Catching Bandits

Catching Bandits

Elsewhere, Chen Beihu was already covered in wounds. One gash across his shoulder and back bled without stopping, soaking through his outer robe.

He darted through an empty alley, trying to shake off the pursuing Patrol Guard Team behind him.

I have to blend into a crowded place and find a chance to leave the city as soon as possible. Chen Beihu knocked out a passerby cutting through the alley while he still had strength to spare, then changed into fresh clothes to conceal himself.

After circling around several times, he reached a busy main street and followed the flow of people toward the city gates.

Suddenly, beneath his bamboo hat, his gaze sharpened as he noticed a government man in a blue uniform approaching from ahead.

"A Night Watchman." Once Chen Beihu recognized the official uniform, he relaxed slightly.

He was a Night Watchman, not a patrol guard. Though he also carried a saber, his strength was meager, and he was alone. There was no way he had come to arrest him.

Unhurried, he continued onward, convinced he had concealed himself well.

At a time like this, he could not panic and reveal a flaw.

If the spies of the Patrol Guard Headquarters spotted him again, he would truly be in danger.

The Night Watchman drew closer and closer. Even as the two were about to pass one another, the young-looking Night Watchman did not so much as glance at him.

They took one step past each other. Just as Chen Beihu lowered his guard, he heard a sharp clang beside his ear.

The sound of a long saber leaving its sheath!

Chen Beihu, who had spent years licking blood from a blade's edge, felt his heart tighten violently. Realizing something was wrong, he did not even look back. As if by instinct, he swiftly rolled forward, narrowly evading the saber thrust from behind.

Only then did he rise and turn around. Sure enough, it was that Night Watchman he had nearly ignored who had attacked him.

And now, the long saber was already slashing at his face once more.

Without hesitation, Chen Beihu drew the short blade hidden inside his clothes and blocked with a backhanded stroke.

Clang!

The crisp collision of blades burst across the street. The surrounding pedestrians hurriedly retreated, yet none screamed or panicked.

In this world where martial customs flourished, it was common enough for people of the martial world to draw weapons and fight to the death in the streets over a single disagreement. There was nothing unusual about it.

Quite a few bold onlookers even had the leisure to watch the excitement.

The two exchanged several moves in quick succession, and Chen Beihu immediately felt that things were going badly.

This Night Watchman was not as simple as he had imagined. Though the youth looked young, Chen Beihu could feel saber momentum in his strikes.

That meant he had trained a saber art to the Minor Accomplishment stage!

Was this truly the lowly Night Watchman he knew, the sort specially assigned to run errands for the Patrol Guard Headquarters?

Since when had Night Watchmen possessed such skill and strength?

If he had been in perfect condition, he might not have feared him. But now, not only had his serious injuries weakened him, he also could not afford to delay or fight for long.

The more anxious he became, the harder it was to seize his opponent's flaws and defeat him.

The young Night Watchman who had suddenly launched the attack was naturally Song Changming.

Nearly half a month had passed since his saber art reached Minor Accomplishment.

While buying medicine for his old father during the day, he had happened to witness Chen Beihu leap down from a tavern, and he had also watched the entire battle between him and the Patrol Guard Team led by Liang Chuanshan.

When he saw Chen Beihu ultimately escape while injured rather than being captured in the street, Song Changming immediately realized that the opportunity to earn merit he had been waiting for had arrived.

There had been some decent opportunities before, but none had been as suitable as this one.

Once he decided to act, he hesitated no longer.

After nearly two years of night patrols, he knew every street and alley around Houli Street like the back of his hand. From the direction in which Chen Beihu had fled in panic, he could roughly infer his escape route. Following him all the way, he watched him change clothes, leave the alley, and blend into the bustling street.

After locking onto his target, Song Changming ultimately chose to strike on the main street!

That was how the scene just now came about.

Unfortunately, he had expected his Night Watchman uniform to make his opponent lower his guard, but he had not anticipated such sharp reactions. Even at the critical instant, Chen Beihu had still managed to evade the saber strike from behind. Since the simple, decisive ambush had failed, Song Changming immediately pressed forward step by step. His blade appeared and vanished like a ghost, and with the advantage of the first move, he drove Chen Beihu into a flustered defense.

Strictly speaking, this was his first time fighting someone who practiced martial arts.

Before this, he had at most caught a few petty thieves during the night, opponents who never required him to take things seriously.

To him, Chen Beihu was undoubtedly a formidable foe.

After only a few exchanges, Song Changming realized that his opponent's strength was extraordinary, and that his body had been tempered with immense power. The impacts jolted his saber-holding palm and wrist until they ached.

That was with the wounds across his shoulders, back, and body weakening him. In perfect condition, his strength would only have erupted even more fiercely.

No wonder Liang Chuanshan, a Patrol Captain, had mobilized such a force. It seemed they had hooked no small "fish."

Song Changming did not contest strength with him. His saber strikes grew faster and faster, the blade forms whirling as they mixed with ever more exquisite feints and real attacks.

Yinfeng howled past in dense layers, disturbing the heart and soul.

Under the shroud of Song Changming's Ghostly Saber Momentum, Chen Beihu faltered for an instant. Whether from excessive blood loss or from being cowed by the saber momentum, it was impossible to say.

Song Changming seized the opportunity. In the flash of lightning and spark, his blade thrust out like a long snake baring its venomous fangs, piercing straight through the man's chest.

Blood sprayed in all directions, blossoming in specks across half of Song Changming's face.

The short blade fell from Chen Beihu's hand. He dropped to his knees before Song Changming in disbelief, and soon fell silent.

From beginning to end, their fight had not actually lasted long.

Chen Beihu had not even had the chance to display his saber art before dying beneath Song Changming's Soul Severing Saber.

Until his death, he never recognized what kind of saber art Song Changming had used. How could it be so strange and cunning, impossible to guard against?

"More than fierce enough, but lacking in defense." Song Changming withdrew his long saber and, reflecting on the battle just now, offered his assessment of Chen Beihu's saber art.

Had his offense and defense been balanced, Song Changming would not have been able to end the fight so quickly.

"That young fellow is wearing a Night Watchman's uniform—how can he be so formidable?!"

"Those few strikes just now were too fast. I couldn't even react before that big man fell."

"Why did he kill that man? Was he a criminal?"

The surrounding spectators all spoke at once. To avoid any misunderstanding, Song Changming cupped his hands and called out loudly.

"This man is a vicious criminal wanted by the Patrol Guard Headquarters. There is no need for anyone to be alarmed."

The moment they heard that a criminal had been caught, people immediately began cheering, with some even clapping their hands.

"I told you he was a criminal! Young brother, your saber art is superb. You have a boundless future ahead of you."

"Well killed!"

After giving that explanation, Song Changming said no more. He dragged Chen Beihu's corpse to a street corner and waited.

He believed it would not take long for news of this to reach the Patrol Captain's ears, so there was no need for him to handle anything further.

He had originally wanted to search the corpse, but on second thought, this wanted criminal had been a target the Patrol Captain was watching. If he was hiding some important secret on him, it would be better not to touch the body and invite greater trouble.