Chapter 544: Clues Emerge

Someone is attacking!

Lu San's heart tightened; he gripped his bone club.

These things are visible—not yin spirits—and they make no heartbeat; they're all animated corpses controlled by someone.

The Shu Prince's Mansion… the Chengdu underworld…

Which side is coming after them?

Lu San didn't have time to think further; his ears twitched as he heard voices coming from Sha Lifei and Wang Daoxuan's rooms—he finally relaxed.

Then, he exploded into motion.

Crash!

He smashed straight through the window and leapt out, shouting at the top of his lungs: "Something's attacking! No one from the escort bureau comes out!"

What Lu San said was carefully chosen.

He said "something," not "people."

He specifically warned the escort bureau men not to come out.

But people often don't believe the truth—especially these escort masters, who already held ill will toward them.

Hearing the noise, they grabbed their weapons and charged out.

"Friend outside, which path do you follow?"

"Fool, look at what that is?!"

The night sky was clear, the moon bright—so the things clinging to the wall were plainly visible.

Cold dread surged from their hearts, making their scalps tingle.

"Watch out!"

"They're animated corpses!"

These escort masters had long handled esoteric escort missions; they had some discernment and immediately recognized the things on the wall.

They weren't jiangshi—they were animated corpses.

These animated corpses usually died recently; their flesh hadn't rotted or stiffened, and due to lingering attachments from life, yin-sha qi gathered to reanimate them.

They were far more agile than jiangshi and would chase after blood qi to attack, but they were still flesh and blood—ordinary people could kill them with swords.

So the escort masters were startled, but reacted quickly: some threw ropes, others grabbed iron claws.

They'd dealt with such things before.

As long as you restrained their movement, hacked them to pieces with blades, then burned them, you could eliminate them completely.

"Fool, scatter!"

But Lu San saw this and cursed aloud.

These were animated corpses, yes—but would the enemy send ordinary ones to attack?

But it was too late.

Swish!

One escort master had already thrown a rope; it spiraled through the air, snaring the head of an animated corpse and dragging it down from the wall.

At the same time, two other escort masters swung their blades.

Plop!

Blade light flashed; black dust scattered.

The two escort masters were directly engulfed by the dust; they screamed, clutching their necks, faces turning purplish-red as if gasping for air, blood pouring from all seven orifices as they died.

"Poisoned! Fall back!"

The escort masters hurriedly covered their noses with their sleeves and retreated.

Yet the animated corpses stirred, crawling on all fours like beasts, leaping down from the wall.

Seeing this, Lu San quickly shook his bone beads, formed a hand seal, and muttered incantations nonstop to expel evil.

"Huh! Huh!"

The animated corpses were disturbed, reeling and staggering, crashing left and right, rolling on the ground.

At the same time, Wang Daoxuan pushed open the door.

He was already clad in Daoist robes, holding a cash coin sword, stepping the Gangbu, the sword tip carrying a yellow talisman that ignited without wind, tapping it on the animated corpse's head.

Crack!

The animated corpse collapsed instantly, motionless.

These animated corpses had been infused with vast amounts of poison powder through dark arts—they couldn't be handled by brute force; one touch would trigger an explosion.

But for Wang Daoxuan, it was effortless.

The cash coin talisman sword could expel evil and dispel sha qi, directly scattering the poisonous qi.

Seeing this, Sha Lifei hurried forward to assist.

He didn't use weapons—instead, he grabbed a rope and used the Red Fist grappling technique, flipping his hands to bind the approaching animated corpse.

Pop! Pop! Pop!

The two worked in tandem; animated corpses kept falling.

But Lu San did not advance.

He held his bone club, eyes sharp as he scanned the surroundings, ears twitching—then suddenly turned and drew a steel stiletto from his waist, hurling it.

Shhh!

A whistling sound, followed by a scream.

On the rooftop behind, a black-clad man had just raised his head—he was instantly pierced through the skull and fell to the ground.

But at the same time, two more black-clad figures appeared, wielding hidden weapons, aiming to strike the fallen poisoned corpses.

Boom!

Before they could react, the rooftop exploded—tiles flew everywhere, and a pair of massive hands dragged them into the room.

It was Wu Ba—he yanked them inside, slammed them hard to the ground, shattering their breastbones and rupturing their organs.

"Roar!"

After killing the two, Wu Ba roared again, crouched low, and smashed straight through the wall.

Outside the mansion, in the alley, a Daoist was setting up an altar, faint candlelight flickering along the blue stone pavement, several small coffins placed on the ground.

This man was the dark cultivator controlling the animated corpses.

His art had been broken by Wang Daoxuan; the small coffins on the ground now cracked open, and he sat on the ground, clutching his chest, spitting blood.

Besides the attacker, two bodyguards stood nearby, both dressed in black night attire, wielding eight-foot-long spears.

Wu Ba bursting through the wall startled them.

These two reacted instantly, shaking their spears—one struck high, one struck low.

The alley was narrow; their spear techniques resembled a waterfall of blades, and with the spear's reach, they could easily force an opponent back.

Too bad they faced Wu Ba.

Wu Ba's massive feet slammed down, his heavy frame like an elephant crossing a river—ground trembled underfoot, a ferocious aura surging forward.

Whoosh!

His massive battle-axe roared through the air, shattering one man's spear, then spinning to cleave into his chest.

Blood sprayed; the man's upper body was split open.

The other spearman's scalp went numb.

He wielded the Yang Family Rain of Pearls Spear—he had entered the Hidden Force realm and was considered formidable anywhere.

But he'd never seen such an unreasonable, brutal fighting style.

He tried to pull back his spear and flee—it was too late.

Wu Ba's massive body hurtled forward; his left arm whipped back, snapping the spear with a crack, then his massive palm slammed out.

It was the Eight Extremes "Facing Wind, Facing Sun Palm."

Anyone with even a shred of sense, seeing Wu Ba's build use this technique, would immediately retreat to avoid its sharp edge.

But this man, whether in skill or reaction speed, was far inferior to Wu Ba—he was directly struck on the head.

Boom!

A dull thud; his head was literally slapped off, his headless body gushing blood as it collapsed.

This was Wu Ba's combat style.

His physical gifts were extraordinary; his fighting style was brutal, like an old bear entering a chicken coop—each time, he left behind a scene of utter chaos.

"Spare me!"

The sorcerer, terrified, wet himself, legs trembling, screamed, and raised his hands.

In the end, he felt a sharp pain at his ankle—he was lifted upside down by Wu Ba, carried back into the courtyard, and tossed onto the ground.

Inside the courtyard, the battle was already over.

With Sha Lifei's help, Wang Daoxuan easily destroyed all the poisoned corpses; the remaining attackers had all fallen to Lu San's flying needles.

The only survivor was this sorcerer.

The escort masters of Shunyuan Escort Bureau stared, dumbfounded.

They were seasoned Jianghu hands, but faced with this, they prioritized survival—retreated into their rooms, cautiously responding.

But these people? They cut through them like melons and vegetables—no pressure at all. Is this what the Twelve Zodiacs are like…

Looking at Wu Ba, drenched in blood, radiating killing intent, several escort masters swallowed hard and involuntarily stepped back.

Often, people make the mistake of judging things they've never seen through the limits of their own understanding.

They merely traveled around Chengdu, escorting goods.

They called themselves men of the Jianghu, but what one usually saw were the lower ranks.

The Twelve Yuan Chen have recently become quite famous in the Sichuan Jianghu.

But no one had ever witnessed their true strength, and since Sha Li Fei and his men were courteous, they had underestimated them.

No wonder Wang Biao's head was so courteous to these people…

What they didn't know was that what they had seen today was far from the true strength of Wang Daoxuan and his group.

After all, Sha Li Fei didn't even bother to draw his firearm.

Not a single mistake in word, tone, content, or intent!

"Speak—who sent you?"

Sha Li Fei kicked the sorcerer down, drew his Guanshan knife, and pressed the blade against his throat, asking coldly.

"Spare my life, let's talk reasonably…"

The sorcerer was drenched in cold sweat, his eyes darting nervously.

"If you won't speak, then don't!"

Sha Li Fei wasted no words; he tightened his grip and slashed a bloody gash across the man's neck.

The best way to extract testimony is not through torture, but to strike while the target is panicked, shattering their mental defenses.

"Don't! I'm from the Shu Prince's Mansion!" the sorcerer cried out urgently.

Sha Li Fei and Wang Daoxuan exchanged a glance—neither was surprised.

Although they had been harassed by the county authorities, stirred up by the Shu Prince's Mansion upon arriving in Guan County, they had never directly met.

Yet the "Wuxiang Young Master" had personally visited them and knew of their connection to Shunyuan Escort Agency.

If the Chengdu underworld had launched an attack, they wouldn't have sent only this few men.

At that moment, Wang Tianzuo also approached, still weak, and asked coldly: "You've come to trouble me, haven't you? Why?"

The sorcerer clenched his teeth. "We're looking for Lu Laohei. Before he died, he visited you—we want to know if the item is in your possession."

Wang Tianzuo narrowed his eyes. "What item?"

The sorcerer fell silent for a moment. "We don't know either—we were merely following orders from above."

He finished pleading: "Brother, we're all just trying to make a living in the Jianghu. We're only doing someone else's bidding—please show mercy…"

Before he could finish, his eyes widened in terror, as if he had seen something horrific; his body trembled violently, veins bulging on his face.

Puff!

He suddenly spat a mouthful of blood and collapsed, dead.

Wang Daoxuan frowned slightly, stepped forward, pulled back the man's clothing, felt his chest, and shook his head. "It's a jujube pit curse."

Upon hearing this, Wang Tianzuo's eyes blazed with fury; he gritted his teeth, voice trembling with grief. "The Shu Prince's Mansion is pushing us too far!"

Our Huangling Sect once discovered an ancient coffin from the Wu Yan Kingdom, and the Shu Prince's Mansion ambushed us, nearly sparking a conflict with the Iron Buddha Temple.

But we couldn't challenge the Shu Prince—we could only swallow this humiliation.

Now, after coming to Guan County, our closest friend has been murdered, and now they're targeting us—leaving us no path to live.

At this moment, Wang Tianzuo truly wanted to storm their mansion and fight to the death.

Yet he looked around at the shaken escort guards, then remembered his family in Chengdu; he sighed and bowed respectfully. "Thank you all for your help. This place is dangerous—I must leave tonight."

"Don't speak such nonsense."

Sha Li Fei smiled and shook his head. "We have no ties, but you still need to survive in Chengdu—this matter isn't suitable for you to get involved in."

"Better to leave early—the rest is our responsibility."

Wang Tianzuo sighed and said nothing more, only bowed deeply, then ordered: "Pack up—we leave tonight!"

The escort guards readily agreed, quickly grabbing their pre-packed luggage, wrapping their fallen comrade in straw mats, and slipping out stealthily.

Wang Tianzuo had many connections in Guan County; he didn't use the city gate, but went to a nearby carriage inn, paid some silver, and exited through a secret passage.

The passage's exit lay beside the river.

They dared not take the land route; instead, they boarded several fishing boats and, under cover of night, floated downstream along the river.

Only after leaving Guan County far behind did the escort guards finally breathe easier.

"Boss."

Lao San hesitated, stepped forward, and whispered: "I spoke without thinking—please don't take it to heart."

"You're right."

Wang Tianzuo glanced toward Guan County and sighed. "They say the older you are in the Jianghu, the more timid you become—we've got families to protect, and we can't afford to lose."

He stared blankly into the distance, falling silent.

At that moment, he felt the urge to retire…

…………

In Guan County, inside the Shunyuan Escort Agency's mansion.

"Master Dao, should we retaliate?"

After the escort guards left, Sha Li Fei asked.

"No."

Wang Daoxuan mused: "The Shu Prince's Mansion's intelligence is wrong—they don't know we're here. They're probably all outside the city."

"Focus on the main task. Let's move to a new lodging. Tomorrow morning, we'll go out to gather information—finding the reincarnation of Erlang Zhenjun is more important."

"Don't forget—the Shu Prince's Mansion can still command the county authorities."

"True."

With a plan in place, the group immediately left the mansion and hid in an abandoned house in the eastern part of the city.

As Wang Daoxuan had predicted, shortly after they departed, the Guan County authorities sent a large squad of yamen runners, torches in hand, surrounding the Shunyuan Escort Agency mansion.

But all they found were scattered corpses.

"Search!"

"They're still in the city!"

After consulting the black-clad man beside him, the Guan County constable shouted orders, torches raised, knocking on every door, interrogating every household.

They searched all night, found no leads, and returned to the yamen in frustration.

Such a commotion naturally sent the county into panic.

The next day, the streets were noticeably emptier.

The Guan County Magistrate, eager to please the Shu Prince's Mansion, dispatched more yamen runners to patrol every street corner, stopping strangers for interrogation.

"Stop! What are you doing?!"

"You! Come here!"

The officials were as fierce as tigers; the common folk trembled in fear.

"Damn it, a bunch of dog servants!"

From a second-floor window in a distant inn, a burly man with a scarred face spat through a crack, then turned and bowed. "Gentlemen, rest assured—if you're friends of Boss Wang, we've got your back, no questions asked!"

The speaker was Hou Xuan, a local Jianghu big shot in Guan County and the man who had helped Sha Li Fei and his group gather information these past days.

"Thank you."

Sha Li Fei, already familiar with the man, cut straight to the point: "Brother Hou, we'd like to know—did anything major happen in Guan County thirty years ago?"

Hou Xuan frowned. "What do you mean, Brother Sha?"

Sha Li Fei prompted: "Has any renowned Jianghu master suddenly vanished? Or has any wealthy family suffered a tragedy?"

Hou Xuan thought for a moment. "I don't know what you're seeking, but thirty years ago, there was indeed a strange incident."

"Oh?"

Sha Li Fei's eyes lit up. "Please go on."

Hou Xuan sat down, sipped tea, and spoke in a low voice: "Few people know about this."

"Have any of you heard of the 'Ghost Opera Troupe'?"

(End of Chapter)