Nothing special?

"You little brat!"

Seeing how arrogantly the other man intended to kill the chicken to frighten the monkeys, Bao Fei wasted no more words. His right hand seized the saber hilt at his attendant's waist, and his legs abruptly drove down!

Bang-

Shing-

Amid the explosive report, cracks spread across the gangplank, the entire pleasure boat rocked, and a gleaming flash of cold light streaked along the riverbank!

The three-foot silver saber suddenly left its sheath. From a distance, it looked like a sudden burst of pale lightning; onlookers could see only a blurred afterimage!

Far away, Commandery Princess Changning and the others saw how ruthlessly Bao Fei attacked and inwardly sensed trouble.

Who could have expected the riverbank to fall deathly silent the very next instant?

Boom-

The moment Bao Fei made his move, Xie Jinhuan vanished from the grass in front of Lin Wanyi, leaving only a circular depression behind.

When he reappeared, he had already charged up to Bao Fei with the Heavenly Gang Mace in hand!

Boom-

Faced with such a terrifying burst of speed, Bao Fei's furious expression visibly froze. Without hesitation, he hacked down hard, putting his full strength behind the blow and holding nothing back.

Yet this stroke, swift as racing thunder, still failed to breach the centerline, landing squarely on the iron mace braced across its path!

Clang-

As the two weapons met, a deafening explosion rang out beside the lake!

There were plenty of martial artists with some grounding at Peony Pond. Merely watching Xie Jinhuan strike told them he was no ordinary man.

But Bao Fei was the Young Master of Essence Splendor Manor and had quite a reputation in Dan Prefecture. This Thunderclap Blade was also the manor's signature technique, renowned for its fierce, domineering power.

Normally, meeting it head-on like this would have sent Xie Jinhuan staggering several yards backward, if not flying outright, trapping him in an unbroken chain of saber strikes!

Yet when Bao Fei's full-force stroke landed on the Heavenly Gang Mace, Xie Jinhuan stood like an immovable boulder, his feet planted firmly in the earth without the slightest sway!

Boom-

Bao Fei's all-out stroke felt as though it had struck a statue cast from steel. The force rebounded, nearly splitting the web of his hand on the spot and sending his saber flying upward, its spine almost smashing into his own forehead.

Xie Jinhuan wasted no time on this small fry, either. Having taken the stroke head-on with Coiling Dragon Spans the Ridge, he followed through with a hard shoulder strike the instant the saber bounced away!

Thud-

Before Bao Fei could react, an arm as hard as iron, stone, and hardwood had already slammed into his chest.

Under that indescribably powerful impact, the back of Bao Fei's robe burst apart on the spot, exposing his knotted shoulders and back!

His entire body curled like a shrimp and flew backward, smashing through the deck railing and then punching through the Boat Tower's wall.

Bang-

Crack-crack-crack-

As wood splinters flew, the young gentlemen inside the Boat Tower felt a fierce gust brush their faces. From the corners of their eyes, they saw a figure crash diagonally through the wall and slam into an overhead beam, shaking loose a shower of dust.

Thud-

Then he plunged from the air onto the long table laden with delicacies from land and sea. Porcelain plates and wine pots shattered instantly, and as he landed, he spat out a mouthful of crimson blood.

"Pfft-cough, cough..."

"Ah!"

The songstresses and dancing girls inside the Boat Tower screamed in terror!

Outside, the riverbank remained utterly silent.

The exchange had been so fast that most people had not even registered what happened.

After sending Bao Fei back into the room, Xie Jinhuan casually sheathed the Heavenly Gang Mace. Ignoring the steward and disciples, he strode onto the gangplank.

Tap, tap, tap...

Before Lin Wanyi even had time to intervene, Bao Fei had disappeared. Though she was not surprised inwardly, she still looked dumbfounded and hurried after Xie Jinhuan.

"Y-you... you didn't beat him to death too, did you? He's the Young Master of Essence Splendor Manor..."

Xie Jinhuan went straight aboard the pleasure boat to search.

"A second-rate sect. What is there to fear? Hurry and find the Ghost Witch."

How could Lin Wanyi have imagined that a single outing would stir up so much trouble? All she wanted now was to go home.

But since the beating had already happened, she could hardly refuse to do anything. All she could do now was follow behind Xie Jinhuan.

The steward and disciples, so aggressive moments before, had all turned into wooden statues. As the pair brushed past them, they did not dare move a muscle.

Only after the two entered the Boat Tower did the spectators watching the excitement from the riverbank come to their senses, terror in their eyes.

"What happened?"

"Where's Bao Fei?"

"Looks like he got knocked back onto the boat..."

"He was finished in one move?!"

"Looked like he was even holding back..."

Meanwhile, on the pleasure boat chartered by the Commandery Princess's Manor, the bevy of women also ran out of their rooms, craning their necks to watch. Some were still disheveled.

"What's happening? What's happening?"

"A handsome young gentleman was fighting by the river. What beautiful moves..."

On the deck, Liu Qingzhi knew Xie Jinhuan's martial foundation was formidable, but seeing Bao Fei fail to withstand even a single exchange still left doubt and surprise in his eyes.

Commandery Princess Changning, who stood nearby and had watched the whole encounter through the Thousand-Li Telescope, also looked astonished.

"Excellent skills! It doesn't look like the Profound Yang Tyrant Body Art, but it achieves the same result by a different path. With such attainments at his age, no wonder Qingmo spends all day hovering around him."

Steward Hou came to his senses at her words, a rare trace of admiration showing on his face.

"This lad looks nothing special, but his martial prowess does have a touch of my bearing in my younger days. I misjudged him the other day."

The maid Duoduo, her eyes full of little stars, asked incredulously:

"You call that nothing special?"

"A little on the handsome side."

"?"

Long accustomed to her trusted general's absurdity, Commandery Princess Changning waited a while. When Xie Jinhuan still did not emerge, she instructed:

"Liu Qingzhi, take some men over and have a look. He can beat Bao Fei all he likes, but he mustn't beat those young gentlemen. If something really happens, Qingmo will definitely come asking me to protect him."

Liu Qingzhi was also afraid that Xie Jinhuan's explosive temper might lead him to dismember someone again. He hurriedly bowed to acknowledge the order and ran toward the riverbank with two Military Soldiers...

Thud, thud, thud...

Unhurried footsteps approached along the corridor.

The previously lively banquet hall had fallen deathly silent. Only Bao Fei remained sprawled on the long table, coughing dully. He wanted to turn over and get up, but could not recover his breath.

"Cough, cough..."

The dozen or so young gentlemen seated nearby still maintained their earlier composure, but their faces had all gone somewhat pale. If not for the guards standing behind them as though confronting a formidable enemy, they would probably have panicked and crawled under the table.

The songstresses who had been playing instruments and singing hid behind the beaded curtain, not daring to breathe loudly.

Thud, thud...

Soon, the footsteps reached the banquet hall entrance.

Xie Jinhuan stopped at the doorway and surveyed the wealthy and noble young gentlemen inside, searching for anyone resembling the Ghost Witch.

Lin Wanyi followed behind him. Afraid of stirring up trouble, she did not even dare show her face, merely searching quietly for residual toxins.

Only after a long while did Bao Fei recover his senses. Looking up to see that white-robed killing star standing at the door, he recoiled in fright, shifting backward across the table.

Clatter...

After confirming that there were no familiar figures in the hall, Xie Jinhuan ignored Bao Fei and headed toward the other rooms.

Lin Wanyi carefully sensed for the faintest clues, finally stopping outside a guest room overlooking the river.

Xie Jinhuan grew somewhat more wary and entered with the Zhenglun Sword in hand.

Inside, he found a man and a woman lying naked on the bed, with only an autumn quilt draped across their waists. Both were unconscious, their faces flushed with drink.

The clothing originally hanging on the rack had disappeared. A dust-stained robe lay on the floor.

Lin Wanyi frowned. Rather than look at the eye-searing scene on the bed, she went to inspect the bathtub behind the screen.

"That Ghost Witch used a medicinal wash to remove the residual toxins. We probably won't catch up now."

Xie Jinhuan approached the bed and checked the man and woman's pulses. Finding that they were merely unconscious, he went over to the robe and lifted it with the Heavenly Gang Mace to examine it.

Unfortunately, that Ghost Witch was extremely cautious and understood the Witch Cult's methods well. Nothing that could identify the Ghost Witch had been left behind, not even any gold, silver, or valuables...

Finding the trail completely lost, Xie Jinhuan could not help knitting his brows.

He did not know where his father had gone, but remembered encountering a demon at the time.

Though today's Ghost Witch was certainly not the thing he had encountered then, that drifting movement technique did bear some resemblance. Perhaps there was some connection...

Thud, thud, thud...

As he pondered this, soft footsteps sounded again in the silent Boat Tower, followed by voices outside.

"Sir! There was an audacious scoundrel just now... eh? Sir?"

The footsteps did not pause at all, quickly arriving at the room's entrance.

Liu Qingzhi was just about to ask Xie Jinhuan what he was doing when he noticed a garment lying in the room and a man and woman on the bed, their fates unknown. Startled, he drew his saber halfway.

"What happened?!"

Seeing that he belonged to the Prefectural Guards, Lin Wanyi hurriedly resumed her gentle, harmless demeanor.

"Lord Liu, you're finally here. Xie Jinhuan encountered Demon Bandits at Cockscomb Ridge earlier..."

"Huh?"

Liu Qingzhi froze, then asked instinctively:

"Young Master Xie, how do you keep running into Demon Bandits?"

Xie Jinhuan stood up and explained, "They're all the same group. While examining the corpses at the Yamen today, I found a clue about Gu Flowers, so I took a look while I was at it. Outside the city, I found the place where they grew the flowers, with a large number of corpses hidden there. Then I encountered two Witch Cult fiends trying to destroy the bodies and erase the evidence. They had two puppets with them..."

Of the Witch Cult's major branches, Gu Poison and Blessing and Sacrifice were a mixture of good and bad. Corpse Witch and Ghost Witch, however, were, as their names suggested, genuinely anti-human branches. Whenever they appeared, a major case was certain to follow.

Liu Qingzhi had thought Xie Jinhuan had simply come to wreck the place. He had not expected such a serious matter behind it and hurriedly asked:

"Are you all right, Young Master Xie?"

"I only took a fall. I happened to run into Physician Lin on my way back, and she's already examined me."

Xie Jinhuan casually explained why Lin Wanyi was with him to avoid exposing her Witch Cult identity, then continued:

"I ran into that group of fiends at Cockscomb Ridge and slaughtered three on the spot. Another Ghost Witch escaped here, but unfortunately, we lost the trail."

Slaughtered three...

Liu Qingzhi had still been wondering whether to send a signal flare to summon a large force. Discovering that Xie Jinhuan had already killed almost all of them left his gaze somewhat blank.

But with the precedent from a few days ago, he was not exactly surprised. He turned and gave an order:

"Anyone capable of controlling puppets is no ordinary Demon Bandit. This might be connected to the 'demonic aura at Purple Emblem Mountain.' Go summon men and search the nearby boats thoroughly."

"Yes."

The two followers hurried off.

Still anxious to take the Yamen's men to see the evidence he had fabricated, Xie Jinhuan interjected:

"The corpse pit is at Cockscomb Ridge. I'll take you there, Lord Liu, before those Demon Bandits double back and erase every trace."

"All right..."

With so much at stake, Liu Qingzhi dared not delay and swiftly mustered his men...