Jianghu Qimen Lu

Chapter 63 A Clear Conscience

Kong Dun screamed like a pig being slaughtered. Huang Miwu stomped on his chest, exerted his strength, and shouted, "Where is the 'Complete Book of Jianghu'? Hand it over now! Otherwise, I'll take your dog's life!" Kong Dun felt as if a huge rock was pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe, but he remained strong and said viciously, "I'm already crippled anyway, I just want to die, to be clean!" Huang Miwu smiled coldly, spat, and scolded, "Fine! Since you want to die, I'll let you taste the Ten Great Tortures of Jinmen before you die! I've heard that the Ten Great Tortures of the Qing Dynasty are famous throughout the world. After you witness the Ten Great Tortures of Jinmen, you'll discover a reality: the real tortures are in Jinmen, not in the Qing Dynasty!"

He immediately took off Kong Dun's tattered shoes, broke off a cypress branch from the broken tree trunk, squatted down in front of him, and gently tickled the soles of his feet with the fuzzy yet stiff cypress branch! This trick was extremely despicable, but also extremely effective. Kong Dun's legs were broken, and the slightest movement caused excruciating pain. On the other hand, Huang Miwu kept tickling his acupoints, making him unable to control himself! Pain and laughter, either kind of torture is irresistible, let alone the combination of both!

"You Koreans are fucking bastards, always finding ways to torture people! You surnamed Huang, just give me a quick death and kill me!" Kong Dun shouted. Huang Miwu just kept scratching, not uttering a sound. Later, he simply closed his eyes to rest and leisurely hummed a little tune. Kong Dun really couldn't hold back anymore. He stopped shouting because he was knowledgeable and knew the final outcome of the laughing torture: given enough time, he would laugh until his cheeks cramped, his jaw would dislocate, and he would eventually die from exhaustion. Dying like that was extremely terrifying, and the process was even more frightening, enough to send chills down one's spine! So, he compromised! He had no choice but to bow his head and admit defeat.

"Quickly...stop scratching! I'll just hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' to you..." Kong Dun said in a trembling voice, reaching into his robes—

Huang Miwu was a seasoned veteran, incredibly cunning and shrewd, yet he continued his actions without stopping, his eyes only slightly open, staring intently at him—

No sooner said than done, Kong Dun did pull a book from his robes, but instead of offering it respectfully, he secretly channeled his inner strength and unleashed a deadly attack, flinging it out! The book, like a bolt of lightning, hurtled straight towards Huang Miwu's face! Anyone with even a basic understanding of martial arts knows that the face is the most vulnerable part of the body. Let alone a book hitting it, even a piece of paper, when hurled with the inner strength of a martial arts master like Kong Dun, would be as deadly as a steel blade! Especially face-to-face, at such close range! Just as Huang Miwu was about to be smashed to a bloody head, a miracle occurred—

A dark figure flashed, snatched the book, stamped its foot, and vanished like a wisp of smoke into the vast night! Huang Miwu, both shocked and enraged, shouted, "You little thief, where do you think you're going!" He abandoned his escape technique and gave chase! Unexpectedly, after rounding a plum blossom grove, the dark figure stopped, turned around, and made a strange hand gesture facing Huang Miwu. Immediately, five identical black-clad figures materialized behind it, all six drawing their swords and silently attacking! Huang Miwu unleashed his Eagle Claw Divine Skill, fighting six against one, and surprisingly, he held his own! He continued to curse, "You, Fujibayashi Jonin! You kept saying you'd be friends with us Koreans, but now, for the sake of fame and fortune, you've turned your back on us! Hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World,' or we're no longer friends!" Fujibayashi Jonin probably felt guilty, but Xu Shu entered the tent—he didn't utter a word, his Japanese sword flashing faster and faster, each strike vicious and deadly! It seemed he was determined to sever ties with Huang Miwu and was determined to kill him!

"Since you are ungrateful, don't blame me for being ruthless!" Huang Miwu suddenly roared, somersaulting into the plum blossom grove. He assumed a horse stance, then suddenly clenched his fists and kicked out with a powerful stomp! Instantly, countless pink plum blossoms in the grove were shattered by the immense force and sent flying into the air. Huang Miwu spread his arms wide and shook them, his hands transforming from claws to palms, pushing outwards! The plum blossoms in the sky instantly transformed into countless flying knives, raining down on the six ninjas! The six ninjas panicked, leaping high and low, wielding their knives like wheels to deflect the rain of falling blossoms. One ninja, caught off guard, was struck on the wrist by a "plum blossom knife," a plum blossom branch piercing his wrist, blood gushing out! The illusion vanished instantly, and he reappeared as the Jonin of Fujibayashi, clutching his wounded wrist, frozen in place. Huang Miwu swooped down like a hungry eagle, seizing the man's throat in one swift motion: "Hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial Arts World'!" Fujibayashi Jin had no choice but to pull the extraordinary book from his robes and hand it over. Huang Miwu opened it and, indeed, it was a priceless treasure of the martial arts world! Overjoyed, he thought to himself, "It seems my life isn't meant to end here; Heaven is still on my side! I can finally exchange it for the antidote!"

Just then, three Japanese ronin suddenly jumped out from the shadows—the other three of the Four Fiends of the Underworld! They quickly surrounded Huang Miwu. While he was reading, Fujibayashi Jonin also jumped to the side, and the four of them formed a circle, with one person each in the east, west, south, and north.

"So the Sun Gate is full of treacherous villains who betray their principles for personal gain! I was blind before, how could I have associated with such scoundrels!" Musashi Ichiro, the leader of the Four Fiends of the Underworld, couldn't stand it anymore and coldly said, "Bandits? You, Huang Miwu, aren't bandits, so why did you travel all the way from Korea to the Central Plains? If you're not a bandit, why did you steal the 'Complete Book of Jianghu,' which belonged to the Qing Dynasty, from Kong Dun? We're like crows landing on pigs—no one should complain about who's worse off! We're all in the same boat, why should we be strangers before!" Huang Miwu spat and said, "Those who walk different paths cannot work together! Although we come from the same background, both being foreign invaders, we each have our own agendas and serve our own masters. You are a wolfish army, while we, the Golden Gate, are trustworthy and value loyalty and righteousness! No matter what, those who betray their principles and betray their principles for personal gain will ultimately be despised and looked down upon!"

"You bastard, you're dead, dead!" the killer Kameda Ryuu roared, swinging his sword to strike. A flurry of blades instantly enveloped Huang Miwu! But Huang Miwu was faster than him. Instead of retreating, he advanced, slipping into the gaps in the blades and unleashing his Eagle Claw technique, aiming directly for Huang Miwu's pulse point! If he succeeded, it wouldn't be like that thick cypress trunk that snapped in two! Seeing the danger, Yagyu Densei thrust his sword towards Huang Miwu's temple, the blade carrying a powerful aura, faintly containing the sound of wind and thunder. Huang Miwu dared not be careless. He hastily released Kameda Ryuu, withdrew his Eagle Claw, and instead formed a scissor shape with his fingers, forcefully catching the tip of the thrusting sword. Using a technique of using minimal force to overcome great strength, he gently pulled Yagyu Densei forward, causing him to lose his footing and fall onto the rocky ground!

Fujibayashi, enduring the pain, plucked the plum blossom branch and, channeling his inner strength, hurled it towards Huang Miwu's eye. Taking advantage of Huang's momentary dodge, he swung his samurai sword down at Huang's waist! Huang Miwu leaped forward, dodging the attack, and in mid-air, unleashed a flurry of kicks aimed at Fujibayashi's face! The opponent hastily dodged, but failed to avoid the blow in time, falling flat on his face! Yagyu Densei, relying on the Yagyu family's swordsmanship, spun around and leaped forward, scattering his sword like a shower of petals in mid-air, the sword transforming into countless flashes of cold light that shot towards Huang Miwu! This was the signature move of the Yagyu Sword Sect, renowned throughout the entire Eastern Kingdom. It was like a shower of jade flowers, the sword shadows swirling like a rain of blossoms, truly overwhelming and leaving one flustered. In a moment of carelessness, Huang Miwu cried out in agony as a Yagyu sword pierced his left eye, causing him to collapse to the ground, clutching his face! Immediately, Yagyu Densei landed on the ground, recalling the humiliation of being dragged to the ground and thrown about by the sword-wielding man. He then twirled his longsword, moving with agile grace, ready to stab the man in the heart!

Unexpectedly, something flew over like lightning and struck Liu Shengchuanqing's right wrist squarely, breaking the skin and bone on the spot. His longsword clattered to the ground! When everyone looked, they saw that it was a pebble lying at Liu Shengchuanqing's feet!

"Who did this? Who the hell did this?! I'll kill you!" Liu Shengchuan looked around, but the surrounding mountains were shrouded in mist, the trees were dark, and the occasional low crowing of a night owl could be heard in the gentle evening breeze. Where was that figure?