Sword from the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 31 Creditors
The setting sun casts a lasting glow, half the sky is dim, and half the sky is stained with blood.

"Mercy! Lord, please spare my life. I will let them go right now!"

"Uh~!"

A shrill scream echoed in Fule East Lane. A wooden door was splattered with blood. A thin man in black collapsed limply, and the short knife in his hand fell to the ground with a clang.

A thick, calloused palm slowly moved away from his chest.

Mu Dao Ren was filled with rage, and his moves were ruthless and deadly, directly piercing the man's heart meridians.

Then he took off his clothes and put them on.

At this moment, his eyes swept across the streets and alleys, and saw seven men in black lying in a pool of blood.

"Ba Ling Gang bastards, I've already said that if I see you doing evil, I'll kill you all!"

"Humph, I killed five by myself, and the two of you together only killed two. When it comes to eliminating pests, you two are far behind me."

Although the short and fat Taoist priest was usually bad-tempered, he would not be so aggressive.

He was just humiliated by the great monk Sanchi and was eager to save face in front of the two of them.

Zhou Yi pulled the corners of his mouth and let out a dry laugh.

Shan Xiongxin scolded him, "Master Mu, you should have waited until we finished questioning you before venting your anger."

Before the short and fat Taoist could argue, Zhou Yi called out, "Old Dan, release these three kidnapped girls first."

Shan Xiongxin opened the sack, picked up a knife and cut the ropes on their hands and feet.

They were so frightened that they even forgot to say thank you.

I only heard a young and gentle voice ringing in my ears:

"Go home quickly, but don't go east yet. If you can't go back for the time being, go hide in Qing'an Temple."

Before he finished speaking, the young man jumped onto the roof.

A towering man holding a knife followed closely behind, and then there was a strange fat man whose clothes were about to burst.

Only then did I realize that I was rescued.

When I came back to my senses and looked again, all three of them had disappeared.

……

The battle in the east of Fule City spread, and the fighting became more and more intense.

After Zhou Yi and the other two dealt with the Baling gang, they jumped onto the roof of a house in the distance and watched coldly.

The Taikang rebel army took advantage of the monks' departure to seize the city wall. Archers shot from a high position, and the rebel army under the city formed a square formation and advanced step by step.

Although the Yingyangfu army was large in number, they assembled in a hurry and were beaten back several times by the rebel army!

The Tiger and Leopard Camp sent out experts to break into the battle, and there were also strong men in the rebel army who confronted them.

For a while, the situation was difficult to determine and casualties continued to rise!
Shan Xiongxin stroked his beard and exclaimed in admiration: "This rebel army is quite organized and cannot be led by ordinary people. If Yuwen Chengdu's people want to recapture the city tower, they will probably pay a heavy price."

Mu Dao Ren showed little interest in the melee outside the city:

"The Yingyang Prefecture army is already busy taking care of itself. It's impossible for a large number of people to ambush outside the city right now. Let them attack us while we find a way to climb over the wall and leave the city."

After saying that, he looked at Zhou Yi:

"I promised to take you out of the city, and I won't break my promise!"

Zhou Yi revealed a teasing expression: "You bought this fake news from the great monk Sanchi for thirty copper coins, and then sold it to us for thousands of gold. If everyone in the Taoist sect does business like you, they would be rich enough to rival a country."

Knowing that this kid was trying to poke holes and irritate him again, Mu Dao Ren glared back at him.

He didn't respond to the monk Sanchi's question and only asked, "Do you want to shirk your responsibility?"

Shan Xiongxin advised: "Brother Zhou is a humble gentleman. Taoist Mu, please don't judge others by your own standards."

The short and fat Taoist took a deep breath and didn't want to talk anymore.

These two people are in cahoots with each other, and he can't win any argument.

Suddenly, the boy let out a "Huh?" and Taoist Mu looked towards the city gate.

If there is something abnormal!

"Hmm? This rebel army...are they going to retreat?"

The archers who occupied the advantageous position moved out of the battlements and withdrew from the city wall in an orderly manner.

"It seems to be just a feint."

Taoist Mu looked serious: "Don't delay, let's go." He looked at Zhou Yi and Shan Xiongxin, who were both motionless.

"You won't leave? Humph, then the Taoist priest has fulfilled his promise and cannot renege on it."

Shan Xiongxin turned sideways to look at Zhou Yi and saw that he had a deep gaze and was in deep thought.

"Yuwen Chengdu fell into the trap"

Taoist Mu was about to flee when he retorted, "Although Yuwen Chengdu has lost many men, isn't the trend towards retaking the city walls? Could there be a large-scale counterattack by the rebels?"

He shook his head again:

"If this rebel army had this much strength, they wouldn't have to launch a surprise attack while the monks were leaving the city, nor would they have to resort to the tactic of occupying the city towers and then giving them up. They could just attack from the east to the west. Wouldn't that be more convenient?"

Zhou Yi glanced over and said, "You only know one side of the story, not the other."

Mu Daoren didn't believe it: "Oh?"

"Qing'an Temple is the largest force in Fule, and they have a deep understanding of the entire city." Zhou Yi looked at the East City Gate again. "Since Master Sanchi knows our identities, how could he not know that we could be used by others?"

Shan Xiongxin suddenly realized: "Could it be that Sanchi and these people are in the same group?"

Zhou Yi shook his head. "Given his style of doing things, he wouldn't necessarily take such a big risk."

"But if it's just going with the flow, then it's very possible."

The short and fat Taoist said impatiently: "What does this have to do with me? Instead of arguing about it, why not go to a wine shop and drink freely?"

After saying this, he turned and was about to leave.

Zhou Yi, however, was unwilling to let this troublemaker go. "Master Mu just boasted that his methods of eliminating evil were far superior to ours, but what did the Baling gang members say before they died?"

Shan Xiongxin said, "They said that there is a group of people from the Dongting Lake branch, and they are in the army of Yingyangfu."

Taoist Mu sneered, "Don't even think about provoking me."

"The premise of my saving people and eliminating evil is to save myself, otherwise I will never take action. The Yingyang Mansion has tens of thousands of troops. To charge into their ranks is to commit suicide. I am no fool."

Zhou Yi was confident: "The Yingyang Prefecture Army will definitely suffer a major setback."

"Why should I believe you?" Taoist Mu narrowed his eyes.

He appeared to be skeptical, but after spending the past few days with Zhou Yi, he realized that the Taoist priest was very clever.

If not for this, with his personality, he would have turned around and ran away long ago.

"I'll make a bet with you. We'll see the truth tomorrow."

Zhou Yi raised a finger and said, "If I'm wrong, when Li Mi returns the gold to me someday, I'll give you 10,000 taels!"

"If it's really as I said"

The short and fat Taoist asked, "So what?"

Zhou Yi's eyes sparkled: "You accompany me to the Yingyangfu army to do something big."

The wooden Taoist priest walked back and forth on the tiles, hesitant and uncertain.

Shan Xiongxin stroked his beard and complimented him, "Master Mu is a master of the Dao sect. His fellow righteous disciples would always praise him for his deeds in eliminating evil. Moreover, he is the most outstanding successor of the Quanxing Daoist tradition of the Western Han Dynasty. Don't lose face at this time."

"Click~~"

However, a tile was broken by Mu Dao Ren.

"Okay, I'll make a bet with you!"

"You have to tell me what we're betting on. Also, how did the Yingyang Army offend a plague god like you?"

Zhou Yi thought of the fire at Fuzi Mountain, and a cold look flashed in his eyes. "To be honest, I am also Yuwen Chengdu's creditor. He also owes me 100,000 gold."

"The Baling Gang captured many people and brought them into the army. Many of them are from Yongqiu. Their families are still waiting anxiously."

"I was unable to do so before, leaving behind only regrets."

"This time, there is an opportunity."

He stared at the short and fat Taoist priest. "My Taoist practice emphasizes following nature and following one's heart. Taoist priest, you have studied Zhuangzi deeply and have walked through the human world. How could you not know his principles?"

Taoist Mu nodded silently, agreeing with Zhou Yi's words.

"Tell me, what's the bet?"

……

(End of this chapter)