The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear

Chapter 168

This was the seventh person skilled in using poison, but he was poisoned to death. Was it suicide?

Feng Xuese used her sword to remove the mask covering the corpse of the man who had used the hammer.

The face beneath was ordinary, so ordinary that if he changed his clothes and stood in a crowd, he would look like that guy next door—kind-looking, but without any distinguishing features.

The same was true for the others.

No one would have imagined that such an ordinary group of people would use such perverse methods to brutally murder the elderly, women, and children.

However, this is what makes a truly qualified assassin: blending into the crowd, more ordinary than anyone else, yet cold-blooded to the core.

These assassins may not be top-notch in martial arts, but their extraordinary ability lies not in their skills, but in their seamless teamwork during attacks. Such tacit understanding could only be achieved through long-term cooperation.

He hurriedly examined the bodies.

The black clothes were made of the most common cotton fabric available at the time, used by people all over the country. The weapons were exquisitely crafted, but they were not engraved with any names. There was nothing on the body that indicated the wearer's identity.

Such a meticulously planned operation was orchestrated by a group of people I'd never heard of before—so, which organization in the martial arts world trained them?

What is puzzling is why such a well-trained and well-hidden killer would so cruelly slaughter ordinary people who are powerless to fight.

Was it simply a bloodlust, or were there other reasons?

Although the enemy was completely wiped out, Feng Xuese felt no relief at all.

I always feel that things are like a black hole; once you peel away the outermost layer, you see an even deeper fog inside.

He had a premonition that perhaps, this was just the beginning.

The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Part One: The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Chapter Four (2)

The disheveled boy huddled in a corner of the Yanhe Pagoda and witnessed the green-robed meatball king smash the window with a single palm strike and leap out of it.

A sharp axe silently emerged from the window. As Wang Buhe charged forward, he was essentially throwing his stomach into the axe blade. Just as he was about to be disemboweled, Wang Buhe took a deep breath and twisted his body to land on the other side.

Then, a watermelon-sized iron hammer struck him lightly on the head with a "thud." Immediately afterward, the Xuan axe arrived, and with a drag and pull in front of Wang Buhe, it cut open Wang Buhe's abdomen.

On a spring night, ten thousand blood-red peach blossoms burst forth.

Upon seeing the attire of the assailants, the disheveled boy was terrified. Just as he was panicking, Zhang Buchi in front of the tower also engaged in combat with them.

The boy had been involved in petty theft for many years and was quite resourceful in dealing with emergencies. Although he was terrified by the sight of Wang Buhe's miserable state, he was not completely at a loss. Seeing that the murderer's attention was on Zhang Buhe, he immediately pulled out firewood from the fire and set the straw pile in the tower on fire.

Although it had rained during the day, the tower was not wet. The rotten straw, which had been there for countless years, was completely dry. Once lit, it immediately caught fire, which then ignited the scattered broken tables and desks. The fire grew larger and larger, and in the blink of an eye, the doors and windows of Yanhe Tower were sealed off by the fire. The fire spread from the first floor to the second floor, and then to the third floor. In no time, all seven floors of Yanhe Tower were ablaze.

Thick smoke billowed out, choking the boy and making his eyes water. He crawled a few steps on the ground, coughing, "Cough cough, Hua Hua!"

"Hmph!" A wet object gently touched his shoulder.

"Follow me, don't run around, or you'll turn into a roast suckling pig!" The boy quickly climbed to the back of the spiral staircase at the corner of the tower, rummaged around on the ground for a bit, found what he needed, pressed it down hard, and then heard the sound of hinges rubbing together.

Amidst the thick smoke and flames, a dark tunnel could be faintly seen.

Seeing "Hua Hua" disappear into the tunnel, the boy jumped down as well. He groped around on the cave wall for a while, and then, for some unknown reason, the opening above his head creaked shut.

Don't assume that the boy is lucky and that God is protecting his life, so that a cave is arranged for him at the crucial moment. In fact, it's just an underground palace.

Generally, when temples and pagodas are built, underground palaces are constructed beneath them to store precious items such as reliquary reliquary. Yanhe Pagoda is no exception.

Since arriving in Qingyang City, the boy had made Yanhe Pagoda his temporary residence. He spent his days wandering around causing trouble, and when he got bored at night, he would rummage through the pagoda. On the third day, he discovered the mechanism to enter the underground palace.

I was so excited at the time, thinking there was some treasure, so I immediately climbed down to see.

To my surprise, the cramped basement below was completely empty, except for a musty smell. Disappointed, I couldn't help but curse the monks of Yanhe Temple for being poor but extravagant!

Unexpectedly, it was the underground palace built by these poor monks that saved his and "Huahua's" lives.

The cave was dark, and there was a musty smell in the air, which was very unpleasant, but compared to the smoky and fiery atmosphere of the tower, it was like paradise.

Following the passage, the boy led "Huahua" through the dilapidated basement and walked straight back.

This tunnel is only a few dozen feet long, and its exit is a pond.

The pond is not very big. It may have been the lotus viewing pond of Yanhe Temple in the past. There was also a rockery made of Taihu stones in the middle. However, it has been in disrepair for many years and has collapsed in many places. The stone blocking the entrance of the cave is leaning to one side, revealing a large gap that is covered with wormwood.

The boy hid in the cave, and apart from the crackling of the flames, he couldn't hear any other unusual sounds. He endured it for a long time, but finally couldn't resist any longer. He lay down at the cave entrance, slightly parted the weeds, and peered out with his eyes wide open.

At first glance, he saw a man in black lying face down in a distorted position on a low tree by the pond, his lifeless eyes staring coldly at him without blinking.

The boy quickly pulled his head back, his heart pounding in fear. Only one thought crossed his mind: "He saw me! There's no escaping this time!" He shuddered as he recalled the brutality of the people he had witnessed before.

The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Part One: The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Chapter Four (3)

After waiting for a long time without feeling anyone coming to kill him, he couldn't help but peek out again. He found that the man in black was still in that awkward posture, staring at him. He was both frightened and puzzled. He stared back at him for a while before realizing that the man was already dead.

The boy breathed a long sigh of relief, but couldn't help wondering: Had he "started a fire" that drove the murderer to commit suicide?

He knew it was impossible, and he didn't know where the other murderers were, so he lay down at the entrance of the hole, held his breath, stretched his neck, and peered out.

A thin sword was gently pressed against the soft spot on his throat.

The gleaming blade, the bone-chilling cold.

The boy was so frightened that his hair stood on end, and his body went limp as he was about to sit down. The sword moved forward slightly, and he immediately lay on the ground, too afraid to move.

A pair of feet were placed on a Taihu stone not far from his face.

Those feet were clad in plain-colored boots with subtle dark patterns on the surface. The soles of the boots were slightly covered with green moss, but they didn't feel unclean; instead, they felt natural and elegant.