I'll write a manual called the Sunflower Manual, and the entire martial arts world will turn in

One-Eyed Dragon was a seasoned江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) man who

He recognized the owner of those eyes—

It was Xie An.

The young master of the Moxiang Bookstore, a poor boy who lost his parents, was just a lowly commoner paying incense money on a sampan.

But... it was too late!

Xie An pressed down on the hilt of the sword at the one-eyed man's waist with his left hand, and thrust the dagger forward with his right hand, piercing the one-eyed man's chest like a piece of tofu, hitting his heart squarely.

Click!

A single blow to the heart!

This action was all too familiar to Xie An.

Over the past few days, Xie An has been using straw men in his home as targets, practicing piercing the heart, brain, and throat... no less than 100,000 times.

He knew every detail, from which angle to insert it into the chest, and which rib gap to avoid.

This move was nothing more than turning the scarecrow into a living person.

There are no other differences.

The moment his heart was pierced, the one-eyed man froze, then abruptly looked down at the chilling dagger in his chest.

The blade was completely embedded in his chest cavity, leaving only the hilt exposed, gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

Blood flowed from the blade, soaking the clothes and dripping onto the ground with a "drip-drip-drip" sound.

He tried to shout, but no sound came out.

He tried to draw his sword, but his hand was held firmly down.

He could only stare wide-eyed at Xie An's sinister and icy gaze.

There was no anger, no hatred, not even pleasure in those eyes—only calmness.

Like killing a chicken or slaughtering a fish, doing something perfectly ordinary.

"Hehe~"

Blood gushed from the corner of the one-eyed man's mouth, and his legs slowly gave way, causing him to kneel before Xie An.

His hand was still gripping the hilt of the knife, but he no longer had the strength to draw it. Blood flowed more and more from his chest, and his consciousness began to fade…

"Bang!"

The moment Xie An drew his dagger, the one-eyed man fell forward to the ground, his face buried in the pile of fallen leaves.

Xie An kicked the one-eyed man twice, and only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the man was completely lifeless.

"I remember the wallet was in One-Eyed's arms."

Xie An bent down and rummaged through the one-eyed man's corpse, then pulled out a large cloth bag.

The moonlight shone on the cloth bag, and the silver inside clinked together, making a dull sound.

Upon opening the cloth bag, one finds a large pile of copper coins and a handful of loose silver.

A rough estimate would be a little over twenty taels of silver.

"This method is still the fastest way to make money. It wasn't in vain that I waited so long for this day..."

Xie An stuffed the cloth bag into his arms, then squatted down and began searching the other five men.

Compared to the one-eyed man, these men were relatively poor.

They managed to scrape together less than two taels of silver.

Even a mosquito's leg is still meat...

Xie An accepted them all, then glanced around.

The dark forest path was deserted. Only the night wind rustled the leaves.

Xie An dragged six corpses into the woods, beyond which lay a deserted stretch of the Huai River.

Xie An found large stones on the riverbank, tied them to the corpse with vines, and then threw them into the river.

Compared to the piranhas in the canal, there are even more ferocious fish in the Huai River, which will devour everything in less than a day.

After disposing of the body, Xie An broke off a large branch with densely packed paper strips and cleaned up the drag marks and bloodstains along the original path.

After confirming that no trace had been left behind, Xie An threw the branch into the weeds and left as if nothing had happened.

……

Huichunlou.

Although it was the middle of the night, the restaurant was brightly lit, and the sounds of string and wind instruments filled the air.

The curtains of the private room upstairs were lowered, letting in a dim candlelight, and the air was filled with the aroma of wine and perfume.

The door to the innermost room was ajar. A short, stout middle-aged man sat in a grand chair, with a heavily made-up girl in his arms, and was bringing a wine glass to his lips.

The fat man was wearing a silk robe, had a round face and small eyes, and looked like a Maitreya Buddha.

But those who know him well know what lies beneath that smiling face.

His name is Chen the Abacus, the accountant of the Dragon King Gang.

He's also the third leader of the Dragon King Gang!

A big shot who can cause an earthquake in Wuqiao Town with a stomp of his foot.

Next to the abacus was a mahogany table with a dozen bulging cloth bags on it. Each bag had a slip of paper tied to its opening, with the name of the minor leader and the amount of money written on it.

These are all incense money donated by various regions today.

With one arm around the girl, Chen the abacus fluttered as he fiddled with the abacus, the beads clicking and clattering.

"Master Chen, Liu Mazi from the Third Street has handed over eighteen taels."

"Master Chen, Zhao the Bald from the South Market has handed over twenty-three taels."

"Master Chen, Wang Daya from North Alley has handed over fifteen taels."

One by one, the underlings pushed open the door, placed their cloth bags on the table, reported their numbers, and left. Chen the Abacus didn't even look up, just turned the abacus a few times, made a note in the ledger, and mumbled a reply with a wine cup in his mouth.

Behind him stood a two-meter-tall man, like an iron tower, with his arms crossed over his chest and a broadsword at his waist, coldly staring at everyone who came in.

His name is Tongshan.

The "door gods" beside Chen Suanpan are said to be able to lift a 300-pound stone lock with one hand and split a stone lion half the height of a person with one stroke.

The girl fed Chen a grape and said sweetly, "Master Chen, you've been busy all night. Let me serve you."

Suanpan Chen pinched her cheek and laughed, "Once I'm done with this busy period, I'll let you serve me. Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and we've collected almost all the money, so wait a little longer."

He moved the last bead on the abacus and looked up at the sky outside the window.

The moon was already setting in the west, and the faint sound of roosters crowing could be heard from afar.

"Who hasn't paid yet?"

Tongshan glanced at the cloth bag on the table and said gruffly, "One-Eyed Dragon didn't come."

Abacus Chen's smile froze, and his fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a "dudu" sound.

"Scarface Liu died in the same way last time."

Chen pulled a slip of paper from his pocket, on which was written the one-eyed dragon's name and the area he was in charge of.

"interesting."

Abacus Chen slapped the note on the table. When his fat hand pressed down, the table cracked open in the middle with a "crack" and then shattered into a pile of powder.

The girl screamed in fright, jumped up from the chair, and hid in the corner.

Chen the abacus stood up and patted the sawdust off his hands.

"One-Eyed Dragon's family is being watched by the second-in-command; he wouldn't dare run away." His voice remained calm and unhurried, as if he were discussing something quite ordinary. "He was most likely taken care of. Scarface Liu was also taken care of by this person."

Tongshan asked in a low voice, "Should we send someone to investigate?"

Chen shook his head. "This man is no ordinary thug; he was able to take down Scarface Liu and then One-Eyed Dragon. A large-scale investigation would only alert him."

After saying that, Chen looked at Tongshan, and suddenly two sharp glints shot out from his small eyes, as sharp as needles.

"You go. Take the one-eyed man's place."

Tongshan was taken aback: "Me?"

Chen, the abacus-wielding man, walked to the window. A cold wind blew in, making the candlelight flicker. "Since he's set his sights on the person who takes the money, he'll set his sights on the next one. You go there; you're the bait. If he bites the bait, you bite him."

Tongshan was silent for a moment, then nodded.

As Chen looked out at the dark night, a smile crept onto his face.

"Dare to provoke the tyrant... This hasn't happened in Wuqiao Town for many years."

"I'll see what kind of monsters and demons these are!"