Seeing Second Miss charge over in a blaze of fury, A Zhu crossed his hands and moved to meet her. Li Feng gave a snicker, stepped in front of A Zhu, and gently diverted Second Miss's palm force with a light strike. Swaying unsteadily, he hopped down the steps and tangled with her in combat. Li Feng shouted loudly, "There's no justice in this world! A woman actually came knocking at dawn to pick a fight—there's simply no justice! Hmph, a woman this fierce won't ever be able to get married in her lifetime."
The expressions of the dozen or so middle-aged men behind her changed, while Second Miss snapped, "Brat, what does this have to do with you? Spouting nothing but nonsense—I'll knock your big teeth right out!"
Li Feng darted around her like a loach, and no matter how many fierce gusts of palm force she unleashed, they simply could not touch his body. He said softly, "Calling yourself a young lady now? Not a young master anymore? Heh heh, I told you, didn't I? You're obviously a woman, yet you insisted on being so stubborn... Oh dear, broad daylight, before all these watching eyes, and you actually dare to kill someone? Ah, what a pity, what a pity—you missed by just a little. You didn't hit this young master, hahaha! Hey, little girl, I'm not one of those useless fools. As if you could hit me."
The White Emperor Sect's Right Protector instructed in a low voice, "Is that brat stalling for time? Miss is no match for him at all. Send someone up to bring Miss down. Since we have come today, we should properly teach these Golden Dragon Gang people a lesson. Don't think that, with Cangfeng Fortress backing them, they can treat our White Emperor Sect as nothing... Hmph. If that old bastard Yue Wuxia had not latched onto the current Emperor, would they dare call themselves the greatest under heaven?"
A hulking man with knotted muscles and a face full of beard answered the call and stepped out. He clapped his hands sharply three times and roared, "Brat, you've got some skill. Your footwork is pretty slick, isn't it? Come, come, let me, 'Black Diamond' Li Yuankui, play with you... Ah, Second Miss, would you like to rest for a while? Let us handle trash like this. You are worth ten thousand in gold—why lower yourself to argue with petty people like them? Even if you beat him yourself, it would only damage your status."
Second Miss could no longer hold on. She gathered all her inner strength and hurled dozens of palms at Li Feng in succession. Her inner breath was nearly exhausted, and a layer of fine sweat had already seeped across her forehead. Hearing Black Diamond's words, she immediately agreed. "Excellent. Knock every last one of this brat's teeth out for me." Having said that, she ignored Li Feng's palm swinging toward her and turned to leave.
With an incomparably crisp slap, Li Feng himself had not expected that Second Miss had no intention whatsoever of dodging. His slap landed cleanly across her face, sending her staggering hard and nearly toppling her to the ground. A Zhu clapped and burst into laughter from the steps, while the White Emperor Sect experts' expressions changed wildly as they simultaneously stepped forward three paces. Black Diamond roared and pounced at Li Feng like a black whirlwind, bringing dozens of fist shadows with him.
Li Feng stared in astonishment at Second Miss's flushed face, where a clear palm print had emerged, and could not help cursing, "You woman, what kind of nonsense is this? We were fighting for our lives, and you suddenly decide to leave? Did you think this young master wouldn't hit people? Good thing I didn't use internal force, or wouldn't your little head have been smashed to powder?" As he spoke, Li Feng shifted his body sideways and made a guiding motion with his right hand. With a move of Slanting Peak Piercing Clouds, he diverted all of Black Diamond's fist force to his side. Amid a barrage of bangs and cracks, a large stretch of paving stones in the plaza before the Golden Dragon Gang's gate shattered to pieces.
Second Miss's lovely eyes widened as she shrieked, "I'll kill you!" A ripple of water swept from within her sleeve and cleaved down at Li Feng's head. She was furious. Back at the White Emperor Sect, no matter whom she sparred with, once she, the eldest young lady, stopped, who would dare keep fighting? Yet she had run into Li Feng, this hooligan who was not one of the White Emperor Sect's subordinates. That slap had left her seething with rage, fury, and humiliation; her tender heart was in complete chaos. Caring nothing for the consequences, she drew the White Emperor Sect's secretly passed-down Moonlit Sword and slashed at him.
Li Feng caught sight of a red lapel flickering at the entrance of a nearby alley, and immediately clutched his head and howled miserably, "It's over, it's over! You people have beaten this young master to death!" As he spoke, he spun on his toes and had already circled behind Black Diamond. He kicked Black Diamond in the rear, then threw himself backward.
Black Diamond was enraged. Turning around, he kicked Li Feng hard in the waist, but his towering body happened to block Second Miss's sword edge. Forced to stamp her foot, Second Miss turned and swung her sword at Li Feng. Yet Li Feng's body seemed like a straw dummy, completely unable to take force. The instant Black Diamond's kick touched him, he floated away five or six zhang, rolled about the ground in a sorry state, and even obligingly let a trace of blood flow from his mouth.
Sword light suddenly flared, and countless streams of watery sword radiance enveloped Li Feng's entire body. Li Feng yelped and screamed miserably, "No justice! No law! No fairness... In broad daylight, you actually dare murder someone right in front of the authorities?... Help! By the Great Ming's iron laws, murderers must die!" He rolled and crawled across the ground, weaving through the sword light so recklessly that A Zhu's heart leaped into his throat. Amid swishing sounds, strips and pieces of Li Feng's clothing flew away, yet not even a patch of his skin was injured.
Strange expressions appeared on the White Emperor Sect experts' faces. They had not expected Li Feng to slap Second Miss. If this had happened in White Emperor City, it would have caused an earth-shaking uproar. Fortunately, this brat's martial arts did not seem particularly high. Once Second Miss killed him, or stabbed him a dozen or so times, she would probably calm down, right? Otherwise, with all of them standing here while they watched Second Miss get slapped, it would still be a grave offense if the Sect Master learned of it.
In the courtyard, Li Feng was still shrieking and wailing on the ground, while Second Miss yelled in a frenzy, "You bastard, you dared hit me? Lie there obediently and let me stab you a hundred times... Black Diamond, what are you doing? Knock him unconscious for me!"
Black Diamond gave a muffled snort. His right arm swelled to twice its size as he hurled a punch savagely at Li Feng. With a bellow like a bull, a wave of white air shot from Black Diamond's fist. He shouted, "Raging Bull Force—die, damn you!" His right fist opened and closed, and with a crack, that white force split into five streams that perfectly enveloped Li Feng's body. Li Feng was just about to be struck by the force winds.
Second Miss cried, "Good!" Her sword light flashed from her right hand, and a brilliant spray of sword radiance perfectly filled the gaps between the five white streams of force, determined to chop Li Feng into a hundred pieces on the spot.
A sharp shout rang out. "Under the bright heavens and broad daylight, you dare murder people? Is there no law left? Brothers, take every one of them back!" Even as the voice still drifted through the air, an immensely powerful palm wind thrust in from the side, shattering Black Diamond's Raging Bull Force to powder. At the same time, a soft but incomparably sinister force struck Second Miss in the waist. She gave a muffled groan, staggered back seven or eight steps, and loosened her right hand. The Moonlit Sword fell to the ground, and then she toppled backward.
The White Emperor Sect experts erupted in uproar and launched themselves toward the courtyard. Whistling sounds tore through the air as over a hundred crossbow bolts shot down at them. Two White Emperor Sect experts let their guard slip for an instant and screamed miserably as more than a dozen bolts pierced their bodies, sending them flying back. The Right Protector and several others with particularly formidable skills struck out with their palms, smashing apart the bolts flying toward them, but their charging bodies were forcibly brought to a halt.
The Right Protector cried out in alarm, "Gu Cangyue, you dare injure our young lady? Our White Emperor Sect and your Cangfeng Fortress are sworn enemies from this day forth!"
The man who had appeared in the courtyard was Gu Cangyue, his complexion carrying an unhealthy trace of blackness. Compared to six years ago, he had grown thinner, but the cold, sinister aura around him was more than ten times stronger. It seemed that after his cultivation had been damaged, he had devoted all his energy to schemes and stratagems. The aura he now exuded was utterly different from before.
He looked coldly at the sky and said in an icy voice, "Our Cangfeng Fortress and your White Emperor Sect were already sworn enemies. What does it matter if I injured your Second Miss? Slaughtering innocent commoners in broad daylight—are you planning rebellion? As Chief Constable of Suzhou Prefecture, I, Gu, naturally have the authority to arrest every one of you... Men, put them all in irons. Anyone who dares resist will be killed without mercy." More than fifty constables rushed out, swinging the iron chains in their hands toward the White Emperor Sect experts. The sound of orderly marching rose as a full two hundred garrison soldiers appeared at the nearby alley exits, crossbows in hand and killing intent in their eyes.
Li Feng rolled and crawled to Gu Cangyue's side, grabbed onto him, and began crying and wailing. "Chief Constable Gu, you must uphold justice for this humble man! Banknotes worth a full million taels of silver, this humble man's entire capital, were snatched away by these damned bastards! They even wanted to murder people to silence them! These Golden Dragon Gang brothers are all witnesses! They saw with their own eyes as these bandits robbed this humble man's money and killed more than fifty of this humble man's attendants..."
Gu Cangyue frowned and could not help shooting a sidelong glance at A Zhu, whose face was full of a sly grin. He muttered inwardly, Where did the Golden Dragon Gang find such a treasure? Even if you accuse someone, you should make it remotely plausible. More than fifty attendants killed? If I really reported this case upward as you say, I would not need to remain chief constable any longer.
Gu Cangyue coughed, just about to speak, when Li Feng's voice, as faint as a wandering thread, suddenly reached his ear. "One price. This young master will help you recover your cultivation and can even make you thirty percent stronger. You help this young master deal with these bastards and issue a wanted notice—surely that is no difficult matter? Just say they committed crimes while roaming about and robbed this young master's banknotes. What do you say? This young master never lies. I guarantee you will recover your cultivation."
A sharp gleam flashed in Gu Cangyue's eyes as he barked, "You still dare resist? Get them!" The garrison soldiers immediately raised a shout. More than thirty drew their goose-feather sabers and marched forward in neat strides, stepping around the dozen or so constables who had been knocked to the ground before slashing at the White Emperor Sect experts. Gu Cangyue said quietly, "Nonsense. I was struck by the Nine Yin Devouring Yang Palm. If the Fortress Lord had not given me a five-hundred-year mountain ginseng, I could not even have kept my life. You can restore my cultivation? What kind of joke is that?"
Li Feng said no more. He took from his robes a tiny ginseng, completely white and glowing like jade. It was only as long as a middle finger, yet clearly shaped like a little human figure. He waved it once and said smugly, "Let's see whether Old Tou'er knows quality when he sees it. This is Jade Ginseng with more than two thousand years of growth, raised by underground spiritual veins. Never mind your Nine Yin Devouring Yang Palm—even if you were half dead now, it could bring you back to life. Heh heh... Will you make this deal? So long as Old Tou'er agrees, once the Golden Dragon Gang dominates alone, your share of the profits will increase by another thirty percent."
Gu Cangyue was direct. He struck himself in the chest with one palm, sprayed a mouthful of blood, and wailed, "Brothers, arrest them for me... Daring to gather together and resist arrest? What sect are they from? Find out their background and issue a wanted notice!"
The constables had already been beaten into a wretched state. Hearing Gu Cangyue shout this, they immediately raised a cry and shouted in unison, "The bandits are from the White Emperor Sect of Sichuan! Aiya, what ferocious bandits... Brothers of the garrison, even our chief has been injured by them. You must be careful... Aiya, by the Great Ming military code, those who attack and kill soldiers shall have their entire households exterminated!"
The White Emperor Sect's Right Protector shuddered all over. He forcibly withdrew the palm he had been about to strike, dodged a saber swung by a garrison squad leader in a sorry state, and his chest rose and fell sharply nine times. The true qi within him exploded like gunpowder, and his body shot into the courtyard like a ghost. He snatched up the fallen Second Miss with one hand, caring nothing for Black Diamond, who was being besieged by more than a dozen iron constables under Gu Cangyue, and not even having time to retrieve the Moonlit Sword. He leaped more than seven zhang into the air and fled while hurling curses.
Amid creaking sounds, several crossbow bolts flew aimlessly into the sky at Gu Cangyue's signal, seeing off the Right Protector and his men as they escaped. Seeing their leader flee, the White Emperor Sect experts immediately joined forces to unleash a palm strike, forcing back the garrison soldiers before fleeing as well. They were no fools. No matter how towering their cultivation, how many disciples did the White Emperor Sect possess? If a criminal record was truly established, trying to contend against the Great Ming dynasty's more than two million troops would be courting death. Especially since Great Ming had only been founded some ten or twenty years earlier: there were countless masters in its armies, and its soldiers and armor were the finest under heaven. That was a force no sect dared oppose.
In the conflicts of interest over territory around Suzhou Prefecture, the White Emperor Sect had always been at a disadvantage precisely because Gu Cangyue was Chief Constable of Suzhou Prefecture. Commoners did not fight officials; even these proud and unruly martial world magnates still acknowledged this unwritten rule. The White Emperor Sect experts fled far away, while Black Diamond, surrounded by Gu Cangyue's elite subordinates, held out bitterly for the time it took to eat a meal before someone struck him down from behind with a water-and-fire staff. Two iron wires were immediately driven through his collarbones.
Li Feng grinned as he pulled Gu Cangyue, whose lips still bore traces of blood, into the Golden Dragon Gang courtyard. A Zhu asked worriedly, "A Feng, why did you vomit blood too? That bastard Li Yuankui struck that hard?... Damn it, several of our Golden Dragon Gang brothers were injured by his hand."
Li Feng smiled and took out a half-eaten tomato from his robes. After chewing it for a long while, he swallowed it and said, "It's fine. This is a treasure I prepared long ago, specially for putting on an act." A Zhu nearly collapsed, though he still felt somewhat puzzled. When did this kid go to the kitchen? It seemed like I had been following him the whole time.
Li Feng glanced at Gu Cangyue, whose face was expressionless though the corners of his eyes kept twitching, then suddenly laughed. "A Zhu, take some men and arrange things outside. Build a good relationship with those chief constable brothers. Old Tou'er and I have some private matters to discuss inside. We'll tell you afterward, all right?"
A Zhu nodded in agreement. Li Feng casually led Gu Cangyue into a side room and shut the door tightly. As Gu Cangyue entered, he gave several subordinates a meaningful look. The constables in official uniforms immediately blocked the doorway, looking utterly loyal as they forbade anyone from entering. The constables felt a little strange. Why did the two men make no sound at all inside the room? They could only sense currents of air constantly flowing out through the gaps in the window lattice.
A full two hours passed, and the sun had already risen directly overhead before Li Feng slowly emerged, drenched in sweat, pale-faced, and looking exhausted to the extreme. Behind him, Gu Cangyue flashed out like a ghost and struck the ground with one palm. Amid a series of cracking sounds, every stone slab within three zhang of him shattered. Gu Cangyue looked excitedly at his hands, threw back his head, and laughed wildly. "Wonderful, wonderful... Brother Li, truly wonderful. My cultivation is fifty percent greater than even at my peak... Wonderful, wonderful! A spiritual medicine of heaven and earth indeed—its effects are extraordinary."
Gu Cangyue swept to Li Feng's side like the wind. Looking gratefully at Li Feng's "utterly exhausted" appearance, he said solemnly, "From now on, Brother Li's affairs are my, Gu Cangyue's affairs. If there is ever anything you need, just say the word. Isn't it merely destroying the Golden Tiger Gang? When my cultivation had not recovered, I could only let them scheme beneath the surface. Now that my cultivation has advanced greatly, what is there to fear?" With that, he burst into wild laughter once more.
He was delighted. The most important thing to a martial artist was cultivation. Li Feng had restored Gu Cangyue's cultivation and increased it by a full fifty percent beyond its former level. That alone was enough to make Gu Cangyue risk his head and spill his blood for Li Feng. Moreover, Gu Cangyue was confident that with his cultivation increased by fifty percent, he could at least rank within the top thirty of the martial world, and his position within Cangfeng Fortress could rise by a great deal. In particular, he knew that the Jade Ginseng's effects had not yet fully manifested. Part of its medicinal power was still stored within his meridians. So long as he cultivated diligently in the future, his cultivation could rise by at least another thirty percent from its current level.
He had already come to see Li Feng as his benefactor. How could he fuss over or investigate where Li Feng's Jade Ginseng had come from? Even if Li Feng said it had fallen from the sky, he would believe it.
Li Feng chuckled darkly. "Easy, easy. Such a trivial matter need not be taken too much to heart, Lord Gu. This Jade Ginseng was also something this little brother found by accident in Changbai Mountain. I had originally intended to trade it for a fine sum of gold and silver, but after meeting Lord Gu, I felt that only a great hero and grand champion like you was worthy of using it. Now this Jade Ginseng has truly found its proper use... In the future, while this little brother is in Suzhou Prefecture, I will have to depend on Lord Gu for much care."
Gu Cangyue was in the midst of the exhilaration of his tremendous increase in cultivation. How could he say no? He immediately nodded heavily. "Rest assured, leave everything to me, Gu. From now on, the Golden Dragon Gang will be Cangfeng Fortress's finest ally." Gu Cangyue felt that, given his current cultivation, he had the qualifications to say such words—to represent Cangfeng Fortress in deciding matters concerning Suzhou territory. He had even begun considering whether he should drive away the Earth Fiend Star whom the fortress had sent to help him suppress the local forces of Suzhou Prefecture, so he could conveniently swallow all the future increased profits for himself.
Inside the Golden Tiger Gang's main hall, the pale-faced Second Miss was furiously berating the White Emperor Sect experts. "Nonsense! If we leave like this, where will the White Emperor Sect's reputation be? My father sent you to Suzhou so that you could expand our sphere of influence here, increase our income, and strengthen the sect. If you run away now, won't you be handing over all the territory we fought so hard to win to others? No, absolutely not. Whoever dares leave can go back and see my father himself."
As she spoke, Second Miss slammed a palm onto the tea table. Clenching her teeth, she snorted, "Especially since my Moonlit Sword has fallen into their hands—how can we simply leave like this? I finally begged my eldest brother to let me have it to play with, and I have not even had it for three months yet... And that skinny brat in particular—if I do not skin him alive, then I am not Bai Lingxin."
The White Emperor Sect's Right Protector looked exceptionally grim. Watching Bai Lingxin rage through the main hall, he could not help sighing inwardly. The Sect Master and Eldest Young Master are incomparably wise. Why is this Second Miss so utterly unreasonable? Does she not know that if the Golden Dragon Gang buys off Gu Cangyue, then once Suzhou Prefecture issues an official document, it will be difficult for us even to leave? No matter how high your martial arts, can you compare to the several thousand garrison soldiers within Suzhou Prefecture? Especially the commanders in the garrisons—who among them does not come from the martial world? Our White Emperor Sect has no more than thirty experts in Suzhou Prefecture altogether, and now we have even lost Li Yuankui. It is impossible for us to fight several thousand government runners and soldiers.
At his side, a man with three wisps of rat whiskers and triangular eyes, looking rather like a legal adviser, stroked his beard and said, "Master Chen, perhaps matters will not be so troublesome? Gu Cangyue must still consider that if Cangfeng Fortress and our White Emperor Sect clash head-on, neither side will gain any advantage. True, in the northern lands, Cangfeng Fortress can turn its hand to make clouds and flip it to make rain, but here in the south, our White Emperor Sect's influence is no weaker than theirs."
Before you continue