“Who are you all? You actually dare to interfere in our Blackwind Stockade’s business?!” Gu Yueyi crawled up off the ground in a sorry state, wiping the blood off the corners of his lips.

From that brief interaction, he clearly understood that the other party’s cultivation was much higher than his own. His only chance was to pull out the Blackwind Stockade bluff and hope that it could scare the other party off.

“Blackwind Stockade?” The red-haired man’s eyes went wide. He looked around at his brothers-in-arms around him, and burst out in laughter. “There’s nothing wrong with my hearing today, is there? Did he just say the Blackwind Stockade just now?”

The rest of them joined him in his laughter, their eyes full of ridicule and pity.

Gu Yueyi cursed inside, but he couldn’t figure out where the problem lay.

Zu An shook his head. It was truly embarrassing to see scammers screw up so badly.

The red-haired man was none other than Chen Xuan, whom they had met in the Immortal Abode.

He snuck a glance at Qiu Honglei beside him. While she had put on a panicked act, her expression still seemed extremely calm.

Chen Xuan turned to face forward again and said coldly, “I was wondering why the reputation of the Blackwing Stockade seemed to be suffering lately. It turns out it was you fellows who were passing yourselves off as us and ruining our reputation!”

Gu Yueyi’s face immediately drained of color. “You… you are…”

“I’ll let you have the pleasure of obtaining this knowledge just before your death. I am Chen Xuan of the Blackwind Stockade!” the red-haired man declared proudly.

Gu Yueyi swallowed in fear. His eyes darted subconsciously towards Qiu Honglei.

Qiu Honglei’s beautiful brows came together in a frown. She clearly hadn’t expected Chen Xuan to brazenly enter the city in such a public manner, even revealing himself before their very eyes.

“Senior, you should retreat quickly,” she said to him via ki transmission.

“Then what about you?!” Gu Yueyi hesitated. To him, this junior sister was just too beautiful. If she was left behind, wouldn’t he merely be leaving a lamb in front of a tiger’s den? There was no way he could forgive himself for this for the rest of his life.

“I have my ways to deal with this.” Qiu Honglei quickly replied. She urged him a second time to leave.

“I guess there’s no choice then!”

Gu Yueyi gritted his teeth. After all, his life was still the most important. Besides, this junior was a mystery to him, and to everyone else. No one else could see through her normally, so she might truly have some life-saving tricks up her sleeve.

Making his mind up, he leaped over to where Zu An and Qiu Honglei were seated. He held his blade right in front of them. “Don’t come any closer, or I’ll kill them in one move!” he warned Chen Xuan.

Zu An smiled faintly at him. “Bro, didn’t you just say you were Chen Xuan? How did we end up meeting someone with the same name today?”

“Shut your mouth!” Gu Yueyi was both ashamed and angry.

You have successfully trolled Gu Yueyi for 345 Rage points!

He never expected this Chen Xuan to be so formidable. The other party was rumored to only be at the peak of fifth rank, but from their brief exchange, he was clearly at the sixth rank!

Chen Xuan snorted coldly. “I am unrelated to either of them in any way, and yet you want to use them to threaten me?

“That Zu brat, especially. I really want to skin him alive and feast on his flesh. I should thank you if you really do end up killing him!”

Gu Yueyi gave Zu An a look. He never expected that this fellow would have been so good at provoking others, even this Chen Xuan. It seemed that he was most certainly going to meet his maker today. “Even if you loathe this Zu kid, what about Lady Qiu? She is the most beautiful courtesan queen of the Immortal Abode. I refuse to believe that your heart isn’t moved by her!”

Chen Xuan laughed heartily. “What you said is correct. This girl is indeed quite fine, and perfect in every way. I really am quite fond of her.”

Qiu Honglei did her best not to react.

Gu Yueyi was ecstatic. “In that case, let us go, or else I’ll kill her!”

Chen Xuan’s face sunk. “Ask anyone, and they’ll tell you that Chen Xuan has always hated being threatened by others. Even if you kill her, it won’t matter. I have never acted recklessly in my life. At worst, I’ll just do a quick one while it’s still warm, but afterwards, I will definitely skin you alive piece by piece!”

Gu Yueyi stared at him, speechless, and Qiu Honglei had to avert her eyes.

Zu An was also completely stupefied. While it’s still warm?

Was this guy really that much of a freak?

While they were still horrified, Chen Xuan stretched out his hand and clenched his fist. The blade in Gu Yueyi’s hands crumpled like fried dough.

Metal element cultivator!

Zu An already had his suspicions previously.

Gu Yueyi’s reaction was lightning-quick. He grabbed the two companions beside him and threw them at Chen Xuan, while he himself jumped into the river without any hesitation. When his toes touched the water surface, his figure was already several zhang[1] away.

Zu An nodded to himself as he watched. This fella’s movement technique wasn’t bad at all. He could actually move so easily on water. As expected of a fifth rank.

The two sacrificial companions never expected that they would be thrown under the bus by their own people. Shocked and furious, they brandished their weapons in panic, stabbing them towards Chen Xuan in an attempt to survive.

Chen Xuan didn’t bother to dodge. Instead, he took a step forward, letting the long blades strike his body.

Those two were overjoyed at first, but their expressions turned to horror in an instant. There wasn’t the familiar sound of metal entering flesh, but rather the sound of metal striking metal. They could even see sparks fly along their blades.

Unfortunately, this was also the last thing that they would see. Chen Xuan reached out to grab their necks in his large, claw-like hands, and snapped them like twigs. Two corpses fell limply to the ground.

Zu An frowned inwardly. At the instant he was struck, his body seemed to produce a flash of metallic radiance, as if his entire body had somehow turned to metal. The blades didn’t even leave a single trace on his skin where they landed.

Is he completely invincible to blades?

Zu An felt a headache coming on. If this enemy really was invulnerable to bladed weapons, dealing with him was going to be trouble.

Chen Xuan was having none of this. He tried to chase after the escaping figure. Clearly, he had no intention of letting Gu Yueyi go.

Just then, Qiu Honglei stood up, inadvertently blocking his way.

Chen Xuan stopped, his brow furrowing slightly as he looked at her.

Only now that he was so close to her did he discover how frighteningly beautiful she was. His frown immediately unraveled of its own accord.

Qiu Honglei bowed slightly. “I never expected that Stockade Leader Chen would personally make an appearance. There was some negligence on my part back in the Immortal Abode. I must ask the stockade leader to pardon me for that.”

When he saw the high and mighty courtesan greet him so respectfully, her tone humble and obsequious, Chen Xuan’s entire body shivered with pleasure.

“Haha, I won’t blame you for not recognizing me. Lady Qiu has shown me too much courtesy.” As he spoke, he reached out a hand towards her. Her exquisite curves tempted him endlessly. Even the great Chen Xuan, who had enjoyed his fair share of women, couldn’t help but feel his breathing quicken.

“Stockade leader really is a great and magnanimous person.” Qiu Honglei took a discreet step backwards, perfectly evading his touch. “Honglei wishes to prepare another feast in the Immortal Abode. I hope the stockade leader can be at ease, and let me properly offer you my apologies.”

Chen Xuan laughed. “That apology can wait. Let me deal with this little bastard first.”

“Little bastard is cursing who?” Zu An suddenly asked.

“Little bastard is cursing you!” Chen Xuan subconsciously replied.

Zu An smiled. “Indeed, a little bastard is cursing me.”

Chen Xuan’s entire body quivered for a moment, then erupted in unrestrained fury. He reached out a meaty hand towards Zu An’s neck. “Damn brat, die!”

You have successfully trolled Chen Xuan for 444 Rage points!

Qiu Honglei hurriedly pulled Zu An behind her. “Stockade Leader Chen, this young master is my friend. I hope Stockade Leader Chen can be magnanimous and spare his life.”

Zu An was somewhat surprised that she had spoken up for him at such a time.

Didn’t this woman try to scam me just now? Why is she trying to save me now? Just what is she up to?

Chen Xuan snorted coldly. “If it was anyone else, I might have spared them as a favor to Lady Qiu. However, I absolutely must kill this fellow.”

“Why? Was it because I hurt your feelings back in the Immortal Abode?” Zu An was curious to find out. From the moment the other party had learned of his identity, he had immediately contributed a huge amount of Rage points. He had always wondered why.

“Why?” Chen Xuan’s face warped in anger. “Do you still remember Silverhook Casino’s Mei Chaofeng? He was my brother! We depended on each other to survive for so many years. He was such a heroic figure, and yet he was killed through the actions of a miserable brat like you!”

You have successfully trolled Chen Xuan for 999 Rage points!

A flash of insight struck Zu An. “So you are someone from the Shi clan!”

Now, he finally realized what was going on. This guy was Mei Chaofeng’s sworn brother, so there was no way he wouldn’t know about the conflict between the Shi clan and himself. They were clearly two brothers working together for the Shi clan—one outside the city and one inside it; one in broad daylight, and one in the shadows.

Chen Xuan licked his lips, his eyes flickering with a hint of excitement. “What a pity that you learned this too late. Today, I am going to break every single one of your bones, and skin you alive bit by bit, to avenge my pitiful brother!”

Now that he had revealed his secret, all those who had heard it would have to die, which would have included Qiu Honglei as well.

However, she really was too ravishing! He grew reluctant at the thought of killing her. Perhaps, if he dragged her back to the mountains to tend his home, his secret would still be safe.

Zu An couldn’t help but remark, “Just talk normally if you have something to say. Why do you always lick your lips at me? I’m not a beautiful girl. It’s so weird and gross.”

Chen Xuan ground his teeth together audibly.

You have successfully trolled Chen Xuan for 666 Rage points!

Qiu Honglei stared at him in stunned silence. This fella’s mind really was a bit strange. How could he find the nerve to deliberately provoke the other party, especially considering the situation they were in right now?

“Shut your damn mouth! You will soon regret having such a crass mouth!”

With a face as dark and scary as a thunderhead, Chen Xuan rushed forward. A crackling sound seemed to come from within his hands.

Qiu Honglei narrowed her eyes. Her hand discreetly inched towards the lamp hanging nearby.

Just before her pure white hand reached it, she suddenly pulled it back.

Boisterous laughter cut through the night air. “Young lady-killer, what made you run all the way here in the middle of the night? No one will even know if you ended up getting killed here.”

An endlessly alluring figure leapt onto the deck. She landed with considerable force, which made her chest bounce, and the eyes of all of the men on board moved up and down in tandem.

Even though her face was covered, Zu An still recognized Pei Mianman from a single look. After all, her ravishing figure was just too striking.

After Chen Xuan’s initial shock, a smile quickly appeared on his face. “Hahaha, my luck really is too great, running into two astonishing beauties in one day. I’ll be able to enjoy myself every day in the future.”

Even though she was masked, her beautiful eyes and enchanting eyebrows made it obvious that she was also a great beauty.

Besides, with this type of ridiculously gorgeous figure, her face was very much a secondary concern.

When she heard his words, Pei Mianman’s expression became cold. “Mister Chen, you seem to have quite the guts.”

Chen Xuan patted his belly. “This Chen Xuan doesn't only have great guts. There is another thing about him that is even greater!”

“You are courting death!” Even though Pei Mianman normally seemed charming and affectionate, she was still an unblemished young lady. When had she ever had such vulgar words directed at her? A gout of black flame suddenly ignited, sweeping towards the bandit leader.

Chen Xuan’s expression grew wary. It was clear that he sensed the terrifying power of the black flame. He didn’t dare face this attack head on like he did the blades earlier.

Seeing the fight begin, Qiu Honglei hurriedly said, “Thank you female hero for your life-saving grace. There will definitely be a generous reward for your actions in the future.”

After saying this, she dragged Zu An with her into the Brightmoon River, quickly swimming towards the distant riverbank.

“So cheap!” The last thing Pei Mianman expected was for her to leave just like that. Not only that, she had taken Zu An with her too! Unfortunately, her hands were full with Chen Xuan right now, and there was no way to disengage so easily. She could only watch as the two of them drifted further away.

1. Zhang is a unit of measurement equal to 10 chi. It is approximately 3.58 meters, or 11 ft 9 in.