The night was shrouded in darkness.
The sounds of battle and shouting drifted from the distance, carried clearly on the night wind.
In the humble alley, all doors were shut tight, and no one came out to watch the commotion.
Even the curious ones, at most, were like Su Mu, peeking out through the crack of their doors.
In this day and age, curiosity could get you killed. The common folk knew well what kind of trouble to stay away from.
'That's the direction of the South City Bureau.'
Su Mu perked up his ears, listening to the commotion from afar, his heart pounding with alarm.
'When did the world become so chaotic?'
'Someone actually dares to attack the South City Bureau?'
'What kind of place was the South City Bureau? That's practically the district government office.'
'Who could be so audacious?'
Just as he was thinking, Su Mu suddenly saw a figure dash into the alley.
By the dim moonlight, Su Mu saw the figure leap over the wall and into the first house in the alley.
'It's the Liu Family's house!'
Su Mu's heart lurched, and he instinctively moved to unlatch the door and rush out.
His hands were already on the bolt when he froze.
'These thugs dared to raid the South City Bureau. Could my fledgling saber skills possibly be a match for them?'
'If I just rush out there, not only will I fail to save the Liu Family, I'll end up getting myself killed too.'
'Maybe they're righteous heroes, robbing the rich to give to the poor. They might not hurt Liu Hai and his family. After all, Liu Hai is just an ordinary cook, and the Liu Family isn't wealthy.'
Despite these thoughts, Su Mu still felt uneasy. He crept back inside and grabbed the mulberry wood longbow he kept beside his bed.
Slinging his quiver over his back as well, Su Mu carefully climbed onto his own roof.
Just after Su Mu got onto the roof, a sudden scream erupted from the Liu Family's courtyard.
Lying on the roof, Su Mu saw a girl of sixteen or seventeen run out of the room, only to be grabbed by the hair by a large hand and brutally dragged back inside.
Su Mu recognized her as Liu Feng's cousin. He believed her name was Liu Hongyu.
His expression suddenly darkened.
"Help!"
Just as Su Mu was hesitating whether to act, a woman ran out of the room, screaming.
She had barely made it halfway out the door when a blade pierced through her chest.
The screaming stopped abruptly. The woman collapsed on the threshold, and blood instantly stained the ground red.
"Damn it! I was just trying to hide for a bit, but you had to force my hand."
A gaunt figure stepped over the woman's corpse and appeared in the courtyard, dragging a disheveled girl by her hair.
The girl struggled desperately, and her vigorous movements inevitably led to some revealing glimpses of her skin.
The gaunt man, who had a terrifying blue birthmark on his face, licked his lips.
"Don't you worry, little lady. Once I've dealt with that fellow named Xing, I'll take you back to the stronghold. I didn't expect to run into such a beauty on this trip out. You'll just about do as my village chief's wife."
As he spoke, his large hands shamelessly groped Liu Hongyu's bottom.
Just then, the sound of whistling air was heard.
Xing Zhao Fu had already arrived with several constables, drawn by the sounds.
"Kill him!"
He kicked down the Liu Family's main gate, let out a roar, and charged forward, swinging his saber.
The third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold let out a strange cry and shoved Liu Hongyu in front of him.
Xing Zhao Fu didn't hesitate for a moment. His Constable Saber descended with a vicious whistle, showing no regard for Liu Hongyu's life.
"I haven't had my fun with her yet! Can't let you just chop her up like that. What a terrible waste!"
The Black Dragon Stronghold's third leader cried out again, leaping back with Liu Hongyu in his grasp to dodge Xing Zhao Fu's ruthless slash.
At that moment, the constables who had followed Xing Zhao Fu attacked with their sabers from the left and right.
PSH!
Even with his formidable strength, the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold couldn't dodge all the Constable Sabers.
His right shoulder was instantly cut, the wound so deep it reached the bone.
Martial Artists in the Body Tempering Realm were still vulnerable to being surrounded. If there were enough attackers, even ordinary people could pose a threat to them.
"Trying to outnumber me, are you? You think you're the only one with men?"
Wounded by trash he looked down on, the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold flew into a rage. He pursed his lips and let out a sharp whistle.
"Third Leader!"
Shouts came from the distance as several figures vaulted over walls and roofs, rushing to his aid.
However, they brought a tail with them.
They were all constables from the South City Bureau.
"Catch!"
Seeing one of his men approach, the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold tossed Liu Hongyu to him. "Take my village chief's wife and go! I'll cover your retreat."
A cold, venomous glint flickered in his eyes, like a snake's.
After suffering such a loss today, he was determined to kill a few constables before leaving.
"Get him! Whoever kills him gets a reward of thirty taels! If you die, your family gets a pension of a hundred taels of silver!"
Xing Zhao Fu ignored everyone else, his eyes fixed on the Black Dragon Stronghold's third leader as he bellowed.
Great rewards make for brave men. The constables howled and charged forward.
Meanwhile, the Black Dragon Stronghold bandit slung Liu Hongyu over his shoulder. While the third leader drew most of the attention, he sprinted towards the city gates.
Outside the city, men from the stronghold were waiting to receive them. As long as he got out of the city, he would be safe.
'The third leader sure is lucky with the ladies. I wonder if he'll let the brothers have a taste after he's had his fill.'
He didn't notice a figure standing up on a roof ridge in the darkness.
TWANG!
The sound of the bowstring was drowned out by the clamor of battle in the chaotic night, drawing no one's attention.
THWACK!
An arrowhead suddenly protruded from the Black Dragon Stronghold bandit's throat, and his eyes bulged.
His momentum carried him forward two more steps before he collapsed to the ground with a THUD.
Liu Hongyu was thrown to the ground, and a heavy body immediately landed on top of her, crushing her until her vision went black.
Several breaths passed before she came to her senses. She reached out and shoved the corpse off her. Her hands felt slick, and when she looked, she saw they were covered in blood.
Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted from fright.
Before she closed her eyes, Liu Hongyu vaguely saw a somewhat familiar figure leap down from the roof, land in front of the bandit's corpse, and reach out a hand.
Then she passed out completely.
Su Mu glanced at Liu Hongyu, his heart calm. He quickly looted the corpse, pulled out the Feathered Arrow, and with a flicker of his body, vanished into the darkness.
'As for Liu Hongyu, I've already saved her once. The rest is up to her luck.'
Meanwhile, the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold was bathed in blood, surrounded by five or six corpses.
But he was still surrounded by seven or eight constables, along with Constable Xing Zhao Fu.
He never expected these good-for-nothing, gluttonous constables to be so brave this time.
'I miscalculated! I should have fled the city right after setting the fire instead of provoking Xing Zhao Fu!'
He was filled with regret.
But now it was too late for regrets.
Seeing Xing Zhao Fu's expression, as if he'd slept with his wife, the third leader knew he wouldn't get away today without shedding some serious blood.
Reaching into his robes, a pained expression flashed across his face.
"Xing Zhao Fu, you just wait! This isn't over!"
The third leader roared. With a flick of his wrist, he pulled a black, infant's-fist-sized sphere from his robes and slammed it onto the ground.
BANG!
The black sphere exploded on impact, instantly releasing a cloud of black smoke that spread to cover an area several yards wide.
The black smoke carried an unbearable, rank stench.
Xing Zhao Fu instinctively shut his eyes, feeling a stinging pain in them as his stomach churned.
By the time they emerged from the black smoke, the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold was long gone.
"You just wait, Xing! If I don't see your family ruined and dead, then I don't deserve to be the third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold!"
The third leader of the Black Dragon Stronghold staggered forward, one hand clamped over his torso. Blood oozed between his fingers, dripping continuously onto the ground.
His face was contorted in a savage snarl, his eyes filled with venomous hatred.
Xing Zhao Fu's desperate attack had already wounded him, and then came the suicidal onslaught from the other constables. He didn't even know how many wounds he had now.
A few of the cuts had even come close to piercing his internal organs.
He fought back the urge to faint and stumbled onward.
'I absolutely cannot pass out now.'
'If I collapse inside the city, I'm as good as dead.'
'Get out of the city. As long as I can get out of the city, I'll be fine.'
The third leader dodged the constables searching for him everywhere and ducked into a quiet, dark alley.
Just then, the moon emerged from behind the clouds.
A dim ray of moonlight shone down. In the alley, a figure looked up in astonishment at the third leader who had just vaulted in.
The third leader froze for a moment. This was clearly a squalid alley in the slums. 'Why is someone out here in the middle of the night?'
"Die!"
A vicious look flashed across the third leader's face. Though gravely injured, he could still crush a mere commoner.
Just as he raised his foot to kick, the unexpected happened.
PFFT!
Before he could move, a cloud of white powder flew into his face.