Not One Left

"This defeat has enraged those above. Think of something—we must take Blackstone Town!"

A dull, heavy voice came from inside the room.

The next moment, a familiar voice spoke.

"I'm already working on it. There'll be a result within three to five days. After you return..."

It was the Revenue Officer!

Hidden outside the window, Li Yi frowned instinctively as he listened to the two men talk.

As their conversation continued, Li Yi quickly realized—

The man speaking with the Revenue Officer was a secret envoy and spy sent by the Qing Kingdom.

The two were discussing how to sell out the garrison stationed in Blackstone Town and aid the invading Qing Kingdom army.

Listening to their secret discussion, Li Yi quietly nocked three arrows onto his iron-backed bow.

Wu Chuansheng had died at the hands of the Qing Kingdom army, and the Revenue Officer had abducted Liu Fang. By both reason and emotion, Li Yi could not possibly spare them.

Three-shot volley!

Arrow-Fighting Art!

The familiar combination appeared once more. As Li Yi released his grip, the three arrows instantly pierced through the window paper and shot into the room.

In an instant, the room's candle flame was snuffed out by Li Yi's iron arrows.

Immediately afterward, several screams rang out.

After firing the three arrows, Li Yi put away his iron-backed bow, slammed forward, and charged into the room.

On the floor, the Qing Kingdom envoy twitched faintly. An iron arrow was lodged in his neck; he was taking more breaths out than in, and there was no saving him.

Beside the envoy, the Revenue Officer clutched his shoulder and lay on the ground, screaming miserably.

Seeing Li Yi burst in, the Revenue Officer was terrified and hurriedly cried out:

"Spare me, hero! Name your price—however much silver you want, I'll offer it with both hands!"

Oh? Didn't expect you to have such a sharp eye.

But unfortunately, you picked the wrong man!

Li Yi snorted coldly and kicked the Revenue Officer in the stomach.

The searing pain made the Revenue Officer curl up instinctively, unable even to cry out.

After dealing with the Revenue Officer, Li Yi drew his bow and looked toward the courtyard gate.

"My lord, what happened?"

The Revenue Officer's screams had drawn the attention of the patrolling constables.

At that moment, five constables carrying sabers and spears had already rushed into the courtyard.

Since every light in the courtyard had been shot out by Li Yi beforehand, the five constables who barged in were like headless flies. They could only stand back-to-back and rely on memory as they approached the room.

[Scouting and Concealment]!

Night Vision!

Unlike the half-blind constables, Li Yi saw as clearly as if it were daylight. Every move they made lay plainly before his eyes.

"Since you can stay in the Revenue Officer's residence, you must be his lackeys too. He must have used you to do plenty of evil!"

With that thought, Li Yi no longer held back. He directly drew three arrows and set them on his iron-backed bow, killing three constables in the blink of an eye.

Thud!

Just as several constables clutched their throats and fell to the ground, Li Yi fired another arrow, killing the remaining two.

In just a few breaths, all five constables who had rushed over were killed by Li Yi, who had made use of his Night Vision advantage.

By then, lights were gradually coming on throughout the Revenue Officer's residence. Some patrolling constables seemed to have noticed something was wrong and were searching the area.

Li Yi did not dare delay. He gagged the badly wounded Revenue Officer, hoisted him over his shoulder, and vanished from the room in a few swift flashes.

Squad after squad of constables shouted as they searched the government compound with torches, forcing Li Yi to avoid them with the utmost care.

Suddenly, the entire compound descended into chaos.

Li Yi listened intently. The constables and servants were shouting for someone to put out a fire, and with his Night Vision, Li Yi saw black smoke rising from the main gate.

Han Jia had set fire at the gate!

In an instant, Li Yi realized that Han Jia, hidden outside the compound, was helping him draw away attention.

With Han Jia's interference, Li Yi quickly brought the Revenue Officer to a secluded side room.

"Urgh."

With a muffled groan, the Revenue Officer was thrown onto the ground, and Li Yi pulled the rag from his mouth.

"May I ask which hero you are? How much silver do you want?"

The Household Officer thought a great bandit had come knocking, intending to kidnap him for ransom. He hurriedly squeezed his eyes shut and begged bitterly for mercy.

Looking at the Household Officer groveling endlessly on the floor, Li Yi's face turned cold. "Open your eyes. Look at me!"

"No, no, no! I know the rules of the underworld. If I see your faces, I'll be silenced!"

You sure know your stuff!

Speechless, Li Yi stepped forward and stomped on the Household Officer's wound.

The intense pain made the Household Officer's body writhe violently, and he instinctively opened his eyes.

"How is it you?!"

At the sight of the grim-faced Li Yi, the Household Officer was so terrified that his soul nearly left his body.

He had never imagined it would be Li Yi!

The moment he thought of what he had done, every hair on his body stood on end.

"Cut the nonsense. Where is Liu Fang?" Li Yi asked with a frown.

"What Liu Fang? I don't know anything about her." The Household Officer's eyes darted about as he instinctively avoided Li Yi's gaze.

"I don't have time for your nonsense."

Li Yi crouched down, drew his knife, and sliced off one of the Household Officer's ears.

"Remember now? Where is Liu Fang?"

Blood instantly soaked the Household Officer's clothes. He had still wanted to argue, but when he saw Li Yi place the knife against his other ear, ready to cut it off, he was frightened so badly that he wet himself.

A stream of warm liquid spread across the floor.

"I'll talk, I'll talk."

Scared out of his wits by Li Yi, the Household Officer hurriedly revealed where Liu Fang was being held.

"I failed to recognize Mount Tai before my eyes and offended you!"

"Can you spare my life? I was merely blinded by lard over my heart, bewitched by beauty."

The Household Officer begged again and again, but Li Yi said directly, "Then what about colluding with the Qing Kingdom? Were you bewitched by beauty for that too?"

Thinking of the conversation he had just overheard between the Household Officer and the secret envoy, Li Yi sliced off the man's other ear.

"What exactly are you planning with the Qing Kingdom?"

"My time is limited. Talk, now, or I'll make you wish you were dead!"

As he spoke, Li Yi's blade roamed constantly across the Household Officer's body.

Under the Household Officer's terrified gaze, the short knife stopped at his crotch.

With a flick, the blade split open his trousers, its icy edge pressing directly against his vital spot.

As Li Yi pressed down, a thin line of blood instantly appeared on the skin there.

No man could face such a threat.

Watching the short knife wander around his manhood, carving countless bloody lines, the Household Officer's psychological defenses collapsed completely.

Li Yi asked, and the Household Officer answered. Before long, he spilled everything he knew, including all his dealings and plans with the Qing Kingdom's secret envoy.

"My younger brother and sister—are they being held with Liu Fang too?"

At Li Yi's question, the Household Officer froze. "I don't know. I only told them to capture Liu Fang, and they only brought back Liu Fang."

Seeing that Li Yi's expression had turned grim, the Household Officer hurriedly added, "But one thing is certain—they must still be alive! If they had killed anyone, they would have reported it to me!"

Under Li Yi's interrogation, the Household Officer had long since been scared out of his wits. At this point, there was no need for him to deceive Li Yi.

Thinking of this, Li Yi grew even more anxious.

It seemed he could only place his hopes on Liu Fang!

After obtaining all the information he wanted, Li Yi hauled up the Household Officer. Under his guidance, he avoided the constables prowling throughout the residence and soon arrived at a secret chamber where Liu Fang was being held.

Because the government office had caught fire, only one constable had been left here to stand guard.

In no time at all, Li Yi effortlessly killed the guard and slipped into the secret chamber.

Liu Fang was trussed tightly with hemp rope, her voluptuous figure made all the more alluring by its restraints.

Li Yi unconsciously swallowed, then removed the strips of cloth covering Liu Fang's eyes and mouth.

"Brother Yi!"

After taking a moment to adjust to the light, Liu Fang looked at Li Yi before her. Overwhelmed by surprise and joy, tears instantly streamed down her face.

"It's okay, it's okay. Everything's fine now!"

After offering a few words of comfort, Li Yi lifted the Household Officer, whose mouth was still gagged.

At the sight of the blood-covered Household Officer, Liu Fang, now freed from the ropes, was filled with hatred. She rushed forward and began punching and kicking him.

"Do you know where my younger brother and sister are?"

Li Yi grabbed Liu Fang and asked in a low voice.

Hearing this, Liu Fang was deeply grateful, yet also filled with self-reproach.

"After those masked men broke into our home and took me away, Xiaoyue and Xiaoxin clashed with them to save me."

"Though there were the traps you left behind, they quickly fell into a disadvantage."

"However, I saw a man carrying a hunting bow wound several masked men and rescue my younger brother and sister."

"As for what happened afterward, I don't know."

They had been rescued?

Listening to Liu Fang, Li Yi let out a slight breath of relief. As long as his younger brother and sister were not dead, that was enough.

After Liu Fang's further description, Li Yi's heart settled even more.

Going by Liu Fang's account, the one who had stepped in and rescued Li Xin and Li Yue sounded very much like Uncle Liu, the hunter who had ties with their family!

Having learned where his younger brother and sister had gone, Li Yi turned his gaze to the Household Registrar.

The Household Registrar seemed to realize something. He stared at Li Yi in terror, shaking his head repeatedly. His gagged mouth kept writhing, as though he wanted to say something.

Slash!

With a forceful sweep of his hand, Li Yi slit the Household Registrar's throat. Blood spurted out, staining the snow-white wall red.

Then Li Yi searched the Household Registrar's body, took out letters and other evidence of his dealings with the Qing Kingdom's secret envoy, tucked them into his robes, and turned his gaze to Liu Fang.

"Hold on tight. I'll get you out of here!"

Li Yi crouched in front of Liu Fang and spoke over his shoulder.

Liu Fang knew this was no time to hesitate. She hurriedly threw herself onto Li Yi's sturdy back.

Feeling the soft mounds against his back, Li Yi hurriedly rose.

Li Yi was now infinitely close to the third level of the Body Tempering Realm, and his strength had greatly increased. Carrying Liu Fang, who weighed over eighty jin, he strode through the government office as swiftly as if on level ground.

With the help of [Scouting and Concealment] and the [Gale Breathing Method], Li Yi quickly climbed over the wall of the government office.

Han Jia was using the cover of night to toss large quantities of lamp oil into the government office.

"Brother Yi, over here!"

Han Jia waved at Li Yi, hurried over, and helped Liu Fang down.

Behind them, a large number of men were gathering and rushing toward the main gate.

During the time Li Yi and Han Jia had been making trouble, the yamen runners had finally found their trail and were now gathering to pursue and kill them. The three of them

Seeing this, Li Yi took out his iron-backed bow and looked at Han Jia.

"You take Liu Fang and go. I'll cover the rear!"

Ever since the newcomer assessment in Hundred Trees Forest, Han Jia had been thoroughly won over by Li Yi and followed his lead in everything.

Now that he had received Li Yi's order, he immediately hoisted Liu Fang onto his back and charged headlong into the night.

Inside the Household Registrar's government office, flames were already rising high. The huge amount of lamp oil had dragged nearly half the office into a sea of fire.

"There!"

Just as Han Jia left, twenty or thirty yamen runners rushed out of the burning government office.

Li Yi flashed about several times, deliberately exposing openings and drawing the pursuing yamen runners in another direction.

For a time, a brief chase erupted through Qinghe County.

The cries of battle made many awakened residents hide beneath their blankets, trembling in fear.

It was already deep into the night. Under Li Yi's guidance, the yamen runners entered a narrow alley.

During the chase, Li Yi had found opportunities to shoot out all the lanterns and torches in the yamen runners' hands.

Now, the twenty-odd yamen runners relied on only three torches for light.

Boundless darkness closed in around them.

Perched on the branch of a towering willow tree, Li Yi looked down at the yamen runners not far away and smiled faintly.

With the boost from his night vision, Li Yi could even see the terror in their eyes.

"There's a road to heaven, yet you refuse to take it. Hell has no gate, yet you charge right in."

Li Yi murmured a few words, then nocked three arrows onto his iron-backed bow.

Triple Shot!

Whoosh!

Three yamen runners fell at the sound.

"Who is it?"

Their companions had been shot dead, and the yamen runners turned pale with fright. Waving their long sabers, they formed a back-to-back circle.

But Li Yi did not care in the slightest. He drew his bow and nocked another arrow. With one shot, three more men fell.

"Up in the tree!"

After two strikes, the constables finally found their target.

Yet just as the constables gathered their courage and surrounded the willow tree, Li Yi had already used the cover of night and the movement technique granted by his Breathing Method to silently conceal himself atop a wall.

Watching the constables cautiously prepare to climb the tree, Li Yi drew his bow and nocked an arrow once more, shooting three constables dead.

One arrow after another—in mere moments, six more constables died beneath Li Yi's arrows.

The corpses of twelve constables lay quietly on the ground, blood streaming from their wounds. The stench of blood spread through the silent alley in the dead of night. With an unknown master archer lurking nearby and more than half their companions dead, the remaining constables finally broke down.

The constables exchanged glances, then charged out of the alley in a rush.

As they fled with their heads down, they repeatedly begged for mercy.

[Archery (Minor Mastery): 1620]

[Effect: Draw a seven-stone bow, master Five Stars in a Row]

The twelve constables he had just shot to death had brought him a great deal of skill experience.

Watching the constables scatter in flight, Li Yi had no intention of letting go of this fodder for raising his skill level.

Having been scared out of their wits by Li Yi's killing, the constables fled in blind panic.

But Li Yi possessed night vision and had the support of the [Gale Breathing Method]. Even though the constables fled separately, they ultimately could not escape their fate.

In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, the dozen or so constables who had escaped all became ghosts beneath Li Yi's arrows.

"Who knows how much wealth squeezed from the people is hidden within that residence."

Looking at the Household Clerk's residence in the distance, swallowed by raging flames whose glow lit up half of Qinghe County, Li Yi sighed a few words before using the cover of night to head out of Qinghe County.

With him drawing the fire, Han Jia had likely already taken Liu Fang out of the county and headed for their agreed meeting place.

"Brother Yi, where are we going next?"

Seeing Li Yi arrive, Han Jia hurriedly asked.

He had watched Li Xin and Li Yue grow up as well. Now that their fate was unknown, Han Jia was naturally deeply concerned.

Li Yi raised his head to look at the stars. After identifying the direction, he hoisted Liu Fang onto his back.

"Follow me. I think I know roughly where those two are."