Chapter 106: Chapter 72: The Pit of the Dead! Ink Forest
Prefecture City! 3
Mo Tie vividly remembered that night, when Su Changkong’s heavy and massive Iron-Cutting Sword was clearly not something an ordinary person could wield!
In response, on the same night Su Changkong left, a mysterious expert clad in iron armor appeared at the Black Cavalry Gang, slaughtering Shi Zijian and Chen Zhuang, prompting Mo Tie to associate the two incidents.
Moreover, in the Black Iron Manor, Su Changkong practiced fist techniques every day, and although the members of the manor occasionally saw him, they didn’t pay much attention, knowing that Su Changkong’s Five Animal Frolics were nothing more than Health-preserving Fist exercises learned from a physician.
Not only that, Mo Tie recalled that several years ago, when Yan Fei and his two disciples kidnapped and extorted the Black Iron Manor, soon after they left, someone killed Yan Fei and the others on the spot at a temple. At the time, Mo Tie and the others simply thought it was an instance of infighting among’ martial artists.
But now, looking back, it was not so; the person who had killed those three villains and resolved the trouble for the Black Iron Manor wasn’t an outsider, but Su Changkong! He had always been secretly protecting the Black Iron Manor!
As the Black Iron Manor faced the threat of extinction from the Black Cavalry Gang, Su Changkong, without a word, made a solo venture into the Black Cavalry Gang, stunning Clearwater City!
The youth who was always quietly toiling away on his own, persevering and practicing in solitude, had not done so in vain; he was a true martial arts prodigy. His years of diligent practice had already brought him to a level beyond what most people could even imagine!
And several days after that, Mo Tie gathered the manor’s members to return, but no one had seen Su Changkong again, nor did the other members of the manor have any news of him.
I hope Changkong… can have a safe and smooth journey,” Mo Tie sighed in silence, originally he had planned to hand over the Black Iron Manor to him after his retirement.
Now he knew that Su Changkong’s aspirations did not lie in inheriting the small Black Iron Manor; he had grander goals and ideals. All Mo Tie could do was pray and wish him well!
“Go,” he said.
Outside the courtyard wall of the Black Iron Manor, Su Changkong clandestinely observed, knowing that the Black Iron Manor was back on track, he let go of the last bit of worry in his heart, and without alarming anyone, his steps light, he walked away into the distance.
Su Changkong’s goal was magnificent; he sought the pinnacle of martial arts, that elusive, immortal state of Nothingness! It was destined to be a difficult, long road!
The distance to Ink Forest Prefecture City from Clearwater City was over four thousand li-a truly insurmountable distance for ordinary people.
If one were to walk, at an average pace of fifty li a day, it would take two to three months of continuous travel, assuming no mishaps or illnesses along the way!
Even if riding a horse, covering a hundred or two hundred kilometers a day, it would still take half a month.
Su Changkong carried his bundle on his back, not riding a horse, alone on the road to Ink Forest Prefecture City, his endurance far stronger than that of a horse!
Even if Su Changkong wasn’t in a rush, he could still cover hundreds of li in a day, and if he pushed himself, traveling day and night, covering a thousand li a day was not a problem.
Su Changkong continued on his way, leaving the territory of Clearwater City, heading towards Ink Forest Prefecture City. Along the way, he sometimes stopped to ask for directions in the villages, to avoid taking the wrong path and going drastically astray.
In the blink of an eye, seven days had passed.
Against the blue and white sky, dotted with a few white clouds, in a small grove, the ground was littered with four or five corpses wearing different clothes, their necks twisted, skulls shattered.
Clad in black, with handsome and resolute features, tall in stature, Su Changkong dressed like a wandering young hero, bent down and methodically searched the bodies of these bandits, finding over ten taels of silver.
Su Changkong sighed, “I said… my fists are very hard! Why choose money over life?”
Having left the vicinity of Clearwater City, Su Changkong’s greatest impression was of the chaos! Not just Clearwater City, but other areas as well, were rampant with banditry!
In these seven days, covering thousands of li, this was the fourth band of bandits he had encountered!
The previous groups of bandits, upon seeing the pace and unfaltering stamina with which Su Changkong traveled, understood that he was not to be trifled with, and discreetly withdrew, not daring to provoke him.
And the bandits in front of him had come to seek trouble while Su Changkong was resting and eating. Naturally, Su Changkong had effortlessly chopped them all down!
For ordinary people to travel from Clearwater City to Ink Forest Prefecture City was fraught with difficulties. Unless they spent money to follow a caravan, over such a long distance, it was quite possible they would not reach their destination before being ambushed by bandits or highwaymen along the way. With good luck, they might lose their wealth but keep their lives; with bad luck, if they encountered the ruthless and cold-hearted ones, they would end up as ’ corpses in the desolate wilderness!
“The Great Flame Empire… is finished!”
Su Changkong couldn’t help but sigh. If Clearwater City was this chaotic and disorderly, other places were also rampant with banditry, a scene characteristic of the end of a dynasty.
The Great Flame Empire had been established for over two thousand years and seemed to be unavoidably heading towards chaos and decline.
However, Su Changkong didn’t bother himself with such concerns. As a minor figure, taking care of himself was enough!
“I should be able to reach Ink Forest Prefecture City today.”
Su Changkong calculated the time and distance, feeling that Ink Forest Prefecture City was not far from himself.
Su Changkong ignored the corpses on the ground, stood up, and continued on his journey.
“What a foul smell!”
After traveling another hundred li, Su Changkong walked along a mountain path. Suddenly, he frowned, smelling a stench of decay wafting from ahead.
“Could it be that some animal has died and is decomposing?”
Without stopping, Su Changkong continued towards the source of the smell, but the stench grew stronger and stronger.
Even with Su Changkong’s experience, he couldn’t help but be stunned by the scene before him.
In the stream between the mountain ravines ahead, shallow water flowed, soaking a number of corpses.
These bodies were swollen and turned white from the soaking, resembling inflated balloons that would burst upon being poked, indicating they had been dead for at least ten days or half a month!
From their attire, almost all were martial artists. There were more than a dozen of them, for Su Changkong saw that they all wore weapons at their waists. Yet it wasn’t clear what enemy they had encountered that they hadn’t even managed to draw their weapons before they died!
“Who did this? Such brutal handiwork!”
Su Changkong warily glanced around to confirm there were no abnormalities before jumping down into the ravine to examine the corpses.
The wounds on these bodies surprised and sobered Su Changkong.
Each corpse had a large hole torn open in the chest, the heart gone without a trace. Not only that, but some bodies also had bite marks, one even had its skull as if half gnawed off by a beast, the edges of the wound serrated!
“Could this be the work of a wild beast? But what kind of beast kills people to take their hearts, capable of biting off a human head? Yet if this was done by humans… none of these people’s valuables were taken!”
Su Changkong was bewildered and uncertain.
Upon searching, Su Changkong discovered that the silver notes and silver on the bodies had not been touched. However, most of the silver notes had been soaked in the water, already turned into worthless paper.
To kill and take hearts, bodies appearing as if gnawed by wild beasts, not for money these conditions added up to be especially eerie!