Underwater Fight

The river's surface shimmered with rippling light.

It reflected a silent, murderous figure on the shore.

The figure wore black from head to toe, with a Black Cat Hood over his head, leaving only one or two sharp eyes exposed.

Like a butterfly dancing through the air, after only a few exchanges, the Red-robed Guards beside Zeng Anmin fell amid flashes of cold light.

"Splash~"

As the last Red-robed Guard fell, Zeng Anmin watched helplessly as the assassin in the Black Cat Hood drew closer and closer.

"Someone from Prince Jiang's Estate?"

Zeng Anmin tested him.

The assassin said nothing, merely pressing forward step by step with the Cold Blade in his hand.

Tap, tap, tap.

The assassin's footsteps drew ever nearer.

Nearly everyone around the docks turned their gaze toward this place.

Some hid in the shadows, some lay behind cover, exposing only their eyes. They were excited, curious, or perhaps pitying.

To them, the official robe on Zeng Anmin's body was a symbol of evil.

And that assassin carrying a Cold Blade was the Black Cat Martial Artist who punished evil, championed justice, and stood up for the common people!

What could he do to break this deadlock?

Zeng Anmin's heart remained unruffled.

He was not afraid. He merely had some concerns.

If he fought this assassin in public, his identity as the Black Cat Martial Artist would certainly be exposed on the spot.

So there was only one way...

Shing!!!

The assassin's hand was steady, and the short blade in it was swift.

When that silver line flashed, it seemed to sever time itself.

At the sight of that strike, everyone held their breath.

That young man in Official Robes was going to die!!

No one mourned him. No one even felt regret for him. They only widened their eyes and watched the raised blade tip.

As though it would slice open the youth's throat the very next instant.

Splash~!!!

Something plunged into the water, sending waves splashing across the river's surface!

At that critical moment, Zeng Anmin had chosen to leap into the river to survive!!

Shing~

The assassin's blade swept through the air with a shriek, missing its target.

As his strike fell short, the assassin stared at the river in astonishment.

After Zeng Anmin entered the water, only rings of ripples answered the assassin from the river's surface.

Splash!!

Without the slightest hesitation, the assassin also leaped into the river and pursued Zeng Anmin.

The water gradually returned to calm.

A few bolder boat trackers in plain clothes slowly moved toward the river's edge.

They lowered their heads to peer into the water. Other than the ripples left by their entry, they could no longer see anything.

Gurgle, gurgle~

After Zeng Anmin entered the water, the Martial Arts Aura within him began circulating madly.

(Colored) High-End Power: Your Martial Arts Combat Power is one level higher than your Martial Arts Realm.

Although he was only Ninth Rank himself, with the enhancement of the Martial Arts Entry from his Golden Finger, the Martial Arts Aura swirling within him was extraordinarily active.

His true combat power was Eighth Rank.

"I can still hold my breath for a quarter of an hour."

Floating in the deep water, Zeng Anmin's phoenix eyes were incomparably sharp.

At that very moment, a Hand Axe silently appeared in his hand.

Streams of multicolored radiance flickered, while ancient and mysterious patterns flashed across the axe.

The instant the Hand Axe appeared, even the water around it began to boil.

Zeng Anmin lifted his head and looked toward the water's surface.

At that moment, he was like a hunter, patiently awaiting his prey.

Thump~

The assassin plunged into the deep water, searching for Zeng Anmin's figure.

At last, he saw a blurry silhouette.

Gurgle~

The assassin relaxed inwardly and swam over at high speed with his sharp blade in hand.

At the same time, a thought surfaced in his mind.

Why wasn't he running?

But that thought vanished in an instant.

The water in early winter was piercingly cold.

An ordinary person would certainly find it extremely difficult to adapt after suddenly entering the water.

The assassin paddled through the water around him, drawing ever closer to that blurry figure.

Three zhang, two zhang...

At last, the distance between them was less than one zhang.

Zeng Anmin continued waiting with immense patience, the Hand Axe concealed behind his back quietly gathering power.

The Martial Arts Aura within him circulated wildly.

He knew that compared with Martial Artists who had trained all year round, what he lacked was not only combat experience, but also cultivation techniques.

Or rather, fighting techniques.

At that moment, the axe in his hand was no different from an ordinary axe for chopping firewood.

Even if it were not an axe—whether it was a saber, a sword, or a staff—it would make no difference.

He had only one chance to strike.

At last, the assassin was less than one zhang away from Zeng Anmin!

The two eyes on the assassin's face had already twisted into a savage grin. He believed he was about to succeed!

However.

Hummm!!!!

A streak of axe-light swept out.

It was an exceedingly gorgeous radiance.

Like a rainbow on the horizon after a torrential rain.

And like that expanse of azure sky beneath a cloudless day.

As though startled, the river water fled frantically to both sides.

Having stored up power for so long, this was precisely the moment Zeng Anmin had been waiting for.

Only...

Clang!

In his panic, the assassin raised his short blade to block. The axe cleaved through that Cold Blade as easily as cutting tofu, its momentum undiminished.

"What a sharp axe!!!"

Looking at the axe, an absurd thought rose in the assassin's mind.

Could the axe in his hand be a... Divine Artifact?!!

The Governor's son before him was also a martial artist??

Wasn't he an unrivaled genius of the Confucian Path?

At the very instant where a thousand jun hung by a single hair!

The assassin's battle instincts, honed through countless training sessions, made him kick his legs with all his strength and twist his body aside.

Gurgle~

Blood instantly blossomed through the river water.

Half the assassin's shoulder was gone, and his left arm—the one holding the blade—had separated from his body.

The heart-piercing pain reminded the assassin that this Young Master Zeng before him was absolutely not one of the Confucian Dao cultivators!!

Zeng Anmin's heart sank.

That strike had failed to kill the assassin.

Just as he was about to raise his axe for another chop.

The assassin slipped away like a loach, struggling upward with all his strength.

He wanted to run!!

He wanted to get out and tell his master that Zeng Anmin was a martial artist!

At the sight of this, Zeng Anmin's phoenix eyes flew wide open!

He could not let the assassin leave the water alive!!!!

Without any hesitation, the remaining Martial Arts Aura within him surged madly through his meridians.

Zeng Anmin accelerated rapidly. With both arms intact, he was far faster than the assassin, who had already lost an arm.

At last, just as the assassin was about to break the river's surface, a powerful hand seized his ankle.

"Get down!!!"

Zeng Anmin did not dare delay. He stared fiercely at the assassin, hardened his heart, and dragged him back into the water.

"You want to expose this young master's identity? Go play with your balls!!!"

A streak of axe-light flashed, splitting the murk.

And severing the assassin's throat.

Zeng Anmin's usually half-lidded phoenix eyes were now fully wide open, round with fury!

Screech!!

Hiss~

Gurgle~

The assassin clutched desperately at the windpipe in his throat in disbelief.

Yet no matter what he did, he could not stop the blood from flowing out.

At last, he gradually ceased struggling, his eyes still open in unwillingness, though all life had left them.

More and more blood drifted upward, gradually rising to the surface.

Above the river, a thread of red first floated through the blue-green water. Then the red grew thicker and thicker, until it stained an entire stretch of water.

The citizens looking down into the water began to cheer!!

"He's dead!! The Black Cat Martial Artist succeeded!!"

"The world has one less corrupt official who treated the people like fish and meat!!"

"Heaven has shown its power!!"

Underwater, Zeng Anmin's head began to grow dizzy.

His lungs felt as though they were exploding, venting their dissatisfaction at him.

He forcefully restrained the urge to swim to the surface and desperately swung his arms forward.

If he showed his head above the water now, he would surely be exposed!!