Ungrateful and Treacherous, Tearing Down the Bridge After Crossing It

"Liao Jun is dead!"

Someone had found Liao Jun's corpse.

Liao Jun was a government yamen officer and an expert at the early Flesh-Refining Realm, yet he had died here, his entire head driven into his abdominal cavity by a palm strike.

"It was the Fire Sand Palm!"

The burn marks left by the Fire Sand Palm were plain to see on Liao Jun's neck.

"Qin Ming killed Liao Jun!"

Someone sucked in a cold breath.

Whatever else might be said, Liao Jun was a yamen officer and an official of the imperial court. Killing an imperial official was a capital crime that would cost Qin Ming his head!

"Pei Heng, according to the rules, Qin Ming must be handed over to us!"

A yamen officer stepped forward, greed lurking deep in his eyes.

Qin Ming did not have long to live. Dealing with him was only a pretext; what they really wanted were the silver notes on him.

"Junior Brother Qin ended up like this because he saved us. If not for him, do you think you'd still be standing here in one piece?"

Li Shengnan said angrily.

Without Qin Ming, everyone would have become food for the Ghost Entities!

"So what?"

The officer sneered. "Did I ask him to save me? Besides, he was obviously protecting himself. Don't try to gild his face with credit."

"Protecting himself?"

Lu Liu laughed in anger. "If all he wanted was to protect himself, Junior Brother Qin could have fought his way out alone. Why would he have stayed to kill those specters?"

"Qin Ming is my disciple. What right do you have to demand I hand him over? If he must stand trial, I will hand him over to the yamen myself once we reach Qingyang County."

Pei Heng spoke coldly.

With Pei Heng, a Flesh Refining Realm expert, and the disciples of the Eight Trigrams Martial Arts Academy present, the few surviving yamen officers had no way to take Qin Ming by force.

"Pei Heng, do you realize you're openly shielding a criminal?"

Wang Bo stepped forward and brazenly stripped Liao Jun of all his valuables, stuffing them into his own pockets.

"Don't think you can do as you please just because your junior brother has your back! Hand Qin Ming over right now, or I can treat everyone from your Eight Trigrams Martial Arts Academy as his accomplices. Once we reach Qingyang County, there won't be a place left for any of you!"

Wang Bo's gaze fell on Qin Ming, and he could not help swallowing.

The bandits of Clearwind Stronghold were dripping with fat. Qin Ming had killed so many of them that he had to have at least several thousand taels of silver on him. If Wang Bo got his hands on it, he could live it up for quite a while.

Pei Heng's face darkened.

Wang Bo was deliberately framing them.

The crowd began to stir.

Wang Bo was not the only one who wanted it. They wanted a share of the spoils too.

"Father, we..."

Huo Lan signaled with her eyes.

Huo Zheng's heart stirred.

The silver was secondary. It was Qin Ming's pig-slaughtering knife that made his eyes burn with desire.

With that knife in hand, there would be no need to fear if he ran into those Ghost Entities again.

Besides, he suspected Qin Ming had the Eighth-Rank Martial Art, Xingyi Fist, hidden on him. Although he had not seen Qin Ming find a martial art while searching Yuan Lie, it was possible the manual had been tucked among the silver notes. A search would tell him whether it was there.

There were also Yuan Lie's four protectors, every one of them in the Flesh Refining Realm. They had most likely carried martial arts manuals, and Qin Ming had picked their corpses clean. It could be said that all the valuables of Clearwind Stronghold were on Qin Ming alone.

Before, Qin Ming had been so powerful that no one dared set their sights on him, even after he lost a hand. But now the poison had reached his heart, and he did not have long to live. The treasures on him had become a prize everyone coveted.

"Pei Heng, I suggest you hand Qin Ming over."

Huo Zheng spoke slowly.

Pei Heng's expression changed abruptly.

There were three Flesh Refining Realm experts in all.

Qin Ming was clinging to his last breath, Liao Jun was dead, and Pei Heng himself was too badly wounded to fight. Huo Zheng was now the strongest person present. If he decided to use force, Pei Heng could not stop him at all!

"Huo Zheng! Don't forget, if not for Qin Ming, you would have died at Yuan Lie's hands long ago! Qin Ming saved even the people from your Tiger Martial Arts Academy! And all of you—if not for Qin Ming, would you still be alive?"

Pei Heng rebuked them furiously, sweeping his gaze over the crowd. But instead of making them curb their thoughts, his words made them angry with embarrassment.

Of course they knew Qin Ming had saved their lives, but when Pei Heng said it to their faces, it took on a different meaning. Wasn't he slapping them in the face? Saying they had repaid kindness with malice?

"Pei Heng, that's not right. We weren't the ones who hurt Qin Ming. Of course I know he saved our lives. But you, saying so much—I think you're trying to keep the treasures all to yourself."

A sneer curled Huo Zheng's lips. His words were like putting Pei Heng over a fire to roast, and the faint shame the crowd had just felt vanished without a trace.

"So this old bastard wants everything for himself!"

"Keep it all? Isn't he afraid he'll choke to death?"

"Bring out the silver notes and let everyone have a share! Otherwise, none of you from the Eight Trigrams Martial Arts Academy can even think of leaving!"

The crowd surrounded Li Shengnan, Lu Liu, Ye Wei, and the others.

Their eyes were red as they stared fixedly at Qin Ming.

The ordinary people wanted the silver notes, while the martial artists wanted the pig-slaughtering knife in Qin Ming's hand.

They had seen it clearly: Qin Ming had only been able to kill that terrifying specter because of the pig-slaughtering knife. If the knife were in their hands, what would they have to fear from those specters and Ghost Entities?

"Don't do anything rash!"

Li Shengnan's heart tightened. Their eyes were bloodshot, and they looked ready to pounce at any moment. Junior Brother Qin was already gravely injured; if these people hurt him, he could very well lose his life.

"Hand over the silver notes!"

"Hand them over! Don't think you can keep them all! Otherwise, don't blame me for getting rough!"

The crowd gripped their weapons, looking ready to strike at any moment.

"Wait!"

Seeing that something was bound to happen if this continued, Pei Heng immediately stepped forward, though his tone had softened considerably.

"Let me say something fair. You can have the silver notes on Qin Ming, but he isn't dead yet. At the very least, shouldn't you wait until he breathes his last? After all, he saved you twice, whatever else you may say."

At that, the crowd exchanged glances, somewhat hesitant.

"Master!"

Li Shengnan's eyes were red, and Pei Heng shook his head without anyone noticing.

"No! If Qin Ming keeps clinging to life without dying, won't we have to keep waiting like this?"

Wang Bo objected.

"So what? Are you going to rob him by force?" Li Shengnan abruptly drew the Cold Iron Saber and laid it on Wang Bo's shoulder, her eyes blazing. "Ask the saber in my hand if it agrees first!"

Wang Bo jumped in fright. The icy chill seeping from the Cold Iron Saber made him swallow.

"Blades have no eyes. Don't... don't be rash."

Wang Bo backed away carefully. Looking at Li Shengnan's knotted muscles, he opened his mouth, but in the end did not dare say anything reckless, terrified that the brawny, simple-minded Li Shengnan would cleave him apart with a stroke.

"We'll do as you say."

Huo Zheng spoke. "Once Qin Ming breathes his last, everyone can divide his silver notes equally. Those notes were all stolen from the common people by the Clearwind Stronghold bandits, so dividing them equally counts as returning them to their rightful owners. I only want that unremarkable pig-slaughtering knife."

"Academy Master Huo is right."

The crowd hurried to flatter him. Since Huo Zheng had spoken, they naturally dared not object, though they cursed him endlessly in their hearts.

Everyone knew the most valuable thing Qin Ming had was the pig-slaughtering knife that could kill ghosts. Huo Zheng was taking the most valuable item and still putting on a show of generosity. It was truly sickening.

"Brother Qin."

Embroiderer was in floods of tears. She had seen the ugliest side of human nature for the first time, but as a weak woman without the strength to truss a chicken, she could do nothing at all. She could not even protect Qin Ming's belongings after his death.

"Embroiderer." Qin Ming forced his eyes open. His face was deathly pale, his breathing faint. Weak and halting, he said, "Drag me over to the tree. I want to sit for a while."

Hearing this, Li Shengnan was just about to help when Huo Lan stopped her.

"No one but her is allowed to touch Qin Ming!"

"Why?"

Li Shengnan was furious.

"I'm worried you'll take the chance to steal the treasures on him."

Huo Lan spoke indifferently.

The crowd nodded, agreeing that Huo Lan had a point.

"You..."

Li Shengnan gripped the Cold Iron Saber tightly, wishing she could cut Huo Lan in two with one stroke.

"That saber was given to you by Qin Ming, wasn't it?"

Huo Lan stared at the Cold Iron Saber and suddenly asked.

"What do you mean?"

Li Shengnan frowned and tightened her grip on the hilt.

"That saber will be mine later."

Huo Lan's tone carried a trace of command.

"Why should it?"

"What do you think?"

Huo Lan folded her arms, a sneer on her face. Behind her, Huo Zheng remained expressionless, his Flesh Refining Realm presence faintly radiating from him.

Li Shengnan clenched her fist tightly, her bones cracking.

"Huo Zheng, don't go too far!"

Pei Heng's chest throbbed with anger. He suddenly spat out a mouthful of black blood and collapsed unconscious on the spot.

"Master!"

Lu Liu and Li Shengnan rushed over.

Seeing this, the smile on Huo Zheng's face grew a little broader.

Now he was the only Flesh Refining Realm expert left. Once Qin Ming died, wouldn't all his silver notes, martial arts manuals, and the pig-slaughtering knife belong to Huo Zheng?

Embroiderer forced herself to endure the pain of her burns and used all her strength to drag Qin Ming away little by little.

Lu Liu, Ye Wei, and the others could only watch, their eyes scarlet.

They hated it!

They hated these people for being ungrateful and tearing down the bridge after crossing it!

They hated their own weakness even more. Otherwise, how could things have come to this?

At last, Embroiderer moved Qin Ming beneath the ancient tree.

Taking advantage of Embroiderer blocking the crowd's view, Qin Ming used all his strength to stuff the Centipede Spirit Pearl from inside his robes into his mouth.