I have the face of a great demon.

What a Zhao Tiezhu! He picked up the divine sword left behind by the immortal and, just like he had with the wooden stick before, smashed it down on the bandit leader's head.

You know what, it actually works really well.

The bandit leader brandished his imposing Xuanhua axe to meet the attack, but was knocked back ten steps by Tie Zhu's sword.

Looking at the large axe again, there was a gap in it.

No one would believe it if you said that a big axe couldn't beat a sword.

Tie Zhu got excited when he saw this and started smashing things with his sword.

The bandit leader was in deep trouble. He was powerless to defend himself with his great axe and was forced to retreat repeatedly by Tie Zhu's divine sword. His hands went numb and he finally sat down on the ground.

He had to continue holding up his axe to defend himself; if he couldn't hold on, he would be cleaved in two by a single sword strike.

Liu Xingchen, watching from behind, couldn't help but twitch his jaw. This was a sword! And this strike was like swinging a sledgehammer.

Iron Pillar seemed to have inexhaustible strength, smashing down again and again. After twenty or thirty blows, the Xuanhua Great Axe finally gave way and snapped in two with a crack.

Tie Zhu raised the divine sword high, preparing to deliver the final blow to the bandit leader, but saw the villain spit out several mouthfuls of blood, tilt his head to the side, and then remain motionless.

Tie Zhu kicked him but there was no reaction. He checked his breathing again and found that he was dead.

When Liu Xingchen came over, he saw that the guy had actually been shaken to death by the iron pillar. It was truly a tragic sight.

"Tiezhu, are you using a sword? You might as well use an iron mace."

Tie Zhu seemed oblivious to his sarcasm, handing the divine sword back to him and chuckling as he said:

"An iron mace? Good idea. I'll find a chance to have one made when we get to Lingzhou."

Liu Xingchen slung his divine sword over his shoulder and picked up the Xuanhua Great Axe left behind by the bandit leader.

The axe was broken in two, covered in wounds and pits, so it was probably unusable as a pawn. I could only shake my head and throw it on the ground.

The bandit leader was dead, and the remaining bandits were so frightened that they ran away in a flash.

After the battle ended, Tie Zhu noticed Liu Xingchen's new attire:

"Brother Xingchen, when did you start wearing this black robe? You look quite imposing."

"This? I had it specially made. It's for use in situations like this, to scare people."

After saying this, he took off his black robe and put it back in his bundle.

Now that the crisis is over, it's time to go back to my low-key scholarly attire.

At this moment, the woman, still in shock, saw the robbers scatter like birds and beasts. Finally, she mustered her courage, staggered out of the bushes, and collapsed onto the cold body of a man lying on the ground. Tears streamed down her face like broken pearls.

Liu Xingchen and his companion inquired about the woman's situation. It turned out that she and her husband had hired a carriage to visit relatives in Lingzhou, but they encountered bandits on the way. The bandits killed the driver and her husband, and she herself was nearly violated. Fortunately, Liu Xingchen and his companion rescued her.

Liu Xingchen and the others felt great sympathy for the woman's plight, but since things had come to this, they could only advise her to accept her fate and move on.

Tie Zhu went back to find the carriage they had been in, and soon returned, cursing and swearing.

“That coachman is a real scoundrel. We’re risking our lives to save people here, and he just drives off in the carriage, taking my belongings with him.”

Liu Xingchen was glad that he had brought the divine sword and the black robe with him, so he didn't suffer much loss.

He patted Tiezhu on the shoulder and said, "Alright, Tiezhu, stop cursing. Isn't there still a carriage here? We can take this carriage to Lingzhou. By the way, do you know how to drive?"

Upon hearing this, Tie Zhu's eyes lit up:

“Yes, yes, let’s drive this carriage to Lingzhou and take this lady back to her parents’ home on the way. You know what, I’ve actually driven a carriage before, so leave this to me.”

So Tiezhu dug a pit in the woods and buried the murdered coachman and the woman's husband.

The group composed themselves and set off again, driving their carriage towards Lingzhou.

------

A large ship slowly approached the shore and docked at the pier in Lingshui Town.

Chen Minghui and his senior brother Zhou stepped out of the cabin side by side, followed by a group of respectful servants, like stars surrounding the moon, and returned to the Chen residence in a grand procession.

Because of the appearance of the great demon, the two lost their mood for sightseeing and returned home early, intending to stay at home and live a secluded life until they returned to their sect after a while.

They wanted to keep a low profile and avoid contact with outsiders, but little did they know that Lingshui Town was not peaceful either.

That night, several men in white broke into the Chen residence and immediately began searching for Steward Zhao, causing chaos and confusion.

Upon hearing the commotion, Steward Zhao rushed over and angrily shouted, "Who are you? How dare you break into a private residence at night? Leave immediately, or don't blame me for being impolite and reporting you to the authorities!"

Faced with Steward Zhao's questioning, the man in white was not afraid at all. Instead, he pressed closer and surrounded him.

The leader of the white-clad men said casually, "Steward Zhao, don't panic. We mean no harm and only have one question to ask. Just tell us the truth and we'll leave immediately."

Butler Zhao glanced at the long swords hanging at their waists and muttered to himself, "These are clearly people from the martial arts world." His imposing manner instantly diminished, and his voice trembled slightly: "What...what do you want to ask?"

"Did you see a man in black robes the other day?"

Upon hearing this, Steward Zhao exclaimed, "It's that man in black robes again! I was slapped by the immortal today because of this, and my mouth is still swollen."

This incident left him with a psychological scar, and for a moment he was unsure whether to tell the truth or not.

Seeing his hesitation, the man in white immediately suspected something was wrong. He drew his sword with a clatter and held it directly to the man's neck, scaring him so much that his legs went weak.

"Are you going to tell me or not?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a figure, as fast as lightning, rushed out from the inner courtyard and arrived in an instant, his sword flashing repeatedly.

Several screams rang out, and the swords in the hands of the white-clad men fell to the ground. Each of them clutched their wrists, blood still dripping from them.

Butler Zhao recognized the figure and exclaimed with delight, "Young Master!"

Chen Minghui coldly looked at the group of men in white and said in a chilling voice, "You mere ants dare to run wild in my Chen residence? You're courting death!"

The white-clad men turned pale. They had been searching house to house in the town, looking for clues about the black-robed men. They had been incredibly arrogant, but today they had met their match.

They never expected that such a small town as Lingshui would have such a master.

"Call someone!"

A man in white raised his hand, and a red light exploded in the night sky, scattering into a brilliant firework.

Chen Minghui smiled dismissively: "Using fireworks to call people? How old-fashioned."

He didn't stop them, wanting to see what powerful figures these men in white could summon.

A moment later, on the roof of the Chen mansion under the moonlight, an even more ethereal white figure quietly arrived, causing the white-clad people below to look up, their eyes flashing with surprise and awe.

"Uncle Cheng!"

The people in white shouted with delight and straightened their backs. As long as Master Cheng was there, they had nothing to fear from this kid.