Subduing Them

Just as Datou and Heizi climbed over the courtyard wall and prepared to act.

A throwing knife flashing with cold light silently skimmed past Datou's neck.

Datou's body instantly stiffened as he froze in place. He felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head, the aura of death engulfing his entire body in an instant.

"What's wrong?" Heizi, beside him, had not noticed anything unusual. Seeing Datou standing there in a daze, he lowered his voice and asked.

"Don't, don't speak!" Datou said in a trembling voice. He raised a hand and shakily touched his neck. He had no doubt that if the owner of that throwing knife had wished it, that strike would have taken his life.

"Don't, don't move!" Cold sweat poured down Datou's face as he warned him again.

Datou's appearance frightened Heizi. Seeing the blood on Datou's hand, he too became flustered and at a loss.

"D-Datou, you..."

Thud!

Ignoring Heizi, Datou dropped straight to his knees, his voice trembling as he said:

"I'm sorry, sir. We were blinded by greed. Please spare our lives! We really only wanted to steal a few things; we absolutely meant no other harm!"

A cool voice rang out beside them from the darkness.

"Oh? You really only wanted to steal something?"

Qing Mo slowly emerged from the darkness. Under the faint moonlight, they could see a small knife in his hand.

It was a practice throwing knife, spinning nimbly around his fingertips.

Ever since he had returned to the alley that afternoon, he had sensed the two of them hiding nearby.

The reason he had not acted immediately was that he wanted to see what they were planning to do and gather some information while he was at it.

"Luo Yi sent you, didn't he?"

"My patience is limited. Don't waste my time, understood?"

Qing Mo smiled faintly. Though he was smiling, Datou and Heizi felt a chill run down their spines.

"Yes, yes, yes, Luo Yi sent us," Datou hurriedly said. He did not dare hide anything further and spilled the entire truth in one breath.

"Luo Yi told us to find where you lived, big brother, and then have us... report your whereabouts at any time..."

A teasing curve formed at Qing Mo's lips. "Oh? Then why did you break in?"

"I-I was stupid. My head was muddled, so I resorted to this foolish plan..."

Datou lowered his head in shame. He had originally thought that with his Ninth Stage of Dou Qi cultivation, he could easily subdue Qing Mo, this pretty boy.

Who would have thought that this seemingly harmless young man was actually an unfathomably powerful Fighter? And his star rating could not be low either. Not to mention those eerie throwing knives—they were simply terrifying!

"Heh, so you're quite the genius."

Qing Mo chuckled, then his gaze turned sharp.

"Tell me everything you know about the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group. Don't even think about lying if you want to live."

"I know, I know. I know," Datou quickly said.

"The Poison Dragon Mercenary Group has two commanders, both Battle Master-level experts. The deputy commander, Lin Qi, is a Two-Star Dou Master. As for the chief commander, I don't know. But I heard Luo Yi mention before that his father killed a Five-Star Dou Practitioner snake-person half a year ago."

Qing Mo stroked his chin. Two Battle Masters, huh? No wonder Xiao Ding and Xiao Li had suffered so badly before. That made sense.

"What about the others?" Qing Mo continued.

"As for the others..." Datou thought for a moment before saying, "Aside from the two commanders, the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group has two captains and five squad leaders. The captains are all at least Seven-Star Dou Practitioners. I'm not too sure about the squad leaders, but they're at least Fighter-level experts!"

"Finished?" Qing Mo asked.

"F-Finished..." Datou swallowed. He seemed to know what Qing Mo intended to do. Suddenly, he slammed his head against the ground, tears and snot streaming down his face as he begged:

"Big brother, sir, please spare my life! Just treat us like a fart and let us go!"

Heizi also dropped to his knees beside him, crying bitterly as he pleaded, "I have elderly parents above me and young children below me. Please spare us!"

"Heh. To join the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group, you were willing to sell your consciences and even planned to kidnap my people. And now you want me to let you go? Do you think that's possible?" Qing Mo said coldly.

Datou and Heizi exchanged a glance. Their faces went pale, and their bodies began to tremble.

"However, letting you go isn't impossible."

At that, Qing Mo changed his tone. Datou and Heizi abruptly looked up, a flicker of hope flashing through their eyes.

"Just tell us what you need us to do, big brother. We'll definitely do it."

Datou hurriedly said. He knew this was their only way to survive.

"We can pass along false information. Luo Yi won't find out."

"And even if you kill us, perhaps someone else will come... so..." Datou carefully added.

"Heh, fine. You're clever." Qing Mo gave Datou an approving glance. As expected of the King of Ideas—at a critical moment like this, his mind was quick.

"But why should I trust you?"

Hearing that, Datou's face lit up. He knew his life was likely saved.

"Sir, we can take poison and submit to your control. That way, you won't have to worry."

"Yes, yes, yes. Don't worry, sir."

A trace of approval flashed through Qing Mo's eyes. Datou might not have been a good person, but his mind truly worked quickly.

"Not bad. You're clever. Come, choose one yourself."

With a flick of his wrist, Qing Mo produced two pills of different colors in his palm.

One was brown, while the other was green.

Datou did not hesitate. He directly chose the brown pill, tipped back his head, and swallowed it.

Heizi was equally unwilling to be outdone. He picked up the emerald-green pill and swallowed it as well. If he hesitated now, he feared he might lose his life.

"Big brother, what do you need us to do?" Datou asked.

"Nothing for now. I'll notify you when I need you. From now on, come to me for the antidote every half month."

"Of course, if you have the ability, you can detoxify yourselves." Qing Mo smiled. These poison pills had been left over from Qing Lin's medicinal bath. Ordinary antidote pills would be useless; only a second-tier antidote pill could work. But a second-tier antidote pill cost at least ten thousand gold coins. Whether these two could afford one was another matter entirely.

"We wouldn't dare."

The two hurriedly shook their heads.

"Alright. Handle the rest yourselves." Qing Mo waved a hand.

"Yes, yes. Understood, big brother. I guarantee that I won't leak any information about you." Datou nodded repeatedly, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

Although he had lost his freedom, he had at least kept his life.

Heizi beside him wore the same expression of having survived a disaster.