Volume One, Chapter 16: Night Raid
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—Bang!
Just as Pang Sandao and his men were enjoying themselves, the main door was suddenly kicked open. A dense crowd stood outside, every one of them carrying a long saber. At their head was Su Ming.
He wore black from head to toe and held a seven-foot sword of gleaming steel. Rainwater rolled down his robe, forming round beads that clung to the fabric before they had a chance to seep through. As he stood at the entrance, the dripping water quickly soaked the long carpet beneath him.
“Gentlemen, are you enjoying yourselves?” Su Ming narrowed his eyes as he looked at Pang Sandao and the others, who were drinking and reveling inside. His killing intent was almost tangible, while faint crimson battle-aura swirled around him.
“Oh, who might this be? Why, it’s our very own Su Ming—Boss Su. Come, come, make room for Boss Su.” Pang Sandao glanced over and burst into laughter, ordering one of his men to give up his seat.
Someone immediately brought over a bench.
“Boss Su, please.”
“There’s no need. I came here today to take your lives.” Su Ming glanced at the bench and spoke coldly.
“Such a boast, Boss Su. Aren’t you afraid the wind will blow too hard and cut your tongue?” Pang Sandao did not even look at him. He continued idly playing with the dice cup in his hand.
Watching the man’s calm and carefree demeanor, Su Ming felt that something was strange, though he could not say exactly what. His voice turned icy.
“Boss Pang, you seized Blossom Street from me. I’ve come to settle the debt. Two arms—any objections?”
Pang Sandao clicked his tongue and tossed the dice in his hand aside.
“Not unreasonable. The only question is whether Boss Su has the ability to collect.”
“Then try me.”
Su Ming acted without hesitation. If he meant to strike, he had to catch his opponent off guard. Anyone who waited for the other side to prepare before beginning a fight was merely putting on a show.
In an instant, the sword in Su Ming’s hand shot forward. A string of afterimages remained where he had stood, and a piercing sonic boom rang through the room.
—Clang!
Pang Sandao did not retreat. He hurled the dice cup toward the doorway, then pulled a nine-ring saber from beneath the table and swung it at Su Ming.
The instant saber and sword collided, Su Ming was secretly alarmed.
Pang Sandao’s cultivation had actually reached the realm of a Second-Rank Martial Artist. Combined with his mastery of the nine-ring saber, the force behind his strikes was even greater than Su Ming’s.
“Su Ming, Su Ming… Did you really think I, Pang Sandao, had spent all these years idling away? I knew you were coming long ago. How could I fail to prepare a grand reception?” Pang Sandao secretly increased the force of his attack, a contemptuous sneer curling at the corner of his mouth.
He whistled sharply.
At once, more than a hundred men poured into the previously deserted street, surrounding Su Ming and his companions on all sides.
“You knew I was coming?” Su Ming’s expression changed dramatically. Turning his head, he saw that they had been completely encircled, and his heart surged with turmoil.
They had fallen into a trap!
There was a traitor among them!
“Who was it?” Su Ming’s sword pressed against his opponent’s nine-ring saber as he demanded the answer. Even as he spoke, he glanced back at his brothers, searching for the hidden traitor lurking in the darkness.
“Tsk, tsk. I’ve long heard that you, Su Ming, are ruthless and merciless. Now that I’ve seen it for myself, the rumors were clearly true. If I hadn’t received advance warning, I might really have fallen into your trap today. You even dared to attack someone under Lord Qi—what incredible audacity!” Pang Sandao did not answer his question. Instead, he mocked him. “If you kneel and admit your mistake today, I may still spare your life. After all, you serve Third Lord Hu, and I should show him some respect.”
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“And if I don’t?” Su Ming asked coldly.
“If you don’t? Simple. We kill every one of you, then seize Blossom Street and present it to Lord Qi. I doubt he’ll refuse to help me deal with this matter. The River-Sea Gang won’t come looking for me.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Pang Sandao attacked again. His gleaming nine-ring saber came crashing down toward Su Ming’s head.
Su Ming twisted aside, narrowly avoiding the blow. At the same moment, two cold flashes shot toward Pang Sandao’s throat.
The Life-Reaping Mad Sword—Universe in the Sleeve!
If that strike landed, Pang Sandao would certainly die!
Just as the blade was about to pierce through his throat, a large hand suddenly swept in from the side and clamped tightly around Su Ming’s wrist.
“Yan Yu!”
The owner of that hand was Yan Yu. Su Ming had never imagined that he would appear here.
“Boss Su, it’s been a long time.” Yan Yu still wore that insincere smile as he spoke cheerfully. “Everyone says that you, Boss Su, wield twin swords—one in the open and one in secret—and that you possess the technique known as Universe in the Sleeve. Seeing it today, I must say the reputation is well deserved. Tsk, tsk.”
When Su Ming turned his gaze toward him, Yan Yu put on an embarrassed expression.
“Oh, dear, Boss Su, I’m truly sorry. It’s just that someone else offered a higher price. I can also take the opportunity to eliminate an unstable factor like you. After thinking it over… well, I simply couldn’t find a reason to refuse.”
“You were the one who tipped him off?” Su Ming ground his teeth.
The situation had become disastrous. Pang Sandao alone was already exceedingly difficult to deal with. Su Ming had chosen to strike in the dead of night precisely to catch him off guard, never imagining that the two men had already joined forces.
Two Second-Rank Martial Artists—Su Ming could never defeat them both!
Most infuriating of all, the money Pang Sandao had paid Yan Yu had been stolen from Su Ming in the first place!
A faithless, treacherous, two-faced bastard.
Damn him!
“Very well, Boss Su. I hope you manage to walk out of here alive. If you do, I certainly won’t be able to stop you.” Yan Yu smiled as he spoke, but a cold glint suddenly flashed in his eyes. He thrust out one arm, and the iron pellets in his hand shot forward.
At the same time, Pang Sandao’s saber struck Su Ming and forced him backward. Vast spiritual energy gathered along the blade as he brought it down toward Su Ming’s head.
“Rending-Sky Saber Art!”
Knowing he could not evade the attack, Su Ming met it head-on. Yet Yan Yu’s iron pellet smashed into him, and blood erupted from his mouth. In the blink of an eye, he had suffered severe injuries.
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“Since you’re determined to die, you can’t blame me.” Having said that, Pang Sandao slashed forward once more. Greenish-blue spiritual energy gathered in midair, forming a streak of saber-light that swept toward Su Ming in an instant.
Greed filled Yan Yu’s eyes. The iron pellets in his hands whistled through the air with such force that they seemed capable of tearing it apart.
“Boss Su!” Liu Lecheng’s eyes nearly split with rage. Seeing Su Ming gravely wounded, he wanted to rush to his aid, but a group of enemies held him back.
Su Ming was about to die on the spot when, all at once, the air inside the room seemed to grow scorching hot. An astonishing surge of spiritual energy spread into every corner, accompanied by the faint roar of a furnace.
It was like the tolling of a great bell, deafening and soul-shaking!
—Rumble…
—Rumble…
Though he had already been wounded, Su Ming somehow rose to his feet once more. Astonishing spiritual energy radiated from his entire body. Faint crimson battle-aura mingled with scarlet-orange spiritual energy, forming a strange ring of power that wrapped tightly around him.
Yan Yu and Pang Sandao exchanged a glance, immediately sensing that something was wrong. They had no idea what trump card Su Ming possessed, but years of slaughter and constant wandering along the edge of life and death had honed their instincts. Both felt a deep, instinctive unease.
“Attack. Leave no survivors!” Yan Yu ordered in a low voice.
“But… what about Third Lord Hu?” Pang Sandao hesitated.
They had originally intended only to give Su Ming a brutal beating. Leaving him half crippled would have been enough to provide Lord Qi with an explanation.
As long as Su Ming did not die, and Qi Weili protected him, Third Lord Hu would be unable to do much to Pang Sandao. But if they killed him outright, the nature of the matter would change completely. After all, on the surface, Su Ming was still Third Lord Hu’s adopted son.
“Cough, cough.”
“Hahahahahaha!”
A maniacal laugh rang out. Everyone present felt their blood run cold, as though an invisible vengeful ghost were laughing wildly from the depths of their souls. It was a primal terror rising from within the body itself—something no one could escape.
“There’s no need to hesitate. You’re all going to die.”
“I’ll turn your blood into nourishment for myself. One day, I will see the truth of this vast blue sky with my own eyes!”
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