Departure

Even Ji Fang, whose blood had surged at the start and whose anger had suppressed every other emotion, was left utterly shaken as he gazed at the bloodshed filling the courtyard.

"You—you're an immortal?"

Ji Fang looked at Chen Mu, his voice trembling slightly.

As an ordinary person from the lowest rung of society, he had rarely ever seen a Seventh Rank martial artist, who was already a great figure in his eyes. As for Daoist masters, they were beings he had heard of only in legends!

Chen Mu's gaze swept across the entire courtyard before settling on the row of low houses at the very back. He casually pointed toward one of them and said, "Your sister is there. There are others as well. Release them all."

As soon as he finished speaking.

Chen Mu turned around without a care and disappeared beyond the courtyard.

There were still some valuables on the Black Water Gang's territory, but not many, and he had no interest in them. Destroying the Black Water Gang alone was enough to bring the matter to an end.

He had originally considered whether he should kill only the chief culprits, but after coming here and seeing how thoroughly rotten the entire Black Water Gang was, he decided it was better to uproot them all.

He walked out of the courtyard.

Once he was away from the thick stench of blood, Chen Mu took a deep breath.

He had never seen such a bloody scene in his previous life, and this was his first time killing someone since coming to this world. Yet he had not trembled in the slightest. The strength of his Soulmind also represented the strength of his will.

"Looks like I'll still have to practice my Martial Arts a little whenever I have the time."

Chen Mu murmured inwardly.

The only minor problem with this trip was that the journey had been a little too far. His body was merely that of an ordinary young master from an Aristocratic Clan, and after walking this distance, his legs were already aching. It left him both amused and exasperated. Fortunately, he could manipulate spiritual energy and invigorate the blood vessels in his legs.

A martial artist had to reach the Third Rank Grandmaster realm before they could fly, while a Daoist master likewise had to reach the Fourth Rank, attain the Day Trip Realm, and manifest their Soulmind before they could fly through the air.

Before the Fourth Rank, a Daoist master could control a flying sword with peerless ferocity and even wield divine Daoist arts. But just as even the strongest brawny man could not yank himself up by his own hair, a Daoist master below the Fourth Rank could not use Mind-Soul Power to lift themselves up. Thus, they could not fly through the air.

The manifestation of the Soulmind in the Day Trip Realm was a qualitative transformation.

However, he was still quite far from the Day Trip Realm. The Fifth Rank Daoist Arts threshold still stood before him.

Chen Mu walked away.

He soon disappeared into the alleyways.

Inside the courtyard.

Ji Fang watched Chen Mu leave. Only then did he come back to his senses. Without another thought, he hurried toward the place Chen Mu had pointed to and ran into the row of low houses.

Several women were hiding in the inner room of the low house, trembling all over. Even after hearing the commotion outside, they did not dare make a sound. Ji Fang's sudden entry startled them even more.

One of them was Ji Fang's sister.

After the initial fright, Ji Lan saw that it was Ji Fang who had rushed in. She took several sharp breaths before anxiously saying, "Xiao Fang? Why are you here? How did you get here? Hurry and leave! I'm fine here. Don't let them discover you."

She instinctively assumed that Ji Fang had snuck in.

Ji Fang hurried forward and explained everything. Ji Lan and the other women were left utterly astonished, exchanging doubtful glances as they struggled to believe him.

Only after Ji Lan summoned her courage and followed Ji Fang cautiously to the doorway did she look outside. When she saw the corpses strewn across the ground beyond the door, her face suddenly went deathly pale.

Her stomach churned, and she could not help vomiting.

Seeing this, the other women cautiously gathered around. After witnessing the scene outside, their faces likewise turned white with terror, and their breathing grew rapid.

Once they had fully recovered, however, every one of them wore a look of delight. Several of them gazed at Zhang Hai's corpse with the grim satisfaction of seeing their vengeance fulfilled.

Ji Lan supported herself against the doorframe and struggled to stand. She looked over the courtyard again before asking Ji Fang, "Xiao Fang, where—where is that benefactor?"

"He's already gone."

Ji Fang shook his head.

Ji Lan let out an "Ah" and looked into the distance. Her voice was filled with gratitude. "I haven't even had the chance to thank him in person. That benefactor must be an immortal-like figure..."

"He really is an immortal..."

Recalling what had happened moments ago, Ji Fang still could not hide the shock in his heart. But when he looked at the corpses covering the ground, a chill gradually crept up his spine. He said, "Sister, we should leave this place quickly."

"Yes."

The sight of all that blood made Ji Lan's stomach churn as well.

The other women all fled outside, except for one whose face was twisted with hatred. She walked to Zhang Hai's corpse and picked up a woodcutter's knife. Under the frozen gazes of Ji Fang and Ji Lan, she hacked down viciously several times, seemingly intent on chopping Zhang Hai's head off.

But Zhang Hai had been a Seventh Rank martial artist, after all. Even after she hacked at him with all her strength, she only barely cut through a little skin on his corpse, while she herself was so exhausted that she nearly stumbled to the ground.

"Sister, we should leave quickly."

Ji Lan watched this in fright, but still could not help reminding her cautiously.

The woman breathed heavily for a while before gradually recovering. She nodded at Ji Lan, and then the group left the courtyard together, leaving behind only the corpses strewn across the ground.

The thick stench of blood gradually spread along the alleyways.

Soon.

The corpses filling the courtyard were discovered.

Some people took a look from far away, horrified beyond words. They did not dare approach and quietly left.

Not until the next morning.

At last, a man in armor appeared outside the courtyard with a squad of guards. He was a Deputy Commander of the Eastern Division of the Five Cities Garrison, and also the man who usually collected the most silver from the Black Water Gang.

Upon hearing that the Black Water Gang had been wiped out overnight, he was deeply alarmed. Thus, he had climbed out of his concubine's bed early that morning and hurried over with his men without even taking time to tidy himself.

The Black Water Gang was nothing much, but its leader, Zhang Hai, had at least been a Seventh Rank martial artist. For the entire gang to be silently wiped out without causing the slightest ripple was naturally frightening.

He had already been somewhat uneasy.

After investigating, he was even more horrified.

Nearly all the corpses had been pierced through the brow. Such marks could have been left either by Sword Qi or by a Daoist master's flying sword!

After a more careful examination, however, it became perfectly clear that the wounds had not been caused by invisible Sword Qi, but by the marks left when a tangible sword blade pierced through them.

Without a doubt.

This was a Daoist master's flying sword!

"A Daoist master... Why would one target the Black Water Gang...?"

The Deputy Commander was filled with terror.

As a Deputy Commander, he was a Sixth Rank martial artist. He was not particularly afraid of a Seventh Rank Daoist master himself. What frightened him was the significance contained behind the identity of a Daoist master!

Although there were also Daoist masters above the Seventh Rank in the martial world, nearly all of them were regarded as precious treasures by the major sects. They either remained within their sects under tight protection or traveled with a whole host of guards.

Therefore.

A Daoist master's actions in the Capital could almost always be directly linked to the Directorate of Celestial Observation. The nature of the Directorate of Celestial Observation was practically equivalent to the Emperor's personal guard. Not to mention him—even if the Eastern Division's Commander had been standing here, he would have been utterly horrified upon seeing the Black Water Gang's state!

The Black Water Gang itself would be no concern even if ten of them were wiped out. What was truly frightening was if something had implicated them. That would be a major matter!

"My lord, the traces in the inner courtyard, along with these footprints, should have been left by women. The women the Black Water Gang abducted in their daily activities seem to have all escaped. Should we investigate...?"

A guard spoke cautiously.

The Deputy Commander shook his head. "Don't investigate."

A Daoist master's actions were not something the Five Cities Garrison was meant to question. If the situation were truly serious, they might have to consult the Directorate of Celestial Observation, but this was merely the Black Water Gang. If they had been wiped out, then so be it. He was already eager to distance himself from the matter—how could he possibly have the mind to keep investigating and implicate himself further?