At first, Cheng Zongyang thought they were here to steal the medicinal materials. But the next moment, he saw them take something out from their robes, bring it to their lips, and blow gently. A flame instantly flared to life.

Cheng Zongyang’s mind went blank. ’They’re here to set a fire?’

’Who would do this?’

At that thought, he immediately considered the Four Great Gangs and the An and Miao Families.

They were the only factions openly opposing the County Magistrate.

’But have things escalated to a direct and open confrontation with the County Magistrate?’

Cheng Zongyang grew anxious. If these medicinal materials were burned, his family’s Foundation Establishment Medicine Bath preparations would surely be delayed. The County Magistrate’s bath, however, wouldn’t be much affected.

Just as he was wondering whether to make some noise to alert others, a dozen or so people charged out from the direction of the backyard.

In just a few moments, they had the four men in black completely surrounded.

The man in the lead was none other than Qi Yue, the Director of the Inspection Bureau!

Beside him were Wang Tianfeng, three other constables, and six government officials.

A cold sweat suddenly broke out on Cheng Zongyang’s back.

He hadn’t expected Qi Yue to be lying in wait here with so many men.

’Could they have spotted my own movements earlier?’

Regardless of whether he had been seen, Cheng Zongyang immediately hid himself better, waiting for a chance to slip away.

’To think I’d run into this just trying to get some free medicinal materials.’

Qi Yue, having surrounded the four men in black, smiled coldly.

"Just as the County Magistrate predicted, someone really did come for the medicinal materials. You’ve invested quite a bit, sending four Eighth Grade Martial Artists. Or should I say, are you four all that’s left?"

Hearing the insinuation in Qi Yue’s words, the four men in black exchanged a look and charged toward the wall without a word.

Qi Yue’s Body Technique was swift. He landed in front of them in a flash and attacked immediately. The four Martial Artists halted at once, with two of them breaking off to engage Qi Yue!

As a Seventh Grade Martial Artist, Qi Yue’s skills were naturally extraordinary. He handled the two allied Eighth Grade Martial Artists with ease.

Wang Tianfeng confronted another man in black, while the last one began attacking the other three Ninth Grade constables and some of the government officials.

Watching the chaotic melee, Cheng Zongyang was thoroughly engrossed.

He had never seen a battle between Martial Artists before.

The men in black fought with fierce and powerful styles, primarily using claws and fists. Qi Yue, on the other hand, mainly used Palm Techniques.

A series of muffled thuds echoed as fists and feet collided. Qi Yue easily neutralized their ferocious attacks.

"CRACK!"

"BANG!"

The second sound, a dull thud, came from the chest of the more heavily built man in black.

Qi Yue had parried one man’s Claw Skill with a palm strike, then spun and struck the other man in the chest, only for his opponent to merely take half a step back with his right foot!

"Eagle Claw Skill, Iron Cloth Shirt!" Qi Yue’s expression darkened, and he immediately pulled back. "So you two are from the Celestial Eagle Gang and the Iron Bone Gang. Are you Vice Leaders, or the Gang Leaders themselves?"

One of the men fighting Qi Yue had clearly cultivated a Hard Qi Skill or something similar. Unwilling to waste words with Qi Yue, he pressed forward again, his techniques growing sharper and more powerful.

Qi Yue’s powerful Palm Technique struck his body, but it only forced him back a single step and caused no significant damage.

His defensive power was evident!

Realizing this, Qi Yue found himself tied down by their coordinated attacks.

Wang Tianfeng and his opponent were evenly matched, trading fist for fist in a head-on clash, a far more direct exchange than the one between Qi Yue and his two adversaries.

As for the fourth man in black, he used his agile Body Technique to leap and dodge, killing three of the unranked government officials and breaking a constable’s right hand. He was using his superior mobility to run circles around them, picking them off one by one!

Although Eighth Grade and Ninth Grade are seemingly only one tier apart, the difference in the Power they could unleash was immense.

Without having trained in External Skills, a Ninth Grade Martial Artist could hardly withstand a single punch from an Eighth Grade Martial Artist! 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Just like that, the man in black killed four government officials one by one and crippled a Ninth Grade Martial Artist, taking away most of his combat ability. If the other two Martial Artists hadn’t saved him, he would likely be dead.

Meanwhile, after trading a hundred blows, Qi Yue’s face was grim. He hadn’t expected these men to be so difficult to deal with. Every time he was about to finish off the man from the Celestial Eagle Gang, the other would rescue him, and vice versa.

He had fought opponents like these before, but always in one-on-one duels where his chances of victory were naturally higher.

But now, not only were they coordinating, but one of them—a practitioner of External Skills—was leading the charge, greatly diminishing the effectiveness of his attacks. It proved that the man’s Cultivation of this type of External Skill had reached a Refined and Masterful level.

Without having cultivated Hidden Force, the damage he could inflict on such an opponent was limited.

At this thought, Qi Yue’s qi and blood surged. He changed his palm into a fist, broke through the Iron Bone Gang member’s boxing technique, and smashed a punch into his opponent’s face, sending him stumbling backward.

Having landed the blow, Qi Yue immediately abandoned the Iron Bone Gang member—the one with the formidable defense who was tying him down—and seized the opportunity to attack the Celestial Eagle Gang member who had been coordinating the sneak attacks.

"Liu Zhi, tie him up!"

Behind him, the sharp-eyed Wang Tianfeng saw the opening. He blasted his opponent back with a punch, yelled the order to his subordinate, and spun around to charge the Iron Bone Gang member who was still reeling from his superior’s attack.

’As long as we can stall that one, the Director can take out the other, and this stalemate will be broken.’

When Liu Zhi, who had been about to swing his saber and continue the assault on the man in black who was jumping around like a monkey, heard his boss’s command, he froze. A pained expression crossed his face, but he had no choice but to raise his saber and charge forward.

"BANG!!"

Without the other man’s help, the Celestial Eagle Gang member, who had not cultivated External Skills, lasted no more than a dozen breaths. Qi Yue seized an opening and shattered the five fingers of his right hand with a single punch. He followed up with several powerful palm strikes to the chest, causing the man to spit up blood as his black mask fell away.