265: Chapter 265 Brutal Close Combat

The veins on Li Mingjian's forehead were throbbing. He certainly knew that what he was doing was underhanded, but with the cover of being a victim's family member, it was still somewhat justifiable.

But now, this fig leaf had been ripped away by Li Laojiu, exposing their petty schemes to everyone present.

In an instant, Li Mingjian felt as if everyone was mocking his shamelessness. His face burned, and he felt as if he had instantly become a target of public criticism, like a rat crossing the street that everyone wanted to beat. His face flushed bright red, and with a "shing," he drew his longsword and pointed it at Li Laojiu: "You're courting death—"

Li Laojiu's expression darkened: "Li Mingjian, are you sure you want to do this?"

Li Mingjian was burning with rage: "Old thing, there is a price to pay for humiliating me. Either kneel and apologize, or fight me to the death!"

Li Laojiu narrowed his eyes and stared at Li Mingjian for a few seconds, then turned to the people beside him: "Did you see that? What did I tell you? They never intended to split the treasure with us. I only used words to test them, and they already bared their fangs. Tell me, what should we do?"

"Screw him!"

"Kill these shameless things."

"Han Jingyang is generous, and we are quite poor; we can't let these bastards hog the treasure."

"Old Master Li, we will do whatever you say."

"Right, we'll listen to you."

"If you're afraid of death, don't walk the Jianghu. Since we're already here, we can't be scared off by a bunch of things like them, no matter how cowardly we are."

"Exactly. You only live once, and death is just a part of life. Who's afraid of whom?"

"We have more people, so what is there to be afraid of? Let's just do it."

Li Laojiu slowly raised his hand.

The people behind him gradually quieted down, all staring intently at Li Laojiu's hand, waiting for his command.

Li Mingjian, directly opposite, calmed down slightly and felt some regret. He wanted to say something to ease the atmosphere, but seeing Li Laojiu's raised palm and the murderous crowd behind him, he didn't dare to be careless and signaled to the other victim's family members.

The other victim's family members realized what was happening and "clattered" as they drew their weapons to guard Li Mingjian and the treasure.

The atmosphere instantly became grim.

A few wisps of cold murderous intent permeated the hot air.

It was unclear who shouted "Kill" first, but both sides moved in unison. With one charge, the short weapons met, and several people fell in an instant.

Li Mingjian's side was fewer in number, but Li Mingjian was very strong. His longsword was fast and accurate; wherever the sword light pointed, it returned only after drawing blood. In just a few breaths, he had killed or repelled five or six people.

Those who walk the Jianghu basically know a few self-defense moves, and some are even martial artists by background—picking up a compass makes them a Feng Shui Master, while putting it down makes them a martial arts expert with exquisite boxing skills.

In such a chaotic battle, only solid, real combat skills could help one survive better.

Casting spells? That works one-on-one.

But in a mass melee, there is almost no space or time to cast spells. Just as you begin to channel, cold blades and swords are already coming your way. If no one is there to help, you die the fastest.

But there are exceptions, such as the Lin sisters. Lin Yuegui took out a small copper seal, muttering while spinning in circles, and from time to time, threw skills into the group on Li Mingjian's side.

In fact, the scene was somewhat comical because there were no skill special effects at all; it looked just like performing a shamanistic dance.

However, every time Lin Yuegui pointed, Li Mingjian's side would fall into chaos for a few seconds; it was clearly not without effect.

Lin Yuelan took out a single-edged sword to guard Lin Yuegui, not seeking to kill the enemy, but only to protect her sister.

For a time, this pair of sisters became the most eye-catching presence on the battlefield, apart from Li Mingjian.

Li Laojiu? Li Laojiu didn't move at all under the protection of two burly men, constantly observing the situation on the field.

Seeing his side gradually gaining the upper hand, a hint of a smile flashed across the corner of Li Laojiu's eyes.

Although the process had some twists and turns, the result was good.

The treasure would ultimately fall into his hands, Li Laojiu's hands.

It took less than three minutes.

Li Mingjian let out a tiger's roar, swung his sword to thrust fiercely, repeatedly forcing back the several experts surrounding him, then dodged out of the crowd and ran away like a gust of wind.

Li Laojiu stopped the two people who wanted to chase, coughed, and said: "That idiot Li Mingjian ran away, and the goods are ours. However, we cannot stay in Xipo Village for long. Let's leave first and then split the treasure when we reach our designated location."

Everyone agreed in unison.

Even if some were not very willing, they dared not go against the majority.

So the group swarmed together, carrying the large box away.

The scene was left with nothing but broken bricks, tiles, and corpses all over the ground.

There was not a single survivor.

Cold weapons combined with metaphysics; strikes were merciless, and once hit, one died—there was almost no chance of survival.

Moreover... one could always deliver a finishing blow.

In combat with cold weapons, delivering a finishing blow is very simple and requires almost no effort; a casual strike can completely kill an injured enemy.

Therefore, the cruelty of cold weapon combat and warfare is unimaginable to modern people.

A few minutes later, a team of men in black arrived at the scene and began to clean up silently, collecting corpses, removing bloodstains, checking for personal effects, and clearing away traces. By the time they left, the scene showed absolutely no signs of a battle; there were no bloodstains, and even the smell of blood that had permeated the air was replaced by a faint scent similar to sandalwood.

Meanwhile, the winning side, Li Laojiu and his group, excitedly left Xipo Village and ducked into a nearby small grove, preparing to divide the treasure.

Li Laojiu looked at the dozen or so people who were inexplicably excited, his eyes flickering. He turned back to look at the people beside him several times, and after hesitating for a few seconds, he nodded fiercely.

A burly man took out a dagger, mingled into the crowd, and stabbed fiercely and silently.

At the same time, a middle-aged man took out a compass and began to walk the Yu Step on the spot, stomping his feet as he walked.

The crowd gathered around the box was horrified: "Li Laoliu, do you want to hog it all?"

However, as the middle-aged man stomped, everyone felt the ground beneath their feet shaking, and they couldn't even stand steadily. Even though it was flat ground, they staggered and stumbled, easily caught and stabbed in vital points by the middle-aged man holding the dagger.

In a moment, only five people remained at the scene.

Li Laojiu, the middle-aged man with the compass, and the burly man covered in blood holding the dagger.

And the two sisters, Lin Yuelan and Lin Yuegui.

Li Laojiu turned to face the sisters and smiled slightly: "Why didn't you run?"

Lin Yuelan sneered: "Why should we run?"

Li Laojiu raised an eyebrow: "Not afraid?"

Lin Yuelan showed no fear: "Would people who walk the Jianghu be afraid of such a small scene? Besides, there are only three of you. Three against two; you don't have the confidence to win for sure, right? So, your best option is to split this box of treasure with us sisters."

Li Laojiu's expression slowly darkened: "Leave now, and I will pretend that nothing happened. Otherwise, your fate will be miserable."

"How miserable?"

"The kind of misery that every woman is unwilling to experience or imagine. You are also veterans of the Jianghu; you should know the various methods used to deal with women in the Jianghu, which are no less inferior to the Ten Great Tortures."

Lin Yuelan flourished her blade, struck a pose, and pointed the tip of her blade at Li Laojiu: "Come on, let us sisters see the true strength of you old man. From the first time I saw you until now, I haven't seen you make a move. Don't tell me you're just an old geezer who only knows how to play dirty tricks?"

Li Laojiu narrowed his eyes: "You're courting death!"

"Right, courting death it is. If you have the ability, come and kill us. Let's see how many of you three can survive after killing us."

"There's no need for you to sow discord. Playing such petty tricks in front of me is simply showing off before an expert."

"Is that so? You are indeed an old fox, but what about the two of them? I don't believe they don't have the idea of hogging this box of treasure for themselves."