Chapter 357 - 215: Aristocratic Family (6)

Chapter 357: Chapter 215: Aristocratic Family (6)

Yao Zhizhang’s face was as dark as still water. He watched Scholar Fan spitting with rage, his eyes growing colder by the moment, and said nothing.

Seeing this, Scholar Fan understood everything. Overcome with grief and rage, he cried out:

"Yao Zhizhang! Back at the academy, you were so full of passion, rallying our classmates! You said you would become a good official and champion the people. Look at what you’ve become!"

Yao Zhizhang finally snapped. He slammed his hand on the desk, shot to his feet, and roared:

"Do you think I... You fool! So naive! You fool!"

He pointed a furious finger at Scholar Fan and commanded:

"For disturbing the court, beat him! Twenty strokes—no, fifty!"

The government officials on either side dragged Scholar Fan away and began the punishment. How could the frail Scholar withstand such a beating? Before ten strokes had landed, his head lolled to the side, and he was dead.

Yet even in death, his eyes remained wide open in a furious glare at Yao Zhizhang. He hadn’t uttered a single plea for mercy.

"My Lord, he..."

A government official said in a low voice, cupping his hands toward Yao Zhizhang.

Yao Zhizhang strode down into the courtyard. He looked at Scholar Fan, who had died with his eyes open, and clenched his jaw, snarling:

"Worthless peasant! Take him away! Get him out of here!"

He waved his hand impatiently, took a few deep breaths, and struggled to compose himself. Then, he summoned an advisor.

"The matter with the river guild—has it been dealt with?"

"It’s been arranged. They’ve all been..."

The advisor made a throat-slitting gesture, and Yao Zhizhang’s expression softened slightly as he nodded.

He paced around the office, shaking his head.

’I don’t know where those two came from. Never mind. Everything must be wiped clean.’

Yao Zhizhang returned to his study, gathered all the incriminating documents, and set them ablaze, burning every last one to ash.

The firelight flickered across his face, casting it in shifting light and shadow.

...

’We actually lost him...’

Xie Yuan and Situ Qin came to a stop on a mountain path. They had pursued him for dozens of miles, yet instead of closing the distance with Mr. Qian, the gap had only widened until he finally vanished into the mountains.

Xie Yuan slammed a fist into his palm in frustration.

"It’s my fault. I didn’t have the stamina. We shouldn’t have lost him!"

He had fought in battle after battle, always leading the charge, and had repeatedly used techniques from the Cloud Dragon Step, even moves like Sweeping Through a Thousand Soldiers. The toll on his energy had been immense, and after sprinting for dozens of miles, his stamina was beginning to fail.

Xie Yuan had only just broken through to the Second Transformation Realm. While they hadn’t crossed blows with Mr. Qian, his power was likely even greater than Elder Liu’s. Even if he wasn’t at the Third Transformation Realm, he had to be extremely close. With him having no intention to fight and focused solely on escaping, neither Xie Yuan nor Situ Qin could keep up.

Situ Qin shook her head.

"Don’t blame yourself. The Qian family’s Gentle Breeze Step is an ancient and supreme movement technique, by no means inferior to the Cloud Dragon Step. If you hadn’t been sharp enough to spot him, he might have slipped away among the others. Who knows what would have happened then."

Xie Yuan sighed and asked:

"Were you able to recognize which member of the Qian family that was?"

"I couldn’t tell... The Qian family has no shortage of experts. There are far too many masters in the Second and Third Transformation Realms."

Situ Qin said with a sigh of resignation.

Xie Yuan exhaled and nodded.

"The Qian family... I’ll remember them. Forget it. Let’s head back to Wu River and take a look."

Since they had lost their target, the two of them started back the way they came.

They had lost the lead here, but there was still Yao Zhizhang back in the county. Mr. Qian had escaped in this direction, so it was impossible for him to get back ahead of them to silence his co-conspirator.

The two of them hurried back to Wu River and went straight to the side gate of the county office. As they were about to enter, they saw several government officials furtively carrying a body out and placing it on a cart.

Xie Yuan glanced over, and his eyes shot wide. He dropped his concealment, instantly appearing beside the cart for a closer look. It was the very same Scholar Fan they had met before!

Shocked and enraged, he seized one of the government officials by the collar and demanded:

"What happened? How did he end up dead in the county office?"

"Wh-who are you..."

"Speak!"

"Er, Scholar Fan caused a disturbance in the courtroom, so the County Magistrate ordered him to be caned. But he couldn’t even take a few strokes..."

Xie Yuan straightened up abruptly, his fists clenched and his face tight with fury.

The day was truly too dark in Wu River.

In a flash, he vanished, leaving the government officials to stare at one another in stunned silence.

The quickest to react paled and dashed into the government office, but another, whose eyes flickered with a different kind of understanding, slowly began to push the cart away.

In the study, Yao Zhizhang was confirming with his trusted advisor if there were any loose ends left to tie up. He asked again for confirmation:

"Those travelers from the inn—the river guild has taken care of them all, yes?"

"They’ve all been drowned. Every last one. Along with the members of the guild who knew about it."

The advisor said with a sinister smirk.

Yao Zhizhang nodded in satisfaction. Just as he was about to say more, he saw his advisor’s eyes bulge. The tip of a sword protruded from his chest, and he collapsed to the floor, revealing Xie Yuan behind him.

He paled in terror, stumbling back a step as he shouted:

"Who are you, killer! What do you want?"

"...Did you just say you murdered those travelers after all?"

Xie Yuan was using his real appearance now. He stared at Yao Zhizhang, his voice tight with suppressed fury.

Yao Zhizhang studied his face, then said uncertainly:

"You’re Shi Yuan of the Justice Sect...? You actually dared to come back!"

"Why wouldn’t I? I came back to take the life of a corrupt official like you."

Xie Yuan’s expression was grim. He and Situ Qin positioned themselves to block any escape from the study.

Yao Zhizhang’s expression shifted, and his tone softened.

"Young man, let’s talk this through. You don’t want to do this."

"Tch! Go say that to the people you’ve murdered!"

When Xie Yuan thought of the innocent travelers he had struggled to rescue from the fire, only for them to be drowned in the river, his chest tightened with a suffocating pressure.

’Was it my fault for not being thorough enough? But there were still so many people back at the farm. If I hadn’t acted decisively...’

’But in the end, it was all for nothing. I didn’t save anyone.’

’Not a single one.’

He pointed his long sword at Yao Zhizhang and said coldly:

"What was this whole spectacle for? What were you trying to do?"

Yao Zhizhang felt the overwhelming killing intent rolling off Xie Yuan. His face went pale. After a moment of silence, he said flatly:

"Only Mr. Qian knows the details and the true purpose. I was just responsible for coordinating everything. Didn’t you ask him?"

Xie Yuan looked at Yao Zhizhang. It didn’t seem like he was lying, but Xie Yuan’s patience had reached its end. He inhaled sharply.

"If you’re useless, then you can die."

"Wait!"

Seeing Xie Yuan slowly raise his sword, Yao Zhizhang began to panic, raising a hand to stop him.

"Do you have any idea who I am? You dare attack me?!"

Yao Zhizhang had hoped Xie Yuan would ask, but seeing him utterly unmoved and the sword about to come down in the next second, he spoke in a desperate rush:

"I’m a disciple of the Yao family of Jinling!"

Xie Yuan’s sword paused. "So, a child of the Jinling Yao family," he said ominously.

Thinking Xie Yuan was hesitating, Yao Zhizhang’s arrogance surged. He puffed out his chest.

"Allow me to introduce myself." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

"I am a disciple from the Qishui branch of the Jinling Yao family. My family name is Yao, my given name is Zhizhang, and my courtesy name is Shengwen."

"If you make things difficult for me, you will be making an enemy of the Yao clan of Jinling! Think of the consequences!"

"I understand that young people are hot-blooded. But this matter is of great importance. Now that you’ve ruined it, I can choose not to pursue the issue with you. You should run for your lives. Stop waving your swords around here. I won’t hold this against you, but the great figures from the main family... I can’t say the same for them. They may already be on their way."

"You’re young and inexperienced. You think you can fight a thousand-year-old clan on passion alone. I, too, was once... Heh. Young people are so naive. You have no idea what kind of power lurks beneath the surface of a family name that has endured for a millennium."

"Now go! You wouldn’t dare touch me, would you? You dare to oppose the Yao clan of Jinling? You should take a good look at who you are!"

He reached out to swat Xie Yuan’s hand away, intending to knock the long sword aside. But Xie Yuan simply made a minute movement, guiding the sword forward, and Yao Zhizhang’s hand slapped right onto the blade’s edge.

THUMP. THUMP. Two of Yao Zhizhang’s fingers were severed, dropping to the floor.