You suddenly opened your eyes.

You opened the courtyard door.

You saw Yan Hongde covered in blood, with a dozen or so disheveled Taoyuan Village people following behind him.

Among these dozen were Xiaoxuan’s parents, their faces filled with sorrow.

They each held Xiaoxuan, who had her eyes tightly shut and was already lifeless.

Your expression tightened slightly, feeling a stir in your heart.

Before you could say anything, more than thirty pursuing soldiers had already arrived not far away.

The pursuing soldiers were fully armored and uniformly equipped.

The leading captain raised his blade and pointed, shouting: "You refugees who betrayed Great Qian, come and die!"

You glanced at the opposing Great Qian soldiers.

The highest cultivation among them was the captain leading the group, at the peak of Bone Tempering.

There were also two deputy captains at mid-stage Bone Tempering.

The rest were Skin Refining warriors.

An army of this scale intercepting the ordinary people of Taoyuan Village, who couldn’t bear the taxes, was really giving them full respect.

You looked at the panicked Taoyuan villagers and felt that they truly did not deserve such slaughter.

“They only tried to evade taxes; what crime did they commit?”

You stepped forward to stand in front of the Taoyuan villagers.

The Cry of the Swan Goose was suddenly gripped in your hand.

The captain opposite first glanced at you with contempt.

The next moment, his eyelid twitched sharply.

Though he clearly sensed you were only mid-stage Bone Tempering, you brought him an overwhelming sense of pressure.

He had no thought of fighting you.

Fear gnawed at his fighting spirit.

Years of battlefield experience told him that if he dared to move, the next moment he would lose his head.

His Adam’s apple rolled as sweat began to bead on his face.

At this moment, a clatter of horse hooves sounded.

“Bastards of Great Qian! I’m here!!”

The Great Qian captain was shocked again.

He turned to see nearly a hundred soldiers of Jin Yue Nation galloping swiftly on horseback.

The Jin Yue Nation’s leading captain was astonishingly at Marrow Washing cultivation.

“Damn it!”

“Run!”

The Great Qian captain and his soldiers scattered in retreat.

The Jin Yue Nation soldiers laughed loudly as they pursued.

With their overwhelming numbers and strength, the Jin Yue Nation soldiers quickly wiped out most of the Great Qian squad.

The Taoyuan villagers visibly relaxed, their faces joyful and excited.

You watched the crowd, puzzled about the relationships among these three parties.

Weren’t the Taoyuan villagers fugitives from Great Qian?

Why were they so happy to see the Jin Yue Nation troops?

Could it be that after fleeing Great Qian, the Taoyuan villagers had aligned themselves with Jin Yue Nation?

But the Taoyuan villagers were ordinary people; why would Jin Yue Nation dispatch such a sizable force to rescue them?

You sensed something was amiss.

“They’re even playing an endless game of intrigue with me.”

You didn’t act rashly, only coldly watching.

The Jin Yue Nation force of over a hundred soldiers was powerful.

But to you, it was far from enough.

Even the Marrow Washing captain was just a casual slash in front of you.

If something unexpected happened, you wouldn’t leave a single survivor.

With the Great Qian mid-stage Bone Tempering captain dead, the entire Great Qian squad was annihilated.

The Marrow Washing captain of Jin Yue Nation dismounted and approached.

Yan Hongde immediately greeted him: “General Sui, thank you for your timely rescue. Otherwise, Taoyuan Village would have been wiped out today!”

Sui Yangzhi looked at the gathered Taoyuan villagers: “Only a dozen of you remain?!”

Yan Hongde hurriedly replied, “No, there are over a hundred more. We scattered and escaped.”

“That’s good. You gather them all here.”

Yan Hongde immediately sent people to summon the remaining hundred or so Taoyuan villagers.

Sui Yangzhi nodded as he looked at the regrouped villagers.

He noticed your small courtyard and asked, “When did Taoyuan Village build this small town?”

Yan Hongde’s expression changed but he finally answered truthfully, “General Sui, this courtyard is the residence of Young Master He.”

“Young Master He?” Sui Yangzhi was stunned. “He’s not from Taoyuan Village?!”

Yan Hongde hesitated and nodded, “Young Master He is not from Taoyuan Village…”

Before Yan Hongde finished, Sui Yangzhi swiftly drew his sword.

“Who are you?!” Sui Yangzhi shouted, sword raised at you.

You frowned and retorted, “Who are you? Shouting and causing a disturbance at my doorstep without any decency!”

Sui Yangzhi was slightly stunned by your calmness.

He sensed you were mid-stage Bone Tempering but couldn’t understand why you were so unfazed facing someone one realm higher than you.

He scrutinized you and then asked Yan Hongde, “Who is he?”

Yan Hongde hesitated, then briefly said, “Young Master He is from Great Qian.”

Sui Yangzhi immediately understood. He sneered and looked at you coldly: “Kid, no matter how you found this place, you have to die!”

“Wait!” you shouted.

After a long moment, you still hadn’t figured out what was going on and planned to ask for clarification.

It was better to let them die knowing the truth.

“Elder Yan, shouldn’t you explain what’s really going on?”

Yan Hongde slowly turned his back to you: “Young Master He, I’m sorry for dragging you into this.”

After speaking, Yan Hongde fell silent, clearly not intending to stop Sui Yangzhi from killing you.

You glanced at the Taoyuan villagers.

They all silently lowered their heads, showing no intention to explain or plead on your behalf.

It was as if they had forgotten you were standing alone to shield them moments ago.

“Fine, I’ll ask each one later.”

You drew the Cry of the Swan Goose, true qi flowing into the blade. The sword trembled slightly, as if eager for battle.

You looked at the disdainful face of Sui Yangzhi.

“I’m coming!”

You raised your sword and launched a fierce attack.

Sui Yangzhi snorted coldly, ready to meet you.

But before he could react, your figure flashed, suddenly appearing behind him.

A drop of dazzling red blood slid down the Cry of the Swan Goose.

Sui Yangzhi froze where he stood.

A vertical line of blood extended from his forehead down to his chin.

His eyes abruptly lost focus as he fell backward stiffly.

Thud—

Sui Yangzhi’s body split in two, steaming entrails spilling onto the ground.

“General!!”

“General Sui!!”

“The general has been killed!!”

Chaos erupted immediately.

The remaining soldiers surged toward you.

Some Taoyuan villagers began to flee, others gathered to watch.

You completely lost control.

You started slashing indiscriminately.

With every strike, a soul perished beneath your blade.

The fleeing Taoyuan villagers were attacked remotely with your outward true qi, making the kills highly efficient.

During the chaos, you discovered some Taoyuan villagers were actually warriors.

You had confirmed earlier that none of them had practiced martial arts, so you were puzzled.

Despite the confusion, you did not stop your actions.

Before long, all over a hundred Jin Yue Nation soldiers were cut down by you.

Almost all Taoyuan villagers were also killed by you.

Only Yan Hongde and about ten core members of Taoyuan Village remained.

They sat on the ground, wailing, pierced through limbs by your true qi.

“Elder Yan, tell me, what shady dealings do you have with Jin Yue Nation?”