It all happened in the blink of an eye.
Not only were the people from the Escort Guild and the Cave of No Worries stunned, even Ning Que's own allies stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
No one had expected Tong Chengkun, the head of the Dragon Gate Escort Bureau and the Escort Guild's foremost representative,
to have his head cut off by a single stroke of Ning Que's saber.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for killing Tong Chengkun, head of the Dragon Gate Escort Bureau. You have gained 200 karma points.]
"Drip, drip..."
Still-warm blood slowly trickled down the edge of Dawn Breeze, Waning Moon, dripping onto the thin layer of snow on the ground, leaving it half white and half red.
The pungent stench of blood filled the surrounding air.
"Kill him!!"
Tong Chengkun's death also sparked the bloody battle between the two sides.
Beneath the snowy night sky, people surged in like a tide, attacking from every direction.
The battle between a hundred-odd people and over a thousand had begun.
Atop the city wall, the messenger from Capital City watched the situation below, then turned toward Zhuge Jingcheng.
Chuckling, he said, "Such resolve, Provincial Governor. Your daughter is still down there, yet you're leaving her to her fate... Once the rebels have been eliminated, I'll be sure to put in a good word for your achievements with Minister Wang!"
As far as they were concerned, a sweeping victory was already theirs.
Moreover, the Provincial Governor's Residence had not deployed a single soldier from its elite troops, leaving everything to the escorts and Bounty Hunters.
When they submitted their memorial, they could simply describe it as infighting among underground factions, with nothing to do with the imperial court.
Zhuge Jingcheng said nothing throughout, merely watching the battle below in silence.
"Report! Provincial Governor! A large number of unidentified troops have suddenly gathered ten miles outside Qingzhou City!"
"They aren't wearing iron armor. They're all wearing leather armor!"
Just then, another urgent report arrived, making both Zhuge Jingcheng's and the messenger's expressions change.
"Leather armor? Are you certain?"
Zhuge Jingcheng's expression shifted slightly.
All military armor within the Dynasty was issued by the imperial court, and an official seal was stamped onto it during forging.
The materials used to forge that iron were not sold to outsiders.
Thus, anyone outside the government's forces could not obtain such iron armor.
They could only substitute other materials.
Leather armor, for instance.
As a result, any army wearing leather armor could be identified as "insurgents" or "rebels"!
"How many are there?"
"Approximately... ten thousand!"
"Boom..."
At that number, Zhuge Jingcheng's and the messenger's expressions changed drastically.
It felt as though their heads had exploded.
An army of nearly ten thousand rebels!
What did that mean?
Even if he deployed every soldier under the Provincial Governor of Qingzhou City, they would never be able to stop them.
"Let's take a look!"
Zhuge Jingcheng's expression grew more solemn than ever before. Abandoning even the battle below the gate, he went to the other side of the city wall.
Outside Qingzhou City, a vast army bore down on the walls.
Gathering and Scattering Quicksand.
After several days of gathering, the once-fragmented Flowing Sand had finally assembled in earnest!
News that the former Juzi's orphan had been found spread through every hall and branch as though it had sprouted wings.
Whether or not they were satisfied with Flowing Sand's current state, they all had to come and see.
A white-robed figure stood at their head.
It was Flowing Sand's acting Juzi, Mu Lingfeng.
Powerful fighters of every appearance and style of dress stood on either side of him, as numerous as hairs on an ox.
Beside Mu Lingfeng, a white-haired woman holding an umbrella said slowly, "Juzi Mu, according to the latest news, Little Juzi, Yin Jiuyou, and our brothers from the Qingzhou Branch are trapped inside the city. The Provincial Governor of Qingzhou refuses to release them."
"Should we intervene?"
"..."
Mu Lingfeng pondered with his eyes closed. After a long while, he shook his head. "Wait a little longer. We will intervene, but the time isn't right!"
The battle between a hundred-odd people and over a thousand was already underway.
Yet neither side overwhelmed the other at the outset.
On the contrary, Ning Que's side proved more formidable.
Wherever Yin Jiuyou's long saber swept, it reaped a whole group of lives;
Qi Shanhe's iron fists crushed opposition on every side;
Mu Yuwei was an expert in poison. Clouds of toxic smoke spread, and many people collapsed, convulsing.
But even more people charged at Ning Que.
Most were from the Dragon Gate Escort Bureau.
After all, Ning Que had just killed their bureau head.
"You killed my brother! Your life is forfeit, brat!"
Another furious roar rang out as Chai Feiying, head of the Flying Eagle Escort Agency, one of the three great escort agencies, charged in with his saber.
Lei Qiandong, whom Ning Que had killed earlier, was Chai Feiying's own younger brother!
Several escort agency heads attacked Ning Que at once, their combined assault fearsome.
These agency heads had all cultivated internal power, giving them long, steady breaths and setting them fundamentally apart from ordinary experts.
Saber energy billowed. Chai Feiying's saber art was called the Woodcutter's Saber Technique.
It looked unremarkable, but as stroke after stroke fell, an expert would recognize its nature at a glance.
Each stroke carried greater force than the last. By the end, it possessed the might of a plunging waterfall, reaching a point where ordinary people could not possibly withstand it.
Yet Ning Que merely watched quietly without making a move, as though he had been frightened senseless.
"Little Juzi, be careful!"
Mu Yuwei was the first to notice something was wrong, but it was already too late to rush over.
Ning Que and Zhuge Qing were swallowed by the tide of attackers.
Just as everyone thought Ning Que was certain to die, a deafening blast suddenly rang in their ears.
"Boom!!"
An unparalleled aura suddenly erupted from Ning Que, blasting Chai Feiying and dozens of others straight off their feet!
"Pfft!"
Chai Feiying and the others even spewed blood, crashing to the ground in a sorry state.
They stared wide-eyed in disbelief, looking as though they had seen a ghost.
What had just happened?
That brat's internal power had actually blasted them all into serious injury?
There was not even anyone left standing around Ning Que in any direction.
A shallow crater had appeared in the ground!
"Was that... internal power?"
Only after a long, stunned silence did Chai Feiying manage to utter those words.
Not just he, but everyone nearby was too shaken to approach.
Internal power was something far beyond the reach of most martial practitioners.
Even Chai Feiying, after training for so many years, had only cultivated five years' worth of internal force.
Yet this brat's internal force was actually this profound?!
Surely that amounted to several decades?
Even if he had started cultivating in his mother's womb, he could not possibly have developed such profound internal force!
Unfortunately, Zhuge Jingcheng had not witnessed this scene. Otherwise, his eyes would surely have popped out of his head.
Never mind Chai Feiying and Mo Zhaoyun—even Yin Jiuyou and Qi Shanhe were stunned.
Little Juzi... actually possessed internal force?
Little Juzi truly brought them one surprise after another!
With Zhuge Qing beside him, Ning Que swept his gaze over everyone.
He raised Dawn Breeze, Waning Moon and drew a long line across the ground. "Everyone, I have no wish to make enemies of you. Anyone who crosses this white line cannot blame me for showing no mercy!"
"Brat, you should have died long ago!"
But the moment his words fell, another shrill female voice rang out.
Several figures suddenly sprang up from the direction of the Cave of No Worries. Looking closely, he saw that it was Liu Ningzhi, the star courtesan of the Flower Delight House.
Ning Que looked at her and immediately smiled. "Oh, it's you?"
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