"The man who just entered the city wasn't surnamed Song at all. He was Lin Yuan!"
Li San's voice was hoarse.
At this, Lin Hai's brow twitched, and he shrieked involuntarily.
"What!!!"
It was actually him!
Not only was this man the master's concubine-born son, the Lin household's second young master.
He was also the thorn in Madam Zhao Yan's eye and flesh, whom she wished to be rid of at once!
Had the master not secretly protected him in earlier years, this brat would probably have long since become dry bones in a grave.
Now that the master was gone, Madam had already made her wishes known: this boy must not be allowed to live!
Lin Hai seized Li San by the throat again.
"Are you certain?"
Li San was scared out of his wits and nodded desperately.
"Absolutely certain! I saw him with my own eyes!"
"The day before yesterday, I even went with a few brothers to Blackstone Town to assassinate him. Who could've imagined that brat would wail in mourning in public and throw our plan into chaos?"
"Steward, I've told you the secret. Please, spare me!"
Lin Hai said nothing.
His right hand suddenly tightened.
Crack!
Li San's head drooped, and he went utterly still.
Lin Hai flung the corpse aside in disgust and spat.
"You fucking knew that man was Lin Yuan all along, and only told me now? Were you asking to die?"
Now that Lin Yuan had entered the city, he had to hurry and inform Madam.
He might even earn another few hundred taels in reward!
At that thought, Lin Hai could no longer contain himself and hurried toward the alley's exit.
It happened in a flash.
A cluster of figures suddenly sprang from the shadows overhead.
"You..."
Lin Hai only managed that one word.
A steel saber whipped up a vicious gust as it cleaved straight down at his forehead.
The strike was fast and ruthless, leaving no chance of survival.
Lin Hai instinctively raised his left arm to block.
Squelch!
The blade bit into flesh, severing his left arm at the shoulder.
"Aah!"
Lin Hai's shrill scream rang through the silent alley.
Five or six steel sabers stabbed forward simultaneously, instantly piercing Lin Hai's body all over.
His scream cut short.
Lin Hai froze in place.
He laboriously raised his head and, by the faint moonlight, made out the armored man standing before him with saber in hand.
"It's you..."
Lin Hai's head slumped, and he breathed his last.
Several soldiers stepped forward and pulled their sabers free, and Lin Hai's corpse hit the flagstones.
Lieutenant Liu crouched and reached inside Lin Hai's robes.
A moment later, he pulled out three banknotes.
Besides the thousand-tael banknote Lin Yuan had given him, there were actually two hundred-tael notes.
The soldiers crowded around, their eyes fixed on the banknotes.
Twelve hundred taels!
They had never seen so much money in their lives. They had truly struck it rich this time!
Under everyone's burning gazes, Lieutenant Liu tucked the banknotes into his own robes.
Then he took a silver ingot weighing roughly fifty taels from his waist and casually tossed it to the ground.
"Come on, brothers, take it and divide it up. Five taels each, just right."
The atmosphere instantly turned cold.
A scar-faced veteran froze, then could not help taking half a step forward.
"That's not right, boss, is it? Wasn't it fifty taels each?"
Once someone spoke up, another immediately chimed in.
"Exactly, boss! You promised fifty taels. How did it become five?"
Lieutenant Liu grinned and strode toward the two men.
"Not enough for you?"
Before the two soldiers could react, the smile abruptly vanished from Lieutenant Liu's face.
Both hands shot out, seizing the two men's throats in a death grip, one on either side.
Crack! Crack!
Two sounds of snapping bones rang out in succession.
Lieutenant Liu threw the two corpses to the ground and spat to one side.
He cast a sidelong glance at the remaining eight.
"When did I ever say fifty taels? You actually dared to extort me?"
The remaining eight trembled all over, cold sweat pouring off them.
"We heard you loud and clear! It was five taels!"
"Yes, yes! Five taels is plenty. Thank you for the reward, boss!"
The eight scrambled to declare their agreement, afraid that if they were half a beat too slow, this murderous fiend would feel like killing again.
Lieutenant Liu grunted in satisfaction.
"That's more like it. Come on, I'll take you to Hundred Flowers Pavilion for some fun tonight!"
Everyone felt as though they had been granted a pardon.
Clap, clap, clap.
Applause sounded from the other end of the alley.
Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to look in unison.
A slender figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
The newcomer looked to be a youth, with a saber at his waist. It was none other than Lin Yuan.
When Lieutenant Liu saw who it was, his heart gave a violent jolt, and he blurted out.
"It's you?"
Lin Yuan stopped and raised an eyebrow with interest.
"Oh? So you have seen me before, Lieutenant Liu."
All that business of keeping his back to everyone had been a sham.
He had merely found the servant named Li San somewhat familiar, so he had followed to take a look.
He had never expected to witness such a splendid show.
"Where's Ergou?"
Lieutenant Liu asked in a low voice.
Lin Yuan picked at his ear. What a lousy name.
"You mean the man tailing me? I killed him in passing."
Lieutenant Liu's expression darkened. He rested a hand on his saber's hilt and sized Lin Yuan up.
This brat's steps were steady and his breathing long and even. At the very least, he was an expert at body tempering major accomplishment!
Lieutenant Liu was also a martial artist at body tempering major accomplishment.
He also had eight subordinates at the body tempering early stage.
But he feared capsizing in a gutter and did not want extra branches growing out of the matter.
Lieutenant Liu immediately cupped his fists and spoke in a low voice.
"Young Master Lin, you take your broad, sunlit road, and our well water won't mix with your river water. How about it?"
Lin Yuan did not answer.
He took a step forward.
His steps grew faster and faster, and he suddenly shot forward!
This man had actually sent someone to follow him. His intentions went without saying.
Besides, everyone who knew he had entered the city had to die!
If Zhao Yan got word, he probably would not have another peaceful day.
"This is bad!"
"Form up! Kill!"
Lieutenant Liu's expression changed drastically, and he called for his men to move up.
Eight soldiers drew their sabers and lunged straight at him.
Clang!
Lin Yuan drew his saber and thrust straight forward.
Drive Straight In!
Saber light flashed through the night and vanished.
The man charging at the front had his throat pierced in an instant and staggered to the ground.
Lin Yuan turned his wrist, changing his saber's course.
Long Wind Sweeps the Blade!
The blade swept across the throats of three other men!
Spurt! Spurt! Spurt!
Three heads flew into the air.
In a single instant, he had cut down four men in succession!
The four soldiers following behind were scared out of their wits and forcibly halted their steps.
Standing at the very back, Lieutenant Liu sucked in a breath of cold air, his eyes nearly bulging from their sockets.
Army-Breaking Saber Art!
What this brat was using was unmistakably their army's Army-Breaking Saber Art!
And judging by the might of his strikes, he was at least an expert who had immersed himself in it for many years.
This man's saber art had already reached major accomplishment!
He could not be overcome by force!
Lin Yuan would never give them a chance to catch their breath.
Saber in hand, he charged forward in great strides.
Those four had long since had their courage shattered. They turned and fled toward the alley's mouth.
Lin Yuan's saber was faster.
Saber light flickered, and amid several screams, the four fell into pools of blood.
In the blink of an eye.
Only Lieutenant Liu remained.
Lieutenant Liu knew full well that when enemies met on a narrow path, the brave prevailed.
"I'll take you on!"
Veins bulged all over his body as he leaped high, gripping his saber with both hands and smashing it down overhead!
Cleave Mount Hua with Force!
"Well met!"
Lin Yuan gripped his saber's hilt with both hands and fearlessly slashed upward!
Clang!
The two steel sabers sent sparks flying everywhere.
Lieutenant Liu felt an immense force crash into him. The webbing between his thumb and forefinger split, and his steel saber flew from his grasp.
He was sent flying backward and slammed heavily into the alley wall, shaking loose a cloud of dust.
Pfft!
Lieutenant Liu spat out a mouthful of blood and stared at Lin Yuan in utter horror.
"You're not at body tempering major accomplishment! You're at body tempering perfection!"
Lieutenant Liu's liver and gall nearly split with terror.
Run!
He stamped hard against the ground and soared into the air, about to vault the wall and flee.
While he was still airborne, a shrill sound of something piercing the air reached his ears!
Squelch!
The steel saber became a streak of light and pierced through Lieutenant Liu's back at the heart.
Lieutenant Liu's eyes widened, and he fell to the ground, unwilling to accept his end.
He died with his eyes still open.
The alley fell silent once more.
Tap, tap, tap.
Lin Yuan slowly stepped forward.
"Did you think this young master's banknotes would be so easy to take?"
Lin Yuan retrieved the banknotes from the man's robes, then picked up the silver ingots from the ground.
A full one thousand three hundred and fifty taels.
A handsome haul.
He gripped the saber's hilt and slid it back into its sheath.
A red light flashed before his eyes.
[Realm: Body Tempering Perfection] [Martial arts: Five Qi Converging to the Origin Art (Perfection 1/500), Army-Breaking Saber Art (Major Accomplishment 1/20)]
Back outside the city, he had already cultivated for several hours to prepare for any danger that might arise when he entered.
With his hundredfold talent, his breakthrough had come as naturally as water flowing into a channel; he had not even taken a Body Tempering Pill.
Lin Yuan began dragging the bodies, staging the entire scene to look as though they had killed one another.
He knew the Lin household had the county commandant backing them, so this would merely cause them some aggravation.
There was no rush.
There were plenty of days ahead.
For now, he would just collect a little interest.
He turned and walked toward the mouth of the alley.
Suddenly, a somewhat mature female voice came from a nearby rooftop.
"You're Lin Yuan?"
Startled, Lin Yuan instantly pressed his right hand to his saber's hilt and snapped his head up to look!