"What? We're supposed to work with those clan parasites?"
"Cooperate? I'll never cooperate with the culprits who killed our brothers from the Martial Arts Department!"
"Is it the Li Family or the Yang Family?"
"Hmph, none of them are any good!"
"..."
The voices of discussion rose and fell. The Li and Yang Families had notorious reputations, especially among the Martial Arts Department. Quite a few of their brothers handling cases had died under the two families' schemes.
Now that they heard they were actually going to cooperate with those two families, a chorus of opposition immediately erupted.
"Silence!"
Wang Long roared, his voice exploding beside their ears like a thunderclap. Everyone immediately fell silent.
"Although this operation is to assist the Wu'an Army in suppressing the rebels, eliminating evil on behalf of the people is also the duty of our Martial Arts Department!"
"Are we supposed to stop killing bandits and let wicked criminals run rampant in our territory just because there are people we dislike present?"
"We don't need to concern ourselves with how the Wu'an Army conducts its affairs or whom it invites. When the time comes, you only need to obey my orders. Put all your strength into catching the criminals. Don't let the Wu'an Army's lord look down on us!"
"Yes!" Though the crowd was unwilling, Wang Long's words eased their resentment somewhat, and they answered in agreement one after another.
While Wang Long issued orders and made arrangements, at the same time, in Heyuan County City, at the Li Family residence—
Inside one of the luxurious rooms, a young man sat cross-legged in cultivation. A mass of blood-colored mist swirled above his head, slowly condensing into the shape of a skeleton. Within it, countless tiny, hideous infants seemed to be wailing. This person was the Li Family's heir, Li Ming.
A moment later, sensing movement outside the door, the blood-colored mist sank back into his body, and Li Ming opened his eyes.
"Young Master, a secret report from the county office," a servant said from outside the door.
"Come in."
A servant entered and handed a sealed letter to Li Ming.
"Hmm? Movement at the county office?"
Li Ming opened the letter and saw a list.
When he reached the end, a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "Good. You're finally willing to leave the city. You've holed up inside for more than half a month. I was beginning to think you'd never come out for the rest of your life."
"Leave. Tell Third Uncle to come here." Li Ming waved his hand.
Before long, the servant left, and a Bald Brute appeared in the room.
"Ming'er, you called for me?"
Li Ming immediately rose and said respectfully, "Third Uncle, it's like this. This morning, someone from the Wu'an Army came and asked our Li Family to send a Xiantian Master to assist him with a task."
"There was such a matter." The bald man nodded.
"Before Father entered seclusion, he specifically instructed me not to offend anyone from the Wu'an Army, so I want to ask you to go."
"Besides that, I'd also like to ask you to handle one more matter."
"Go on." The bald man replied casually.
"Eliminate one of the Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artists accompanying the county office's party. At the very least, cripple his dantian."
"Eliminate a Ninth Stage of Acquired Realm?" The bald man could not help frowning. "This matter is being led by someone from the Wu'an Army, and Wang Long is accompanying the county office's people as well. I'm afraid it won't be easy. Besides, is a mere Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artist worth treating so seriously?"
"Third Uncle, there's something you don't know." Li Ming gritted his teeth. "This man is called Shen Zhui. He was only a Seventh Stage Houtian Martial Artist before, so I paid him no mind."
"But some time ago, he broke through to the Eighth Stage. Not only did he fight his way out of the encirclement of my two Elite Squads, he also killed a Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artist in return. Afterward, he even provoked Wang Long into taking action to save him."
"After that, I carefully investigated his background and discovered that he had practiced martial arts for only three years, yet had trained his techniques to Major Accomplishment, while his movement technique had reached Minor Accomplishment. Now, he has even broken through to the Ninth Stage of Acquired Realm!"
"What?" The bald man was slightly startled.
Reaching the Ninth Stage of Acquired Realm after three years of cultivation was not particularly astonishing. After all, with sufficient resources as a foundation, Houtian Martial Artists were relatively easy to nurture.
But reaching Major Accomplishment in techniques and Minor Accomplishment in movement arts within three years was terrifying!
That meant that once this person entered the Xiantian Realm, he would likely become the next Wang Long, unrivaled among those of the same stage.
"What do you need me to do?" the bald man asked in a deep voice.
Li Ming handed the list to the bald man and said softly, "Third Uncle, when you..."
When Wang Long led fifteen people from the Martial Arts Department to meet the lord from the Wu'an Army, Shen Zhui felt a faint sense of danger lingering in his heart.
Especially after seeing that this pursuit involved four Xiantian Masters, he knew it would be a troublesome case.
Along the way, he listened as the Wu'an Army lord, Lin Ze, introduced the operation. Four Xiantian Masters would each hold one side, surrounding the manor where the Wu'an Army's traitor was resting.
At the same time, their people from the Martial Arts Department would guard the four sides around the manor to prevent the enemy from escaping through underground passages and to eliminate any possible accomplices.
"Everyone, that criminal isn't particularly powerful. He's merely quite skilled at fleeing and preserving his life. I invited you here only to prevent him from escaping. As long as everything is arranged properly, there won't be any danger. If we can successfully capture the traitor, Lin will certainly reward you handsomely."
After traveling forty li outside the city to a small hill, Lin Ze spoke once more.
Several li away stood a fiery-red maple forest. Hidden within the maple forest was a faintly visible manor—the destination of Lin Ze's journey: Red Leaf Manor!
"Lord Lin, you're too polite." A burly man carrying a Wolf Fang Club laughed. "Being able to cooperate with a young talent like Lord Lin is my Yang Mou's good fortune."
"Indeed. Eliminating evil on behalf of the people is also a way to accumulate virtue and perform good deeds. Lord Lin needn't be so courteous. We will naturally do everything we can." The bald man also responded with polite words.
"Hmph, what a fine way to accumulate virtue and perform good deeds." Wang Long snorted coldly. Were these two even worthy of speaking those words about eliminating evil on behalf of the people and accumulating virtue?
Lin Ze also noticed Wang Long's cold attitude toward the Li and Yang Families. He immediately recalled the information he had gathered before coming.
"I'd long heard that the government office and the clans of Heyuan County were at odds. From the looks of it, things are probably even more serious..." Lin Ze thought. "But I only need them to cooperate. I don't need them to fight with all their might, so there shouldn't be any problem."
Lin Ze did not meddle in other people's affairs. His ability to invite these Xiantian Masters was entirely due to his status as a member of the Wu'an Army. As for his actual strength, he was only somewhat stronger than Li Zhong and Yang Mou. Wang Long, this expert from the county office, was no weaker than him—in fact, his aura seemed faintly stronger.
"Everyone, restrain your auras. Let's move."
The fifteen people from the Martial Arts Department split into four groups and surrounded the manor from four directions.
"This time, the criminal is a Qi Cultivation True Person, slightly stronger than a martial artist. You must not be careless. Once you discover any movement from the criminal, you only need to shout loudly. Don't entangle yourselves with him."
Shen Zhui, Zhao Hu, and He Tong formed one group and guarded the rear entrance. Every other position had at least one Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artist leading the team, along with three Eighth Stage of Acquired Realm martial artists.
"Understood." Shen Zhui and Zhao Hu both nodded.
They had no qualifications to participate in a battle between Xiantian Martial Artists. They had only been brought along in case the opponent escaped silently.
"Especially you, Shen Zhui. You're someone the county magistrate values, so don't charge recklessly." He Tong reminded him.
"Thank you, Uncle He." Shen Zhui felt slightly grateful. He Tong had taught him martial skills for a time and was generally easy to approach, though he was somewhat taciturn.
However, their group's He Tong was a Peak Houtian who had fallen from the Xiantian Realm. Wang Long had deliberately taken care of Shen Zhui by having him follow He Tong. With the two of them joining forces, Shen Zhui felt that even if they faced an enemy head-on, he would not be killed instantly.
The encirclement slowly tightened. When they were less than three li from the manor, a long howl suddenly rang out from within.
Shen Zhui looked up ahead and saw a burst of fire suddenly flare in the distance. A figure engulfed in flames shot into the sky.
"Lin Ze! I'm going all out against you!" The flaming figure suddenly expanded, his entire body transforming into a sea of fire. Floating in midair, he abruptly condensed into a massive fireball and hurled it toward the manor below.
"My heavens..." Shen Zhui stared at the scene from afar, almost suffocating. "Is this the power of a Qi Cultivation True Person in the Xiantian Realm?"
Vital energy surged violently. The fireball rolled and burned as though it would burn straight through the heavens, while the air twisted and blurred.
Shen Zhui finally understood why Qi Cultivation True Persons were stronger than martial artists. Long-range spells like these naturally possessed a tremendous advantage.
"Rebel, prepare to die!" Lin Ze's voice rang out.
In another direction, dozens of Ice Walls abruptly appeared. They extended endlessly upward, reaching more than ten zhang in an instant.
Like a prison of ice mountains, they trapped the Flame Figure inside.
From the other three directions, Wang Long charged forward with his sword. The brute carrying the Wolf Fang Club also shot into the sky, while the bald man sent by the Li Family fought bare-handed. His long robe billowed as though inflated, carrying streaks of Gang Qi.
Four Xiantian Masters joined forces to surround and kill him!
"Boom!"
The Ice Walls suddenly exploded. The Flame Figure transformed into a streak of flowing light, darting left and right as he tried to escape.
Yet for a time, he could not break through the encirclement formed by the four men.
Seeing that the flaming man was about to be forced to the ground under their combined assault—
Shen Zhui faintly noticed that the battlefield had been slowly moving all along.
It seemed to be gradually drawing closer to his side.
The moment Shen Zhui noticed this, he sensed that something was wrong and was about to retreat a little farther.
At that moment, a sudden change occurred!
The bald man, who had been defending flawlessly all this time, suddenly shouted and moved aside, allowing a fireball to shoot straight toward Shen Zhui.
"Swoosh~" At the same time, a bone-chilling wind suddenly swept over from beside him. A blade light abruptly flared.
The blade light moved so quickly that just as Shen Zhui began to retreat, it had already reached his face.
Shen Zhui stared at the descending blade with eyes wide in fury, hardly daring to believe it.
"He Tong!"
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