As dusk fell, dark clouds swept across the sky, and a light drizzle began to fall.
Takeshita Ken, the grand leader of White Cherry Villa, finally returned.
He had just come back from Wankong County, the wealthiest county under Luoshui City, and one of the planned locations.
He had traveled through three counties along the way, confirming that the plan was proceeding without a hitch.
He was already envisioning the success of the plan, gradually encroaching upon Yongning Commandery and the Wu Dynasty.
Suddenly, he frowned.
"Where are the guards at the gate today? Off looking for trouble again? It seems I'll have to punish them properly."
"How could they be so lax at this critical juncture?"
Perhaps it was the joy of good news that lifted his spirits, as a smile played on his lips as he spoke.
Entering White Cherry Villa, he gradually sensed that something was wrong.
Quiet, too quiet.
He could only hear the soft patter of the rain.
His nose twitched slightly. The smell of blood, the smell of burning.
Takeshita Ken's expression changed drastically.
"No good! The warehouse!"
He took off towards the direction of the warehouse.
Gradually, his steps slowed, for he saw corpses scattered everywhere. Looking up, he saw no intact bodies along the way, and blood flowed like a small river.
And his beloved warehouse had been completely burned to ruins.
Takeshita Ken fell to his knees, his eyes becoming vacant.
"You are Takeshita Ken?"
Takeshita Ken's numb head turned towards the direction of the voice. He saw a scene that shocked him even more.
At the entrance of the warehouse, dozens of mangled corpses were piled up like a small mountain, and Shen Qing, clad in a blood-stained silver robe, sat on the summit, holding a black oil-paper umbrella.
A flash of lightning illuminated Shen Qing's stern face.
Takeshita Ken's eyes remained vacant.
"Who are you?"
Shen Qing put away the oil-paper umbrella and stood up, drawing Qing He, which was deeply embedded in a corpse. Blood splattered.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Shen Qing, a Centurion of the Luoshui Town Pacification Department."
A flicker of anger appeared in Takeshita Ken's eyes. "You killed my men?"
Shen Qing's gaze showed a hint of dissatisfaction.
"Is there no passion?"
"That's right, I killed them all. It was exhilarating, I've never felt so good."
Takeshita Ken stood up, gritting his teeth, his anger burning. "You deserve to die!"
Shen Qing's smile became more unrestrained, more audacious. "Yes, yes! I deserve to die!"
"Your subordinates were truly loyal, charging at me as if their lives didn't matter."
"Oh, right! They were calling your name even as they died. Where were you when they fought so valiantly, Grand Leader of White Cherry Villa?"
Takeshita Ken could no longer bear it. He let out a roar and lunged fiercely at Shen Qing.
But the moment he reached the mountain of corpses, Shen Qing raised his foot and casually kicked Takeshita Ken flying, sending him tumbling through the blood.
Shen Qing nodded with satisfaction. "You have spirit, but it's not enough. Let me add a little more fuel to the fire."
"Yamamoto Shinichi and Matsushita Suke were good friends with you, weren't they?"
Takeshita Ken stood up, wiping the blood from his face, his voice trembling. "What did you do to my second and third brothers?"
Shen Qing pointed to Takeshita Ken's right. On the wall, a charred corpse was embedded, burned black.
"That's the third brother, Matsushita Suke. Hmm, he's just a little too well-done, you might not recognize him."
"As for Yamamoto Shinichi? He's in the Imperial Guards' prison, probably wishing he were dead."
Takeshita Ken trembled uncontrollably, memories flashing through his mind.
Matsushita Suke and Yamamoto Shinichi were his sworn brothers. The three had come to the Wu Dynasty together, and their bond was extraordinary.
"How is this possible..."
"Aren't you going to avenge them?"
"Avenge? Yes, avenge."
Takeshita Ken looked up, his rage reignited, and he charged at Shen Qing again. He unleashed the fastest speed of his life, even creating afterimages. The faces of his second and third brothers flashed through his mind, and he felt his strength reach its peak.
He roared maniacally.
"Second brother, third brother! Watch big brother avenge you."
This punch was thrown with sonic booms accompanying it.
But in the next moment, Shen Qing simply raised his palm and easily caught Takeshita Ken's fist.
Shen Qing was extremely displeased. He suddenly clenched his fist, gave a forceful swing, and sent Takeshita Ken flying onto the pile of corpses. Then, he placed one foot on Takeshita Ken's chest and yanked hard with his left hand.
A sound of flesh tearing echoed as Takeshita Ken's right arm was ripped off entirely.
Shen Qing swung Takeshita Ken's arm like a hammer, sending him flying several meters away.
"All thunder, no rain! I thought you were going to unleash your full power!"
Takeshita Ken struggled to get up from the ground, his eyes filled with confusion.
Is this really human? He can feel that Shen Qing's realm is three levels lower than his own, but this strength... is he serious?
Back in Japan, he remembered his master praising him as a once-in-a-million genius, saying he was among the best in the same realm. Just now, he had unleashed his fastest speed and strongest power ever.
Yet, he was being beaten like a dog by someone with a lower cultivation level.
Shen Qing slowly descended the pile of corpses and walked towards Takeshita Ken.
"Is this all you can do? And you still want to avenge your brothers? You want to avenge your subordinates? You can't do anything, you can't protect anything."
Takeshita Ken glared fiercely at Shen Qing.
"You devil! The Empire will not let you go! One day, we will conquer the Wu Dynasty, and you will become our slave!"
Shen Qing picked at his ear and stomped on Takeshita Ken's chest.
"Such cliché threats, utterly unoriginal."
"Still thinking about your plan, aren't you? Don't worry, I saw through it long ago. All the Japanese pirates in Luoshui City have already been thrown into prison by me."
Shen Qing lowered his head, a mocking smile on his face.
"Are you still congratulating yourself for making backup plans, for sending soybeans to other places?"
Takeshita Ken's pupils contracted sharply.
Shen Qing slowly took out his diary from his embrace.
"Sorry to disappoint, but I read your diary. I know all the locations you recorded. As long as I take this diary back to the Pacification Bureau, it will only take half a day to kill all those Japanese pirates!!!"
Takeshita Ken completely broke down, letting out a heart-wrenching scream.
"Ahhhhhh..."
The next moment, the sound abruptly stopped. His chest was completely crushed by Shen Qing's foot, and a surge of potent True Qi erupted, disintegrating his corpse into a fine mist of blood.
[You have killed a Xiantian Realm cultivator. Congratulations on successfully plundering the trait: Ninjutsu Prodigy (Purple)]
Shen Qing tucked the diary back into his embrace, keeping it close. The moment he took out the diary, Takeshita Ken's emotions had completely erupted. Under the Innate Six Senses, no emotion could hide. The contents of this notebook were all true.
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble slowly, and Zhang Shan's roar echoed from outside the villa.
"Everyone, follow me into White Cherry Villa! Support Centurion Shen and exterminate the Japanese pirates!"
Immediately after, over a hundred Black Riders charged into White Cherry Villa under the twilight. The shouts of killing filled the sky, but gradually, the shouts of killing began to fade.
They had charged in with great ambition, ready for battle, but no one paid them any attention.
Soon, they discovered the burning warehouse and galloped towards it.
Everyone was stunned.
Limbs and severed arms littered the ground, and blood flowed like a river. Even the eighteenth level of hell wouldn't be this bad.
Zhang Shan looked at Shen Qing and asked in disbelief, "Are they all dead?"
Shen Qing sheathed Qing He and held up his black oil-paper umbrella.
"All dead."
"You guys didn't say you were coming. I would have saved a couple for you if I knew."
Zhang Shan swallowed hard. "So we came for nothing?"
"Not for nothing. You can ransack the place. White Cherry Villa has accumulated so much wealth over the years, take it all back."
Fang Ming and the others scanned the luxuriously decorated villa. Silver coins and banknotes, scattered from the dismembered bodies of the Japanese pirates, lay on the ground. They all had one thought.
This is truly like a festival!
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