Chapter 437

The moment An Ziyang and Mei Qinghe reunited and stepped into the outer city, two gazes were cast upon them; after clearly seeing the Embroidered Uniform Guard official robes on them, they pulled their gazes away as if struck by electricity.

"He's here... he's here!"

"And her, and her too!"

In a dilapidated house on the side of the street, the man and woman who spoke looked at each other, their eyes filled with indescribable fear.

These two were among the dozen or so people who had helped carry the coffin last night.

After the Emperor arrived last night and went on a killing spree, all the Ordinary Jianghu people present were wiped out, except for these dozen or so. After An Ziyang explained the situation to the Emperor, these people were left where they were, and the Emperor took Li Miao back to the palace.

But once An Ziyang left, these dozen or so people became at a loss.

To tell the truth, the act of carrying the coffin last night, except for the woman who started it who truly felt a sense of shared grief, most of the others were just looking for an excuse to leave the capital. An Ziyang saw this and had the intention of letting them go.

But Gao Ming and Liu Jin, who arrived later, along with other Ordinary Jianghu people, wanted to find out the situation from them. Thus, these people were bewilderedly coerced into the outer city and kept there through a mix of coaxing and threats. Because they were not from any famous sects and recognized An Ziyang and Mei Qinghe, they were sent to the perimeter to keep watch.

Returning to the present.

The two recognized An Ziyang at a glance.

The man gritted his teeth.

"You keep watch here; I'm going to notify the seniors!"

Having said that, he stood up to leave. He had turned halfway when his sleeve was pulled from behind.

"No... think about it again..."

The woman said in a trembling, low voice.

"Should we... go out and see Commandant An..."

The man stopped abruptly, turned his head, and scolded angrily.

"Have you lost your mind!"

"No, no... I just realized something..."

The woman argued, bracing herself.

"Do we really have to be enemies with the imperial court, do we really have to stand on the opposite side of the court... Think carefully, Commandant An didn't kill us last night; we could have left, but we were coerced here by others, and now we have to keep watch for them..."

"Our lives are owed to our sect, not to some Ordinary Jianghu peers! If we go out and surrender now, and if we can use this to extricate ourselves from this matter, that is the righteous path to preserve our lives and our sect!"

The woman spoke with genuine sincerity.

The man, however, looked at her with disdain.

"You've been scared out of your wits, so you want to use the lives of your Ordinary Jianghu peers as a token of surrender! What face do you have to call yourself a member of the righteous Ordinary Jianghu path!"

The woman also argued, stiffening her neck.

"Who is the Ordinary Jianghu? Where is the Ordinary Jianghu? Where is the righteous path, can you see or touch it! The one who spared my life is a mortal enemy, while those who forced me to stay and sell my life, and might even implicate my sect, are my peers?"

"I want to use these so-called Ordinary Jianghu peers as a price to preserve my own sect, yet you, by being enemies with the court today, are using the lives of your own sect to fulfill your own principles! Who among us is the evil one!"

The man stepped up in front of her, not yielding an inch.

"You are a sycophant; we walk different paths and cannot work together!"

The two confronted each other, their hands already gripping their weapons, staring at each other's vital points.

"Villain!"

"Hypocrite!"

"Poisonous woman!"

"Go to hell!"

Each shout was louder than the last, and their weapons were gradually drawn.

"Die!"

"Die!"

Blades and swords were unsheathed!

The two who had been lurking and keeping watch together a moment ago now struck with lethal intent, stabbing at each other's vital points!

At this very instant!

"You two should pick a time and place to argue; shouting so loudly, do you take me for a deaf man?"

A mocking, roguish voice suddenly rang in their ears.

Both were shocked and looked toward the side at the same time.

An Ziyang had appeared outside the window at some point, leaning on the window frame, one hand tucked into his robe, the other picking his ear, his head tilted as he looked at them with a smile on his face.

Seeing them turn back, he flicked his fingers in a relaxed manner.

"Finished arguing? Do me a favor."

"Take me to see these Ordinary Jianghu peers you speak of, how about it?"

Both were struck dumb with fear. The woman had already intended to surrender and knew An Ziyang must have heard their conversation, so she wasn't overly terrified now, just afraid.

But the man had lost his earlier bravado.

His legs were shaking, and he was on the verge of fleeing.

His face was deathly pale, cold sweat poured down, and his teeth chattered, but he couldn't utter a single word.

After a long while, the woman broke the silence.

"My lord, I... I will take you—"

"No."

An Ziyang shook his finger.

"I don't need you."

He pointed at the man.

"I like 'heroes'; I want him to take me."

"As for you, crawl back to your sect. You are not allowed to step foot into Shuntian Prefecture again for the rest of your life, and you are not allowed to mention what happened these past few days to outsiders, otherwise..."

An Ziyang narrowed his eyes at her.

The woman had a sudden flash of inspiration and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

She kowtowed three times, then threw her weapon on the ground and fled through the door as if flying.

Only the man remained in the room.

His face was covered in cold sweat, and he dared not move or speak.

An Ziyang straightened up from the window frame, turned, and walked into the room, stopping in front of him to look him up and down.

"Hero, why aren't you speaking?"

"Weren't you quite eloquent just a moment ago?"

An Ziyang moved behind him.

"Different paths cannot work together, sycophants? That was truly deafening, making this Commandant feel a sense of respect... Why not turn around and slash at me, to fulfill your principles?"

He moved back in front of him.

"You wouldn't be afraid, would you? Surely not."

An Ziyang reached out, drew the long blade from his waist, placed it in his hand, tilted his head, and offered his neck, tapping it with two fingers.

"Come on, slash right here."

"Slash, and you will be a righteous Ordinary Jianghu hero. Not just you, but your teachers, peers, parents, relatives, and friends will all become 'righteous Ordinary Jianghu heroes' along with you. Isn't that good?"

"Slash?"

Mei Qinghe walked to the side with her sword, staring coldly at the man.

An Ziyang tapped his own neck.

"Why aren't you slashing? Can't reach?"

"It's fine, this Commandant will lean forward a bit more."

He pressed forward another step, offering his neck under the blade's edge.

"Can you reach now?"

"Don't say this Commandant didn't give you a chance. I'll count to three, just three."

"One."

"Two."

"Three!"

Slap!!!

An Ziyang backhanded the man across the face, the powerful true energy of the Wedding Dress Divine Art erupting, sending him flying with a mouthful of broken teeth, crashing to the ground.

An Ziyang stepped forward, grabbed his hair, and lifted him up.

There was no courage left in the man's eyes, only overwhelming fear.

An Ziyang looked at him for a moment and burst into laughter.

"It seems you aren't as heroic as you thought."

"Now, can you take me to find your Ordinary Jianghu peers?"

(End of chapter)