Chapter 25: Chapter 22 "The Death of a Filial Son
"Give it up; you're done for, you little runt." Li Dian snarled as he pounced towards Qing Yu.
Qing Yu, with the approaching figure of Li Dian reflected in his eyes, remained utterly indifferent.
As the distance closed, and Li Dian was about to capture the mysterious youth, he was overjoyed.
"What's going on, my body isn't obeying me..." Li Dian felt his whole body stiffen, unable to move his hands or feet, only his fingers could still move slightly.
Li Dian fell in front of Qing Yu in a dog-eating-shit posture, his head hitting Qing Yu's boot. Following him, the Great Elder and the Second Elder also hit the ground.
"Since you guessed that I was the one who poisoned Li Qiuyan, did you not consider the dishes you ate tonight were all served by the junior waiter of this establishment? With my proficiency in poisoning, how could I miss the opportunity to add something to your meal?" Qing Yu squatted down, smiling as he looked at the unwilling expression in Li Dian's eyes.
Li Dian strained to turn his eyeballs to the right, staring at Qing Yu, "Who... exactly... are you?" His words came out with great difficulty.
However, Qing Yu did not answer directly but instead stood up, glanced around the tavern, and said, "You don't seem to be stupid; how did you fail to notice that the atmosphere in Yang City has been quite tense recently?"
He turned around, drew the Bishui Sword from behind the counter, and with the long sword in hand, walked towards the Great Elder and the Second Elder, who were lying not far from the dining table.
"The atmosphere in Yang City is not good lately. Why would you come to eat in the Zhang Family's tavern during such times? Did you really think the Zhang Family and the Li Family are on good terms?" As he spoke, Qing Yu held the Bishui Sword upside down and stabbed downwards, the tip piercing through the Second Elder's throat and nailing him to the ground.
The Great Elder, seeing his companion's eyes beside him lose their luster, cried out in fear, "Don't... Please... spare me..."
He wanted to beg for mercy, but due to the drug, even his tongue was not nimble, and he couldn't utter a complete sentence.
But Qing Yu did not immediately move to kill him; instead, he went out of his way to explain to Li Dian, "Yang City is too small to accommodate four families. The Li Family's business greatly overlaps with the Zhang Family's, so if one wants to take action, they naturally must first swallow up the Li Family to strengthen themselves."
"No... That's not right... You're... framing us." Li Dian was not foolish. Qing Yu's blunt words clearly had ill intentions.
"Oh my," Qing Yu exclaimed, not surprised, "You found out. But it doesn't matter, it's enough for you all to die in the Zhang Family's tavern."
Qing Yu stepped on the Great Elder's back, who, sensing his imminent demise, struggled desperately.
"Don't blame me; it's your own fault for standing in the way of the unification of Yang City."
After hearing this, the Great Elder seemed to realize something and struggled even more fiercely, his eyes brimming with deep-seated hatred and unwillingness. However, he ultimately died with his eyes wide open, clinging to his resentment.
Qing Yu looked at the traces that the Great Elder thought he had hidden well under the side table of the dining table, showing a satisfied smile. After much ado, he had perfectly adhered to the principle of a villain's penchant for monologuing, all for this bit of evidence.
"Well, it's your turn to die now."
Having achieved his goal, Qing Yu did not wish to waste more words and cleanly finished off Li Dian.
"Despicable and shameless poisoning, with malicious intent to incite discord. Rewarding the host with 100 Villain Points." The system notification rang in his ear, its content as unpleasant as ever, but Qing Yu was used to it. After all, every time he heard such notifications, it meant Villain Points were credited to his account. Qing Yu was more than happy to hear them; let the unpleasantness come even more fiercely.
"100 Villain Points, not bad at all. Along with the 150 points for giving Li Qiuyan the Three Corpses Brain God Pill, and the 100 points for providing strategies and poison to Li Xin, that's a total of 350 Villain Points."
"Should I save up the Villain Points and aim for the Intermediate Lottery, or should I go for the Basic Lottery now..."
"Never mind, I have the Exorcism Swordsmanship to accelerate; my moves can turn the rotten into the miraculous, so I'm not lacking techniques, and my Inner Strength doesn't need replacing. Better to save up for the Intermediate Lottery."
Qing Yu walked out of the tavern and disappeared into the vast night.
Li Pingsheng put down the teacup in his hand and looked toward his eldest son, Li Qiusheng, who was entering from outside, and said, "How is the investigation going?"
Li Qiusheng's eyes were bloodshot, filled with veins like a furious beast ready to choose its prey at any moment. The murder of his mother and younger brother had clearly deeply affected him. His voice hoarse, he said, "I've already interrogated the house servants who accompanied Qiu Yan on his trip. Qiu Yan sneaked out last night and went to Chun Gui Pavilion to compete with the second son of the Zhang family to see who had better stamina. He took an aphrodisiac he got from the pimp there."
"Didn't I ground him? Who let him out?" Li Pingsheng slammed his hand on the armrest of the Grandmaster Chair.
The day before yesterday, Li Qiuyan, on his way back to the Li Family, happened to run into Li Xin's mother, who was just leaving the Li family house to look for Li Xin. He casually kicked her. Unfortunately, that kick caused Li Xin's mother's old ailment to flare up again, and she died. To suppress the matter, Li Pingsheng had forbidden his always outspoken third son from leaving the house that night.
"It was... mother..." Li Qiusheng stammered out.
Li Pingsheng wanted to say something, but though the words reached his throat, he couldn't bring himself to speak for a long time. Although he had never believed in karmic retribution in his life, at that moment, he felt a sense of the cycle of cause and effect.
Li Qiusheng felt the same.
The two of them remained silent for a long time.
After a while, Li Qiusheng broke the silence, "The three members of the Iron Saber Association who came to pay their respects yesterday were killed last night at a bar owned by the Zhang family."
"The three who dressed in sackcloth and performed mourning rites for Li Dian yesterday?" Li Pingsheng would not forget those three fools who caused trouble. With such a disgrace occurring in the Li family, Li Pingsheng had intended to keep the matter under wraps, handle it quietly, and after some time, pretend it was due to a contagious disease to secretly hold the funeral rites. However, the very next day, the three from the Li Dian family showed up in mourning attire, wailing all the way to the Li family and only leaving after kneeling there until evening.
Now, everyone in Yang City knew that the Li family had lost its matriarch and the third young master in one night, and all sorts of rumors were swirling outside.
Furious, Li Pingsheng had those chatterbox maids and house servants who spread the news beaten to death with rods after Li Dian and the others left.
If Li Dian and his group hadn't died last night, they wouldn't have survived many more days; Li Pingsheng had no intention of letting them off.
"There were no signs of struggle at the scene. The three of them were simply poisoned and then someone pierced through their throats with a long sword," Li Qiusheng continued.
"Are there any clues?"
"Next to the leg of the table near one of the bodies, an 'Mian' character was found carved into it. It seemed to be etched by the victim's fingernails."
"'Mian,' Song?" Li Pingsheng immediately thought of the Song Family of the City Lord Mansion, his expression growing grave.
"It's a possibility. Of course, it could also be the Zhang family trying to cover up their crime by framing the Song family. The tavern's owner was also found dead in a private room on the second floor of the bar."
"Could the Sun Family be involved?" Li Pingsheng thought of the Sun Family.
"The likelihood is small. The Sun Family's several strongholds outside the city have also been swept clean recently; no one survived," Li Qiusheng replied.
Li Pingsheng's expression became even more somber, "It seems that someone wants to unify Yang City and has started to make their move."
"This, could it really be the Song..." Li Qiusheng's first thought was of the most powerful Song Family.
Li Pingsheng cut him off, "Continue to investigate. Don't jump to conclusions just yet."
"Yes," Li Qiusheng bowed, "I shall take my leave."
As he reached the door, about to leave, Li Pingsheng's voice came from behind, hauntingly, "Look into Li Xin."
Li Qiusheng's eyes sharpened, and he walked out the door without a word.
Chapter 26: Chapter 23 Murderous Moonlit Night
The howling sword wind twisted into a gale that entwined Qing Yu within it.
The figure was torn into three sections by the sword wind.
The figure turned ethereal—it was just an afterimage.
Qing Yu appeared behind Feng Buping like a specter, silent and breathless. His long sword pierced into the left chest, went through the torso, and split the heart in two.
Feng Buping, dead.
The body slowly turned into a phantom and disappeared before Qing Yu's eyes.
"Congratulations, Host, for defeating Feng Buping and obtaining Feng Buping's legacy—One-star Martial Arts 'Hua Mountain Swordsmanship,' 'Hua Mountain Heart Method,' 'Life-taking Continuous Three Immortal Swords,' and 'Gale Swift Sword.'"
The system prompt sounded, and Feng Buping's Martial Arts Enlightenment flowed into Qing Yu's mind.
"Hiss..." To Qing Yu's surprise, although the Martial Arts that Feng Buping knew were only one-star, the related Martial Arts Enlightenment was abundant, giving an almost endless feeling.
After a good while, Qing Yu came back to his senses, pressing his forehead and easing the throbbing that came from suddenly absorbing a massive amount of memory.
"This really is a huge windfall..."
All of Feng Buping's Martial Arts were only one-star, including the Gale Swift Sword he had painstakingly developed over more than a decade, which had not exceeded the range of the Postnatal Realm.
However, over a decade of dedicated research and countless sword strokes for enlightenment were not futile. These enlightenments greatly solidified Qing Yu's foundation, giving him a deeper understanding of the sword.
Exiting the Inheritance Space, Qing Yu held the still-unsheathed Bishui Sword and swung it lightly—a sword trace cut through the air. The sword shadow moved silently, its speed and power both significantly greater than before.
The essence of the Gale Swift Sword was to whirl the air with the sword movements, then use the wind to drive the sword momentum, making it accelerate like a rolling snowball. The faster the swordmanship, the swifter the wind, hence the name Gale Swift Sword.
However, when the wind drives the sword, the sword will eventually be subject to the wind. In the end, the wind that even the swordsman can't whip up will make the sword technique fast but predictable, with its trajectory easily exploited for weaknesses. Of course, when bullying those weaker than oneself, there is a satisfying sense of dominance.
Another point is that this swordsmanship focuses on the front and ignores the rear, as the wind cannot encompass the whole body, at least not the back. Qing Yu precisely relied on this to move behind and strike down Feng Buping with one sword blow.
After obtaining Feng Buping's enlightenment, Qing Yu's understanding of the Gale Swift Sword was no less than that of its creator. He reversed its principle, no longer generating wind but emphasizing silence and stealth. Under the acceleration of the Exorcism Swordsmanship Heart Method, the two complemented each other wonderfully.
Furthermore, Life-taking Continuous Three Immortal Swords was also a significant gain, one Qing Yu valued even more than the Gale Swift Sword. All in all, Qing Yu felt that Feng Buping's mission card was more than worth it.
"Let's set aside Martial Arts for now. The most important thing at the moment is to complete the task."
Task—My Voice: In this city, make your own voice heard, become one of the individuals who can determine the future direction of Yang City in any way possible. Time limit: One year. Task Reward: One Intermediate Lottery, a Two-star Martial Arts Secret Manual. Failure Penalty: Loss of all Martial Arts, start over from the beginning.
This was the task Qing Yu received upon his first arrival in Yang City. Originally thinking that with a year's time, although it might not be certain that he could take control of Yang City, to become one of the power-holders influencing Yang City's future direction, Qing Yu felt it was not an issue.
Never did he expect Mr. Mo to throw a wrench into the works.
Yes, in Qing Yu's heart, Mr. Mo was a troublemaker.
He dug deep into the historic Newbie Village map of Yang City, turning it into a massive pit.
"The most pressing matter right now is to complete the mission. Once it's done, the sky's the limit, and who cares about Mr. Mo's schemes. Anyway, he's definitely not well-intentioned toward me."
At this thought, Qing Yu bowed his head in deep contemplation, "The current mission is already planned out, and now I should also think about an escape route. I always feel that Mr. Mo has an ulterior motive, and something big is going to happen in Yang City."
"I'm still too weak; such is the sadness of the weak."
Qing Yu took out the Meridian Opening Pill given by Mr. Mo, swallowed it, and began to sit in meditation for cultivation. Having understood the pain of powerlessness, Qing Yu doubled his efforts to break free from this unsatisfactory weakness.
It must be said, Mr. Mo, though ill-intentioned, had provided elixirs of the finest quality. Qing Yu had made rapid progress in his cultivation over this period, and the elixirs played an invaluable role. Of course, given Qing Yu's suspicious nature, he had thoroughly inspected the elixirs.
After multiple examinations, Qing Yu reasoned with his current level of Medical Skill, these elixirs had no issues. If there were some unimaginably toxic poison mixed into the elixirs, Qing Yu conceded that such an amazing poison being used against a small fry in the Postnatal Realm like himself would be a profound loss.
Regarding the rapid progress exceeding the Postnatal Sixth Realm, and having determined Mr. Mo had an ulterior motive, Qing Yu didn't care about that seemingly nonsensical bet anymore. At that time, he was shocked by Mr. Mo's deep schemes and stunning revelations. For a moment, Qing Yu even naively thought of Mr. Mo as one of those seniors in novels who bestow benefits and sisters.
When Qing Yu opened his eyes again, it was already night.
Moonlight streamed through the window, casting its glow on the floor, turning that patch of ground into a frosty white, another beautiful moonlit night.
Qing Yu walked to the window and looked up at the bright moon overhead.
Coincidentally, it had been more than half a month since his last nocturnal visit to the Shadow Market, and tonight was the mid-month full moon. Tonight's moon was perfect; as Qing Yu gazed at it, he found himself unexpectedly thinking of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
"I wonder if this world has a Mid-Autumn Festival?"
Then, Qing Yu laughed at himself, "What am I thinking about? Whether there is a Mid-Autumn Festival or not, what does it have to do with me? I have no family in this world. Not even a friend."
Suppressing his thoughts, Qing Yu looked up at the moon once more.
"The moon is so beautiful…"
Qing Yu leaped out the window. Beneath the moonlight, his flickering figure was like a Banished Immortal, yet also like an unpredictable ghost.
"Who… who are you…" Li Chao shivered as he spoke to the life-claiming, ghostly figure beneath the moonlight.
Since the night before last, when the Deputy Gang Leader of the Iron Saber Association, Li Dian, and two elders were mysteriously killed at a tavern, Young Master Li Qiusheng had been sending people to search day and night in Yang City. Thanks to the fanfare caused by Li Dian and the others, other families had also learned about the incident at the Li Family, and while they revelled in the Li Family's misfortune, they did not wish to provoke them at such a time.
Yang City was governed by four clans, and although there was a curfew, it was nothing but a formality for the members of these clans.
Li Chao, as a collateral member of the Li Family, was more trusted by Li Qiusheng than other members of the Iron Saber Association. After all, even the Gang Leader of the Iron Saber Association was under suspicion, so Li Qiusheng naturally trusted his own kin all the more.
The day-and-night searches and the night patrols for any suspicious individuals were tiring work. It was a strange combination, dealing with the underground trades by day while at night, performing the duties of the city guard. Li Chao was drained. Such an odd situation could only happen in a place like Yang City, and the City Lord Mansion seemed unconcerned.
Patrolling was exhausting, and Li Chao was relieved when finally it was time for a shift change. He immediately took his subordinates to have a late-night meal, but who would have thought that just after crossing one street, they'd encounter a life-claiming evil ghost. The figure was like a haunting spirit, moving in flashes, and before his subordinates could even cry out, they fell to the ground, lifeless. Now, it was Li Chao's turn.
The will to survive overwhelmed the fear, and Li Chao opened his mouth to scream.
"Hek… heh heh…" The silent Fast Sword slashed through his throat, and blood spilled from the wound. As Li Chao listened to the approaching sounds of the patrol, he silently watched the life-claiming ghost disappear into a dark alley nearby.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
9 Power
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