"What a heavy rain."
Pushing open the door, Liu Ye looked out at the lightning and thunder flashing across the night sky. He watched the rain cascading like a waterfall, his brows furrowing tightly as he pulled his clothes tighter around himself.
He then turned to the servant who had come to deliver the message.
"Are you certain my little brother Wang went to the Red Phoenix Tower and bedded a hundred women in just a few shichen, completely ruining their business?"
"Master, it is absolutely true!"
The servant hurriedly swore an oath. "The man is simply too incredible. No one in the tower is a match for him. Right before I left, even Miss Feng had to take the field herself."
"How bizarre..."
Liu Ye was completely baffled. Counting the days, it had been less than half a month since he gave the Iron Ox Art to the kid. How could he have achieved perfection in such a short time?
How many times a day was he training?
Could his body even handle it?Even so, Liu Ye dared not delay. Grabbing his bamboo hat and coir raincoat, he leaped straight into the rainy night, sprinting toward the Red Phoenix Tower.
However, he only made it halfway before he realized something was wrong.
Looking ahead, he saw a signal arrow rocketing up from the direction of the Red Phoenix Tower. It trailed a bright streak of fire, blinding against the curtain of rain.
"Hmm!?"
Liu Ye's expression shifted. That was the established signal for the County Yamen bailiffs. Seeing it now meant it was announcing one thing to everyone:
"The White Lotus Sect rebel has been found!"
"He's at the Red Phoenix Tower!"
Almost simultaneously, responses flared up across Longxing County's inner and outer districts. Figures darted through the torrential downpour, rushing toward the Red Phoenix Tower with near-fanatical zeal.
"Catch him! Catch the rebel!"
"A hundred liang of silver... nobody is stealing that from me!"
"Get out of my way!"
Such a massive commotion naturally did not escape Xie Shi, who was currently hiding inside the Red Phoenix Tower. He saw the signal arrow as well, and his expression drastically shifted.
'Not good! The County Yamen has spies in this place!'
In an instant, Xie Shi's eyes turned red with mounting resentment. He never expected his identity to be exposed so quickly.
He had thoroughly disguised himself!
How could this happen?
'Damn it. I can't stay here. I have to find a way out first and escape the eyes of these black-clad dogs... Those accursed spies, they better pray I don't find out who they are!'
Xie Shi's mind raced, but his actions were decisively swift. Raising his hand, he threw out a palm strike that swept up a dozen people around him, viciously smashing open the main doors of the Red Phoenix Tower. He then mixed into the tumbling crowd, sprinting out into the rain. He hoped to use the chaos to obscure their vision and increase his chances of escaping alive.
If he had been at his peak, this tactic would have worked flawlessly.
But right now, he was severely injured. His footsteps were much heavier than before, and he couldn't cover his tracks at all. Almost instantly, the pursuing bailiffs spotted him.
"The third from the left is the rebel!"
"Don't let him get away!"
Rumble!
Under the pouring rain, muddy water surged into the air. Invisible saber qi caught the rain, transforming into a wave of blade light that chopped straight toward Xie Shi's chest.
At almost the same time, over a dozen crossbow bolts tore through the air, sealing off nearly all of his room to maneuver. The arrowheads glinted with a dark, armor-piercing light and were coated in a deadly poison. Even the slightest scratch would instantly strip away his combat strength, reducing him to a lamb waiting for slaughter.
'Damn it! If my Fine-Scale Armor were still here...'
Xie Shi furrowed his brows tightly. Had Chen Haoyan's arrow not pierced his protective inner armor earlier, scattering its scales, he wouldn't even need to dodge these bolts.
Alas, a tiger descending to the flatlands is bullied by dogs.
Therefore, he had no choice but to stop in his tracks. Stretching his right arm back behind his shoulder like drawing a bowstring, he thrust his palm fiercely out toward the incoming bolts.
"Bang!"
As the palm shot forward, a gale erupted. A remarkably distinct palm print materialized within the curtain of rain. Wherever it pushed past, the turbulent force shattered and snapped every single bolt.
Then, the palm print collided with the initial wave of blade light. The resounding crash overlapped with the thunder above. Rolling surges of qi detonated blossoms of water in the rain. Yet, in that very instant, amid the splashing water drops, a lotus suddenly bloomed.
Plain Moon Lotus Blade—flowers bloom with a single thought!
The flying knife hid beneath the downpour, flashing by in the blink of an eye. By the time the crowd noticed it, the blade had already swept across the throat of a participating bailiff.
"Pfft!"
A head hit the ground. A mist of blood sprayed into the sky, dyeing the surrounding rain a blinding crimson and adding the very first tang of gore to the encirclement.
"Everyone, step back! Don't clash with him head-on! Pin him down with stray arrows!"
A bailiff shouted from the shadows. The County Yamen bailiffs primarily relied on Yama's Three Demon Sabers and didn't temper their skin and flesh, meaning their attacks were strong, but their defenses were lacking.
Unfortunately for them, Xie Shi's flying knife foundation was superb. His Plain Moon Lotus Blade had reached perfection and was bolstered by an Art of War. Coupled with the fact that hidden weapons were inherently hard to track in the dark, anyone lacking defensive skills could easily be killed in a single strike. Rather than rushing in with sabers to fight for their lives, it was much better to skirmish from a distance with crossbows.
"This rebel is heavily injured. He can't throw many more knives!"
"He has no horse and is on foot. Drain his stamina with the crossbows first! Force him to dodge and block! Once he runs out of energy, we go in and chop him to pieces!"
Shouts echoed one after another.
Faced with such an organized formation, Xie Shi—who had just displayed tremendous might in hopes of intimidating his pursuers—felt his face darken. He was struck with both shock and fury.
'These dogs... they have far too much experience!'
There was no denying that this tactic perfectly targeted his weakness. In his current state, if this dragged on, he really might be worn down to death.
However, he was a veteran rebel. He had faced desperate situations a dozen times before. Realizing his predicament, he acted with absolute resolve. Planting his feet right where he stood, he drew in a deep breath and raised his palms. His slightly pale face instantly flushed scarlet like he was burning with fire, and his entire body abruptly swelled three cun taller.
Immediately after, he exhaled and roared:
"Kill!!!"
Rolling, thunderous soundwaves churned up visible ripples in the rain. At the same time, Xie Shi kicked off the ground with explosive force, riding the shockwave as he charged toward an alleyway.
With this split-second eruption, he had clearly unleashed a secret technique, temporarily casting off his heavy wounds to replicate the martial might of his peak External Arts Perfection. Wherever his figure passed, an overwhelming force exploded outward time and time again, knocking down every crossbow bolt that neared his body.
"Trying to leave?"
Right then, a figure abruptly appeared beside Xie Shi. The man didn't draw a saber; instead, he extended a long, ape-like arm, clenched his five fingers into a fist, and delivered a heavy punch.
Boom!
With an explosive crack, a fist print tore through the rain, carving a prominent trajectory. Striking with flawless precision, it slammed through the air right into Xie Shi's spine.
"Hundred-Step Divine Fist!?"
Xie Shi seemed to recognize the martial art behind this strike. He coughed up a mouthful of blood on the spot, feeling as though his spine had been pulverized, yet he dared not stop moving.
The next second, rather than slowing down, he used the propelling force of the punch to burst out of the encirclement even faster. He smashed through several walls along the way, kicking up clouds of dust that blended with the downpour, until he finally vanished from the sight of all the hunting bailiffs.
"Liu Ye, you old dog... It's you or me until the bitter end!"
Xie Shi's hateful voice mingled with the torrential rain and was quickly drowned out. However, as the one who delivered the blow, Liu Ye showed no trace of joy.
"He didn't die from that?"
The old bailiff pulled a bitter face, but his feet didn't slow in the slightest. He gave chase directly in Xie Shi's direction, clearly unwilling to let the man go.
After all, while he might not have the guts to fight to the death, he definitely had the guts to kick a dog while it was down.
A lot of guts.
The two played a game of cat and mouse, fleeing and pursuing across nearly half the county town. Throughout the process, the despair in Xie Shi's heart grew increasingly intense.
'I can't escape...!'
'That old dog Liu Ye has too sharp a nose! He must have cross-trained in some unranked martial arts. His tracking skills are too good—I can't shake him off!'
What should he do?
Xie Shi frantically wracked his brain for a countermeasure. But right then, beneath the hazy curtain of rain, a figure suddenly intruded upon his line of sight.
Wearing a black-and-red uniform and carrying a saber at his waist... A bailiff?
He looked... quite young, and a bit familiar.
Perfect timing!
Xie Shi's eyes lit up. He stomped down heavily, pushing his speed up another notch as he sprinted toward the young bailiff, intent on taking him as a hostage.
'Even if he can't be a hostage, I can use him as a meat shield and toss him at that old dog Liu Ye! He'll be forced to dodge, and that'll buy me the chance to escape...'
While he calculated, the young bailiff's figure grew clearer and clearer. Xie Shi tore through layers of driving rain, arriving right in front of the man in just a few breaths.
At the same time, Liu Ye closed the distance from behind.
His martial arts were superior to the heavily injured Xie Shi, and his eyesight was better. Thus, even from afar, he saw through the rain and spotted the newcomer with a single glance.
In an instant, Liu Ye's pupils contracted violently.
He instantly recognized the young bailiff Xie Shi had targeted. It was Wang Ping! But shouldn't he be locked in fierce combat with a horde of women at the Red Phoenix Tower?
Why was he here?
In that spark of time, Liu Ye had no room to think. He could only scream, "Dodge! Quickly!"
Despite his words, he sighed softly in his heart.
'It's too late.'
What level of martial arts did Xie Shi possess? Even heavily injured, he wasn't someone an ordinary martial artist could deal with, let alone a rookie bailiff who hadn't even mastered the basics.
He was dead for sure.
Given the ferocious and cornered madness Xie Shi was exhibiting, dying might actually be lucky. If the kid survived, he would only suffer worse agony.
Meanwhile.
Facing the rapidly approaching Xie Shi, Wang Ping's mood was unprecedentedly calm. His body felt light as a feather, completely devoid of any fear or tension.
'Xie Shi, Senior Brother Xie... I've missed you to death.'
In all fairness, Wang Ping held no grudge against Xie Shi. However, in his current role as a bailiff looking to climb the ranks, he was in dire need of an excellent stepping stone.
For Xie Shi to appear at this time was truly a godsend.
A bloody clash in the county town, a rebel dying a violent death... Just hearing it sounded incredibly pleasing to the ear!
'What's going on!?'
In that very instant, Xie Shi seemed to sense something as well. A piercing, bone-deep pain suddenly flared at the center of his brow, and an intense sense of crisis violently erupted within him.
This was also a White Lotus Sect secret technique, capable of sensing good and ill fortune. It was exactly because of this technique that he hadn't been instantly killed by Chen Haoyan's arrow that night. Now, it was as if he had returned to that very night, seeing that unrivaled arrow and the suffocating vision of his own death once more!
'Is it that old dog Liu Ye? Can his Hundred-Step Divine Fist strike from this far away?'
Xie Shi's eyes turned bloodshot. He felt as if the stinging spot between his eyebrows was about to split open, cleaving him straight down the middle. Extreme terror morphed into explosive rage.
Trying to kill me? Keep dreaming!
With that thought, Xie Shi ignored his rapidly failing body. Stimulating himself with the secret technique once more, he shoved aside his injuries and forced out every last ounce of strength he possessed.
Boom!
The massive explosion even drowned out the thunder in the night sky. Churning waves of water blasted outward from Xie Shi through the downpour, signaling the rampage of an unparalleled, godlike strength.
In that moment, a muffled, drum-like thud abruptly echoed from within Xie Shi's chest. At the same time, visible beads of crystalline blood-sweat seeped from every pore on his body, rolling down to merge with the rain. This was proof of how violently his power had erupted after pushing his blood and qi circulation to its absolute limit!
'I'll escape in the shortest time possible, at any cost!'
Xie Shi surged forward with all his might, planning to grab the young bailiff before him, hurl him at Liu Ye, and then seize the opening to throw an all-out flying knife.
'I'll let the flying knife pierce straight through this young bailiff's chest. That will be the ultimate surprise.'
Xie Shi calculated in his mind. Although he was reaching out to grab the young bailiff, his attention was no longer focused on him, but locked onto the pursuing Liu Ye behind.
Crash—!
Heavy rain. Gale-force winds. Two men.
Only at this moment did Wang Ping finally raise his eyes. The image sensed by his spiritual awareness overlapped with what his naked eyes saw, perfectly reflecting Xie Shi's vicious face.
Rather than retreating, he advanced.
"Clang!"
He drew his saber from its sheath.
Every motion flowed like drifting clouds and flowing water; every motion seemed guided by the divine. Yet, it was all entirely compressed into a single instant, making it impossible to trace the process.
Thus, in Xie Shi's eyes, he merely saw the young man before him mimic drawing a blade. Instantly, the gleaming tip of a saber dominated his entire field of vision. The three blade intents of greed, anger, and ignorance struck directly at his soul, causing his life to flash uncontrollably before his eyes.
'It's the King of Hell's Summons!?'
This was the Art of War manifested only upon reaching perfection in Yama's Three Demon Sabers. It was claimed that "with one blade in hand, Yama walks," signifying the delivery of a death summons on behalf of the King of Hell himself.
But that wasn't even the most terrifying part.
The most terrifying part was what happened after the bailiff slashed out with this blade—the sonorous ringing of the saber that erupted across his entire body, vibrating from the snap of his massive tendons in resonance with the weapon.
It was an incredibly bizarre sound—melodious and drawn out, faintly merging into one with the torrential rain.
'A dragon's roar... True Dragon Tendon!?'
Rumble!
The blade light flashed. The center of Xie Shi's brow finally stopped hurting. His sense of crisis vanished entirely, leaving behind nothing but endless void and thoughts fading into tranquil silence.
In a daze, he once again looked at the other man's face.
This face was indeed very familiar. Just a bit older. If he were a bit younger... Hmm?
Xie Shi's pupils suddenly shrank. Despite hovering on the brink of death, he actually experienced a moment of terminal lucidity, staring at the person before him in sheer disbelief.
It was him!?
That mole sent by the County Yamen? The little junior brother who didn't even know martial arts, the one who was ultimately abandoned by his master and Xie Shi himself?
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
He wanted to roar in fury, but he was utterly powerless to do so. The fleeting spark of lucidity quickly extinguished, and the image before his eyes plummeted into total darkness.
"Thud."
A single figure, split cleanly in two, collapsed onto the ground. Blood poured out like a ruptured dam, blending seamlessly with the torrential downpour.
D-dead!?
Liu Ye, who had been hot on his heels, stopped in his tracks, somewhat dazed. He stared at the young bailiff standing in the rain, leaning on his saber, and couldn't snap out of it for a long while.
That was until the young man raised his head and chuckled softly at him.
"Master Liu, rest assured. You don't need to hide."
"There's a heavy rain tonight. Perfect for washing the blade."