Using the cover of darkness, Chen Mu quickly moved along the shadows of the streets.
Soul Strength enhanced his steps, gliding swiftly and silently as if on ice.
Following the route provided by the man with the black nose, he soon found a warehouse located in Xiuren Square by the Luo River.
A hidden dock was concealed in the willow forest behind the warehouse.
At this deep hour of the night, the small warehouse was quiet, yet an oil lamp flickered inside.
Four bare-chested men were huddled around a square table, eating, drinking, and chatting leisurely.
At first glance, they seemed relaxed, but they were actually highly vigilant.
Two men stood guard in the shadows by the door, and while they had eaten most of the meat on the table, none of them had touched their cups of wine.
Approaching the warehouse, Chen Mu scanned the area expressionlessly and then strode towards the main entrance.
“What are you doing!”
After just two steps, a man stormed out from the shadows by the door, barking loudly.
“Delivering a gift,” replied Chen Mu without stopping.
“Come back in the daytime! The accounts have gone home for the night; there’s no one to record your offerings,” the man said, clearly irritated.
Chen Mu: “…”
Recording in the accounts?
Has gift-giving become part of their business operations now?!
“Are you deaf? Get lost!” the man shouted impatiently.
Chen Mu glanced at the man and continued with large strides towards the warehouse doors.
“Hey?! You’re quite stubborn!” The man moved to confront Chen Mu, raising his fist to smash into Chen Mu’s face.
Chen Mu’s figure suddenly vanished, and as he brushed past, the Sleeve Sword Technique struck swiftly and retracted just as quickly.
Thud!
A spurt of fresh blood sprayed from the man’s throat.
He fell to the ground with a couple of twitches and quickly fell silent.
“Sigh… another killing.”
“I just want to live in peace. Why do you evil people have to provoke me!” Chen Mu said coldly, his back to the body as he looked inside the warehouse.
The four men at the table, already alerted by the noise at the door, stood up upon seeing one of their own cut down in an instant.
The leader was a bald man with slanted eyes, dressed in a brown sweatshirt and short trousers, with leather bracers on his wrists.
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Seeing the guard die, not only did he show no fear, but a smile even appeared on his face: “I thought guarding the dock was a miserable job, but I didn’t expect such an unexpected windfall. Truly a blessing from the heavens!”
He casually moved his wrists, his calloused fingers flexing and clenching. The friction of skin on skin was like sandpaper rubbing together, sending shivers down the spine.
“Those idiots followed the Helmsman on a raid, exhausting themselves. Here we sit, eating meat and drinking, and the credit comes to us. Haha…”
The other three laughed heartily, pulling out short blades from behind their waists and twirling them. In the moonlight, the blades glinted ominously.
“You’re from the Left Helmsman’s camp, right?”
“Trying to sabotage our fast ship, cut off our escape route? Heh. We’ve seen through your little schemes long ago!” the bald man sneered. “Don’t worry, I won’t kill you.”
“I’ll break your limbs and let the Left Helmsman come to claim you personally. That will be extremely satisfying.”
“Attack!”
The four men charged at Chen Mu with fierce grins.
The bald man took the lead, his feet stomping the ground hard as he lunged forward like a cheetah.
His palms curved into claws and with a low growl, he struck, aiming for Chen Mu’s throat with deadly intent.
The other three circled around rapidly, their blades flashing as they targetted Chen Mu’s legs.
Thud!
The blades flew off, and the heads of the four men suddenly jerked back, tumbling through the air and landing with heavy thuds on the ground, instantly silenced.
Bullet-sized holes appeared in each of their foreheads, from which blood flowed freely.
Chen Mu turned his head expressionlessly and fixed his gaze on the last remaining guard in the corner.
Bang!
Chen Mu suddenly appeared in front of him, grabbing the man’s throat and slamming him against the warehouse wall.
The guard’s eyes rolled back as he immediately lost consciousness.
…
Chen Mu turned back to look at the bodies of the sturdy men.
These were battle-hardened professionals.
The bald leader had even practiced a version of Shape Cultivation focusing on his palms.
But in Chen Mu’s eyes, their speed was simply too slow, easily taken down in a single moment of contact.
Wandering Souls were truly different.
“Escape routes… raids… guarding docks…” Chen Mu mulled over the words spoken by the men, deep in thought. He turned to look toward the last living captive.
…
After a while, Chen Mu frowned as he looked down at the breathless man in grey.
“The White Tiger Hall on a secretive midnight operation, with Lin Que leading the team. Are they carrying out a secret mission for the Startling Swan Gang?”
“This is an opportunity.”
Chen Mu looked at the man in grey: “With careful disguise, I should be able to blend in with the scores of gang members and sneak onto the White Tiger Hall’s large ship.”
Once the Mesmerizing Divine Smoke is released, there’ll be plenty of time for a heart-to-heart with Helmsman Lin Que.”
Chen Mu carefully observed the grey man’s facial structure. His facial muscles writhed, and in an instant, his face morphed into a round shape.
In the pitch-dark night, with similar facial shapes and identical clothing, and Lin Que’s group in a hurry, who could spot the flaw?!
I must tidy up the warehouse. Then wait at the dock. Lin Que must not see the corpses.
Having roughly planned, Chen Mu immediately sprang into action.
…
Whoosh!
Phew!
Late at night, on Changxia Street in Nanyang Prefecture.
Lin Que sprinted at the speed of a 100-meter dash, head down in panic.
A silky chill brushed against one side of his neck, and he couldn’t help surveying the shadows along the road, fearful that another assassin might leap out.
Had it not been for his slight shift in stance, his throat would surely have been slit by the assassin’s sudden attack.
“Is Qingfeng Powder a product sold by Zhu Yi Pavilion?” Lin Que regretted it deeply, yet was filled with resentment. “Is it not good enough to sell medicine at Zhu Yi Pavilion, why bother distributing goods in Ghost Market?”
Moreover, there had been a major conflict a month before, so why hadn’t anyone informed the Startling Swan Gang?
If he had known that Qingfeng Powder was affiliated with Zhu Yi Pavilion, he wouldn’t have dared to reach for it, even if it killed him.
“And Zhang Yun, that bastard!” Lin Que cursed his brother-in-law to death in his mind.
“There were so many people hiding in that small courtyard and nobody noticed, are those tailing fools blind?!”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his own men rushing out from a side street, and he breathed a sigh of relief. But upon seeing their number, his heart chilled. They had managed to grab nothing and had lost most of their manpower for nothing.
What a huge loss!
With pursuers close behind, he had no time to signal to them, and he bolted headlong into the Willow Forest, heading towards the dock.
On the bank, seven or eight fast boats were lined up in a row.
On one of the boats, a man in grey clothing was squatting down.
…
From a distance, Chen Mu spotted a brawny man with pockmarked, orange-peel-like skin.
The man was running in a disheveled state, followed by more than a dozen equally distressed-looking men in black.
Recalling the interrogation information about the man with the blackened nose, pointed chin, and the one in grey on the dock,
Chen Mu guessed that this orange-peel-faced man was most likely Lin Que, the Helmsman of White Tiger Hall.
That face was too recognizable.
“I can’t show any signs of weakness. I must say hello to show that I am also one of White Tiger Hall’s members,” Chen Mu thought to himself.
As long as he kept his distance from Lin Que and wasn’t seen through at a glance, he could easily bluff his way through.
In a flash of insight, Chen Mu figured it all out. Standing up confidently, he waved and called out, “Big Brother, I’m over here!”
Lin Que vaguely remembered there was a man in grey clothing on the dock.
He thought to himself that this kid was pretty sharp to know to wait on the boat, ready to adapt to the situation.
He leaped up at once and sprang onto the other’s fast boat, “Well done! There will be a hefty reward for you when we get back!”
Chen Mu: “…”
Why did you come aboard, too?!
So close, how am I supposed to bluff my way through?
Chen Mu took a deep breath: “Don’t panic, don’t panic. Stay calm.”
“There are more than ten people behind. Wait for the others to board, then stealthily fade into the background.”
“What’s the big deal about sharing a boat with the Helmsman, no big deal.”
Chen Mu looked towards the other members with full anticipation.
Then, to his dismay, he watched them leap up and fall onto the boat next to his, like dumplings dropping into hot water.
They immediately untied the moorings and rowed the oars, shooting their fast boat up the Luo River like an arrow.
Chen Mu: “…”
…
Lin Que stood at the bow of the boat, dumbfounded as he watched his men speed away, while his own fast boat remained motionless beneath his feet.
“What the hell are you waiting for? Set sail!” Lin Que nearly bulged his eyes out in frustration!
Chen Mu stammered for a long time, finally managing to say honestly, “Big Brother, I don’t know how.”
Lin Que: “…”
You don’t know how, yet you still called me onto the boat?!
Chen Mu forced a sheepish smile.
He was in a tough spot, initially planning to pose as a gang member and blend into the larger boat.
Who would have thought Lin Que would jump aboard so straightforwardly, and without any followers.
He didn’t know the first thing about rowing a boat!
This was a complete disaster.
His secret infiltration had gone wrong from the start, how could he continue now?
Forget it, just act directly.
Killing this orange-peel face will have to do!
…
Lin Que glanced at the vanished shadows of his men, then turned back to look at the dark figures darting towards them.
“Get lost!” He charged to the stern, took up an oar, and paddled fiercely.
Chen Mu blinked.
Does this mean… I can keep on hiding?
If it weren’t for the assassins pursuing him, Lin Que would have wanted to kick this useless piece of trash to death by now.
“Who are you with!” Lin Que bellowed, chest full of rage.
“With Helmsman Zhang Yun, your brother-in-law,” Chen Mu quickly put on a smile, attempting to cozy up.
He did not forget to raise his eyebrows suggestively, signaling with a look that they were on the same side.
Lin Que’s anger was trapped in his chest, his orange-peel face flushed red with veteran fury.
It’s that damn fool again! Both unreliable himself and the subordinates he recruits are good for nothing!
Just moments ago, he had doubted this man’s identity. Now there was no need to doubt anymore. With this sort of lackluster spirit, Zhang Yun was the only one along the entire Jinshui River who would dare to take him in!
“Hmph! I’m rowing the boat while you sit, you really think you’re something special in our White Tiger Hall!”
Chen Mu forced a sheepish laugh: “Ah heh… ah heh… ah heh heh heh…”
This infiltration is truly testing my nerves.
If only I had known, I would have just greeted him with Mesmerizing Divine Smoke!