Kill

Qin Sang's face lit up with delight. "Wouldn't that be perfect? Brother Liu may not know this, but I just received a carrier pigeon message from General Wang Liu outside the city. The mountain roads are difficult, so he will need to be delayed for two days before arriving. Then we'll proceed as you suggested: send someone to notify General Mu that he should act according to plan the day after tomorrow, and open the city gates at dawn the following day."

Seeing Liu Ji and his men waver in shock and suspicion over a single remark from him, Qin Sang sneered inwardly.

Blood-Clad Tower was not a monolith either. Its master, True Man Black Crane, had four great protectors beneath him: Elder Yue, Grass Head Immortal, the White-Clad Scholar, and Hong Xiuniang. The four answered to no one another, and there was friction between them all.

He and Elder Yue obeyed only Princess Dongyang's orders.

Hong Xiuniang was the Heir Apparent's trusted confidante. Qin Sang had met her once and suspected that this woman, flirtatious to her very bones, was most likely the Heir Apparent's mistress.

Grass Head Immortal was a direct subordinate of the Third Young Master of the Prince's Household, and also the weakest faction within Blood-Clad Tower. In Qin Sang's eyes, it was more like a token position meant to offer appeasement.

The White-Clad Scholar, meanwhile, was True Man Black Crane's trusted confidant, and Liu Ji belonged to the White-Clad Scholar's faction.

One sentence had exposed Liu Ji's hidden tricks. Wang Liu and Liu Ji were birds of a feather, which meant True Man Black Crane had likely begun leaning toward the Heir Apparent. This was bad news for Princess Dongyang's faction.

Within the Prince of Dongyang's Household, there were four princes qualified to inherit the throne. There was no need to mention the Heir Apparent; among the other three, the Third Young Master was the strongest, yet he still could not threaten the Heir Apparent's position.

However, there was one anomaly in the Prince of Dongyang's Household: Princess Dongyang.

Princess Dongyang's original title was Princess Anning. She was the Prince of Dongyang's eldest legitimate daughter. After Former Consort Feng died of illness, the Prince grieved deeply and cherished Princess Dongyang all the more.

As Princess Dongyang gradually grew up, displaying intelligence far beyond ordinary people, she won even more of the Prince's favor. He granted her anything she desired, even bestowing upon her the title of Princess Dongyang.

Behind the princess stood the power of Former Consort Feng's maternal family. Her strength was not the least bit inferior to the Heir Apparent's, but she was, after all, a woman. The Heir Apparent held the righteous cause, so it was only natural for True Man Black Crane to side with him.

Before the overall situation had even been decided, every faction had begun harboring its own little schemes.

Liu Ji suspected nothing and went along with the current. "Hall Master Qin is wise. Jiang Prefecture has perilous mountains and deep forests; being delayed a day or two is perfectly normal... Please have General Mu march slowly. That way, the timing will be just right. Heaven is truly helping us!"

"There is no rush," Qin Sang said, waving a hand. "General Mu is already close at hand. Sending someone out of the city tomorrow to deliver the message will still be in time. Tonight, we'll sort through the plan once more. Tomorrow, you can show me around the county town so we won't be thrown into confusion when the time comes."

Hening County enforced a strict curfew, and they were unfamiliar faces, so it was inconvenient for them to go out at night.

"Yes!"

It was not until the sky had darkened the next day that Qin Sang and Liu Ji's group returned to the inn. They had swaggered around Hening County several times, mainly inspecting the city defenses and the residences of County Magistrate Li Ji, Zhu Dazhuang, and the others. Qin Sang had also carefully asked about each of their daily movements.

"You stay outside and keep watch."

After giving Water Monkey his orders, Qin Sang pointed at Liu Ji. "Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Liu. Bring someone over to collect my token and carry a message out of the city to General Mu."

Liu Ji hurried away, then hurried back, leading someone inside and knocking on Qin Sang's door.

"Come in. Close the door."

The two gently pushed open the door. The moment they turned and shut it, darkness suddenly fell before their eyes, and they lost consciousness.

Qin Sang appeared behind Liu Ji, caught the two corpses, and quietly moved them into the inner room. Once Yanwang hooked out their souls, he began the interrogation.

Liu Ji indeed had dealings with Wang Liu, and the order had been passed down by the White-Clad Scholar. Qin Sang gave a cold laugh, yet felt not the slightest fear in his heart.

He had no intention of being an official for life. He did not care who became emperor, but the princess had promised him the qualification to receive a fief on Pilgrimage Mountain. Thus, in his eyes, there was only the princess.

Over the past year, quite a few of his fellow Blood-Clad Tower members had died by his hand. Anyone who blocked his path would be killed.

Today, let alone Liu Ji—even if the White-Clad Scholar himself came, whoever needed killing would be killed.

Continuing the interrogation, Qin Sang found that Liu Ji had been fairly honest. The entire plan did not differ much from what he had said before, but Liu Ji had not spoken truthfully about the whereabouts of his subordinates.

Qin Sang memorized each of these people clearly. Late at night, he changed into black night clothes and left.

Qin Sang killed Liu Ji's trusted attendant with a single palm strike, then took out a sheet of paper and handed it to Water Monkey. His tone was grim. "Liu Ji betrayed us. He secretly defected to the False Emperor and attempted to sell us out, so I have slain him with my palm. His men cannot be trusted. These are their hiding places. Leave none alive. Deal with the corpses cleanly. Once you are done, meet me at the city gate."

Zheng Kun and Water Monkey did not say a single unnecessary word. They immediately accepted the order and departed.

Qin Sang activated Shadowless Steps and silently approached the county yamen alone.

County Magistrate Li Ji lived within the yamen. The residence of the Reckless Monk was not far from it, so Qin Sang's first target was the Reckless Monk.

The security around the county yamen was clearly much tighter than elsewhere, but these local militiamen and yamen runners could only guard against ordinary people. It was impossible for them to discover Qin Sang's movements.

Only the Reckless Monk and a few servants lived in the vast residence. Qin Sang easily found the Reckless Monk's quarters. The Reckless Monk's martial arts were not weak, and Qin Sang did not wish to take risks, so he stopped outside the room.

Just as he was about to send Yanwang inside, a long howl suddenly rang out from the room.

"Who dares sneak about!"

The shout was like a thunderclap from a clear sky. Qin Sang's head buzzed, and he felt dizzy and disoriented. He hurriedly bit through his tongue. The sharp pain restored his clarity, and warning bells blared in his heart as he swiftly retreated.

The next instant, Qin Sang sensed an incomparably violent aura appear out of nowhere within the room and surge toward him.

Boom!

A fiery red fist shadow blasted a huge hole through the wall, carrying scorching, violent force as it came menacingly toward Qin Sang's hiding place. The bluestone-paved ground was directly blasted into a deep pit by the fist shadow.

Broken stones flew everywhere, while withered leaves scattered down.

True Qi released beyond the body!

Qin Sang's expression shifted slightly. Could the Reckless Monk have already broken through to the innate realm?

No. There were two people in the room!

An old monk stepped out through the shattered wall. Behind him followed a tall, burly, fat monk—this was the Reckless Monk, Zhu Dazhuang.

Qin Sang did not recognize the old monk. He looked like any ordinary elderly man in his twilight years, his face covered in wrinkles and his body as gaunt as dead wood. Yet when Qin Sang faced him, he felt an imminent sense of danger that made every hair on his body stand on end.

Within that withered, thin body was hidden astonishing power.

Qin Sang had never encountered anyone who gave him such a feeling. Neither Elder Yue nor Bai Jianglan could compare to this old monk.

The Reckless Monk glared at Qin Sang with tiger eyes and said coldly, "Master, this man may be a lackey of the rebels!"

The Reckless Monk's master—the chief of Arhat Hall at Xuanji Temple, Venerable Yuanjue!

A flash of lightning crossed Qin Sang's mind. He realized he had kicked an iron plate. Venerable Yuanjue was publicly acknowledged as Xuanji Temple's foremost expert, and some had speculated that he had already entered the innate realm. It now seemed that this was indeed true.