The remaining two experts on the Evil Extermination List of the Mirror of Sin also died at his hands.

Chu Qing still appeared as if nothing had happened... as if it was just a trivial matter.

He even felt that the Mad Saber rising in fame in the Martial World was comparable to this ’Han San’ brother, just so-so.

But why do both have the character ’San’ (Three)?

If he hadn’t heard earlier that Mad Saber was a handsome young master, Liu Yulai would have suspected this Han San to be Mad Saber.

"It’s nothing more than stirring the grass to alert the snake; the more ostentatiously you act now, the safer the person I’m looking for feels.

"In doing so, he might lead me to the place I want to go."

Chu Qing took out a letter and token from his bosom and handed them to Liu Yulai:

"This was also obtained from Guo Wang at the time, Dingxing City’s situation is temporarily stable; you can find a way to deliver this to Tie Lingyun.

"It’s still unclear whether Zhong Beitang is loyal or treacherous... let him judge for himself.

"Consider these two items as my reward for leaving Shen Hongye in Iron Blood Hall’s care...

"This child’s background is quite tragic; help me take extra care of him."

"Yes."

Even without Chu Qing’s words, Liu Yulai wished to treat Shen Hongye like a little ancestor.

Being favored by the person in front of him, as long as that child could live up to expectations, his future would be limitless.

Building good relationships now would greatly benefit the future.

After promising, he then looked at the letter, and upon reading it, his face changed dramatically:

"So Guo Wang was hiding something behind the scenes... Could Zhong Beitang really be?"

Thinking of this made him uneasy.

Chu Qing then chuckled:

"Iron Blood Hall spread too wide, inevitably mixing good and bad.

"Rest assured, the traitor certainly isn’t only Guo Wang, it’s likely Iron Blood Hall is facing fires everywhere, and its grand building is about to collapse."

"..."

Liu Yulai couldn’t tell for the moment whether this was comfort or schadenfreude.

Then Chu Qing said:

"If there’s no protection in Dingxing City later, you can take Shen Hongye to Luochun Manor."

He spoke and wrote a letter, handing it to Liu Yulai.

"When the time comes, you just need to give this letter to Wen Fusheng, and he will certainly provide you a place to settle down."

Chu Qing got up:

"Well, I’ve said most of what needs to be said.

"I should be going... Farewell."

Liu Yulai hastily saw him off, but Chu Qing waved his hand to let him sit down peacefully, and he left leisurely.

Watching Chu Qing leave, Liu Yulai finally breathed a sigh.

Previously, it seemed nothing, but now staying with Chu Qing only felt incredibly stressful.

However, he quickly grasped his spirit, picked up the brush intending to write a letter to Lu Zhiwei, but hadn’t even written a word.

Just as Chu Qing returned.

Suddenly surprised:

"Brother Han, you..."

"Forgot something."

Chu Qing reached out his hand, pinching his fingers:

"A thousand taels of patterned silver, I only accept Wanbao Money Shop’s silver notes."

"Oh oh oh."

Liu Yulai awoke from his dream, nodded quickly, then rummaged through boxes and cabinets for a while before pulling out several silver notes.

Although he was one of Lu Zhiwei’s top three generals, it wasn’t easy for him to whip out a thousand taels of patterned silver at once.

Patching together with a lot of scattered silver, this barely managed to make up.

Even Chu Qing couldn’t help but feel a slight reluctance...

But business is business, he still accepted the silver, clapped his hands, and turned away.

The old saying goes, "When wealth leaves, peace comes to people"... but Liu Yulai for the moment couldn’t feel at peace, only felt that as the silver left, his heart also drifted away.

After much contemplation, he couldn’t think of what to do next until he noticed the letter and token on the table, only then he realized.

Quickly continued unfinished business.

...

...

Two days after leaving Dingxing City, Zhou Fu’an always felt uneasy.

Currently, he was twelve miles away from Dingxing City in a village, dressing as a beggar begging at the village entrance every day.

In fact, he was observing tracks in all directions.

After all, he was the contact person for the Mirror of Sin, seemingly mundane but with a vast range of divine power.

On the day when three famous experts on the Evil Extermination List died on the street, though he was not the first to know, messages reached him quickly.

Upon receiving news, he immediately left Zhou’s mansion.

Sure enough, shortly after he left, Liu Yulai raided with his men; if delayed a step, he would’ve been caught by Liu Yulai.

Two days from leaving Dingxing City, messages returning from that side told Zhou Fu’an that Liu Yulai was deceived by the methods he left and diverted investigation directions to an entirely different path.

Yet for some reason, his heart was still uneasy.

Upon reflection, this unease arose from the mysterious deaths of the three experts on the list.

Sword Ghost absolutely didn’t have such abilities.

The intelligence indicated that the culprits were Han San and Han Si... but the problem was, who exactly are they?

With Mirror of Sin’s methods, the corpses could have been examined, but Liu Yulai had reduced those assassins’ bodies to ashes.

No path for tracking, the entire matter became increasingly puzzling.

The only known fact was that Han San slew Separation Sword with an extraordinary claw technique.

"This can’t be delayed anymore... the longer it drags, the more dangerous it becomes.

"This affair must be personally reported!

"Wait two more days... if things remain peaceful around for these two days, then I’ll set off for the branch."

Zhou Fu’an forced down his unease and stayed at the village entrance for another two days.

Around him nothing changed, always calm and undisturbed.

Thus, Zhou Fu’an couldn’t bear the underlying sense of danger anymore and hurriedly hit the road...

Throughout this journey, he moved uneasily, constantly hiding his tracks, watching residual traces, sometimes creating illusions, and sometimes using an escape method like a golden cicada shedding its shell.

He deployed all kinds of hidden, enemy enticing, and misleading techniques indiscriminately.

Yet his unease not only didn’t dissipate but intensely escalated.

Gradually, Zhou Fu’an felt this unease probably wasn’t from behind.

But from beyond the incident... if this information isn’t quickly conveyed back, the Mirror of Sin may face tremendous trouble.

This conviction solidified, easing much of his unease.

This reassured Zhou Fu’an, confirming his speculation.

Thus he didn’t think further, heading straight on his journey.

Yet he was retracing his path.

This branch wasn’t too far from Dingxing City after all.

Otherwise, carrier pigeons wouldn’t have traveled back and forth so briefly.

The three experts on the Evil Extermination List couldn’t have reached Dingxing City so quickly either.

Zhou Fu’an circled around his path, creating false impressions... fearing what might lurk behind him.

Now with his determination, he traveled towards the branch, spending two more days, arriving at a village.

This village was quite hidden.

Surrounded by mountains, accompanied by waterfalls, buildings nestled within this landscape.

From afar, the entire village’s smoke rose tranquilly in peace.

However, upon closer inspection, the village’s tranquility seemed excessive.

Because it lacked the sound of children’s laughter, looking lively, but in reality just a facade... it lacked human warmth.

Two peasant men leaned by the village entrance, glaring at Zhou Fu’an as though looking at a corpse.

Only when Zhou Fu’an revealed a token from his bosom did they withdraw their gaze, letting him into the village.

Meanwhile, from a slightly elevated spot in the distance, two figures concealed themselves, watching Zhou Fu’an entering the village.

"This should be the place."

Chu Qing’s voice was calm, but the light in his eyes was rather intense.

Since acquiring the two-hundred tael deposit from that money bag, Chu Qing had intended to find the root and locate the Mirror of Sin’s branch.

Now finally it was found.

"The earlier scare gave me a start..."

A gentle voice sounded beside him:

"Never thought he would retrace steps, fortunately you noticed timely... otherwise, we would’ve met head-on.

"Is this the Mirror of Sin branch?"

Chu Qing surveyed his surroundings, detecting hidden posts in the dark, softly nodding:

"Without a doubt, this is the place."