No one paid any attention to Feng Shiyi as he fled. With the Sect Leader under attack, the Iron Palm Sect members were already in chaos, and they rushed over from all sides.
"Stop!"
"Stop!"
"Quick, save the Sect Leader!"
In no time, Du Ge was surrounded by the Iron Palm Sect. He stopped stabbing Qiu Yuanlang in the lower back and pressed the small throwing knife against the back of his neck instead. The tip dug in just enough to break the skin. "Sect Leader Qiu, tell them to stand down."
"Everyone, hold your positions!"
Qiu Yuanlang panted as he barked the order.
The first two stabs had gone deep, but the rest hadn't—though Du Ge had stabbed him so many times! No matter how powerful his Internal Energy was, getting stabbed still hurt, and losing too much blood would still make him faint. He felt as if his lower back had been turned into a sieve. And the first two stabs had damaged his innards; now he was struggling to hold on.
What was more, he could feel the arm Du Ge had wrapped around his neck tightening. If this went on, he would suffocate to death even if the knife didn't kill him first.
Qiu Yuanlang hadn't really believed that Feng Qi was a Heavenly Demon who had possessed someone, but now he did.
He knew exactly how powerful his palm strikes were, and he knew how badly he'd broken Feng Qi's arm. Even a minor injury to the muscles and bones took a hundred days to heal, yet in a mere instant, Feng Qi's arm had returned to normal—and grown even stronger than before. No human could recover like that. He was a Heavenly Demon.
If the two of them kept fighting, Qiu Yuanlang would be the one to die first.
"Let the Sect Leader go, or you'll die without a burial place!" A hall master gripped a long saber and glared at Du Ge as he shouted.
Another hall master had Wang San in his grasp, a sword pressed to his neck. "Let the Sect Leader go, or I'll kill your companion first."
Wang San still held the severed hand he'd picked up earlier, stroking it obsessively as if unaware of his predicament. Every so often, he glanced at Feng Qi with a plaintive look, but said nothing.
With a blade at his throat, he didn't dare speak. What if the other man panicked and slashed his throat? Who would he be able to complain to then?
"Threatening me with him won't work. For the sake of justice in the martial world, anyone can be sacrificed. Feng Qi can be, and so can Wang San." Madness glittered in Du Ge's eyes. "If one Feng Qi dies, thousands upon thousands more will rise to keep fighting you."
"You think saying that means I won't dare kill him? Let the Sect Leader go." The hall master pressed his sword down, leaving a thin line of blood on Wang San's neck. Yet as Wang San continued stroking the severed hand, the wound slowly healed.
Even so, Wang San couldn't help shuddering.
"You let the Sect Leader go, and I'll let him go," the hall master pleaded.
Was this one of those classic scenes from television dramas, where a villain took a hostage to threaten the hero? Du Ge wasn't falling for it!
"Go ahead and kill him," Du Ge said with a chuckle. "If you have accurate information, you should know that I didn't even know him a day ago. Besides, Heavenly Demons compete against one another and are natural enemies. Killing him would cost me nothing."
"..." The man.
"You hear that? I told you holding me hostage wouldn't work." Wang San's voice was mournful.
"Han Zuo, let him go." Qiu Yuanlang glanced at him and called out.
"Sect Leader." The hall master called Han Zuo hesitated, but didn't move.
"Let him go. Am I not dead yet? Do my orders mean nothing now?" Qiu Yuanlang shouted.
"Yes, Sect Leader." Han Zuo's expression darkened, and he released Wang San reluctantly.
Wang San gave him a scornful look, clutched the severed hand he'd been keeping, and sauntered over to stand beside Du Ge.
"Seventh Master, your methods are truly extraordinary." Qiu Yuanlang took a moment to steady himself. "You didn't kill me outright, so I assume you're thinking about your own escape. How about this: release me, and I'll take responsibility for letting you leave. I'll overlook everything that happened tonight. What do you say? If you drag this out and I die, you may never make it out of the Iron Palm Sect."
"Sect Leader Qiu, Feng Qi killed you to uphold justice in the martial world..." Du Ge insisted.
"The martial world is rife with corruption. Which of the Five Sects and Three Schools can claim to be entirely clean? Who would hold their position today without grabbing what they wanted by fair means or foul?" Qiu Yuanlang sneered. "If you kill me, will the martial world suddenly become pure?"
He gasped a few times. "Seventh Master, you have supernatural abilities, and I have martial strength. The two of us could work together and rule the Iron Palm Sect, enjoying wealth and glory. Wouldn't that be wonderful? You're a clever man. If you really cared about justice in the martial world, you'd have killed me already. Why pretend otherwise and keep me here as a hostage..."
"Sect Leader Qiu, one man alone can't reverse the wicked ways of the martial world. That's why I didn't finish you off!" Du Ge suddenly smiled. He looked at the two hall masters opposite him and the members glaring at him, then said, "Sect Leader, hundreds, even thousands of Heavenly Demons have infiltrated this world. They could plunge the martial world into chaos at any moment for their own gain. Every time I think of what might happen, my heart aches.
"So I don't just want to uphold the code of the martial world. I also want to quell the coming turmoil and preserve peace. Sect Leader Qiu, my original plan was to have you help me. With the Iron Palm Sect's strength, we could uphold justice in the martial world together, drive out the Heavenly Demons, and restore the Bright World..."
"..." Wang San's breath caught. He suddenly understood what Feng Qi was up to. That guy really had flipped the table again. He was hell-bent on racing down the road to his own destruction!
What a lunatic!
Qiu Yuanlang spat out a mouthful of blood. If you wanted to deal with other people, then deal with them! Why come up with such a grand-sounding excuse?
If you wanted me on your side, you should've started by beating me half to death? Couldn't you have just talked it through?
Who does things like this?
Uphold justice in the martial world?
Yeah, right!
"Fine. I agree," Qiu Yuanlang said urgently.
"Sect Leader Qiu, you agreed awfully quickly. Are you plotting something?" Du Ge asked, taken aback.
"Plotting my ass!" Qiu Yuanlang said in exasperation. "Do you have any idea how many times you stabbed me? If I keep negotiating with you, I'll be dead in a minute. Once I'm dead, who among them can make the decision?"
"..." Du Ge paused, then laughed awkwardly. "Sect Leader Qiu has a point."
"If you want to work together, find someone to treat my injuries. Now!" Qiu Yuanlang had been stubbornly holding on, but once he understood what Du Ge really wanted, his willpower crumbled. He spoke quickly, then went limp and lost consciousness.
The arm Du Ge had around his neck suddenly sagged. He hurriedly tightened his grip to hold Qiu Yuanlang up, then checked his breathing and called, "Han Zuo, what are you waiting for? Get someone to treat the Sect Leader! If he dies, you'll be the Iron Palm Sect's sinner."
"..." Han Zuo was left speechless. Damn it, you're the one who nearly killed the Sect Leader. How did his death become my responsibility?
He grumbled to himself, but didn't dare delay. He glared at Du Ge, then leaped back into the sect to fetch a doctor.
The other members continued surrounding Du Ge, glaring at him, afraid he might escape.
Du Ge smiled faintly, supporting Qiu Yuanlang with the arm around his neck while holding the throwing knife to his throat with his other hand. He looked at the remaining hall master. "Please keep your people in line, Hall Master. The Sect Leader and I have just reached an agreement. I wouldn't want his passing to ruin the great peace the martial world is about to enjoy. Feng Qi would become a sinner in the eyes of the entire martial world."
Wang San glanced at Du Ge, his heart thundering. Holy shit, he'd actually pulled it off!
It had only been two days!
Feng Qi had actually taken a quasi-first-rate expert hostage and turned a major second-tier sect into his own ally. Was there no justice in the world?
He discreetly opened his personal profile and saw that his ranking had risen to thirty-three. He swallowed despite himself. Even he, who'd merely been backing Feng Qi up, had climbed more than two hundred places. The man leading the whole affair must already be number one in the Simulation Field!
Among the Iron Palm Sect disciples, a minor thug who'd witnessed everything stared at Du Ge and Wang San in utter disbelief, nearly losing his mind.
Who the hell were these two?
They were incredible!
He'd finally managed to establish himself in the Iron Palm Sect and was waiting for a chance to climb the ranks. Now these two had taken over the whole sect. They were making him look completely useless!
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