Commission Completed

The remaining two of the Iron Horse Seven Bandits were the Thief Leader and their Third Brother.

Having escaped a great disaster, the two changed horses after putting some distance between themselves and their pursuers, each mounting one and galloping away.

After running for over ten li, they finally slowed their pace.

Further ahead, they spotted a deep pool. The Thief Leader dismounted and strode to the water's edge, cupping his hands to drink deeply.

Third Brother joined him, doing the same.

After drinking, they washed their faces and heads. Finally, the Thief Leader took out the blood-stained axe and rinsed off the bloodstains in the water.

Third Brother let out a long sigh, his face filled with the relief of having escaped death.

"Big Brother, who exactly were those two women?"

"How should I know?"

The Thief Leader's mouth twitched.

"Some crazy women who came out of nowhere, asking if we were being chased. I wanted to split her head with my axe, but she pulled me off my horse instead.

"I had no choice but to go along with her words... Then you arrived. I gave you the signal, and luckily you understood.

"If we hadn't used those two idiots to stall Chu Fan, we'd be celebrating our death anniversary next year.

"It's a shame we didn't get to chop that bastard Chu down before his junior sister arrived, to avenge our brothers."

As he spoke, his expression darkened.

Third Brother took a deep breath.

"Big Brother, we must have revenge!

"But as they say, a gentleman's revenge is never too late, so there's no need to rush."

"Mm."

The Thief Leader nodded, his brow furrowed.

"Who do you think this Night Emperor is? Judging by the cloth strip, Fifth Brother died by his hand.

"Have you ever heard of such a person in the Jianghu?"

Third Brother quickly shook his head.

"Never heard of him."

"Hmph, meddlers will all die untimely deaths," the Thief Leader cursed viciously.

Third Brother then asked, "Chu Fan is the Second Young Master of the Chu Family in Heavenly Dance City, and an esteemed disciple of Cui Buno of Taiyi Sect. Now that we've made an enemy of him, and with only you and I left of our brothers, our lives won't be easy. Big Brother, what should we do?"

"Mm..."

The Thief Leader pondered for a moment before speaking.

"We'll go to Luoyu Hall."

Third Brother mused slightly at this, then nodded gently.

"Liu Shijie has taken plenty of benefits from us over the years; it's time he helped us out.

"Besides, Luoyu Hall is in Heavenly Dance City. To Chu Fan... it's like under the lamp, it is dark. No matter how hard he racks his brain, he probably won't think we're right under his nose.

"Big Brother, this plan of yours is truly brilliant!"

"As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest place," the Thief Leader chuckled, gently patting Third Brother's shoulder.

"Let's not delay. Bring me some food from your horse, and we'll set off immediately after eating."

"Alright."

Third Brother got up and left. The Thief Leader sat on a rock, resting with his axe.

He was also planning his next move. Luoyu Hall wasn't a long-term solution, but it should be fine for temporary shelter.

Where he would go after that would require careful thought.

He considered a few possibilities but dismissed them all. As he thought, his stomach growled.

He had been through consecutive battles and escapes; the day's ordeal had exhausted even an iron man.

"Third Brother, I asked you to get some food, why are you taking so long? Are you dead?"

Third Brother didn't answer. The Thief Leader looked up and saw Third Brother standing behind the horse.

He immediately stood up and strode over, reaching out to push him.

"I'm asking you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Third Brother fell to the ground with a thud. A sword mark ran across his neck.

It was about two inches long, and only a single drop of blood gathered at the wound.

The Thief Leader's pupils contracted instantly.

Killing without drawing blood; the speed of this person's swordplay was simply unheard of.

Without a second thought, he spun around abruptly.

A flash of light greeted him.

No sound was heard, no blade was seen. Their figures crossed paths, and the Thief Leader hadn't even clearly seen the appearance of the person who had approached before the battle axe in his hand fell to the ground with a thud.

Immediately after, he fell to his knees, his head drooped, and he died on the spot.

Chu Qing slowly sheathed his Long Sword, turned around, and let out a breath:

"They sure can run... If it weren't for my Void Scripture's sustained energy, I really wouldn't have been able to keep up."

The previous turn of events had also exceeded Chu Qing's expectations. What he thought would be two separate opportunities had converged into one.

Fortunately, these two actually ran... Chu Qing would naturally not let such a good opportunity pass him by.

After all, it was best to avoid appearing before Chu Fan.

Even if he disguised himself, it would be the same. Bloodlines could be peculiar sometimes; even the slightest suspicion could be magnified countless times by them.

The current outcome couldn't have been better.

He had followed their tracks all the way, and by chance, the two of them were planning their future by the pool... He didn't attack immediately. After a brief period of recovery, he saw Third Brother get up to retrieve something, and that's when he struck decisively.

Why kill them together when he could divide and conquer?

Naturally, he did what was easiest.

He was about to deal with the two corpses, to search them and dispose of them as needed.

Then, a prompt suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Commission Completed!]

[Successfully slew Iron Horse Seven Bandits, obtained one 'Random Martial Arts Treasure Chest'.]

Chu Qing curled his lips:

"Killed three, and only rewarded with one... It should be at least three, right?"

The System naturally did not respond to this statement.

In fact, at other times, when Chu Qing spoke to the System, it also remained silent.

It was a mute System.

He wasn't in a hurry to open the treasure chest immediately and continued with his task.

He couldn't stay in this place for long. Once Chu Fan clarified things with those two women, he might come looking for him.

If they met then, without any other interference, it would be strange if that brat didn't figure out his identity.

Therefore, he quickened his pace, searching the two Great Thieves for anything valuable.

In the end, he obtained about twenty taels of Silver and two Gold Leaves. The Thief Leader's body had the most Gold Leaves.

With just these Gold Leaves, if this were a peaceful era, Chu Qing could have bought a small courtyard and lived a happy life of idleness.

Unfortunately, setting aside the Jianghu Storms, the Sin Mirror Platform hot on his heels did not allow him to stop.

Other items included some Silver Notes, Pills, and Golden Wound Medicine.

He roughly sorted them out, keeping the Pills and Golden Wound Medicine that could promote blood circulation and remove stasis, and discarding anything he didn't recognize.

After cutting off the heads of the two men, following the previous method, he left the title of [Night Emperor] on the horses and let them gallop away on their own, thereby spreading the message.

The System reward had already been obtained, which indicated that there was indeed no need to see the Shopkeeper anymore.

Finally, he used a Fire Starter to light the Silver Notes, and used the burning Silver Notes to ignite their clothes. The two headless corpses were instantly engulfed in raging flames.

After ensuring that the two corpses were burned beyond recognition, so much so that even the most skilled coroner could not determine the cause of their deaths, Chu Qing turned and left.