Perched atop the rockery, Zou Feng quickly surveyed the situation in the courtyard.
First, he could confirm that all three disciples of the Celestial Essence Sword Sect, including Su Changqing, were asleep.
Every room was pitch black.
’Where is the poisoned one sleeping?’
Gu Insects were naturally sensitive to poison, so it could pinpoint Su Changqing’s room with precision.
As soon as Zou Feng had the thought, Xiaolv flew to the third floor opposite them, to a room at the very end.
Zou Feng wasn’t surprised that Su Changqing’s room was there.
After all, he was the one who cultivated most diligently at night, and Su Changqing had surely cried out in his sleep more than a few times.
His fellow disciples, annoyed by the disturbances to their sleep, would naturally have assigned him the corner room on the third floor.
The others all lived on the first and second floors.
’This is perfect. If I can keep the noise down, I might actually pull this off without anyone being the wiser.’
Next, Zou Feng still didn’t touch the ground. Instead, he used the green bamboo in the courtyard as a foothold, leaping directly onto the third-floor corridor.
He had no intention of climbing onto the roof.
After all, if there were traps on the ground, the roof was likely trapped as well.
The corridor should be safe enough; even at night, these Celestial Essence Sword Sect disciples would still walk around for various reasons.
Arriving outside Su Changqing’s room, Zou Feng focused his hearing, listening for any movement inside.
He actually heard two different sets of breathing.
However, one clearly didn’t have the rhythmic breathing of a sleeping Martial Artist; it was obviously just an ordinary person.
’That makes sense. None of the Celestial Essence Sword Sect disciples would be willing to care for a sick person. This must be someone hired specifically to look after Su Changqing.’
So, of the four remaining people in the Rain Listening Pavilion, one was just a servant.
The difficulty of his task instantly dropped significantly.
After confirming there shouldn’t be any problems inside, Zou Feng immediately placed his hand on the center of the door and unleashed his Dark Force.
He shattered the bolt with ease, making almost no sound.
Even as Zou Feng entered the room, Su Changqing remained completely unresponsive.
This was naturally because Su Changqing was far too weak.
Coupled with chronic sleep deprivation—he could only get a good night’s rest when Zou Feng wasn’t cultivating—he was now sleeping especially soundly.
Standing in the room, Zou Feng noticed a smaller side room, which was obviously where the servant was sleeping.
After a quick scan of the room’s layout, Zou Feng drifted like a ghost into the side room. With a wave of his hand, he released a puff of Mist Smoke, sending the maid into a deeper sleep.
Now, she wouldn’t wake up even if someone banged a gong right next to her ear.
Afterward, Zou Feng still didn’t rush to make a move on Su Changqing.
A Seventh Grade Expert from the Celestial Essence Sword Sect could never be underestimated.
Once he attacked, the target’s final, desperate counterattack would be incredibly difficult to handle.
But his main fear was making too much noise and waking the other two.
So, Zou Feng decided to look for what he needed first.
Unexpectedly, after a long search, he found nothing but some silver taels.
Then...
Zou Feng tiptoed to Su Changqing’s bedside. Sure enough, next to the inner pillow, he saw a small, exquisitely made cloth pouch and a personal sword that faintly emanated an unusual aura.
Without a doubt, this sword was a Magical Artifact.
As for the pouch, he wasn’t sure if it contained the Nine Yang Profound Qi Pill, but it definitely held some kind of Elixir.
Now Zou Feng was in a difficult spot.
’Snatching something from right beside a Seventh Grade Martial Artist’s pillow without them noticing?’
’For me, in my current state, that’s almost impossible.’
No matter how weak he was, a Seventh Grade Martial Artist still possessed senses far beyond those of an ordinary person.
To put it bluntly, Su Changqing would definitely sense his killing intent at such close range and wake up instantly.
And Zou Feng knew he was incapable of completely suppressing his killing intent.
So there was no need to hesitate. Zou Feng had no other choice: kill Su Changqing first, then grab the items and flee.
Having made his decision, Zou Feng gestured to Xiaolv, signaling it to attack with him.
After preparing, Zou Feng first used his Flower Hand to wave out a few wisps of Mist Smoke.
But when Su Changqing inhaled the smoke, he didn’t fall into a deeper sleep. Instead, his brow furrowed, and he looked like he was about to wake up.
Zou Feng’s expression instantly became one of extreme dejection, one could even say utter despair.
Then, his hands rapidly formed a Sealing Technique as he struck out with a palm full of worldly compassion.
The palm landed squarely on Su Changqing’s face.
As a result, although Su Changqing had woken up, his cry of alarm was muffled to a minimum.
At the same time, Xiaolv attacked.
Perhaps influenced by Zou Feng, the little creature chose to start gnawing on Su Changqing’s hand.
"Mmph—"
After a few muffled whimpers, Su Changqing’s eyes filled with terror and helplessness.
But a Seventh Grade was a Seventh Grade. Even under these circumstances, he managed a Bursting Qi, and his Protective Qi Force erupted outwards.
Zou Feng knew he absolutely could not retreat now, or he would fail at the final moment.
Enduring the sharp pain in his right hand from the vibrating Inner Qi, he kept it pressed against Su Changqing’s face.
With his other hand, he executed the Five Poison Fire Lotus Palm, striking Su Changqing heavily in the chest.
Who would have thought that the man still hadn’t lost his ability to resist? His arms and legs began to flail, and his right hand was about to reach the Long Sword by his pillow.
’What’s going on? It makes no sense for him to be this durable when he’s so weak!’
Just as the question popped into his head, Zou Feng caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye of the Jade Pendant hanging from Su Changqing’s belt. It was emitting a faint, fluorescent glow.
Zou Feng was certain that thing hadn’t been glowing before; otherwise, he would have noticed it long ago.
’Damn it, another Magical Artifact...’
Keeping the two Celestial Essence Sword Sect disciples downstairs from being alerted was now impossible.
Zou Feng made a split-second decision. Gritting his teeth, he went all out.
Through recollection, he swiftly performed a Visualization of the Seven Sins Dharma Aspect, then gathered these aspects in his mind, focusing them on the image of the Ten Directions Divine King.
In truth, once one’s Cultivation reached a certain Realm, some corresponding moves could be executed through instinct or inspiration without conscious effort.
Mercy Sloth Palm, a continuous flurry of strikes!
"SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP..."
A dense Palm Technique, like a river’s raging tide, crashed down on Su Changqing, who was still trying to get up.
The Great Compassion Hand originally had the effect of beating a person into a state of utter listlessness. Now, infused with the Sloth of the Seven Deadly Sins, the effect was even more exaggerated.
After being struck, even with the Magical Artifact helping to negate some of the damage, Su Changqing was filled with the thought that it might be better to just die. An early death would be an early release, freeing him from the torment of his strange illness.
"HRAAAGH!" Zou Feng hadn’t gone all out like this in a long time, and he knew he couldn’t hold anything back now.
In the span of a single breath, he rained down a hundred palms on Su Changqing.
With a sharp CRACK, the Jade Pendant on Su Changqing’s waist shattered and went dim.
Only then was Xiaolv able to bite through Su Changqing’s palm and begin devouring his flesh and blood.
Without the defense provided by the Magical Artifact, Su Changqing was finally overwhelmed by the stormy Palm Technique, and his life gradually faded away.
Finishing his frantic assault, Zou Feng didn’t even have time to catch his breath. He snatched the cloth pouch that had fallen under the bed when the frame collapsed, then dove out the window.
He didn’t take the Magical Artifact Long Sword, of course, because that thing was a hot potato and would be impossible to deal with.
Besides, heaven knew if it had some kind of tracking function.
The Celestial Essence Sword Sect revered swords above all else; they would have undoubtedly placed the most countermeasures on their personal blades.
While in mid-air, Zou Feng realized Xiaolv wasn’t with him.
He quickly turned his head to look back inside the room.
He found Xiaolv still gnawing away and snapped irritably, "Still eating? You want to get us killed?!"
Only then did Xiaolv reluctantly fly out.
The moment Zou Feng’s words fell, questioning shouts erupted from the two rooms on the first floor.
In truth, the two Eighth Grade Realm disciples of the Celestial Essence Sword Sect had woken up the instant Zou Feng went all out.
The reason their reaction was a beat slow was that they were used to Su Changqing having "episodes" in the middle of the night.
So, upon being startled awake, they both subconsciously assumed it was just Su Changqing having another "nightmare." They muttered a couple of curses and were about to roll over and go back to sleep.
But as the sounds grew more and more unusual, they finally scrambled out of bed...
However, having failed to rush out and check immediately, they could only catch a faint glimpse of Zou Feng’s fleeing back.
"Go after him! I’ll check on Brother Su!"
The two quickly divided the tasks. One of them fearlessly gave chase after Zou Feng.
Daring to pursue alone was partly due to confidence in his own strength; another reason was that this was, after all, the Inner City area.
Whether it was the Government Office or other powers, they could all be considered allies. He just needed to shout a warning while chasing, and other Martial Artists would soon appear to help intercept the target.
Meanwhile, the other disciple who went to check on Su Changqing stood frozen in the room, his face ashen.
Su Changqing’s body was covered in Palm Seals, and his life force was completely extinguished.
But strangely, Su Changqing’s expression was very peaceful, with a smile even gracing the corners of his mouth.
It was as if being beaten to death hadn’t brought him pain, but rather the release he had been hoping for.
"What... what kind of Evil Skill is this..." A chill ran down the Celestial Essence Sword Sect disciple’s spine.
Since being stationed in Yuan Guang County Town, not a single one of the Celestial Essence Sword Sect disciples sent here on the extermination mission had been lost.
So even the Eighth Grade disciples had begun to feel like they were the overlords of this small place.
But now, a Seventh Grade had suddenly been taken out!
This left the man at a complete loss. He even wanted to hurry and warn his fellow disciple who had just given chase that it would be better to stop...
On the other side, although Zou Feng knew an Eighth Grade Sword Sect disciple was chasing him, he had no intention of turning back to kill him.
The reason was simple: the man was shouting as he ran, obviously trying to summon more people to surround him.
To avoid any unexpected turns, it was best not to cause unnecessary complications.
Many disasters began with the delusion, ’I can turn this around and kill him’.
Besides, with Zou Feng’s familiarity with the streets and alleys of Yuan Guang City, even if this person’s Qinggong was superior to his, there was no way he could catch him!