57: The final move: the Flying Guillotine!

"Xiao Hua!" Old Man Shi Three's eyes were nearly splitting from the strain. Not knowing where he found the strength, he suddenly bounced up from the ground and spread his arms like a wall of desperate humanity, firmly shielding his daughter.

"Get lost! You old thing!" Lin Jingxie didn't even look. He casually swung his backhand as if shooing away a fly, slapping Old Man Shi Three on the shoulder.

Bang!

Old Man Shi Three flew out horizontally like a kite with a broken string. His back slammed heavily against the courtyard wall, letting out a muffled thud. Blood mixed with fragments of internal organs sprayed wildly from his mouth as he fell unconscious on the spot, his life or death unknown.

"Dad—!" Xiao Hua let out a heart-wrenching cry, tears instantly blurring her vision.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Jingxie's ghost-like claw—resembling a charred branch and wreathed in blood-flames—had already gripped Xiao Hua's slender, fragile neck like a steel pincer.

"Ugh... ugh..."

Xiao Hua's feet instantly left the ground, kicking futilely. Her small face turned a terrifying purplish-red at a speed visible to the naked eye. Her eyeballs bulged painfully from suffocation, and her throat could only squeeze out a dying wheeze; she couldn't even manage a cry.

The villagers' hearts and galls were nearly split with terror. They all slumped to the ground like lambs to the slaughter, forgetting even to cry out, leaving only boundless fear.

Lin Jingxie's blood-red lone eye locked onto Lin Jingyu. His voice was hoarse, like an evil ghost grinding its teeth, filled with the pleasure of total control:

"little beast! Dare to move again, and I'll crush her neck instantly. Then I'll slaughter this whole pathetic village, leaving neither chicken nor dog alive. I know you're a hypocrite who can't stand to see innocent people die!

You even went out of your way to send them away earlier! You wouldn't want this young life to die because of you, would you? Jie jie jie jie!"

The five fingers gripping her throat slowly tightened. The bones in Xiao Hua's throat let out a tooth-aching 'creak,' and blue veins bulged on her purple-swollen face.

"Let her go." Lin Jingyu forced himself to stand straight despite the intense pain. He wiped away the blood constantly seeping from the corner of his mouth, his voice hoarse, his face full of anxiety and 'struggle.'

But deep within his lowered eyes was an icy, frozen calm, even carrying a trace of imperceptible mockery.

"Let go?" Seeing Lin Jingyu's anxious and worried expression, Lin Jingxie let out a cackle like a night owl. The satisfaction in his heart outweighed the pain in his body.

"Little Bastard, throw the Storage Pouch, all the Talismans, the Magical Artifacts—especially that turtle shell shield and that damned Lightning Talisman—all of them over to me! Now! Immediately! Or else..."

His charred face leaned close to Xiao Hua's face, which was distorted from suffocation. His voice was like a poisonous snake's flicking tongue, filled with cruel delight:

"I'll crush her head right now, then turn this pathetic village into a river of blood, not even sparing a dog! I'll make you watch with your own eyes as they die because of you!"

"Divine Physician... please... save Xiao Hua..." Beside them, the heavily injured and dying Old Man Shi Three, whose sternum had collapsed, miraculously woke up.

Struggling to lift his mangled head, he kowtowed frantically toward Lin Jingyu. His forehead slammed heavily against the cold ground with a muffled 'thud,' blood splattering and mixing with dirt and tears.

Lin Jingyu sighed inwardly. Adrenaline gave the old man a final burst of madness, but he was fundamentally powerless to change the situation.

Seeing this, the other villagers were also scared pale. As if waking from a dream, they knelt one after another, pleading in voices filled with despair:

"Bodhisattva Divine Physician, please save little Xiao Hua. She is innocent!"

"This man is a devil. Just agree to his demands!"

"We beg of you, the whole village kowtows to you. We will serve you like cattle to repay you."

"Wuwuwu... I don't want to die..."

Desperate cries and pleas rose and fell like countless needles pricking the ears. None of them dared to look at the demon wreathed in blood-flames.

They could only pin all their slim hopes on the seemingly 'kind-hearted' Lin Jingyu, who had treated their illnesses.

And so they begged the more benevolent-looking Lin Jingyu to surrender and throw his life away.

Lin Jingyu's chest heaved violently. He looked at Xiao Hua's purple-swollen, dying face, at the blood flowing from Old Man Shi Three's forehead staining the ground, and at the terrified villagers kneeling all over the ground with nothing but fear and pleading in their eyes... A look of intense struggle, pity, and 'heartbreak' appeared on his face, as if his soul were undergoing a battle between heaven and man.

After a few breaths, he seemed to be completely crushed by a massive sense of powerlessness and 'moral shackles.' His shoulders slumped dejectedly, and he let out a long, long sigh. His voice was hoarse and dry, filled with 'humiliation' and deep exhaustion:

"I... accept... The things... are yours... Let her go..."

He raised his hand tremblingly, as if using all his strength, and 'feebly' tossed the Green Turtle Spirit Shield he was holding toward Lin Jingxie's feet.

The shield traced a slow, heavy arc through the air.

Lin Jingxie's blood-red lone eye instantly erupted with a greedy light, like a hungry wolf seeing fat meat, locking onto the incoming turtle shield.

The hand gripping Xiao Hua's throat subconsciously relaxed its grip slightly, allowing Xiao Hua to inhale a faint bit of air, letting out a painful gasp.

The charred corners of his mouth curled almost to his ears, and an extreme pleasure swept through his body—as expected, he was a soft-hearted fool. Womanly compassion!

A mere few ant-like Mortals were enough to easily manipulate him.

Without the Storage Pouch and Magical Artifacts, and with a hostage in hand, he could kill him quite easily.

The heaven-sent Opportunity was his after all.

"And the Storage Pouch!" he roared sharply, his excited voice trembling with an unquestionable command. "Quick! Throw the Storage Pouch over too! What are you dawdling for! Do you want to watch these innocent people die because of you!"

Lin Jingyu's face instantly turned 'ashen.' His entire spirit seemed to be drained, exuding a sense of 'despair' as if all hope were lost.

His left hand trembled as he slowly reached for the grey Storage Pouch at his waist. His movements were agonizingly slow, as if the pouch weighed a thousand jin.

He struggled to untie the bag, and extremely slowly, extremely 'feebly'... tossed it toward Lin Jingxie.

The bag traced a similarly slow arc through the air, looking as if it might fall at any moment.

Lin Jingxie's gaze was involuntarily and firmly attracted by the Storage Pouch. At this moment, his mind was completely occupied by greed. His lone eye stared fixedly at the bag's trajectory, and even the hand gripping Xiao Hua unconsciously loosened several more degrees.

At the very instant his mind was fully drawn by the Storage Pouch and his vigilance had slackened to the extreme.

In Lin Jingyu's lowered eyes, a cold light exploded, like a sleeping Vicious Beast suddenly opening its eyes.

His right hand, which had been hidden behind his back all along, lashed out like a lurking poisonous snake at a speed exceeding the limits of vision!

"Whiz—!"

A piercing whistle of breaking air, sharp enough to puncture eardrums, suddenly exploded.

A strangely shaped, birdcage-like object shimmering with a cold metallic gloom, trailing a long, thin, and tough iron chain.

Like a life-taking demon from the Nine Netherworlds, it tore through the air, instantly crossing the distance of several zhang, and accurately covered Lin Jingxie's charred and hideous head.

The top was a ring of curved blades sharp as fangs, flashing with a heart-palpitating deathly chill in the dim light.

It was precisely the lethal weapon that struck terror into the mundane Jianghu—the Blood Dripper. Moreover, it was a specially refined, more powerful Cultivator version!

It was faster, had greater killing power, and could be controlled by spiritual power, making it the perfect choice for highway robbery and backstabbing!

A typical Cultivator would only need to put up their Protective Spiritual Light to easily block this so-called great killing weapon.

However, for Lin Jingxie, who was currently at the end of his rope, how could he possibly have so much spiritual power left in his body!