Let the true energy circulate for a while

……

The mountain road to Woniu Ridge became increasingly treacherous, and the horses struggled to keep up, requiring several people to lead them.

Men Gun and Chen Ye were at the very back, and they also dismounted.

After walking less than half a mile, they came to a stream. The group sat scattered along the stream to rest, drink water, fill their water bags, or eat some dry food to stave off hunger.

Two men were whispering amongst themselves, discussing why Master Shi was riding alongside that handsome young man, their eyes darting to the stream every now and then, their expressions animated.

"You mean that handsome young man, could it be that he's with Master Shi...?"

"Don't talk nonsense. Master Shi isn't that kind of person. He likes girls."

"They all peed the same way just now."

"Oh?"

Chen Ye squatted by the stream, cupping water to wash his face. The cool stream water flowed down his cheeks, and his handsome face, so beautiful it made people jealous, was reflected in the water.

As Tang Long once said, Chen Ye's good looks are a complete waste if he doesn't pursue a career in film and television. Being too handsome isn't always a good thing for a man; he has to be wary of women, men, and transgender people.

Chen Ye looked at his reflection in the water, turning his neck left and right to observe it from several angles. He was never satisfied with his appearance, mainly because he wasn't fierce enough! Putting aside his facial features, Chen Ye always had an innocent and harmless look on his face, which made it easy for people to misunderstand him.

He makes women mistakenly believe he is an innocent and handsome virgin, and makes men mistakenly believe he is easy to bully.

A group of small fishermen swam around, scattering the handsome face in the water, and the fish sparsely sank to the bottom.

A bird's mournful cry echoed from the sky, and an arrow, impaling a wild goose, slowly fell to the ground. A man put away his bow and arrows and ran over happily to retrieve his prey.

The man who witnessed everything twitched at the corner of his eye: "Damn, is it just a coincidence that she's so beautiful?"

Chen Ye's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said in a very low voice, "Don't drink it."

Men Gun, holding the plum juice the advisor had just given him, paused for a moment, then saw that all the small fish that had sunk to the bottom had floated to the surface; they were all dead.

"This plum juice has been spiked."

Based on the woodcutter's unusual behavior earlier, Chen Ye is now completely certain that these government officials are indeed trying to harm people.

Mo Gun quickly and quietly poured the plum juice into the stream behind him!

At this moment, several men staggered and fell to the ground, including government officials and recruited righteous men.

Chen Ye lowered his voice to a whisper: "Pretend to be poisoned first, and wait for the bandits to come out."

"I feel dizzy and nauseous." Muffled Brush pretended he couldn't stand up and sat on the ground.

Everyone present was swaying unsteadily, some even falling to the ground, except for the clerk and a man carrying a knife, who remained unharmed.

The clerk chuckled and leisurely closed the small jar, saying lazily, "I told you, sir, you were overthinking it. What kind of expert was he that he was taken down so easily?"

One of the righteous men, having mustered his courage, patted himself a few times, and spat out a mouthful of black blood. "Master, why did you harm us?!"

Several other men who hadn't been knocked down sat cross-legged on the ground, circulating their internal energy to detoxify themselves; many of them had cold sweat dripping from their foreheads.

The two men, suppressing the deadly poison within them and with their eyes bloodshot, suddenly raised their arms, drew their weapons, and charged forward.

The man holding the knife next to the clerk remained silent, then spun around and drew his blade. With a flash of cold light, a head fell to the ground, blood gushing from its cavity, and the body collapsed with a thud.

Another man who suddenly jumped up, presumably having forcibly channeled his inner energy, was attacked by the poisonous fire and spat out a mouthful of blood. He swayed precariously, leaning on an iron rod to stay upright, and was then cleaved in two by the man with the knife.

The scene was ruthless and bloody. The man holding the knife was burly, with small eyes, dark skin, and unusually thick lips. After cruelly killing someone, he grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.

The clerk said, "Big Mouth, you son of a bitch, who told you to cut someone in half? His head's cracked open, how are we supposed to get compensation now?"

Big Mouth said with a simple and honest expression, "I'll sew it up in a bit."

Among the righteous men and servants who came, there were also martial artists with true qi protecting their bodies. It is conceivable that this poison was by no means an ordinary sleeping potion or arsenic.

One of the government officials, who had been poisoned, angrily shouted, "Master, why did you harm us! Have you been colluding with the bandits all along? If I can get back alive, I will definitely report this to the county magistrate!" With a spit, he spat out a mouthful of black blood and quickly sat down to circulate his internal energy.

These government officials were unregistered laborers, meaning they were unofficial military officers in the Great Yong Dynasty who usually ran errands and did odd jobs for the yamen runners. To put it bluntly, they were here to take the blame today. They had no idea that they had been betrayed by their superiors.

The advisor ignored the man, seemingly confident of victory. He turned his head to look at the man sitting cross-legged on the ground and said with a smile, "Master Shi, you are a hero, but you were born at the wrong time and came to the wrong place. Heroes are not allowed in Liuxia City."

Men Gun's eye twitched as he asked, "You even kill your own people?"

The clerk announced loudly, "We fought a fierce battle with the bandits in Eagle Gully. The gully was narrow and treacherous, and the bandits used it as a stronghold to ambush us. The fighting was deafening! Wang Dazui, the instructor of the yamen, led the charge, fighting to the death without retreating! All the righteous men and white-robed soldiers perished in the battle."

At this point, the advisor, facing the air, choked back tears and sobbed:

"Master Shi, he was killed by bandits while trying to save me. They didn't even leave a whole body behind! Eight cuts! Eight slashes! Those damned bandits! They deserve to die a horrible death! Sir, we must avenge Master Shi!! I'm willing to give up my entire fortune to avenge Master Shi!!"

The man with the blunt stick listened in utter astonishment. This advisor had already started rehearsing ahead of time. These words were probably meant to be said to the people back home. How corrupt! This era needs purification!

"Chen Ye, let me shoot him with my submachine gun, I can't take it anymore."

"Don't rush, look over there, the bandits are coming."

At that moment, the sound of hooves rang out in the distance. Three bandits rode tall horses, followed by more than a dozen ragged men chained together like cattle and sheep being herded.

The leader of the bandits was a short, fat man, none other than Yu Ying. He clasped his hands in a fist and shouted, "Master, the usual price: five taels of silver for a head!"

These poor scapegoats pleaded desperately:

"Grandpa, spare us!" "We've been working like slaves in the mountain stronghold, we've never done anything wrong!"

"Chief, please have mercy! I can still work, I'm still useful!"

A dozen or so people, dressed in rags and looking emaciated, were likely laborers who had been kidnapped and abused by Yu Ying, Song Ping, and others and brought to the mountain.

It's pitiful that they'll become notorious bandits, and their corpses might even be paraded through the streets, despised by the people.

The man with the blunt instrument said in a low voice, "I feel that your world needs purification. What kind of social system is this?"

Chen Ye turned his head and saw that there were three bandits. The others should be lying in ambush in the mountains ahead. He guessed that they didn't need to show themselves since they saw that the clerk had succeeded.

Since he had boasted to Huang Lingxi that he would raze two villages to the ground, he had to keep his word. Chen Ye pondered:

If it weren't for Miss Huang hiding me in her boudoir and saving my life back then, I would have been dead long ago.

My father once said: "As a person, you should put yourself in others' shoes, always be grateful, and repay kindness."

Therefore, Huang Lingxi's kindness must be repaid! The bandits must all be killed!

My master said: Gratitude is in the heart, hatred is settled with the sword! If you encounter injustice that causes you to be haunted by evil, it is not unreasonable to kill it!

Therefore, the county magistrate's affair must be exposed! This corrupt official must be executed! Justice must be served for the people!

Chen Ye tilted his head and said in a low voice, "I heard from Pili that you often win shooting competitions at the Special Operations Bureau?"

"I'm also good at moving targets, but I've never shot a live person with a submachine gun. Today is a memorable day in my career. I still have a body camera in my bag; I'll have to put it on later and give my colleagues a lesson."

"These people probably thought you were a skilled fighter at first. I reckon there are others lying in ambush in the woods. When I start fighting, protect yourself and don't shoot randomly at me!"

"Hmm!" Men Gun tightened his backpack, looking somewhat nervous.

The advisor frowned: "What are you two whispering about? You're poisoned and still so arrogant? Big Mouth, send Master Shi on his way. Remember, cut him eight times."

"Alright." The man carrying the sword strode over, his blade slung over his shoulder.