Sky Clarity Manor sprawled across an expansive area, with courtyards nested within courtyards, resembling the private estate of some prince or marquis.
"I've come to realize that the martial arts sects in central Anhui are all living quite comfortably," Zhu Changle pondered, unable to make sense of it. "If they're not short on money, what did that Zhu fellow promise them to get them involved in this mess?"
"If it's not for money, then it's for power, isn't it?" Dingding replied, pulling out his dog-beating stick and gesturing in a semicircle towards the manor. "The old ones may be out of luck, but if they groom the young ones, who knows what paths might open up? Look at this layout - does it seem like something a crude martial artist without ambition could plan?"
Zhu Changle nodded in wholehearted agreement. "If only every brute had your level of self-awareness."
"Zhu Changle, are you looking for a fight right here and now?" Dingding retorted.
"As if you could beat me even if we fought here," Zhu Changle scoffed, watching the lights gradually come on below. She figured if their conversation hadn't already alerted anyone, the inhabitants must have been drugged and were just waiting for her to come and slaughter them.
"Who goes there?" a voice called out.
"Why, I'm the one you were hunting down earlier today!" Zhu Changle stepped forward with her hands behind her back, grinning mischievously. "I've come to turn myself in!"
This rather unusual way of announcing oneself... was quite peculiar. Below, there was a moment of silence, followed by immediate commotion. People began leaping onto the rooftops to confront the group of four.
Qiuli nudged Zhu Changle's shoulder with his fan, and when she turned to look, he made a slicing motion across his throat with the fan.
"Kill them all? No, no, no, that would be too cruel," Zhu Changle wagged her index finger. "If that was my intention, I wouldn't have come here. How could I possibly do such a brutal thing myself? Master always said that the burden of taking lives would come back to haunt you... Wait a minute, something doesn't feel quite right about that."
Zhu Changle looked uncertainly towards Aunt Feng.
"The Young Miss is seeking revenge. If we're talking about karmic retribution, it's those people who bear the burden of taking lives and are now facing the consequences from the Young Miss," Aunt Feng replied, her expression unchanged. "Young Miss, when rumors spread that the Young Miss had bloodied some place or another, she was actually wielding her stick..."
"Alright, alright, no need to bring that up," Zhu Changle instinctively rubbed her backside. People often called her a monkey, but this monkey had never managed to escape from under her master's Five Finger Mountain.
However, now that she knew the karmic retribution wasn't referring to her master, she felt relieved. She patted Qiuli's shoulder and said, "Today, our main goal is to break their legs, just to immobilize them."
Qiuli nodded to show he understood.
"Little Zhu, revealing your identity might be useful now. Want to give it a try?" Dingding suggested.
"I'll pass," Zhu Changle replied, observing the growing number of people surrounding them both above and below. She drew her sword. "After being hunted down all this way, this young lady needs to vent some anger first!"
Indeed, she was redirecting her anger! Zhu Changle charged forward with her sword, simultaneously unleashing the sword energy of 'Eternal Vitality'. It wasn't aimed at people, but instead sliced off a layer from the nearest rooftop.
Free from the constraints of family ties and with friends by her side, Zhu Changle attacked without hesitation. She unleashed Eternal Vitality techniques one after another, filling the air with sword shadows.
Dingding, not to be outdone, followed closely with his dog-beating stick, guarding her left flank. Aunt Feng protected her right side. The three of them worked in perfect coordination, sweeping forward like an unstoppable force. True to her word, Zhu Changle wasn't after their lives, only their legs! The three fighters aimed their weapons at the legs of their opponents. The crisp sound of breaking bones mingled with agonized screams, creating a distinct cacophony.
Qiuli, meanwhile, remained stationary. He had somehow procured a handful of pebbles and was precisely hurling them at anyone attempting to launch sneak attacks from the shadows. For the last pebble, he added extra force and threw it towards a group of seven people who had suddenly appeared on the opposite rooftop. The leader of the group deflected it.
"I wonder which esteemed master you might be," the leader called out.
Qiuli, of course, didn't deign to respond.
"Well, he's certainly not on your side," Zhu Changle quipped, changing direction and charging towards the opposite roof. "You recognize me, right? That's all that matters."
"This old man's eyes are not what they used to be. I'm afraid I don't recognize you, young hero," the leader replied.
"Then allow me to jog your memory," Zhu Changle said, unfazed. She was no stranger to playing dumb herself, and she knew just how to deal with such people - beat them until they remember, just like her master did to her.
"You guys split up the others. This gentleman who doesn't recognize me is mine," she instructed.
Aunt Feng and Dingding promptly headed towards the left and right of the old man, each taking on three opponents, leaving the one in the middle for Zhu Changle.
Zhu Changle pointed her sword tip at him. "Out of respect for the elderly, I'll give you a three-move head start. Come on!"
No one could tolerate being looked down upon like this, not even the deeply scheming master of Sky Clarity Manor. He let out a heavy snort and charged at Zhu Changle's face with his curved blade in hand.
Zhu Changle was no novice to the martial world. She was well-versed in the various sects and schools, and naturally knew that the weapon of choice for the master of Sky Clarity Manor, Sang Ding, was a curved blade. She was also aware of his reputation for treachery. However, she hadn't expected him to resort to underhanded tactics against a mere junior like herself.
Closing her eyes to avoid the burst of bright light that shot out from the curved blade, Zhu Changle's movements didn't falter for a moment. She used her sword to block the curved blade from above, while simultaneously using her scabbard to deflect another curved blade.
Qiuli, who had been about to throw his fan, relaxed his grip. He opened the fan and fanned himself, moving closer to Zhu Changle to fend off attacks from others.
"As expected of Master Sang, whose reputation for treachery is known far and wide. This is the first time in my life I've met someone so true to their infamous name!" Zhu Changle laughed, but her attacks were fierce. A flurry of sword shadows relentlessly assaulted Sang Ding.
At first, Sang Ding managed to hold his ground, but as the sword shadows became more numerous and faster, he found himself retreating step by step. Finally, Zhu Changle knocked him to the ground with a swift move.
"I'm being terribly disrespectful to my elders, aren't I, Master Sang? My sincerest apologies," Zhu Changle said with a mischievous grin, holding her sword to Sang Ding's vital point. "But you see, I'm not really a bad child. My master always said, when dealing with bad people, you have to be even worse than them. Beat them until they can't get up, then kick them a few more times, and they'll learn to fear you. Don't you think my master has a point?"
Sang Ding had never suffered such humiliation before. Gritting his teeth, he asked, "Who is your master?"
"Oh my, didn't the person behind all this tell you? My master's surname is Zhong, given name Ningmei, also known as the Demon. Yes, yes, it's exactly who you're thinking of," Zhu Changle replied.
Seeing his face change color at the mention of the name, Zhu Changle withdrew her sword and clapped her hands enthusiastically. Her master's reputation was so useful! She would have to use it more often from now on. Much, much more often!
"Master Sang, how does it feel to be used as someone else's pawn? Tsk, tsk, did you really think the benefits would come so easily?" Zhu Changle sneered. "If we were just an ordinary family of imperial officials, would they need to mobilize so many of you? You should thank me. By breaking your legs, you've at least fulfilled your task. If I were to actually die here in central Anhui, none of you would survive. Forget about my master not letting you off, even the person behind you wouldn't keep any of you alive as potential evidence that could eventually implicate them."
Sang Ding's face changed color once again. "You know who it is?"
"Take a guess," Zhu Changle grinned, baring her teeth. "As for your legs, I'll leave them be. After all, at your age, if they don't heal properly, you might end up lame, right? That wouldn't be good. I'll do myself a good deed and spare you. As for the others... except for the women, break the legs of every single one of them!"
Dingding responded with the most enthusiasm, "Almost done!"
