Huo Shengnan had never expected Hu Xiaotian to go back on his word. He had plainly promised to release Zhou Juetian, yet after learning the truth, he had run him through with his sword. Martial artists valued trust and honor above all. Even as she marveled at Hu Xiaotian's ruthlessness, she began to doubt his integrity.
"Why did you kill him?"
Hu Xiaotian smiled. "For plenty of reasons. First, he was good at concealing his movements. Once he got beyond the range of my senses, he could have caused us a great deal of trouble. We killed his four companions. He was bound to avenge them, and once he recovered, he would have stopped at nothing to do it. Second, he just admitted that he spent last night watching our every move from a distance. In other words, he saw everything when I treated your injuries."
Huo Shengnan's pretty face flushed bright red. If that was true, he certainly deserved to die. Otherwise, if he spread word of what had happened last night, her reputation would have been utterly ruined.
Hu Xiaotian continued, "Third, I promised to release him if he told the truth. Unfortunately, he didn't treasure that opportunity. He lied to me."
"How can you tell?" Huo Shengnan asked.
"He said your head was worth ten thousand taels of gold, while mine was only worth five thousand."
Huo Shengnan blinked her lovely eyes. "That sounds perfectly normal to me. I'm a major fugitive wanted by the Imperial Court. You... heh heh..."
"Looking down on me? What are you chuckling about?"
"Nothing. I just think those prices make sense!"
Hu Xiaotian smiled. "It's not that I feel slighted. But why was my head worth only half as much as yours? Clearly, someone was trying to hide something and only