Chapter 55: Murder

Seeing that his excuses were not working, the leader of Xicui Mountain smiled ingratiatingly and said, "No problem, Young Hero Lu, I'll get it for you right away." After saying this, he fumbled in his chest for a moment, took out the token, and carefully handed it to Lu Yueming.

Lu Yueming watched the leader of Xicui Mountain's actions and remained silent. When the token was handed over, he reached out to take it. However, at that moment, a sudden change occurred. After handing the token to Lu Yueming, the leader of Xicui Mountain did not pull his hand back but suddenly accelerated, thrusting forward again. This time, his hand did not hold the token but a small dagger. The tip of the dagger glinted blue in the sunlight, clearly indicating it was coated with a potent poison. The target of the dagger was not Lu Yueming's throat or chest, but the hand that had just received the token. It seemed the leader of Xicui Mountain was confident in the poison on the dagger, hoping to merely cut Lu Yueming's hand.

The hope was good, and the target was close, but how could a disciple of the Piaomiao Sect be compared to a martial artist from a remote mountain like Xicui Mountain? Lu Yueming simply turned his wrist, and the token in his hand changed direction. The edge of the token sliced down over the leader's wrist, causing it to go numb. The dagger fell from his hand. Lu Yueming did not stop there; he swung the token's flat side at the dagger's handle, sending the poisoned dagger flying like an arrow towards the leader's face. The distance between them was close, and the dagger's speed was fast. Before the leader of Xicui Mountain could react, the dagger "popped" into his forehead. He looked at Lu Yueming in disbelief, then fell to the ground. The blackness from the wound on his forehead quickly spread over his face and down his neck, and his body gradually turned cold, losing consciousness.

Seeing the ferocity of the poison on the dagger, Lu Yueming was also startled. He then looked at the others. At this point, whether he looked at the token or not was meaningless.

In fact, when the leader of Xicui Mountain reached into his chest to take out the token, the other two wolves had also taken the opportunity to draw their weapons from their horses—both were broadswords. Now, seeing their leader killed, they were furious and shouted to the four guards beside them, then charged forward. Lu Yueming was not flustered by their attacks. He calmly used his martial arts to engage them, occasionally glancing at the four guards who were hesitating about whether to join the fight. These four were the leader's personal guards and usually only followed his orders. Seeing their leader dead and the opponent so powerful, they naturally wanted to retreat. However, the second and third leaders of the bandit camp were still alive and urging them to join the fight, causing them to hesitate.

Seeing that the four guards were not about to join, Lu Yueming was delighted. Although he could handle seven opponents with his martial arts, he was afraid of someone suddenly using the poison from earlier in the chaos. Therefore, he stopped moving around and drew his sword, pointing the tip and using the Piaomiao Seven Swords technique he had practiced hard to try to resolve the situation quickly. The Piaomiao Sect's technique was indeed extraordinary, and in a few moves, the two wolves of Xicui Mountain were left defenseless. Seeing no help, they were exhausted and shouted, "Why don't you join in? Otherwise, you'll face the rules of the bandit camp when you return."

The four guards, hearing about the rules of the bandit camp, had no choice but to take up their weapons and join the fight. At this moment, Lu Yueming laughed and said, "It's too late now." He then tightened his sword stance, using the tip to deflect the second wolf's broadsword. The sword thrust forward, aiming for his throat. By the time the second wolf realized what was happening, it was too late. Lu Yueming's sword tip touched the second wolf's throat and then withdrew, leaving a small red mark. The second wolf looked stunned and then collapsed.

Seeing Lu Yueming's exquisite sword skills, the third wolf of Xicui Mountain felt a chill and did not dare to advance. He turned and ran. Lu Yueming would not let him escape. Using the Piaomiao Step, he followed closely behind and struck the third wolf's back with his sword. The sword did not penetrate deeply but was enough to pierce his heart. The third wolf fell to the ground, and Lu Yueming looked at the blood on his sword, shaking his head, seemingly disapproving.

The four remaining guards, who had no intention of joining the fight, immediately threw down their weapons and knelt on the ground, bowing repeatedly, shouting, "Hero, spare our lives."

Lu Yueming looked at the kneeling guards without paying them any attention. Instead, he walked to Zhang Xiaolong and the others, staring at them for a moment before taking out the token and examining it carefully, frowning. He then asked Zhang Xiaolong, "Who among you is related to Sister Xue?"

Zhang Xiaolong looked at Lu Yueming and said with difficulty, "Sorry, Young Hero Lu, none of us are related to Heroine Xue."

Lu Yueming's frown deepened, and he asked coldly, "Where did you get this token?"

Seeing that his brother was having trouble speaking and that Liu Qian and Liu Yuanyue were still in shock, Zhang Xiaohua stepped in and said, "Great Hero Lu, it happened like this." He then recounted in detail what had happened in Lutown during the New Year.

After listening, Lu Yueming smiled and asked, "Have you seen Sister Xue?"

Zhang Xiaohua replied, "We have seen Heroine Xue, but she was wearing a veil, so we didn't see her true face, and we didn't know her surname was Xue."

Lu Yueming nodded, knowing about Wenhai and Xue Qing's trip to Lutown, but not about this encounter with Zhang Xiaolong and the others. However, based on Zhang Xiaohua's description, it seemed credible. The Piaomiao Sect's tokens were strictly managed, and Xue Qing leaving the token behind was clearly a sign of her good intentions. If he could report this to Sister Xue when he returned, it might earn her favor. Thinking of this, he smiled.

With this in mind, Lu Yueming approached and carefully examined Zhang Xiaolong's injuries. He first reset Zhang Xiaolong's dislocated arm and then took out some pills from his chest, making Zhang Xiaolong swallow them. Zhang Xiaolong had been injured saving Liu Qian before, and now, before he could marry her, he was injured again, and this time more severely. Although he did not have any broken bones, the kick from the horse had caused serious internal injuries, and he would need at least six months to recover. Of course, Lu Yueming did not know about the well water incident and could only advise Zhang Xiaolong to rest for six months.

After tending to Zhang Xiaolong, Lu Yueming turned to the four kneeling guards, seemingly considering how to deal with them. The four guards, seeing that Lu Yueming was looking at them, knew that their fate was about to be decided and immediately started bowing again, some even bleeding from their foreheads. Zhang Xiaohua felt very sorry for them.

Lu Yueming seemed to notice Zhang Xiaohua's sympathy and asked with a smile, "Xiaohua, what do you think should be done with them?"

Zhang Xiaohua, seeing that Great Hero Lu was asking him, looked uneasy and said softly, "Since they didn't harm us or anyone else, I think we should let them go."

Lu Yueming looked at him with interest and said, "Are you feeling sorry for them because they are bowing?"

Zhang Xiaohua blushed and said, "Yes, seeing them bowing and begging for mercy, I really feel sorry for them."

Lu Yueming's smile faded, and he said, "Xiaohua, remember, those who are pitiful often have something hateful about them. They didn't want to harm anyone just now because their leader didn't order them to kill, and this is a public road, where killing would cause big trouble, and they probably couldn't afford it. If the one killed just now was me instead of their leader, do you think they would still be pitiful? Do you think they would spare your lives?"

Zhang Xiaohua nodded thoughtfully.

Lu Yueming continued, "Do you know what it means to completely eliminate evil? It means to root out evil completely, leaving no trace. If I let them go today, they might come back to cause trouble for you tomorrow, and then you'll be in a desperate situation."

The four guards, hearing Lu Yueming's words, looked at each other and immediately scattered, no longer showing any signs of their previous distress. Lu Yueming, seeing Zhang Xiaohua's stunned expression, smiled lightly, as if he had expected this. He first picked up the two broadswords of the two wolves of Xicui Mountain, one in each hand, and threw them at the backs of two of the guards. The swords pierced their backs and then the ground, and Lu Yueming, in the same instant, used his lightness skill to chase one of them. In a blink, he was behind the guard, thrusting his sword deep into the guard's back. Without checking, he immediately turned to chase the other guard, who had taken a few more steps before falling to the ground. The last guard seemed to have good lightness skills and had already run several dozen meters by the time Lu Yueming caught up. Lu Yueming took a deep breath, accelerated, and seemed to fly towards the guard. In no time, he was behind the guard, who, sensing Lu Yueming's approach, turned and threw a hidden weapon. Lu Yueming, not daring to catch it, flipped in the air to avoid it, then extended his body in the air and thrust his sword downward into the guard's head.

This place was far from Zhang Xiaolong and the others, but Zhang Xiaohua still clearly saw the moment the sword pierced the guard's head.

After killing the last guard, Lu Yueming did not linger but returned to the original spot. Seeing Zhang Xiaohua's stunned expression, he shook his head, wiped the blood from his sword with the dead man's clothes, and sheathed it.

Lu Yueming walked to Zhang Xiaolong and the others, who were also stunned, and handed them the Piaomiao Sect's token, saying, "Keep this token. It might be useful in the future."

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