Slaying Shen Dingyuan

In the mountain forest, a rare clear day had emerged from winter.

Sunlight shone through the woods, casting dappled shadows.

Chen Qinglin glanced at the two unconscious figures, then lifted them and moved to another spot.

He had been watching their escape route from behind earlier, quietly slipping ahead to wait for their arrival.

When they came, he gave them a surprise.

"Where is this?" The two woke groggily, still disoriented, and spotted a green-robed figure not far away.

As their vision cleared, they saw it was a youth of fourteen or fifteen.

Taking stock, they exchanged glances and said, "Little brother, did you save us?"

"We two brothers came hunting in the forest—thanks to you for saving our lives."

"What hunter would come this deep to hunt? No need to test me—I knocked you out myself," Chen Qinglin said.

"You're bandits, aren't you? I'm very interested in your stronghold. I trust you two won't disappoint me."

Scar Wolf looked around, saw only Chen Qinglin, and immediately switched to a vicious expression.

"A snot-nosed brat still wet behind the ears—that was just a sneak attack on your grandpa Scar Wolf."

With that, he charged at Chen Qinglin.

After a friendly negotiation...

"Spare me, great hero! I have an elderly mother of seventy at home and hungry children crying for food—please let me live..."

"I swear I'll turn over a new leaf and be a good man."

"Yeah, yeah, great hero—me too!"

"Tell me about your stronghold's situation. If I'm interested, I might just let you live," Chen Qinglin said, looking at their bruised and swollen faces.

"Yes! Yes! Great hero, our Mountain Wolf Bandits usually never..."

As they spoke of the stronghold, Chen Qinglin interjected with questions now and then.

Gradually, he pieced together the story.

About seven days ago, a Sinister Man in his twenties had come to their stronghold, killed their chieftain, and taken over the Mountain Wolf Bandits.

He'd poisoned them and ordered them to capture people and bring them up the mountain.

All captives were thrown into the stronghold's dungeon, which was sealed off—no one allowed inside.

Each bandit was required to bring in people; those who failed would be locked in the dungeon themselves.

A few nights ago, the two had heard ghastly screams from the dungeon.

And now, no one was delivering food to the dungeon anymore—those inside were likely...

The more they thought about it, the more terrified they became, which led to their escape.

Chen Qinglin sorted through the information in his mind. This man captured people and locked them in the dungeon, and no one had ever been seen coming out again.

Connecting these clues, Chen Qinglin suspected the man might also be cultivating some evil technique.

And his target, Shen Dingyuan, had once appeared in Shanmen County.

This man was likely connected to his mission target—maybe even the same person.

Having figured out the link, Chen Qinglin prepared to infiltrate the Mountain Wolf Stronghold and investigate.

He glanced at the two men, then leaped into the forest.

Scar Wolf and Shi Xiaohu were overjoyed, but before they could celebrate, two stones flew toward them...

Chen Qinglin couldn't possibly let them go. These bandits had spent their days robbing and killing—whose hands weren't stained with innocent blood?

Letting them go would not only let them harm others later but could also bring trouble to him now.

Sometimes, Chen Qinglin felt he had already adapted to this world.

The first time he killed, there was no ripple in his heart.

He quietly tailed another group of bandits, waiting for dusk to fall.

"Why hasn't the boss and Xiaohu come back after so long?"

"Maybe they went back first."

"Tch, they go back and leave us here."

"Who told you you're not the boss?"

"..."

A few bandits grumbled in the forest, complaining and venting.

Suddenly, one of them exclaimed, "Someone's coming!"

Chen Qinglin focused his gaze and saw that it was Ling Xueyan and those Patrol Envoys.

"Go, we can't let them get away this time." A group of mountain bandits drew their blades and rushed swiftly toward Ling Xueyan and the others.

"..." Chen Qinglin was speechless. These people were just throwing themselves at death.

Sure enough, they fell as fast as they came. They thought they'd found easy prey, but instead they'd run into a tiger.

"Hold it, spare them." If he didn't speak up now, those two men would be dead soon. Chen Qinglin leaped out from the forest.

Although he already knew the general location of the stronghold from Scar Wolf and the other man, having a guide would still speed things up.

He hadn't kept those two alive because it was still early, and he didn't want to charge in recklessly.

Ling Xueyan had just finished dealing with this batch of bandits who'd delivered themselves to her when she heard someone shout to spare them.

Even if he hadn't shouted, she would have kept two alive for questioning.

Following the sound, she saw it was the young brother she'd met before.

"Junior Brother Chen from Qingfeng Mountain? What are you doing here?" Ling Xueyan asked curiously.

"Senior Sister Ling, I'm tracking a mission that's connected to the Mountain Wolf Bandits. I'd like to ask you to keep one alive to guide me," Chen Qinglin explained.

"Mountain Wolf Bandits? These bandits are all from the Mountain Wolf Bandits?" Ling Xueyan was a bit surprised. She hadn't even done anything yet, and Mountain Wolf Bandits had already stumbled into her hands.

"What a coincidence. We're also tracking these Mountain Wolf Bandits."

"Sister Yan, Brother Chen, since our goals align, why don't we work together?" Qin Wu stepped forward and said.

Even Lin Yi didn't speak against it this time. Since their goals were the same and there was no conflict of interest, having an extra person was a good thing.

Moreover, a disciple from Qingfeng Mountain who came down to do missions wouldn't be below the Mid Inner Qi Realm.

"That works." Chen Qinglin thought it over and agreed.

Then Ling Xueyan and the others interrogated the two they'd kept alive, learning the situation at the Mountain Wolf Stronghold.

Aside from the new chief, they were all Body Tempering Realm bandits.

Chen Qinglin also shared his deductions with them. Combining that with the Patrol Division's intelligence, Lin Yi and the others agreed that the man was very likely Shen Dingyuan.

And this man had probably cultivated the Bloodthirsty Demonic Art. In the past few days, he might have already broken through to Mid Inner Qi Realm.

After discussing it, Chen Qinglin and the others decided on a night raid.

To prevent the man from escaping, they decided to have Chen Qinglin hide in the shadows and strike a fatal blow at the critical moment, giving the man no chance.

In the quiet mountain forest, several figures suddenly appeared. Ling Xueyan and the others looked at the stronghold, now visible in outline, and disposed of the two bandit guides.

They waited silently for night to fall.

As darkness descended, Ling Xueyan and the others quietly crept up to the stronghold.

A group of Body Tempering Realm third- and fourth-layer sentries were easily taken down by them.

Ling Xueyan gestured a few times, and they silently surrounded the main hall and the chief's quarters to investigate.

Lin Yi, Qin Wu, and the others made a few gestures after their search. Ling Xueyan frowned when she saw them.

No one was there. Could it be...

She signaled them to sneak toward the dungeon.

As they infiltrated the dungeon, they saw that there wasn't a single living person inside!

All the corpses were piled together. A figure sat cross-legged in the middle, streams of blood energy surging from the corpses into that person's body.

"Who's there!"

Shen Dingyuan was absorbing the blood energy from these corpses when he suddenly sensed someone watching.

He raised his hand, and a Blood-colored Long Sword appeared in his grip. Without a second thought, he slashed toward the dungeon entrance.

A blood-red Sword Qi flew toward Lin Yi and the others. Seeing this, Lin Yi hurriedly drew his blade to meet it.

The prison cell collapsed with a crash. Lin Yi was sent flying, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Sister Yan, be careful. This man is at Mid Inner Qi Realm."

Before Ling Xueyan could react, Lin Yi was already injured. She snapped to attention and immediately thrust her Sword Skill at the enemy.

The dungeon was instantly filled with blood-red and cyan-white Sword Qi.

Lin Yi blocked a few incoming Sword Qi strikes and immediately told his brothers to get out. This wasn't someone they could fight.

As soon as they left the dungeon, the bandits outside heard the noise and surrounded them. The group drew their weapons and fought their way out.

Blades and swords cut through the air without mercy, instantly sending the bandits scattering in panic. Those who survived, seeing they were outmatched, fled in all directions.

"Brother Yi, are you alright!"

Qin Wu, Ding Cheng, and the others asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. The important thing is Sister Yan's situation."

"BOOM!"

A thunderous roar echoed as the dungeon collapsed before their eyes, dust and debris flying everywhere, obscuring the scene within.

Two-colored Sword Qi slashed through the dungeon, bursting out from within.

Two figures followed closely behind.

Suddenly, a pure Azure Sword Light flared up, accompanied by a miserable scream as one of the figures plummeted from midair.

The Azure Sword Light did not pause, continuing to envelop that person. By the time Lin Yi and the others could see clearly, the man was already lying in a pool of blood, his hands and feet completely crippled!! A Green-robed Figure stood to the side, sword in hand.

Ling Xueyan's heart trembled. If that Sword Light had been aimed at her, she would have left her life here today.

Such swift swordsmanship, such a formidable person.

She glanced at the Green-robed Figure, walked over, and exclaimed in admiration, "Junior Brother's swordsmanship is truly remarkable!"

"Is he your mission target?"

"That's right, it's him. I've seen his portrait."

"Am I correct, Shen Dingyuan?" Her words were phrased as a question, but her tone was certain.

"Who... are you!" Shen Dingyuan asked through pained screams.

Ling Xueyan and the others wore Patrol Division uniforms, and Shen Dingyuan had dealt with them before, so he recognized them.

He was asking about Chen Qinglin.

"A disciple of Qingfeng Mountain," Chen Qinglin replied calmly.

"Qingfeng Mountain! So that's it! Cough, cough..." Shen Dingyuan coughed up blood, realizing this youth had come for him as well.

"Do you know why I slaughtered the entire Shen Clan? It was because—"

"I don't want to know. Time to go!" A flash of sword light, and the severed head still wore a stunned expression as it flew through the air.

He took out his disciple Jade Token, activated the Formation on it to record an image of Shen Dingyuan's body on the ground, then stored it into his ring.

"It's getting dark, Junior Brother Chen. Let's rest here for the night," Ling Xueyan said.

"Fine. We can also search the Mountain Stronghold."

With that, he searched Shen Dingyuan's corpse and removed his Storage Ring.

"Hiss!"

Lin Yi and the others felt a chill run down their spines.

They exchanged glances. Lin Yi whispered, "I didn't offend Brother Chen before, did I?"

"Brother Yi, before noon you said Brother Chen wasn't a good person," Qin Wu replied seriously.

"It's over, it's over, wuwuwu..."

"Hurry up and search the Mountain Stronghold. Junior Brother Chen won't hold a grudge. We'll meet at the stronghold's main hall later."