Overwhelming force

The coachman was no less shocked than the dead assassin. Hearing his young master's voice, he immediately came to his senses.

"The second young master should be at the Distillery. There seems to have been some trouble there these past few days, and most of the workers are there too."

With that general information, Zhou Muzhi had a clear idea of where to go. He moved like a drifting willow catkin, disappearing from the coachman's sight in the blink of an eye.

Left behind, the dazed coachman trembled as he went to check whether the carriage horse could still be saved. After all, his livelihood depended on it.

Outside the Zhou Family's Distillery, Zhou Buren dragged his weary body out onto Blue Stone Avenue after a busy day. Lao Xu followed beside him, along with five guards specially hired recently.

Not everyone could afford to keep a carriage horse and coachman. A small clan like the Zhou Family had only one carriage, reserved entirely for Zhou Muzhi. With darkness falling, they could only walk home.

The guards cleared the way ahead and behind, while Lao Xu stayed beside Zhou Buren. The group walked forward in silence, taking advantage of the time remaining before curfew.

Soon.

Lao Xu noticed something wrong.

His ears twitched, and he suddenly realized how quiet their surroundings were. This was not how the residents of Suming County normally behaved.

At least one of the nearby homes should have had the noise of a family inside.

Failing that, there should at least have been the clatter of pots and bowls.

But now there was not the slightest sound, as though someone had deliberately sealed off this area.

"Something's wrong!"

Lao Xu stopped first. He extended his free hand protectively in front of Zhou Buren, his gaze sweeping their surroundings like a hawk's as he lowered his voice considerably.

"Everyone, stay alert. Something's wrong with this area!"

As soon as he spoke, the other five guards all drew their large sabers. Raising the broad blades, they shifted slightly, turning their backs toward Zhou Muzhi's direction, alert to anything that might appear.

Just then.

Agile figures emerged from the darker alleys. The instant they appeared, they sealed off every exit from the area.

Only breathing and footsteps came from this group. Their movements were well coordinated, and every one of them wore night clothes. Before Zhou Buren and the others could act, they had surrounded them in this stretch from which there was no escape.

Beneath the moonlight.

Two tall figures wearing white masks advanced step by step toward Zhou Buren. One was White Face; the other's mask bore the tiny inscription "Nineteen" on its forehead.

The two advanced together and drew their sabers almost simultaneously. Their blades came from left and right, killing intent surging straight toward Zhou Buren.

Lao Xu narrowed his eyes as he assessed the situation. First were those blocking the surrounding roads. Most were probably ordinary people, with a few at Body Tempering mixed among them, and they numbered no fewer than twenty.

Then there were the most troublesome ones before him, who were clearly the leaders.

He could not sense their cultivation level, but judging against himself, they should also have been at the Blood Gate.

Two at the Blood Gate. That was a little more than he could handle.

Zhou Buren stood his ground as he took in the situation. He was a man who shouldered responsibility and would not fail at a critical moment. Otherwise, he could not have run the family business so successfully.

His dark, bright eyes sharpened once more, and he rebuked them loudly.

"How dare you! Are you men of the Qian Family? Do you know that the Zhong Family has already declared that the struggle between our families is to be confined to business, without involving anyone's life?"

What he said was true. He had visited the Zhong Family today and settled this matter with their old patriarch, chiefly because his fourth brother's master had exerted an unseen influence.

If they provoked the anger of a great master, the entire county town would likely be in for an upheaval.

With that consideration in mind, the Zhong Family had gone to see the county magistrate at the county office today. There would be a result tomorrow at the earliest.

He simply had not expected Qian Zhen to move so quickly.

White Face glanced at him. He was Qian Zhen's blade, that was true, but he was no fool. There was some credibility to the man's words. If he killed him here outright...

If the matter blew up afterward, would he be handed over to take the blame? Such things were hardly uncommon, after all.

He was still human, after all, not a true killing weapon. Orders had to be carried out, but he also had to keep his head.

Having witnessed everything, Lao Xu silently reflected that none of the Zhou Family's sons were ordinary. Each had the bearing of a dragon or phoenix. Had he faced this situation himself, he could only have fought a battle of life and death.

White Face lowered his saber considerably and said hoarsely, "Sorry, but we have a job to do too. How about this? Give up your businesses, and I'll take a step back as well. Then everything works out for everyone. What do you say?"

Ultimately, he still wanted to live. When important people played their games, the little people were the ones most likely to die. No one was unafraid of death unless they were out of their mind.

Nineteen, standing beside him, laughed instead. He turned his mask toward White Face, his voice as grating as a night owl's cry.

"White Face, you old bastard. You've grown old. You actually dare entertain your own ideas while carrying out the young master's business."

With that, his saber rose and his body dropped as he charged forward without stopping, stirring up a fierce gust. In the road, Lao Xu reacted immediately as well, stepping forward with his saber held across him to intercept the oncoming blade.

The two sabers collided, erupting in brilliant sparks.

Zhou Buren's face instantly filled with shock and fury. His sleeves swung, and his voice abruptly fell silent.

Nothing he said now would be of any use. Watching the saber-wielding figures in night clothes close in beneath the darkness, he drew the flexible sword at his waist as well.

At that moment, a dangerous gleam appeared in White Face's eyes as he stood a short distance away. Since someone else had taken the lead, he no longer needed to consider so much.

Just as he was about to rush forward, every hair on his body suddenly stood on end.

Danger! Danger! Danger!

An overwhelming aura of death surrounded him. This feeling meant he really would die.

At that very instant, a young voice reached him.

"Oh? You're rather interesting. You actually detected my attack. But that's nowhere near enough..."

What was that?!

Before White Face could speak, his vision suddenly went black, followed by the dissolution of his consciousness.

He did not even know how he had died.

At some unknown point, Zhou Muzhi had appeared in the middle of this encircled stretch of road.

One hand gripped the back of White Face's neck. The force in that hand converged, instantly destroying his life force. That was also why he had felt nothing.

Standing eight feet tall, he casually flung White Face away with one hand. The corpse struck the ground with a thud, and the white mask fell off, revealing a middle-aged man's bloodless face.

At that moment, Nineteen, who had been fighting Lao Xu, instantly retreated and ran toward the eaves on the left.

He did not need to look. The stabbing pain all over his body told him that this newcomer was a Five Senses expert!

Damn it!

How could there be such a powerful expert in this wretched place? Shouldn't people like this be seeking resources in the Commandery City? What treasures could Suming County possibly have?

Zhou Muzhi nodded. "Not bad. You're a little stronger than him."

Before his words had finished, he too vanished from where he stood.

When he appeared again, he was blocking Nineteen's path.

Utterly terrified, Nineteen roared, "Die!"

He unleashed his saber technique, viciously sharp.

Acting on instinct alone, Zhou Muzhi neutralized every one of his saber moves. Finally, he raised his thigh forward and thrust out like lightning.

He unleashed his entire body's strength through the portion of leg technique he had newly learned, channeling his power more fully. His strength converged on a single point, far exceeding three thousand jin.

A single point pierced through the surface. The instant Nineteen was struck, his arms dropped. The immense force drove his brow backward, sending his whole head tipping back as his consciousness dissipated.

Carried by tremendous momentum, his head continued to tilt backward. His neck was forcibly pulled back until, with a clear crack, it folded completely backward.

The masked Nineteen toppled backward with his face turned behind him, his mask striking the ground.

On the other side.

Lao Xu was one cultivation level above the remaining men, and he slaughtered these figures in night clothes just as swiftly. Almost every stroke of his saber killed one, and moments later, he had wiped them all out.