One Against Two (Please Read Daily)

He glanced at the courtyard wall. It wasn't very tall.

Zhao An gathered his Internal Breath beneath his feet, drew in a breath, and sprang up like a nimble swallow, landing silently atop the low wall.

His gaze fell on the courtyard of the Tiger Head Gang's headquarters.

A figure was fighting a crowd of gang members. Though outnumbered, he showed no sign of backing down.

The young man looked handsome and refined, but the fist technique he wielded was brutally domineering.

Few could withstand even one of his punches.

Anyone struck by one was either dead or injured, collapsing to the ground as if asleep.

"So it really is that Shen Boy..." Zhao An recognized the young man throwing those punches. He was the only son of the Shen Family from Two Wells Alley.

It seemed his prediction had been right.

The Tiger Head Gang had truly kicked an iron plate this time.

Zhao An wasn't in a hurry. His gaze swept over the courtyard again, and he spotted Zhou Hu, the Tiger Head Gang's leader.

The one he valued most was Zhou Hu, who had the strength of a Martial Master.

The lesser gang members had limited potential as Soul Slaves. If Zhao An obtained high-grade martial arts techniques in the future, ones that ordinary people couldn't practice, the only reliable Soul Slaves would be Martial Masters like these.

To Zhao An, Zhou Hu was expendable material, a precious cultivation resource. So he could only die by Zhao An's blade.

But besides Zhou Hu, there was another man beside him who caught Zhao An's attention.

The man looked older. He wore a Brocade Battle Suit and stood with his hands behind his back, one of them gripping a sheathed long blade.

There was something special about that blade. It was an Official Blade from the yamen!

A glaring Red Name shone above his head: Chen Song!

There were four Chief Constables in the Outer City yamen.

Zhao An's elder brother was one of them, and Chen Song, standing before him, was another.

This Chief Constable hadn't taken part in the earlier bandit suppression, yet here he was, appearing at the Tiger Head Gang's headquarters in the dead of night.

Zhao An wasn't particularly surprised.

The Chief Constables had both overt and covert ties with the Outer City gangs. As a former leader of the Tiger Head Gang, Zhao An knew this well.

He had most likely come at this late hour to discuss important matters with Zhou Hu and avoid prying eyes.

Just then, Zhou Hu could no longer hold back. He snatched up the Great Gold Blade, shoved past the others, and slashed at Shen Boy.

He wielded the Fierce Tiger Blade Art, the technique that had made his name. Combined with the heavy gold blade, each slash seemed to weigh a thousand catties.

Shen Pan, who had been slaughtering his way through the courtyard, was immediately pinned down by Zhou Hu and forced into a fierce struggle.

Zhao An could tell at a glance that although Shen Boy was a Martial Master, he had only recently entered that realm. His Internal Breath was far weaker than Zhou Hu's, and his fists couldn't hope to stop the Fierce Tiger Blade!

With so many of the Tiger Head Gang's core members surrounding him, unless Shen Boy could kill Zhou Hu, escaping tonight would be difficult.

Just as Zhao An was weighing when to intervene, Shen Boy suddenly surged forward, exploiting an opening. Both his fists struck Zhou Hu in the chest, twisting Zhou Hu's face in pain.

"What's the matter, Zhou Hu? How'd you get beaten into such a sorry state by a green kid?" Chen Song sneered from the sidelines and drew his long blade.

"Get fifty taels of silver ready. I'll chop this kid down for you!"

Even before joining the fight, Chen Song couldn't resist shaking him down. Then, without waiting for an answer, he charged in with his blade and slashed straight at Shen Pan.

His blade work wasn't as domineering as Zhou Hu's, but it was more cutting and balanced between offense and defense, making him even more troublesome to deal with.

Shen Pan had just gotten the chance to kill Zhou Hu, but Chen Song's interference immediately left him in peril again.

"Die!" Zhou Hu recovered, his face burning with humiliation. He swung the Great Gold Blade straight at Shen Pan, who had been driven into a corner and couldn't dodge in time.

Clang!

A clear metallic clang rang out.

Zhou Hu's pupils contracted. He stared at the person who had suddenly appeared before him, hot breath puffing from his nose and mouth.

"Zhao An!!"

At the critical moment, Zhao An, who had been watching for a while, chose to step in and block Zhou Hu's blade.

The two tested their strength against each other, and facing his former leader, Zhao An didn't give an inch.

"Long time no see," Zhao An said calmly.

Ever since he had been forced to pass the Three Trials that day, he hadn't seen this gang leader again. He hadn't even returned to the Tiger Head Gang's headquarters.

"Even you're going to oppose me?!" Zhou Hu swung his blade aside and took two steps back, furious.

"Zhou Hu, since this kid came right to our doorstep, why not make things easy for ourselves? Zhao Ke hasn't had the chance to take the Python Gang's money from him yet. Just like we agreed, we'll take him down and split it between us!"

Chen Song's eyes lit up the moment he saw Zhao An.

"Good!" Zhou Hu agreed at once.

He had been wary of Zhao An's strength, but with Chen Song here today, this was indeed a good chance to get rid of him.

As for Shen Boy, he was already injured. The gang's core members could hold him off for a while. He was no cause for concern.

Zhao An's expression remained unchanged. Even facing two Martial Masters, he was still perfectly calm, as though they were nothing but a pair of worthless fish.

"I'll hold one of them off." A voice suddenly drifted over from beside him.

It was Shen Pan.

He clutched the wound on one side of his waist, his face as calm as still water.

He could have taken the opportunity to escape over the wall, but he had chosen to stay.

Perhaps he was determined to kill Zhou Hu. Perhaps Zhao An had just saved him, and he didn't want to abandon him.

Zhao An didn't waste words with the kid. He only said,

"No need."

Then he raised his blade, its edge fixed on Zhou Hu.

"Impudent!" Zhou Hu couldn't let go of his status as leader. He glared and struck without hesitation, the Great Gold Blade sweeping viciously toward Zhao An.

Zhao An advanced instead of retreating, meeting him with a nearly identical slash. Then he struck again, just as before.

Sparks flew. After a few exchanges, Zhou Hu was utterly bewildered.

Zhao An was clearly using the same Fierce Tiger Blade Art as he was. But how had Zhao An learned it?

It couldn't be that he'd figured it out on his own from just those few moves of the Black Tiger Blade Technique, could it?!

Zhou Hu could hardly believe it, but he had no time to think. Zhao An's strikes came one after another, each one aimed at his life, and soon Zhou Hu was driven back step by step.

He was the one who knew the original Fierce Tiger Blade Art, yet when facing Zhao An, he seemed like the one using a counterfeit...

Fortunately, Chen Song didn't stand by. He joined Zhou Hu and attacked Zhao An from both sides.

They had thought victory was assured, but soon both men were shocked to realize that Zhao An was holding his own against them both!

In fact, Zhou Hu was the first to be wounded by Zhao An's blade. His embroidered leader's robes were soon soaked crimson with blood.

Zhou Hu staggered back. Zhao An sprang into the air like a fierce tiger leaping over a ravine. His blade's shadow became a Cold Gleam Moon Wheel, descending straight down upon Zhou Hu.

Zhou Hu couldn't block it. Another long gash appeared on his body, from shoulder to abdomen, almost splitting him in two!

"Bastard!" Chen Song was shocked and lunged with his blade.

Zhao An turned and caught the blow with his long blade. Then, like a hidden dart, he suddenly raised a palm and used the Silver Snake Hand, striking Chen Song in the chest.

One hundred and seventy wisps of Internal Breath surged through his palm and burst out with the force of the blow, like a heavy hammer slamming into Chen Song. His chest tightened, and it felt as though his heart and lungs were about to burst!

His throat turned sweet, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood from his heart.

Seeing Zhou Hu trying to flee, Zhao An flicked his hand. His long blade flew out and pierced Zhou Hu through the back, delivering the fatal blow!