Let Me Borrow Your Head

Zhao Changhe strode toward the trap, his belly full of anger at his failure and the lingering savagery of blood baleful energy still in his eyes.

This trap was inside the stronghold, right beside the Martial Arts Ground. Zhao Changhe had personally ordered it dug, saying no one would expect a trap in a place like this. Yue Hongling had been standing nearby when he said it... Who would have thought this very trap would actually catch a fish?

However, Yue Hongling had later ordered all the spikes removed from the traps inside the stronghold, leaving them purely for trapping enemies. Tonight's intruder was lucky. Before that, the spikes below might have skewered them into a sieve. There would have been no chance for a standoff...

When Zhao Changhe reached the edge, he saw a group of bandits surrounding the deep pit with long spears, thrusting downward in a flurry. Sword light flashed inside the pit. No matter how many spears stabbed down, they could not harm a single hair on the person below.

Their opponent's sword seemed to be a precious blade, too. Many spears were sliced apart as soon as they thrust down, leaving nothing but bare half-length sticks in their wielders' hands. But there were simply too many bandits, jabbing wildly one after another, and their opponent could not get out either.

Zhao Changhe was speechless. Judging by this scene alone, it was a bunch of fucking chickens pecking at each other.

You've trapped someone in a pit, and this is all you've got? You've been at it for nearly an hour, and you're still poking away?

And the one down there, too. Judging by that swordsmanship and precious sword, she should have a sophisticated martial inheritance. Her internal cultivation seems to be at the second or third layer of the profound pass. With that level of cultivation, shouldn't she have noticed something wrong the instant she stepped on the trap and leaped away with her lightness skill? How did she fall into the pit? Did sword qi inside her body foul things up, just like Yue Hongling?

Did a dog teach her how to fight and react?

"Boss!"

"The boss is here!"

"Let's see that little bitch act cocky now!"

The bandits parted to let Zhao Changhe through. In that brief opening, Sword Qi Chills the Moon surged straight upward, nearly allowing their captive to escape.

A Blood Moon flashed into being, saber light descending through the air. With a deafening clang and a faint, muffled grunt, the sword light fell back into the pit.

Zhao Changhe stood at the edge and looked down. A young girl glared up at him, defiance and a hint of fear in her eyes.

The girl looked rather miserable. She was drenched, water dripping from her head and face. Apparently, falling into the pit had triggered a mechanism that doused her in icy water. However warm spring might be, it was still cold in February. Could her meager cultivation withstand that?

Still full of irritable anger, Zhao Changhe could not be bothered to think too much. He said bluntly, "You have two choices. One, keep resisting, and we'll roll a big rock over and push it into the pit. Then you can turn into spring mud to nourish the flowers."

The defiant look froze on the girl's face.

It's over. I thought I could hold out a little longer. Once my brother realized I was missing, he would definitely come looking for me. But this...

The bandits beside him flushed red.

They had been stuck here for nearly an hour, and it turned out to be that simple.

Zhao Changhe continued, "Two, throw your sword out and surrender. I'm short a stronghold wife."

The girl's face turned scarlet. Furious, she shouted, "Crush me to death, then! I'd rather die than surrender!"

"Tch. Not much skill, but plenty of temper." Zhao Changhe started undoing his belt. "Your swordplay isn't quite watertight yet, is it? I got up earlier but didn't have time to piss. Let me send you off with a shower first."

The girl gaped. "You filthy-no, wait, wait a moment..."

"Hmm?"

"Don't pee! I... I surrender."

The surrounding bandits: "..."

Why didn't we think of that?

No, how could that possibly work?

The girl muttered, "You... you can't touch me. I'm with the imperial court."

Had this little girl just run out of some golden nest to play? How could she be this naive?

With the imperial court? What a coincidence. We're bandits. People from the imperial court are exactly who we like to play with.

Watching the girl weakly toss out her sword, the men had already imagined countless plots from smutty storybooks.

Being with the imperial court did count for something with Zhao Changhe, though not much. It was the girl's naivety that made him want to laugh, dispelling much of his earlier irritation and savagery.

He picked up the girl's sword and examined it for a while. "Go back to whatever you were doing. Don't bother me unless there's something important."

The men dispersed with knowing winks. Zhao Changhe sealed the girl's acupoints and hauled her up. "Come along, little girl. You're coming inside with me."

"You can't make me your stronghold wife," the girl said angrily. "When my brother gets here, he'll slaughter everyone in your Mountain Stronghold!"

"Oh, so you've got someone backing you?" Zhao Changhe found her genuinely amusing. "Give it a rest, girl. I'm no good man, but I'm not into little girls, either. I have no interest in that scrawny figure of yours. I just haven't met anyone from the imperial court before, and there are a few things I want to know."

The girl looked ready to face death. "Whatever you ask, I won't tell you anything."

"Pfft." Zhao Changhe scoffed and made a show of undoing his belt.

The girl's expression changed drastically. "Don't you dare!"

"When you surrendered, didn't it occur to you that while this thing wouldn't be spraying your head anymore, it could move somewhere else?"

"You filthy, shameless, despicable bastard!"

Zhao Changhe had only meant to scare her. He was about to take it a little further when another knock came from outside. "Boss! Boss!"

Zhao Changhe frowned. "What is it?"

"Helmsman Fang is here. He says that if we've captured someone from the imperial court, the Mountain Stronghold can't deal with them on its own. We have to hand them over to the branch. Those are the rules."

"Motherfucker!" Zhao Changhe sneered. "Can he fly? How did he get here so fast? Someone must have sent word to him nearly an hour ago. He clearly came here to snatch a woman from me to play with, and only found out she was from the imperial court after he arrived. Who the fuck does he think he's fooling?"

The man outside did not dare make a sound.

"All right. Where is he?"

"On the mountain path. He's almost at the stronghold."

"Understood. I'll bring the woman over myself."

The sounds outside ceased.

Zhao Changhe turned to glance at the girl. Her face was pale as she watched him.

"Heh. Now you know what surrender gets you, don't you?" Zhao Changhe pulled her outside and headed toward the stronghold gate.

"Zhao Changhe! To think I believed you were a real man! Bowing and scraping to curry favor with your helmsman-you don't deserve... Huh?"

Before she finished, the girl realized that her acupoints had been unsealed, and her confiscated sword had been thrust back into her hand.

"Are you an idiot? Who told you the stronghold only has one gate? This is the back gate!" Zhao Changhe waved her away. "Get moving. As stupid as you are, you'd better train under First Seat Tang for another three years before talking about going out on missions. Don't assume every bandit you meet will be as easygoing as me."

The girl stared at him blankly. "You... do you know who I am?"

"Didn't First Seat Tang send you?"

"Yes, he did."

"Then there you go." Zhao Changhe said impatiently, "I don't care who sent you. I wouldn't stoop to something that low anyway. Since you said you were with the imperial court, I did mean to ask you a few things, but the timing's bad, so forget it. Get lost. I've got things to do. Stop wasting my time."

The girl said, "Your... your helmsman is at the fourth layer of the profound pass, and you haven't even broken through to the third. If he finds out you secretly released a prisoner from the imperial court, what will you do...?"

"Oh? Your brain's finally working?" Zhao Changhe laughed. "All right, I have my own plans. Just stay out of the way."

The girl lowered her head, pursing her lips and hesitating for a long time. Suddenly, she pulled two soaking-wet pills from her pocket. "These pills can help you break through to the third layer. Thank you. I... I'll find someone to help you right away!"

With that, she stamped her foot, turned, and darted away. Apparently, she also knew she would only get in the way with her level of skill, and had gone to fetch reinforcements.

Zhao Changhe paused. Her lightness skill was graceful, beautiful, and extraordinarily swift. She definitely came from a distinguished house. What distinguished house would send such a naive youngster out to get herself killed? Honestly... Wait... A distinguished house nearby. Cui Yuanyong had a younger sister.

Speechlessly, he looked down at the pills in his hand. Medicine from the Cui family?

He brought one to his nose and sniffed lightly, sensing its properties. Soon, he felt a stir in his dantian.

Clearly, these were pills for internal cultivation, useful for Whatever-the-Hell Refinement, not the Blood Baleful Art... Still, he was currently using Whatever-the-Hell Refinement as a support and booster for the Blood Baleful Art. Could he give them a try?

No time to worry about it. Fang Buping was already at his door.

Zhao Changhe tipped back his head and swallowed a pill. Letting the energy in his dantian begin to swirl, he strode toward the Righteous Gathering Hall.

Wang Dashan and the others were setting out wine and dishes in the hall to welcome Fang Buping's arrival and guidance. They paused when they saw Zhao Changhe enter. "Boss, where's the woman?"

Zhao Changhe walked forward as though nothing were amiss and smiled. "We'll talk about the woman later. I want to borrow something from you."

Not understanding his meaning, Wang Dashan smiled. "What are you saying, Boss? Whatever you want, just take it. Why talk about borrowing? What is it you need?"

"I wish to break through to the third layer of the Blood Baleful Art. Everything is ready; all I lack is blood baleful energy to give me a push." As Zhao Changhe spoke, he suddenly drew his Steel Saber. "I've come to borrow your head!"

Whoosh!

Saber light flashed, and blood gushed out.

Wang Dashan's head flew into the air, his eyes still frozen in shock and disbelief.

How... how dare he?

Helmsman Fang was already here...

Everyone present was horrified. Watching the savage blood-red gleam in Zhao Changhe's eyes, no longer concealed in the slightest, they trembled in heart and soul, their legs shaking.

Rumble! Zhao Changhe looked inward at his dantian. The pill's effects were astonishingly powerful. Energy formed a whirlpool, circulating rapidly, spreading through his meridians and opening his acupoints. The Shanzhong Acupoint, the third layer of the internal profound pass that he had not even intended to break through, opened in a single surge.

At the same time, as his killing intent erupted, blood baleful energy surged into the meridians around his heart and rushed straight toward his mind. His qi and blood roared like a tide, viciously charging at the fascia that had blocked his progress before.

He immediately summoned the true qi from his newly achieved internal breakthrough, merging it with the blood baleful energy. Amid searing pain, the barrier in his fascia burst open.

Zhao Changhe threw back his head and roared, drowning out the intense pain of his breakthrough. He raised his saber again and shattered the Righteous Gathering Hall's plaque, then strode away laughing. "You claim to uphold the Way, yet have no Way! You call yourselves a gathering of righteousness, yet have no righteousness! What use is there in keeping this? Until we meet again!"