Before reaching Nine Heavens, Ling Jialan figured out what the situation was based off the conversation between Lian Hua and Elder Fu Dalong. Both of them had legitimate businesses, but they both had a degree of influence in the underworld, too. As a scion of Mount Lu Sword Sanctuary, she knew their kind well.
The Seven Champion White Princes didnât permit any traces of unorthodox sects in their territories, sparing no unorthodox sect members who dared to cross them. There were only two types who were exceptions. The first type was the type who blended in almost perfectly, such as League of Assassinsâ assassins. The second type, which were incredibly rare, were the types that were too powerful for the Seven Champion White Princes to justify spending their time on, such as Divine Moon Cult.
Jiangnan was always a flourishing destination, so anyone who wanted to have a successful career in the pugilistic world inevitably had to set foot in there. Consequently, besides the most commonly seen folks of the pugilistic world, the majority of people striving for an enriched career in the pugilistic world were people who shed their affiliations and blended in with the so-called local vagrants.
Vagrants, oftentimes considered people walking the tightrope between lawful and unlawful, were classified as the grey, whereas the orthodox sects were white and unorthodox sects were black. Vagrants were able to switch to any colour in any place as circumstances necessitated.
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Bandits who committed murder in cold blood at night couldâve been the nicest people when the sun was out. One could legitimately say that they took the mantle of being antagonists who taught the newbies and kids of Jiangnan how to be âunorthodoxâ. Due to them being everywhere and being able to adapt on the go, they also filled the void of criminals who werenât without any order.
The majority of Jiangnanâs gangs were at the mercy of the Seven Champion White Princes; however, they werenât limited to just Jiangnan. Whatever criminals did outside of Jiangnan, they virtually did, as well. The only difference was that the criminals in Jiangnan manufactured excusable excuses before they carried out their deeds.
Including the criminals in the capital, the vagrants in Jiangnan had two faces â a legitimate worker earning his keep during the day and a complete contrast at night. Rather than say âpure whiteâ, it was more appropriate to say that it was difficult to distinguish between black and white since even their own kind in the capital were unlikely to be able to accurately identify another. As a matter of fact, they probably had reached a point where they couldnât tell if the day version or night version of them was the real version of them.
Ling Jialan knew what they were capable of thanks to her background. The fact that they couldâve asserted their influence in the capital proved that they had connections on both sides of the law. If luck was on her side, it was possible to capture Bu Xusan before Feng Jiutian did.
Lian Hua had an abundance of informants in the capital and often used his underground connections, so he immediately set out to search for Bu Xusan as soon as he heard how much Bu Xusan was worth.
Bu Xusan, who lodged at an inn, was spotted leaving and captured on the spot. Though he had subordinates accompanying him, Lian Hua personally confronted Bu Xusan to be safe. Surprisingly, whether it was due to injury or illness, Bu Xusan was subdued in only a few exchanges. Ling Jialan heard Bu Xusan wasnât a very formidable fighter, and she had personally witnessed Lian Huaâs abilities, so if qinggong differences werenât accounted for, then Xu Busan wouldnât have been Lian Huaâs match in a fair one-on-one fight.
Fu Dalong was from another gang that seldom crossed paths with Lian Hua. Fu Dalong was also after the bounty on Bu Xusanâs head. Regrettably, he was a step too late. Luckily, he saw what transpired, which was why he called Lian Hua to the pub for a negotiation. At the same time they met up, Fu Dalong instructed his subordinates to keep tabs on Bu Xusan and to steal Bu Xusan if the meeting went longer than the designated time.
It didnât take long for the three trained individuals to reach Nine Heavens. They found the place eerily silent. There wasnât even a footstep in earshot, let alone shouting and fighting. Concerned, Lian Hua leaped inside to find bodies strewn all over the ground. There were his subordinates and Fu Dalongâs, but Bu Xusan was nowhere in sight.
âIâll make you pay for this!â
When Fu Dalong arrived inside, Lian Hua flew into a fit of rage and swung his blade at the former.
Clang!
âMiss, what is the meaning of this? Are you with this old scumbag?â
Having blocked Lian Huaâs attack for Fu Dalong, Ling Jialan scoffed, âIf this was Elder Fuâs work, he must have been in quite some mood.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âOne person is responsible for all the casualties here. If Elder Fu was responsible, why did he attack even his own subordinates?â
Lian Hua checked around and confirmed to himself that Ling Jialan was right. Everyone was dropped using strong palm strikes delivered at an incredible speed. If Fu Dalongâs subordinates were able to take Bu Xusan, then why did Fu Dalongâs men take up almost half of the space?
âOld man, youâre the cause of this. Donât tell me you donât know anything. Who did you ask for help?â
Fu Dalong used his internal energy to wake one of his subordinates.
âBig Bro, y-you are finally here!â
Fu Dalong sent his younger brother on the job to ensure the missionâs success, never expecting his brother to be destroyed.
âCut the crap. What happened? Who hurt you? ⊠We arenât enemies with Lian Clan anymore. Just tell me.â
After a big inhale, Fu Dalongâs brother answered, âIt was Bu Xusan. He⊠took out everyone here.â
âCut the crap!â thundered Lian Hua, grabbing Fu Dalongâs brotherâs lapel. âBu Xusan is a weakling. I singlehandedly crushed him when I captured him!â
Fu Dalong pulled Lian Huaâs grip off. âHeâs this old oneâs biological younger brother. He wouldnât lie. You shouldnât vent on someone injured, Boss Lian.â
âOh, and my brothers arenât hurt?â
âThere really is no cure for stupidity,â slighted Ling Jialan.
âWhat?â
âI said youâre stupid,â repeated Ling Jialan. âIf not, did you hear me say anything else?â
âShut your hole, lady. How am IâŠâ Lian Hua stopped himself when he realised that asking how he was stupid insinuated he was stupid to begin with.
âHow are you stupid?â Ling Jialan shook her head in disappointment. âYouâve been wary of Elder Fu and me, so you want to kick us out to then ask your brothers instead of saving them first. At the same time, you suspect Elder Fu of being responsible for this, so you canât let him leave. The internal conflict triggered you, so you want to fight him as a means of venting. You canât beat him without repercussions, though. Even if you did win, you wouldnât be able to revive your brothers or heal them, let alone re-capture Bu Xusan. Arenât you stupid if all youâre thinking about in this situation is how to win an unwinnable fight?â
Face beet red, Lian Hua responded, âWhat do mean I canât win?â
âLetâs assume you can beat Elder Fu. What if I join in?â
Ling Jialanâs gaze suddenly turning into a piercing gaze sent a chill down Lian Huaâs spine, prompting him to instinctively back off three steps and assume a combat stance with his weapon. Once he settled, he realised that she never drew her sword. Being able to express a threat on par with a sword attack was a sign of being extremely advanced.
Ling Jialan frigidly told Fu Dalongâs brother, âIf you told a single lie, Iâll massacre your entire family.â
Ling Jialan learnt to deliver threats so threateningly from other criminals she encountered in the past.
Fu Dalong was furious over the threat, but his brother responded, âWhen we arrived, there was nobody outside any longer. We thought it was strange, but we heard someone here shout, âMen!â. We were worried that somebody had beaten us to the punch, so we stormed in, but there was only Bu Xusan here. I donât know if he was possessed or something, but he didnât seem to hear anyone and struck unbelievably fast⊠I saw him move once, and then several of our brothers wenât down. Then I⊠passed out.â
Lian Hua couldnât say anything after hearing that.
âIf you donât trust him, you can summon a doctor to check them all.â
Ling Jialan sounded bored, and rightfully so, because her original plan to meet Bu Xusan, fight Lian Hua and Fu Dalong, then fight Feng Qizhi had just been ruined. Alas, Bu Xusan was missing, and Lian Hua and Fu Dalong were no longer in any head space to fight optimally. What was there for her to feel motivated about? She was just cold at this point, but her commanding tone that she usually spoke with came out as an order for them.
After thinking it through, Lian Hua realised his brothersâ wellbeing was the priority and went to fetch a doctor.
Realising he underestimated Ling Jialan, Fu Dalong queried, âYou want to see Bu Xusan, yet you are not interested in the bounty. What is it that you are after?â
âSimple. I have accepted a commission to kill him.â
***
âIs Zizi gone?â Ming Feizhen went looking for Zizi at Liu Shan Men while Shen Yiren was out during the day.
âArenât you the one who told him to train?â grumbled Bai Lian.
âNo. I didnât tell him to run around these next two days. Heâs injured, isnât he?â
âYes, but he healed unbelievably fast. As soon as he was able to stand, he left again.â
â⊠Unknown pill really is effectiveâŠâ
âWhat are you mumbling about?â
âNothing. I was going to take him out to expand his horizons, but I guess thatâs not happening today. Iâm going out for a stroll. Tell him to stay put and wait for me if he comes back.â
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