Chapter 60 : Chapter 60
Chapter 60: Loose the Arrows and Slay the Rebels! Leave No One in Sword-Forging Manor Alive!
Ai Peng’s sudden appearance made He Qin and the others freeze for half a breath, and then boundless fear came crashing over them.
Two Eighth Rank Jinyiwei experts had come to Dragon Abyss Path.
From the very beginning, the Great Qian court had never intended to let them off!
These Jianghu martial artists had only joined forces because each of them harbored his own schemes and was driven by shared profit.
They had only dared make a move because He Qin had taken the lead against Fan Xiu, and because their side had held an overwhelming advantage in overall strength.
But now, with two Eighth Rank Jinyiwei here, that difference in power had vanished completely!
Though they still had superior numbers, their morale was no longer dominant at all.
The moment Ai Peng appeared, he killed a man outright, and the sight of it made them shudder with fear.
No one wanted to become the unlucky soul who died beneath a Xiuchun Saber.
One after another, they all looked toward He Qin, asking what should be done.
“Manor Master He, this...”
At that moment, He Qin himself felt a chill run through his entire body.
The Great Qian court had actually sent two Eighth Rank Jinyiwei to deal with Sword-Forging Manor.
That sort of strength was not here to threaten or negotiate.
The Great Qian Emperor clearly intended to destroy Sword-Forging Manor!
The moment that thought crossed his mind, He Qin turned to Cheng Yu, grinding his teeth in fury.
“Madman! You madman! Why did you have to set your sights on my Sword-Forging Manor of all places?!”
If Cheng Yu had not stirred up chaos in Qingjiang Prefecture, things would never have reached this point.
Perhaps by now, He Qin would already have taken control of the Dragon Abyss Sword and begun leading Sword-Forging Manor toward greatness.
Looking at He Qin’s furious and frantic state, Cheng Yu let out a cold laugh.
“If Manor Master He dared to do such things, then he should have been prepared to bear the consequences. Can you really shoulder the lives of a million Great Qian citizens?”
Over the past century, the Jianghu martial artists had grown powerful, and the great sects had effectively become independent local powers entrenched in their own territories.
They had already begun to stand in silent opposition to Great Qian itself.
Because the court had been weak, the Qian Emperor—unable to extend his reach farther—had long turned a blind eye to certain things, lest he fail to preserve even the fragile balance that still remained.
But Cheng Yu had spread the news far and wide that Sword-Forging Manor had caused the deaths of a million men and plunged several million more into misery.
That was no longer something the Emperor could continue to ignore.
The strength of Great Qian lay in the fact that it was still the country of the Great Qian people, and that those people still saw themselves as belonging to Great Qian.
Countless martial artists and scholars alike still chose to enter court service.
If something like this happened and the throne still did not respond, then the hearts of the people would inevitably dissolve into fear and disillusionment, and the very foundation of the Great Qian imperial house would be shaken.
Was Great Qian truly a nation, or merely a land carved up at will by the Jianghu?
The Qian Emperor did not dare bear that consequence.
So, under pressure from every side, he chose to send two Assistant Commissioners, fully determined to make Sword-Forging Manor pay the price.
He Qin naturally understood the meaning of all this.
That only made him hate Cheng Yu even more.
“There are countless sects in this world more ruthless than mine, so why did you have to fix your eyes on Sword-Forging Manor?!”
He hated it!
The Nine Great Sects each occupied an entire Path like local emperors, and even court officials had to kneel and salute when they saw them.
Yet Cheng Yu was not going after those people. Instead, he had come for him!
And the reason for all of it was Cheng Yu himself.
“There is no point saying more. You need only prepare to collect the corpses of Sword-Forging Manor.”
Cheng Yu shook his head calmly, his tone resolute.
Today, he was going to raid Sword-Forging Manor no matter what!
The two sides faced one another once more, swords drawn and arrows nocked, battle on the verge of erupting.
Then, just at that moment, He Qin’s face turned livid as he gritted his teeth and struggled for a moment.
At last, he made a difficult decision.
He cast Cheng Yu one resentful glance, then turned to Ai Peng and Fan Xiu and bowed his head in salute.
“My two lords, my Sword-Forging Manor harbors absolutely no disrespect! We are willing to offer treasures, make amends, and explain ourselves!”
“My Sword-Forging Manor will certainly give His Majesty a satisfactory explanation!”
He Qin deliberately skipped over Cheng Yu and addressed the two Assistant Commissioners directly.
In his eyes, Cheng Yu was only a mere Hundred-Household Commander. The ones truly making decisions had to be the two men of higher rank and greater strength.
But when the martial artists at the side heard this, they were horrified.
He Qin was backing down!
No matter what, he no longer wanted to make an enemy of the Jinyiwei!
But Sword-Forging Manor was vast and powerful, with enough resources to negotiate peace with the Jinyiwei.
Would that not mean the rest of them were doomed?
Even the elders of Sword-Forging Manor were startled and immediately tried to dissuade him.
“Manor Master, you absolutely must not!”
“If you do this, how will the people of the Jianghu ever look at us again?”
“Though Sword-Forging Manor has fallen from its peak, when have we ever stooped this low? Manor Master, please take back those words!”
“Silence!”
He Qin roared savagely.
“However low Sword-Forging Manor must bow, it is still better than being exterminated! Get over here and salute!”
At those words, the people of Sword-Forging Manor had no choice but to obey.
They all came over, cupped their fists, and lowered their heads to show sincerity.
The hearts of the other martial artists turned cold.
He Qin had made up his mind!
“Mm...”
Hearing this, the coldness on Fan Xiu’s face eased somewhat.
If peace could be made with Sword-Forging Manor, then not only would the Qian Emperor’s command be fulfilled, but the Jianghu would not be offended too deeply either.
It was truly the best of both worlds.
He was just about to nod in agreement.
But Ai Peng suddenly raised a hand and stopped him.
“His Majesty said that in this operation, Hundred-Household Commander Cheng is to have full authority.”
Fan Xiu had no right to agree to He Qin’s request!
“You—”
Fan Xiu had just started to question why Ai Peng was obeying the orders of a mere Hundred-Household Commander.
Then his eyes changed.
He saw Jian A standing calmly off to one side.
That had been close!
At once, he shook his head to He Qin instead.
“There is no need for Manor Master He to speak to us of such things. If you have anything to say, discuss it with Hundred-Household Commander Cheng.”
When the other martial artists heard this, their eyes nearly fell out.
Two great Jinyiwei figures from the Great Qian Capital, both Eighth Rank martial artists!
And they were actually taking orders from Cheng Yu, a mere Hundred-Household Commander?
How could a Hundred-Household Commander receive treatment like this?
What other identity did Cheng Yu have? Why was he entitled to this?
Cheng Zhenjiang’s influence and reputation certainly could not reach the Great Qian Emperor!
At that moment, He Qin himself was left dumbstruck.
All the disdain in his heart vanished, and his face went from red to pale.
So it was Cheng Yu—this ruthless madman who killed like it was nothing—who was commanding two Eighth Rank experts!
In the end, he could only lower his head and bow to Cheng Yu as well.
In a humble and sincere tone, he said, “I hope Hundred-Household Commander Cheng can agree to Sword-Forging Manor’s request.”
The dignified Manor Master of Sword-Forging Manor, a famous Eighth Rank expert of the Earth Ranking, was humbling himself before a junior Jinyiwei officer!
The sight struck everyone like a blow.
Even those few once-in-a-century monsters at the very top of the Human Ranking probably had never received such treatment.
All of them looked toward Cheng Yu, waiting for his reaction.
In their hearts, they all already had the same answer.
No mere Hundred-Household Commander could possibly reject Sword-Forging Manor’s plea.
Or rather, anyone would make the correct choice and agree to He Qin’s request.
Unless that person was insane!
But in the very next moment, something no one expected happened.
A cold smile appeared on Cheng Yu’s face.
“Manor Master He, I already gave you your chance before. If the Jinyiwei want to destroy you, then it is not for you to decide. It is for me to decide...”
Then his voice rose sharply as he gave a loud order:
“Loose your arrows and slay the rebels! Leave no one in Sword-Forging Manor alive!”
The moment Ai Peng returned, he killed a man at once. That clearly meant he had already made up his mind to stand against Sword-Forging Manor.
For him to be this serious, whatever lay within Sword-Forging Manor had to be extraordinary.
There was a strong chance they truly had discovered a Dragon Vein.
If He Qin used that chance to completely take control of the Dragon Abyss Sword, then his strength would surely surge tremendously.
At that point, the situation would change entirely.
If they did not move now, then when would they move?
At Cheng Yu’s command, arrows poured down like rain. The Jinyiwei martial artists drew their blades, and the disciples of Sword-Forging Manor—who had still been bowing moments earlier—could not react in time.
Many of them died with shock still in their eyes, unable to close them in death.
“You madman! I regret this bitterly!”
He Qin’s eyes nearly split apart. He could not believe Cheng Yu would actually do this.
Rage as vast as the sea erupted in his heart. With a long howl, he drew his sword.
A towering surge of sword qi shot straight toward Cheng Yu, and Ai Peng hurriedly moved to block it.
In an instant, the Jinyiwei and the assembled Jianghu martial artists were locked in battle. Corpses covered the ground, and the scene looked like hell itself.
Fan Xiu stared with wide eyes at the carnage before him, then turned toward Cheng Yu, trembling.
“You’ve gone mad! He already agreed to offer compensation and explanations, so why are you still doing this?! His Majesty did not tell you to exterminate Sword-Forging Manor even under these circumstances!”
Cheng Yu shot him a cold glance.
“Execute First and Report Later, with the Throne’s Special Authorization. Have you knelt for so long that you’ve forgotten even that?”
With that, Cheng Yu looked toward a Sword-Forging Manor disciple charging at him with twin swords in hand.
It was He Qing, Sword-Forging Manor’s eldest disciple!
“Cheng Yu, you’ve harmed my sect! I want your life!”
Shhk!
A flash of saber light passed.
A severed head, its eyes still refusing to close, landed at Cheng Yu’s feet.
Blood sprayed onto Cheng Yu’s face, and against that handsome countenance, it made him look unspeakably sinister.
“Lord Fan, stop standing there stunned. It’s time to move.”