The Ten Thousand Taels of Silver Notes Were in Hand

A dozen or so experts from the manor surrounded the assassin and launched into battle.

The weakest among these manor experts had reached the Innate First Layer, while one Manor Guard Captain had even reached the Ninth Level of Innate Realm.

Yet although the assassin was besieged by more than a dozen Xiantian Realm experts, he was not at a disadvantage in the slightest. After all, he was a Grandmaster Stage expert.

Once one's martial cultivation reached the Grandmaster Stage, one could already be considered a top-tier expert.

Even a First Rank Grandmaster would crush Xiantian Realm martial artists.

If these dozen or so Xiantian Realm martial artists were a pack of wolves, then this assassin was a male lion.

If a dozen wolves charged forward desperately, they might be able to bite the male lion to death, but the lion would certainly bite more than half of those wolves to death as well.

That was precisely the situation now.

If these dozen or so manor guards risked their lives and attacked together, they could naturally take down this assassin, but more than half of them would inevitably be killed or injured.

They all had parents, wives, and children. Who would be willing to throw their life away?

Thus, none of them dared to attack with all their strength. They merely surrounded the assassin, doing their best to block him from escaping.

Cao Renqi saw this as well and shouted loudly:

"Whoever captures this assassin will be rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver!"

The manor guard experts were instantly invigorated. The Manor Guard Captain let out a fierce roar, leaped into the air, and swung a heavy Great Ring Saber down at the assassin.

The assassin twisted aside to evade, then struck a palm at the Manor Guard Captain. The captain had no time to dodge and hurriedly raised his left palm to meet it.

Bang!

The two palms collided with a dull boom.

Although the Manor Guard Captain had reached the Ninth Level of Innate Realm, the assassin's palm still sent him flying three or four zhang away. He crashed heavily onto the ground, his chest heaving violently as blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

Meanwhile, the assassin borrowed the recoil from that palm exchange and shot backward like a meteor for four or five zhang before fleeing.

"Chase him! Don't let him get away!" Cao Renqi roared. At the same time, he leaped up and pursued the assassin.

The dozen or so manor guard experts also rushed after the assassin.

At that moment, an even faster figure raced through the air, his legs moving like the wind as he stepped upon empty space. In an instant, he caught up to the assassin and struck a palm at him from midair.

It was none other than Huang Shaojie.

He had been watching the assassin all along. When he saw the assassin use the force of the palm clash to flip out of the encirclement and flee, Huang Shaojie immediately used Catching Wind and Shadows from the Wind God Leg to pursue him.

Then he unleashed Resisting Dragon with Regret from the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms.

Ferocious true qi shot from Huang Shaojie's palm, transforming into an illusory divine dragon glowing with white light as it released an earthshaking dragon's roar.

Roar~

Cao Renqi and the manor guards stared, dumbfounded and utterly shocked, all forcibly halting their flying leaps.

When the assassin saw the illusory divine dragon above him open its massive jaws and pounce down to bite him, his eyes filled with astonishment!

Before he could think further, he gathered all the power of his lifetime into both palms and blasted them toward the illusory divine dragon in midair.

Boom!

With a tremendous explosion, the air within a hundred meters shook violently.

The assassin's palm, containing all the power of his life, shattered the illusory divine dragon, which turned into specks of white light and vanished into nothingness.

But the assassin sprayed blood and plummeted from the air, smashing heavily into the hard ground and leaving behind a one-foot-deep, human-shaped pit.

Huang Shaojie drifted down from the air, reached out, and drew the assassin up from the pit. He tapped several of the assassin's major acupoints, then tossed him onto the ground.

Several manor guards swarmed forward, hauled the assassin up from the ground, and pinned his arms behind his back.

"Many thanks to Battalion Commander Huang for taking action!" Cao Renqi stepped forward, cupped his hands, and bowed respectfully to Huang Shaojie. With a face full of admiration, he said, "I never expected Battalion Commander Huang to possess such divine skill. This official truly admires you beyond measure!"

Thinking of how Huang Shaojie had struck out a palm and conjured an illusory divine dragon, Cao Renqi felt both awe and immense envy.

If he could learn such a divine skill, why would he need to worry about soaring straight up the azure clouds and rising to higher office?

Cao Renqi finally understood why Huang Shaojie had become a Banner Commander of the Imperial Guard at such a young age. Before this, he had thought the brat had gotten the position through connections.

Who would have thought he was the real deal!

They brought the captured assassin back to the main hall of Cao Manor.

With his hands clasped behind his back, Huang Shaojie smiled faintly. "What was it that Lord Cao said just now?"

Cao Renqi froze, then cupped his hands again. "Many thanks to Battalion Commander Huang for taking action."

Huang Shaojie shook his head. "Not that. When we were surrounding that assassin, Lord Cao said something. Something about whoever captured the assassin, and then what came after that? I forgot."

As he spoke, he put on a thoughtful expression.

Cao Renqi immediately understood. No wonder this brat waited until this very moment to make his move. He was after the ten-thousand-tael reward!

Though he was extremely displeased inside, he put on a respectful smile and said:

"This official said that whoever captured the assassin would be rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver. Now that Battalion Commander Huang has captured him, this official must naturally reward you... oh, no, I should present Battalion Commander Huang with ten thousand taels of silver as a token of gratitude!"

"Please wait a moment, Battalion Commander Huang. This official will fetch the silver notes at once."

With that, Cao Renqi returned to the secret chamber and brought out ten official silver notes, each worth one thousand taels. He offered them to Huang Shaojie with both hands.

"Battalion Commander Huang, it is but a small token and hardly worthy of respect."

Huang Shaojie chuckled and waved his hand. "I only asked casually. Lord Cao needn't take it seriously."

Cao Renqi cursed inwardly again. You brat, you've already gotten the advantage, and now you're pretending to be lofty. You want this official to force it into your hands, don't you?

Though angry and helpless inside, he repeatedly said, "Of course, of course! Battalion Commander Huang helped this official capture the assassin. You must accept these ten thousand taels in silver notes. Please do not decline!"

With that, he forcibly stuffed the silver notes into Huang Shaojie's hands.

Only then did Huang Shaojie "reluctantly" accept the ten thousand taels in silver notes.

But inwardly, he was over the moon.

These were ten thousand taels in silver notes! The Huang family could not even earn ten thousand taels of silver in net income in an entire year.

Yet he had gotten them so effortlessly, without spending a single copper coin—and the Commander himself had practically forced them into his hands.

Cao Renqi walked over to the assassin, sized him up, and demanded coldly:

"Who exactly are you, and why did you attempt to assassinate this official?"

The assassin spat in Cao Renqi's face and cursed loudly:

"Cao Renqi, you vile thief! Ten years ago, you violated my wife, slaughtered my entire family, and framed me for colluding with the Japanese pirates and betraying the country! My hatred for you runs as deep as the sea—we cannot live beneath the same sky!"

Cao Renqi wiped the spit from his face, then ripped off the assassin's grizzled false beard, revealing the face of a stern-featured middle-aged man.

"Wu Zhen, you're actually not dead!" Cao Renqi blurted out, his face full of shock.

"Cao, you dog! You still recognize me!" Wu Zhen gritted his teeth. "Back then, you led men to hunt me down. I fell off a cliff, but Heaven did not intend for me to die. My master saved me and taught me martial arts. It's only a pity that I still failed to kill you, you vile thief!"

Huang Shaojie stood to one side with his arms folded, listening quietly. He could not help frowning deeply.

He had expected this assassin to have a grudge against Cao Renqi, but he had not expected such a blood feud!

Violating another man's wife, massacring his family, framing him for colluding with Japanese pirates and betraying the country, then driving him off a cliff in pursuit—this was truly a hatred as deep as the sea, one that could not exist beneath the same sky!

If everything Wu Zhen said was true, Huang Shaojie regretted capturing Wu Zhen today. He even wished he could help Wu Zhen kill Cao Renqi, this dog of an official!

Using his Insight Technique, he could tell that Wu Zhen did not seem to be lying. Besides, how could anyone lie about something like having his wife violated and his whole family slaughtered?

"Wu Zhen, do not spew bloody slander!"

Cao Renqi was clearly flustered. He roared, "You colluded with the Japanese pirates! Correspondence between you and the Japanese pirates was found in your home, and you still dare to deny it? Today, you even came to assassinate this official. Your crimes are truly heinous!"

With that, Cao Renqi raised his palm and chopped it toward Wu Zhen's crown.