A Pawn's Passage

The reason Zhang Yuelu wanted to take the land route was to delay her journey home. Qi Xuansu’s proposal was exactly what she wanted, so there was no reason not to agree.

Zhang Yuelu asked, “How should we investigate?”

Qi Xuansu quipped. “The dumb way is to follow the horse’s hoof prints until we find the identity of the deceased.”

“What’s the simple way?” Zhang Yuelu pursued.

Qi Xuansu pointed at Zhang Yuelu’s eyes. “We’ll have to rely on your Immortal Eye of Providence to find the real culprit.”

Zhang Yuelu nodded. “Let’s use the simple method then.”

“Wait a moment.” Qi Xuansu casually picked up a knife, cut off the head of the bandit leader, drained the blood, and wrapped the decapitated victim’s head using the sheepskin cape.

After doing this, Qi Xuansu said, “Alright, we can go now.”

Zhang Yuelu wanted to hand the cloak back to Qi Xuansu, but when she saw that he was holding two human heads, she helped him put on the cloak and secured it with the tie.

Qi Xuansu, who was unfazed during his killing spree earlier, subconsciously held his breath and tensed up.

Zhang Yuelu tied a beautiful bow and beamed. “Perfect!”

Qi Xuansu nodded slightly but said nothing.

Zhang Yuelu used the Immortal Eye of Providence, also known as the Divine Observation Technique, and saw streams of different colors in the air that were only visible to her.

She quickly found the stream that corresponded to this group of bandits and leaped forward.

Since the magic of the Jiamas was limited, Qi Xuansu did not use the Jiamas and only used the Rogue Cultivators’ Body Lightness Technique to follow Zhang Yuelu.

The two of them walked upstream along the Tongtian River for about 50 kilometers. By then, it was already dark, and Qi Xuansu was getting exhausted.

Finally, Zhang Yuelu stopped when she saw an abandoned ancient temple not far ahead. The lights were dim from a distance, and they could hear the faeint sound of women’s laughter.

At this time, dark clouds covered the moon, and there was a faint mist that made the lights in the distance seem illusory.

Zhang Yuelu perched on the branch of a dead tree and stared at the ancient temple, her clothes fluttering in the wind. “There is indeed something strange going on.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Do you want to dip your toes into the muddy waters?”

Zhang Yuelu said with excitement, “This is my first personal trip out in the real world, so of course, I have to gain more experience!”

After that, Zhang Yuelu disappeared, leaving only the branches that swayed slightly in the wind.

Qi Xuansu held his breath and cautiously approached the ancient temple.

The ancient temple was brightly lit. It was originally a place for monks to practice spiritual cultivation. However, at this time, it was a scene of debauchery.

The Buddha statue in the main hall had been pushed down, and a large tiger-skin throne was placed on the altar where the Buddha statue was originally placed. A burly man in armor was sitting on the throne.

On the altar table below, two enchanting women were entangled with each other. Their clothes were stripped halfway, revealing parts of their bodies that made one’s heart race.

The burly man was enjoying the two women’s performance, but he had no intention of joining them. There were other tough-looking men around, sitting and standing, with lecherous expressions on their faces. It was evident that all of them were not good people.

At this moment, the burly man suddenly looked out the door. “Did you bring back the head?”

As soon as he finished his question, a sheepskin bundle flew in from outside the door.

Someone reached out to catch the bundle, opened it, and saw two heads inside. One was the head they wanted, and the other was the head of the person they sent out.

The man shouted, “Boss! It’s Jiu. He’s dead!”

In an instant, everyone in the ancient temple stood up. Even the two women who were performing on the altar table stopped moving.

The burly man, known as the Boss, slowly stood up from the tiger-skin throne and commanded in a deep voice, “Put down the heads.”

The man placed the two heads in his hands on the ground.

He glanced at the bandit leader’s head and remarked, “Jiu’s head was removed after he died.”

The burly man suddenly looked out the door. His voice boomed. “Which friend has come to visit? Please show yourself.”

Qi Xuansu walked into the ancient temple. “Boss, do you have dealings around here? Please state your name.”

The burly man narrowed his eyes as he scrutinized Qi Xuansu. “The name’s You Leifu.”

Qi Xuansu clasped his fists and saluted, “Boss You, my name is Qi Xuansu.”

You Leifu questioned, “Brother Qi, did you pick off my subordinate’s head?”

“Pick off” meant to decapitate in street slang.

Qi Xuansu smiled slightly. “Indeed.”

As soon as he admitted to killing the bandit leader, everyone in the ancient temple raised their weapons, including some guns. However, compared to the firearms issued by the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court, these guns were still the old-fashioned flintlock type.

Qi Xuansu was not at all afraid of them. He just looked at You Leifu and asked, “Boss You, I’d like to know who was the person you killed.”

You Leifu did not answer. “You seem to be practicing the Daoist breathing method. May I ask which Sage you follow?”

Qi Xuansu laughed and did not answer.

You Leifu sneered. “Even if you are a member of the Daoist Order, I won’t let this slide. I would’ve admitted defeat if you were a high-ranking Daoist master, but you are just a rookie Xiantian Being. How dare you act recklessly on my turf?!”

By the end of his sentence, You Leifu roared like a lion. “Who do you think you are?!”

A circle of qi visibly rippled around You Leifu, extinguishing half of the lights in the temple. The remaining half flickered.

Using the power of this roar, You Leifu jumped over the altar table where the two beautiful women were lying, wanting to capture Qi Xuansu. However, when he was about three meters away from Qi Xuansu, he suddenly stopped and dared not move.

That was because Qi Xuansu was holding a Divine Dragon Pistol with the muzzle aimed at You Leifu’s forehead.

Qi Xuansu pressed down the hammer with his thumb and hooked the trigger with his index finger. He smirked. “Boss You, you might as well give it a try. I’d like to know which is faster, you or my pistol? I also wonder if your head is harder than my bullet.”

“Brother Qi, what exactly do you want?” You Leifu’s face turned pale.

In fact, Qi Xuansu also did not know how he should end this. Zhang Yuelu wanted to investigate the case, but did she expect him to kill all these rogues?

Just as Qi Xuansu seemed distracted, You Leifu rushed forward. However, Qi Xuansu would never make such a rookie mistake. He pulled the trigger immediately. Sparks flew, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder.

At such a close distance, You Leifu’s metal helmet exploded, and there was a wound the size of a copper coin on his forehead. However, since Qi Xuansu did not use the limited number of Dragon Eye Bullets that Zhang Yuelu gave him, this ordinary projectile only sank into You Leifu’s flesh without penetrating his skull.

You Leifu felt as if someone had struck his forehead with a huge hammer. His head tilted back, his vision went black, and he staggered back a few steps.

Coincidentally, when You Leifu’s head tilted back, he looked up at the ceiling and happened to see someone standing on the beam.

Although that person was a beautiful woman, at this time of life and death, no one had time for lewd thoughts.

“Boys, enemy on top!” You Leifu yelled.

He was warning his group that there was another enemy on the roof.

That was when everyone looked up and saw Zhang Yuelu standing above them.

Zhang Yuelu disappeared in a flash and reappeared in front of You Leifu.

You Leifu did not waste any time and slashed at Zhang Yuelu’s neck with a knifehand strike.

Zhang Yuelu calmly stretched out her hand to grab You Leifu’s wrist. She exerted some force on her five fingers and stopped him from moving.

You Leifu’s expression changed dramatically. The energy in his body surged, and he wanted to counterattack, but Zhang Yuelu was not bothered to fight with him and pushed him back with a palm strike.

Being a Martial Arts Practitioner in the Flesh and Blood Realm, You Leifu could even resist a gunshot head-on. However, he was powerless against Zhang Yuelu’s Six Void Tribulations to his chest. Blood spurted out of his ears, mouth, nose, and eyes, and his bones cracked.

When Zhang Yuelu retracted her palm, You Leifu had fallen to the ground, and the palm print on his chest was as clear as day.

There was a moment of silence in the ancient temple before someone shouted, “Everyone, retreat!”

In an instant, everyone fled from the ancient temple in all directions.

Zhang Yuelu waved her sleeves. Wherever there was wind, someone fell to the ground with blood oozing from their mouths and noses, clearly dead.

Qi Xuansu also fought and killed several people.

However, half of them managed to escape.

Zhang Yuelu did not chase them but looked at the two women huddled on the altar table.

The temple was warm, with red candles burning brightly. The two women did not wear any shoes or socks. Their black hair was loose, and their clothes were stripped halfway, revealing their breasts. It was a sight to behold on this cold winter night.

Qi Xuansu also looked at the two women, but before his gaze could linger, Zhang Yuelu stomped on his foot. “Turn away. Don’t look.”

He could only turn around helplessly and reload his gun while cursing in his heart. She’s so bossy!

Zhang Yuelu walked toward the two women and asked, “Were you two kidnapped by those bandits?”

The two women huddled together, their bodies trembling and their expressions frightened. They looked so weak, as if they could not stand up.

Zhang Yuelu wanted to step forward and help the women. However, at this moment, the woman whom she supported suddenly struck her in the ribs.

Not anticipating this palm strike, Zhang Yuelu took the hit and immediately took a step back. Her vision turned black for a split second, and she could taste blood.

In a fit of anger, Zhang Yuelu slapped the woman at the top of her head, shattering the woman’s skull and making her bleed out of her orifices. That woman died on the spot.

At the same time, the other woman also attacked Zhang Yuelu.

Zhang Yuelu had no choice but to activate her Five Elements Qi Shield to prepare for a head-on confrontation. However, she heard a gunshot.

A deep, dark, and bloody hole appeared between the other woman’s eyebrows. Her eyes were wide open as she collapsed.

Zhang Yuelu turned around and saw Qi Xuansu holding the Divine Dragon Pistol with smoke still dispersing from the muzzle.