You Hit People Like You're Acting Coy

Under the setting sun, the deep mountains and old forests were stained red with blood.

The sounds of shouting and killing continued.

Lin Zikai and Black Dog led the Imperial Guards, fighting their way through.

However, the Imperial Guards were still the Imperial Guards. A bunch of trash who relied on crooked paths were no match for the Imperial Guards.

Dozens of bodies littered the path. Only three were Imperial Guards; the rest belonged to the evil cultivators.

Lin Zikai wiped the blade of his sword, which was already chipped.

"How long have we been running?"

Black Dog looked at the sun, already half-hidden behind the mountains.

"About an hour, I'd guess."

Lin Zikai's expression turned grim as he realized the worst-case scenario had occurred.

"It only takes half an hour to get from Shili Township to Baiyun County. The carrier pigeons should have arrived by now."

"But there's no support yet. Those pigeons must have all been intercepted."

All the Imperial Guards fell silent.

As the sound of approaching voices grew louder, they all understood what it meant.

Lin Zikai spat out a mouthful of phlegm mixed with blood.

"Damn it, let's fight them! Killing one is breaking even, killing two is a profit."

With that, Lin Zikai exploded forward, charging directly at the evil cultivators in the forest.

Just then, a bloody figure approached at extreme speed. A palm strike hit Lin Zikai's sword, sending him flying back several meters.

A sinister voice echoed.

"An Imperial Guard Lieutenant? Not bad for your strength."

Two red-robed middle-aged men walked out into the clearing in the forest. They looked like brothers.

One of the red-robed middle-aged men, with a gaunt face, smiled sinisterly.

Lin Zikai steadied himself, his expression serious. "Houtian Realm?"

"Black Dog, one each."

With that, Black Dog and Lin Zikai raised their swords and charged at the two men from left and right.

Black Dog flipped his palm, swung it forcefully, and a black spherical object shot towards one of the middle-aged men.

With a bang.

The black sphere exploded, releasing a cloud of white powder that obscured the vision of one of the red-robed middle-aged men.

In the next moment, Black Dog leaped high and swung his sword at the red-robed middle-aged man's head.

However, in the next instant, a pale hand reached out from the white mist and grabbed Black Dog by the neck. With a slight squeeze, Black Dog felt like he couldn't breathe.

"Die!"

Lin Zikai shouted and charged at the other red-robed middle-aged man.

The red-robed middle-aged man snorted and grabbed Lin Zikai's steel sword. With a slight exertion of force, cracks spread across the sword, and in the next moment.

With a bang.

The steel sword shattered into pieces.

Then, a punch landed on Lin Zikai's chest, sending him flying backward, crashing through several large trees.

He landed dazed and disoriented.

Lin Zikai struggled to push himself up, leaning against a tree stump. He felt like his bones were all dislocated.

But one thing was still good.

His mouth was still sharp.

"Evil cultivators are just evil cultivators. Your punches feel like tickles. Are you a woman?"

"Your punches are like you're being affectionate."

"It doesn't hurt at all!"

The pale face of the red-robed middle-aged man who was being mocked darkened slightly. He strode forward.

"Imperial Guard? I'd like to see how hard your bones really are."

Just as a punch was about to smash into Lin Zikai, who had already closed his eyes, waiting for death.

Suddenly, a black shadow moved rapidly through the forest. Stepping on Carefree Steps, it charged in swiftly.

With a swish.

Shen Qing's fist pierced directly through the red-robed middle-aged man's chest.

The red-robed middle-aged man looked down in disbelief. "What... what's happening?"

The next moment, another hand pierced through the chest on the other side.

Shen Qing exerted a little force, and the middle-aged man in the red robe was directly torn in half by Shen Qing.

Blood drenched Lin Zikai. Just as Lin Zikai was stunned, Shen Qing grabbed his arm and lifted him up.

"How is it? Are you okay?"

Lin Zikai snapped back to reality, only to feel a wetness in the corner of his eyes.

Looking at Shen Qing, who was half a head taller than him, he felt as if an endless radiance was emanating from Shen Qing.

He felt like he had seen...

His god.

Lin Zikai wiped the corner of his eyes.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!"

The other middle-aged man in the red robe was stunned. He casually threw Black Dog aside, his face filled with terror.

"Who are you?"

Shen Qing flashed and directly blew off half of the red-robed middle-aged man's head.

"What kind of idiot are you? You don't recognize me, but you don't recognize the clothes I'm wearing?"

Shen Qing couldn't be bothered to keep people like this for interrogation; they were too stupid to get any useful information.

Shouts of killing also came from the woods. It was the Scholar leading a group of Imperial Guards who had charged in. With the addition of these twenty-odd people, the tide of the battle quickly turned.

The prey had become the hunters again.

Lin Zikai limped forward and helped Black Dog up. Black Dog was indeed tough; after a few simple adjustments, he could stand steadily.

Shen Qing walked over and casually tossed out two healing pills.

"Take these first."

"We'll talk later."

Black Dog and Lin Zikai didn't hesitate. They stuffed the pills into their mouths and quickly closed their eyes to refine them.

It didn't take long. The two of them only received simple treatment, enough to stand.

Shen Qing told them to heal out of consideration for his subordinates, but they couldn't be ignorant of the situation. If they truly focused on healing and made Shen Qing wait, it would be inappropriate.

Lin Zikai opened his eyes and spat out a mouthful of clotted blood.

Shen Qing glanced at the two of them: "Done?"

Lin Zikai nodded, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Done."

"Then tell me what happened."

Lin Zikai immediately began to narrate, with Black Dog supplementing the details from the side. Soon, Shen Qing had a general understanding of the situation.

Recently, people had been disappearing in Shili Village. The local yamen couldn't find any clues and reported it to the Imperial Guards.

Lin Zikai and Black Dog decided to investigate. Fortunately, they captured an informant and learned the location of these people's hideout, realizing it was a group operation.

Lin Zikai and his group infiltrated the enemy's stronghold, only to discover they were a group of rogue cultivators who were also holding many people captive.

What followed was Lin Zikai and Black Dog being chased all the way.

Lin Zikai tentatively asked, "Sir, what should we do now? Should we report this to the Luoshui Town Pacification Department?"

"Report? If you rely on reporting, you'll never get anything done."

Reporting to Luoshui City? A carrier pigeon would take two to three days for a round trip. By the time the report was filed, the culprits would have vanished.

Shen Qing casually tore off a clean piece of cloth from a nearby corpse to wipe his hands.

"Lead the way. I want to see what kind of thing dares to cause trouble in my territory."