Night of Murder

Beside Mu Li, Gan Mu, the gaunt man who had spoken earlier and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group's second-in-command, probed cautiously, "Big Brother, then what do you mean...?"

"I mean, I mean investigate! Investigate!"

Mu She spun around and roared irritably, "That brat dared to provoke me, Mu She. Are we just supposed to let it go? What will outsiders think of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group?

"Mu Li, Gan Mu, pass down the order tomorrow. Dig up every last detail of that brat's background. We must determine where his cultivation method and Dou Skills came from. If there's someone behind him, we'll wait and see.

"But if there's no one, this matter won't end here. I've been finding my Wind Soaring Kill rather slow to cultivate anyway. Maybe this will be an opportunity to switch cultivation methods!"

"Yes!"

Mu Li and Gan Mu hurriedly bowed in acknowledgment. They were not surprised by Mu She's decision. Their Wolf Head Mercenary Group was not one to admit defeat so easily!

"Captain Mu She certainly has quite the temper."

Just as Mu Li and Gan Mu were about to leave and make the arrangements, an unfamiliar voice suddenly rang through the hall. Everyone present turned toward the sound and saw a shadow wrapped in a black robe emerge from the dim edge of the lamplight, casually walking up before them.

Yan Qingshan stood smiling, his shadow stretched long by the bright candlelight. He said with a smile, "Captain Mu She, it's our first meeting, but I've heard so much about you."

Mu Li stepped forward, his once gloomy face now twisted with savagery. "Yan Qingshan, you actually dare come to the Wolf Head Mercenary Group to cause trouble!"

"So you're Yan Qingshan. You've got guts!"

Mu She watched Yan Qingshan slowly emerge from the shadows, a vicious glint appearing in his eyes. "You provoked Wolf Head during the day, and now you've come to our door in the middle of the night. Do you really take me, Mu She, for soft clay?"

A mocking smile curled across Yan Qingshan's lips. "No, no, no, Captain Mu She. I'm not targeting you. I'm saying that your Wolf Head Mercenary Group is nothing but soft clay."

"Good. Brat, you've got nerve. I don't care who you are or who stands behind you. Today, you'll stay here forever!"

Mu She took a deep breath, his expression becoming incomparably twisted and venomous.

Yan Qingshan strolled forward as though intending to face Mu She directly. "Captain Mu She, don't speak too soon."

Before Mu She could act, Gan Mu, standing beside Mu Li, stepped forward first. "You little bastard, you dare speak to our captain like that? You really are courting death!"

Yan Qingshan smiled pleasantly. "Gan Mu, second-in-command of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, a Nine-star Dou Practitioner. At your age, you're still muddling around as a Dou Practitioner. How do you have the nerve to come out and embarrass yourself?"

"Brat, you've angered me. Don't think that just because you cultivate a high-grade method, you can act without restraint!"

As Gan Mu spoke, pale green Dou Qi rapidly surged out from within his body. His pair of iron fists gradually turned the color of withered wood.

"My apologies, but you seem to have forgotten that I also wield Wood Attribute Dou Qi. Suppression between the same attributes can sometimes be even more obvious than between different ones!"

Yan Qingshan moved, instantly closing the distance between himself and Gan Mu. One palm struck heavily into Gan Mu's chest and abdomen, shattering his protective Dou Qi and driving forward repeatedly.

"Pfft!"

A blast rang out from Gan Mu's chest. The surging force sent him staggering back as he spat blood wildly. His face pale, he swayed to his feet, drew a refined steel iron staff from behind his back, and charged again. "Don't get too arrogant, brat! Once I kill you, your high-grade cultivation method will be mine!"

Gan Mu shot forward, his iron staff whipping up an emerald whirlwind of force. Yan Qingshan flashed past him, his thrusting palm striking Gan Mu squarely in the center of the chest and sending him flying once more.

Though their apparent strength was similar, Gan Mu and Yan Qingshan both wielded Wood Attribute Dou Qi. When cultivation methods of the same attribute differed too greatly in grade, it was easy for one to suppress the other, especially since Yan Qingshan was now using a high-grade Dou Skill.

"The warm-up should be over by now!"

Yan Qingshan and Gan Mu exchanged several blows, with Gan Mu being driven back at every turn. After knocking him away once more, Yan Qingshan shook his body and gathered Dou Qi. As his Dou Qi churned, it vaguely formed the shape of an energy lion's head roaring toward the heavens.

Roaring Lion's Roar!

Wind Blade Dance!

At the most critical moment, Mu She, captain of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, finally entered the battle. He leaped in front of Gan Mu, and the great saber in his hand suddenly began to whirl madly. One cyan saber afterimage after another continuously appeared before him.

Rumble!

A dense web of blades formed before Mu She. The roaring lion's head radiated energy fluctuations, and the instant the two collided, the entire residence erupted with a thunderous boom. The ground shook, mud bricks surged and scattered, and the two men retreated almost simultaneously.

Mu She took one step back and steadied himself. Yan Qingshan staggered back several steps before finally using Phoenix Soaring Steps to barely dispel the force in his legs.

His apparent strength was now close to that of a Nine-star Dou Practitioner cultivating a Yellow-tier Cultivation Method. Combined with Profound-tier Dou Skills, he could even easily kill one in return. Yet compared to a Dou Master, the gap was still far too great, much less a Dou Master using a Profound-tier Dou Skill.

Mu She's overall attributes were at least above 7.0. Aside from Mental Power, everything else was roughly three times Yan Qingshan's. One plus one was far greater than two, let alone one plus one plus one. If Yan Qingshan had not gathered force for a while before unleashing Roaring Lion's Roar, he likely would not even have had the chance to dissipate the impact.

On the other side, Mu She was even more shocked. Wind Blade Dance was his trump card, a Profound-tier Low-grade Dou Skill. With this skill, he had claimed the title of Qingshan Town's strongest several times.

Now, when facing Yan Qingshan, Mu She had first let Gan Mu test him out for caution's sake. Only after observing and gaining some confidence had he entered the battle himself. The moment he acted, he had used his strongest trump card, a Profound-tier Dou Skill, yet he had never expected this outcome.

The dirt and debris filling the air finally settled, revealing Yan Qingshan once again. Mu She's face darkened as he looked around. Such a commotion had already erupted, yet not a single subordinate had come. Clearly, Yan Qingshan had made preparations before arriving.

Yan Qingshan looked at Mu She, a smile spreading across his lips. The difference between a Dou Practitioner and a Dou Master was immense, and even the Profound-tier High-grade Roaring Lion's Roar could not bridge it. But he had delayed long enough. For him, that was sufficient.

Yan Qingshan smiled at Mu She. "Captain Mu She, no need to look around. While you few were discussing how to deal with me, I paid your subordinates a visit and took care of them all. No one will come disturb us."

"Brat, you're ruthless!"

Mu She looked around. There was only dead silence, not a single footstep to be heard. It was likely just as Yan Qingshan had said—there was truly no one left. "There's something I don't understand. Before today, our Wolf Head Mercenary Group had no grudge against you. Just because of what happened during the day, you want to destroy Wolf Head?"

"Of course... it's not that simple. Consider your Wolf Head Mercenary Group unlucky."

After coming to a stop, Yan Qingshan said, "For a while now, I've needed Myriad Medicine Hall's resources to handle something, but your Wolf Head had set its sights on Myriad Medicine Hall. I was originally wondering how to persuade Boss Yao, but just when I got sleepy, someone brought me a pillow. I should be thanking you!

"As for why I came after Wolf Head tonight, that can only be blamed on your terrible reputation. During the day, more than one person warned me to watch out for your retaliation. After hearing it enough times, naturally... that's just how I do things. Either I don't do it, or I do it thoroughly.

"As for why I came after you tonight, even you didn't expect me to make a move tonight. With such a perfect opportunity, should I have delayed and left you time to prepare?"

"Thoroughly? You need to have what it takes to do so... Cough, cough... What's happening...?"

Mu She sneered coldly at those words and was about to utter a few threats when his expression suddenly changed. He coughed violently twice, covering his mouth as he coughed up a pool of blood.

"Father!"

Seeing his father injured, Mu Li was greatly alarmed. He took several hurried steps, but before he had even made it halfway, he stumbled and collapsed to the ground. A seven-colored pallor spread across his face. As he gasped heavily, breathing became extraordinarily difficult, and his aura steadily weakened.

"You... poisoned us!"

Mu She looked at his fallen son, then turned to find Gan Mu and Herman in much the same condition. They had all collapsed to the ground. Recalling how he had coughed blood for no reason just now, how could he not understand what had happened?

But what puzzled him even more was how Yan Qingshan had poisoned them. Mu She was no fool, yet he had not noticed the slightest clue even now.

"Medicine and poison are inseparable. You should have expected that I could use poison. During the day, your son and Herman each took one of my palm strikes. At that time, I left an almost odorless medicine on them. Staying around them for too long would cause you to be tainted by its medicinal properties."

Yan Qingshan slowly walked forward and smiled at Mu She. "That medicine itself is harmless, but when mixed with another medicine, it produces excellent results. Its effects on a Dou Master are normally quite limited, but you were lucky.

"Tonight, I happened to acquire a peerless poison, so I tried it on you. I never expected it to work so well. It saved me quite a bit of trouble. Otherwise, even with my trump cards, dealing with a Dou Master would have taken some effort!"

"Bastard..."

Mu She squeezed out those two words with difficulty, frantically circulating his Dou Qi in an attempt to expel the poison.

Unfortunately, his face was soon filled with horror. As his Dou Qi circulated, he realized that the strength in his body was fading even faster. Yan Qingshan's shadow had already fallen over his head.

"Don't waste your effort!"

Yan Qingshan walked up to Mu She and crouched down. Looking at the One-star Dou Master struggling to raise his head, there was not the slightest hint of pity in his eyes. "Once this poison takes effect, it has already seeped into the marrow. There's basically no cure.

"Come to think of it, I really should thank you for being so cautious. If you had attacked the moment you saw me, perhaps I wouldn't have been able to wait until your poison took effect!"

"You, you, you... Urgh..."

Mu She looked up at Yan Qingshan, trembling as he pointed at him and tried to say something. Yan Qingshan placed a palm on his head and exerted only a little force. Just like that, the Dou Master who had once sat firmly as Qingshan Town's strongest expert fell silent forever.