Chapter 272 - 185: Destroy Root and Branch (Part 2)

Chapter 272: Chapter 185: Destroy Root and Branch (Part 2)

’This is a robbery!’

"I saw the notice at the city gate. It said passage is only ten large coins per person, not including livestock or horses. Why do I have to pay so much silver?" Fang Yue questioned.

"Hmph, that was before. Now, everyone heading to Guangfeng Prefecture pays this amount. If you don’t cooperate, don’t blame us for taking you in!"

The checkpoint guard snorted, rolling up his sleeves as if preparing to get physical.

Fang Yue narrowed his eyes, looking at the guards. He considered revealing his identity, but he was on a mission for the Observatory and didn’t want to expose his whereabouts.

So, Fang Yue obediently paid the silver. As he did, however, he deliberately left a corner of his money pouch open, letting the guards glimpse the silver banknotes inside.

"Can I go now?" Fang Yue asked with a faint smile after handing over the silver.

Although the guards were now eyeing Fang Yue’s money pouch greedily, there were still quite a few people in line to cross the checkpoint. They couldn’t just brazenly rob him, so they had no choice but to let Fang Yue pass.

After Fang Yue passed through, a merchant caravan behind him quickly paid the silver and crossed as well.

Once through, the caravan’s leader, Old Zhang, looked toward Fang Yue in the distance.

"Ai, that young man... he really shouldn’t have shown them his money pouch. Guangfeng Prefecture is in such chaos right now; a death or two is nothing!"

Hearing this, the tall, thin, one-eyed man beside him immediately showed a look of eager anticipation. "Heh heh, let me handle this one. A lamb like that needs to be slaughtered with care."

"Alright then. Be careful," Old Zhang nodded.

The tall, thin man broke into a sinister smile.

「...」

Just then, two figures who looked like young masters arrived at the checkpoint.

Both had fair skin and were exceptionally handsome. One had a sharp, fierce air, while the other was gentle and refined.

It was none other than Hong Ling and Wen Wanrou, who had been following in Fang Yue’s footsteps. For convenience while traveling, the two women were disguised as men.

"Five taels of silver per person! Thirty taels for the horses!" an Official at the guard post said, looking them up and down.

"What? So expensive? Are you the Official Army or a band of thieves? Doesn’t it say right here that it’s ten large coins per person? You’re just imposing your own taxes to line your pockets!" Hong Ling snorted.

’Are these guards trying to bully us, thinking we can’t read?!’

’Raising the price this much in broad daylight... they’re more ruthless than actual thieves!’

"Heh heh, what’s with everyone today? Can’t any of you read? It clearly says ten taels up there. Hurry up and pay, or we’ll treat you both as spies!" the guard threatened with a sneer.

"You scoundrels! No wonder the Rebel Army is running rampant in Guangfeng Prefecture. If the entire Great Wei dynasty is filled with corrupt officials like you, how could the common people not rebel!" Hong Ling shouted.

"Well, now! So you two really are spies for the thieves! Men, seize them!"

Instantly, a dozen or so guards swarmed forward.

Hong Ling was furious. Seeing this, she charged right at the guards, felling them all in just a few moments.

Seeing this, Wen Wanrou, who had intended to pay the silver and avoid trouble, had no choice but to charge through the checkpoint with her.

「...」

That night, the moon was bright and the stars were few. Inside a dilapidated Mountain God Temple,

Fang Yue lay on a pile of hay, silently gazing at the dark night sky.

This was his favorite sleeping position. As soon as he closed his eyes, he could drift off into dreams.

A faint smile played on Fang Yue’s lips as several points of firelight approached in the distance.

"I didn’t expect to find a temple here. This is great, we have a place to stay tonight."

As the voice spoke, the light from the torches grew brighter.

A merchant caravan appeared at the Divine Temple’s entrance.

The caravan was led by none other than Old Zhang, followed by the tall, thin, one-eyed man and a group of formidable-looking escorts.

These days, any merchant daring to travel and trade within the borders of Guangfeng Prefecture had to bring a full escort. Otherwise, who knew when they might be robbed by thieves.

Or, for that matter, by their fellow merchants.

"Young man, I wonder if you’d mind us coming in?" Standing inside the ruined temple, Old Zhang looked at Fang Yue with a chuckle.

The man asked if he minded, but they had already entered the ruined temple. It was quite a rude gesture.

"You’ve all followed me for quite some way. I doubt it was just to share a ruined temple with me!"

Fang Yue gave a slight, ambiguous smile as he looked at the caravan.

Those who could conduct business in such a war-torn region had the strength to defend against thieves. In fact, if they encountered a weaker caravan, they were perfectly capable of becoming bandits and a Rebel Army themselves.

"Young man, what’s the meaning of this? Is there some misunderstanding between us?" the one-eyed man snorted. But before he could finish his sentence, he pulled a handful of lime powder from his robes and threw it at Fang Yue.

’This guy saw through our plan, yet he acts like he doesn’t care.’

’He must be confident in his Martial Arts. But just look at how young he is, how strong can he be?’

He’d killed young lads who knew Martial Arts before.

This handful of lime powder, thrown by surprise, was a move that never failed to blind his opponents. It was a dirty trick, but it was very effective.

Coupled with the fact that it was a sneak attack, even if this young man’s Martial Arts were superior to his, he would still die filled with regret.

Unfortunately for him, this time he had run into Fang Yue.

Fang Yue simply turned to the side, easily dodging the lime powder. He even lashed out with a fist, throwing a hard, straight punch.

With a dull THUD, the one-eyed man screamed as he was sent flying like a kite with a broken string.

"You... you dare to fight back! Brothers, get him! I want him sliced into a thousand pieces!"

Seeing Fang Yue fight back, the caravan leader, Old Zhang, roared in anger and ordered his men to attack, surrounding Fang Yue completely.

He himself, however, took the opportunity to retreat behind his men, pull out a crossbow, and fire at Fang Yue.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Three bolts in a row, whistling through the air at incredible speed, reached Fang Yue in an instant.

This was Old Zhang’s signature attack, called "Flowing Water Linked Pearls."

The poison coating the bolts was personally concocted by Old Zhang. It was extremely potent and could kill an opponent in an instant.

Seeing this, a smile touched Fang Yue’s lips. With a flick of his wrist, his long saber was in his hand, and his body moved like lightning.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

A series of crisp, metallic clashes rang out as he easily shattered the incoming bolts.

Meanwhile, a look of utter horror appeared on Old Zhang’s face.

His crossbow was custom-made and extremely powerful. If he used it in a sneak attack against an ordinary Martial Artist who had achieved Great Success in Marrow Transformation, even they would find it difficult to dodge.

But the man before him had effortlessly struck down his bolts!

’How is this possible?!’

Old Zhang was shaken to his core. He knew he’d run into a truly tough opponent. He didn’t dare to continue the fight and hastily pulled back to retreat.

"Trying to run? Not so easy."

A cold snarl escaped Fang Yue’s throat as an immense aura of Qi erupted from his body.

Instantly, the surrounding temperature plummeted, as if they had been plunged into an ice cellar.

THUMP, THUMP...

Old Zhang was so terrified he lost his nerve completely, collapsing to his knees and trembling all over.

He never could have imagined that a "fat sheep" he’d randomly targeted would be this powerful!

"Mercy! I was wrong. I’ll never do anything bad again, I swear! Mercy..."

Old Zhang begged, his voice trembling.

"Mercy?"

Hearing this, a cold glint flashed in Fang Yue’s eyes, and he gave a cold smile.

"I can let today’s matter slide. But if there is a next time—"

Before Fang Yue could finish, a sharp blade shot out from the darkness and plunged straight into Old Zhang’s body.

"Heh heh, if you don’t pull up the roots, the weeds will just grow back in the spring. A man like this... who knows how much blood is on his hands. You can’t afford a moment’s mercy!"

Just then, Luo Wei slowly emerged from the darkness.

His gaze fell on Fang Yue, full of mockery, as if to say, ’You didn’t expect this, did you? That I’d show up here.’

And it was obvious he was here specifically to deal with Fang Yue.