Tragedy

The moment that voice reached his ears, Bai Qi's pupils suddenly contracted.

What he had been unable to understand instantly became clear.

He gave a bitter laugh.

"Azure Void Palm... so you were the Chu Family's Third Young Master.

"You deceived me terribly..."

"The feeling is mutual."

As Chu Qing answered, he tapped Bai Qi's acupoints.

Then he reached out and pressed Bai Qi's cheek.

His fingers suddenly exerted force. With a crack from Bai Qi's mouth, Chu Qing seized the moment and slapped the back of his head.

Pfft!

Something white, like a tooth, flew from his mouth.

Then Chu Qing turned his sword edge around Bai Qi's right wrist and severed his hand tendons as well.

Only then did Chu Qing circle around to stand before him.

"The little tricks on you should all be unusable now, right?

"Now then, shall we have a chat?"

Bai Qi paid no mind to his condition and instead laughed.

"Talk about what? You know me. You know you won't get any information out of my mouth.

"And besides... Mirror of Sin will not let you go.

"You escaped death once, but will you have such good fortune a second time?

"Blood Spear's martial arts ranked above yours. Being able to kill him in return was already a blessing invited from the heavens.

"But you should know, he had not even been listed on the Evil Execution List.

"As long as you live, sooner or later, experts from the Evil Execution List will come to kill you!"

"That isn't what I want to discuss... You know that having fallen into my hands, you have no way out today. So whatever becomes of me afterward has nothing to do with you."

Chu Qing spoke softly.

"I am merely curious. If I kill Zhou Changtai, what will happen?"

Bai Qi glanced at him and said with a smile,

"Then it proves that in your heart, all that so-called grand ambition is bullshit.

"You are nothing more than a cold-blooded assassin who kills for money.

"Only then would you truly be qualified to join Mirror of Sin, and perhaps even receive its cultivation.

"One day, rising onto the Evil Execution List would not be impossible either."

Chu Qing sighed softly.

"So that was it. This was a trap, and also a test.

"Kill your own conscience, and you pass, becoming Mirror of Sin's true blade.

"Otherwise... there is only a road to death."

Bai Qi was somewhat surprised.

"You've gotten smarter?"

"Those who have died once always make some progress."

Chu Qing shook his head.

"One last question. Was it Valley of Ten Thousand Nights that wanted Chu Yunfei dead?"

Hearing this, Bai Qi looked at him and suddenly laughed.

"That's right. It was Valley of Ten Thousand Nights.

"They wanted to go to war with Heavenly Dance City, but Chu Yunfei and Wu Ganqi together were more than they could handle.

"So they wanted Chu Yunfei dead."

Chu Qing nodded.

"So it was indeed like that. But you gave me the answer so readily. It seems you harbor no good intentions either.

"Are you hoping I die at the hands of Valley of Ten Thousand Nights? Or perhaps, even if I do not die, I will leave enough traces for Mirror of Sin to lock onto me again?"

"...Are you really Sword Ghost? Could someone have swapped you out?"

The astonishment in Bai Qi's voice was not feigned.

Chu Qing merely smiled.

"Enough. The reminiscing ends here... Do you have any last words?"

Bai Qi's lips moved, as though he wished to say something, but the longsword swept across his throat.

All his remaining words were swallowed back into his belly.

"Forget it. I can't fulfill your wishes anyway, so there is no need to hear your last words."

He sheathed his sword and watched Bai Qi's pupils gradually lose focus, watched the blood pour from his neck in torrents.

Only after the other man had died completely did he finally feel at ease.

Killing this man would not make Mirror of Sin stop hunting him, but it could prevent many unforeseen changes.

"The assassination of Chu Yunfei is not over yet.

"One failure will not make Mirror of Sin back down... There will certainly be new assassination attempts afterward.

"But this involves a contest between two powers. It is not something a little assassin like me can influence.

"Fortunately, Chu Yunfei did not die. And after this incident, he will surely take precautions.

"He should be safe for the time being."

For a moment, Chu Qing hesitated. Should he take this chance to leave Heavenly Dance City directly?

As for his agreement with Wu Qianhuan, it did not matter whether he went or not. In any case, there was nothing regrettable about discarding the Night Emperor identity.

But having made an agreement and then failing to go might arouse Wu Qianhuan's suspicions... Still, she might not be able to find him. The only concern was that she might inadvertently leak the matter, allowing Mirror of Sin to catch hold of the thread Chu Qing had worked so hard to cut once more.

Then there was Junior Sister Wen...

But when he thought of the figure that had followed behind him ever since he left the Chu Family, he ultimately sighed.

"It really is troublesome..."

After dealing with the corpse, Chu Qing changed into another set of clothes in a nearby farmhouse courtyard. Naturally, as before, he left behind two taels of silver.

Once he had tidied himself up, he returned to Heavenly Dance City.

There was still a treasure chest from the system waiting to be opened.

He wondered what good item it might yield after killing Xin Youhen?

Internal cultivation would be best.

As he thought about it, Chu Qing grew somewhat impatient. He was just about to return straight to the inn when a commotion suddenly rose ahead.

It sounded as though something had happened.

Chu Qing had not wanted to concern himself with it, since he still had matters on his mind. But after one glance, he spotted an acquaintance.

"Tang Xi?"

The man was currently standing before a medical clinic. Across from him, several Falling Rain Hall disciples were pinning down a young man who was gaunt as a skeleton and utterly bedraggled.

The young man clutched a saber in his hand, roaring continuously as he tried to rush over and hack Tang Xi to death.

Chu Qing watched in surprise when he heard people nearby whispering among themselves.

"It's started again... How many times has this been now?"

"Who knows? At least the third time..."

"If you ask me, only the Young Hall Master is kindhearted enough to tolerate it. If it were anyone else, Er Gou would have died long ago."

"Sigh, stop talking. He is rather pitiful too..."

Hearing them, Chu Qing was even more surprised. So this was not the first time?

He moved closer to a middle-aged man and asked in a low voice,

"Uncle, what is going on? Why have they drawn blades?"

The middle-aged man looked Chu Qing over. Seeing his honest face and the plain clothes of an ordinary farmer, he said,

"You just arrived in Heavenly Dance City, didn't you?"

Chu Qing gave a simple-minded grin.

"You have sharp eyes, sir. I just came into the city to scrape together a living. They all say Heavenly Dance City is a great city, protected by its City Lord. How can people still draw blades in the streets?"

"That is where you are mistaken."

The middle-aged man lowered his voice and told Chu Qing,

"That young man is called Er Gou. He lives in Ten Mile Town and once had a fiancée. The two had been childhood sweethearts.

"Just when their wedding was drawing near, that young girl disappeared.

"When they found her... aiya, it was awful.

"Her arms and legs had all been cut off. There was not a single patch of good flesh left on her body. Even in death, her eyes could not close!"