Firearm!

But whether just now or at this moment, under his sensitive perception, he had felt absolutely no movement; he could not imagine when the killer had entered the room or how they had left!

"Daoist!"

"Master!?"

At the same time, the massive commotion had spread throughout the entire Qin Fu.

The many elites of the Jingwu Division, who had been lax and just waiting to withdraw, were naturally all alarmed and rushed over from all directions.

The first figure to rush into Qin Wuhui's room moved as swiftly as a tiger or leopard; among them was none other than the Colonel Yu Xianting, who had once suspected Li Junxian.

He held a torch and led his men charging into the main room, and upon seeing the Daoist standing stiffly before the bed and the miserably dead Qin Wuhui on the bed, he was shocked:

"Guest Elder Daoist, what is going on here?"

"Has Qingyike been here?"

At this very moment, under the illumination of the torchlight, the Daoist's face was extremely ugly, and he only spat out three words through his teeth:

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

Another Colonel on duty tonight was also filled with suspicion:

"The Guest Elder Daoist was right next door, how could you not know?"

The Daoist said in a strained voice:

"To tell you the truth, I was meditating in the next room with my mind covering the entire house, but from beginning to end, I never sensed anyone entering or leaving. Even when I heard the gunshot, I rushed in at the first moment, yet I still did not discover anyone leaving."

Everyone's expression changed drastically, struck with horror.

Daoist Yu was a Daoist Arts expert specifically brought in by the Jingwu Division; if even he hadn't discovered any movement, then was this Qingyike a man or a ghost!?

At this moment, a large number of people had already rushed to the scene outside the house; Qin Wuhui's wives, concubines, and even his underage children all hurried over, and upon seeing Qin Wuhui's state of death, they immediately shrieked repeatedly, then wailed to Heaven and beat their chests, questioning everything, falling into complete chaos.

Yet amidst such a chaotic scene, Yu Xianting faintly discovered something was wrong:

"Where is Steward Liu? Why is Steward Liu not here?"

The family members of Qin Fu were immersed in grief and no one responded, while Daoist Yu and the other Jingwu Division officers felt their gazes turn cold, and with iron-blue faces, they immediately rushed toward the place where the steward lived.

As a result, they had just arrived in front of the room where Steward Liu lived.

Yu Xianting kicked the door open first and immediately smelled a thick, bloody stench; after the group entered the inner room and used the light of their torches, they immediately saw the stout Steward Liu lying on the bed in extreme terror, his greasy, thick neck almost entirely severed, his state of death miserable and horrific.

At the same time, on the floor in front of his bed, two lines of familiar blood-red characters were left:

Corrupt and lawless, twisting black and white; raping and plundering, committing countless evils; those who do such things deserve to die!

The one who killed is Qingyike!

Seeing these two lines of blood-red characters, whether it was the originally self-confident Daoist Yu or the dozen or so elites of the Jingwu Division including Yu Xianting, they all felt a chill rush straight to their heads, their blood running cold.

And at the same time.

Just as the entire Qin Fu was in an uproar.

Outside Qin Fu, in a dark alley, a figure suddenly emerged from the ground in a bizarre fashion.

It was Lu Yuan, wrapped from head to toe in a Night Suit.

At this very moment, his face was slightly pale; he took a piece of prepared ginseng from his bosom, stuffed it into his mouth, and consumed it to refine it.

After a moment, he slowly exhaled a breath:

"The Dharma Power consumption for this Earth Travel Technique is truly not small."

That's right.

What he had just performed was the sixth Earthly Fiend Arts, Earth Travel.

【Earth Travel】: Can perform the Earth Walking Technique to escape into the earth, traveling a thousand miles a day.

As the name suggests, this Dharma Technique allows one to escape into the underground like the Earth God in legends of immortals and spirits, move at will, and travel at an extremely fast speed.

After returning from Qin Fu two days ago, Lu Yuan had lit up this technique and mastered it thoroughly; today, he easily took Qin Wuhui's life with it.

Earth Movement Technique + Invisibility + the Firearm obtained from the horse bandits—although it lacked martial honor, it was a first-class assassination technique; Qin Wuhui, a dignified Three Realms Bone Forging Martial Master, didn't even have the chance to resist before he was finished on the spot.

The only pity was that the other party had hoarded countless wealth and possessed a family fortune of ten thousand strings of cash, but because the people from the Jingwu Division were present, he had been in a rush and had no opportunity to loot anything.

As these thoughts turned, the clamor inside Qin Fu was incessant, the wailing shook the sky, drawing the dogs in the surroundings to bark non-stop, and even alarming the neighbors on the street.

And the culprit, Lu Yuan, gazed from the darkness and gave a cold laugh:

"As a cultivator, using a blade or a gun to kill people—this style is strange enough."

"For the next Earthly Fiend Arts, I must choose an offensive Dharma Technique, otherwise, always using blades and guns is a bit lacking in prestige."

As his voice fell, his figure hid in the darkness and disappeared.

(End of this chapter)