Chapter 582: Swift as Lightning

This arrow did not strike a vital spot; only a spray of blood could be seen. The man screamed miserably on the ground. The people in the courtyard were at a loss, and those on the outer edges had no idea what was happening. Everything descended into chaos.

A few flickering points of light could be seen flying in around the courtyard's perimeter, soon followed by a dozen more. Jiang Dacheng found he could not lower his raised head. He felt his entire body stiffen, his throat constrict so tightly he could not even cry out.

The shrieking sounds grew dense, and miserable screams erupted. Another twenty-some people fell. Now everyone knew arrows were being shot at them. The courtyard fell into complete chaos. Everyone scrambled for cover, but with so many people crowded together, how could they scatter in such a panic? Roars of fury, startled cries, and weeping mingled together, like a pot of boiling porridge.

Jiang Dacheng stood on the steps, a slightly elevated spot, so no one had come near him for the moment. His whole body trembled as he finally came to his senses. His imposing, fierce demeanor had vanished. This was no private brawl; this was war. Jiang Dacheng suddenly realized—it had to be that group from Xuzhou.

The moment he realized it, he raised his eyes and saw two figures standing on the rooftop of the building across the street from the martial school. They wore dark clothes and held large bows, drawing and aiming right at him. At least, he guessed they were drawing and aiming, because he stood in the light while they were hidden in the darkness, their forms blurry and unclear.

Everything happened in a flash. Jiang Dacheng realized he was being targeted by bows, yet he felt as if he had returned to his childhood, the first time he encountered a snake, frozen in place by its gaze, his whole body unable to move.

"Master, dodge!" a disciple shouted. Only then did Jiang Dacheng snap out of it and immediately tried to duck and shrink back. But the courtyard was a chaotic mess, and no one had the attention to spare for him now. Before he could move, someone crashed into him, knocking him off balance and slowing his reaction by half a beat.

A whistling sound rang out as an arrow shot toward him at high speed. As the master of a martial school, he was a formidable fighter and still managed to twist his body aside in that split second. The arrow aimed at his throat was narrowly dodged, but while he evaded the vital spot, he could not avoid the rest. The arrow struck his shoulder blade, making him howl in pain and freezing his movements.

Another "Thwip" sounded. This time, Jiang Dacheng had no time to dodge. A feathered arrow nailed into his forehead, and Jiang Dacheng collapsed stiffly to the ground.

By now, no one had any attention to spare for Jiang Dacheng. Fire arrows shot from an unknown location continued without pause, arcing into the courtyard, some landing on rooftops and walls. The crowd in the courtyard had simply been too large earlier; they collided and shoved in chaos, unable to hide even if they wanted to. Every arrow that fell brought casualties.

After roughly four volleys of arrow rain, those in the courtyard were either dead or had fled indoors. Many others huddled against the walls, some even using corpses as shields, all of them terrified and in shock. But at last, the arrows stopped.

"Master is dead! Master is dead!" Several of Jiang Dacheng's disciples wailed, their hearts torn with grief.

Before their cries could even finish, a thunderous "Bang!" sounded from the ajar main gate as it was smashed open. Dozens of masked, burly men in black, wielding long-handled sabers, charged inside.

These masked men did not waste words after storming in. Whenever they saw someone blocking their path, they simply hacked with their blades. Though there were plenty of people inside the martial school, none had thought to grab weapons at this moment. How could they possibly withstand these saber blows?

Miserable screams rang out, fresh blood sprayed, and another round of death and injury followed. There were some unwilling to be slaughtered, however. Weapon racks lined the courtyard walls, stocked with an array of long and short arms. Some men grabbed weapons from the racks and prepared to advance with furious shouts. But at that very moment, arrows whistled again. Anyone who picked up a weapon was shot dead.

By this point, even the most clueless person understood: aside from the fire arrows arcing in from afar, there were also archers on nearby high ground aiming into the courtyard. They were now nothing but meat on the chopping block.

All resistance vanished. Fighting in the courtyard was impossible; it was death either way. Escape was the only priority. Some fell to their knees, weeping and kowtowing. Even more people fled toward the buildings. Once inside the main hall and rear courtyard, the arrows could no longer reach them, and they could escape through the back door.

Once they moved, they realized they had made the right choice. That gang of burly men only fought in the courtyard and did not enter the main house at all, not even stepping onto the steps. People fought and shoved each other even more fiercely to get in. Getting indoors meant safety.

The masked saber-wielding men came swiftly and left just as fast. After dozens lay in pools of blood in the courtyard, these men did not pursue, nor did they pay any attention to those huddled and trembling in the corners. Instead, they let out a whistle and quickly withdrew through the front gate, even closing the main gate behind them as they left.

A quick-witted person hurried a few steps forward, wanting to open the gate and see where the attackers had gone. The moment he poked his head out, another arrow shot down. This time, no one dared to move at all.

The wails and miserable screams could be heard several streets away. Some of the fire arrows that landed on rooftops and walls fizzled out, while others ignited. But no one dared to move, and they could only watch helplessly as the flames grew larger and larger.

Many people escaped through the back door. It took roughly half a shichen for the people of Jiang's Martial Academy to realize the attack was over. Only then did neighbors begin to rush over to help. The streets and houses in Qingjiangpu were far too crowded and dense; a disaster in one household could easily spread to the adjacent ones.

As they extinguished the fires and carried away the bodies and wounded, the people of Jiang's Martial Academy learned that masked intruders had suddenly entered many neighboring homes during the night. They had given them silver and copper coins to keep quiet, then ordered them either to stay inside with their doors shut or to climb onto their rooftops.

At Jiang's Martial Academy, it was not just their own people who suffered; those who had come to show support and make connections from various factions also sustained heavy casualties, both inside and out. Yet many also survived. Any thoughts of inciting the martial school to fight the Xuzhou men had long since vanished like smoke. Anyone who wasn't a fool could guess exactly how tonight's attack had come about.

These Xuzhou men were truly ruthless. They either did nothing, or they struck with thunderous force!

But the burly men who came in to kill were all masked, and the archers' positions could not be seen. Even if reported to the authorities, it would be a case without leads. Given the Xuzhou men's dominance, even with solid evidence and witnesses, winning a lawsuit would be uncertain, let alone in a situation where they had nothing.

Many places in Qingjiangpu went sleepless that night. Those who had harbored sinister intentions were now trembling in fear.

The "Six Ears Den" was the fourth-largest gambling house in Qingjiangpu, but its actual scale and standing were even higher, because they accepted any bet and any collateral.

Gambling dens were legitimate businesses that entertained guests from all walks of life, so they naturally operated under the watchful eyes of the authorities and had to show some restraint to avoid making things difficult for everyone. But the Six Ears Den had a different style of doing things. As long as a deal was profitable, whether it involved stolen goods, women, or children, they would appraise it all. The same went for collateral—they never asked about its origin. If you dared to bring it out, they dared to take it.

With such a rule in place, the gallant men of the outlaw world from around Qingjiangpu and even farther afield all liked to visit the Six Ears Den regularly for a few rounds of gambling. Though they rarely won much, they managed to sell off all their stolen loot, making it a deal that pleased everyone.

Dealing with these bold men from all corners of the world required serious martial prowess. The Six Ears Den employed the largest number of guards among all the gambling houses in Qingjiangpu and had even recruited several desperate, highly skilled fighters.

Running such a business also required official backing. Originally, they had relied on a private secretary from the Revenue Department's branch office. Later, when that secretary was transferred along with his superior, the Six Ears Den smoothly curried favor with a clerk from the Penal Section of the Prefectural Administration Office. Business had always been booming, and the den's owner, Dou Tianfeng, was respectfully addressed as "Sir."

When the Cart Gang had contacted various parties for a gang fight against the Cloud Mountain Cart Company, Dou Tianfeng had not gone in person, but he had sent all of his own guards. Having operated on the outskirts for a long time, he naturally understood the weight of a Liaison Ambassador and saw this as an opportunity to curry favor.

Unexpectedly, despite so many people going, they ended up suffering a crushing defeat. Several of his guard captains were also saddled with "enormous debts" and taken away.

To "repay the debt." Now that the Xuzhou group had arrived, they certainly wouldn't just quietly do business. They were bound to reach their hands into every trade in Qingjiangpu's underworld and marketplace. Dou Tianfeng understood this perfectly, but he was unwilling to accept it. Deep down, Dou Tianfeng felt that the Xuzhou people were all country bumpkins, not fit for the big stage. What right did they have to call the shots in Qingjiangpu? Moreover, he felt that with the Cart Gang collapsed, he might have an opportunity to rise.

Dou Tianfeng had money, the Dou family behind him was a powerful clan in Andong County, and he had official connections. Why couldn't he rise?

What Dou Tianfeng hadn't expected, however, was that the Penal Section clerk, usually bold and ruthless, had backed down, merely advising him to be cautious. Dou Tianfeng, however, felt it was worth a gamble. Public sentiment in Qingjiangpu was currently agitated, with undercurrents surging. The Xuzhou men's momentum had suddenly weakened, presenting a golden opportunity. If he could seize the moment and rise, even without the clerk's backing, he might even be able to ingratiate himself with an even higher-ranking patron.

That was the idea, but for them to step forward and fight the Xuzhou barbarians directly was out of the question. Conveniently, Jiang's Martial Academy was making a big stir, so Dou Tianfeng sent men to make contact. Having someone willing to be pushed to the forefront was a good thing. Dou Tianfeng had also vaguely heard that other restless parties were making similar calculations.

The calculations were perfect, but no one expected something like this to happen tonight. It was truly a bolt from the blue. The Xuzhou men were actually so overbearing, possessing such ruthless methods. Hearing the news that came through, Dou Tianfeng felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss, frozen from the inside out.

Dou Tianfeng was a man of some experience, and he knew that tonight's slaughter was not the method of the underworld. What gang fight in the underworld ever used dozens of bows, started silently, struck suddenly, and then withdrew calmly? Jiang's Martial Academy had been thoroughly crushed and bathed in blood, and no one even had a clue who did it.

All of Qingjiangpu could guess it was connected to the Cloud Mountain Cart Company, but no one could produce a single piece of evidence or a single witness. They could only speculate.

Facing such a formidable enemy, he had still wanted to step up and even dreamed of reaping some benefits. Wasn't he grossly overestimating himself? Dou Tianfeng thought, trembling with fear. He did not sleep a wink all night and ordered his men to tighten security.

Thank you to the two old friends "Mu Ming" and "Yuan Heng Li Zhen" for your tips, and thank you all for your subscriptions and monthly tickets. It should be a short holiday now; I see all the data metrics have dropped, and quite alarmingly so.