Chen Chun rubbed his eyes as he stared at Qin An standing in the clearing. All sorts of thoughts rose in his mind.
Then those thoughts tangled together and settled into helplessness.
"Heaven wants me dead!"
After leaving Ding County, he had hidden among the common folk. He had nearly made it out when the Eagle Demons caught him.
Knowing he had little chance of surviving, Chen Chun had sunk into despair. Still, he thought he might use Qin An as a way out, play along with the Eagle Demons, and find a chance to escape.
But he had never expected Qin An to be here too.
Now that way out was completely cut off.
Eighth Master Eagle took in Chen Chun's expression, drained the blood from his cup, and drew the broad-ringed saber at his waist. "He's your way out?"
Chen Chun said nothing.
Eighth Master Eagle pointed at Qin An, his gaze dark as water. "You there, boy. Hand over the evidence, and when Eighth Master turns you into fine wine, I'll make it hurt a little less."
The other Eagle Demons raised their voices together.
"Hand over the evidence, you little bastard! Then we'll carve you up and eat you."
Killing Intent surged toward the sky, and a foul, rotting stench filled the grassland.
Captain Zheng said smugly, "Qin An, I'm afraid you'll die here today."
With Eighth Master Eagle beside him, his confidence had returned.
Flying Cloud Gorge worked with the Yamen. That was enough to keep him safe.
Qin An said in disgust, "You're all beasts. Why imitate people and trade insults before a fight?"
Beasts hated nothing more than being called beasts.
At those words, Eighth Master Eagle gave a cold laugh and bounded toward Qin An.
At two zhang tall, one of his strides covered several of an ordinary person's.
They were not far apart. Within a few breaths, he was in front of Qin An.
Chen Chun sighed. "Such is fate."
He knew Qin An had a gift for blade techniques, but technique without a cultivation method could only take him so far. He was still an ordinary cultivator of the Qi Concealment Realm.
Even Chen Chun, who had reached the minor accomplishment stage of the Qi Concealment Realm, was no match for Eighth Master Eagle. How could Qin An win?
At least they would be buried together. Even if their grave was an Eagle Demon's belly, they would have company.
The Eagle Demons' clamor stopped abruptly.
Chen Chun froze, his thoughts cut short.
These Eagle Demons loved shouting threats before a fight, buzzing like flies. Why had they suddenly gone quiet?
He turned instinctively and saw Captain Zheng and the constables staring ahead, their legs trembling and their bodies shaking like sieves.
What was up ahead?
Chen Chun followed their gazes and saw something unbelievable.
Eighth Master Eagle swung his broad-ringed saber in sweeping blows, clashing with Qin An again and again. In just a few breaths, they had exchanged over a hundred strikes.
Qin An held his narrow saber as waves of cold rolled off it. Even beneath the sunlight, its chill remained.
"He has a cultivation method?"
Chen Chun might have been an Undercover Agent of the Evil Extermination Division, but he knew what he was looking at.
He knew better than anyone that the cold was an effect of a cultivation method.
But how had Qin An trained it to this level in so little time?
A genius?
Could he really be a genius?
Thoughts raced through Chen Chun's mind.
Captain Zheng and the constables felt a chill in their hearts.
They had thought Qin An might hold out for a while, but he was fighting Eighth Master Eagle to a standstill. How could they not be afraid?
Cold sweat beaded on Eighth Master Eagle's brow.
Every clash between the broad-ringed saber and Qin An's narrow blade sent an icy force surging through his weapon, chilling his limbs.
If the fight dragged on, something might go wrong.
"You bastard Zheng, get over here and help Eighth Master! If I lose, do you think you can escape?"
"This little beast is only good with his saber. I'll tie up his blade; you help me take his head!"
Eighth Master Eagle shouted whenever he had a moment.
Captain Zheng snapped out of it, gritted his teeth, and drew the long saber at his waist.
Years of preying on common folk had dulled his edge, but he had come from the martial world. He knew what mattered.
If Qin An did not die, they would.
"You little brats! Eighth Master has Qin An's blade pinned down. Take his head!" Captain Zheng roared.
The other constables' scalps tingled with fear, but they understood the situation. They charged after Captain Zheng.
Seeing this, Chen Chun roared, "Shameless bastards! Qin An, run!"
He now knew Qin An's talent was monstrous. But he also knew Qin An had only the Wind-Splitting Blade Technique. If Eighth Master Eagle kept that technique occupied, Qin An would surely die.
Qin An watched the approaching constables, his face calm, though a faint sneer tugged at his lips.
Eighth Master Eagle changed his saber strokes. Instead of pressing his attack, he tangled Qin An's narrow blade up like a swamp dragging down its prey.
Hearing the movement behind him, he knew Captain Zheng and the others were closing in. All he had to do was keep Qin An's blade occupied.
Just then, something whistled through the air.
Eighth Master Eagle turned his head and saw Qin An's fist growing larger.
Boom!
A thunderous impact rang out. A deep dent appeared in Eighth Master Eagle's skull, and he flew backward.
Before he could fly far, Qin An caught him with his other hand and slammed him hard into the ground.
Qin An planted a foot on Eighth Master Eagle's chest and punched him again and again, each blow faster than the last.
Eighth Master Eagle's sharp beak split in two. Qin An's fists felt as though they weighed a thousand jin.
If you had a fist technique like this, why didn't you use it?
The question rose in his mind as his awareness faded.
After two spasms, Eighth Master Eagle's head was smashed to pulp. His corpse began to cool.
Chen Chun stared blankly. Qin An's fist technique looked so familiar.
"Isn't that the Mountain-Lifting Fist?"
He was certain. It was the Mountain-Lifting Fist, a technique found everywhere in Ling Prefecture.
When had Qin An learned such a severely limited fist technique?
Qin An looked at Captain Zheng and the others drawing near, then strode toward them.
"You were too far away before. Chasing you would've been a bother."
"So I drew you over here."
"Now killing you will be easy."
He drove his narrow blade down toward Captain Zheng's chest.
Every hair on Captain Zheng's body stood on end. He grabbed a constable and pulled him in front of his chest.
The blade pierced the constable's chest. He stared at Captain Zheng in disbelief.
The leader who had promised to face hardship alongside them now seemed like a different man.
Captain Zheng did not care. He kept grabbing nearby constables and throwing them at Qin An while he retreated as fast as he could.
He was terrified that if he was a step too slow, Qin An would catch him and tear him apart.
Few of these constables had entered the Qi Concealment Realm. Most were ordinary men who knew a few moves.
Expressionless, Qin An cut them down one by one. In moments, they had all fallen.
Captain Zheng was consumed by despair. He had only managed to run a little over ten meters.
Clang!
Captain Zheng drew his long saber, but his voice turned abject. "Qin An, spare me! Clerk Wang was behind all of it, that bastard! If you let me go, I'll give you my saber technique and the movement technique I bought in Ling Prefecture not long ago. Both of them!"
Two books appeared in Captain Zheng's hands.
Qin An's eyes brightened slightly.
Captain Zheng thought Qin An would let him go and breathed a sigh of relief.
Qin An flashed forward, appeared before Captain Zheng, and threw a Mountain-Lifting Fist straight at his face.
"Ridiculous. Once I kill you, they'll all be mine."
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