Yi Yang looked at the things on the table. He neither reached for them nor refused them. He picked up the bowl of cool water and took another sip, smacking his lips indelicately.
He set the bowl down.
Looking up, he asked, "How did you know this old man was at the Qi-Blood Fifth Level?"
"How did you know I was at the Qi-Blood Fifth Level?"
Zhou Jiang had known the question would come. He straightened his back, lingering fear in his voice. "Tang Hao hadn't reported back to me for several days, so I began to suspect something. Then I learned that he'd died in the unrest a few days ago-"
He paused, his bitter smile deepening.
"I knew then that the plan had failed completely."
His gaze settled on Yi Yang's face, complicated emotions churning deep in his eyes.
"So I went to inspect Tang Hao's body myself. And the bodies of Cao Tie and Qian Jiu from the Red Tiger Gang."
Zhou Jiang lowered his voice. "All three were killed with a single strike. Tang Hao's neck was broken, Cao Tie was beheaded, and Qian Jiu had both legs severed before a finishing blow. Not one of them had the slightest strength left to resist."
He paused for two breaths. "I may not amount to much, but I'm still at the Qi-Blood Fourth Level. After seeing those three bodies, I understood—someone capable of that couldn't possibly be at the fourth level. At least the fifth."
Then he added, "Or higher."
Zhou Jiang lowered his voice another notch. "In all of Cloud Pattern Town, Chief Steward Fang Yue is the only known fifth-level practitioner. But Lord Fang Yue obviously wouldn't have acted against them. So, Old Man Yi, I wouldn't dare guess how much strength you've hidden. What