Chapter 12 012

If a person who knows martial arts has his eyes blinded, his throat poisoned and mute, his ten fingers cut off, and he no longer has the ability to use weapons, he will most likely lose the motivation to live. If he is unfortunately imprisoned by his enemy, he would wish to die at the next moment.

This is indeed a huge torture.

So... what if the person suffering is an ordinary person?

Lu Xiaofeng leaned over and carefully grasped the woman's wrist. After feeling her pulse, he was shocked again.

"She doesn't know martial arts." Lu Xiaofeng could make this judgment with certainty.

Not only does she not know martial arts, but there is no sign of her having practiced martial arts.

Then he couldn't even convince himself that it was the young Marquis Fang who imprisoned a wicked person who had done evil and abolished her martial arts to make her pay for her past sins.

Lu Xiaofeng was not wrong.

When the imprisoned woman felt someone approaching, her first reaction was fear and avoidance.

But after sensing Lu Xiaofeng's harmless probing, she no longer displayed even a hint of aggression.

That was definitely not the reaction of a villain.

How could this not fill Lu Xiaofeng with astonishment and outrage?

Fang Yingkan, he had turned an ordinary person into this!

He didn't understand why Fang Yingkan, with such a renowned and chivalrous father, and a reputation in Bianjing, could do such a thing in his own garden of exotic animals.

He only knew, and even the people in the martial arts world knew,

that Lu Xiaofeng, known as "Four Eyebrows," always had a penchant for meddling in other people's affairs.

"If I'm not mistaken, this is the person... that Master-Miss wants us to take back."

Sikong Zhaixing had already leaped to his side the moment Lu Xiaofeng made a move.

While Lu Xiaofeng's mind raced, he had already quickly ascertained the woman's situation.

Even Sikong Zhaixing, who prided himself on being more "informed" than Lu Xiaofeng, due to his dealings with a wider range of people, was still deeply shocked.

He immediately understood why Shi Qingruo had said that if he came here, he wouldn't be looking for the wrong thing.

Because...

"Rare and Exotic Animal Garden..." Lu Xiaofeng gritted his teeth, "What kind of rare and exotic animal is this!"

"Go!" Sikong Zhaixing said decisively.

Whether because he had accepted Shi Qingruo's commission or because he still considered himself a human being, he had to get this girl out of here. She couldn't continue to live like a ghost in the backyard of Bujiezhai.

Now was not the time for him and Lu Xiaofeng to delve into the details of this matter. Once they had her abducted, there would be plenty of opportunities to uncover the truth.

Sikong Zhaixing didn't need to say more; Lu Xiaofeng understood his meaning.

In a place like the Shentong Marquis Mansion, it might be difficult to remove a single treasure, let alone a human being.

But so what?

Sikong Zhaixing didn't like to return empty-handed after a visit, and he didn't like that today either.

The sounds from the front yard could still be faintly heard; this was undoubtedly the perfect time to take action!

Sikong Zhaixing quickly grasped the cage's lock.

A master thief, indeed.

Even with Lu Xiaofeng's sharp eyesight, he could only discern a few fleeting movements from Sikong Zhaixing before the iron lock opened and fell into his hand.

Lu Xiaofeng had no time to sigh. Shi Qingruo, having indeed chosen the most suitable person, had already rushed in the instant the cage opened.

Unsure if the poor girl could hear anyone, he whispered, "We'll get you out!" Then, with one palm strike, he struck the earth, and with his other hand, he lifted her up.

Sikong Zhaixing also moved at the same moment.

But instead of joining Lu Xiaofeng in extracting the woman, he reached for the remaining locks.

To this "master thief," Fang Ying looked at the backyard's iron cage as if it were unlocked.

Bang—

"Who is trespassing!"

Sikong Zhaixing didn't turn around, knowing where the distant, approaching sound came from.

Though the noise he and Lu Xiaofeng made wasn't loud, it was obvious to the experts stationed at the Garden of Exotic Animals.

The Marquis of Shentong's mansion was rife with traps, and it was impossible for just two people to man it.

So, what he had to do...

The guard, rushing over, had spotted the two figures beneath the moonlight, and even more so, the man being pulled to his feet by Lu Xiaofeng. His expression immediately changed, and he shouted, "Put him down!"

The young marquis had "put" the man there, precisely to show the consequences of informing the authorities. How could he allow anyone to attempt to rescue him?

These two must not leave here alive!

But the moment he shouted, an equally furious voice lunged towards him.

Following closely behind, a sharp claw, carried by the whirlwind, rushed forward!

He swung his sword without hesitation, but then realized that every beast in the Garden of Exotic Animals was a favorite of Fang Yingkan's, and he quickly restrained his strength.

But the aggressive stance he had displayed earlier was enough to convince the now-free tiger that he was its enemy.

Unable to discern whether to stop or not, it continued its massive body towards him.

And it wasn't just this beast that reacted at the same moment.

Sikong Zhaixing had already opened a dozen cages and, without further delay, reunited with Lu Xiaofeng.

The escaped beasts only obstructed their view for a moment, but that was enough for the two of them.

Without this hindering entanglement, it was their chance to break free!

Their Qinggong skills had already been exceptionally fast, and now, determined to rescue someone, they took them even further, sprinting like ghosts towards the outside of the Shentong Marquis's residence.

But just then, a sharp bamboo whistle rang out from behind them.

"Whoa!"

The sharp, piercing whistle pierced the night sky.

Tiny candles and lanterns quickly ignited at the whistle, gathering in practiced concentration.

Lu Xiaofeng cursed inwardly, thinking it was bad news.

Undoubtedly, the two guards didn't care if they were reprimanded for dereliction of duty and had simply sounded the alarm.

After all, alerting the entire Marquisate to the thief's presence was far better than letting him escape!

...

Fang Yingkan, having heard the commotion, turned back abruptly, his expression equally grim.

As soon as he reached the front yard, he saw the chaotic scene the servants had reported.

A young man with respectable internal skills, but a patchwork of martial arts, carrying on his back a blind woman with astonishing claw skills.

He listened to the command of the little girl in white, and made his retainers dizzy.

It was just these three people who made quite a commotion.

If it weren't for his status, Fang Yingkan would have thought that he should have gone up and killed the little girl with a sword. At that time, the other two would naturally fall by themselves, and they would no longer have the opportunity to run wild.

Not now.

He should have used his identity as the owner of this place and asked someone to take action on his behalf.

However, just as he was about to talk to the adopted son of Fu Zongshu, the Prime Minister, and ask him to ask clearly why his master would stand on the side of the enemy, he heard a whistle in the backyard.

He immediately said: "Stop it, stop the people behind first!"

Fang Yingkan made a decision as soon as the situation changed.

According to the report from the servants, the kid stole the blood of the big snake raised by his retainers and stole some herbs. In the final analysis, those were just small losses.

But the backyard was different.

There were many shameful things there. If he was taken away by someone, he would need to spend some time to suppress the news.

It was clear what was more important.

As soon as he said this, someone responded and chased towards the backyard.

Fang Yingkan had turned back at the same time he spoke.

Ouyang Keben, the young master of Baituo Mountain, had just arrived and had served under Fang Yingkan not long ago. At this moment, he had to close his folding fan, tap the ground and turn around to leave.

The only ones still fighting were Liang Ziweng, the old monster who cared most about his losses, and his few friends.

It should be said that he was really persistent.

The whistle in the backyard of the marquis's mansion and the movements of the young marquis's followers could not make this blood-mad guy react at all.

He stared at the three people in front of him with greed in his eyes. "Smelly boy, give me back my snake blood!"

Guo Jing cried out in his heart.

How could he have thought that he had gone south this time only for his mother's request, to find the murderer of his father and his long-lost brother, but he would be targeted again because of an old incident, and even let the Taoist priest who helped him get poisoned.

He also didn't expect that before he went to the Marquis's Mansion to steal the antidote, the little beggar he had entertained would come to his door, and it turned from Brother Huang Xian to Rong'er.

As for the subsequent sucking of snake blood and the direct confrontation with the opponent, it was even more unexpected.

"I said I didn't do it on purpose. It was you who bought the herbs in the capital that made me unable to save people."

Guo Jing tried to suppress the boiling and disordered meridians at the moment.

But because the snake blood he swallowed was originally a tonic, he couldn't digest it in a hurry, but made his face full of blood-red heat. "If you really want snake blood, you have to wait until I save people before giving it back to you!"

Huang Rong watched from the side, feeling anxious.

After saying goodbye to the mistress of the Mitian League, she did as she said and found the stupid boy who treated her well, ready to help him bravely break into the Shentong Marquis Mansion.

But the people's hearts are treacherous, and she can't easily deal with it with her intelligence and martial arts.

Even if she accidentally discovered that the person here is her senior sister who was expelled from the sect by her father, and used a little trick to let her help, it is difficult not to fall into the same dilemma as now. What's

more troublesome is that although the senior sister's martial arts are high, she has been obsessed with practicing martial arts and can only use Guo Jing as her crutches.

Carrying a person on his back and facing attacks from different people at the same time, this is already a big burden for Guo Jing.

Unfortunately, the overbearing snake blood is still causing trouble. If he hadn't practiced the Quanzhen Sect's internal skills, which are famous for calming the mind, he would have lost his mind and exploded.

But even if he can still hold out now, it is definitely not a long-term solution.

Huang Rong shouted, "Your young marquis asked you to catch thieves in the back, what are you still doing here!"

Liang Ziweng rolled his eyes and said, "First, we will deal with you little thieves, and then go to the back to apologize to the young marquis. Besides, Master Ouyang has stopped entangled with you, a little devil, and has gone to help over there. Even if you have a hundred ways of fighting, it will be useless."

He then shouted loudly, seemingly rushing towards the palm power of the five fingers, but in fact he was still heading for Guo Jing. When

you hit someone, you shoot the horse first, and the same is true now.

He didn't know why the young master of Prime Minister Fu couldn't control his teacher, and why he let her become the helper of the other party, but he knew that the relationship between the female devil and the brat was the same as that between a person and a horse.

Huang Rong suddenly had an idea and shouted, "Brother Jing, don't stop, run to the backyard."

It would be disadvantageous to continue to entangle with these guests of the marquis' mansion.

The chance of turning around and escaping was extremely limited because of Liang Ziweng's aggressiveness.

Instead of doing that, it would be better to try a more unconventional approach.

Although she didn't know what happened in the backyard of the Shentong Marquis's mansion, she knew that it must be something extraordinary to make the young Marquis Fang, who had been bowed to by everyone when he just arrived, change his face.

The more chaotic the situation, the more chances she had to take Guo Jing away.

As for the man Guo Jing was carrying, although he was also a disciple of her father and a disciple of Peach Blossom Island, he had stolen a key martial art and betrayed the island more than ten years ago. He and her husband also became known as the Black Wind Twins in the martial arts world. Even if he was deceived by her and became her helper, there was no guarantee that he would not attack her in return.

Maybe if he was brought to the melee in the backyard, he would have a chance to leave her behind to avoid further trouble.

Seeing that Guo Jing was about to follow her instructions to the backyard, he was forced to stay where he was because of the strength of his "senior sister". He could only take Liang Ziweng's palm and spit out a mouthful of blood in the chaos of qi and blood. Huang Rong was anxious and angry.

"Mei Chaofeng, didn't you ask me where my father was before? He is in the backyard of the mansion. You ignored me, your junior sister, and let these bad guys bully me. Now you see him being besieged by the masters of the mansion. You still want to return to the sect? You are dreaming!"

"Are you serious, junior sister?" Mei Chaofeng was skeptical.

She was blinded in her early years and could only identify the location by sound.

There was no way to tell whether what Huang Rong said was true or false. She could only hear her firm answer, "Of course. Why would I joke with you about my father's safety! If you don't let Brother Jing go with me, my father will be beaten to death by those bad guys."

Mei Chaofeng said angrily, "My master is so good at martial arts, how could he be injured by these people."

But it was true that she still tore through Liang Ziweng's palm wind with a sharp claw, lowered her head and ordered, "Boy, don't leave!"

Guo Jing did not stop to fight and followed Huang Rong's footsteps.

If the situation wasn't so dire, he would have wanted to ask. Huang Rong had clearly said she had fallen out with her family, and her father hadn't come looking for her, so why was she suddenly here?

He probably hadn't seen anyone greet Rong'er before...

Huang Rong glanced at Guo Jing's face and knew what the idiot was thinking. She sighed helplessly.

But seeing several people fighting up ahead, and Liang Ziweng and the others chasing them from behind, he quickly gathered his composure. "Right ahead, charge out with those two."

Never mind their origins.

As they were moving, Huang Rong witnessed this scene clearly.

Young Marquis Fang, who had stepped into the front yard that night, unsheathed his sword. The blood-red blade, surging with terrifying force, struck directly at the assassin holding the victim.

Though barely in his early twenties, Young Marquis Fang possessed a far greater skill than Ouyang Ke, the young master of White Camel Mountain, Fu Kang, Fu Zongshu's adopted son, and even those old monster masters.

The moment the blood-red sword energy emerged, his beautiful face was tinged with a demonic aura.

Had that sword struck her, even with her soft armor, she wouldn't have been able to withstand it.

Yet, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, the assassin, prepared for the attack, extended two fingers, capturing the sword between them. Those

flesh-and-blood fingers, like a unique, impenetrable barrier, blocked Fang Yingkan's Blood River Divine Sword.

Seeing the pursuers approaching again, a cold glint flashed in Lu Xiaofeng's masked eyes.

With a flick of his fingertips, he retreated quickly, reuniting with Sikong Zhaixing.

Unexpectedly, Ouyang Ke, who had followed Fang Yingkan, had been waiting for this moment.

With his ethereal steps, his folding fan, like a blade, stabbed Lu Xiaofeng in the back.

Even with Lu Xiaofeng's swift Qinggong skills, it would have been difficult to escape unscathed from this pincer attack.

But Ouyang Ke's folding fan was swift, and his other five-fingered claws were equally astonishingly fast.

Although Mei Chaofeng couldn't recognize her master in the scuffle, she had already memorized the sound of the folding fan's energy when Ouyang Ke, attracted by her beauty, clashed with Huang Rong.

Knowing this man was an enemy, not a friend, she knew she had to stop him if she wanted to break the deadlock!

This incredibly ferocious claw attack nearly ripped Ouyang Ke's weapon apart. Had he not quickly retreated, he would have been ripped off by the madwoman.

However, as he retreated, a cloud of smoke suddenly rose between him, Fang Yingkan, and the thieves, obscuring their view.

Sikong Zhaixing had made a move!

The moment the smoke rose, Lu Xiaofeng, without even a gesture of approval to his companions, had already activated his energy and leaped forward.

Good coordination.

Their current location wasn't far from the edge of the Marquis' mansion.

The smoke, now released only now, would be enough for them to escape.

As for the three men who had helped earlier, Lu Xiaofeng didn't know their identities, but since they were being hunted together, there was no need to ask at this critical moment; he could simply treat them as half-friends.

"Let's go!" he shouted softly, scaling the wall.

Huang Rong, Guo Jing, and Mei Chaofeng followed in pursuit.

The Marquis of Shentong's residence hadn't anticipated an intruder, let alone the tiger's escape with so many people blocking their way. They hadn't had time to set up an ambush.

Clearly, if they had managed to escape into the streets of Bianjing, capturing them would have been difficult.

However, upon leaping over the wall, they landed not in the back alley of the Marquis of Shentong's residence but in another fog.

This fog, too, hadn't been created by Sikong Zhaixing.

Lu Xiaofeng's composure instantly cracked, and Huang Rong's expression also changed slightly. She grasped a pill in her palm, ready to consume it if the fog proved poisonous.

Before either of them could react, a familiar voice echoed from the mist.

"Madam has sent me to meet you. I'll set up the formation outside the mansion. Please follow me."

This voice was even more familiar to Sikong Zhaixing, who had been in and out of the Misty Heaven Alliance numerous times.

Without hesitation, he dragged Lu Xiaofeng along, quickly keeping pace with him. They made several turns and leaped over several walls before finally emerging from the mist. Sure enough, they saw someone they knew.

Only then did Sikong Zhaixing breathe a sigh of relief: "The Second Saint Master has arrived just in time." Dressed

in a wide gray robe, his figure was lithe and graceful.

It was none other than Zhu Xiaoyao, the Second Saint Master of the Misty Heaven Alliance.

Sikong Zhaixing's greetings and thanks were met with a look of solemnity, visible even on her now maskless face. "Now is not the time to stop. Please follow me through the secret passage back to the alliance."

This residence, not far from the Marquis Shentong's residence, would soon be the target of pursuers. Continuing to flee through the streets would undoubtedly lead to capture, so they had no choice but to take the underground route.

Fortunately, the Misty Heaven Alliance, having been dormant for many years, possessed the skill to forge such a path, which aided Lu Xiaofeng and the others in their escape.

When Fang Yingkan and his men, furiously chasing after them from the mist, were nowhere to be seen, they were nowhere to be seen.

In a moment, they would be at the Misty Heaven Alliance headquarters.

Unless Fang Yingkan wanted to completely change his reputation in the capital, he couldn't, at least not now, storm the Misty Heaven Alliance to capture the "culprit" based on a subtle suspicion.

...

So naturally, he couldn't see. When Sikong Zhaixing, Lu Xiaofeng, and the others emerged from the tunnel, he raised his middle finger in the direction of the Shentong Marquis's residence.

...

"Alright, stop provoking them," Lu Xiaofeng said helplessly, turning to Zhu Xiaoyao and asking, "Is there a doctor in the Mitian Alliance who could come and see this girl?"

The tunnel had been pitch black, and coupled with the inevitable rush of escaping, Lu Xiaofeng could only vaguely sense the girl he'd brought back breathing rapidly. Something was amiss.

Now, finally out of danger and with the light of the candle, he finally looked down. The girl's face was livid, as if some poison had lurked within her and was suddenly activating.

Damn!

She had no fingers, and couldn't speak. Now, curled up in a ball, forcing herself to hold back the pain, she looked incredibly pitiful.

Even with Lu Xiaofeng's knowledge, it was difficult to identify the poison instantly.

He was no expert in poisons after all.

Thinking of this, he dared not delay and immediately repeated loudly: "Send a doctor who understands poisons quickly!"

"Wait, why is it a girl?" Mei Chaofeng blurted out.

Earlier, while traveling in the tunnel, Huang Rong had clearly told her that the person Lu Xiaofeng was holding was her seriously injured master. She had previously attacked Ouyang Ke to rescue him, which was considered a great achievement. When her master woke up, she would definitely clear her name.

She had doubts in her heart, but because she was blind, she could not confirm her doubts. She could only continue to follow.

As she walked, she worried. If her master was injured and unconscious, and still needed someone to carry him, she didn't know what would happen.

She should check first.

And then...how did it suddenly turn into a girl again?

However, before Huang Rong could make up another excuse to fool her, Mei Chaofeng suddenly felt a chill on her back, and even the meridians in her body suddenly began to tremble because of the intuitive fear.

Someone is coming.

No, it should be said that an extremely terrifying master has come.

In this almost immovable deterrence, she heard two footsteps coming from far away.

One of the footsteps was heavier, not like the one made by a martial artist, and the other was the source of her fear.

A gentle female voice rang out among the crowd: "Don't look for a doctor. Saving people is like putting out a fire. Let Brother Qi use his internal energy to force out the poison for her first."

Lu Xiaofeng quickly put the rescued girl on the ground, and saw Shi Qingruo and Guan Qi coming over, as if they had been waiting for them to come.

To Lu Xiaofeng, no matter how many times he saw this Saint of the Misty Heaven Alliance, there was an indescribable deterrence, and it didn't even decrease a bit because he lost his mind.

But now, his unique internal energy has become a life-saving medicine.

With Master Qingruo's request, Guan Qi did not hesitate, and he had already half lifted up the woman on the ground, and a palm full of internal strength had already pressed on her back.

However, in just a few breaths, the face of the poisoned woman changed from blue to white, and then suddenly a mouthful of purple poisonous blood came out of her mouth.

She choked violently for a while, and her face turned red again.

But this performance did not make people hang on the strings again. Seeing this scene, Lu Xiaofeng's eyes lit up.

He would never hear it wrong. In the cough of this woman, there were a few fragmented syllables, which was completely different from the previous silence.

This made him wonder if Guan Qi, while forcing out the poison in her body, also forced out another poison that made her speechless.

Sure enough, when the choking cough stopped, a hoarse voice seemed to have not spoken for a long time, and it was particularly difficult to speak: "... Who are you?"

She was not completely ignorant of the outside world.

When she fled from the Shentong Hou Mansion, she also heard a voice that she hated.

Now, she heard her own voice again after a long time.

Was she dreaming?

Shi Qingruo met those still empty eyes, calmed down for a moment, and then replied: "You can think that we are enemies of the Shentong Marquis Mansion, so I want to know, who are you?"

The woman did not speak immediately.

The moonlight could not illuminate those blind eyes, but only revealed her face full of hopelessness.

Even when she spoke, she did not seem to be communicating with anyone, but just to make herself speak again: "...I am, Fang Yingkan's servant."

"Then why--" Guo Jing was covered by Huang Rong as soon as he spoke.

The two young men did not have much experience in the martial arts world, and had never seen such a tragic scene. They almost subconsciously wanted to ask questions, but suddenly realized that they should not rush.

The woman looked miserable. “Fang Yingkan likes beautiful women and often forces the servants around him to submit to him. He didn’t want to give anyone a reason to blame us, so he killed our families and husbands when he knew we couldn’t escape. The two of us were lucky enough to escape and report to the police, but we were sent back to the mansion.”

Her cheeks trembled, as if the moment she said this, she had returned to that afternoon that was like a nightmare to her.

She watched the tragic death of her companions, and also watched herself...

"He said that I have become like this, living a life worse than death, to warn everyone in the mansion-"

"No one can do the act of informing again."