Editor: Xu Xian
Chapter 097 Street Fighting
The Master and disciple parted ways at the Southern edge of Jade City. Tie Hanfeng led their two horses to southwall tavern, and Gu Shenwei personally drove the carriage to the disciples' hiding place.
Shangguan Yushi was angrily waiting for him.
According to the plan, the assassination team should've returned to Golden Roc Castle by now, but they was delayed for more than half day because of a servant.
"I thought you ran away, if that happened, it would've saved me a lot of trouble," Shangguan Yushi coldly mocked as she pointed at the corpse in the centre of the hall, "No one will testify for you, Old Dragon Head died, it's really a coincidence."
The fatal wound was in the chest and the head was still there, it obviously wasn't Golden Roc Castle's killing style.
"It doesn't matter. I found another insider." Gu Shenwei glanced back at the carriage parked in the yard. "He wanted to escape, I brought him back."
"Has he confessed?"
"He wanted to resist, I had no choice but to knock him out."
A person walked out from behind Shangguan Yushi, the anger in his eyes was even more fierce than the killing lord. It was Liuhua, his left hand held his short bow, his right hand pressed against the arrow bag at his waist. He was very sensitive towards the phrase 'knock out'.
"Bring him out, wake him up, I'll interrogate him myself," Shangguan Yushi ordered. She wanted to know who the spy was too. This person was really bold, even daring to plot against Yu Gongzi.
"I think it's better to immediately take him up the mountain and give him to Xi Xin Yuan, just in case," Gu Shenwei suggested. He raised his head and stared back at Liuhua, the only reason he showed mercy last night was East Castle's order which prohibited private duels between killers.
Shangguan Yushi didn't want to listen to any of Servant Huan's suggestions, but this time it was different. In her heart she clearly knew that if the spy were an important figure in the castle, she would cause trouble for herself if she conducted the interrogation personally. Leaving it to Xi Xin Yuan seemed to be the best choice.
"Let's move out now," Shangguan Yushi glanced outside and immediately changed her mind. "No, wait until night." It deviated from the killer's image if more than twenty killer disciples walked together on the street during daytime. Besides, it wasn't too long before it was dark.
This was exactly Gu Shenwei's plan. "We have to protect the person in the carriage well, even Old Dragon Head was silenced, this exposed spy definitely won't be spared."
Shangguan Yushi ordered the disciples to take turns guarding the carriage; she lifted the curtain to peek inside, then dropped it straight away and looked back at Servant Huan.
Gu Shenwei had followed Yu Gongzi, he approached her and whispered, "Someone will definitely come, it's best to capture him alive."
Disgusted, Shangguan Yushi bent her body back slightly to keep her distance from Servant Huan. She understood this servant's trick. "Has the news been spread?"
"The whole of Southern Jade City has already heard about it."
Gu Shenwei believed in his Master's ability to spread rumours. Tie Hanfeng was probably using his vague language in the tavern to 'accidentally' divulge the news right now.
"I hope you're not being too clever this time."
"Killing lord, it's not only me that the spy wanted to get rid of."
Shangguan Yushi grunted, what Servant Huan said attracted her attention. As she became closer and closer to the tenth young lord Shangguan Ru, she began to feel the cruelty of open and private disputes in the castle. In comparison, this servant's threat was not worth mentioning.
Shangguan Yushi made a new order, five disciples would guard the carriage, the other disciples would lurk in different parts of the yard. They deliberately left many flaws so the killer could come in.
A group of killer disciples spread a net, waiting to capture a killer alive.
The sky was completely dark now, there were still no attackers showing up. It would be suspicious if they continued waiting, so Shangguan Yushi ordered everyone to go back to the castle on the mountain. She also carefully arranged the formation of the group, she and four disciples guarded the carriage, the other sixteen disciples guarded outside, Servant Huan continued to be the driver.
The streets of southern Jade City were rugged and the weather was very cold. Snow that had melted into water during the day was now frozen rock-solid, so the carriage moved very slowly. The disciples gripped their sabres and proceeded cautiously.
Evening was exactly the time when southern Jade City became popular, even the harsh weather couldn't hold back visitors appearing from all over the place. This group of teenagers seemed special, some hid from them, but there were also others who weren't afraid to take a look at them.
A drunk man suddenly rushed out from an unlit house and grabbed the wheel of the carriage to vomit uncontrollably. The disciples guarding the carriage were caught unprepared and were surprisingly unable to block him.
Shangguan Yushi drew her sabre and wordlessly stabbed at the drunkard. Yu Gongzi's kung fu wasn't bad but, shockingly, the man also knew kung fu and was rather agile. He suddenly lowered himself and crawled underneath the carriage, all while cursing dirty words.
The disciples nearby all pulled out their sabres and stabbed the bottom of the carriage. That person dodged from place to place, not only was he unhurt, but he also found a chance to suddenly get up and jump onto the driver's seat. He lifted the curtain and glanced inside, then shouted 'good sabre' and jumped onto a nearby roof.
Gu Shenwei's narrow sabre was underneath his legs, he was ready as soon as the drunkard had shown up. At nearly the same time the drunkard stood up, he unsheathed his sabre.
The drunk man's kung fu skills were high, but he underestimated the teenager's kung fu level. He was only able to quickly glimpse inside the carriage before his left arm had been cut.
There were also other disciples on the roof responsible for guarding the perimeter. Once the drunk man lost his opportunity, his steps immediately became passive. He had just exclaimed 'good sabre', another two 'good sabres' quietly cut at him.
The drunk man didn't utter a sound this time. Step by step he retreated, his two hands waving in circles as if he were standing on ice. Then he fell heavily. A disciple went over to check and nodded at Shangguan Yushi. The troublemaker was dead.
The drunkard was unlucky, one of the two disciples he had confronted after jumping onto the roof was Wild Horse, who had the best kung fu skills.
Gu Shenwei was a bit disappointed for not being able to capture the person alive. But this drunk man was obviously a spy, after him there would be more formidable people coming.
These disciples' spirits surged, fighting against unknown enemies was much more exciting than slaughtering a small gang.
The attack took place at retention alley.
Retention alley was a place one must pass through if one wanted to return to northern Jade City, it was also the most crowded place. There weren't that many rich guests entering the houses to have fun, most of them were just passerby stretching their necks, hoping to see one of the figures of famous prostitutes.
The carriage plunged into the crowd, it was very hard to keep the crowd away from it. Gu Shenwei kept the horses moving forward by any means necessary, not caring whether there were people ahead or not. Thus, it caused some to curse. The cursing gradually grew more and more, as if someone were organizing them. Gu Shenwei held both the reins and whip with his left hand while his right hand tightly gripped the hilt of his sabre. He knew the ultimate moment was coming.
The windows of the houses on either side opened one by one, many people stuck out their head to watch for fun, amongst them there were some famous prostitutes, so the street became more chaotic.
One old woman shouted in a hoarse voice, "Hey, the girl in a man's attire, come to our place, I'll teach you some unique skills, I assure you that men will love you to death."
Shangguan Yushi's face became livid, she swung her arm and fired a hidden weapon. Although the old woman upstairs was prepared, her shoulder still got scratched, so she withdrew her head. However, her mouth wasn't idle, she yelled like a pig being slaughtered, "Murder! Murder!"
This cry was like a secret code, those watching for fun on the second floor of six or seven houses all suddenly disappeared. Meanwhile, more than a dozen arrows were shot, all of them targeting the carriage.
Although this generation of killer's disciples were famous in Golden Roc Castle, not that many people in Jade City knew them. The majority of people couldn’t help but look down on these twenty teenagers.
The attackers also had over twenty people, but they were only able to shoot fourteen arrows, the rest of them had been killed by the disciples as soon as they showed up. After a round of shooting, eight or nine corpses fell onto the street from the second floor.
The prostitutes and old women in the houses all cried out at once. This time, they weren't bluffing, they were truly scared.
The passerby on the street didn't know the truth of the matter. Thinking it was a new trick played by the prostitutes of retention alley, some of them even shouted and applauded. It wasn't until several pedestrians got injured and cried for help that the street finally descended into complete chaos.
Amongst the fourteen arrows shot from the second floor, four of them hurt unlucky pedestrians, seven were blocked by the disciples guarding the carriage, and the other three pierced through the window of the carriage.
Gu Shenwei held the reins, drew his sabre, and turned and blocked one arrow, then he lifted the curtain to check inside.
One arrow was stuck in the carriage, another two hit the real driver. The siblings of the Xu family were hiding underneath the driver, trembling.
"You, come!" shouted Gu Shenwei, he grabbed Xu Xiaoyi and forcefully pulled him out, then stuffed the reins and whip into his hands, "Hold it, do not let the horses run away." Once he finished speaking, he jumped on top of the carriage.
Xu Xiaoyi was so scared he didn't have the strength to refuse, he curled into a ball and gripped the reins as if his life were at stake.
People were fighting all over the place, inside the houses, on the roofs and street, the incessant sound of clashing weapons lingered. The teenage disciples were all quiet, the attackers shouted and cursed imposingly, but their voices became fewer and fewer.
The imperfect assassination of last night had pushed the teenagers' pent-up killing desire to its fullest, they desperately needed to vent. The unlucky attackers were like a flock of sheep entering a wolf's den. Flesh flew and blood splattered everywhere.
Gu Shenwei knelt on one leg and anxiously looked around. He suddenly found that those four disciples and Shangguan Yushi guarding the carriage were all gone. They couldn't bear the temptation of the fresh blood and all jumped onto the house to chase after the last few attackers.
Their compact formation had instantly disintegrated and the fighting had spread to other streets, leaving no one behind at retention alley. Left alone was just the carriage and its only defender.
A group of people rode forth from the street corner, they broke the lanterns of each house they passed. They were like swift black clouds that would soon shroud the whole street.
"Run!" Gu Shenwei ordered, but the carriage remained motionless. Xu Xiaoyi was scared as stiff as a wooden sabre, his hands clenched the reins and didn't let them go.
Gu Shenwei used the back of his sabre to tap Xu Xiaoyi's head. Xu Xiaoyi screamed and fainted.
The two horses had been held back for too long, they immediately ran like mad once they were free of their reigns, almost shaking Gu Shenwei off the roof.
Gu Shenwei tightly gripped onto a bar on the roof's side, cursing Xu Xiaoyi's uselessness in his heart.
The carriage moved wildly forward a few steps before suddenly steadying again. Gu Shenwei looked down, Xu Yanwei had come out and pulled on the reins. She looked frail and powerless, but in critical situations, she was much stronger than her little brother.
"Not so fast."
Gu Shenwei shouted, the disciples had become bloodthirsty and left almost none of their enemies alive, so he could only try to capture one himself.
The group of people chased after him faster and faster, Gu Shenwei could even see them. There were eleven people in total, unmasked and all carrying the long sabres usually used by bandits.
"It's him!" One of the pursuers shouted.
Gu Shenwei's heart thumped, this 'him' obviously meant himself. Their main target should be the 'insider' inside the carriage, why had it become him?