Who laughs like a decent person

The modest-sized courier station flickered with the glint of blades and swords, instantly transforming into a slaughterhouse.

Zuo Qiuyang’s short sword at his waist was eerily dazzling—a single flash, and a life vanished. The howling of his blade carried a sensation as if ants were gnawing at one’s heart.

“So strong.”

Xiao Qin’s heart tightened slightly. The opponent’s killing intent was overwhelming. In a life-or-death struggle, he wasn’t confident of victory.

His teacher had once said that among his peers, he was considered an exceptional genius. But Old Xiao always felt he was utterly ordinary.

He used to think it was because he was in the Qingyuan Sect, surrounded by outstanding talents. Yet now, barely off the mountain, he had already encountered someone like this.

“So it really is the Lifeless Blade Technique. At his age, he’s already mastered it to perfection.”

The Thousand Forms Martial Venerable let out a soft sound of surprise, equally astonished by Zuo Qiuyang.

“Do you recognize his martial arts lineage?”

“Obviously. If I didn’t, why would I warn you?”

“Teacher, then why didn’t you warn me this courier station was suspicious?”

Xiao Qin retreated to a corner, dodging. Hidden weapons flew chaotically, forcing him to pick up a broken sword and parry.

“These aren’t even unranked assassins.”

“And they’re not here to kill you.”

Xiao Qin nodded. He hadn’t received any notice from the Hall of Swallows, and no innocents had been dragged into this.

But then—

Suddenly, a hidden weapon he deflected pierced through the chest of some unlucky soul.

“That thick-browed guy—I knew he was with Zuo Qiuyang!”

“Kill him!”

A portion of the flashing blades and swords now surged toward Xiao Qin.

The Thousand Forms Martial Venerable chuckled faintly.

“Now they are.”

“......”

Xiao Qin fell silent, forced into the fight.

Both were geniuses of the Inner Breath Realm, capable of fighting above their level. Meanwhile, these disguised assassins didn’t even have a single cultivator at the Jade Liquid stage of the Inner Breath Realm.

The outcome was self-evident.

This skirmish quickly came to an end.

The courier station was littered with corpses. Aside from the fake cook and innkeeper who fled, all the others lay dead.

Zuo Qiuyang heavily slumped back into his seat, wiped the blood from his face, and wordlessly began devouring his noodles—after first shoveling all the beef into Xiao Qin’s bowl.

“Is this your way of saying thanks?”

Xiao Qin sat down, his lips twitching.

Zuo Qiuyang slurped down the noodles and shook his head.

“No. But I’ll give you a piece of advice.”

“Leave now while you still can. The ones coming to kill me next won’t be like these worthless dogs.”

“There are more coming?”

Xiao Qin fell into thought.

But he still had to wait here for someone.

Seeing him unmoved, Zuo Qiuyang frowned.

“Have you heard of the Three Evils of Huai Mountain?”

“I’ve heard of Huai Mountain. There’s a town there, right?”

Xiao Qin shook his head. He had been in the Qingyuan Sect for years and wasn’t well-informed about the outside world. The only reason he remembered Huai Mountain Town was because he had passed through it on his way from Mian River Prefecture to Purple Sun Prefecture.

Zuo Qiuyang’s expression shifted slightly.

“The town… is gone. Not a chicken or dog left. Three years ago, it was taken over by a gang of bandits.”

“Their leader calls himself one of the Three Evils of Huai Mountain—three blood brothers, skilled in joint combat techniques.”

As he spoke, his fists clenched, his knuckles turning white.

“Oh?”

Xiao Qin’s expression flickered.

“The authorities and sects aren’t doing anything?”

He hadn’t seen any related missions in the External Affairs Hall either.

Zuo Qiuyang’s lips curled into a sneer.

“Huai Mountain lies on the border between two prefectures. The Purple Sun officials say Huai Mountain Town is closer to Mian River Prefecture and thus not their responsibility. Meanwhile, Mian River Prefecture claims the town is separated from them by a river, and since the villagers always took their issues to Purple Sun Prefecture, it should be under their jurisdiction.”

“Back and forth they argue. Who knows if they’ve forgotten or just never settled the dispute.”

At this, he glanced at the corpses on the ground and muttered to himself,

“A pity. The Three Evils are just accomplices. The one who killed my master… I still haven’t found them.”

As if resonating with his grief and hatred, the short sword at his waist faintly hummed and vibrated.

The killing intent in the hall surged once more, sending chills down the spine.

“Leave. This is for your own good.”

Zuo Qiuyang’s voice was icy, almost devoid of humanity.

Xiao Qin couldn’t help but feel a weight in his chest.

The Thousand Forms Martial Venerable sighed.

“The Lifeless Blade Technique—it kills others, it kills oneself. It severs emotion and nature. It’s a high-tier martial art of the Drizzle Pavilion.”

“But those who cultivate it rarely meet a good end. Either they die by another’s hand, or by their own.”

“He’s telling you to leave because he’s afraid that once he loses control, he’ll cut you down too.”

Xiao Qin: “......”

Oh. So that’s what he meant by ‘for my own good.’

Zuo Qiuyang said no more, silently gathering his killing intent, steeling himself for the coming battle.

Then—

Three figures emerged through the curtain of rain, drawing closer at an alarming speed.

Thud—

Two wretched figures, looking like tattered sacks, crashed into the courier station, smashing tables and chairs to pieces.

They were the cook and innkeeper who had fled earlier—now barely breathing, their faces twisted in terror as if they’d seen ghosts.

“The Three Evils of Huai Mountain?”

Zuo Qiuyang’s pupils trembled, his mind blanking for a moment, nearly making him pass out.

Thud— Thud—

More figures were hurled inside.

This time, three men with similar features, each with caved-in chests.

Zuo Qiuyang’s face turned to stone.

Xiao Qin smacked his lips and walked to the door.

“Junior Brother Li, is that you?”

“Apologies, Senior Brother Xiao. I’m late.”

A young man stepped inside. Despite arriving through the heavy rain and having just defeated the Three Evils of Huai Mountain—who together could rival an expert at the Mystic Elixir stage of the Inner Breath Realm—he was spotless, looking more like a young noble out for a stroll.

It was Li Mo.

He surveyed the wreckage inside, raised an eyebrow, then rubbed his stomach.

“Where’s the waiter? Hiding somewhere?”

“The waiter’s right here.”

Xiao Qin pointed awkwardly at the ground.

He was the one who’d killed him.

“And the innkeeper?”

“That fat guy you just threw in.”

“So the one next to him… the cook?”

“Exactly. You’re sharp, Brother Li.”

“...What the hell happened here?”

......

A quarter-hour earlier.

A carriage from the Qingyuan Sect traveled harmlessly down the road.

“The people from other sects should already be in the prefecture city.”

“How much longer until we arrive?”

This was Li Mo’s first time driving a carriage down the mountain himself, and he wasn’t entirely familiar with the route. There were no navigation tools in this era, after all.

He lifted the carriage curtain and peered inside.

Ying Bing pulled out a map given by Qian Bufan from her sleeve.

After a glance, she lightly tapped a spot with her slender finger.

Li Mo pondered.

That was quite far.

Why would the meeting point be so distant from the prefecture city?

Then—

Her jade-like finger paused, lifted, and tapped another spot instead.

Li Mo looked up, baffled, to see the ice block pursing her lips, clearly uncertain.

After a moment of silence, she asked softly,

“Not… there?”

“We’re not here to visit family, right?”

“No.”

“Then why are you pointing at my house?”

“......”

Left with no choice, Li Mo decided to ask for directions.

And so, he approached a few figures standing by the roadside, seemingly deep in conversation.

At first, he thought that despite the other person's rather unattractive appearance, they seemed oddly kind.

Upon learning they were lost, the stranger even offered to guide them.

But the moment they reached the inn's entrance, the true nature was revealed—a face twisted with malice.

Then came that eerie, cackling laughter—"Heh heh heh..."

Since when do decent people laugh like that?