Stranger Danger

“Cough… It’s your victory.”

Viscous, bright red blood dripped down Duan Zipao’s lips as he coughed. His aura was so weak it felt like a breeze could snuff it out.

There was no fear on the Leopard Commander’s face, however. He said, “You won’t kill me though. After all, I’m your only ticket out of this mess.”

Ye Qing too was coughing incessantly because of the Black Sky Divine Palm. He was trying to heal his injuries using his powerful vigor and vitality, but the effects were minimal.

“If you kill me, you won’t escape. But if you keep me alive, there are many ways I can be useful,” Duan Zipao declared. “Release me, and I will help you escape Tian Yong.”

“You’re… right.” Ye Qing covered his mouth and coughed again.

An arrogant, disdainful smile appeared on Duan Zipao’s face. That was his final expression before a thin red line appeared on his neck.

The Leopard Commander’s head fell right off his shoulders and rolled several times on the ground like a watermelon. When it came to a stop, his widened, frozen eyes were staring straight at Ye Qing.

“But I don’t need you.”

Ye Qing never even bothered to look at Duan Zipao. With the wave of his hand, he withdrew the original fog back into his body.

When the fog cleared, and weak sunlight through the clouded sky, a field of corpses greeted countless eyeballs.

Most of these people were just obeying orders.

Most of them were perfectly innocent.

But they tried to kill him, so he killed them in return.

That was all there was to it.

There was no such thing as an innocent enemy.

Clatter clatter clatter!

It was at this moment companies of men filed out of the city gate. They looked as numerous and endless as the sea itself.

It wasn’t long before they skidded to a halt, however. Why?

Because everyone on the battlefield except one was dead.

Because so much blood was pooling on the battlefield that it looked like a lake of blood.

Because Duan Zipao was embedded deep within the city walls, headless.

And because standing opposite of them was a pale-looking young man whose spine stood as straight as a sword.

Veteran or greenhorn, the blood drained away from everyone’s face. Words couldn’t describe how they felt at this moment.

“Ye Qing…” A white-faced commandant asked the young man slowly.

“That’s me.”

Ye Qing slowly focused his gaze on the commandant and caused him to grow even whiter.

“Did you… kill them?” The commandant asked with a shiver.

This wasn’t the first time he saw a field of corpses, but never from the loser’s perspective. This was definitely the first time he lost so many comrades.

It was an unfamiliar, infuriating, and terrifying feeling.

“I did. And not just them. I killed your Leopard Commander as well,” Ye Qing declared with a smile. He looked like a white flame in a dark night; pale but brilliant.

“You cannot escape. Surrender and die.”

The commandant was the commandant for a reason. He slowly suppressed his emotions, found the killing intent nesting within his heart, and growled, “Draw your weapons, men!”

His order snapped the shocked and terrified soldiers out of their reverie. They hurriedly unsheathed their weapons as per ordered, but their movements were disjointed, and some of them even broke out in whimpers.

It was clear they were shaken by what they saw.

“I don’t think so.”

Ye Qing’s eyes slowly turned red and translucent like amber. He raised his right arm and made a grabbing motion.

In that moment, every drop of blood on the battlefield slowly floated into the sky and formed a literal river of blood. As the river kept growing, the bodies slowly shrank, and the ground returned to its natural color.

What happened next was something that would haunt their dreams for many, many years to come. Ye Qing opened his mouth, and the river of blood poured into his stomach.

He, a mere man, had devoured an entire river.

Ye Qing’s aura shot through the roof. If his presence was a candle flame before, now it was a forest fire that dyed everything within several hundred meters of him red.

The Hengshan soldiers felt suffocated in mind and body. Their blood was bumping against their blood vessels as if it had a mind of its own, and their energies were all over the place.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Those weak in cultivation or willpower even collapsed to their knees or blacked out on the spot.

“You wouldn’t follow me if you know what’s good for you.”

The corners of Ye Qing’s curled into a bright, refreshing smile. But because of the hellish background, it looked like the smile of the most horrendous demon.

“But if you did, I would welcome you with open arms. I can always add more bodies to my grave.”

A light chuckle escaped his lips, and the unholy light churned like a tidal wave. His hands clasped behind his back, Ye Qing turned around and slowly walked away.

They didn’t give chase. They didn’t even dare to make a sound. They simply stared at Ye Qing’s back as if they weren’t watching a human, but a demon.

The Hengshan Army was famous for their discipline and fearlessness, but right here and now, they looked like a broken quail.

The commandant gripped his saber so hard that veins were popping on the back of his hand. His lips were quivering as if he was desperate to open his mouth.

In the end though, he didn’t raise his saber, nor did he say the words he thought he wanted to say.

When Ye Qing was completely gone, and the red space enveloping the world finally faded away like a mirage, every soldier let out a sigh of relief and collapsed on the ground. They felt weary beyond imagination despite not having done anything.

The commandant slowly closed his eyes and let go of his weapon. When he sighed, it looked like he had aged a decade in an instant.

He couldn’t believe it, but Ye Qing had intimidated them all. They outnumbered him several hundred to one, and even the greenest among them was a war veteran who would not hesitate to throw their lives away on the battlefield. And yet Ye Qing still managed to scare them into inaction with just words.

What a joke!

It was at this moment three silhouettes dashed out from inside the city. They were none other than Chu Qingge, Granny Ghost and Grandpa Wasp.

“Did… Did Ye Qing do all this?” Grandpa Wasp exclaimed in disbelief when he saw the field of corpses. His eyes widened even more when he saw Duan Zipao’s headless torso and wide-eyed head. “He killed even the Leopard…?”

“Yes.” The commandant nodded stiffly.

“What happened to the bodies?” asked Granny Ghost with a small quiver in her voice. She noticed that every corpse on the battlefield except Duan Zipao’s head had shriveled as if their blood was sucked dry.

Was it a coincidence? Or did Ye Qing skip Duan Zipao’s head on purpose?

“The ‘Blood Demon Sutra’?!” Chu Qingge mumbled while furrowing her brows a little.

The others might not know what martial art Ye Qing had used to drain the bodies dry, but not her. She was there when he received the inheritance after all, and as far as she was aware, it was the only martial art he possessed that could perform such a feat.

Ye Qing had told her that he only received a small portion of the Blood Demon’s inheritance, but now, it would seem that he hadn’t told her the truth.

“What did you say, Your Highness?” Grandpa Wasp snapped out of his daze and asked.

“It’s nothing.” Chu Qingge shook her head and asked the commandant, “Where is Ye Qing?”

The man answered woodenly, “He left.”

He didn’t escape. He left.

“He left?!” Grandpa Wasp erupted in anger and disbelief. “What are you waiting for then? Let’s pursue him already!”

The commandant simply bowed his head and said nothing.

“When did Ye Qing leave?” Chu Qingge asked, “Which direction did he go?”

The commandant pointed and answered, “He left just a short while ago.”

“The Yong River? Is he trying to escape by water?” Chu Qingge’s voice gained a note of urgency. “Grandpa Wasp, Granny Ghost, let’s go!”

The commandant hesitated for a moment before saying, “Your Highness, Ye Qing is a formidable foe. Even the Leopard Commander had perished in his hands. I would strongly urge you to wait until the general has arrived before you go after him.”

“It’s fine. Ye Qing couldn't have defeated the Leopard Commander without suffering some grievous injuries. I doubt he has the strength to handle all three of us combined,” said Chu Qingge while glancing at the commandant. Then, she took off in the direction Ye Qing had left while Granny Ghost and Grandpa Wasp were following closely behind.

“Grievous injuries?”

The commandant wouldn’t stop repeating the words like he was ill even after Chu Qingge was long gone.