Chapter 626 - 454: Just Making an Oath of Allegiance_2

"Damn it, you filthy peasants, don’t come near!" Zhao Mingtang shouted in terror.

"I’m from the Zhao Family. If you dare kill me, you all..."

The next moment, Zhao Mingtang was engulfed by the furious crowd, and his voice abruptly ceased.

Seeing that Zhao Mingtang was about to be killed by these villagers from Riverbend Village.

Zheng Yi suddenly said coldly, "Don’t kill this person just yet, leave one alive for me."

As the villagers of Riverbend Village abruptly dispersed, Zhao Mingtang was nearly unrecognizable. His entire body was stained with blood, his face twisted with red, black, and green bruises, exhaling more than inhaling.

Although he successfully stopped the villagers of Riverbend Village, Zheng Yi knew that the anger that had just been provoked would not subside so easily.

The Zhao Family’s issues were resolved, but there were still those guards who had been knocked unconscious earlier.

"Leave none of them alive!"

As soon as Zheng Yi finished speaking, two guards lying on the ground jumped up and started to run away.

Apparently, they were just pretending to be unconscious earlier.

Knowing that Zheng Yi intended to leave none alive, they could no longer maintain the facade.

Though their movements were fast, the bloodthirsty villagers of Riverbend Village would not let them escape easily.

Due to the overwhelming difference in numbers, the two escaping guards were quickly caught and beaten to death.

As for those unfortunate ones who were knocked out, they had no chance of waking up again.

Zheng Yi slowly walked up to Zhao Mingtang and looked down at him.

Covered in blood, Zhao Mingtang painfully said, "You... won’t die a good death..."

Zheng Yi snorted coldly, "You Zhao Family members have committed every evil deed imaginable, ruling the world for so many years, and who knows how many commoners you’ve forced to death?"

"Even if there’s no good death, it won’t be me, anyway."

"Enough with the nonsense, now answer my questions."

"Pah!" Zhao Mingtang spat out a mouthful of phlegm mixed with blood.

Zheng Yi had already anticipated this and dodged before Zhao Mingtang could act.

"Wrong answer!" Zheng Yi’s cold voice rang out, and he kicked Zhao Mingtang’s arm, resulting in a crack as his arm broke.

"Ah!" The shrill scream was so piercing that even the bloodthirsty villagers of Riverbend took pity upon hearing it.

"Why did you come to Riverbend Village?" Zheng Yi’s icy voice resounded once more.

"I am... hissing..." Zhao Mingtang, a rich playboy, couldn’t endure the harsh torture.

Initially, he believed he was doomed and didn’t fear Zheng Yi’s interrogation. But when Zheng Yi merely broke his arm, the intense pain made Zhao Mingtang utterly fearful.

So, when Zheng Yi formally began asking questions, Zhao Mingtang had no intention of concealing anything.

However, having never endured such pain, when he opened his mouth, it tugged at the wound, causing him to be unable to speak fully.

In the time it took for him to gasp, he felt an even more intense pain than before in his hand.

Zheng Yi, growing impatient, directly crushed one of Zhao Mingtang’s fingers.

At this moment, Zhao Mingtang was drenched in sweat, his clothes nearly soaked through. The pain was so intense that his face was turning purple, and he didn’t dare scream.

"Stop it, I’ll answer whatever you ask, just don’t come near me, you demon!"

Two consecutive frightful displays completely subdued Zhao Mingtang.

"Why did you come to our Riverbend Village?" Zheng Yi asked.

Having suffered the previous pain, Zhao Mingtang dared not hesitate despite the agony.

"I just came hunting on the mountain when I found traces left by others, so I followed the trail here."

"When I saw there were people in your village daring to poach, I planned to teach you a lesson."

"I just wanted to teach a lesson, really didn’t intend to kill anyone. Please, you have to believe me," Zhao Mingtang tried hard to seem sincere, hoping this killer would spare him.

"Who knows you came to our Heshan Village?" Zheng Yi continued questioning.

"Not many should know, I came out hunting..." In the middle of his sentence, Zhao Mingtang couldn’t finish his words.

Realizing someone went back to report, both this murderer and those peasants didn’t plan to spare him.

Now that it was clear no one knew he would be here, the other side would surely be ruthless!

Zhao Mingtang became anxious, "You really can’t kill me. I’m a direct descendant of the Zhao family. If you dare kill me, you’ll definitely regret it!"

Zheng Yi nodded at Zhou Kunshan, "He’s yours."

Zhou Kunshan hurriedly knelt on one knee, "Yes!"

He stood up and walked menacingly towards Zhao Mingtang, who lay on the ground desperately trying to back away, as if wanting to distance himself from Zhou Kunshan.

But at such a snail’s pace, how could he evade?

Zhou Kunshan stood in front of Zhao Mingtang, feeling momentarily conflicted.

He never expected that so soon, he would have to do something like this.

"Blame yourself for being a Zhao Family member." Zhou Kunshan raised his fist and slammed heavily towards Zhao Mingtang.

The latter didn’t let out a sound.

His whole head was smashed open by a single punch from Zhou Kunshan, sending red and white matter flying everywhere, creating a terribly shocking scene.

Even the villagers of Riverbend were amazed, let alone Zheng Yi.

He merely intended for Zhou Kunshan to stain his hands with the Zhao members’ blood as an initial pledge.

Who would have thought that in his zeal to show loyalty, he’d cause such a spectacle?

Of course, to others, this scene was bloody and cruel.

But to Zheng Yi, it was nothing significant.

After all, he had killed more people directly and indirectly than all who inhabited Riverbend Village combined could imagine.

"Clean this place thoroughly, don’t leave any traces. The Zhao Family might have a way to track it here."

"If anyone asks, just say you haven’t seen anything."

"Investigators would never think it was us who took out Zhao Mingtang and his entourage."

That night, Zheng Yi crafted a "Qi Concealment Technique" and gave it to the people of Riverbend Village.

As their strength rapidly increased, it was bound to attract unnecessary attention.

This "Qi Concealment Technique" would make them appear to have at most middle-stage Qi Cultivation, and unless a Golden Core stage expert carefully probed with divine sense, they wouldn’t discover their real cultivation level.

After dealing with the Zhao Family members, Zheng Yi relentlessly prepared the next plan.

Prior to mobilizing an army, gather intelligence.

The first thing Zheng Yi needed to understand was specific information about this mine they were in.

The person managing this mine was Zhao Tianming.

Although his last name was Zhao, like Zhao Qing, they weren’t really Zhao Family members. They were merely granted the surname as a form of appeasement.

The mine had a total of ninety-seven guards.

Though the number seemed small, among them were eighty cultivators at the peak of Qi Cultivation, sixteen at early-stage Foundation Establishment, and one guard leader at the peak of Foundation Establishment.

These people constituted the entire defensive force of the mine.

The rest were some like Zhao Qing, responsible for the support of several villages,

as well as the accountant in charge of managing the books.

Ninety-some individuals as a defense force, it seemed not too numerous.

But this was a cultivator’s world; with cultivators wielding absolute martial power, ordinary miners couldn’t hope to compete.

Reviewing the detailed records of the mine, Zheng Yi’s lips curled slightly, "Sure enough, this mine isn’t directly managed by the Zhao Family; I shall unceremoniously claim it."

Zheng Yi had long formed a plan against Zhao Tianming.

However, since Zhao Tianming was away reporting to the Zhao Family and wouldn’t return to the mine for some time, no matter how many strategies Zheng Yi devised, he could only wait patiently for the right time.

Zheng Yi wasn’t idle during the waiting period.

He had Zhou Kunshan and others gather all useful information as much as possible.

Every guard’s approximate cultivation level, along with their identity and background. Also, he inquired about the conditions of other villages mining alongside them.