Slaying Zhao Huai'an

After recognizing Zhao Huai'an, a cold glint flashed in Zu Hao's eyes. He immediately wanted to take out the sniper rifle from his storage space and kill Zhao Huai'an from afar, saving both time and effort.

But on second thought, Zhao Huai'an's superb swordsmanship made him the perfect whetstone to test his abilities.

He sneered silently, then leaped down from the roof, landing without a sound.

At the same time, driven by telekinesis, the Turn-Hand Sword in his hand gave a faint whistle through the air, transforming into a streak of silver lightning that shot straight at Zhao Huai'an's face.

Zhao Huai'an truly was a seasoned, battle-hardened hero. As danger descended, alarm bells blared wildly in his heart. Without even thinking, he instinctively rolled diagonally forward, his sword flashing from its sheath as he swung it backward to block.

"Clang—!"

An incomparably crisp ring of metal striking metal exploded through the air, especially piercing in the quiet dawn.

Zhao Huai'an felt an immensely powerful force travel through his blade, numbing his wrist and filling his heart with shock.

That force did not feel human. It was more like the impact of a bolt fired from a heavy crossbow.

"Who are you? Show yourself! How dare you wound people with a sneak attack!"

Zhao Huai'an shouted sharply, his gaze flashing like lightning as he swept the dark corner from which the flying sword had come. Every muscle in his body tensed as he went fully on guard.

Zu Hao slowly emerged from the shadows, his expression calm and even carrying a hint of amusement.

He did not answer. With a mere thought, the Turn-Hand Sword that had been knocked away traced a nimble arc through the air, rose to hover once more, and pointed its tip at Zhao Huai'an with a low hum.

The next instant, sword light flashed again.

The Turn-Hand Sword transformed into streams of deadly silver light, launching an unceasing, storm-like assault against Zhao Huai'an from every conceivable and impossibly tricky angle!

Zhao Huai'an drew a sharp breath. He had roamed the martial world for years, but when had he ever seen such a strange and terrifying art of sword control?

It was simply unheard of!

Yet his will was tough, and his experience in battle was exceptionally rich. He immediately forced down his shock and pushed his swordsmanship to its limit.

His longsword whirled in broad, sweeping motions, each move fierce and forceful, carrying the ruthlessness and decisiveness tempered by wind, sand, blood, and fire. Sword light coiled around him, and for the moment, his defense was airtight as clang after clang rang out without pause.

However, faced with this flying sword attack that completely defied the principles of martial arts, shifted without warning, and grew ever faster, he soon began to falter and struggle to keep up.

The flying sword darted left and right, up and down. At times it thrust swiftly, at times it slashed, at times it spun as it cut.

It was as though an invisible master swordsman were attacking him, yet one who completely ignored the restrictions of distance, force, and human anatomy. The experience and instincts Zhao Huai'an had honed through years of training were nearly rendered useless.

Waves of shock surged through Zhao Huai'an's heart. He could not understand how Zu Hao could control a sword with such precision from dozens of yards away.

This feeling... it was practically martial arts from another dimension!

Meanwhile, Zu Hao controlled the flying sword while staring fixedly at every subtle movement Zhao Huai'an made.

A sharp gleam flickered in his eyes. Relying on his powerful mental strength and memory, he recorded the essence of Zhao Huai'an's swordsmanship, tempered through countless real battles and life-or-death struggles.

The T-virus had given him not only formidable physical abilities, but also enhanced brain development.

Zu Hao's memory and mental strength had both improved dramatically. In the terms of this martial world, he now possessed extraordinary comprehension and could learn anything with astonishing speed.

Zhao Huai'an's moves were rapidly captured, analyzed, broken apart, and reassembled by Zu Hao before being deeply imprinted in his mind and gradually made his own.

For Zu Hao, this brief exchange of several dozen moves was like an intense, immersive lesson.

Zhao Huai'an was like a master teacher holding nothing back, personally demonstrating every secret of his swordsmanship.

Before long, Zhao Huai'an discovered in horror that the attack patterns of the flying sword seemed to be taking on traces of his own swordsmanship. Its speed, power, and vicious angles were steadily improving as well.

He failed to evade in time. With a hiss, his shoulder was cut open, and then pain shot through his wrist. With a clang, the longsword in his hand was violently knocked to the ground.

Zhao Huai'an staggered back and raised a hand. "Wait! Who exactly are you, sir? We have never met and hold no grudge against each other, so why—"

"Whoosh—!"

The only response was a streak of icy light.

Like a venomous snake flicking out its tongue, the Turn-Hand Sword swept across his neck in an instant.

Zhao Huai'an's words came to an abrupt halt. His eyes flew wide as a thin line of blood appeared across his throat, then rapidly widened as blood sprayed out.

He futilely clutched his neck. His body slowly dropped to its knees before finally collapsing onto the cold sand, endless confusion and unwillingness lingering in his eyes.

"The Donglin Party is nothing but a pack of hypocrites who can only spout empty rhetoric and attack political rivals. What is there to be proud of?"

Only after confirming that Zhao Huai'an could no longer fight back did Zu Hao speak indifferently.

As for killing Zhao Huai'an, Zu Hao felt no psychological burden whatsoever.

In his view, Zhao Huai'an had been eager enough when rescuing the children of officials, but he acted impulsively and often dragged many others into trouble. He was not necessarily soft-hearted when ordinary people suffered because of him.

He was merely another political thug waving the banner of righteousness while openly taking sides. He deserved to die!

More importantly, he had previously caused Ling Yanqiu's death. If Zhao Huai'an found out, he would definitely fight Zu Hao to the death.

It had to be dealt with sooner or later, so naturally, it was better to strike first.

Leaving Zhao Huai'an's corpse behind, Zu Hao returned to the inn.

A little over two hours later, the sound of dense hoofbeats came from outside Dragon Gate Inn.

The large force from the West Depot had finally arrived in grand fashion.

Dragon Gate Inn was instantly surrounded so tightly that not even water could pass through.

At their head was the West Depot governor, Yu Huatian. His face was pale and beardless, his features soft and beautiful, but his eyes were as cold as ice. Dressed in a magnificent brocade robe, he exuded an overwhelming presence.

Behind him followed experts such as his chief officer Ma Jinliang and a large number of elite agents. Blades were drawn, arrows were nocked, and a murderous aura spread through the air.

Having already noticed the commotion, Zu Hao merely hid at the entrance to the hidden passage with Bulu Du, Gu Shaotang, Feng Lidao, and the others, coldly watching everything above.

Zu Hao bore no direct grudge against Yu Huatian and his men. He had killed Tan Luzi mainly because those people remaining in the inn would have interfered with his attempt to seize the treasure.

With Yu Huatian and the others outside, they would not have any effect on him.

The Black Sandstorm would arrive soon.

When the might of heaven and earth descended, how many of these West Depot men would survive would depend on their own fate and luck.

Zu Hao only needed to wait and watch.

Yu Huatian and the others, however, had no idea that disaster was about to strike. They were searching Dragon Gate Inn when they found the corpses of Zhao Huai'an, Tan Luzi, and the others.

"Governor, it's Zhao Huai'an. Judging by the body, he died about an hour ago."

"Tan Luzi and the others likely died last night, but some of their wounds are rather strange."

After hearing his subordinates' report, Yu Huatian ordered them to search for any other clues.

Just then, the sky abruptly darkened at a visible rate, as though night had fallen ahead of time.

Dark clouds filled the sky, forming massive storm clouds before turning into enormous tornadoes that howled past.