“Damn it, why’s it this idiot?!” Sha Lifei clearly spotted him too. Instinctively, he hunched his shoulders and shrank back, but seeing Li Yan standing upright with his hand already on the hilt of his blade, his face twisted in resignation, and he straightened up as well.

“Gentlemen, I’m back.” Master Zhou grunted once and was about to lead them inside when a fat man with his chest exposed grinned and blocked the way.

“Well now, Master Zhou, you’re a man of your word. We were just thinking, if you didn’t come back soon, we would head in ourselves...”

“Move aside!” Before he could finish, a hand shoved him hard, making him stumble.

The fat man was about to curse, but when he saw who it was, he shut his mouth. It was Meng Haicheng.

He stared at Li Yan, eyes gleaming with excitement. “Well, well, what a coincidence. I was just thinking of tracking you down, you bastard!”

Li Yan glanced at him calmly. “Still not satisfied with your loss? You want to go another round?”

Master Zhou looked surprised, he hadn’t expected this young man behind Wang Daoxuan to have a grudge with the Iron Blade Gang.

“Fight you? Screw that!” Meng Haicheng flushed red and barked, “Do you even know where you are? Brothers, take him down!”

“Got it, Brother Meng!”

The thugs immediately closed in.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Sha Lifei panicked. “Meng Haicheng, have you no shame? Ganging up on someone like this, what about the rules of the jianghu?!”

Meng Haicheng sneered, “Rules? You think you deserve them?”

But just the words left his lips, Li Yan exploded into motion. His left hand thrust forward as his right hand dipped low.

“Not that move again!” Meng Haicheng’s anger flared as he roared with rage.

Last time, Li Yan had used the exact stance to land a brutal elbow strike to his chest, forcing him to abandon his workers and flee in disgrace. That humiliation had ruined him; he could never lead laborers again. No one would trust a man who abandoned them midway.

As for reporting to his master, Zhou Pan? That was impossible. If Zhou Pan learned he had been beaten, he would suffer worse injuries than Li Yan had ever dealt him. In the end, he had swallowed the disgrace, fled to Xianyang, and thrown himself under his senior brother’s wing as a lackey.

As Li Yan charged in, he didn’t dodge. Meng Haicheng crouched low, twisting his waist, right arm raised in a strange guard, like a crouching ape. It looked ridiculous, but it was one of Zhou Pan’s killing techniques.

If Li Yan followed through with the elbow strike, Meng Haicheng would counter with his Ape Falling from Branch, sweeping low and crippling him. If Li Yan switched to a kick, he would respond with Monkey Silk Bind, clawing out Li Yan’s eyes.

Every angle was covered. This time, he was ready.

Suddenly, Li Yan’s hand that lowered earlier suddenly gripped the hilt of his blade.

Shing!

His blade flashed like cold lightning through the rain. Before Meng Haicheng could react, the edge of the blade was already pressed against his throat, biting just enough to draw blood.

To onlookers, it looked absurd. Meng Haicheng was crouched like a monkey while Li Yan stood poised to behead him.

Humiliated again, Meng Haicheng roared, “We were fighting barehanded and you drew a blade! Where are the rules of the jianghu?!”

Li Yan raised a brow. “Rules? You think you deserve them?”

Meng Haicheng’s mind buzzed with rage, but before he could speak, his expression changed and he stumbled backward. Li Yan advanced, blade at his throat, forcing him step by step into the courtyard.

When they were both inside, Li Yan turned and said calmly to the thugs, “Anyone who steps past this gate gets to see his head roll.”

However, the Iron Blade Gang wasn’t intimidated. They weren’t honorable fighters. Rather, they were desperate men with nothing to lose. In older times, such men were called outlaws. In places like Tianjin, men would draw lots for death duels, jumping into boiling oil, stabbing themselves, and gouging their eyes out, all without flinching.

The men of the Guanzhong Plains were no softer. One thug stepped forward, one eye larger than the other, waving a short blade.

“Oh? You’re using a blade now?” After he spoke, he pointed at his neck. “Come on then, cut here. Kill me, and you’re a real man. Brothers, watch closely!”

“HAHAHA!”

The group roared with laughter. They weren’t afraid. Their tactic was simple. All they had to do was to be shameless.

The law was strict. Kill someone in broad daylight, and they would be hunted down immediately. People like them had protection. The gang had greased the officials’ palms. And legally, they held debt claims. They weren’t even trespassing.

If Li Yan killed them, he would be hunted by both the law and the gang. If he didn’t, he would embarrass himself. Li Yan didn’t bother arguing. With a cold smile, he pressed harder and the blade cut deeper.

Blood poured down Meng Haicheng’s neck.

“Wait, wait, WAIT!” Meng Haicheng went pale, shrieking in fright, “Don’t come closer! He’s a madman, do you want to kill me?!”

The thugs stopped, but their eyes were full of mockery. However, they knew they couldn’t do much; in the end, Meng Haicheng was still their leader’s junior. It wouldn’t be good if he was killed. The only thing they couldn’t believe was how much of a wuss he was. So much for their fearless leader.

Li Yan was too lazy to bother with this bunch from the Iron Blade Gang. All they could do was act shamelessly till they got their way. The only reason they could even do so was because they were in the city. If they were out in the wilderness, Li Yan would have killed them all. After all, who was going to report him if they were all dead?

By then, the commotion had drawn out the troupe. A crowd of men, women, elders, and children, walked out of the crumbling compound. Some held brooms, some knives, and even the children gripped sticks. Naturally, there were a bunch of youngsters too, but all they could do was glare at the members of the Iron Blade Gang.

Li Yan immediately understood. Why hadn’t Master Zhou resisted? Because he couldn’t.

He wasn’t just leading a troupe, he was bringing their families. They were a large traveling group, with dependents in tow. In such times, people didn’t roam around unless they had no land left to live on.

“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Master Zhou steadied himself and addressed his people. “These are guests I invited. Go back, don’t get involved.”

He looked at Li Yan, hesitant about what to say. Their savior was also a walking disaster, drawing his blade at the slightest provocation. If things escalated, Li Yan could leave, but they would face the gang’s retaliation.

He was out of options.

Wang Daoxuan’s expression softened and he quickly spoke to break the awkwardness. “Master Zhou, we have seen enough. We will accept your request.”

He had seen enough. People like them didn’t look like they were practicing forbidden arts. Still, he looked to Li Yan. Li Yan held the blade in one hand, formed a hand seal with the other, and inhaled deeply. Every scent within a hundred meters flooded his senses.

There were no puppets made from the skin of corpses and no yin corruption. There was nothing abnormal. When he was done, he nodded, then casually kicked up a stone and flicked it over the wall. It was a common jianghu trick.

“Ah, damn it!” A cry came from behind the wall.

Someone had tried to sneak in and take a hostage, but Li Yan had already detected him.

Li Yan chuckled, tapping Meng Haicheng’s face with the flat side of his blade. “So, do you want to deal with this today, or would you like to be like a normal person and wait a few days?”

Meng Haicheng gritted his teeth and asked, “How do we deal with it today?”

“Simple!” Li Yan’s gaze sharpened. “I kill you, then I kill every bastard outside. Then I flee and let the guards hunt me.”

Meng Haicheng gulped. “What about the other way?”

Li Yan slowly looked to the skies. “Then we follow the rules of the jianghu. Once this job is done, we’ll fight. You bring whoever you want and we will duel in the arena. It will be a life or death battle.”

Meng Haicheng had no choice.

Still, he feebly threatened, “Fine. Don’t run when the time comes.”

Li Yan’s blade was still pressed against his neck. Li Yan scoffed. “The son of Li Hu running away from Monkey Zhou’s dog? You might want me to run, but I won’t.”

After he spoke, he kicked Meng Haicheng out the gate.

The man stumbled, caught himself, and shouted, “You little bastard, I’ll give you three days! I’ll be here to collect your corpse!”

“Let’s go!”

At his command, the gang left.

When they were gone, Li Yan turned to look at Sha Lifei. “Old Sha, spread the word. Li Hu’s son is here. They won’t be able to hide from this duel.”

“Got it!” Sha Lifei replied and rushed off immediately.

With everything settled, Wang Daoxuan nodded. “Tomorrow, the rain should stop. Master Zhou, prepare everything.”

He paused for a moment before speaking again. “Tomorrow night, we go to the mass grave.”