As one man's blood dyed Third Peak red, it became the mountain Tai Long was attacking.
The golden bell atop Third Peak rang thunderously, resounding through the skies and echoing endlessly through the ravines.
Everyone in the seven peaks of Cloud Dragon Village heard it.
The deepening sunset spilled across the land. An unprecedented bloody battle was about to begin!
Hearing the bell and looking toward the enormous firework that lingered in the sky, Ji Chufeng's expression changed repeatedly. He swept his gaze over the crowd and said, "Everyone, retreat to Seventh Peak! Use the high ground to resist the enemy!"
These fireworks were lit only in moments of life and death. They were kept by the masters of the seven villages, cost more than a hundred taels, and could illuminate all seven peaks!
On the distant, highest First Peak, Zuo Qianhu, dressed in black and moving under cover of night, crept across the rooftops.
He intended to assassinate Cloud Dragon Village's first village chief. That way, fewer Imperial Guard members from the Suppression Bureau would die.
The moment he saw the dazzling firework on the horizon, his expression abruptly changed.
"That damned Tai Long! I never should have saved him! He can't accomplish anything and only ruins everything!"
Tai Long had dragged every Imperial Guard member into disaster. In an instant, their covert assassinations had turned into a direct assault!
Who knew how many men the Suppression Bureau would lose this time before it could level the seven peaks!
At Cloud Dragon Lake by the distant Seventh Peak, Su Changqing also frowned. The Life Script was not all-encompassing.
The Suppression Bureau was certain to win this battle, but it would likely be a costly victory.
"My task is to kill Ji Chufeng first. I don't care who else dies."
Su Changqing narrowed his eyes. Once he made a decision, he never hesitated.
The Frost Snow Saber suddenly left its sheath, ice crystals glimmering in the gradually darkening night.
With a tap of his foot, he leaped forward, aiming straight for Ji Chufeng's back!
"You killed over thirty of my brothers, and you still dare sneak up on me from behind?"
Ji Chufeng had anticipated it. He flashed backward to evade the slash, then stared at Su Changqing with a vicious grin.
"I, Ji Chufeng, am an expert in assassination. You Imperial Guard cur, are you worthy of ambushing me?"
"Behold my Tang Sect Hidden Weapons!" Su Changqing shouted, tossing a cloth pouch from his robes.
Ji Chufeng's expression changed, and he hurriedly retreated.
Scarlet powder scattered through the air. Ji Chufeng's eyes were instantly blinded, and everything before him went black.
Alarmed and enraged, he staggered back and nearly roared, "You bastard, and you call this a Tang Sect Hidden Weapon?"
When he saw the pouch, he had thought that after leaving the Tang Sect, Su Changqing had developed some supreme hidden weapon.
He had never expected it to be a pouch of chili powder.
His eyes burned so fiercely that he could not even open them. He could only have those around him cover his retreat.
"Tang Sect Hidden Weapon: chili powder," Su Changqing said calmly.
"Bullshit hidden weapon! You shameless bastard!"
Ji Chufeng's fury churned within him as he roared.
He swiftly pulled a jade bottle from his robes and poured out its crystal-clear liquid. Without caring about wasting it, he smeared it over his eyes.
Su Changqing's gaze sharpened as he strode forward.
Frosty crystals swirled around him as his saber swept across the heavens.
He held the long saber horizontally, Blade Aura blazing in every direction, brilliant and dazzling as its ringing never ceased.
Every bandit in his path became a soul slain by his blade.
With the might of his tyrannical saber, killing True Qi Realm cultivators was as easy as slaughtering dogs!
There were nearly a hundred mountain bandits around him, making it difficult for Su Changqing to get close.
Ji Chufeng's vision gradually cleared, and he let out a cold, piercing shout. "Cur, today I'll show you the terror of my Tang Sect Hidden Weapons!"
Su Changqing's eyes turned cold. He stamped down and actually landed atop a bandit's head. Crushing the man's skull beneath his foot, he finally caught sight of Ji Chufeng's position.
With one pouch in each hand, he tossed two more cloth pouches through the air.
The pouches burst open midair, scattering scarlet and dark brown powders across the battlefield. Dozens of people within the area were all hit.
"You should take my Tang Sect Hidden Weapons first: chili powder and pepper powder!"
Ji Chufeng was struck squarely. His vision darkened again, his eyes burned red from the spice, and two trails of bloody tears ran down his face. His nose itched unbearably as well.
Such suffering was hard to endure.
"How can a shameless man like you be worthy of serving in the Imperial Guard?" Ji Chufeng said coldly, fury surging in his heart as he covered his nose and repeatedly washed his face.
"The Tang Sect Hidden Weapons are profound and vast. What do you know?"
Knowing Ji Chufeng's location, Su Changqing sneered. He stepped across one bandit's head after another, moving as swiftly as if on level ground.
The Frost Snow Saber in his hand was even more tyrannical. Its Blade Aura swept through everything, and no one could block a single strike from him.
Dark red blood sprayed everywhere as countless mountain bandits wailed in agony and collapsed into pools of blood.
After having their heads stepped on, they were still dealt another slash.
Su Changqing was soon about to reach Ji Chufeng.
Seeing the white-robed figure drawing closer, Ji Chufeng was both shocked and terrified. He suddenly snapped open his folding fan and roared:
"Shameless! You treacherous bastard! You've humiliated me beyond all measure! I'll fight you to the death!"
"Stormy Pear Blossom Needles!"
The mountain bandits protecting Ji Chufeng abruptly changed expression upon hearing this and hurriedly fled in every direction.
"Village Chief, don't!"
Countless powerful silver needles shot from the fan, their silver gleam dazzling as they densely filled the air and tore through the sky.
"This is my Tang Sect Hidden Weapon! Boy, die here!" Ji Chufeng said coldly.
The needles were as dense as hairs and could pierce through human skulls. Every needle took a life. Countless mountain bandits around Ji Chufeng fell screaming, never to make another sound.
This weapon distinguished neither friend nor foe. It killed a thousand enemies at the cost of eight hundred allies.
Su Changqing had expected it, but even he could not help feeling startled at the sight.
Without the Life Script, even if he did not die today, he would have been half-crippled.
He wondered whether the Indestructible Vajra Divine Art, after transforming him into a golden man, could block it.
With a burst of energy, his white robe instantly tore into pieces, revealing his original clothes beneath: black as ink, embroidered with the flying fish insignia.
The white robe fell over a dead mountain bandit.
From the Stormy Pear Blossom Fan, countless silver needles poured out from its mouth, densely packed like a silver waterfall as they swept wildly across the area.
After ten breaths, when no one remained standing nearby, Ji Chufeng took a deep breath and staggered down to sit. His eyes burned fiercely, and bloody tears continued to flow.
All the mountain bandits were dead. He had also seen the white-robed corpse, so he had avenged his many brothers.
"Farewell, brothers! I, Ji, have avenged you all!" Ji Chufeng shouted toward Cloud Dragon Lake with tears in his eyes.
Su Changqing stood silently behind Ji Chufeng.
His saber fell without the slightest hesitation. Blood splashed everywhere as Ji Chufeng's head dropped to the ground, his eyes wide with what seemed to be a trace of disbelief.
Even at the moment of death, he did not know how he had died.
Among the more than one hundred corpses, there was now one more: a village chief of Cloud Dragon Village.
"So this is the Stormy Pear Blossom Fan?" Su Changqing stared at the folding fan, his eyes narrowing.
The fan looked light and delicate, with black feather leaves and jade ribs, yet it was extremely heavy. It weighed seven jin and eight liang in his hand, its interior filled with intricate mechanisms and containing three thousand eight hundred silver needles.
Without silver needles, the fan could not be opened. Once filled with silver needles, it could open, the needles themselves serving as its ribs.
When the black fan leaves were closed, it could also be used in close combat. Its three thousand eight hundred silver needles were like a sharp blade.
Exquisitely crafted—it truly was a weapon made for killing!
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