novelraw Chapter 145: A Swarm of Snakes
Chapter 145: A Swarm of Snakes
After what had happened at the entrance of the Medicine Fragrance Pavilion, so much time had already passed, yet no one from the yamen came. The Four Great Families hid behind the crowd and did not dare step forward either.
How could Xu Zhen not understand what that meant?
The web of connections he had painstakingly built was worthless in front of the Yulong Gang.
The County Magistrate did not dare show his face.
The yamen pretended not to see.
The Four Great Families all became quails, trembling and silent.
Because everyone knew they could not bear Yang Feiyue’s wrath.
Four Martial Artists had died at the hands of the Yulong Gang’s hall master.
The Medicine Fragrance Pavilion was sealed in airtight by a group of the Yulong Gang’s inner disciples.
Xu Zhen could only come down from the upper floor.“So you are Wangchuan, the hall master of the Yulong Gang’s Huishui County hall? Impressive indeed. I did not expect my four Martial Artists to be unable to stop a mud-legged nobody who crawled out of Blackstone Village.”
…
Su Wangchuan frowned slightly.
“In the Five Poison Sect branch helm, what role are you?”
“Deputy Helm Leader.”
Xu Zhen smoothed the creases of his sleeve with slow, deliberate movements, unhurried to the point that he did not seem like a martial man at all.
“You truly have some nerve. The Five Poison Sect openly attacked my Yulong Gang, and yet you still dared remain in the county seat…” Su Wangchuan sneered. “Do you really believe that because we are in the county seat, we would not dare touch you?”
“The Yulong Gang’s might is something I have witnessed today. Kill me or flay me—do as you please.” Xu Zhen did not even intend to resist.
Su Wangchuan turned and gave an order.
“Bind him and bring him back to the hall.”
“Yes!!”
A group of inner disciples moved at once.
Xu Zhen did not resist at any point.
He could have fought, but Su Wangchuan’s throwing knives had dispelled that notion.
After all…
He was only at the level of a formal Martial Artist as well.
Su Wangchuan did not touch the Medicine Fragrance Pavilion.
Since his objective had been achieved, the rest was best left to the county yamen.
If he seized every benefit for himself, the County Magistrate would be displeased.
That was also what Instructor Yu and Constable Wu had quietly warned him.
This group returned to the hall in imposing fashion. Hard on their heels, Instructor Yu and Constable Wu led men over to seal off the scene, remove the four corpses, and post an official seal on the Medicine Fragrance Pavilion.
Within the crowd, a plainly dressed man narrowed his eyes to a thin slit. After casting a cold look toward the Medicine Fragrance Pavilion, he turned and slipped into the depths of the crowd, vanishing.
…
Su Wangchuan reported back to Yang Feiyue, stating that he had destroyed a Five Poison Sect foothold, killed four formal Martial Artists, and captured the Deputy Helm Leader, Xu Zhen.
Yang Feiyue quickly sent people over to interrogate him and extract intelligence about the Five Poison Sect’s arrangements.
Xu Zhen did not say a single word.
No matter how they beat him or tortured him, he only stared at the moonlight outside, a faint, indistinct smile at the corner of his mouth, as if he felt no pain at all.
“Damn it!”
“Are all Five Poison Sect people this sinister?”
“I even brought out the branding iron, and that bastard Xu did not make a sound.”
A veteran interrogator explained,
“He understands poison and medical principles. Most likely, before he was captured, he already took medicine and used acupuncture to seal off his sense of pain… But it does not matter. Those effects are temporary. Once the time runs out, no matter how hard his mouth is, it will soften.”
“Save your strength for the second half of the night.”
Inside the interrogation chamber, the men responsible for torture soon lay down one after another and fell asleep.
The smile on Xu Zhen’s face deepened, and the ferocious killing intent in his eyes overflowed uncontrollably.
“Time…”
“It is almost here.”
“Come.”
“Come out.”
A low hum escaped Xu Zhen’s throat, like the sound a venomous snake made when it flicked its tongue.
At that exact moment, Zhao Heiniu, who had just finished resting and was about to take the night watch, abruptly stopped. He tilted his head and listened. In the next instant, he sensed something wrong. With a burst of 《Lightfoot on Grass》, he ran up the wall and swept onto the top of the hall’s outer wall…
In the darkness, there seemed to be a rapid sound drawing close.
A cold, rancid stench spread through the air as well.
“Snakes!”
Zhao Heiniu’s face changed. He shouted at once:
“Enemy attack!”
“Ergou! Yuhui!”
“Get everyone up and defend!”
The hall instantly erupted into motion.
Patrolmen and hidden sentries woke the other inner disciples.
In a flash, torches and lanterns blazed, turning the area bright.
More people saw it now.
Venomous snakes were spreading toward the hall.
They poured in through the front gate, the back gate, dog-holes in the walls, and the drainage channels.
More and more snakes.
“Bows!”
“Hurry!”
Chen Ergou ran to the Weapon Room to distribute arrows.
Wang Yuehui saw that outside the main gate, huge numbers of venomous snakes were swarming across the docks, apparently coming from the water routes. He immediately shouted:
“Hurry, pour the realgar!”
“Circle the hall!”
They could not allow too many venomous snakes to enter.
Bai Yuhui had already logged off at the first moment and summoned Su Wangchuan and Hong Kaibao.
Fully armed, Su Wangchuan climbed onto the rooftop and looked down.
The hall was already surrounded by thousands upon thousands of venomous snakes.
Inside the hall, venomous snakes were everywhere as well.
They flicked their tongues and darted about.
The inner disciples were so frightened that they could only retreat to higher ground while drawing their bows.
Seeing this, Su Wangchuan immediately thought of the Snake Elder. He gritted his teeth.
“Could it be that the Five Poison Sect’s Snake Elder has entered the city?!”
“Damn them!”
“Brothers with lightness skills, get everyone up onto the rooftops!”
Su Wangchuan shouted the order.
One after another, the inner disciples were pulled up onto the roof, away from the snakes’ threat.
Then Su Wangchuan saw that Physician Liao at the infirmary only calmly sprinkled a layer of realgar powder around the doors and windows. The snakes would not approach.
He let out a breath.
But as he looked at the swarm outside the hall, another thought struck him.
Was this not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?
“Wang Yuehui!”
“Lead the brothers who know lightness skills and bring every last arrow from the Weapon Room and storehouse up to the roof!”
Wang Yuehui understood at once.
The hall master intended to cultivate on the spot.
Su Wangchuan held a bow in one hand and nocked an arrow with the other, easily pinning a venomous snake in place. He said, “Today, even if we have to shoot until our arms break, we will leave every snake the Five Poison Sect sent here behind! Afterward, we will boil snake soup for the brothers and stew snake meat to eat!”
“Good!”
“Boil snake soup! Stew snake meat!”
The inner disciples answered in unison.
In an instant, an arrow storm flew.
Most of them lacked accuracy and repeatedly missed.
But it did not matter.
A ready-made training opportunity was right here.
For Su Wangchuan, this was a perfect chance to harvest Experience Value.
He drew again and again. At close range, he hit every shot.
In the distance, venomous snakes continued to pour out of the water onto the docks, throwing themselves forward in endless waves, drilling toward the hall.
They climbed along beams and pillars.
Within the hall, the swarm was dense—spectacular in its sheer scale.
Outside the docks, many people were startled awake, only to be bitten by snakes or frightened into slamming their doors shut.
Su Wangchuan shot rapidly and relentlessly.
One arrow, one snake.
One arrow, two snakes.
The Experience Value for 《Archery》 and 《Hundred Paces Piercing the Poplar》 surged upward without pause.
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