Chapter 941: An Equally Matched Opponent!
But the juicy meat ready to be eaten, Qi Jingyu would never give up easily. He immediately drew his accessory and flung it, precisely hitting the black-clad man’s thigh, pinning his leg to the floor.
Qi Jingyu walked over with a chuckle, casually tearing off the man’s masked black cloth. As he studied the man’s appearance, he said, "If I let you escape easily, how would I explain that to the Imperial Uncle?"
"Oh dear, no wonder someone like you lurks at night and covers your face with a black cloth. You are indeed ugly, far worse than me, tsk tsk..." Qi Jingyu mocked the man narcissistically.
Then he began the interrogation: "Tell me, who sent you to kill me?"
The black-clad man turned his head away, his throat slightly moving. Seeing the situation was bad, Qi Jingyu quickly grabbed the man’s chin and slapped the back of his head.
A black pill flew out from the black-clad man’s mouth, rolling a few times on the ground before falling into the crack between the floorboards. It was evidently a poisonous pill to seal the throat with blood.
Qi Jingyu then realized the seriousness of the problem; this man should be a Death Soldier secretly cultivated by some force, intending to commit suicide with poison after failing the mission. Luckily, he discovered it early; otherwise, this clue would be lost again.
He tied up the black-clad man’s hands and feet, then knocked on the Imperial Uncle’s door.
After a while, Li Qingmu, who had just gotten dressed, rubbed his eyes and asked, "Caught the person?"
"Yes, he almost poisoned himself to death, but luckily I saw through it." Qi Jingyu boasted about his experience, then said: "Imperial Uncle, I suspect that person is a Death Soldier. Since breaking into my room, he hasn’t uttered a single syllable."
"Heh, getting him to talk is simple; I have my ways."
As the master behind the scenes of Yulong Pavilion, Li Qingmu had plenty of interrogation methods in mind and immediately went into the opposite room to examine the black-clad man closely.
But he quickly realized he was wrong and felt a bit helpless because the black-clad man had two small scars on his neck, one on each side, evidently having his vocal cords damaged a long time ago.
In other words, this black-clad man was actually mute, unable to make any sound.
Damaged vocal cords are different from having the tongue cut off; a tongueless person can still speak, just not clearly. But with destroyed vocal cords, one becomes entirely mute, unable to make any sound at all.
"Ha, these people are ruthless, even cutting a Death Soldier’s vocal cords." Li Qingmu took out the Four Treasures of the Study from his luggage, ground the ink and washed the pen, wrote a line of words on paper: "Can you read?"
He held the paper in front of the mute black-clad man, but the man showed no reaction. Helplessly, they realized there was nothing they could do; a mute who can’t read likely doesn’t know what they were saying.
Even if he knew everything in his heart, he wouldn’t speak, so this clue was ultimately severed.
However, to gather information, Li Qingmu devised another plan; he didn’t kill the black-clad man but locked him in the room instead, arranging a new room with the shopkeeper to sleep next door.
The black-clad man’s hands and feet were bound, but he wasn’t completely immobilized. He stayed listening next door until dawn, when suddenly the sound of a window being smashed came from the adjoining room.
Lying in bed, Li Qingmu smiled slightly, realizing the moment the black-clad man deemed ripe for escape and jumped out of the window.
Even ants cherish life, let alone a living person. Although the black-clad man was a Death Soldier, given the chance to escape, he wouldn’t foolishly seek death again.
Li Qingmu opened the window and jumped down outside, identifying footsteps with his ears, not far behind he pursued them. Initially, the black-clad man was cautious, circling within Yunzhou City.
It wasn’t until half an hour later that the man ran towards the Cao Yun Government Office, and quickly too.
But how could such rudimentary skills escape Li Qingmu’s pursuit? He soon followed the man’s form into the government office, passing through layers of walls, landing in a small courtyard.
The room in the small courtyard was still illuminated by candlelight; the black-clad man pushed the door open and knelt on the ground, using hand gestures to report his failed mission to an elder ahead.
The elder’s face was simple and ancient-looking, clothed in a white robe, hair bound atop his head, his expression cold, scolding: "The mission failed, that’s one thing, but you’ve led someone to me now. What use are you?"
As soon as the words fell, the lid of the teacup in the elder’s hand shot out, precisely slicing through the black-clad man’s neck. In disbelief, the man clutched his throat, fell down, struggled a few times, then ceased to breathe.
After a long time, the elder spoke to the empty courtyard: "Since you’re here, why not show yourself for a chat, rather than skulking around?"
Li Qingmu jumped down from the wall, strode into the room, chuckling complimentarily: "The Death Soldiers you trained are quite admirable for their loyalty."
"Exaggerated praise. You’ve come to me to ascertain my identity, haven’t you?" The elder wasn’t fazed at all, calmly sitting in the chair, leisurely sipping tea, then lifted his gaze to Li Qingmu.
In the dim candlelight, Li Qingmu noticed the elder’s face was half withered like wood, the other half plump and full, even the mustache and brows were black, not showing a trace of age.
He was secretly shocked: "What kind of sinister skill is this, that could transform a person like this?"
The elder put down the teacup, blandly saying: "Since you’re here, you might as well stay!"
As the words fell, the elder’s figure abruptly vanished from the Taishi Chair, the next second appeared like magic before Li Qingmu, launching a palm strike toward his chest!
The power contained in this palm strike startled Li Qingmu; he hadn’t expected this old fellow to be a match for him, so, feeling the thrill of the hunt, he also launched a palm strike toward the elder’s chest.
This was a deadly exchange tactic; if one’s palm landed on his chest, he’d likely get hurt, but if his palm struck the old fellow’s chest, the elder likely wouldn’t fare well either.
Both were masters among masters, often able to determine the outcome in an instant. Thus, the elder perceived Li Qingmu’s formidable skills and dared not be arrogant, tilting his body back in a light swoop.
With a serious expression, he said: "So young and yet possessing such cultivation, who exactly are you?"
"You tell me first; afterwards, I’ll tell you!" Li Qingmu chuckled carefreely, not foolishly revealing his identity.
Capturing a master of this level is quite challenging. If rashly, the elder escapes, the mastermind will certainly deduce Qi Jingyu’s true identity, potentially dispatching numerous masters for an assassination.
As the saying goes, two fists can’t rival four hands. With masters akin to the elder in the opposing camp, Li Qingmu and Qi Jingyu’s situation would inevitably become very perilous.