Outskirts of the Congyun Mountains.
Bang!
Sun Hai and Yao Quan's bodies heavily crashed against the ancient tree.
Pfft...
Their Faces flushed red, and they spat out a large mouthful of blood.
Their auras weakened, and before they could struggle to get up, two steel blades glinting with cold light were already placed against their necks.
"If you dare to move again, I'll send you on your way."
An indifferent voice rang out; the speaker was clearly a constable with a powerful aura, dressed in black official robes, and wearing a Silver Badge at his waist.
"Take all these people back; it just so happens to fill the vacancies."
The leading Silver Badge Constable's gaze swept over the surrounding Wind Cloud Gang and Medicine Gang members who had already been subdued, and he spoke indifferently.
"Yes, Constable Song."
A group of plainclothes constables immediately responded and began escorting the gang members outwards.
The leading constable surnamed Song was named Song Xuan; he was one of He Lanjiang's few remaining confidants, with good strength, and was a master of the late Bone Transformation Realm.
"I didn't expect so many people to be involved; you are truly audacious, daring to attack Imperial Court officials. If it weren't for the Beast Suppression Army's request, none of you bandits would survive."
Looking at Sun Hai and Yao Quan's unwilling eyes, Song Xuan narrowed his gaze and spoke coldly.
"Someone, take away all the forces closely associated with the Wind Cloud Gang and Medicine Gang as well."
As soon as he finished speaking, a constable immediately responded.
In the Congyun Mountains, the number of Martial Artists in the professions of herb gatherers and beast hunters is not small, and most of them are quite strong, considered high-quality Martial Artists.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, he naturally wanted to capture more people to take back.
This point was actually instigated by He Lanjiang.
He himself looked down on these rogue Martial Artists, and now with instructions from above, he naturally had no scruples in taking action.
Moreover, this matter was handled well, and he might also gain a lot of benefits. He heard that the Special Envoy from the Grand Capital was extremely generous.
At this moment, angry shouts and intense sounds of fighting suddenly came from not far away.
Song Xuan narrowed his eyes, and the next moment his figure shot towards the source of the sound like lightning.
He saw that in the group of the two gangs being escorted, three rough-looking men were attacking the escorting officers and soldiers.
However, within a few breaths, several constables had been severely injured and sent flying.
The auras of the three men were powerful; they were clearly all Bone Transformation Realm Martial Artists, and each of them was no weaker than the Wind Cloud Gang leader, some even slightly stronger.
Seeing this, Song Xuan was not surprised but pleased.
"Are there still three big fish? You've come at the right time; we almost missed you."
With a clanging sound, his long saber was unsheathed, and Song Xuan's body charged forward like a fierce tiger.
The three men who came to support were precisely three of the Red Mountain Six Ghosts.
The three of them were not weak in strength, but they were clearly much weaker when facing Song Xuan, who was in the late Bone Transformation Realm.
However, within a moment, the three men were severely injured, lying on the ground unable to fight further. Song Xuan sheathed his saber, a look of disdain on his Face.
"I thought you had some skill; turns out you're just a mob. Take them back."
"Yes, Constable Song."
Soon, constables stepped forward to feed the three men Soft Bone Powder and restrain them. Even some gang members who had originally escaped were recaptured.
At this moment, a series of strange cawing sounds echoed from the mountain forest. Several Silver Badge Constables were seen walking over, smiling broadly, holding a large black crow.
"Chief Song, I didn't expect there to be a flying Spirit Beast hidden here. Although it looks a bit ugly, its strength is quite good."
Although they were all Silver Badges, the few men were clearly respectful towards Song Xuan.
They very thoughtfully presented the flying beast in their hands.
"Oh? A flying Spirit Beast."
Song Xuan carefully examined the Black Eyed Ghost Crow in front of him, a slight smile appearing on his Face.
"Not bad, it can be used for transportation."
As he spoke, he reached out and pinched the Black Eyed Ghost Crow's neck.
Caw—
The Black Eyed Ghost Crow attempted to struggle but was completely unable to break free.
However, a large cloud of black mist quickly emanated from its body, causing Song Xuan to instinctively close his eyes.
Immediately after, he felt a sharp pain on his wrist.
The Black Eyed Ghost Crow actually took advantage of the moment just now to peck a bloody hole in his forearm.
Although it was just a trivial superficial wound, it clearly enraged Song Xuan. This act undoubtedly caused him to lose Face in front of his subordinates, and he had always been very concerned about his reputation.
"You damn beast, are you courting death?"
He spoke coldly, his long saber unsheathed, his eyes filled with killing intent.
Given his status, a low-level Spirit Beast, even a flying Spirit Beast which is a bit more expensive, was nothing to him.
Just as he was about to slash down with his saber, commotion sounded again not far away.
This caused his movement to pause, and he turned his head to look ahead.
He saw that the escorting group was now in chaos again; clearly, someone else had intervened to block them.
Seeing this scene, Song Xuan's Face showed a cold smile.
"Are there more? How interesting. I didn't expect there to be quite a few of these mobs."
"Let's go, take a look."
Song Xuan spoke indifferently to a few colleagues, casually tossed Little Black to someone, and turned to see what was happening ahead.
At this point, the chaotic sounds abruptly stopped, and everything returned to calm.
"Hmm? Did it end so quickly?" Song Xuan was taken aback. He hadn't expected this turn of events to conclude just like that.
"These rogue Martial Artists are truly useless; how boring..."
He shook his head and smiled, his Face full of boredom.
"Chief Song, I'll go take a look ahead."
The Faces of the several Silver Badges also carried disdainful smiles, but one of them still stepped forward.
Song Xuan nodded; he had already lost interest in going over.
"I originally thought this outing would be somewhat exciting, but I didn't expect it to be this easy? After we go back, Brother Song, we'll definitely have some achievements..."
The other Silver Badge Constables said with a smile. None of them had expected this mission to be so easy, without any challenge at all.
"Easy to say, I will also say a few good words for you to Divine Catcher He..."
Song Xuan said with a smile. The Prefecture Yamen naturally needed his connections as well. It was impossible for him to take all the benefits himself; it was very necessary to appropriately distribute some to those below him. He was very clear about this.
However, the major share was always his.
Bang—
At this moment, another muffled sound came from ahead.
Interrupting the conversation of the few people.
"What's going on? Hasn't it been resolved yet? Go and take a look!"
Song Xuan's brows furrowed slightly. Although a Silver Badge Constable had already gone over, he was still a bit uneasy.
Just as he was planning to take people over, a strong gust of wind suddenly shot towards them from the front. Its speed was extremely fast, bringing with it an extremely sharp sonic boom. It wasn't hard to guess the powerful force carried by the gust of wind.
Song Xuan reacted extremely quickly. His long saber was instantly unsheathed, and in a flash of cold light, he had split the incoming object in two.
Only then did he clearly see what had flown over; it was actually a bloody human head.
The appearance of the head was extremely familiar; it was none other than the Silver Badge Constable who had just gone forward to check.
At this moment, the Silver Badge Constable's eyes were wide open, his Face full of terror, as if he had seen something unimaginable at the moment of death.
"Wang Ping!!"
Song Xuan let out a low shout, his Face full of killing intent. His eyes were fixed on the tall figure slowly walking towards them from the mountain forest.
His upper body was bare, revealing a robust physique like steel. His messy hair was scattered haphazardly over his shoulders. His expression was calm, but his body emanated a nearly materialized aura of danger.
"Like a dog-skin plaster, impossible to shake off. You are really annoying..."
Looking at the few people, especially pausing on the Black Eyed Ghost Crow whose neck was being gripped, Lin Sheng lightly exhaled and slightly shook his head.
"Who are you!?"
Seeing Lin Sheng appear, Song Xuan clearly felt a sense of threat. It was obvious that the person in front of him was very strong. His long saber was unsheathed, and he spoke in a deep voice.
"No matter who you are, you won't escape death today... Go together and kill him!"
As his voice fell, the several Silver Badge Constables beside him unsheathed their weapons and surrounded Lin Sheng.
And he himself also charged forward.
He could tell that the person in front of him was not easy to provoke, but so what?
With the strength of these people, as long as it wasn't a God-Form Martial Artist taking action, among the Bone Transformation Realm, he feared no one.
This was the confidence he had gained from hundreds of confrontations since he entered the late Bone Transformation Realm.
Therefore, he was confident that no matter what abilities the person in front of him possessed, the final victor would definitely be him; it would just take a little more time.
However, the next moment, this thought of his was ruthlessly crushed.
Even his body, which had already charged out, froze in place.
He saw that the young man, facing the three Silver Badges who had charged out before him, merely sent out a palm strike, bringing with it several afterimages that landed on the three men respectively.
Only the sounds of 'bang bang' were heard almost simultaneously. The upper halves of the bodies of the three mid-Bone Transformation Realm Silver Badges had completely shattered.
"This... How is this possible!!"
This scene caused Song Xuan's Face to change drastically, his Face full of disbelief, feeling as if he were dreaming.
However, the warm, sticky blood falling on his Face felt so real.
Lin Sheng's expressionless Face quickly magnified in his vision, not giving him much time to think.
"Eight Saber Strikes of Returning Sea!!"
In his horror, Song Xuan's long saber trembled. He unleashed all his force and slashed forward with all his might.
However, the tall figure in his sight merely extended his palm and grabbed towards him.
"Courting death!"
Seeing the opponent being so arrogant, Song Xuan was delighted. His precious saber was rare and could cut through iron like mud without question. Coupled with unleashing all his force, the power of that slash was unimaginable.
The opponent actually wanted to forcefully take it with just a bare hand; it was no different from seeking death.
"Break for me!"
He roared, and his long saber struck the opponent's palm. However, the imagined scene of flesh and blood flying did not occur.
Instead, his precious saber was grabbed by those bare hands. The fierce force contained within it was like mud entering the sea, failing to stir up even a ripple.
This scene caused great fear in Song Xuan's heart.
Crack...
The next moment, he saw the precious saber that had accompanied him for many years being completely crushed by those bare hands.
Lin Sheng pinched a piece of the broken blade, put it into his mouth, chewed it with a crunching sound, and then swallowed it, a hint of satisfaction appearing on his Face.
"A decent weapon."
"Monster... You are a monster..."
Song Xuan's eyes were wide open, and he muttered under his breath. Then he suddenly woke up, dropped his weapon, and turned to flee.
Just as he turned around, he felt an inexplicable sense of restraint coming from his neck.
Lin Sheng pinched his neck, turned him around, and slightly shook his head looking at Song Xuan's terror-filled expression.
"Such a fragile life..."
"Let... let go..." Song Xuan struggled to squeeze out a few words from his mouth.
The only response to him was a crisp cracking sound.
A fine head had already been removed.
The headless body fell to the ground. Lin Sheng dropped the head in his hand and directly stomped on it, crushing it.
Caw—
At this moment, Little Black's voice sounded, and it quickly rushed to Lin Sheng's side, constantly rubbing against him.
"Alright."
Until Lin Sheng somewhat impatiently kicked it away.
His gaze swept around, as if he were looking for something.
He hadn't expected the people from the Prefecture Yamen to track him to the Congyun Mountains so quickly.
He still underestimated the Imperial Court's power, but thankfully, there were no major mishaps.
However, the Wind Cloud Gang and Medicine Gang must be dealt with, otherwise, it will definitely be difficult to escape the Imperial Court's pursuit in the future.
As for how to deal with them?
It's very simple: just disband them directly and only take away a very small number of elite members.
He quickly searched through the jungle with Little Black and soon stopped in front of an earthen slope.
Looking at the deep earthen pit hidden among the bushes in front of him, Lin Sheng stomped his foot. The ground churned, and a disheveled, earthy-yellow shadow was thrown out from underground. Who else could it be but Big Yellow?
Big Yellow, who had just rolled out from the ground, let out a howl, didn't even look around, and subconsciously wanted to burrow back into the hole to hide.
Caw—
It wasn't until Little Black flew out, picked it up in its mouth, brought it back, and threw it on the ground that Big Yellow saw Lin Sheng. It was startled at first, but quickly reacted and rushed to Lin Sheng's leg, rubbing against him, occasionally sticking out its tongue to lick.
Looking at his pant leg covered in mud and saliva, Lin Sheng frowned and kicked Big Yellow aside with one foot.
It must be admitted that although Big Yellow was extremely timid, its intelligence was very high; it hadn't been found by the people from the Prefecture Yamen.
Although it was partly due to its low strength, it was still commendable.
Taking this bird and dog with him, just as Lin Sheng was about to leave.
He suddenly sensed something and turned to look behind him.
He saw a small figure shooting towards him at an extremely fast speed, far exceeding the scope of the Bone Transformation Realm.
Lin Sheng's aura surged. He was about to strike back with a palm, but he saw a familiar Face and immediately lowered his hand.
The person who came was none other than Lan Man.
"Hurry!!"
Lan Man seemed to have come for him. Upon reaching his side, she only said two words, then grabbed Lin Sheng without explanation and rushed towards the mountain forest at an extremely fast speed, touching the ground with the tips of her toes.
"What's wrong, Lan Jie?"
Seeing the anxious look on Lan Man's Face, Lin Sheng frowned and asked.
Only then could he see that Lan Man's condition was very poor at the moment.
Although she emanated the powerful might belonging to a God-Form Martial Artist, she was clearly somewhat listless.
Her clothing was somewhat disheveled, with many torn areas, and especially at the corner of her mouth, there was a trace of blood that hadn't dried yet.
Clearly, she had suffered a not-so-light injury.
To be able to make Lan Man, who was in the Divine Form Realm, end up in this state, it should only be a Martial Artist of the same Realm.
"I was careless and fell into He Lanjiang and their trap. I didn't expect it wasn't just He Lanjiang this time, but Zhou Xingwen also came..."
Lan Man said in a deep voice without turning her head, her tone carrying a hint of urgency, but she seemed afraid of scaring Lin Sheng and slowed down.
"Lin Xiaodi, don't worry, I will definitely take you away from here... By using the poisonous mist deep within the mountain range, we should be able to shake them off."
"Zhou Xingwen."
Lin Sheng chewed on this name in his mouth. He naturally knew who he was.
Zhou Xingwen, the City Lord of Tiannan Prefecture's Fu City and a God-Form Martial Artist.
"Two Divine Transformation Realm experts..."
His brows furrowed slightly. He hadn't expected two God-Form Martial Artists to come directly this time.
Whoosh...
And at this moment, strong winds surged in the mountain forest behind them, and two powerful auras came directly towards them.