Chapter 625: Capture the Bandits

As several of them spread out to infiltrate different areas, it was just a quarter hour before midnight.

Benshan Yousun had just sent his eldest and third sons to the harbor with men, while he and his second son stayed behind at home to deal with Pan Yun and the others.

He turned around and said: "Call everyone together—ambush at the second courtyard!"

Benshan Yousun claimed he would let her stay in his main courtyard—that was obviously impossible.

He disguised another courtyard near the main one as the main courtyard, claiming it had been prepared for her; who could say otherwise?

At this time, Japanese architecture was unlike Great Ming's, with clear distinctions between main and secondary structures; instead, it was scattered in clumps here and there, and ordinary people might truly fail to tell them apart—but Pan Yun and the others were Daoist Priests, and don't Daoist Priests know how to read qi?

In the eyes of a true Daoist Priest, where the master of a residence lived was something one could see at a glance, wasn't it?

So, right after Benshan Yousun escorted them to their quarters, Pan Yun decided that night to wipe them all out.

She hadn't wanted to do this—it was all their fault.

Pan Yun sighed.

The sigh exploded in Benshan Yousun's ears; his eyes widened and he shouted: "Who? Who sighed?"

Pan Yun stepped out of the darkness and waved to him: "Good evening, Lord Benshan. It was me sighing—sorry for startling you."

Benshan Yousun immediately gripped his sword hilt: "You—you're here? When did you arrive?"

Pan Yun: "I just arrived. I intended to have a heart-to-heart with Lord Benshan, but my heart is like the bright moon in the sky, while yours is turned toward the gutter."

"You…"

Before he could protest, Pan Yun flashed forward, appearing instantly beside Benshan Yousun, reaching out to seize his throat—when a sword stabbed diagonally from the side; she snatched her hand back with a hiss and stepped half a pace backward.

The sword was extremely fast—just a flash, grazing Benshan Yousun's neck; a strand of his hair fell, drifting gently to the ground.

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow; before the hair even touched the ground, her hand shifted direction and shot toward the right-front with a swish.

A gray-clad youth, who had been hidden beside Benshan Yousun, utterly unnoticeable, leaned back as he thrust his sword forward.

Pan Yun grabbed the blade—and with a crack, snapped it clean in half before everyone's stunned stares.

Pan Yun smiled lightly: "This must be Lord Benshan's second son? Indeed formidable. Shall we continue?"

Only then did they realize Benshan Yousun was now in her grasp—her left hand clamped around his throat; as he moved, she tightened her fingers, and his face instantly turned purple.

He struggled to pry her fingers loose, but she didn't budge; Pan Yun even taunted the gray-clad youth, who had retreated into the crowd, with a raised eyebrow.

Just as Benshan Yousun felt he was about to suffocate, Pan Yun loosened her grip slightly, letting him gasp for air.

Benshan Yousun went limp, clutching her wrists as he panted desperately, looking at her with pleading eyes: "Master Pan, it's a misunderstanding—everything's a misunderstanding."

"I agree," Pan Yun smiled. "That's why I'm willing to give you a chance to clear up the misunderstanding. Could Lord Benshan invite Chōsokabe Motochika and Ichijō Taro to your residence for a chat?"

How did he know about Ichijō Taro?

Benshan Yousun's legs went weak; he quickly glanced at his second son.

The gray-clad youth vanished instantly into the crowd.

Benshan family retainers moved swiftly, adopting postures of wanting to rush forward and rescue their master but daring not to.

Pan Yun chuckled softly, gripped Benshan Yousun's throat, lifted him up, and swung him like a club—smashing him into the group.

Benshan Yousun flew sideways, knocking down five or six men—but before they could react, Pan Yun vanished from the spot; with a series of thuds, every remaining standing man collapsed to the ground.

Benshan Yousun rose, clutching his neck; Pan Yun was already gone.

A warrior with the highest martial skill clutched his chest and shouted: "Master, she's chasing Lord Waka—she's too fast!"

No sooner had he spoken than a dark shadow arced through the air and crashed to the ground with a thud.

The retainers who had just begun to rise saw the gray-clad youth lying there and immediately dropped flat, limbs spread, pretending to be unconscious.

Benshan Yousun watched his finest son fall so utterly, and his face turned instantly pale.

Pan Yun walked slowly from the darkness, stopping before him, looking down at him for a long moment. As his fear deepened, she smiled gently and said: "Lord Benshan, what are you afraid of? I merely feared your second son might have taken the wrong path, so I invited him back to reunite with you. Families should be whole, shouldn't they?"

Benshan Yousun, terrified, blurted out faster than his mind could think: "You—you don't come closer! Your ship is ours, your cargo and people are in our hands!"

Pan Yun frowned, displeased: "Lord Benshan, how can you do this? I treat you with sincerity, yet you threaten me?"

Benshan Yousun trembled, furious—this woman was shameless; what kind of sincerity was this?

Pan Yun sighed: "Never mind. Since this is your first offense, I'll forgive you. Then… I'll take your people and occupy your house. Perfect—one for one. No extra punishment."

With that, she picked up Benshan Yousun and his unconscious, outstanding second son and went to find Xue Shao and the others.

Xue Shao and the others had smoke bombs and moved quickly.

The Benshan estate was scattered, but the people were clustered together.

Servants lived ten or more to a room; wives and concubines all resided in one courtyard—easy to drug.

The male retainers had mostly been gathered by Benshan Yousun—either just knocked out by her or sent to the harbor; the rest were maids and elderly servants.

Xue Shao and the others dealt with them easily—blow the smoke, tie them up, no effort at all.

Benshan Yousun saw his mother, wife, concubines, and youngest son and daughter all bound and dumped on the ground; a chill filled his heart, and he regretted it bitterly—he shouldn't have invited Pan Yun to stay in his home. He should've let her stay at Chōsokabe Motochika's villa, where only Chōsokabe's servants lived—they couldn't have taken hostages even if they tried.

Benshan Yousun forced back his tears, eyes red, and asked Pan Yun: "What do you want? I'll give you anything. Please spare me and my family."

"Easy," Pan Yun smiled. "Lord Benshan, wait a moment—I'll bring my other two friends, and then we'll discuss compensation."

With that, she handed them over to two brocade-clad guards to bind them.

"Stay here and guard them. I'll be right back."

Xue Shao: "Don't we need to help?"

Pan Yun shook her head, smiling: "These people are far inferior to pirates. You don't need to help."

Besides, they'd already prepared for the big ship.

Trying to storm the ship won't be easy.

Pan Yun grabbed Pan Xiaohei and sprinted toward the harbor.

Her lightness skill was excellent; soon she saw the harbor ablaze with fire.

Pan Yun couldn't be bothered to run back to the ship, so she simply charged at the screaming people from behind—one palm strike per person, one kick per pair—knocking them out cold or kicking them flying, stripping them of any fighting ability in an instant. (End of chapter)

【60】 She didn't bother running to the ship—instead, she charged from behind at the screaming men, one palm strike downing each, one kick sending two flying, knocking them unconscious or hurling them away—immediately stripping them of combat ability. (End of Chapter)