Being a Hostage (continued)

Passengers passing by were initially stunned, then screamed and scattered, clearing a space. Several railway police officers quickly surrounded the hostage, anxiously saying, "Don't hurt the hostage!"

Si Ming looked completely bewildered. Who were the hostages? What was going on? Why did everyone look so nervous?

"Geng Guang, you can't escape. The Mohist Knight Guard have arrived. Release the hostage immediately and try to get leniency."

"Bullshit! You're nothing but a bunch of lackeys. You think your grandfather, the Golden Eagle Taisui, will surrender so easily? Dream on!"

The old man kicked over the basket, sending the water chestnuts flying like projectiles. While the train police officers dodged, he seized the opportunity to take Si Ming hostage and run onto the train. However, Lin Qingxiang lightly touched the ground with his feet and moved horizontally, blocking the entrance in advance.

The old man was startled when he saw Lin Qingxiang's Movement Method, knowing that the other party must be a master. Even in a one-on-one fight, he would have little chance of winning, let alone now that he was surrounded. He immediately threatened, "Get out of the way, or this man will be dead."

Lin Qingxiang glanced at Si Ming, who was still in a daze, and said with a complicated expression, "Then go ahead and do it. Don't be shy."

The old man wondered what was wrong with him today; everyone he met was acting unpredictably. He snapped, "Don't think I'm joking!"

He controlled his strength, making a cut on Si Ming's neck, not too deep, not too shallow, just enough to draw blood, to prove that he was indeed determined to kill—at least an ordinary person would have bled.

"Now you know I wasn't joking, right? Get out of the way!"

Lin Qingxiang glanced at Si Ming's neck; there wasn't even a scratch on it, but the knife was already chipped. Now he didn't know whether he should speak up and warn the unsuspecting kidnapper.

At this moment, Si Ming finally snapped out of his shock. He was actually being taken hostage? Was there really nothing wrong with this world? Could it be that the Remote Heaven Society already severed all four Divine Pillar?

He weighed the options in his mind for a moment, then turned to his head and said, "Old man, what crime have you committed? If it's not a crime punishable by death, I advise you to release me quickly. Killing a hostage-taker carries no responsibility; your death is meaningless."

The old man was shocked. He'd never seen a hostage act so arrogantly before. He quickly shouted, "Shut up! Don't move if you don't want to die!"

At the same time, he exerted force with all five fingers, trying to force the opponent to submit with the unique power of the Muscle-Separating and Bone-Dislocating Hand. This martial art is the most torturous, and even a tough man would lie on the ground howling in pain.

Si Ming sighed and said, "You can't reason with a suicidal ghost. Qingqing, just give him a quick death."

The old man's expression changed as he was shocked to find a young girl standing behind him without his noticing. Just as he was about to react, the girl struck him squarely on the back with her palm. He felt a surge of heat rush into him, as if his blood was being boiled. His mind went blank, and he was sent flying, falling unconscious in mid-air.

Si Ming glanced at the old man and saw that the Yan Jin had attacked his heart meridian and he was obviously beyond saving. Although he had said "give him a quick death", Liu Qingqing's actions were ruthless and so clean and efficient that it was still somewhat beyond his expectations.

Thinking about it carefully, none of the girls around me are the kind of saintly type who "can't bear to kill." For example, Hongdou doesn't care much about human life. She seems like a naive and innocent girl, but in reality, she doesn't care about things that don't concern her. Murong Qing's benevolence is only used on the innocent. She doesn't even flinch when killing villains. As for Yu Shuying and Si Jingyu, it goes without saying. Even Si Huaruo, who is closest to a normal person, doesn't hesitate to take action when necessary. She received leadership education from a young age that "a merciful leader cannot command an army."

In comparison, the only person who "sweeps the floor for fear of harming ants and cherishes moths by covering lamps with gauze" is the boy Murong Wu.

Of course, Si Ming wouldn't criticize Liu Qingqing for being too ruthless. If you're not ruthless to your enemies, are you supposed to be ruthless to your own people? It's best to keep your distance from those guys who shout "murderers also have human rights."

Lin Qingxiang walked over and said, "Is this your reasoning?"

Si Ming wasn't going to show any weakness. He snorted twice and said in a tone that seemed to have been expected, "I already knew who this person was. I deliberately told you that to avoid you giving anything away. Besides, I could tell at a glance that this kind of vicious fugitive would choose to take hostages and fight to the death once he sensed that he was in danger of being exposed. In order to protect the safety of innocent people, I decided to play along and take on the dangerous role of a hostage."

Lin Qingxiang said blankly, "What you said makes so much sense, I'm almost starting to believe you."

"What do you mean 'almost believe'? The facts are right before our eyes! No passengers were injured, and the criminal was easily apprehended. This is all thanks to my intelligence."

At this moment, a train police officer walked over. Si Ming assumed he was there to take a statement, but considering the mission he was on, he didn't have time to waste any more. Just as he was about to take out his Mohist Knight Guard identification, the officer looked up and said, "Your reasoning process is all correct and reasonable, but the final result is just too ridiculously wrong."

Who else could it be but Chen Xiangduan?

"We're government officials, so using our official identities as cover is the most appropriate thing to do. But you guys are too capable! We've already said that the key to this mission is secrecy, and you've already caused such a commotion. We need to act quickly, or we'll be in trouble if the target gets wind of it."

Chen Xiangduan stepped forward and dismissed the train police officers with a few words, then quickly left with Si Ming and the others.

"The target of this trip is 'Six-Fingered Formless' Mi Haichao. To be honest, I never suspected him before. In his youth, he was known for his chivalry and chivalry, and he was also skilled in poetry, prose, music, and composing. He reached the Nascent Spirit Transformation in his sixties, a late bloomer indeed. After that, he settled down and stopped traveling the world. However, he was a kind and charitable man. He couldn't bear to see the poor and sick and would generously give them money. He was famous for his charity work, and there are at least eight hundred to a thousand people who have received his help."

Si Ming, "The Remote Heaven Society is not the kind of evil organization that commits crimes in the traditional sense. They are only focused on severing the Divine Pillar and destroying the Eternal Barrier. At least so far, we haven't seen them interested in anything else. A kind and charitable person is a member of the Remote Heaven Society, and the two are not contradictory."

Chen Xiangduan smiled and said, "That's right. It's inherently difficult to define people's hearts using a simple binary of good and evil. It's just that Mi Haichao achieved success late in life and retired from the martial world early on. He rarely got into fights and was essentially in seclusion, keeping a very low profile. That's why we didn't suspect him before."

The four of them traveled quickly and soon left the city center, entering a sparsely populated affluent area filled with expansive villas.

Si Ming asked doubtfully, "Since the opponent is Spirit Transformation Grandmaster and a member of the Remote Heaven Society, they should have sent more people, ten or eight Spirit Transformation Grandmasters. Even if the opponent has other members of the Remote Heaven Society with them, they would still have no chance of escaping. Even a lion using its full strength to hunt a rabbit will not escape."

He felt that four people were still a bit too few. In situations like this, people should pool their resources and take advantage of their numbers. If they can fight as a group, they should never fight one-on-one.

Chen Xiangduan said, "There's not enough time. Everyone has their own missions and it's hard to find time. For example, your master and Cang Baiyi are chasing an international thief. As for people outside of the Heaven's Will Palace, I don't trust them. What if they're also members of the Remote Heaven Society Mi Haichao? Wouldn't that be like reminding them?"

That's the trouble with dealing with mysterious organizations. You don't know who their members are. Even a veteran Grandmaster like Mi Haichao, who has always had a reputation for charity, is a member of the Remote Heaven Society. The others are even less trustworthy.

The four men quickly arrived at Mi Haichao's house. As martial arts experts, they didn't bother with ringing the doorbell or showing a search warrant; they simply barged in.

"Who goes there! This is the Mi family's private residence. Trespassers will be killed!"

When the two guards saw that the person coming was not good, they shouted loudly. They held the handles of the swords at their waists with their left and right hands respectively. Then they started to use the skill of drawing the sword, which was refined over time. It was like two lightning bolts in the dark night, dazzling and dazzling, forming a "Y" shape and slashing out.

Chen Xiangduan ignored them completely, and with a flick of his sleeves, countless sharp, needle-like energies burst forth, accompanied by a series of hissing sounds. The two fierce blade lights shattered instantly, and the two guards, who could be considered top-tier experts, screamed and collapsed to the ground, their bodies as if pierced by hundreds of holes, blood gushing out. Although they were not fatally wounded, they had lost most of their lives.

Si Ming frowned slightly, feeling that Chen Xiangduan had been a bit too ruthless. These two weren't villains, but extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. In the end, Chen Xiangduan didn't kill them and didn't overstep his bounds, so he said nothing and followed them into the house.

The four searched all the rooms as quickly as possible, but couldn't find Mi Haichao. It seemed he had left beforehand.

"Where did Mi Haichao go?" Chen Xiangduan asked the two guards lying on the ground.

The two men were very defiant, only sneering and not answering. One of them even spat out a mouthful of blood, but before he could get close, Chen Xiangduan flicked it back with a finger, causing it to fall back into his throat and almost choke him to death.

"Do you think Mi Haichao can escape unscathed just because you don't speak up?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a firework exploded on a small hill in the distance. Although it wasn't very noticeable during the day, to martial arts masters, the commotion was no less than an earthquake.

"They're over there, let's go after them!"

Clearly, Chen Xiangduan did not rely solely on Si Ming and his two companions; he also dispatched many of his men to pursue Mi Haichao. While others might be suspects, his personally cultivated confidants were undoubtedly trustworthy.

Fearing that getting too close would alert Mi Haichao, he arranged for his trusted men to ambush people in various directions of the wealthy area, forming an encirclement, which came in handy at this moment.