Chapter 156 Vengeance in the Dark Night

The maid walked in mechanically. Sensing something was wrong, Xu Zhi rebuked her sharply. The maid’s footsteps paused, and she slowly raised her head, revealing a horrifying face.

Her eyes had been gouged out, blood streaming down her empty sockets, and her lips had been sliced away, exposing ghastly white teeth mixed with uncoagulated blood. The sight was terrifying in the extreme.

The maid’s appearance was so grotesque that Lady Li and the maidservant helping with the clothes stared with wide-open mouths, completely speechless.

Xu Zhi, a veteran pirate who had killed countless men and tortured many to death, merely paused for a fraction of a second before spinning around to draw the sword by the head of his bed.

Suddenly, the maid hurled the basin of foot-washing water she was carrying, and Xu Zhi thrust his sword directly into her chest.

Sizz...

As the water splashed across Xu Zhi’s face, white steam rose immediately. Xu Zhi’s eyes went blind instantly; his nose began to melt, followed by his lips, and he let out a shriek of agonizing pain.

Xusheng rushed into the bedchamber from outside, catching sight of a figure from behind, with Lady Li and the maid frozen in terror within. Xu Zhi was struggling in agony on the floor, the flesh on his face melting away to the bone in a disgusting and horrific manner.

"Father!"

Furious, Xusheng drew his saber and charged at the figure from behind.

Needless to say, the assassin had to be the figure standing there.

As Xusheng closed in, the figure suddenly spun around, turning the maid’s mutilated side toward him so that the horrifying face confronted Xusheng directly.

Startled, Xusheng halted in his tracks.

Taking advantage of that fleeting interval, the sword embedded in the maid’s chest was yanked out and driven straight into Xusheng’s heart.

Thud!

With his heart pierced, Xusheng collapsed to the floor, dead.

The maid’s body slumped to the ground, revealing a severely burned face beneath—it was none other than Hou Ping, the Chief Inspector of the Imperial City Bureau.

Having escaped from the pool, he originally intended to flee the city, but Dugu Jiali had deployed troops to surround the place. Failing twice to break through and taking an arrow in the process, he had no choice but to turn back into the city.

Unable to escape for the time being and having suffered such a miserable defeat, Hou Ping was consumed by fury. Under the cover of darkness, he sneaked into the Xu residence to exact revenge on Xu Zhi.

Wielding his sword, Hou Ping turned and severed the heads of Lady Li and the maid.

Outside the courtyard, the remaining agents of the Imperial City Bureau were on a frenzied killing spree, poisoning people in retaliation for the daytime raid.

Having killed Xu Zhi and Fa Yin, Hou Ping vaulted onto the rooftop and sped toward the Prefectural Office.

...

The Yuan Residence.

Yuan Tengfei returned home with a gloomy expression. The steward hurried forward to greet him, asking, "Is the master alright? Many people died today."

Yuan Tengfei sneered, "Damn it! I did all the heavy lifting, but Xu Zhi reaped the rewards!"

The steward asked, "Did the Xu family take advantage of us?"

Yuan Tengfei sighed, "Forget it. Who can blame them when the Xu family has so many treasures? If I possessed the Dragon Pearl, the post of Prefect would be mine."

The steward was utterly bewildered, wanting to ask more but fearing he would displease Yuan Tengfei.

"Has the young master gone to sleep?"

In his forties, Yuan Tengfei had taken more than twenty concubines before finally fathering a son by one of them, making the boy his absolute pride and joy.

The steward replied, "He is asleep. The Thirteenth Concubine is keeping him company."

Yuan Tengfei tossed his weapon to the steward and walked toward the courtyard belonging to his thirteenth concubine.

While the legal wife lived in her own courtyard and the other concubines shared a large courtyard, this thirteenth concubine occupied a private courtyard entirely to herself.

Entering the courtyard, it was dead silent. Eager to see his son, Yuan Tengfei hurried into the room, where a lit candelabra illuminated the interior brightly.

The concubine lay on the bed, holding her son in her arms, covered by a brocade quilt.

Seeing his son, Yuan Tengfei felt that all the hardships of the day were worth it.

He walked softly to the bedside and slowly sat on the edge of the mattress.

The moment his weight touched the edge, a sharp blade suddenly thrust out from beneath the quilt, driving upward at an angle through his ribs straight into his heart.

Yuan Tengfei shuddered, his body collapsing against the bed frame as he looked down at his ribs.

Beneath the quilt, a man wearing an iron mask climbed up. The blade was pulled out from Yuan Tengfei’s ribs, and blood spurted continuously.

Clutching his wound, Yuan Tengfei stared at the concubine and son lying on the bed.

Wuming sneered coldly, "Stop looking, they are both dead!"

With that, Wuming pulled back the quilt; the chests of both the concubine and the child had been pierced through, and the bedding beneath them was soaked in blood.

Yuan Tengfei’s eyes were filled with bitter resentment, but he could no longer muster any struggle.

"You shouldn't have mixed with Long Chen'en. If I couldn't kill him, did you really think I couldn't kill you?"

Stepping down from the bed, Wuming walked over to the candelabra, picked up a candle, and set fire to the mosquito net.

Stepping outside, the sounds of battle echoed through the air—the remaining members of the covert guards were staging a bloodbath at the Yuan residence.

Wuming vaulted onto the rooftop and sprinted toward the Prefectural Office as well.

...

The Prefectural Office.

Zhang Xi climbed out of bed, dried herself with a towel, and put her breastplate and outer tunic back on.

With a look of profound satisfaction, Long Chen praised, "Your footwork is getting better and better, and the pressure is just right—both tender and non-oppressive. Wonderful."

Zhang Xi scornfully retorted, "Shameless!"

After pouring out the hot water, Zhang Xi returned to the room.

"I have a feeling something bad is going to happen tonight."

A sense of unease gripped Zhang Xi’s heart.

Long Chen rose to change his clothes, saying, "The two bandit leaders are still alive; they're bound to cause trouble tonight."

Outside the door, Wu Jian knocked and entered, reporting, "My lord, fires have broken out at the Xu, Wang, and Yuan residences, accompanied by the sounds of slaughter."

"Chen Zu has already led troops to the Xu residence. There are only a dozen of us left here."

Zhang Xi gasped in surprise, "Their retaliation has begun?"

At that moment, the window swung open, and Feng He scrambled inside in a panic, blurting out, "Hou Ping and Wuming are approaching from two directions at once. It seems they've joined forces!"

Zhang Xi’s expression changed drastically. If Wuming and Hou Ping had teamed up, this would be extremely difficult to handle.

Wuming possessed formidable cultivation, while Hou Ping excelled in concealed weapons and poisons. Facing a pincer attack from both, it was uncertain whether they could hold their ground.

Calmly, Long Chen said, "Don't panic. I severely wounded Wuming during the day. As long as we deal with Hou Ping, everything else will be easy."

"Continue leading your men to clear out the covert guards and the Imperial City Bureau within the city. Officer Wu, go bring Dugu Jiali in!"

Feng He immediately vanished through the window, while Wu Jian exited through the door.

Long Chen was left slightly speechless—the door was already wide open, yet Feng He still insisted on diving through the window. Wasn't that a bit too pretentious?

Visibly nervous, Zhang Xi hurried to shut the window again and slid the bolt.

"My lord, we must choose a favorable terrain."

Since Hou Ping and Wuming were attacking simultaneously and Long Chen had received advance intelligence, the initiative rested in his hands.

He could choose the battleground to gain a tactical advantage.

Long Chen closed his eyes to carefully visualize the surrounding terrain and architectural layout, searching for the most suitable battle location.

Because Wuming excelled with short swords, Long Chen needed a spacious terrain to allow his spear to display its full lethality.

However, Hou Ping was skilled in concealed weapons and poisons, meaning a wide-open terrain would favor him.

The two of them actually complemented each other's weaknesses, giving Long Chen a headache.

"The only suitable terrain is the pond next door."

After weighing all the options, Long Chen chose the pond in the Prefectural Office. It featured pavilions and covered walkways, offering a diverse topography that would make it easier to deal with Hou Ping and Wuming at the same time.

"Alright, I'll go make the arrangements."

Zhang Xi turned, intending to lead the elite cavalry guards to set up an ambush first.

Instead, Long Chen stopped her, saying, "There's no need. It's useless for them to go; the two of us will be enough."

The cultivation level of these cavalry officers was merely at the Grandmaster realm, so sending them would be suicide. In a duel between top experts, quality mattered, not numbers.