The pond water was jade-green and clear. The Masked Man dipped his hand into it.
Several black fish immediately swam toward him, as if they took him for the one feeding them.
The Masked Man caught one fish in a single hand. It was incredibly slippery and coated in slime.
The fish lay quietly in his hand without struggling.
The Masked Man suddenly smiled. "Better not eat fish after all."
With a flick of his hand, a stream of water leaped up, carrying the fish in his hand back into the pond.
The Masked Man looked at the black fish. "Go tell your mother that you'll soon be setting sail."
He put the black fish into a bamboo tube and fastened it to his waist.
He looked at the corpse on the ground, an eerie light flickering in his eyes. "Should I loot the body?"
Zheng Jianghe was dressed in a tight black outfit, his expression incomparably grim.
"People from the Black Mountain Sect are staying at the Chen Residence?"
A Golden Light Hall law-enforcement disciple nodded. The rage in his eyes seemed ready to take substance and burst forth.
"Yes!"
Zheng Jianghe clenched the Yin Wood Pearl in his hand and crushed it outright.
"The Black Mountain Sect has gone too far in bullying people!"
Just half a month ago, Chu Tianxiong had massacred the Chen Residence.
That family had originally been celebrating a joyous occasion and should have been happily gathered together. Yet, in a single night, dozens of lives had been brutally slaughtered, and the bride had entered the Yellow Springs as well.
When Zheng Jianghe had arrived at the Chen Residence then, all he had seen was a scene like purgatory.
At that time, the bride's father had rushed to the Chen Residence, travel-worn and dust-covered, and had kept kneeling and kowtowing before him.
He could never forget the sight of that white-haired old man kneeling before him.
Especially afterward, when Chu Tianxiong left, that stubborn father had brought his wife and knelt outside the Shinguang Sect's mountain gate for more than ten days.
Zheng Jianghe remembered it vividly.
And now, Chu Tianxiong had chosen to stay in the Chen Residence. What was he planning this time?
"Come, follow me to the Chen Residence!" Zheng Jianghe gritted his teeth.
Originally, he had planned to send people to keep watch outside the Chen Residence, lest Chu Tianxiong commit more evil deeds. But after some thought, he decided to go himself.
The group hurried toward the Chen Residence under cover of night.
None of them looked well. Their expressions were solemn.
Because they knew full well that they had no way to deal with Chu Tianxiong and the other Black Mountain Sect disciples.
It had been that way last time, and it was the same this time.
"The smell of blood!" Zheng Jianghe suddenly stopped. He sniffed hard, then cast a Dao technique to sharpen his sense of smell. The scent of blood grew even stronger.
And the source of that bloodstained smell was the Chen Residence ahead, where Chu Tianxiong and the other Black Mountain Sect disciples were staying.
Worry rose in Zheng Jianghe's eyes.
Could it be that the Black Mountain Sect disciples had slaughtered people in Rong City again?
"Quick, go!"
Everyone hurriedly increased their pace and rushed toward the Chen Residence.
At that moment, the gates creaked open. A white-robed figure wearing a strange mask emerged from the Chen Residence.
Zheng Jianghe's heart skipped a beat. Looking at the Masked Man, he became wary.
Someone from the Black Mountain Sect?
No, that was not it!
The Black Mountain Sect disciples all carried a faint smell of blood on them.
But this Masked Man did not.
Why had he come out of the Chen Residence?
Where were the Black Mountain Sect disciples?
"Senior..." Zheng Jianghe hesitated before finally speaking. "There are quite a few Black Mountain Sect disciples inside the Chen Residence. Please be careful, Senior. The Black Mountain Sect disciples have always been vicious and violent."
Though the other party might be acquainted with the Black Mountain Sect, he still gave the warning to avoid any mishap.
Qi Yuan saw Zheng Jianghe and naturally recognized him as well.
His voice was hoarse. "The people from the Black Mountain Sect are quite well-behaved. I wanted to eat fish, so they specially opened the gate and let me go in to catch some."
Zheng Jianghe froze.
The other Shinguang Sect disciples were also astonished, completely at a loss.
"This old man's wife is about to give birth, so I must be off." After saying that, Qi Yuan vanished in a puff of smoke.
Only Zheng Jianghe and the others were left standing in disarray amid the night.
But Zheng Jianghe quickly turned his gaze to the gates of the Chen Residence.
The closer he got, the stronger the smell of blood became.
He walked forward.
Knock, knock!
The knocking rang out, sounding especially deep and hollow in the silent night.
Yet the Chen Residence was utterly quiet. There was no response at all.
Zheng Jianghe exchanged glances with the others, and a terrifying thought rose in his heart.
He forcibly suppressed the agitation within him.
He exchanged another glance with the others, then raised his foot and kicked hard.
The gates flew open in response.
Everyone looked inside and sucked in a breath of cold air.
In the courtyard of the Chen Residence lay more than a dozen corpses.
Zheng Jianghe saw a severed head. It was Chu Tianxiong's head!
"Chicken Worshipping Ancestor—that's the Chicken Worshipping Ancestor!" a Shinguang Sect disciple shouted tremblingly.
Zheng Jianghe looked over and saw that the once awe-inspiring Chicken Worshipping Ancestor had been cut in two at the waist. His eyes were wide open, filled with disbelief.
This was a Core Formation True Person who had formed a Golden Core!
And he had died here just like that!
Zheng Jianghe suddenly burst into laughter and said "Good!" three times in a row.
He thought of the strange man he had just met.
Could it be... that man had killed them?
Though he had already had some suspicions, seeing it with his own eyes still left him utterly shocked.
However, Zheng Jianghe quickly reined in those emotions.
He knew this was an enormous matter, with exceedingly grave consequences.
The Black Mountain Sect was not strong, possessing only a few Core Formation True Persons, but behind the Black Mountain Sect stood the Black Chicken Old Demon.
"Someone, light the fires and burn this place down!" Zheng Jianghe directly ordered.
Those Shinguang Sect disciples hurriedly got to work, preparing torches and setting the Chen Residence ablaze.
Zheng Jianghe wanted to destroy the scene for that Masked Man.
Though the effect might not be great.
It was still better than doing nothing.
Outside the Shinguang Sect's mountain gate.
The sun had long since set, and the moon slowly rose.
The Shinguang Sect at night carried a faint chill.
A white-haired old man knelt outside the Shinguang Sect's mountain gate, his forehead covered in dense beads of cold sweat.
At the end of his candlewick of life, he could lose his life at any moment.
Perhaps from a fall, perhaps from a night's sleep.
"Old man, go back." The old woman's hair was white and somewhat disheveled, but judging from the way she dressed, she had certainly once been a woman of refinement.
"I'll kneel a little longer. If some immortal master happens to pass by and sees me, perhaps he'll be moved and avenge Qianqian!"
The old woman looked at her stubborn husband, mist clouding her eyes.
Mortals like them had to depend on fate to survive in a world of cultivation.
To be born in territory controlled by the Black Mountain Sect meant a miserable fate.
But under a great righteous sect like the Shinguang Sect, they would be far more fortunate.
Yet in the eyes of those lofty immortals, were they not still ants?
Before Chu Tianxiong, they had no power to avenge themselves and could only place their hopes on the Shinguang Sect.
They were now like people blocking the imperial carriage to lodge a complaint.
Fortunately, no one here had tried to persuade them to leave.
Just then, a crisp and pleasant voice drifted over.
"I caught a Blue Flower Fish today, and I'm in a good mood. I'll treat you to fish soup."
Qi Yuan appeared, carrying two bowls of fish soup in his hands.
The fragrance wafted through the air, especially enticing.
At the sight, excitement appeared on the old man's face. He was about to kowtow. "Immortal Master, please seek justice for my poor daughter!"
Qi Yuan flicked a finger, and a strand of spiritual power steadied the old man, preventing him from bowing down.
Qi Yuan brought the fish soup before the pair.
"The sect already knows about your matter."
"Drink this bowl of soup and get some proper rest."
Qi Yuan turned around, seeming to gain some insight. "The great man was right: if Heaven had feelings, Heaven too would grow old; the righteous way of this world is marked by upheaval."
"Since ancient times, too much feeling has left only lingering hate; this hate stretches on without end.
Justice that arrives late is not justice. Where my heart returns is where my heart finds peace."
Qi Yuan was spouting nonsense again.
At the end, he sighed once more.
"I hope those who hear these words won't be led astray by me."
After saying that, his figure vanished.
The elderly couple kept kowtowing, joy finally welling up in their eyes.
An immortal master had noticed them!
Their persistence had not been in vain.
Of course, far more persistence in this world ended without ever curing anything.
Before you continue