Knife splashing

Chapter 695 Dark Night Murder

The muscles on Zhang Tiankui's back suddenly tensed up, like a fully drawn bowstring.

This is a sign of the dragon's spine exerting its power.

After all these years on the street in Tianjin, no one has dared to speak to him like this.

Zhang Tiankui felt a surge of anger in his heart and glanced at the people who were blocking his way.

Although the opponents had new flintlock rifles on their waists, with his kung fu, he was only seven steps away and could easily break the necks of the three men before the gunfire sounded, then use their bodies to block the firearms above and break out of the encirclement.

However, the chilling aura wafting from deep within the cargo hold licked the back of his neck like the tongue of a poisonous snake.

Zhang Tiankui's Adam's apple rolled, and he suppressed his killing intent. He raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Brother Wangshe is indeed thoughtful."

He deliberately smacked his lips and dragged out his voice. "I've been running around these days, and my intestines are almost as dry as a rope. Liuji's braised large intestines must be drizzled with garlic sauce, Qingyuanzhai's barbecue must be served with coriander, and Yuanshenghao's soju... hehe, it has to be the aged wine stored in the cellar last year."

"typical!"

The man with gold teeth loosened his hand on the gun handle and gave a thumbs up: "Master Zhang is knowledgeable. Please wait a moment, I will do it right away."

After the gang members retreated, Zhang Tiankui turned around and a cold light flashed in his eyes.

He turned over and lay on the broken bed, staring at the spider webs hanging from the connection of the cargo box.

Above, a green-headed fly was being slowly wrapped up.

It seems that the king snake also has bad intentions and wants to trap him here.

Unexpectedly, he discovered the mastermind behind the incident in Tianjin. Before he could find any way to the Duwei Division, he was trapped in a jar.

After a while, the man with gold teeth came in carrying a vermilion lacquered food box.

The food box was old and dirty, with fresh oil stains on it.

He smiled with wrinkled face, "I'm sorry, Master Zhang, we're busy right now and can't spare any help. We don't have Liu's braised sausage or Qingyuanzhai's barbecue. Please have a bite of the mutton soup and rice cooked on the stove."

Zhang Tiankui looked at me with a playful look, then he picked up his chopsticks and suddenly said with a smile: "Alright! Jianghu food is the most nourishing!"

He ate the rice soaked in broth, the fatty juices dripping down his beard, and swallowed it whole with the spicy soju.

Since we can't get away for the time being, we'll just stay put.

Seeing that he had surrendered, the man with gold teeth looked pleased and turned away.

"Brother Zhou, how is it?"

When we got to the corner, the guard asked us questions.

"What is the Jinmen Wrestling King?"

The man with the gold teeth sneered, "Even a stray dog ​​that has been hungry for three days has more backbone than him."

He suddenly lowered his voice, and the tattoo on his neck twisted as his muscles tensed. "But the gang leader specifically told us not to push him too hard for now. An expert will be here tomorrow. Once his tendons are cut, he won't be able to run away even if he wants to."

On the other side, Zhang Tiankui put his ear against the damp wooden board of the cargo box and breathed very lightly.

Although the conversation in the cubicle was very low, every word of it reached his ears.

"How about that boy?" The voice of the man with gold teeth was filled with anxiety.

"Don't worry, he's still alive."

Another person responded in a gruff voice, "Fortunately we took the initiative, otherwise if that bastard really went to Priest Xuan to inform on us, and Li Yan, the evil spirit, came looking for us, no one would have an easy life. I heard that wherever he walked, no grass would grow..."

Zhang Tiankui suddenly stopped chewing, his Adam's apple rolled, and the fishy smell of the mutton soup suddenly became pungent.

He slowly raised himself up, climbed up by holding onto the wooden board with his hands, and looked through the gap in the cargo box.

In the torture room not far away, torches were crackling and a young man tied with chains was lying in a pool of blood like a rag.

The smell of burnt flesh mixed with the smell of blood came over.

The executioner was cracking his bloody whip and complaining:
"He fainted after three whippings, and then pretended to be dead after being splashed with water to wake him up. There's no way to pry open his mouth!"

As he said this, he made a throat-slitting gesture, "How about."

"Fuck your mother's fart!"

The man with the golden teeth kicked over the bucket beside him and said, "The gang wants that old coffin-stuffing bastard named Wu! Kill this little bastard and the clue will be gone!"

Zhang Tiankui lay back on the haystack silently, his eyelashes trembling slightly when he closed his eyes.

The sunset light that filtered through the ceiling of the cargo hold was fading away bit by bit, and a voice of “Hello, boss” could be faintly heard.

He quickly turned his back and began to snore.

The King Snake is back!
The leader of the Iron Anchor Society had half of his face swollen like a steamed bun, and there were blood scabs at the corners of his mouth.

The man with gold teeth stepped forward but was glared at and shrank back into the shadows.

I saw King Snake walk to the depths of the cargo hold, straighten his collar in front of the door, and force a flattering smile before pushing the door open:

"Forgive me, Immortal. Lord Zhao agreed to meet me at Haidian Shaoyuan tonight at midnight, but..."

He slammed his knees on the ground, "Please move to West City."

Kong Hui, who was sitting cross-legged in meditation, slowly opened his eyes, and red blood lines ran across his pupils.

"Zhao Qingxu, what on earth are you doing?"

…………

If we talk about the representatives of Dongcheng, they are the Grand Canal and the Imperial Academy.

Then West City has a completely different style.

According to the people of Beijing, it is a place where people drink soybean milk beside the execution ground, listen to ghosts crying under the White Pagoda, and dig out gold nuggets from the coal ashes!
Fuchengmen was used exclusively for coal trucks from the west of Beijing to enter the city, and was commonly known as the "coal gate". Every day at dawn, you could hear the sound of "ding-ling-clang" and the gate was filled with coal-carrying camels from the western mountains. The camel bells mixed with the smell of livestock choked people's noses...

Xizhimen leads to the western suburbs, where there are both royal gardens and gentry manors...

The "West Market" at Xisi Archway was used to execute officials and serious criminals, and was called "Punishment in the Market".

Beheading takes place under the west archway, and lingchi takes place under the east archway.

If your head is chopped off, don't worry.

Baita Temple and Guangji Temple are both nearby, so it is a good place to pray for the souls of the dead...

The West City late at night has lost the hustle and bustle of the day.

The moonlight is like water, pouring down on the chessboard-like streets.

Xizhimen and Fuchengmen had already been closed, and only the flickering torches on the city walls illuminated the stern faces of the soldiers on night stand.

The streets were empty, with the occasional night watchman banging his gong as he walked through the alleys, his hoarse voice echoing in the silence.

"The sky is dry and things are dry, be careful with the candles——"

The area around Xisi Pailou is a bustling market during the day, but becomes particularly cold and desolate at night.

Several wooden stakes stood quietly, as if one could still smell the blood.

This is the execution ground where the imperial court demonstrates its majesty, and it is also a dangerous place that people in the underworld avoid.

Many strange stories in the capital are related to this place.

The king snake wrapped his cloak tightly and walked briskly across the official road outside Xizhimen.

The night wind swept across the river, bringing up the sound of water. Under the moonlight, his shadow was stretched out.

The thin Kong Hui behind him seemed to blend into the night, and even the sound of his footsteps disappeared.

"What are you looking at?"

Kong Hui's voice was indifferent, but it made King Snake feel a chill down his spine.

"To be on the safe side, let's see if anyone is following us."

The king snake forced an awkward smile, but he was actually frightened.

Kong Hui walked without making any wind. If it weren't for the shadow under the moonlight, he would almost think that there was a ghost following him.

Even though he knew it, the feeling still made his hair stand on end.

The two of them walked quickly towards Gaoliang Bridge. The night wind swept across the river, bringing up the sound of water.

This is Haidian, named after the shallow lake nearby.

There are many rivers and lakes, so it is also the location of royal gardens and many manors.

"Master, the Shao Garden is ahead."

Wang She introduced in a low voice: "It was originally built by the Mi family, but later the family lost power and this place became deserted."

When I stepped in, I saw ruins and darkness everywhere.

The garden with winding paths is now overgrown with weeds and wild foxes running around.

The rockery and stacked stones are also covered with vines and filled with the constant sound of insects.

There is only a pavilion by the water, with a faint flickering candlelight.

"Master, it's just ahead."

The king snake bowed and didn't dare to come any closer.

Kong Hui said nothing, but strode forward. He made hand gestures, blood in his pupils moved like snakes, and in the blink of an eye he had reached the pavilion.

This was to explore the magic trap, and he was obviously wary of Zhao Qingxu.

I saw the gauze curtains around the pavilion swaying in the night wind.

There were wine and food on the low table in the pavilion, and the person pouring tea was actually a puppet in white clothes, with black smoke surrounding it.

The haunted parade?!
"Friend Zhao, do you think I can be bullied?" Murderous intent suddenly appeared in Kong Hui's eyes.

Since arriving in Beijing, Zhao Qingxu has always avoided seeing him, and now he treats him like a puppet, refusing to even reveal his true identity.

The puppet slowly raised its head and made a hoarse voice: "Fellow Daoist Kong, please forgive me. I have just changed into a new body while practicing my secret method, so it is inconvenient for me to show up."

Kong Hui sneered and narrowed his eyes.

Although he joined the Jianmu organization, it was Zhao Changsheng who often acted as a matchmaker.

The people of Jianmu were scattered across China, each carrying out their own plans and rarely seeing each other.

But no matter what, the people in Jianmu cannot be underestimated.

For example, he himself was one of the ten great masters during the Northern Song Dynasty, and he went into hiding during the Daxing campaign to suppress the Ghost Cult.

This Zhao Qingxu is able to preside over the situation in the capital and his status is even higher than his, so he is definitely not a small character.

Thinking of this, he suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice: "Zhao Changsheng sent a message to ask me to cooperate with you to take the things from Qiankun Academy. Now that the 'Peach Banquet' has been destroyed, the loss is really not small. What exactly is that thing?"

The puppet laughed strangely: "The Momen mechanism can be turned by burning coal, a hundred times faster than human power."

"That's it?"

Kong Hui frowned slightly, "Both 'Jizhou Ding' and 'Peach Club' were abandoned, and it turned out to be a mere agency?"

The puppet suddenly laughed:

"What if that mechanism...has already sacrificed a god?"

When Kong Hui heard this, his pupils suddenly shrank.

Even if the secular gods in Taoist temples are made by Taoist craftsmen, various consecration ceremonies are performed and incense is very popular, it still takes decades to cultivate a secular god.

How can dead things communicate with gods?

In a flash, he suddenly realized——

“Is that the lucky thing that brings about the humane change?!”

The night wind blew hard, the pavilion curtains fluttered wildly, and the sharp howling of wild foxes could be heard in the distance.

…………

The lights in Rouyuan Inn were bright, and no one was asleep.

Wang Daoxuan and Long Yaner lit a lamp and played chess under the Bodhi tree...

Lu San teased the little white fox, lightly touching its ears with his fingertips, causing the little guy to whimper...

Wu Ba was squatting in a horse stance holding a tiger squat cannon. His iron tower-like body did not move at all, and sweat rolled down his knotted muscles.

Wu Qu's revenge had not yet been taken, and he was still feeling angry.

Sharifei kept modifying the firearms diagram.

He deduced the idea of ​​refining firearms into magical tools from the picture album given by Meishan Fajiao. Along the way, it has gradually taken shape. He is just waiting to enter Qiankun Academy and find a few masters to complete it together.

Only Li Yan slowly rubbed the blade of the Duanchen Knife with his fingertips, his eyes fixed on the door.

"Brother Yan, don't be anxious."

Sharifei looked up and advised, "Now that the court knows about it, it will definitely take action."

"I hope..."

Li Yan shook his head slightly, feeling something was wrong.

What they were talking about was the "Jiumen Yinxu".

The "Night Wandering God" and "Peaches" that were infected by evil spirits were produced there, and even Zhao Qingxu might be hiding there.

He had seen the methods used by those people in Jianmu.

Those who can avoid the detection of the underworld and heaven and hide in the long river of history are all difficult old monsters.

Yu Wenhai is dead, and "Jiumen Yinxu" is the only clue.

If the other person runs away, finding him will be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Just at this moment, there were hurried footsteps, and it was Luo Mingzi who hurried in.

Li Yan stepped forward quickly, "How is it?"

Luo Mingzi felt helpless and shook his head slightly.

"what?!"

Sharifei was stunned and stood up, "The evildoer is hiding right under our noses, are we going to just watch and do nothing?"

"It's not that simple."

Luo Mingzi smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty has no say in this matter. The temple priests of the Zongrenfu have forbidden anyone to approach. Those who disobey the order will be executed. They will find a way to investigate and will not allow us to interfere."

Then he sighed, "Master Pei asked me to tell you that this city has a nail every three steps and a mortise every five steps. It's all welded in place by rules. Many times, we are powerless because there are too many eyes watching us."

"Oh."

Li Yan was silent, tapping the scabbard lightly with his knuckles.

Since the other side didn't agree, he lost hope.

At worst, we can sneak in and investigate.

Luo Mingzi guessed what he wanted to do as soon as he saw him, and urged him urgently: "Don't do anything rash. If you want to enter the 'Nine Gates Yinxu', you can only go through the ghost parade. There are city gods parading in the streets at night, and there are secular gods suppressing people everywhere in the imperial city. It's impossible to do that. It's too dangerous."

At this moment, Li Yan's ears moved slightly and he stood up suddenly.

"Someone's fighting in the street outside!"

Before he could finish his words, he jumped out.

He exerted force on his feet, leaped out in three or two steps, flew into the air, and landed on the wall.

Others followed with weapons in hand.

Living here at the post station, it is relatively safe with the guards of the garrison soldiers, but it does not mean there is no danger.

Everyone looked up and saw the flash of a knife in the dark alley in the distance.

A burly man carried the wounded on his back and fought and retreated while being surrounded by dozens of knifemen.

A crossbow arrow from behind broke through the air and an iron chain swung horizontally.

Although the man's fists and feet were powerful and every blow made a bone-breaking sound, he was ultimately outnumbered.

puff!
An arrow pierced his calf and the man fell to his knees.

But by this time he had already rushed out of the dark alley, and his ferocious facial features were clearly visible under the moonlight.

"Zhang Tiankui?"

Sharifei was stunned. "Why did this bastard come to Beijing?"

"Save people first!"

Before he finished speaking, Li Yan's figure disappeared with a swish.

Zhang Tiankui was now covered in blood, his strength had dissipated, and as he saw several knives falling, he felt despair in his heart.

Ding Ding Ding!
Just then, a series of voices rang out.

But Li Yan arrived later than others, raised his Dust-Breaking Sword and cut off all the weapons.

Seeing his face, Zhang Tiankui shouted, "Don't let them go, these bastards... are in the same group with Master Yu Wenhai!"

Upon hearing this, murderous intent suddenly appeared in Li Yan's eyes.

shhhhh!

Two soul-breaking flying knives whizzed out and flew up and down.

The knife lights danced like silver snakes, and screams were heard in the dark alley.

In a blink of an eye, all the pursuers had their tendons cut and rolled over wailing.

Li Yan was about to ask when he suddenly felt a chill on his back. He raised his head abruptly and looked at the roof of the inn in the distance.

Under the moonlight, a thin figure fell from the sky, gently waving an iron fan, with a faint light of blood in his eyes.

Kong Hui!

Li Yan immediately guessed this person's identity.

(End of this chapter)