Saving People

The last corpse fell to the ground with a thud.

General Fan crashed to the ground with his eyes wide open. Until the very end, he never caught a glimpse of his killer. That Bone Forging Realm expert was even more shameless than he had expected, openly using sneak attacks to kill them one by one.

During the process, General Fan had organized several breakout attempts.

But every time they moved, even more people died.

Especially when they passed through doorways and alleys, people fell in swathes like cut straw. After two or three rounds, all hope of breaking out had been utterly extinguished.

In the end, they could only watch the people around them die one after another.

This death warrant-like assassination tormented General Fan beyond measure. By the time an arrow pierced his throat, he instead felt a sense of release.

"I originally wanted to have a hearty battle with you, but who told you to be the first to abandon martial virtue?"

Chen Luo emerged from the shadows. Looking at General Fan's unclosed eyes, he pulled the iron rod he had carried all the way from the small of his back, poured Internal Qi into it, and flung it with a whoosh, pinning it into the other man's chest.

The corpse did not react at all.

Only after confirming that the man was truly dead did he approach and say with a sigh, "What a pity."

The first time he had infiltrated this place, General Fan had been just as cautious, never giving him a chance for a one-on-one fight. Now that the advantage had changed hands, Chen Luo naturally would not throw away his advantage and foolishly run out to duel the other man.

"Let me accompany you on the road ahead."

Chen Luo crouched down and pressed his hand against General Fan's forehead.

'Dead Person's Brainwaves detected. Damage degree: 42%. Read?'

"Such a high damage degree? I still hit too hard. If I'd known, I wouldn't have struck his head." Chen Luo looked regretful.

The situation had been chaotic at the time. To prevent General Fan from escaping and leaving trouble behind, he had used slightly too much force, greeting General Fan head-on with his trusty brick before shooting him dead with a Sleeve Arrow. Even now, General Fan's face was still a bloody mess. No wonder he had died with his eyes open. Under such circumstances, few normal people would be able to rest in peace.

'Read!'

A special energy flowed through his palm and merged into Chen Luo's brow. The next moment, he discarded two weakling "brains" in his mind that had no particular strengths.

After dealing with General Fan and the others in the courtyard, Chen Luo finally relaxed completely.

Such a huge disturbance had drawn no reinforcements from outside. Presumably, the soldiers who had gone out searching had already formed ideas of their own. This situation was the best possible one for Chen Luo and saved him a great deal of trouble. After killing so many people in one night, even he had grown somewhat numb.

"Junior Sister, Junior Sister He? Wake up."

After taking several more useful brains, Chen Luo walked over and untied Junior Sister He Min and the several women. He gently patted her cheek.

Unfortunately, Junior Sister He seemed to be asleep. No matter how he called to her, it was useless.

"Wasn't the force enough?"

Chen Luo looked at his palm, then at Junior Sister He, who was still unconscious nearby.

After hesitating again and again, he ultimately abandoned the tempting thought in his mind. If he slapped her into a pig's head and took her out, things would become impossible to explain. Better to toss her back and let Master Ma and the others worry over it.

His purpose in returning to Qingya County had been achieved.

What remained was preparing to run away. Whether it was the Magistrate of Qingya County or General Fan, the person behind them was Prince Ning. They were all links in some grand plan. By killing these people, Chen Luo had effectively fallen out with Prince Ning. The only good thing was that Prince Ning still did not know someone like him existed.

If he handled things properly, it would end here.

As for seeking revenge against Prince Ning, Chen Luo did not think his head was that hard. He had not suffered any losses in this incident, so there was no need to lock horns to the death. If he truly wanted revenge, he could wait until his strength had improved. A prince's status was not something the Magistrate of Qingya County could compare with. Setting aside Prince Ning's own strength, the expert guards around him alone were beyond Chen Luo's ability to handle. General Fan, whom he had spent so long killing tonight, was probably merely a slightly more useful dog at Prince Ning's side—the kind of dog whose name was not even remembered.

"Hm?"

As Chen Luo prepared to turn around and look for a bucket of cold water, a jade book nearby suddenly caught his attention.

The dormant Royal Family Brain in his mind suddenly became active the instant it saw the jade book.

This was a book mastered by the Royal Family Brain!

A thought flashed through Chen Luo's mind.

A hidden member of the Imperial Clan, supported by Royal Uncle, had secretly ventured into a secret realm and obtained a mysterious jade book. He had wanted to rely on this jade book to change his circumstances, only to be betrayed by Royal Uncle, whom he trusted most, and die frustrated on an unnamed mountain ridge. The jade book he had risked his life to obtain had also been snatched away by people sent by Prince.

The plan was linked ring by ring.

If not for Chen Luo, this shit-stirring rod, Qingya County's "rebellion" would surely have been smoothly suppressed in the end. The Imperial Clan descendant's grudge would have been avenged, and the jade book would have fallen into Prince's hands. The Magistrate of Qingya County and all the participants would have gained the merit of "suppressing bandits," reaping both fame and profit.

The only ones who lost out were the common people of Qingya County.

But in the eyes of those in high places, the lives of common people were nothing more than a string of numbers. Being able to exchange them for so many benefits, these mud-legged commoners ought to feel happy.

"Senior Brother?"

Just as Chen Luo was preparing to investigate further, He Min, who had been unconscious for half the day, finally woke up. The several women captured alongside her also awoke. The moment these women opened their eyes and saw corpses strewn everywhere, they all cried out in alarm.

Chen Luo's thoughts were interrupted by them.

"It's good that you're awake. Everyone here has already been killed by me. Calm them down and get ready to leave."

Chen Luo casually tucked the Jade Slip into his robe and gave He Min an instruction. He had come back to his senses now. Running away was the most urgent matter; he could study the slip once they were safe.

Killed... all of them?

Did he mean that literally?

He Min stared blankly around her. Only after seeing General Fan's face, frozen in death with his eyes open, did she truly understand what "all killed" meant.

These people had really all died, and they had been killed by her Senior Brother.

But hadn't Master Ma said that Senior Brother had only entered his tutelage to learn martial arts a month ago? Could Master Ma have been mistaken?

"Senior Brother! Wait for me!"

By the time He Min came back to her senses, Chen Luo had already reached the courtyard gate, leaving only his back behind.

She quickly rose to her feet and chased after Chen Luo.

Seeing this, the other women hurried after them as well. No matter what the scene outside was like, they did not want to remain in this courtyard covered in corpses. The soldiers had been dead for some time already, and the smell of blood had spread through the air. Any normal person would find it unbearable to stay in such an environment.

"Expert!"

The moment Chen Luo stepped outside, he saw Wang Dajiang, who had been waiting for a long time.

"Perfect. Junior Sister He and several rescued women are behind me. Go meet them." Chen Luo, already hurrying back to study the slip, immediately found someone to dump the responsibility on. Once he handed the people over to Wang Dajiang, he could leave without worry.

"They've been rescued? As expected of an expert!"

Wang Dajiang was thrilled and quickly headed toward the back. But after taking only a few steps, he seemed to suddenly remember something and turned back to ask.

"By the way, where's my eldest brother?"

Wang Dajiang turned around to look, but there was no sign of Chen Luo behind him.

Expert.

He hadn't forgotten my eldest brother, had he?