Chapter 149: Openly and Brazenly Unleashing Poison

Chen Wuji waved his hand, "What are you afraid of exposing? Just replace it openly and boldly; I'll not only replace it, I'll watch from the side. The Shopkeeper of this place doesn't even know that mugwort floss has insect‑repelling properties; he'll just give a casual order to try it once, never replace it after a piece of mugwort floss has burned out."

"Prepare some damp cloths; once the mugwort floss is replaced, the nose and mouth must be sealed tightly. Don't let the stupid thing happen where everyone collapses before we even get a chance to act."

"Got it, you be careful." Qin Zhanhong said.

After kneading the mugwort floss, Chen Wuji lifted the wooden tray and, with obvious confidence, walked to the first‑floor hall.

Unsurprisingly, a faint mugwort smoke drifted through the air.

Chen Wuji glanced at the night‑watch waiter sleeping with his head in his hands in the hall, and in one breath lit seven or eight clumps of Bewildering Fragrance‑infused mugwort floss in various corners.

Before leaving, he thoughtfully woke the hall‑waiter.

"I've lit some more mugwort floss, you don't need to worry about it. I knew you guys would never take this seriously, so I came down especially to check."

Chen Wuji feared that his covert lighting might be discovered and cause other misunderstandings, delaying the main matter.

He simply shouted the waiter awake, explained everything clearly, then in front of him lit the Bewildering Fragrance on the second floor.

Anyway, with the previous conversation between him and the Shopkeeper, the waiter wouldn't suspect anything.

Once the smoke spread, even if he felt something, there would be no more chances.

The drowsy hall‑waiter, eyes barely open, looked at the meticulous Chen Wuji with a speechless expression.

"Sir, you don't need to run any more. If it burns out, I'll relight it." The hall‑waiter said weakly.

"Remember to relight, not just say it. With so many insects, aren't you afraid centipedes or scorpions will crawl onto you while you sleep?" Chen Wuji lectured, swaying the mugwort floss in his hand as he headed to the second floor.

The hall‑waiter was truly frightened by Chen Wuji's words and hurriedly checked himself.

Scorpions are rarer, but centipedes and geckos often crawl all over the walls.

Chen Wuji replied with a sound, then hurried up to the fifth floor.

Next, it was time to let the bullet fly for a while.

In the utmost silence, time drifted slowly.

Chen Wuji sat at the doorway, constantly listening to any sounds from below.

The entire Tavern was very quiet.

So quiet that only a few rooms on the fourth floor emitted faint, languid sounds.

The Bewildering Fragrance should affect the third floor, but the fourth floor is almost untouched.

"Why do I feel a little dizzy? Did you put the mugwort floss in the wrong place?" Qin Zhanhong walked over, lightly supporting Chen Wuji's shoulder with his right hand, and whispered.

"No." Chen Wuji shook his head, smiled lightly, "Listen, the people on the fourth floor are still exercising, how could that affect you on the fifth floor?"

"But I really do feel a bit… Never mind, maybe it's the genuine mugwort smoke; the smell isn't pleasant." Qin Zhanhong shook his head, "It's time for the fast ones, is it almost ready?"

"Wait a little longer! The Bewildering Fragrance's potency is strong; it won't dissipate that quickly. Let it linger a bit longer so the doors can sleep more soundly." Chen Wuji said.

"…Okay."

As time slowly passed, the noises on the fourth floor gradually faded, leaving only occasional snippets of conversation.

After another moment, Chen Wuji shook his drowsy head and said in a deep voice, "Act!"

Qin Zhanhong, Yang Tiejiang, and Xiaoyu immediately took the damp cloths Qin Zhanhong had prepared, tied them around their faces, then draped a black cloth over their heads, exposing only their eyes.

"Xiaoyu, be extremely careful!" Chen Wuji reminded the fish again, uneasy.

"Understood, senior brother."

The few of them slipped out stealthily, then went their separate ways.

Chen Wuji, Yang Tiejiang, and Qin Zhanhong rushed straight to the second floor, while Xiaoyu circled to the Tavern's rear courtyard.

The Tavern's Shopkeeper and the servants all lived there.

Even though more than an hour had passed since Chen Wuji lit the mugwort floss, the second floor was still thick with mugwort smoke, tinged with a sweet, osmanthus‑like fragrance.

After all, Bewildering Fragrance isn't just mugwort floss.

Qin Zhanhong led the way, familiar with the layout, and found the second‑floor Moon‑Ding room.

The drunken Eight Immortals' guest rooms are numbered with the four characters "mountain, sea, sun, moon" plus the ten heavenly stems.

Qin Zhanhong crouched at the doorway, listened for a moment, then nodded at Chen Wuji.

Only then did Chen Wuji carefully use the Knife to lift the latch, and quietly pushed the door open.

The room was a large communal bed.

In the dim moonlight, one could only vaguely see a row of neatly aligned heads.

Qin Zhanhong leaned down, identified each head, and placed the Knife on one person's neck.

She found the leader of this caravan.

Yang Tiejiang, seeing this, raised his sword and began to call out the others one by one.

These people were sleeping a little too soundly.

Even with blades at their throats, not a single soul cried out in pain.

"Is this person the Leader?" Chen Wuji asked, stepping beside Qin Zhanhong.

Qin Zhanhong nodded.