Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 106 The Wooden Man Who Turns the World Upside Down

Jiang Mingzhe pressed down on Zhong Ling's head, looking fierce, but he didn't actually use any force.

Zhong Ling felt a tingling sensation on her scalp, an indescribable comfort. She couldn't help but squint her eyes and gently rub the top of her head against his palm.

Ah Zi's eyes flashed like lightning, and she immediately noticed the girl's little trick. She was furious and said, "Flower Envoy, you're a complete waste! Hey, you pretty guy, let her go right now, and I'll give you the antidote!"

After saying that, he took out a small bottle, waved his hand and threw it far away. While Jiang Mingzhe was catching it, he grabbed the still unsatisfied Zhong Ling and ran away.

Jiang Mingzhe caught the antidote, and the two women had already run to the kitchen.

Granny Rui frowned, inwardly criticizing Jiang Mingzhe's lack of experience in the martial world, but unable to say it aloud, she said with a wry smile, "This is bad, those two vixens are very cunning, this antidote might not be real. Young Master Jiang, please let the guests eat first!"

Azi and Zhongling somehow managed to poison everyone in the restaurant, including Granny Rui and her group, as well as seven or eight innocent customers.

Jiang Mingzhe knew the antidote was genuine, so he responded, took out a few pills, and fed them to the innocent guests first. Before long, the guests were out of danger and slowly got up.

Seeing that the medicine was effective, Granny Ping said impatiently, "Quick, young master, feed me! My intestines are in so much pain!"

The fat woman opened her mouth wide. Jiang Mingzhe poured out a pill and put it into her mouth. He fed them one by one like this, and soon the bottle was empty. Jiang Mingzhe blinked – there were still four people who hadn't taken their pills.

Granny Rui sat in meditation for a while, then slowly got up. She looked at her four companions who were wailing and rolling around, and then at the guests who were running away with their heads in their hands. She sighed and thought to herself, "You let outsiders test the medicine. Feeding one or two people is enough. Why give everyone one?"
Although I forgot to say it for a moment, wouldn't this kid think about it himself?
At this moment, Granny Ping rubbed her stomach and got up. Her triangular eyes gleamed coldly as she said viciously to her screaming companions, "I'm kind-hearted and can't bear to see you suffer. I'll give you a quick death!"

As he spoke, he drew his short knife, and with a swift, lightning-fast motion, severed four throats in succession.

Blood flowed everywhere in an instant. Granny Ping wiped the blade and tucked it back into her waistband, gritting her teeth as she said, "So that little bitch is a member of the Five Poisons Sect. Go back and report to Madam that this matter will not be left unresolved!"

At this moment, an old man with a single sword at his waist suddenly shook his head and sighed, "Granny Ping, you acted a little too quickly. The Five Poisons Sect used poison. If you boil some licorice and mung beans in water and drink it, it might not be an incurable poison. Or perhaps it wasn't even a lethal poison to begin with. If that's the case, wouldn't these brothers have died in vain?"

Granny Rui's eyes turned cold, and she suddenly swung her iron crutch, smashing the old man's head in one blow. The old man fell down without uttering a sound.

The old woman narrowed her eyes and swept them over the crowd, coldly saying, "You old fool, you're talking nonsense and undermining morale. Since the Five Poisons Sect has made a move, how could it be ordinary poison? Hmph, the poison on that little bitch's hidden weapon is lethal on contact with blood. Haven't you all seen enough of that along the way?"

As her gaze swept over them, everyone nodded in agreement, vying to say, "Not bad, not bad. Old Bai is getting worse with age. How could the poisons of the Five Poisons Sect not be deadly?"

Granny Rui sneered, looked at Jiang Mingzhe, and her expression softened: "Young Master Jiang, that day we split up to look for people, but you didn't come to meet us for a long time. We searched for a long time and only found the body of Zhang Laowu from Huwei Escort Agency. We thought you had also met with misfortune. My wife and I cried for several nights, feeling sorry for the old master. Now that you are alright, that's wonderful."

Jiang Mingzhe sighed, "To be honest, my two grandmothers, the memory of that day still sends chills down my spine. That day we..."

He recounted his encounter with the Crocodile God of the South China Sea, adding, "Thanks to Zhang Laosi, I managed to escape while he lured the Crocodile God away. I originally intended to reunite with everyone, but unexpectedly, news of my impersonation of a Duan family retainer spread, attracting Duan Zhengchun, the Prince of Zhennan of Dali, to personally come and capture me. Fortunately, Zhong Wanchou, the Valley Master of Wanjie Valley, had a grudge against him and helped me hide for a few days. Today, after inquiring about Duan Zhengchun's departure, he sent me out of the mountain."

Upon hearing the name Duan Zhengchun, Granny Rui's expression immediately changed, and she gritted her teeth, saying, "That heartless man has actually come to Wuliang Mountain! Yes, yes, that day when we went to capture that little slut, we saw many swordsmen escorting a richly dressed man away from afar. That must be Duan Zhengchun!"

Granny Ping laughed and said, "Granny Rui, it's all thanks to that heartless man. If he hadn't come to capture Young Master Jiang, we might not have met today. We would have been caught in a trap."

He then said to Jiang Mingzhe, "Young Master Jiang, now that Duan Zhengchun has made his move, the Dali Kingdom is no longer safe. You have made a great contribution in capturing that little slut. Why don't you come with us to Suzhou to pay your respects to the Madam? Judging by the days, the old master will be arriving soon. You can then accompany your master back to Xingxiu Sea. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Jiang Mingzhe thought to himself: Since she said that the "capture" was successful, then Mu Wanqing's life should be safe.

He immediately feigned great joy, bowed, and said, "Thank you both, madams. I've had the opportunity to serve my master along the way. If my fellow disciples knew, wouldn't they be green with envy?"

Granny Rui smiled and said, "We're all family, why are you speaking like that? Alright, now that the Five Poisons Sect has appeared, this is no place to stay. We should hurry and leave Dali as soon as possible."

At this point, Jiang Mingzhe had successfully infiltrated the group. The others, ignoring the body of their fallen comrade, rushed out, some mounting their horses, others driving their carriages, none lingering. Two old women, eager to curry favor, allowed Jiang Mingzhe to ride the most magnificent black horse. Fortunately, Jiang Mingzhe frequently took clients to equestrian clubs, so while not an expert, he could manage.

The town they were in was nestled in a valley at the foot of the main peak of Wuliang Mountain. There were roads in front and behind, extending along the valley where the peaks met. Under normal circumstances, they would have followed these roads.

However, Ah Zi and Zhong Ling, after much discussion, came up with the name "Three Envoys of Bamboo, Flowers and Wood of the Five Poisons Sect." Although Granny Rui and Granny Ping said they would "report to the madam and not let this go," they were actually quite wary. So they instructed the guide to abandon the main road and take a side road to avoid being caught by the Five Poisons Sect.

The area is mountainous and the main roads are difficult to travel, let alone the narrow paths. It's alright for those riding horses, but the carriages can't go very fast and have a hard time getting over many ditches and bumps.

Fortunately, there were many of them, and everyone took turns dismounting, lifting and pulling each other, until they finally got off the horse.

They had only traveled about twenty miles by nightfall, with no village or shop in sight. The guide complained bitterly, but Granny Ping was unconcerned and said in a sinister tone, "We've had our share of meals in the wild along the way. With so many skilled people around, even if a tiger or black bear came, it would just be another source of meat. What's there to be afraid of?"

The order was immediately given to rest on the spot.

The group consisted of seventeen or eighteen men, all seasoned travelers in the martial world. Without needing any instructions, they immediately got to work.

They first found an open space not far from the stream. Some people cut down trees to build a shed, some gathered firewood to start a fire, some took out earthenware pots to fetch water, and some took out snake and insect repellent powder and sprinkled it around. Before long, a simple campsite was set up.

The two old women took out keys, unlocked the carriage door, and pulled a person out. Jiang Mingzhe took the opportunity to look and saw that she was dressed in black, with black hair and a black mask, long legs, and a slender figure. It was Mu Wanqing, whom he had parted ways with at Jianhu Palace.

Jiang Mingzhe immediately laughed and said, "These are the prisoners captured by the old women. I recognize her attire. She rode past me on horseback that day and almost hit me. How come they've all become prisoners, yet they're still wearing masks?"

Mu Wanqing's hands were tightly bound behind her back, and her legs were also tied. She hung her head dejectedly. Suddenly, she heard a familiar voice, looked up sharply, and saw Jiang Mingzhe smiling at her. She quickly lowered her head, her heart churning: Is this person... here to save me?
Granny Ping said irritably, "There's nothing we can do. The madam ordered us to capture her alive if possible so she can deal with her personally and vent her anger. But this little bitch is very stubborn. If we try to remove her mask, she'll bite her tongue and commit suicide. But it doesn't matter whether we remove it or not. Her weapons and hidden arrows are genuine. We've fought many battles along the way, so we're sure we won't mistake her for someone else."

As she spoke, the old woman untied the ropes binding Mu Wanqing's legs and one of her hands, but tied the rope around her neck like a dog's leash. She hissed, "I'm taking you to relieve yourself. If you dare to run away, I'll tear your clothes off and let these men have some fun."

After saying that, he pulled the rope and took Mu Wanqing to relieve herself in the deep grass. He returned after a short while, gave her a dry biscuit and a bowl of water, and sneered, "If you don't eat, you'll starve to death, which will save us the trouble. If you starve to death, Madam, you can't blame us."

Judging from this, Mu Wanqing has not had any food or water since she was captured.

Mu Wanqing glanced at Jiang Mingzhe, broke off a piece of pancake with one hand, stuffed it into her mouth from under her mask, and chewed it with difficulty.

Following her gaze, Granny Ping saw that it was Jiang Mingzhe and immediately covered her mouth and chuckled, "Young Master Jiang, your face is so adorable that all those promising young women want to be your wives. This little slut, seeing how handsome you are, is actually reluctant to die."

Jiang Mingzhe laughed and said, "I'm not exactly handsome, I'm far inferior to my master."

Grandma Rui immediately perked up and nodded, saying, "Not bad, not bad. Grandpa was truly handsome back then, even now, if he shaved off his beard, wouldn't he still be a handsome young man?"

The three chatted and laughed, and after Mu Wanqing finished eating and drinking, she was still tied up and locked in the car.

By this time, it was already dark, and everyone was exhausted. They ate and drank and prepared to go to sleep.

Jiang Mingzhe lived alone in a shed, quietly meditating and practicing his martial arts. After about an hour, he finished his practice and was about to go to sleep when he suddenly heard several loud roars, "Jiang Ang, Jiang Ang," which sounded like frogs croaking or cows mooing. The mournful sounds echoed endlessly through the mountains.

Jiang Mingzhe suddenly opened his eyes, feeling his heart pounding, and thought: What kind of monster is this?

Then they heard Granny Rui shout sternly, "What's making such a racket? Send a few people and light torches all around here!"

(End of this chapter)