Outside the Four Seas Gambling House, gang members in blue packed the entire long street in a dark mass.
Lin Yuan walked out, his expression grim.
When the leaders at the front saw that Lin Yuan was merely a wet-behind-the-ears brat, their gazes suddenly turned vicious.
"Get him! Chop him up and feed him to the dogs!"
The gang members raised their cleavers high and charged up the steps, howling.
Gripping his saber in both hands, Lin Yuan met the charging crowd with a horizontal slash!
Boom!
A five-foot-long blade of blood-colored saber Qi erupted out of thin air and swept across the steps!
Bloody light flashed past.
The dozens of figures at the front froze for an instant, then split neatly in two, XX spilling all over the ground.
The long street fell silent in an instant.
The hundreds of gang members behind them ground to a halt, horror spreading across their faces.
Just one slash, and dozens of men were gone?
Lin Yuan did not stop. His toes tapped lightly against a step, and he instantly activated Flowing Cloud Steps.
Whoosh!
His blue-robed figure left an afterimage where he had stood as he plunged straight into the dense crowd.
"Stop him! Hurry, stop him!"
One leader let out a shrill howl, swinging his nine-ringed saber down with both hands.
Lin Yuan swayed, sliding past the back of the blade, and swept his own saber behind him.
Squelch!
The leader and the four gang members behind him were cut in half at the waist on the spot.
"Kill him! There's only one of him! We can wear him down to death!"
Dozens of gleaming cleavers hacked at Lin Yuan from every direction at once.
Lin Yuan stepped on his right foot with his left, launching himself ten feet into the air. Every cleaver struck empty space.
He twisted in midair and swung his saber, unleashing three streaks of blood-colored saber Qi in succession.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The saber Qi plunged into the crowd. Mutilated X and severed X flew through the air as screams rose one after another.
Lin Yuan did not pause after landing, his movements reaching the utmost speed.
The gang members hacked wildly with bloodshot eyes, unable even to touch the hem of his robes.
Wherever his saber passed, heads rolled. Blood flowed along the cracks between the paving stones, gradually gathering into a river.
Inside the houses on either side of the street, the townsfolk peeking out clamped their hands over their mouths. Their legs went weak, and they slid down the walls to the floor.
In barely half a quarter of an hour, over two hundred corpses lay strewn across the long street.
Lin Yuan stood in the center, the hem of his robe soaked through with blood.
He raised his eyes to the seven or eight hundred people who remained.
Clang!
Clang! Clang!
The remaining seven hundred-odd gang members were scared out of their wits. They threw down their weapons and scurried away like rats, clutching their heads.
In the blink of an eye, apart from the corpses littering the ground, only one person remained standing at the far end of the broad street in the western part of town.
He was a burly bald man in a tiger-skin vest, his body giving off the Qi and blood fluctuations of the first rank early stage.
It was none other than Zhao Heihu, leader of the Wild Dog Gang.
Zhao Heihu's face was terrifyingly dark as he roared, fierce on the outside but craven within.
"Brat, I have to admit you're strong. But so what?"
"In this world, you need power, connections, and someone backing you."
"You killed so many of my brothers. Even the Heavenly King himself couldn't save you today!"
Lin Yuan walked toward him with his saber in hand, a mocking curve to his lips.
"Go on, tell me who's backing you."
Zhao Heihu backed away in fright, but when he heard a rush of footsteps from the street entrance, wild joy immediately flooded his face.
"You little bastard, you're dead! My backer is here!"
His words had barely fallen when over twenty constables came racing from the street entrance.
The burly, bushy-bearded man leading them had a saber at his waist and a heavy iron ruler in his hand. Sweat covered his head as he ran.
Overjoyed at the sight of him, Zhao Heihu hurried forward a couple of steps.
"Brother Wang! You're finally here! This little beast has been slaughtering people in my Four Seas Gambling House! Hurry, have your men hack him to pieces!"
Head Constable Wang Hai panted heavily, instinctively raising his iron ruler as he bellowed.
"What blind son of a bitch dares cause trouble in the western district? All of you, this head constable will..."
The rest of his words abruptly caught in his throat.
When he saw the dismembered corpses covering the ground, his eyelid twitched violently. Where the fuck had this vicious monster come from?
Then his gaze landed on the young man in blue.
Boom!
Wang Hai's hand trembled in fright, and the iron ruler dropped straight onto the top of his foot.
That damned fool Zhao Heihu had actually called him here to arrest this living King of Hell?
Ignoring the pain in his foot, he hurried forward, then slid onto his knees.
"My respects, Captain Lin!"
The twenty-odd constables behind him were frightened out of their souls. They hurriedly knelt, heads bowed, not even daring to breathe.
Beside them, Zhao Heihu was utterly dumbfounded. His body shook violently. It was over-he had kicked an iron plate!
What had Wang Hai just called this young man?
Captain?
What captain?
Zhao Heihu wiped away his cold sweat and called softly.
"B-Brother Wang, you..."
Wang Hai whipped his head around, glared viciously at him, and let loose a stream of abuse.
"Who's your brother? Zhao Heihu, you openly surrounded and attacked a member of the Dragon Guard! You're dead!"
Hearing this, Zhao Heihu instinctively staggered back several steps, his vision darkening in waves.
He was actually from the Dragon Guard!
He collapsed onto his backside, muttering over and over.
"It's over. It's over, it's over, it's over."
Suddenly, he jerked his head up, a gleam flashing through his eyes.
He still had a chance!
He had spent so many years getting by in Ping'an County and made so many connections!
"I know Wang..."
Clang!
Saber light flashed, and Zhao Heihu's voice cut off abruptly.
Clutching his neck in agony, he slowly turned his head and stared at Wang Hai in disbelief.
Wang Hai dropped his saber and lowered his head, his heart filled with unease.
Fuck, this son of a bitch actually wanted to drag Deputy Magistrate Wang down with him.
Lin Yuan stared coldly at Wang Hai for a long while before leaving.
Listening to the movements around him, Wang Hai asked uncertainly.
"H-Has he gone?"
A constable quietly glanced over his shoulder, then scrambled to his feet in relief.
"It's fine now. Everyone, get up."
"Fuck, I nearly pissed myself."
"I already did."
In the green hills outside town.
Lin Yuan stood before two fresh graves, bending down to toss a stack of yellow paper into the brazier.
He remained silent for a long time.
In the end, he could not say a single word.
A mountain breeze brushed gently over the ridge. The ashes in the brazier scattered on the wind, swirling toward an unknown distance.
The last trace of warmth and mercy in his heart from his previous life scattered completely with that mountain breeze.
The eastern district.
Wang's Tea House.
Lin Yuan passed through the deserted main hall. Behind the counter stood a lean young man in his early twenties, his head lowered as he worked an abacus.
Lin Yuan casually tossed the black iron token engraved with the character for "Imperial" onto the table.
The young man's expression sharpened when he saw the token. He hurried around the counter and dropped to one knee.
"Your subordinate Wang Cheng pays his respects to Captain Lin!"
Lin Yuan pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Uncle Fu left?"
Wang Cheng rose and answered respectfully.
"My lord, Uncle Fu belongs to the Shen Clan. Naturally, he followed Company Commander Shen to the prefectural city."
Lin Yuan nodded, tapping his fingers against the tabletop.
"Tell me about the situation here."
Unsure how to begin, Wang Cheng took a roster from inside his robe and presented it with both hands.
"My lord, you had better see for yourself."
Lin Yuan took the roster and flipped through it, then frowned.
"So the two of us are the only members of the Dragon Guard left in Ping'an County?"
Wang Cheng nodded awkwardly.
Lin Yuan knew what had happened. A group had died at Black Wind Mountain earlier, and later, during the defense of the town, the six who remained had also fallen in battle.
He thought for a moment, then took out two thousand-tael banknotes.
"I'll give you one day. You must recruit a full complement of fifty mounted guards. Can you do it?"
Wang Cheng did not immediately take the banknotes. After thinking for a moment, he asked.
"What requirements do you have, my lord?"
Lin Yuan rubbed his chin. After what had happened earlier, he had discovered a major problem.
These mounted guards did not lack loyalty, but their strength was simply too low.
Whenever they encountered anything slightly troublesome, swathes of them died. How were they any different from cannon fodder?
But the problem was that he could not recruit powerful martial artists either, could he?
A vague idea formed in his mind. Perhaps he could create a few quick-to-master martial arts.
With that thought, Lin Yuan spoke.
"I only want sons of respectable families, preferably youths. Their strength doesn't matter, as long as they're loyal."
Youths are still better. Youths have drive. He did not want to deal with a bunch of old slickers.
Wang Cheng accepted his orders and left.
The residence in the northern district.
Lin Yuan returned to his bedroom and sat cross-legged to cultivate.
He first practiced the Five Qi Converging to the Origin Art, fully completing the five illusory internal organs, before beginning to practice the Primordial Chaos Limitless Art.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Lin Yuan's body suddenly shuddered. An invisible wave of air spread out, shattering the teacup on the table.
He opened his eyes and clenched his right hand in midair. The air cracked explosively.
Red light flashed before his eyes.
[Host: Lin Yuan] [Realm: Qi and Blood Realm Peak] [Martial arts: Primordial Chaos Limitless Art (minor mastery 566/1000)]
Knock, knock, knock.
Three soft knocks suddenly came from outside. Lin Yuan opened the door.
Lin Jiu stood below the steps, holding a gilded invitation in both hands.
"Young master, this is an invitation to an auction sent by the Treasure Pavilion."