Chapter 115

Huang Rong's flying knife drew closer by a fraction, the icy blade almost touching the frozen wound on his arm.

"Explore? Using that deadly black spear to explore?" Huang Rong sneered, her eyes sharp as a blade, "Speak clearly, who is Ye Lao Da? Where is he? Why are you looking for us? If there's even half a lie..."

"If I tell you, will you let me go? I'm just a small lackey!" Wu Laoqi said, trembling.

"If you tell me, I'll let you go, but if I find out you're lying to me..." Li Qingxuan said to Wu Laoqi.

"I dare not, absolutely not!" Wu Laoqi was frightened nearly out of his wits, his speech suddenly sped up, "Ye Lao Da... is, is over a hundred li north of Low Hill, there's a small base; the men are forced labor, the beautiful women are all taken into his harem, the rest are distributed to his underlings... What I just used is my occupational ability... I can create and control shadows... I'm just following orders."

He panted, his murky eyes darting, secretly glancing at Li Qingxuan's spear still flickering with tiny arcs of lightning—the Thunder Pattern Spear—his fear grew greater: "As for why you two are being scouted... I... I only know that a few days ago Ye Lao Da said you have abundant supplies, killing you would yield countless resources, and he also said Li Feifei is unsurpassingly beautiful, not something Boss Li could... so he ordered us to find your location."

Hearing this, Li Qingxuan's eyes turned icy, and he placed his Changqiang across Wu Laoqi's neck.

The icy metal sensation stimulated the frozen wound, Wu Laoqi let out a short gasp, his body jerking backward in a flinch, but the rope bound him tight, leaving him unable to move.

On his forehead, icy water and cold sweat intertwined, trickling down; his face twisted from intense pain and extreme terror, "Ye Lao Da... Ye Lao Da's real name is Ye Xiao!" He almost shouted, his voice broken, "That base... he, he has dozens of desperadoes under him, weapons are excellent, and... there are also a few whose strength is comparable to mine, their attack capability is... quite good."

Huang Rong's eyes showed no wavering, her flying knife remained steadily hovering above his wound, the point's faint blue chill like a snake's tongue. "Continue. How did you find us? Besides you, how many other scouts are nearby?"

"I... I don't know if there are any other scouts coming! I... I was just assigned to this area!" Wu Laoqi panted hurriedly, his eyes bulging from fear, he lowered his head in panic, speaking incoherently, "He, he is determined to succeed! But we were only to find the exact location, get the lay of the land... I... I was just unlucky, I ran into you two..."

"Determined to succeed?" Li Qingxuan's low voice rumbled like rolling thunder; the tip of his Thunder Pattern Spear, the jumping arcs of electricity seemed to sense his mood, suddenly brightening for an instant and emitting a faint crackling sound.

He took a step forward, his tall figure casting a huge shadow in the dim light, the oppressive feeling like a tangible weight completely enveloping Wu Laoqi. "Just him? And his dozens of rabble?"

Wu Laoqi was frightened out of his wits by the sudden surge of pressure and the spear tip's electric light, his whole body going limp. "Ye Lao Da... he, he himself is also very strong! Extremely strong! He... his ability is to control metal! And... he is also ruthless and cruel, his methods of tormenting people..."

He seemed to recall something extremely terrifying, his body trembling violently like chaff in a sieve, unable to finish his words.

Huang Rong snorted coldly, the flying knife at her fingertip turning slightly, its blade almost slicing into the frozen flesh: "How strong he is, we'll find out soon. Now tell me, the exact layout of his base, what abilities his men have? Spill everything, and if anything is omitted..." Her eyes suddenly hardened, "I'll make you know what true ruthlessness means!"

Wu Laoqi met Huang Rong's icy, bone-chilling, killing-intent-filled eyes; the last sliver of hope shattered completely, he collapsed to the ground, as if his bones had been sucked out, leaving only desperate trembling and a sobbing, fragmented confession.

After hearing Wu Laoqi's confession, Li Qingxuan loosened the rope, letting him hurry away, then gave Huang Rong a glance.

Wu Laoqi struggled to his feet, sprinting outward, lamenting that his parents hadn't given him two more legs; but just after taking two steps, a dagger pierced his chest, he turned his head in disbelief at Li Qingxuan and said, "You... you broke your word!"

"I let you go, but she won't, and I can't help it—blame yourself for lacking brains." Li Qingxuan spread his hands, speaking grimly.

Huang Rong drew her dagger, blood spurted out; Wu Laoqi's body shuddered violently, a mouthful of blood foam sprayed from his mouth, his cloudy pupils gradually dissipating.

He staggered, wanting to take another step, but collapsed heavily to the ground, a pool of blood gathering there, gleaming with a dark red cold light under the moonlight.

Li Qingxuan stepped forward slowly, expressionless, his voice low as ice: "Say I broke my word? Don't you know my nickname is the Honest and Fulfilling Young Gentleman?"

Huang Rong watched coldly, shook off the blood, sheathed her dagger, and the Willow Leaf Flying Knife slid silently back into her sleeve.

Li Qingxuan curled his lip in a sneer, kicked Wu Laoqi's gradually stiffening corpse: "Just feed it to the Black Goat, saves us the trouble of finding a grave."

Li Feifei frowned as she stepped forward, firelight flickering on her solemn face: "Qingxuan brother, this Ye Xiao..." Ling'er and Shuang'er hid behind her, small hands gripping the hem of their clothes, their eyes full of alarm.

"He won't last three days." Li Qingxuan flicked the blood from his dagger, slammed the Thunder Pattern Spear into the ground, the tip's electric arcs crackling and exploding, illuminating the frost on his brows: "Dozens of vicious dogs, a tortoise-shell—perfect for killing a chicken to scare the monkeys."

He swept his gaze over everyone, tone firm: "The fortress is yours, Feifei sister. I and Rong sister will go exterminate this bunch."

Huang Rong stood aside, telling Li Qingxuan her thoughts: "Wu Laoqi's shadow tricks are nothing to fear," she rubbed the hilt of her short dagger, "but Ye Xiao's metal control will affect me; I need to find a way to neutralize him first." The night wind lifted the stray hairs at her temples, her eyes' killing intent as cold as a blade.

Li Qingxuan hurled the bloodied corpse toward the Black Goat, coldly saying, "Hurry up and eat, we'll set off soon." He turned and walked toward the gate; the Black Goat let out a low, muffled snort, disdainfully gnawing at the corpse, its hooves excitedly pawing the ground.

"Rong sister," he called without turning back, "get ready—before dinner, level that bandit den."

Huang Rong gave a light laugh, leapt onto the Black Goat's back, her silhouette turning into a swift shadow in the darkness.

The lights at the gate flickered on and off, casting the winding bloodstains and drag marks on the ground into intermittent visibility.

The two walked out of the mist, the piercing cold wind like countless fine ice needles, penetrating their heavy clothing, viciously stabbing into the skin, the frigid air weighing heavily on their shoulders, each breath bringing white frost that instantly condensed on their eyelashes and sideburns.

The Black Goat's heavy hooves trod on the frozen ground, emitting a dull, regular creaking, especially clear in the dead silence of the wilderness.

Huang Rong instinctively shrank her neck, burying her face deeper into her collar, only revealing a pair of eyes sharp as a hawk's, warily scanning the darkness ahead, thinned by the thick fog.

Her fingers in her sleeve went slightly numb, yet she still nimbly rubbed the icy blade of her flying knife; the familiar metallic sensation gave her a hint of control, dispelling the discomfort of the severe cold.

The wind lifted a few stray strands of her hair, brushing across her cheeks, the chill penetrating to the bone.

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