Sneak Attack!

There were many medicinal ingredients in the medicine storehouse. If he took them all away, he would need at least ten large chests.

There were too many chests, and he could not transport them alone.

So, he picked out all sixteen ingredients needed to brew Startling Blood Soup and packed them into three large chests.

Then he found a carriage in the residence, led the strongest horse from the stables, and hitched it to the carriage.

He found several thick hemp ropes and tied up Zhao Tashan.

He threw the three large chests and Zhao Tashan onto the carriage, then found a piece of black cloth to cover both the chests and Zhao Tashan.

Just as Su Que was about to drive away, he suddenly remembered something. He immediately jumped down from the carriage and headed toward one of the rooms.

Although he had taken quite a bit of wealth from the corpses, these White Lotus Disciples might have stored other things in their rooms.

About the time it took to drink a cup of tea later, Su Que emerged from a guest room.

He had searched all the rooms. The clothes over his chest bulged out, stuffed full of silver and valuables.

He had not found any secret manuals or medicine formulas in this residence, but he had found over three hundred taels' worth of Silver Notes and silver.

Su Que put on a black cloak taken from the residence, leaped onto the carriage, cracked his whip, and drove out of the estate toward the city gates.

As he passed through the gates, the soldiers guarding the city saw Su Que driving a carriage with his face hidden beneath a black cloak, while the cargo on the carriage was covered by black cloth. They had originally planned to inspect him.

But when they approached and caught the scent of blood, they immediately stopped in their tracks and let Su Que out of the city without another word.

Once outside the city, Su Que lashed the horse's rump wildly. Pain driving it on, the horse galloped at full speed.

As he drove, Su Que kept watch behind him to see whether anyone was following.

After roughly a quarter of an hour, he arrived at Qinghua Mountain.

Su Que whipped the horse up the mountain, but the carriage was carrying too much weight. No matter how fiercely he struck the horse's rump, it could only pull the carriage halfway up the mountain and could go no farther.

Left with no choice, Su Que removed the harness reins and tied the horse to a tree.

He then pulled the carriage up the mountain himself, placing the carriage, the medicine chests, Zhao Tashan, and the great quantity of silver in his arms deep within the cave where he usually hid his medicine.

He took a large bundle full of animal traps from the cave, went down the mountain, and returned to where he had tied the horse.

He shortened the tether and bound the horse firmly to the tree.

Then he laid several rings of animal traps around the horse.

This was to keep other wild beasts from eating the horse. He intended to eat it tomorrow.

Su Que thought that with one White Lotus Sect stronghold wiped out tonight, the White Lotus Sect would certainly take action.

Before the White Lotus Sect could become fully alert, he planned to go to Jing Sha and Luo You's strongholds tonight, seize the two men, and obtain the two wicked arts, the Crimson Fiend Skill and the Dark Yin Finger.

As for Bai Wuji, the head of the White Lotus Sect in Jade Water City, as long as Su Que openly slaughtered White Lotus Disciples in the streets, Bai Wuji would most likely appear to protect the White Lotus Sect's reputation. There was no need for Su Que to seek him out.

Su Que returned along the route the carriage had taken, flying along while using true qi to smooth over the tracks left by the wheels.

In less than a quarter of an hour, Su Que returned to Jade Water City and headed for Jing Sha's stronghold.

Outside the residence where Zhao Tashan had been staying, corpses lay everywhere, and blood had pooled on the ground.

Yet when the residents passing by saw it, they immediately detoured from afar. They did not dare look any longer, much less report it to the authorities.

Thus, the other White Lotus Disciples still did not know that one of their strongholds had been destroyed.

Jing Sha's stronghold was a lavish seven-courtyard residence.

More than fifty of his subordinates lived separately in the first five courtyards.

He alone occupied the deepest two courtyards.

It was nighttime, precisely the hour when he cultivated the Crimson Fiend Skill.

Cultivating the Crimson Fiend Skill gave one's true qi a fiery force.

However, cultivating the Crimson Fiend Skill caused Fire Poison to accumulate within the body, damaging one's flesh and meridians.

During the day, when yang energy was too strong, even more Fire Poison would arise, worsening the damage to flesh and meridians.

Therefore, Jing Sha usually cultivated the Crimson Fiend Skill at night.

Besides that, he would also prepare a medicinal powder called Yin Nourishing Powder.

This medicinal powder replenished the body's yin energy and could eliminate a certain amount of Fire Poison, reducing the harm it caused him.

At that moment, two of his subordinates were outside in the courtyard, helping him prepare Yin Nourishing Powder.

He sat cross-legged on his bed, cultivating the Crimson Fiend Skill, when he suddenly smelled a faint scorched odor drifting in from outside.

"Damn it!"

He instinctively assumed his two useless subordinates had burnt his Yin Nourishing Powder. Cursing loudly, he sprang from the bed and shoved open the door.

Creak—

After opening the door, he saw his two subordinates fanning the fire. His Yin Nourishing Powder had not burnt.

"Hmm, then where is this scorched smell coming from?"

Jing Sha pondered for a moment, then asked his two subordinates, "Did either of you smell something burning?"

"N-No!"

The two subordinates looked at each other. They were standing so close to the medicine pot that their noses were filled with the scent of medicine. How could they smell anything else?

"Damn it, where's the fire?"

Jing Sha frowned. The instant the thought arose in his mind, he saw billowing smoke rising beyond several walls.

At that moment, fires had broken out in several places throughout the outer courtyards of the residence, and the White Lotus Disciples were scrambling frantically to put them out.

Su Que had set these fires.

When he arrived at this residence, he had hidden atop the wall and observed it for a while.

On one hand, he was astonished by the size of the residence. He had no idea where Jing Sha lived.

On the other hand, he was astonished by the sheer number of White Lotus Disciples inside. He had no idea which one was Jing Sha.

So, he decided to set fires throughout the residence and lure Jing Sha out.

First, he threw a firestarter into the stables.

There was plenty of dry hay in the stables, and the flames quickly surged.

The fire burned the horses, making them rear back and whinny in pain.

Before long, the flames burned through the reins. The horses, scorched by the fire, immediately charged out of the stables and scattered in every direction.

While all the White Lotus Disciples were distracted by the burning stables, Su Que jumped into the residence and set fires in several other places one after another.

Sure enough, not long afterward, Jing Sha was drawn out.

"Hall Master Jing!"

"Hall Master Jing!"

Hiding behind a rockery, Su Que watched as the White Lotus Disciples hurried anxiously to fight the fires. Yet the moment they saw Jing Sha, their expressions changed at once, and they greeted him with fawning faces.

"What exactly is going on?" Jing Sha asked with a deep frown.

"Hall Master Jing, we don't know what happened tonight. Several places suddenly caught fire!" the White Lotus Disciples answered.

Jing Sha's brow furrowed tighter and tighter. This was definitely man-made. Could someone have broken into the residence?

At that thought, a chill ran through his heart, and he could not help glancing around.

But he saw nothing.

"Put out the fires, now!"

Jing Sha shouted, then headed toward the outer courtyards of the residence, intending to inspect the other places that had caught fire.

Just as he passed through a corridor.

Suddenly.

A shadow flashed out from the darkness beside a building behind him to his left.

Jing Sha heard the faint sound and was about to turn around.

Suddenly.

A tremendous force struck the back of his head. He felt only searing pain in his skull and a thunderous ringing in his mind. In an instant, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

Just as Jing Sha was about to collapse to the ground, Su Que withdrew his fist, caught him in one motion, then swung him onto his shoulder.

Then he leaped up and jumped out of the residence.