Chapter 113: Chapter 112: Tired of Living

Iron Rock Manor. Inside the manor grounds.

Li Qi and He Kui were still facing off outside the house.

They watched Wu Chen’s figure slowly walk away and then step into a nearby house.

Li Qi couldn’t stand it any longer.

In his view, if wandering brigands were pillaging Iron Rock Manor, it was his duty as a constable to apprehend them.

If it was Blood Evil fiends, and they were too strong to handle, the matter could only be handed over to the City Defense Department and the various sects.

’No matter who handles it, it’s not the place for a lone martial artist like you.’

Besides, this was a matter of life and death!

"Get out of my way!"

Li Qi could no longer hold back. He raised his saber and slashed, intending to cut down He Kui first and figure out the rest later.

In any case, he couldn’t let Wu Chen walk into a den of thieves alone.

CLANG!

After the crisp sound of metal striking metal, both men retreated several steps.

Li Qi frowned, looking at his right hand, which was numb from the impact.

Just as he expected, being suppressed by two minor realms meant he couldn’t win within just a few strikes.

’But after ten or twenty strikes, would Wu Chen still have any chance of survival?’

However, He Kui was even more shocked than Li Qi.

He never doubted that the other man wanted to kill him.

After all, he was the one who had gotten Li Qi transferred to the city walls, preventing him from capturing criminals and accumulating merits for two months. With a reduced monthly stipend, he naturally couldn’t afford pills and medicinal soups, and his realm couldn’t improve.

But wanting to kill someone and being able to kill them were two different things!

Especially when he was two minor realms higher and had still been forced back several steps by a single move.

He even suspected that if he had been any slower with his saber just now, his head would already be rolling on the ground.

He Kui’s saber arm ached faintly. He hadn’t gained any advantage from that exchange either.

’And this is with me suppressing him by two minor realms. If our realms were similar, wouldn’t I be completely powerless against him?’

His eyes were fixed on Li Qi’s right hand, vigilantly watching for his next move, not daring to let his guard down for even a moment.

But after four or five breaths, he saw no sign of Li Qi, who was several steps away, making a move. Instead, his own eyes started to feel dry and sore from staring so intensely.

He was a little confused, wondering what Li Qi was up to. A moment ago, his attack had been filled with killing intent, so why had he suddenly stopped?

He Kui cautiously raised his head, only to see Li Qi staring behind him with a look of utter horror.

Moreover, Li Qi was pointing with his left hand, signaling for him to look.

"Heh, using a trick like that in a life-or-death battle. Do you take me for a child?"

In a fight to the death, how could He Kui fall for such a trick and look behind him? He couldn’t help but sneer.

’Seems like Li Qi’s realm hasn’t improved much during these two months on the city walls, but his cunning certainly has,’ he thought.

But just then, he heard a dull THUD from not far behind him.

Just from the sound, He Kui knew it was the sound of a body hitting the ground.

As expected, it must be that new face who came with Li Qi. He must have had his heart torn out after stepping into the house, and now his corpse was being thrown out.

But a few breaths later:

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

Four consecutive thuds of heavy objects hitting the ground made He Kui’s scalp tingle.

’Was that guy dismembered?’

’The fiends’ methods are as terrifying as rumored!’

After the shock wore off, he looked at Li Qi and sneered.

"You see what happened. What are you waiting for? To be dismembered just like that guy?"

"Let me tell you, there are five Blood Evil fiends in there. It’s more than you or I can handle. The best course of action is to leave now!"

As soon as he finished speaking, He Kui saw Li Qi sheathe his saber. He felt a sense of relief; it seemed Li Qi had witnessed the power of the fiends behind him, had a change of heart, and was no longer going to fight to the death.

If the fight had continued, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to defeat Li Qi.

But in the next instant, He Kui’s body tensed up as if in a stress reaction, even trembling slightly.

TAP! TAP! TAP!—

A series of footsteps sounded from behind him. He Kui immediately spun around, but in the time it took to turn, his expression had already become sycophantic.

"My lords, I’ll be on my way, right now, I’ll just..."

He thought it was the Blood Evil fiends approaching, but when he got a clear look at the person, the words caught in his throat, and he couldn’t finish his sentence.

The newcomer was the same person who had arrived with Li Qi and walked into the house alone.

And the five arrogant fiends from inside the house were now dangling from the man’s hands like dead dogs.

He was an opportunist who knew which way the wind blew. Seeing Wu Chen’s display of power, he immediately put on a respectful expression, stepped forward, and clasped his fist.

"This hero..."

But Wu Chen walked right past him, leaving He Kui, who had hoped to strike up a conversation and build a connection, feeling utterly awkward.

"..."

Wu Chen tossed the bodies in front of Li Qi. "Hurry up and report this. I need to get back to my training."

Li Qi and the other constable didn’t dare to delay. They hurriedly prepared the horses, and the three of them sped toward Mountain Mist City.

...

Outside the manor.

He Kui watched the horses gradually ride into the distance. His gaze fell on the figure on one of the horses. Having lost face in front of his subordinates, a sinister light gleamed in his eyes.

"Heh, he looks like someone from the martial world. I’ll admit he has some skill."

"But so what if he has skill? Once I get into the Demon Suppression Bureau, we’ll see how I deal with you!"

Although he didn’t know Wu Chen, investigating someone was not difficult for a local tyrant like him in Mountain Mist City.

"..."

Four riders galloped toward Mountain Mist City.

The entire trip took less than an hour.

And most of that time was spent on the road.

Thinking about the actual fight—the time it took for Wu Chen to enter and exit the house—Li Qi felt a deep sense of shame.

Even if it were five pigs, it would take a single person half a day to catch them!

And these were five Blood Evil fiends!

Li Qi glanced at the bodies piled on one of the horses. One had been left alive. He now knew their identities.

Blood Evil fiends, and Mid Stage Jade Bone Realm ones at that!

Their purpose here was to abduct disciples from the sects!

Li Qi quietly wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, as if he were the one who had just fought the fiends, not Wu Chen.

’No wonder his saber technique is at the Perfection realm...’

’This method of fighting is truly unheard of.’

’Perhaps in five years, I might be strong enough to challenge Young Master Wu.’

Li Qi was still very confident in himself. After all, out of Mountain Mist City’s population of nearly a million, there were only about a hundred people at the Jade Bone Realm, and he was one of them.

This spoke volumes about his innate talent and aptitude.

As for the Organ Refining Realm experts in the city, there were even fewer—only four or five.

If he had enough resources, Li Qi believed he had a chance to reach the Organ Refining Realm in ten to twenty years.

With that kind of strength, he could even earn a place for himself in Cangwu City.

While he was lost in thought, Mountain Mist City appeared before them.

"After you report this, bring the heads of these fiends back to me."

Wu Chen wasn’t generous enough to just give away what amounted to five Mid Stage Jade Bone Realm experts. That was at least five or six hundred Contribution Points.

Even converted to silver, it was worth six thousand taels!

"I know."

Li Qi was well aware that the heads of these fiends could be exchanged with the various sects for rare medicinal pills and Divine Weapons.

The government officials might be greedy—skimming a bit off the top of every transaction—but it depended on who they were dealing with. If it were some wanted criminals at the Meridian Passage Realm, it meant the one who caught them was likely around the same realm, so they would naturally try to take a cut.

But these were five Mid Stage Jade Bone Realm fiends, taken down by a single person.

Unless the county magistrate felt he was sleeping too soundly at night and wanted to add some pressure to his life, there was no way he would dare to touch these heads.

"..."

「Two days passed.」

「Early morning.」

The thin mist had not yet dispersed. In a quaint little courtyard, the sound of a whistling saber wind could be heard.

After practicing for about an hour, as the sky began to lighten, Li Qi adjusted his body to its peak condition before slowly sheathing his saber.

After rinsing off with cold water and drying himself, he changed into the clean constable uniform his sister had laid out for him.

He walked over to the square table in the corner of the courtyard. "Young Master Wu, I’m heading to the assessment now. Once everything is settled, I’ll join you for a good drink."

"Go on, go on. Remember to give that He Kui a good beating for me."

Wu Chen waved his hand. "He even dared to get greedy with my five fiend heads. Does he have a death wish?"

Li Qi’s face and neck flushed red, and he was rendered speechless.

When they were returning to the city, he had confidently sworn that the officials wouldn’t dare to embezzle the reward.

Who would have thought that He Kui, who returned later, would intercept it?

He told the county magistrate some nonsense about presenting the achievement to the incoming Demon Suppression Bureau Captain and forcibly confiscated the heads.

In the end, Wu Chen had to personally make a trip to the county yamen at night and silently retrieve the five fiend heads.

Before leaving, he also paid a visit to the nearby county magistrate’s residence, snipping a lock of hair from the magistrate’s head as he slept. No one in the entire residence was alerted.

This caused the county magistrate to lose several nights of good sleep.

It also meant that He Kui had to endure quite a few tongue-lashings from the magistrate over the past few days.

If it weren’t for his uncle pulling some strings, He Kui would have likely been temporarily reassigned to some godforsaken corner, let alone have the chance to participate in the Demon Suppression Bureau assessment.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.