Chapter 132

An Ziyang carefully descended into the secret passage, pressing against the wall and moving forward slowly.

There was no firelight in the secret passage; it was pitch black. He dared not use any light, so he could only grope his way forward.

His feet never left the ground, sliding along the surface to guard against traps.

Suddenly, he felt his toe touch something.

An Ziyang crouched down and swept the ground with his scabbard.

Ding, ding, ding.

The faint sound of iron.

An Ziyang swept those objects to the wall, holding his sword in his left hand and feeling the wall with his right, trapping the iron objects between them to gauge their size and shape; he cursed inwardly.

"Damn it, iron caltrops! It would be all over if I stepped on those."

"Don't know if they're poisoned... can't touch them."

An Ziyang carefully crouched down, sweeping the ground with his scabbard as he moved forward.

After walking over ten zhang, the scabbard no longer hit anything. An Ziyang, still uneasy, tied his belt to the scabbard and swept the ground as he walked.

After another ten zhang or so, An Ziyang felt the door at the end of the secret passage.

Firelight faintly leaked through the crack in the door.

He didn't open the door, but instead pulled a hairpin from his robes.

Come to think of it, this was a gift he had bought for the Ming Cult's disguised head courtesan; since he hadn't given it to her, he had kept it in his robes ever since.

An Ziyang inserted the hairpin into the door crack and slid it down slowly.

Sure enough, he hit a silk thread.

"There's a mechanism behind the door."

An Ziyang sighed softly.

Ever since they went underground fifteen years ago, the Ming Cult had grown accustomed to working in the shadows. Naturally, they would have taken precautions in advance.

If he broke this mechanism, he would certainly alert the Ming Cult members inside. But if he didn't break it, he couldn't get through the door.

His thoughts raced, and An Ziyang clenched his fists.

"Can't delay, I have to take a gamble."

He stood up straight, straightened his clothes, ruffled his hair, cut his arm with his sword, and smeared some blood on his face. He then took a small bag from his robes, clutched it in his hand, and swallowed a pill.

After these preparations, An Ziyang cleared his throat, his expression suddenly turning panicked, his voice trembling as he pounded on the door.

"Someone! Help!"

"It's a disaster! That man is attacking!"

Voices suddenly erupted from inside the door, but they were muffled and rustling, and An Ziyang couldn't hear them clearly.

Then, he heard footsteps approaching the door.

"Who is it?"

"What time is it, and you're still testing me! We don't know each other's identities within the banner, do you think I'd know you if I said it!?"

An Ziyang's voice trembled, but his hand was firmly gripped on his sword hilt.

He knew a bit about the Ming Cult's affairs; in the past, when martial artists or the Embroidered Uniform Guard captured disciples of the Thick Earth Banner, they never knew the identities of the other disciples. Although he couldn't be sure if this applied to the people inside, he had no choice but to gamble.

Fortunately, the person inside didn't argue; after a moment of silence, they asked.

"What's the matter?"

"What's the matter!?"

An Ziyang said urgently.

"Didn't you hear the commotion above?"

"That fierce man is attacking! I received orders to come and evacuate with you!"

"Disarm the mechanism and let me in to talk!"

He didn't know who Li Miao was, but judging by the reaction of the man disguised as his father and Li Miao's words, the Ming Cult members should all know who Li Miao was. So he used "that fierce man" as a substitute.

The person was silent for a while, then actually disarmed the mechanism and pulled the door open.

An Ziyang walked in quickly, scanning his surroundings with his peripheral vision, feeling a secret joy in his heart.

"Only four people. I have a chance."

The Ming Cult member who opened the door glanced at him, then frowned, staring fixedly at An Ziyang.

"You are An Ziyang."

"Bullshit!"

An Ziyang cursed angrily.

"You know how we took over the An family. If we weren't up there putting on a show, would you even have a place to slack off here!?"

"An Ziyang is already dead; I slept with him for half a month and figured out all his habits. He's useless!"

Without waiting for the man to answer, An Ziyang continued urgently.

"No time to argue with you now, pack up, kill everyone, and leave quickly!"

"Can't you hear the commotion above!? An Wenjie's face didn't fool that man, and they're already fighting! Ninety percent of the people above are dead, and we can't hold them off anymore!"

"Go, leave now. The An family people have seen our faces, we can't leave them alive! Kill them and go!"

His words became increasingly urgent, and the few men looked at each other, also revealing a hint of panic.

An Ziyang didn't know who Li Miao was or what he had done, but they knew very well.

The Cult Leader had already left, and no one here could survive Li Miao's hands.

Although they were loyal to the Ming Cult, who would want to die if they could avoid it?

However, just as they were panicking, they didn't notice An Ziyang quietly moving his feet to stand among them.

Suddenly, one of them was startled and looked up at An Ziyang.

"Something's wrong! You—"

Swish!—

Before he could finish, An Ziyang flicked his hand, and a sky full of white powder shot out, reaching their faces in an instant.

"!!!"

"Poison!"

The men immediately raised their hands to cover their mouths and noses, but they didn't expect that when the powder reached their eyes, they would suddenly feel a searing, stinging pain.

"Lime powder!"

One of them exclaimed.

They never expected that An Ziyang, the dignified "Young Master Lingxu," would use such low-class street thug tactics!

And they had actually fallen for it!

The men drew their weapons and swung them around, trying to block An Ziyang's attack. At the same time, they listened for sounds, intending to attack together if anyone cried out.

Even if An Ziyang killed one of them, the three remaining could combine their strength to seal off An Ziyang's movement space, even without sight.

The four men swung their weapons in the dust for a while, but they didn't wait for An Ziyang's attack at all.

A short while later, the lime powder gradually dissipated, and the men spat and rubbed their eyes, barely scanning the surroundings with blurred vision.

"Where is he?"

"Oh no! He went to save the An family!"

"Chase him!"

The men reacted quickly and ran toward a secret passage together.

"Cough."

Just as they opened the door and prepared to enter the secret passage, a cough came from behind them.

"Many thanks, gentlemen. I know where my father is being held now."

The four men turned around abruptly, only to see An Ziyang stepping out from a corner, looking at them leisurely with a smile.

"You! You tricked us!"

One of them shouted angrily.

"So what if you tricked us?"

One of them sneered.

"You're only a second-rate martial artist, do you really think you can kill the four of us and then go save your father?"

One of them slowly walked to An Ziyang's side, surrounding him.

"Ah, yes, that is indeed what I'm thinking."

"And, haven't you felt anything wrong with your bodies yet?"

An Ziyang was not panicked at all, smiling gently.

The men were shocked and immediately checked their internal circulation.

The series of events just now happened too quickly, and their minds were led everywhere by An Ziyang, so they hadn't noticed.

Now that they checked, their expressions changed instantly.

"How is it? Does your anus feel burning hot?"

An Ziyang laughed heartily.

"Is your heartbeat slowing down, your hands and feet turning cold, a metallic taste in your mouth, and your circulation starting to stagnate?"

"You, you!"

One of them pointed at An Ziyang, but before he could finish, blood spilled from his mouth.

"Half lime powder, half Tang Men secret pill poison. This small bag costs three hundred taels of silver, and I never leave home without it. No antidote, death in a few breaths."

"When I threw the powder, your first reaction was definitely poison, so you covered your mouths and noses, and your eyes had to eat the lime powder."

"Once you knew it was lime powder, you took your sleeves away, and then you had to eat the Tang Men pill poison."

"I've been wandering the Jianghu since I was twelve, and now that I have money and time, how could I not have the means to deal with a few poor wretches like you?"

Before An Ziyang finished speaking, the men collapsed to the ground, twitched a few times, and lost their breath.

An Ziyang breathed a sigh of relief, stepped forward to finish each of them off with a sword, and then walked quickly toward the secret passage they had been rushing toward.

"Father, I'm coming!"