Battle Against Yin Muhua

Lin Qing led his team in through the North Gate, feeling their way forward without joining a single fight.

He moved slowly, in no hurry to push deeper into the courtyard. He knew the main force in this battle was not him, but Cheng Yannian, Yu Muqing, and the other experts.

Lin Qing swept his gaze across the empty courtyard, then headed straight for its rear gate.

Halfway across, he stopped. Everyone else stopped with him.

"Captain Lin, what is it?" someone asked.

"I smell blood. Someone's nearby. Get your ass out here!" Lin Qing suddenly shouted at the rooftop.

A figure leaped down the moment he spoke. It was Yin Muhua. Her sinister eyes sized Lin Qing up, and a chilling smile spread across her face.

"You've got a sharp nose. No matter if the ambush failed. This old woman has plenty of ways to take your lives."

"It's Yin Muhua!" someone cried.

The squad erupted. Some men's calves trembled; others quietly backed away.

Lin Qing drew his saber. A biting killing intent washed over him. Yin Muhua meant to kill, and at this distance, escaping would not be easy.

Worse, as captain, he stood at the front, and he had been the first to spot Yin Muhua hiding on the roof. She had marked him as the greatest threat and fixed her gaze on him. When she struck, he would be her first target.

Lin Qing knew that hiding, fear, and pleading would do no good. Only by gathering his courage and fighting with everything he had could he grasp a sliver of life.

"Tsk, tsk. Such a fine bunch of strapping young men. I happen to be short on blood and vitality. You've come at just the right time!"

Yin Muhua struck as she spoke. She drew a deep breath and suddenly let out a thunderous shout.

Sound rolled over Lin Qing in waves, and he plunged into an illusion. Once more, he saw a stage where a woman in red gauze sang opera and gave voice to mournful sobs.

A powerful fear rose inside him, but his reason held.

He knew everything before his eyes was an illusion. The real danger lay hidden behind it.

Lin Qing threw himself into a roll. All he knew was that he had to keep moving, or he would surely die.

After two rolls, the illusion shattered. When he opened his eyes again, he saw that every constable who had come with him had fallen unconscious.

Yin Muhua's shout had carried a tremendous impact. Lin Qing's head felt as though a heavy hammer had struck it, aching and throbbing.

Fortunately, his body was strong enough to withstand it. The others had not been so lucky.

Yin Muhua lunged at a constable who had collapsed nearby and, with one stroke of her blade, took off his head.

Blood gushed like a spring. Yin Muhua cupped it in both hands and gulped down the steaming blood.

Lin Qing's stomach turned. What separated her from a beast?

His gaze swept over her, and he spotted a wound on her back, blood steadily seeping from it.

She's injured! Lin Qing's heart stirred.

He understood why Yin Muhua was acting with such urgency, why she had lost her composure. Her condition was terrible.

This is my chance. If I kill her, I'll surely be able to copy an extraordinarily powerful martial art, perhaps even a Perfect Mastery body-training method. Thoughts flashed through Lin Qing's mind.

Yin Muhua abruptly straightened. She stared at Lin Qing, blood smeared across her lips.

"You took one shout from this old woman without falling. That makes you somebody, I suppose. But compared to me, you're still far behind. You're just an ant that's a little bigger than the rest. I could crush you with a flick of my hand. Get lost! I have no time to tangle with you."

Disdain filled Yin Muhua's eyes as she spoke. She did not take Lin Qing seriously at all.

If she had not been injured and forced to suppress the evil spirits, she would not have wasted words on Lin Qing. She would have killed him on the spot and drained every drop of his blood and vitality.

Thoughts raced through Lin Qing's mind. Should he leave or stay?

If he left, he would be safe, but the dozen or so constables lying on the ground would be drained dry.

Staying carried risks, but Lin Qing thought he might be able to win.

Yin Muhua was strong enough to clash head-on with Cheng Yannian, but now she was gravely wounded. She could not muster even a tenth of her fighting strength. This was a chance sent by heaven.

If I can kill Yin Muhua, I might obtain another Perfect Mastery training method and strengthen my body.

And if I can save them but stand here out of fear while Yin Muhua drains everyone dry, I'll never have a clear conscience again.

Even if I let Yin Muhua go, she'll keep searching for the Buddha Statue. She'll kill more people in the city, and danger could descend on us again at any moment.

Better to seize this chance, kill that old beast, and put an end to the threat once and for all!

The thoughts took far longer to recount than they had to form. In an instant, Lin Qing made his decision.

He reached into his robes and flung his hand out. Swish, swish, swish! Three Darts shot forth, streaking toward Yin Muhua like cold shadows.

The instant he moved, he slotted the Perfect Mastery Locust Stone and Perfect Mastery Water Skimming into his equipment slots.

Countless techniques surfaced in his mind. His Locust Stone rose to Limit-Breaking, and his fighting strength surged.

With the Limit-Breaking technique behind them, the three Darts flew faster and struck harder.

They reached Yin Muhua in an instant. Startled, she twisted aside. Two Darts missed completely, while the third narrowly missed its mark and sliced a cut across her cheek.

Clink! Clink! Clink!

The three Darts buried themselves in the thick earthen wall behind her.

"What a formidable hidden-weapon technique!"

"This old woman meant to spare you, but you don't know what's good for you. What? Do you think I'm easy prey because I'm wounded?" Yin Muhua narrowed her eyes.

"A man must know what he should do and what he must never do. As long as you live, neither I nor the people of this city can rest easy!" Lin Qing met her gaze without the slightest thought of retreat.

"Good advice can't save a ghost bent on dying! I'll kill you now!"

Yin Muhua moved abruptly. Her lightness skill was exceptional. Like a ghostly shadow, she drifted close and thrust her palm straight for Lin Qing's throat.

Lin Qing was no slower. He drove out a punch, using a move from the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake: Spirit Snake Raises Its Head!

Smack!

Fist met palm with a dull crack. Yin Muhua's expression shifted, and she stumbled back three steps.

"Who are you?"

Surprise escaped her. She had expected her palm strike to shatter Lin Qing's arm, but his fist carried unbelievable force. The impact left her arm numb.

Though her hidden injury kept her from using her full strength, even three-tenths of it should have been beyond an ordinary constable of the Soul-Calming Office.

Lin Qing said nothing. He flicked his hand, sending three more Darts whistling through the air, then charged Yin Muhua under their cover.

Yin Muhua slipped aside to avoid the three Darts, then met Lin Qing with a palm strike.

Crack! Pop! Crack!

They traded a dozen moves in an instant, and Yin Muhua grew more alarmed with every exchange.

Lin Qing's arm strength far surpassed that of an ordinary Bright Force Martial Artist, and his fighting technique was exquisite. His footwork was especially remarkable: as he shifted and turned, he moved with fluid grace, as though skimming across water.

Then their fist and palm collided again. A tearing pain suddenly ripped through Yin Muhua's abdomen, and blood poured from her wound. Her injury had worsened.