If Today You Had the Upper Hand, Would You Spare My Life?

The sharp-faced man reacted the fastest, immediately looking in the direction the head had flown from.

At the same time, he reached into his robes and pulled out a dagger.

"Hero! Hero! Wei Zhaoting and we were no more than chance acquaintances! The conflict between you two truly has nothing to do with us!" As he spoke, he tossed the dagger into the woods.

"This dagger was originally yours, mighty hero. Now it is returned to its rightful owner. For the sake of us all being fellow townsfolk of Kang City, please spare our lives!"

The moment he said this, the other martial artists suddenly understood and began begging the woods for mercy.

It was not that their knees were weak, that they were so quick to kneel.

It was simply because the pressure Wei Xuanfeng gave them was too overwhelming.

He had faced the Xuanlan Wolf Demon head-on, severing both man and blade with a single strike, then silently slaughtered six sentries.

And then there was Old Wang's head.

Out of a squad of twenty, nine had already died at his hands!

Such a formidable enemy lurked in the shadows while they stood in the open.

If they did not beg for mercy now, were they supposed to fight him head-on?

"You... you..." Wei Zhaoting's face changed drastically. "I have never seen people so shameless!"

"Surname Wei, we were all birds in the same forest. When disaster comes knocking, naturally each flies away!" The sharp-faced man was full of disdain. He then looked at the others. "Brothers, let's not meddle in the grievance between this hero and Surname Wei. Let's go."

With that, he took the lead and headed in another direction.

The other martial artists looked at one another, then cupped their fists and bid farewell.

Wei Zhaoting's grip on his saber tightened and tightened, but in the end, he loosened it and let them leave.

Unfortunately, whether they stayed or went was no longer for them to decide.

Whoosh!

A fierce gust of wind skimmed past Wei Zhaoting's ear.

Amid a scream, Wei Zhaoting turned his head and saw the sharp-faced man topple stiffly to the ground.

A dagger was embedded in the middle of his back.

It was the very dagger he had just returned to Wei Xuanfeng...

Wei Xuanfeng silently shifted three zhang, moving onto the branch of a taller camphor tree.

The leaves concealed his figure, leaving only half an eye exposed through the gaps as he coldly looked down at the crowd huddled together below.

They thought they could leave after offering an apology?

Where in the world was there such a beautiful thing?

The instant this group had surrounded him, it had been destined that only death would end things between them.

Seeing them gathered together and muttering among themselves, Wei Xuanfeng did not know what they were saying, but he could still guess their thoughts.

Now that he had cut off their escape routes, all that remained was a bloody battle.

Hopefully, these people still have some fire in their veins...

Just then, someone among the martial artists shouted.

"One should spare others whenever possible. Does Your Excellency truly intend to wipe us all out?"

"That's right! Why vent your anger on us over your grudge with that green-haired turtle named Wei?"

"We're innocent! Mighty hero, please spare us!"

Hearing this, Wei Xuanfeng replied without even thinking.

"Search your consciences. If you held the upper hand today, would you spare my life?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately changed positions. The spot he had just left was instantly engulfed by a rain of arrows...

"What are you standing around for? Get together and chop that bastard to pieces!"

Wei Zhaoting drew his saber and looked at the others.

Just now, he had deliberately signaled everyone to prepare their bows, then lured the other party into speaking.

His purpose had been to pinpoint Wei Xuanfeng's location.

To be honest, he was even somewhat glad that the sharp-faced man had died. It had left this group so rattled that he could command them so easily.

"That's right! That bastard doesn't want us to live, so we'll kill him first!"

"Exactly! I refuse to believe that he alone can kill all of us!"

"If he really had that ability, would he need to keep hiding?"

The group bolstered one another's courage and, led by Wei Zhaoting, advanced step by step toward the direction the arrow rain had come from.

But once they entered the woods, all they found were arrows strewn across the ground. There was no sign of Wei Xuanfeng.

"How is that possible? He must be injured. Search! He can't have gone far!" Wei Zhaoting shouted.

"Pair up. Don't stray too far from each other. The moment there's any movement, call out!"

Someone in the crowd added.

Hearing this, everyone immediately formed pairs and scattered in all directions.

Wei Xuanfeng's ruthless methods had already made them realize—

They had to join forces and kill him here. Otherwise...

But in the end, they had underestimated a mercenary's home-field advantage in the deep forest.

Forget finding the man—they could not even find the slightest trace of Wei Xuanfeng's movements.

Yet every move they made was seen clearly by Wei Xuanfeng, hidden in the shadows.

Wumeng Mountain had bamboo among its trees, and grass beneath the bamboo.

Thorns lay thick everywhere, branches and leaves lush and dense. Beyond ten meters, one's vision was blocked by trees and bamboo.

A fat martial artist and a thin one gradually found themselves unable to hear the other martial artists.

"Hey, Fatty, let's head back. Don't fall into that man's trap."

The thin man was timid by nature; he did not even dare mention Wei Xuanfeng's name.

"Go back? Are you out of your mind?" Fatty snorted. "Everyone's scattered now. If we don't run at a time like this, then when?"

"Run? Do you have a death wish?" The thin man was horrified. "Have you forgotten what happened to Old Wang? You still dare run?"

"Idiot, use your brain. Wei Xuanfeng is alone." Fatty said smugly. "If we scatter and run, then even if he has abilities that reach the heavens, how many can he kill?"

"But what if..." The thin man involuntarily shuddered. "We should go back. There's strength in numbers."

"Hmph, it's because there are too many people like you that so many of us have died!" Fatty said smugly. "That Wei Zhaoting is nothing but a wineskin stuffed with rice. If I were in command, Wei Xuanfeng would have been dead long ago!"

He swaggered along in front, utterly unaware that behind him, there was more than just the thin man...

The thin man kept looking around, terrified that Wei Xuanfeng would suddenly appear.

But the very next second, Wei Xuanfeng appeared before him, behind Fatty, like a ghost...

"Shh!"

Wei Xuanfeng made a silencing gesture, then smiled faintly at him.

The thin man's pupils suddenly constricted. It was as if a ghostly hand had clamped around the throat that wanted to scream.

Not a sound could escape!

He could only stand frozen in place, watching helplessly as Wei Xuanfeng carried his short sword and walked toward Fatty step by step.

The thin man had no idea what demonic sorcery Wei Xuanfeng had used. Even as his steps grew faster and faster, he moved without making a sound.

Though he was practically within arm's reach, Fatty was still talking to himself without pause.

"Once we get back this time, I'm never thinking about testing into the Demon Suppression Bureau again." Fatty babbled. "In this Wumeng Mountain, demons eat people, but people are even more vicious than demons. Skinny, tell me, just what temple did that Wei Xuanfeng get released from... fierce... uh... god..."

Before he could finish, he felt a chill in his chest.

He looked down and saw a blood-dripping sword tip...

He pulled out the short sword, searched the corpse, and severed the head, all in one smooth motion.

At last, Wei Xuanfeng stuffed everything he considered useful into his robes, then casually tossed Fatty's head to the thin man.

The thin man remained rooted to the spot from beginning to end, trembling all over.

He had never seen a ghost before, but today, he had seen one!

"Go back and tell them to wait for death..."

Wei Xuanfeng smiled at the man, then used Crossing the River on a Reed. With a few flashes, his figure vanished into the mountain forest once more...

Only when a ray of sunlight pierced through the branches and fell upon the thin man did the fellow regain the slightest bit of warmth.

"Ah... ah... ah!!!!!"

Wei Zhaoting and the others had long since gathered again, every one of them frowning deeply.

Because not a single one of them had found Wei Xuanfeng.

Not finding him meant he was still alive...

The result lodged in everyone's throats like a fishbone. For a moment, even Wei Zhaoting did not know what to say.

He had also tried to seek help from that old thing inside his body, but it had not made another sound since last night. Wei Zhaoting grew increasingly uneasy.

Just then, a howl came from deep within the woods.

Then everyone saw the thin man running toward them, clutching Fatty's head.

As he ran, he shouted.

"My head is gone! My head is gone!"