The tungsten steel dagger, akin to a striking viper, was suddenly pressed against Dan Wule's throat, shattering any notion of resistance within him.
Kino circled behind Dan Wule, holding him hostage, and asked with a playful tone, "Are you serious? Your first reaction upon seeing me was to scream? Aren't you afraid I might just slit your throat right here?"
Dan Wule's scream had awakened the entire camp. The bandits, now roused, began discovering the bodies of the guards. From the Shaman's Hall to the main tent, every guard had been silently eliminated, even the elite guards outside the main tent had not been spared.
In less than a few minutes, the news spread quickly, and reinforcements poured in from all directions. The deputy rushed in with his men and exclaimed, "Dadan! The lady, she..."
Upon seeing Dan Wule held hostage with a dagger to his throat, the deputy's face drained of color, his words swallowed back.
Breathing heavily, Dan Wule coldly inquired, "What do you want? We can sit down and talk. But if I die, don't think you'll walk out of here alive either."
Kino glanced at the newcomers, his gaze quickly settling on a few pale-faced individuals, and smiled, "Given the rather indescribable appearance of your nomadic people, I presume these five are... uninvited guests?"
Kino had intended to call them "Reincarnators," but the brand of the Rejectors had already warned him against revealing any information about the reincarnation world in front of the native inhabitants.
He could have used the term "alien visitors" as a substitute, but those four words carried too much historical weight, possibly causing unnecessary trouble. Instead, he opted for another common term he trusted these reincarnators would understand.
Noticing the pallor on the reincarnators' faces, Kino turned to Dan Wule with a smile, "I suppose you must have received a fair sum for agreeing to kill me. Mind telling me how much they paid you?"
Dan Wule bared a cruel grin. "Enough to make someone like you, a mere civil officer, die a hundred times over!"
"Your math seems off," Kino quipped. "A 'hundred deaths' isn't a precise figure." He pressed the dagger in by another millimeter, drawing a small line of blood across Dan Wule's throat. "Never mind, you don't have to answer. What I want to discuss is simple—help me kill these five. Don't worry, it won't be a wasted effort. I know where they hid the money. After they're dead, you'll still get your share."
Li Minkai's breath caught in his throat. The Cao brothers, disguised as merchants to gather intelligence in Xilin Town, had accidentally lost their lives, and Kino had likely already obtained their spatial rings, knowing the method to unlock them.
Kino's words, it seemed, were not a mere bluff.
Suppressing his panic, Li Minkai feigned calm and sneered, "This liar speaks nothing but falsehoods. The moon coins are hidden in a place only we know. If we die, no one will ever find them, and your effort will be in vain!"
Clearly, Dan Wule was more inclined to trust the paid-off Li Minkai. He glanced behind him and sneered, "Let go of me, and I'll give you a chance for a one-on-one duel. We haven't settled our score yet."
Kino smirked at Li Minkai, as one would at a dying prey, "I can prove my words. You think they came empty-handed, so they must have hidden the moon coins elsewhere, but that's not the case. Now, I'll allow you to reach into my pocket, but remember—only touch the pocket, don't try anything funny, for the blade is still at your throat."
Dan Wule, having witnessed Kino's skill with a knife, showed no intention of resisting, and he cooperatively felt around without finding anything.
Kino asked, "Do I have money on me?"
"No," Dan Wule answered.
"Watch closely," Kino said, using his mind to activate the spatial ring. He released a hundred silver moon coins into the air, and they cascaded down like a shower of stars in the flickering candlelight.
In that moment, all the bandits, including Dan Wule, were left stupefied. Li Minkai and the others, horrified, looked as though they might faint.
Kino lifted the dagger slightly, his smile growing more intense. "So, what do you think? Kill them for me, and I'll make sure you get their money. This way, you'll not only earn money but also avoid unnecessary bloodshed."
Li Minkai screamed in panic, "Don't believe this liar! I can pay you more!"
Kino countered smoothly, "Money is for the living. It's of no use to the dead. Besides, the money is on them. Once they're dead, it's all yours, whether you add more or not."
Dan Wule's veins bulged as his anger flared. "You killed my brother, and now you dare to speak of money? I won't rest until I avenge him!"
Kino pressed the dagger deeper, a cold smile fading from his lips. "I am soaked in blood, covered in filth, and every second is a torment. Frankly, I'm beginning to lose my will to live. Now, you have two choices."
"One, you kill them, take the money, and leave. You continue being Dadan. I'll go home for a bath, and wash away the grime, using oils until my skin peels. Everything will go back to normal."
"Two, I slit your throat right now, and your men finish me off. We both die, together."
Dan Wule, hearing the insult, his single eye bloodshot, roared, "You not only killed my brother, but you took my eye!"
Kino calmly replied, "Four hundred."
Dan Wule's face contorted with rage. "I am a warrior of the Great Desert Lord's Sandwolf Tribe! A Dadan on horseback, I never surrender!"
Kino raised the offer. "Six hundred."
Dan Wule, consumed by fury, bellowed, "I have the blood of the proud Horse King running through my veins, a son of Heaven! I am Dan! Wu!! Le!!!"
Kino, without missing a beat, offered, "Eight hundred."
Dan Wule, in all his righteous fury, growled like a man ready to die for honor. "Add another two hundred!"
Kino rolled his eyes. "Fine, two hundred more."
Dan Wule looked at the stunned Li Minkai and the others, flashing a sinister smile as he made a cutting motion. "Kill them."
In an instant, the room filled with flashing blades and severed heads, the reincarnators screamed in terror, their cries abruptly silenced by the spray of blood.
Kino spoke calmly, "Leave one alive, the leader, keep him."
The blade aimed at Li Minkai halted mid-air as he collapsed to the ground, trembling in fear, his pants soiled in terror. He cried out, "Despicable! Dan Wule, you treacherous liar!!"
Dan Wule, ignoring the impotent fury of Li Minkai, smiled and asked, "So, where's the money?"
Kino looked at the body of a fallen reincarnator and said, "Come with me, don't make any sudden moves."
Kino, holding Dan Wule in a twisted posture, walked him to the fallen reincarnator. They crouched down together.
With one hand holding Dan Wule, Kino retrieved the ring from the reincarnator's hand.
[Captured a lost reincarnator item, D-grade spatial ring.]
Kino withdrew the moon coins from the spatial ring, sending a rain of silver moon coins into the air, over a thousand pieces.
Kino smiled, "You see, I never lie."
Dan Wule, gazing greedily at the silver coins scattered across the ground, grinned maniacally. "Pleasure doing business with you, my friend! Next time, feel free to contact me in advance, and we won't have to spill blood. Now, can you let go of me?"
Kino shook his head. "Not yet. Now, we're going to the neutral zone. You can bring one person with you. I've called only one for backup. I'll release you there, and we'll part ways."
Dan Wule hesitated for a moment. After witnessing Kino's honesty and with no other options left, he nodded in agreement.
He couldn't help but admire Kino's cunning. If Kino were to let go now, Dan Wule would not hesitate to have him killed, for this man wore a similar ring, and the coins within were probably no less than those here.