Chapter 8

Everyone was shocked and in a daze when Feng Xiaoxiao called out, "Brother Mao, Xiao Bao, go in and stab this guy a few times, then drag him out."

The two responded and went in. Each of them stabbed a few times, and Mao Shiba even deliberately punched Aobai in the face before pulling the body to drag it out. However, Aobai's chains were particularly heavy, and he couldn't drag the body with one hand. Wei Xiaobao saw this and waved his dagger, making four "chi" sounds, cutting all the chains connected to Aobai's body.

Mao Shiba praised, "What a good knife!" and together with Wei Xiaobao, they pulled Aobai's body out and threw it on the ground.

Mao Shiba puffed out his chest, looking proud, while Wei Xiaobao hunched his shoulders, his face pale.

Feng Xiaoxiao nodded and said to the old man in blue who had spoken to him, "Please use him to honor the martyrs and the innocent victims."

The old man in blue bowed respectfully and asked, "I am Guan Anji of the Qingmu Hall of the Heaven and Earth Society. May I ask the names of the three brave men?"

"I am Feng Xiaoxiao, and these are my two brothers, Mao Shiba and Wei Xiaobao."

Guan Anji hurriedly bowed to the two.

Mao Shiba laughed loudly, "So you are the heroes of the Heaven and Earth Society. I, Mao Shiba, admire Chen Jinnan, the chief of the Heaven and Earth Society, and the great hero Yuan Chengzhi the most. Meeting you today is a great fortune for me. I have always dreamed of joining the Heaven and Earth Society. I wonder if you can let me join."

The members of the Heaven and Earth Society had gone through great hardships to get here, but they didn't expect to be intercepted. Hearing Mao Shiba's words, they were all overjoyed.

Guan Anji quickly said, "That would be a great honor, but joining the Heaven and Earth Society requires the approval of our hall leader. If the three brave men are willing, you can come with us."

Feng Xiaoxiao, seeing Mao Shiba looking pitifully at him, smiled and said, "That sounds good." Then he said to Wei Xiaobao, "Xiao Bao, when we go out, pretend we are kidnapping you. Threaten the Prince of Kang to let us leave. What do you think?"

Wei Xiaobao shouted, "Brother Feng, I'll follow your lead!"

Feng Xiaoxiao held Wei Xiaobao and walked out of the stone house. Arrows flew like locusts, with over twenty guards continuously shooting, and the Prince of Kang personally supervised the battle.

Feng Xiaoxiao used his martial arts to create a large sword flower, blocking all the arrows, and shouted, "Bring Aobai over and use him as a shield."

A man dressed as a Taoist lifted the body to shield himself. The Prince of Kang, seeing Aobai, not knowing he was dead, and seeing Wei Xiaobao held by the assassins, shouted, "Stop shooting! Don't hurt Eunuch Gui!"

The archers immediately stopped shooting, and everyone rushed out of the stone house. Guan Anji waved his hand, and four men rushed towards the Prince of Kang.

The guards were shocked and stopped chasing the enemies to protect the prince. This was Guan Anji's strategy to mislead them. The others took the opportunity to leap onto the wall and escape from the prince's mansion.

Feng Xiaoxiao, holding Wei Xiaobao, and Mao Shiba followed the members of the Heaven and Earth Society, running. They heard the sound of hooves like thunder and someone shouting, "There are assassins in the Prince of Kang's mansion!"

It was a large group of soldiers coming to reinforce. The group ran into a nearby house, bolted the door, and then ran out the back door. Clearly, they had scouted the area beforehand and prepared an escape route. They ran through a small alley, entered another house, and ran out the back door, turning several corners and entering a large mansion. Everyone quickly changed their clothes, dressing as farmers, carrying firewood or vegetables. Two men pushed a wooden cart with two large wooden barrels, placing Aobai's body in one of the barrels. Then they left, splitting up.

Feng Xiaoxiao, Mao Shiba, and Wei Xiaobao followed Guan Anji out of the city. After leaving the city, they all relaxed and began to chat and laugh.

Guan Anji was very impressed by Feng Xiaoxiao and inquired about his background. Feng Xiaoxiao knew that only the high-ranking members of the Heaven and Earth Society would know about his master's life, so he didn't want to repeat the story. He simply told him that his master was living in seclusion overseas and not involved in worldly affairs.

On the contrary, Mao Shiba was extremely impressed by the members of the Heaven and Earth Society and told everything about Feng Xiaoxiao. Guan Anji then understood that Feng Xiaoxiao had a significant background and invited the three to join the Heaven and Earth Society.

Feng Xiaoxiao smiled and said, "Brother Guan, I have returned to the Central Plains to handle some matters for my master. Without his approval, I dare not join your society. The Heaven and Earth Society is dedicated to overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming. I admire your chief, Chen Jinnan, very much. Since I came to the Central Plains, I have heard the saying, 'If you don't know Chen Jinnan, you are not a hero.' I admire him greatly. If Chief Chen and your society need my help, just let me know. As long as I can do it, I will not refuse." He then looked at Mao Shiba and Wei Xiaobao and continued, "Brother Mao has long admired your society, and although Xiao Bao doesn't know martial arts, he is very smart and resourceful. My two brothers are both men of great righteousness. I hope your society will consider admitting them and take care of them, which would fulfill my wish."

Guan Anji laughed and said, "Both brothers are men of great righteousness. Killing Aobai, the traitor, and wanting to join the Heaven and Earth Society, our society would be honored to have you." He then thought for a moment and said, "However, our society's admission procedures are somewhat complicated and require the approval of the hall leader. To be honest, our hall leader was killed by Aobai not long ago, and the position is currently vacant. So the admission of the two brothers will have to wait until the new hall leader is appointed."

Mao Shiba then shouted, "No problem, we can wait as long as it takes." He then lowered his voice and said, "But of course, the sooner the better."

Wei Xiaobao said, "I will follow Brother Feng. Whatever Brother Feng decides, I will follow. He won't let me down."

The three were a bit puzzled, and Feng Xiaoxiao realized and laughed, "You mean 'strategize and plan,' right? It seems you need to read more, or you'll be laughed at."

Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, "That's it, strategize and plan. I know! I know! I heard it from a storyteller." The three laughed at his amusing words.

The group chatted happily as they walked. After about an hour, they arrived at a large estate, and it was already getting dark. Two men in blue holding lanterns welcomed them in. Guan Anji arranged for the three to rest in the guest rooms and then left. Feng Xiaoxiao knew that the Qingmu Hall was going to pay respects to the hall leader killed by Aobai and was also in a heated dispute over the hall leader position.

Feng Xiaoxiao thought that the Qingmu Hall lacked wise people. The only one with a bit of wisdom he knew was the traitor Feng Jizhong. Most people acted on passion. The appearance of a traitor was enough to ruin the passion of others. After Chen Jinnan's death, the Heaven and Earth Society completely fell apart. No one had the charisma and strength to reunite this large organization. At that time, each hall was like the Qingmu Hall now, with people having different ideas and arguing for different purposes. And there were definitely traitors stirring up trouble in the middle.

As soon as they entered the room, Wei Xiaobao said, "Brother Feng, as you predicted, the old turtle Hai Laogong really poisoned me and said there was no antidote, and he wanted to beat me to death. I barely managed to escape."

Feng Xiaoxiao quickly reached out to feel his pulse.

Wei Xiaobao then said, "By the way, the old turtle Hai Laogong was killed by the Empress Dowager."

Feng Xiaoxiao nodded and sighed, "This old eunuch was very skilled in martial arts and strategy. It's better that he's dead."

Mao Shiba, worried, looked at Wei Xiaobao and said, "Brother Feng, is Xiao Bao okay?"

Feng Xiaoxiao frowned and said, "Hai Laogong's poison might really have no antidote, but it can be expelled using internal martial arts."

Seeing Wei Xiaobao looking pitifully at him, Feng Xiaoxiao shook his head and said, "My internal martial arts are too powerful and cannot help you expel the poison. However, Chief Chen Jinnan of the Heaven and Earth Society has profound internal martial arts and practices the Blood Coagulation Divine Claw, a martial art that combines hardness and softness. I will ask him for help, and I believe he won't stand by. Xiao Bao, you can rest assured."

Wei Xiaobao was very convinced and nodded. Mao Shiba also breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of hooves in the distance, as if a large group of people were riding towards them. Soon, a man in blue came to the door and knocked. Feng Xiaoxiao opened the door and asked, "Is there anything?"

The man in blue replied, "The chief invites the three of you to meet him."

Mao Shiba cheered. Wei Xiaobao was also very excited, thinking that Chen Jinnan could cure his poison.

Feng Xiaoxiao, Mao Shiba, and Wei Xiaobao followed the man in blue to the front gate, where two to three hundred people were lined up, all looking excited. Four men in black stood by the horses, and when they saw the three approaching, one of them called out, and several men led three horses over.

The man in black stepped forward and bowed, saying, "The chief invites Feng Xiaoxiao, Mao Shiba, and Wei Xiaobao. Please mount the horses."

Mao Shiba quickly mounted the horse and cheered, "Let's go! Let's go!"

Wei Xiaobao was also very happy, thinking, "People call me 'Eunuch' a lot, but few call me 'Wei Ya.' Ha, I am 'Wei Xiaobao Wei Ya.'"

Feng Xiaoxiao, however, returned the bow and said, "Thank you for leading the way," before mounting the horse.

The seven of them rode for about three miles on the main road and then turned onto a small road on the right. Along the way, there were groups of men, either sitting or walking, patrolling and guarding. The lead man in black extended his middle, ring, and little fingers and pointed them to the ground. The two guards nodded and made a secret signal.

Feng Xiaoxiao knew they were confirming their identities. After traveling another twelve to thirteen miles, they arrived at a large estate. A man at the gate shouted, "Guests have arrived!" The gate opened, and Guan Anji and several men came out, bowing and saying, "Feng Ya, Mao Ya, Wei Ya, welcome. The chief invites you."

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "I am 'Wei Ya' for sure now!"

Mao Shiba, excited, his face flushed red, stammered, "I really... really..."

Feng Xiaoxiao smiled and bowed, saying, "It is a great honor!"

Guan Anji led the three into the hall. An old man bowed and said, "Mao Ya and Wei Ya, please have a cup of tea. The chief wants to talk to Feng Ya first." He then led Feng Xiaoxiao in.

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