Feng Xiaofeng raised his hand and rubbed his eyes, self-deprecatingly saying, "It's been a long time since I felt this happy. I seem to have lost control of myself."
However, he shook his head immediately and said, "Senior Brother Su Yi, I still don't recommend seeking revenge. Even if your cultivation has been restored, most of those guys come from prominent backgrounds. This is the territory of Yunhe County, and if you act this way, it's too dangerous!"
He took a deep breath, looked up at Su Yi, and said, "Revenge can wait for ten years. With your talent, Senior Brother, you will surely become a martial arts grandmaster in the future, and you can seek revenge then."
Su Yi smiled and said, "Xiaofeng, since I dared to come, I have already made sure to handle everything. Besides, I'm not a patient person who can wait for so long."
Feng Xiaofeng fell silent for a while and said bitterly, "But... I can't help you anymore..."
Su Yi casually replied, "You helped me many times back at the Qinghe Sword Sect. This time, I can handle it alone."
After a pause, he continued, "I didn't come to you this time for your help. It's because I owe you too much gratitude, and my heart won't be at peace if I don't repay it."
Feng Xiaofeng sighed, "Those things from back then are not worth mentioning at all. I never thought you would still remember, Senior Brother."
"How could I forget?"
Su Yi put his hands behind his back, his eyes filled with reminiscence. "In the autumn of the 496th year of the Great Zhou Calendar, I was fourteen years old and had just entered the Qinghe Sword Sect for two months."
"That day was the first day of November. I received three bottles of pills and ten spiritual stones. On the way back, Jinghu and his men surrounded me, demanding that I hand over the pills and stones."
"Of course, I refused, and then they beat me up until I was covered in blood on the ground."
"There were many outer sect disciples who saw it, but they feared Jinghu and his gang's ferocity and none dared to step forward and help me."
"Only you, this kid who wasn't afraid of death, rushed out alone and wanted to carry me to get treated. But you ended up being beaten by Jinghu and his gang as well, and your injuries were worse than mine. I had to carry you back when I regained my strength."
Hearing this, Feng Xiaofeng couldn't help but laugh and said, "We all have our youthful days. I was really naive back then, passionate and righteous. Even though I was beaten up, I haven't regretted it until now."
Su Yi also smiled and said, "After that, we became true brothers, enduring the scorn, ridicule, mockery, and setbacks together during that period of time. Without you by my side, I probably wouldn't have been able to persevere."
Feng Xiaofeng also sighed with emotion.
"Back then, after I became the Chief Disciple of the Outer Sect, I had planned to bring you into the Inner Sect once I entered. But who would have thought..."
As he said this, Su Yi's eyes showed a hint of peculiarity. "I became a discarded disciple of the Qinghe Sword Sect and ended up as an unwanted son-in-law."
He looked at Feng Xiaofeng and said, "What surprised me even more is that you ended up in such a situation. If my guess is correct, it was Yuan Yunqiao's doing, right?"
Feng Xiaofeng's face changed slightly, his eyes dimmed, and he said with bitterness, "I knew I couldn't hide it from Senior Brother."
Su Yi's tone was indifferent as he said, "He broke both your legs, and I will make him pay with his life!"
Feng Xiaofeng immediately became anxious and was about to say something.
But Su Yi interrupted and smiled, saying, "You must be thinking that Yuan Yunqiao has the support of the Yuan Clan, a powerful family, and advising me not to act impulsively, am I right?"
Feng Xiaofeng sighed, "If you already know, why do you still insist on this?"
"This isn't called stubbornness."
Su Yi spoke, and suddenly a loud shout came from outside the courtyard:
"Brother Xiaofeng, Xiaoran has been captured by the Black Tiger Gang!"
A thin and pale-faced youth rushed in, his face filled with anxiety. "Brother Xiaofeng, think of a solution quickly! Xiaoran has fallen into the hands of those evil people from the Black Tiger Gang. They will sell her to a brothel if not stopped."
Feng Xiaofeng's face turned pale, and he was struck as if by lightning.
Xiaoran was his younger sister, only thirteen years old this year!
His chest heaved rapidly, his eyes reddened, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Afei, where did you see Xiaoran being taken away?"
The youth called Afei replied, "On the side of Chunya Alley, but I suspect Xiaoran has already been taken to the Black Tiger Gang."
"Do you know where the Black Tiger Gang's stronghold is?"
Su Yi asked directly, as an image of a little girl appeared in his mind. She wore a plain and worn-out floral cloth dress, tied her hair in two buns, and had big, watery, and adorable eyes.
When he was practicing at the Qinghe Sword Sect back then, he often visited Feng Xiaofeng's house. Naturally, he knew that Feng Xiaofeng doted on his younger sister, Feng Xiaoran, the most.
"I know!"
Afei nodded quickly.
Su Yi patted Feng Xiaofeng's shoulder and said, "Don't panic. Stay here and wait patiently. I'll bring Xiaoran back."
His words were casual, but they greatly excited Feng Xiaofeng, who said, "Senior Brother Su Yi, this time... I really need to trouble you."
"Afei, lead the way."
Su Yi didn't waste any more words and headed towards the courtyard.
Afei quickly followed.
As they walked out of the courtyard, Su Yi said to Huang Qianjun, who had been waiting there, "Stay here."
Huang Qianjun nodded hastily.
"I hope that little girl is safe, otherwise..."
A surge of killing intent rose in Su Yi's heart, his eyes cold and indifferent.
Since regaining his memories, this was the first time he felt the urge to kill.
There was no other reason.
Because he cared.
...
Where there is light, darkness inevitably accompanies it.
Beneath the prosperity of Yunhe County, there were also numerous underground forces lurking in the shadows.
The Black Tiger Gang was one of them.
This force made a living by trafficking women, using despicable and dirty means.
But the Black Tiger Gang was also clever. The women they trafficked mostly came from the poorest families at the bottom of society, lacking power and influence, and therefore unable to seek revenge.
Yuchun Lane.
The stronghold of the Black Tiger Gang.
The entire lane was occupied by members of the Black Tiger Gang, and ordinary people wouldn't dare to come near it.
As the twilight cast a fiery glow, a blood-red sun slowly disappeared on the horizon.
"Brother Su, Yuchun Lane is just ahead. I... I dare not go there..."
Still some distance away, Afei stomped his feet, fear and dread showing on his young face.
Su Yi nodded and continued forward alone.
With a bamboo staff in his hand, he walked with a seemingly slow but actually fast pace, his tall figure casting a long shadow in the evening sun.
Afei originally planned to turn around and leave, but hesitated for a moment. He gritted his teeth and decided to stay, carefully hiding his frail body in a corner of the wall.
"What is this young master here for?"
Just as he approached the entrance of Yuchun Lane, two burly men stood up from the shadows. Their eyes assessed Su Yi's appearance, their words cold but laced with a hint of politeness.
"The little girl you captured earlier, where is she now?"
Su Yi spoke, his gaze already fixed on the depths of the lane.
As night fell, lanterns hanging there exuded a fiery red glow, and a faint clamor and noise of drinking could be heard.
One of the burly men showed a cautious expression and said, "What little girl? Sir, I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place. We are all law-abiding and honest people here."
The other man furrowed his brow and warned, "I suggest you leave this place now, or beware of accidents in the dark!"
Su Yi flicked his thumb, and the Dusty Wind Sword unsheathed with a clang. Without even looking, he thrust it out.
A cold glimmer flashed like starlight.
Pfft! Pfft!
The eyes of the two burly men widened, and their throats were pierced through, blood gushing out from the gruesome holes. They could only make gurgling sounds from their lips.
Immediately, their bodies crashed to the ground.
Meanwhile, Su Yi had already entered the shadows of the alley, his demeanor calm and composed.
In the distance, Afei saw this scene and was so shocked that he almost cried out. He quickly covered his mouth, but a storm of astonishment and terror had already surged in his heart.
This... Is this the power of a martial artist?
At the end of Yuchun Lane, in front of a courtyard gate made of blue bricks and black tiles, a large red lantern hung high, casting mottled orange-red light and dispelling the darkness.
Two Black Tiger Gang members stood guard in front of the vermilion gate, whispering to each other and occasionally emitting lewd and ambiguous laughter.
Suddenly, they saw a tall figure walking towards them from the shadows.
"Who are you?"
One of them instinctively asked.
Under the glow of the lantern, the figure appeared in the mottled light and shadow, his handsome face flickering, except for a pair of deep and indifferent eyes.
Just being swept by that gaze sent a chill down the spines of the two men, making them shiver uncontrollably.
Then, a flash of sword appeared.
The two men felt a piercing pain in their throats and immediately lost consciousness, their bodies collapsing limply to the ground.
Without even sparing a glance, Su Yi pushed open the gate and entered.
The courtyard was lively and bustling, with five or six banquet tables set up. More than twenty Black Tiger Gang members were drinking and enjoying themselves, their shouts, laughter, and clinking of cups filling the air.
In the dark corner of the courtyard, people were shamelessly indulging in pleasure, not just one couple, but several.
The scene before Su Yi could be described as the epitome of the phrase "a den of vice and corruption."
When Su Yi walked in, he didn't attract much attention at all.
"Who are you? Why haven't I seen you before?"
A man, holding up his pants, emerged from the corner of the courtyard. He reeked of alcohol and was obviously drunk.
Behind him was a woman with her clothes half undone, her face flushed.
The man looked Su Yi up and down, his alcohol-infused breath wafting through the air, and he shouted, "Didn't you hear me asking you a question, punk?"
Su Yi glanced at him with disdain.
With just a single glance, the man shivered all over, as if he had fallen into an icy cave, and three-quarters of his drunkenness disappeared.
Su Yi asked, "Tell me, where are the girls you capture usually kept?"
"I-in the... dungeon," the man stammered.
He didn't know why, but he felt an immense fear, as if an ant were facing the interrogation of a deity.
"Where is the dungeon?" Su Yi asked again.
Trembling, the man pointed with his finger towards the main hall in the distance of the courtyard.
He was about to speak.
Pfft!
A flash of sword swept by, piercing his throat.
"Big Brother Yong, I still want..." the provocative woman didn't notice anything unusual. Her eyes were filled with seduction and fiery desire as she approached, ready to nestle up against the man.
A burst of blood spurted out from the man's throat, splattering all over the woman's face.
She froze for a moment, then let out a hysterical scream, "Ah! Murder! Murder!"
Her voice carried terror and pierced through the night.
The lively atmosphere in the courtyard fell silent, and everyone stopped what they were doing, looking at the terrified woman.
Then, they saw the figure lying in a pool of blood next to her.
Everyone's expressions changed drastically.