The inn's main hall had originally been crowded.
But the appearance of this scene immediately made the atmosphere in the hall tense.
Some Jianghu martial artists also recognized the identities of both sides.
One side was the Golden Saber Sect. Its sect leader, Du Xiong, was a peak second-rate expert who had once been known as the "Unvanquished Golden Saber," his name shaking the Jianghu of the southeast.
The other side was the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf. They had recently run rampant through the southeastern Jianghu, specifically targeting the young masters of wealthy clans and using honey traps to abduct them for ransom. Yet after receiving the ransom, they would still kill the hostages, making the wealthy clans of the south hate them to the bone.
Du Xiong had been invited out by those wealthy clans with lavish rewards, in the hope that he could eliminate the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf.
And Du Xiong had not disappointed them. Bringing the elite disciples of the Golden Saber Sect, he had pursued the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf for several months.
This matter had circulated through the Jianghu for a long time; everyone in the southeastern Jianghu knew of it.
Now that Du Xiong had finally caught up with the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf, he had not expected his own son to fall into their hands.
For a moment, Du Xiong's expression gradually darkened.
His gaze fixed on the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf as he said coldly, "What do you want?"
"Sect Leader Du is a hero of the Jianghu with formidable martial arts. We siblings know we are no match for you. We merely ask Sect Leader Du to show mercy and swear before everyone that you will no longer pursue the four of us."
"So long as you swear it, we will naturally return Brother Du with both hands. What does Sect Leader Du think?"
Er Hu spoke in an even tone.
Du Xiong's eyes brimmed with Killing Intent.
His gaze swept over the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf one by one. He wished he could tear them into ten thousand pieces!
To make him swear publicly that he would no longer pursue the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf—would that not destroy both his and the Golden Saber Sect's reputation in the Jianghu in a single day?
After all, the Golden Saber Sect had accepted so many benefits from the wealthy clans of the southeast. He had even brought the sect's elite disciples down from the mountain. Failing to capture the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf was already humiliating enough, yet because of his son, he now had to publicly let them go.
If he truly swore it, what face or credibility would the Golden Saber Sect have left in the Jianghu?
But if he did not swear publicly, his son was in the hands of the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf.
Du Xiong had only one son, Du Jing—the true young sect leader of the Golden Saber Sect!
"Sect Leader Du, you should think this through."
The woman surnamed Lin applied more force with her hand, choking Du Jing until he could barely breathe. Veins bulged across his face as his entire body struggled violently, yet he was held firmly in place.
Du Jing was filled with despair, his eyes able only to look toward his father.
This was his first time venturing into the Jianghu. At first, he had felt high-spirited and full of vigor, even marveling at how easy it was to roam the Jianghu.
But now, he understood.
The Four Fiends of Greed Wolf had deliberately approached him, intending to use him to threaten his father.
The Jianghu was not as he had imagined—a place of only strong wine, heroes, and beauties. There were even more schemes and intrigues, and people who would stop at nothing!
Du Xiong's expression shifted uncertainly.
On one side was the sect's reputation; on the other was his son's life.
What should he choose?
"I'll count to three. If Sect Leader Du still refuses to swear, then don't blame us for being impolite!"
Er Hu began to count.
"One."
Du Xiong struggled even more fiercely inside.
"Two."
The many Golden Saber Sect disciples also wavered. They exchanged glances, looking at one another in dismay.
They all knew that their sect leader had only this one son.
If Du Jing died, their sect leader would have no heir!
"Sect Leader..."
"Enough. This old man has only this one son. It was because I neglected to discipline him in ordinary days that today's disaster came about. After returning to the mountain, this old man will personally plead guilty before the elders and resign as sect leader!"
Du Xiong knew full well that if he swore today, the Golden Saber Sect's credibility would be ruined in a single day.
For a sect, such a blow would be enormous—enough to turn the Golden Saber Sect's reputation, built up over decades, into flowing water.
But he had only one son. He could not refuse to save him!
"Father..."
Du Jing's voice had turned hoarse.
He was not a spoiled wastrel. He merely had the temperament of a youth.
He also knew exactly what price his father had paid to save him.
Du Jing regretted it beyond measure!
His former yearning to roam the Jianghu had now completely shattered.
"This old man swears..."
Just as Du Xiong was about to swear, a voice suddenly rang out in the inn. "Brother Du, have you seen clearly? This is the true Jianghu!"
It was Ji Qing, who had been drinking by himself, who spoke.
The expressions of the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf shifted slightly.
"Brother Li, do not meddle in others' affairs, otherwise..."
Clang.
Before the words had finished, a crisp ringing sound echoed through the inn.
Ji Qing drew his blade.
A dazzling blade light appeared before everyone's eyes.
That gorgeous, breathtaking blade light drew people into it, as though apart from that one stroke, nothing else existed.
Only Du Xiong, a peak second-rate expert, had his pupils contract slightly, shock rising in his heart.
The blade light flashed past the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf.
Clack.
Ji Qing had already sheathed his blade, and he did not even forget to drink the fine wine in his cup.
The Four Fiends of Greed Wolf, however, all stared wide-eyed, each still maintaining their previous posture.
"You..."
Their mouths opened as if they wanted to say something.
Yet they could no longer make a sound or utter another word.
A deep bloody line appeared across each of the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf's throats.
Blood sprayed out, instantly dyeing their clothes red.
Thud.
The four of them fell to the ground. Their bodies twitched faintly a few times before becoming still.
They were dead!
The Four Fiends of Greed Wolf, who had run rampant throughout the southeast, had now died in this utterly ordinary inn.
Slain in an instant by a single stroke!
For a time, the air was thick with the stench of blood.
Yet no one made a sound.
The entire inn seemed to have fallen into deathly silence.
Even some Jianghu martial artists who had merely come to watch the excitement widened their eyes, even covering their mouths and noses, not daring to breathe too loudly.
Just now, they had seen only that magnificent blade light.
The blade light had flashed and vanished.
But the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf were dead.
Perhaps only Du Xiong had vaguely caught a trace of Ji Qing drawing his blade.
Yet even he had failed to see Ji Qing's drawing motion clearly.
Du Xiong was already a peak second-rate expert in the Jianghu.
Even he could not see Ji Qing draw his blade. One could only imagine how stunning that stroke had been.
And among Jianghu martial artists capable of such saber techniques, Du Xiong could think of only one name.
"When the Startling Swan Blade appears, heads fall to the ground..."
Du Xiong muttered softly.
The other martial artists in the inn seemed to have realized it as well.
Their gazes upon "Ji Qing" were filled with horror.
This was the figure currently on everyone's lips throughout the entire Jianghu.
Ranked fifth on the Villain Ranking.
With a bounty as high as three thousand taels of silver.
He had even pursued Poison Demon Ouyang Bo across a thousand li, forcing him to flee in miserable panic.
The Startling Swan Blade—Ji Qing!
A man's name was like a tree's shadow.
Ji Qing was still sitting in the inn, still drinking wine, yet the entire inn had already fallen so silent that a pin drop could be heard!
Du Jing's eyes were wide, waves crashing in his heart.
He too had seen only the blade light from that stroke.
Even when the throats of the Four Fiends of Greed Wolf beside him had been cut open, he had not sensed the slightest thing.
He had only felt the blade wind brush across his face, carrying what seemed like a trace of chill.
That was all.
He also practiced the saber.
He too was a saber wielder.
But he was utterly shaken.
Could a saber truly be this fast?
Before you continue