Inner Demons

Chapter 65: Black Saber

"Is this it?" the man in black asked Meng'e.

His tone was calm and steady, and the hand resting on the hilt of his saber did not tremble in the slightest, as composed as a block of granite.

With such a person by his side, the old man should have been calm. But at this moment, he seemed somewhat agitated.

He glanced at the street corner and said, "...Yes. But there's nothing left... We should still..."

"Evil must not be tolerated," the man in black said. As he spoke, he pulled on the reins, leading the horse and the person on it toward the gate.

Meng'e's legs were already ruined—at least, by common sense, they were ruined. He was almost entirely wrapped in bandages, and his pale hair peeked out from the gaps in the bandages, like withered grass squeezed out of stone cracks in winter.

"That Qiao Jiaming might not even be here..." the old man said again in a hoarse voice. "I think if we consider this matter long-term, we can still..."

The man in black suddenly stopped and turned to Meng'e: "Seven Kills Saber Technique is not cultivated like this."

"You cultivated the Seven Kills Saber Technique before, cultivating the killing intent. But what that killing intent produced was blood courage, bone courage, but not divine courage."

"Seven Kills are like a sharp edge, their keenness unstoppable. It's fine if you cultivate killing intent, but why hide your true abilities afterward? You hid in the Qiao Family for decades, serving as a bodyguard, as a servant. Your edge has dulled, and you no longer have killing intent.""You have cultivated my Seven Kills Saber Technique. When you encounter evil people, you should strike them down. If you don't, your saber will dull."

"Just like the Yamen Runner I met in prison when I took you out earlier. Those people weren't good people either. They tormented you before, then pretended to be friendly. But if it were someone else, they would have died unjustly there long ago."

"They wouldn't be doing this for the first time. If I didn't see it, so be it. But since I saw it, I killed them. This is the unstoppable sharpness, seeking only a clear and unobstructed mind."

The old man tried to interject several times but failed. When the man in black finally paused slightly, Meng'e quickly said, "But, Great Hero Ying... the government people might be chasing us here..."

The man in black smiled, "Those who stand up for evil people are also evil people. If they dare to chase, kill them all."

The old man no longer knew what to say. He could only close his mouth.

This incident happened an hour ago.

An hour ago, the man with the Black Saber... forced his way into the Prefectural Office's prison.

Originally, there weren't many people guarding Meng'e in the prison. Yin Pingzhi, at least, had made two preparations. The day Li Yaosi died, he had someone treat Meng'e's wounds and kept him alive with good food and drink.

He planned to nurse Meng'e back to health in two or three days and then release him. Otherwise, if the ill-fated Li Yunxin saw the old man's miserable state and got angry—Head Constable Yin, although not yet truly afraid to the point of absolute obedience, was indeed nervous.

Therefore, there were only three jailers in total in the prison—all of them were killed by this man.

When he then announced his name, the old man was dumbfounded.

Black Saber, Ying Jueran.

This person... was quite famous in Mingjiang Prefecture, where Weicheng was located.

Previously, he had a dispute with the Six Ghosts of the River and chased them like stray dogs. Before that, he had a dispute with a Head Constable from Songyuan County and killed that official one morning.

This person had no sect or school, and no one knew his lineage. Those who had seen him described him in only one way—black clothes, Black Saber, black horse. His actions were unfathomable, and the martial artists of the jianghu regarded him as "both righteous and evil." Actually, these things were all easy to explain. Martial artists with some skills and arrogant conduct were not uncommon.

What was truly rare was...

No one could trace his origins.

No matter how mysterious a person was, there were always traces to follow. For example, when he walked the jianghu, he always needed money. Those jianghu heroes who frequently drank large bowls of wine and ate large pieces of meat—they were all originally from wealthy families. Ordinary martial artists always had to earn money. Either they became mountain bandits, or they became house guards, or they sought a living in a security company.

But no one knew how this person made a living.

It was never heard where he was from or where he had property, nor was it heard that he had robbed anyone, nor was it heard that anyone was supporting him. Even after he killed the official and alarmed the prefecture, when the authorities thoroughly investigated him...

They couldn't find anything.

This person seemed to have appeared out of thin air in this world.

Now he came to Weicheng, and upon seeing the old man, he immediately asked, "I heard you were called Killer Ghost when you were young, and you used the Seven Kills Saber Technique. Is that true?"

The old man answered yes.

Without a word, he hoisted the old man onto his shoulder and walked out, saying, "Your Seven Kills Saber Technique is actually part of my Seven Killings Art. I heard you were wronged, so I came to save you. I cannot stand evil people. I also heard you were framed—so I will take you to that evil person, kill him, and then take you far away."

Then he placed him on his horse and, under everyone's gaze, galloped wildly, shaking off the pursuit of other Yamen Runners from the prefecture.

They came all the way to the Qiao Family.

He led the horse along the path.

Of course, he saw no one.

After walking for a while, almost reaching the inner quarters, Meng'e couldn't help but say, "Great Hero Ying, this is the inner quarters for female relatives. Young Miss should still be living inside now. You are a man, after all..."

Ying Jueran slightly raised a hand and whispered, "The smell of blood."

With an adult person pulverized and sprayed around the courtyard, the smell of blood was naturally strong. Such a potent smell made Meng'e frown as well. He widened his eyes and exclaimed, "Could it be that Young Miss..."

"Good timing," Ying Jueran's lips twitched slightly. He tightened his grip on his saber and stepped into the courtyard. "I'll show you, the true Seven Kills Saber Technique!"

Half the courtyard was splattered with blood and flesh. A White-robed Youth stood in the center. A black cat, a mouse, a white-furred rabbit, and a red-crested rooster, seeing the newcomers, scurried away to the corner.

The young man stood alone in the courtyard, his lips slightly curved, staring at the newcomers with interest.

Actually, there was also a Cat Demon. However, when Liu Ling arrived, it had already hidden inside the house. Although Lady Sanhua seemed a little simple-minded, in important matters, she was surprisingly not confused—it clearly knew that when facing certain entities, one should shrink into a corner and tremble.

The young man spoke: "I say, both of you..."

But a whistling sound breaking through the air interrupted him—from six or seven paces away, Ying Jueran drew his saber and struck!

Drawing the saber, charging forward, taking three steps to build momentum, and then striking down with force—accompanied by a heroic low roar, this saber strike—

Boom! It struck the bluestone ground!

Li Yunxin moved one step to the left.

"Hey, you've got some skill!"

The saber strike sent shattered stones flying from the ground, and the steel saber collided with the stone slab, emitting a "duo" sound. But Ying Jueran had not used all his strength when striking the first blow; he then twisted his body and unleashed a horizontal swing, sending the saber directly towards Li Yunxin's waist and abdomen!

Li Yunxin tiptoed and retreated one step.

When this saber strike also missed, Ying Jueran retracted his saber and frowned.

"Who are you, sir?" he asked in a deep voice.

"Are you sick, sir?" Li Yunxin's face turned cold, and he retreated two more steps. "Who are you?"