"My speed has increased again..."
On the road back to the eastern part of the city, Shen Han muttered to himself.
The running speed his Flesh Refining Realm cultivation afforded him made his Black Shadow feel as if wind blew beneath its feet, darting through the streets and alleys.
Hai hour.
"The weather's dry and the kindling's tinder-dry! Beware of fire!"
A night watchman holding a gong emerged from the alley ahead and walked toward him.
Seeing this, Shen Han had no choice but to immediately slow down.
He didn't want to reveal his strength.
The night watchman walked closer, glanced over him, then turned into a side lane and left.
A short while later.
The night watchman put away his gong, hurried through several intersections, and stopped before a middle-aged, portly man.
"Steward Liu, I've found something!"
The night watchman spoke respectfully, his expression utterly fawning.
"Have you found any clues about how the Qiankun Two Rats met their end?"
The portly man's eyes were sharp.
The night watchman hurriedly said, "Not exactly... but I think I just saw that purple-glowing brick."
"What did you say!"
The portly man's expression changed at once.
The night watchman didn't dare delay. "It was a middle-aged man, hideously ugly. He was carrying a bundle that seemed to glow purple, and the corners of the bundle were shaped just like a brick."
The portly man barked, "Well done! Where is he?"
"He was heading east along Vermilion Bird Alley."
The night watchman reported it in a hurry.
"Heavens are truly on my side!" the portly man said. "You've done a great service this time. You won't go unrewarded! Hurry back to the martial hall and tell the senior disciple. I'll go seize that brick myself!"
"Yes, Steward Liu!"
The night watchman dashed away.
A trace of malice appeared at the corner of the portly man's mouth. "Who would've thought that investigating the deaths of the Qiankun Two Rats would bring an unexpected bonus!"
Shen Han knew nothing about any of this.
He had returned to the gate of his little courtyard and opened it with a click.
"Stop!"
Just then, a cold sneer came from behind him.
The voice was unmistakably hostile.
Shen Han turned around. A big, fat man was baring his teeth as he slowly approached.
"You must have the wrong person."
Shen Han spoke coolly. He had never seen this man before.
"Heh heh, ugly freak, I'm very interested in the brick in your bundle. Put it down, and I'll leave your corpse in one piece!"
As he spoke, the portly man had already stopped ten feet from Shen Han.
His eyes were full of amusement and mockery, as if dealing with this ugly man would be a piece of cake.
"You're with the Iron Fist Martial Hall?"
When the man mentioned the brick, Shen Han understood at once.
Lu Qiling's tragic death and Sister Yun Yi's departure had both been caused by the Iron Fist Martial Hall. The brick in the bundle had been the spark that set it all off.
"Heh, good guess. You're not going to live past tomorrow anyway, so I don't mind telling you the truth. I never change my name or surname. I'm Liu Yuan, steward of the Iron Fist Martial Hall."
"Steward Liu, a pleasure."
Shen Han stared coldly at Liu Yuan, feeling helpless.
He hadn't brought the Bronze Mirror when he changed clothes before going out tonight, so he could only keep the Black Brick in his bundle, which had drawn attention. Besides, the Heavy Iron Curved Blade was inside the Bronze Mirror, so he couldn't use it now.
Liu Yuan stuck out his belly. "Well? You refusing?"
"Not exactly. I just don't understand why you're going to such lengths to find a brick."
"Heh, enough chatter. Are you handing it over or not?"
"Sorry, Steward Liu. I was planning to use this brick to prop up a bed leg."
Shen Han casually swung the bundle in his hand.
Liu Yuan's face instantly twisted with rage. "Looks like you really want to die without even a whole corpse, you ugly freak!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he threw a punch at Shen Han.
Shen Han didn't dare let his guard down.
Huh? Why was this fat man's punch so slow?
But he immediately realized that in the darkness, Liu Yuan's punch seemed to move in slow motion. It posed no threat at all.
That's it. My cultivation must be higher than this fat man's, which is why I can perceive things this way.
Once he understood, Shen Han relaxed completely.
Seeing that Shen Han neither dodged nor evaded, Liu Yuan put no restraint into his punch and aimed straight for Shen Han's face.
Smack!
Shen Han casually raised a hand and stopped Liu Yuan's heavy punch.
"Oh, you've got some tricks!"
His first attack had missed, and Liu Yuan attacked again.
"Too slow!"
Shen Han remained unhurried. This time, he simply opened his palm and clamped down hard on Liu Yuan's oversized fist.
"You... how can you—!"
Liu Yuan was instantly horrified.
His fist was pinned tight. He couldn't push it forward, nor could he pull it back.
In the blink of an eye, he felt as though his bones were about to be crushed.
"That's it?"
Shen Han sneered.
The next moment, he released his grip and kicked Liu Yuan in the chest.
Thud!
Liu Yuan couldn't dodge the rapid sequence of moves. His bulky body toppled to the ground like a scrap of paper. He spat out a mouthful of blood and took a long while to get back up.
"Who are you, really?"
Liu Yuan trembled all over. "I've been in the Skin Refining Realm for years, yet I can't beat you, ugly freak!"
Just as expected, he was only in the Skin Refining Realm... Shen Han smiled faintly. "I have no name. Steward Liu, does that mean I get to live past tomorrow now?"
Liu Yuan's expression turned grim.
His chest hurt terribly. Shen Han's kick had broken at least three of his ribs.
Shen Han smiled. "Tell me, what is the brick for?"
As he spoke, he moved closer to Liu Yuan.
"I... I don't know."
"Steward Liu, it seems you don't quite understand your situation."
"You dare kill me?"
Liu Yuan's face turned ashen.
Shen Han spoke coolly. "What a joke! I was able to kill the Qiankun Two Rats. What difference would killing you make?"
"What! You killed the Qiankun Two Rats!"
Liu Yuan trembled with shock.
At that moment, he was consumed by regret. He had thought Shen Han was just an ordinary man whom he could easily handle. Who could have guessed that this very man had killed the Qiankun Two Rats!
If only he'd gone back to the martial hall and reported it first!
Liu Yuan clutched his chest. "Then... if I tell you, will you spare my life?"
"Do I look like someone who kills indiscriminately?"
"Fine, I'll tell you... I once heard Peng Hanshan, the martial hall's senior disciple, say that the brick could be used to increase the speed of cultivation."
"How does it do that?"
"I don't know..."
"Is that so?"
Shen Han's gaze turned sharp.
Liu Yuan was horrified. "Ugly... sir, I really don't know. Even Peng Hanshan has never seen the brick. He'd only heard that the whole brick gives off a purple glow."
"Fine. One more question. How did you find me?"
"The night watchman works for me."
So that's how... Shen Han understood completely. No wonder the night watchman's gaze had seemed a little strange earlier.
"All right. Time to go."
"What do you mean?"
"I've asked everything I needed to ask. Steward Liu, you can die now."
With that, Shen Han suddenly sprang into action. He sent his left fist swinging in from the side. Rising and falling, it turned into a ghostly blur that shot straight for Liu Yuan's forehead.
Angry Dragon Divine Fist: Scooping the Moon from Water!
Squelch!
Liu Yuan's crown shattered into bone fragments.
He died on the spot.
Just before his death, a thought flashed through his mind: Why could this ugly man use the Iron Fist Martial Hall's fist technique?
"Only two taels of silver?"
Shen Han had not felt the slightest pity for Liu Yuan, of course. Enemies had to be wiped out to the last man, and this one had deserved his death. But after searching the corpse, he was so exasperated he almost laughed. "A steward of a renowned martial hall, and he doesn't carry any money when he goes out?"
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