allonlinenovel Chapter 272 Joint
Chapter 272 Joint
"I want to know, what exactly is the purpose of this large group of people from the Wuyi Sect who have absolutely no professional skills coming here to cause trouble? Is it even useful?"
Ji Jiahe disagreed.
"Those who were arrested confessed that they were ordered to come here to cause trouble and assassinate high-ranking officials, with the aim of creating chaos and making our lives miserable."
Jiang Yuheng said.
"Aren't you afraid of our retaliation?"
Mo Yuming frowned as he spoke.
"I reckon Wu Yi thinks his mansion is heavily guarded and he's not afraid of us. In his eyes, we're just a bunch of bumpkins with nothing but brute force. The victories we've had in several battles were just due to the advantage of terrain and natural barriers. Although we were defeated, we're still very resentful. So we're trying to find ways to get revenge."
Jiang Yuheng stroked his chin and said.
"I think these people are just a decoy; they probably have a backup plan. Everyone should be careful when going out recently, and it's best not to show up alone unless necessary. Also, inform Su Yangyan so he can be prepared."
Mo Yuming's expression was somewhat solemn.
"If we want to know Wu Yi's true purpose, just as the young master said, I have a good idea. Let's try it and we'll find out."
Ji Jiahe suddenly said.
“You mean…” Jiang Yuheng looked up at Ji Jiahe.
"Unless Wu Yi doesn't think that way!!! ...
Ji Jiahe was aloof and cold.
“Alright, let’s do it your way. We can take down that stronghold first, and deliberately let a few weaker individuals escape. Then we can close in and wipe them all out.”
Mo Yuming nodded and said.
"Very well, there's no time to lose, order the troops to be dispatched immediately to encircle and suppress them."
In a secluded, isolated building, about twenty people were gathered. They were all meditating in silence, as if waiting for something.
"It's been a whole day, still no news?"
A middle-aged man with a fierce face was starting to lose his composure.
"Who cares? Once the time is up, I'm leaving. It's none of his business."
……
At that moment, the outer door opened, and a man dressed in embroidered brocade robes walked in. He looked around at everyone and said:
"Tonight's operation targets the Ji Family Fur Merchants Association. Act swiftly; leave no survivors. Take whatever you can; destroy what you can't!"
"Alright, tonight we can finally stretch our muscles!" the burly man shouted.
"No need for tonight, we can do it now!"
Just as the group was chatting and laughing, an untimely snort drifted into the room.
"Who's there!" The man in brocade robes standing in front of the door suddenly turned around and shouted.
The people in the room also stood up alertly.
"Put down your weapons, seal your meridians, and come forward to surrender, and we may spare your lives!"
A man dressed in black stood on the street outside the building and shouted loudly.
"Damn it! The governor of Great Xia has discovered us!"
"We're surrounded. What do we do? Fight our way out, or..."
"Let's escape from the backyard and head towards the north gate. There are many alleys there, which are good for hiding! Let's charge together!" The man in brocade robes drew his steel knife and commanded.
"Kill! What are you afraid of? We're here to kill anyway! Charge!" The burly man raised his ghost-head knife and charged outwards!
"what!"
The burly man had just stepped outside when a crossbow bolt pierced his left ribs from the side, striking him directly in the heart. He fell face-first to the ground outside the door, unable to move.
"shoot!"
At a command, arrows rained down from all directions into the room like a swarm of bees. Those inside scrambled to dodge and weave, fighting their way to the backyard, but few could escape the barrage. After a dense volley of arrows, only a few of the more skilled fighters remained unharmed, and they fled through the backyard. The Falcon Guards and the National Guard pursued relentlessly, and in the end, only three managed to break free of the guards' encirclement, escaping into a small alley and hiding in a corner to avoid capture.
"Where is this? Which way should we go?" a thin old man asked.
"I was in such a panic that I didn't know where I am. I'll have to wait and see what's around me before I can find out. For now, we can only hide here for a while," said the man in brocade robes who was in the lead.
"Hey, are you warriors from the Kingdom of Zheng Lan?"
Just then, a ragged little beggar, about fifteen or sixteen years old, peeked out from the end of the alley and called out to them in a low voice.
"Who are you!"
The man in brocade robes held his sword across his chest and said warily.
“I am the cousin of the Lord of Wuqing City. After Zhongyuan City was occupied by the Su family, all the Wu family gentry who were unable to escape were killed. I happened to be hunting outside the city at the time and escaped the calamity, but all my relatives were gone, and my house and property were confiscated. I had no choice but to wander the streets,” the little beggar said.
"You're actually the heir apparent? Why don't you go to Zhongdu? Or seek refuge with other relatives? Why are you a beggar?" the man in brocade asked suspiciously.
“My family was killed, and everything I had was gone overnight. How can I just walk away from such a deep-seated hatred? I will wait for the right opportunity to kill that Su fellow and avenge myself!”
The little beggar said fiercely.
"How do you know we are from the Kingdom of Zheng Lan? And how did we happen to meet here by such a coincidence?"
The man in brocade robes leading the group was indeed a seasoned veteran, and he was skeptical of the little beggar's story.
“I was once a noble prince myself, and I’ve met many of the upper echelons of the Zheng Lan Kingdom. Your brocade robes are a popular style of dress among the nobles of Zheng Lan Kingdom. That’s why I recognized you at a glance. As for meeting you here, it’s because I’ve been wandering around this area; this is my territory. I spotted you as soon as you ran into the alleys!”
"Where is this? How do I get to the North Gate? How far is it from here?" the man in brocade asked.
"You haven't told me who you are, so why should I tell you? And why are you being chased by government troops?"
"Since you are the crown prince, I will tell you! We are warriors sent by the Zhenglan Kingdom to assassinate the current city lord of Zhongyuan City. However, our whereabouts were accidentally exposed, which is why we were chased here by the government troops. We want to go out the north gate to meet up with our companions and then devise a new action plan."
"This is West Street. You've gone the wrong way. If you want to go to the North Gate, you need to take that street. But the city gates are definitely sealed off now, and the North Gate will be heavily guarded. You can't escape through the North Gate! Besides, your cultivation levels aren't very high, are they? You're not even at the Heavenly Rank. Why would the King of Zhenglan send you to assassinate someone? Isn't that just reckless?"
"Although our cultivation level isn't high, we can still challenge one or two cultivators with higher cultivation levels than us without much difficulty!" the thin old man said confidently. This peak Earth Rank cultivator was quite annoyed by the little beggar's disdain.
"You might be able to defeat one or two opponents of the same level, but what about a duel against a Heavenly Rank expert? There are Heavenly Rank experts guarding this Central Plains City."
“We also have Heavenly Realm experts, but according to the plan, they are hidden in the shadows,” the man in brocade robes said.
"Let's go, I'll take you to a safe place to settle down for the time being!"
"Are we just supposed to hide here and wait to die? Where are those two Heavenly Realm experts? How can we rejoin them?"
In a low, thatched hut behind a narrow alley, three people huddled in the dim, musty-smelling room. After the little beggar left, the middle-aged man with the hooked nose couldn't help but speak.
“Those two Heavenly Realm experts won’t join us. They have another mission. They’ll be lying in ambush in a secret place, only making their move after we cause a disturbance. Our current operation has almost failed. I’ve heard that the Ji Family Chamber of Commerce also has several peak Earth Realm experts, making it very difficult for the three of us to launch a successful sneak attack. So we need to find a way to contact the Heavenly Realm experts and discuss a new plan of action.”
"How do we contact them? We're completely unfamiliar with the terrain here, how are we supposed to get in touch with them?"
“As originally agreed, we would leave a mark at the North Gate and then wait for them to come to me. So we need to find a way to get to the North Gate.”
"The streets are full of soldiers; we can't get out at all!"
"Didn't that little beggar say he'd come back later? Why don't we ask him to contact him for us? We can give him a few copper coins as a reward; he'll be overjoyed!" the skinny old man said.
"It seems that this is the only way!"
……
An hour later, the little beggar returned as expected, bringing them bad news: Zhongyuan City was under lockdown; entry was permitted, but exit was not, and everyone entering the city was subject to strict checks. Anyone suspected of wrongdoing would be arrested and interrogated.
"Young man, we have a favor to ask of you. We will repay you handsomely once it is done!" the man in brocade said tactfully.
"I have a principle: you have to pay me first and explain the details beforehand. I don't do things haphazardly. What do you want me to do? Please make it clear first."
"Money is no problem, you can pay first. It's not dangerous. All you need to do is mark a spot at the north gate, then wait somewhere. Someone will come to meet you, and you can lead them to us."
“I can mark the way, but I dare not go and meet unidentified people. Who knows if the person I'm meeting will be in danger? Or what if you kill them to cover it up after the deed is done? I have no relatives or friends in Zhongyuan City right now. I'm not going to do anything risky. You'd better find someone else to do it!”
After speaking, Mo Yuming, disguised as a little beggar, was about to leave.
"Believe it or not, I'll kill you right now!" The skinny old man walked over with a grim face.
"You heartless bastards! I even found you a hiding place. You'd kill someone over the slightest disagreement! I should have just let you be arrested by the soldiers in the first place!"
"Don't listen to him, we mean no harm. Here are ten copper coins, and I'll pay you another ten after it's done. The people who will meet you are two Heavenly Rank experts who are traveling with us. I guarantee you'll be absolutely safe!" The man in brocade quickly stopped the thin old man and spoke amicably to Mo Yuming.
"Meeting Heavenly Realm experts? Where? I'm not going to those high-end hotels or shopping malls. In my current state, the people there would beat me to death. And what do they look like? How would I know who they are?"
Mo Yuming took the bronze shell and said.
"That's easy. The rendezvous point is across the street from the Refiner's Association. No one there will chase you away. Also, just wrap a two-foot-long, three-finger-wide strip of blue cloth around your arm, and someone will come looking for you! Then you can bring them here!"
"Alright, since you're brave warriors who have killed our enemies, I'll risk making the trip. Otherwise, I wouldn't go even if you gave me a hundred copper coins!"
After saying that, Mo Yuming left as instructed by the man in brocade.
"Brother, why are you so impatient! What good does it do to get angry at a little beggar? You almost ruined everything!"
"I just couldn't stand the sight of that little beggar. Something about him seemed off, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it."
The skinny old man said with a gloomy face.
"He's just a little beggar. He may have some basic martial arts skills, but they're all just amateurs. You're not afraid of him, are you? That must be a misconception caused by your previous defeat. There are beggars like him everywhere. I think he's quite ordinary. Besides, no matter how incompetent Zhongyuan City is, they wouldn't send a teenager to approach us, would they? And how would they know anything about us?" the man in brocade said.
"I also think there's nothing special about this little beggar. You're overthinking it!"
"I hope so!" The old man said no more.
Across from the Refiner Association, Mo Yuming sat idly on the side of the street, a blue cloth strip tied around his arm.
At this moment, an old man dressed in a black robe walked past Mo Yuming, glancing at him intentionally or unintentionally before walking away. A short while later, a middle-aged man dressed in fine clothes, resembling a wealthy merchant, approached Mo Yuming and said:
"I have a piece of black iron that I want to forge into a precious sword, but I don't know where to find a weapon refiner. Could you please show me the way, young brother?"
"The Weapon Refiners' Association is right across the street. Just go to them if you need a sword. Why bother me?"
"I just want to find someone who isn't in the association."
"Then come with me!"
This was the code word they had agreed upon beforehand. After making contact, Mo Yuming led the middle-aged man who looked like a wealthy businessman toward the alley. The old man in the long robe came out from a side alley and followed behind them at a leisurely pace. Mo Yuming naturally knew that the two of them were a group of people, and they were the two Heavenly Rank assassins.
After wandering around, the three arrived at a secluded alley. Ahead lay the low, thatched hut.
"They're all inside, you can go in, I'll stay outside and not go in."
After Mo Yuming finished speaking, he stepped aside and let the two of them go on their own.
"Since you're here, let's go in together!" The old man in the long robe stepped back, intending to force Mo Yuming inside. Just then, the door to the outhouse opened, and a middle-aged man in brocade robes walked out, followed closely by an old man with a white beard.
"Elders, I have been waiting here for quite some time!" the man in brocade said with an unnatural smile.
"General Guo, what do you want with us? Why didn't you follow the original plan and instead came to this godforsaken place?" asked the man dressed as a wealthy businessman.
"We were ambushed at our rendezvous point and suffered heavy losses, so we had no choice but to hide here."
"Who is that old man behind you? I don't think I've ever seen him before!" the old man in the long robe said, staring intently at the old man behind the man in the brocade robe.