Chapter 58: Silencing the Witness

Before the scream had even faded, Qian Ye’s Crimson Fang had already pierced into Fang Tianlun’s heart.

A torrent of blood energy surged through the Crimson Fang and into Qian Ye’s body. Fang Tianlun, a warrior who had followed the path of bodily enhancement, possessed a thick, refined essence. Even though he was injured to his core by the dark titanium, the blood energy absorbed filled up more than half of Qian Ye’s capacity.

However, Qian Ye felt an inexplicable sensation at that moment. His act of killing with the short blade was purely instinctual. Only when the blood energy surged in did he realize that the weapon in his hand was a blood-sucking blade, and then it dawned on him that the energy came from a human. A strange feeling washed over him.

Chen Lu, who was facing away from him, snorted with a clear, slightly disdainful tone. “It’s just a matter of silencing a witness. Do you think I need to turn around? I’m not some naive girl. To be honest, I’ve probably killed more people than you…”

Chen Lu’s voice pulled Qian Ye out of his brief daze. He stowed the Crimson Fang away, interrupting Chen Lu’s incessant chatter, and said, “Alright.”

Chen Lu turned around, her eyes widening at the sight of Fang Tianlun, whose body was now shriveled like a zombie. Her gaze flicked over the Crimson Fang, which was back in its sheath at Qian Ye’s waist. She opened her mouth but didn’t say anything.

“I never promised him,” Qian Ye said calmly before walking out.

Chen Lu, hearing this cryptic statement, looked confused. Then she remembered the cry Fang Tianlun had made before dying. Could it be that Qian Ye was explaining that he hadn’t promised not to kill Fang Tianlun, thus he wasn’t breaking any promise?

She blinked hard, finally unable to hold back a giggle. In a light, cheerful tone, she said, “It’s no big deal. Killing to silence a witness is natural. Even if you had promised, and he believed you, he should have known better.”

Qian Ye, who was ahead, couldn’t help but rub his forehead, even feeling the urge to sigh. This woman’s personality… Wasn’t it a bit too lively? How could such a person be part of the covert operation?

Still, Qian Ye’s heavy mood was lifted considerably.

Although Fang Tianlun had lost his combat power, he was flexible and tenacious. Especially after Chen Lu mentioned the names Song Ziqi and Liu He, Fang Tianlun’s response clearly indicated evasion. It was evident that he knew more than he let on. If such a man were released, it would mean endless trouble.

Even if Qian Ye wasn’t afraid of Ghost Rope’s retaliation, he wouldn’t add variables to the already unclear situation on Song Zining’s side.

There were still a few prisoners in the dungeon, but none of them were Chen Lu’s companions. Among the captured consignees, apart from Chen Lu, who was closely guarded as a key figure, the rest had either found opportunities to commit suicide or died under torture. Not a single one survived. No wonder the stronghold in Phantom City had spared Ma Zhong’s life.

Chen Lu showed little sorrow, simply stating, “Someone will pay for today’s events.”

Qian Ye was uninterested in the origins of the other prisoners and didn’t intend to release them. He walked out of the dungeon, while Chen Lu stayed behind to find some clothes to cover herself.

After a while, Chen Lu emerged from the dungeon, now dressed in Ghost Rope’s standard martial attire, fully armed. An origin force assault rifle was slung over her back, two short guns hung at her waist, and two short blades were strapped to the outside of each thigh.

Qian Ye stood at the door, smoking. In reality, he was mostly staring at the flickering ember and the wisps of blue smoke. Hearing the footsteps, Qian Ye straightened up and glanced at Chen Lu. “You took quite a while.”

Chen Lu shrugged. “I had to kill everyone inside who was still alive.”

Qian Ye’s brow furrowed slightly.

Chen Lu raised an eyebrow. “They saw us clearly and heard that you killed Fang Tianlun. I didn’t have time to verify their backgrounds and determine who was trustworthy.”

Qian Ye didn’t say anything, merely gesturing and then walking forward.

Next, Qian Ye and Chen Lu quickly searched the entire estate. They found some correspondence in Fang Tianlun’s study, but nothing about the current mission.

Chen Lu wasn’t disappointed. She had recognized the identity of the employer’s agent, Liu He, early on. So, during the battle where Ghost Rope attacked the consignee’s stronghold, she fought to the death to kill Liu He, thereby delaying the transfer of the captives to the Western Continent. Over the past few days, no new agents had arrived, indicating that Song Zining’s side had likely taken action to slow them down.

Hearing Chen Lu’s speculation, Qian Ye felt a bit relieved.

Though they didn’t gain much intelligence, the spoils of war were plentiful. As a regional headquarters for Ghost Rope, the estate stored a large amount of supplies, including over a hundred origin force rifles and short blades, armor, and other weapons. Explosive weapons filled two storerooms.

The origin force rifles were mostly only second or third grade, with most being long rifles, which were useless to Qian Ye. After a quick survey of the storeroom, he only took a few dozen blank origin force rounds and three origin force grenades. Chen Lu stuffed a few grenades into her backpack. They then ignited the remaining ammunition, blowing up the entire row of storerooms. Since they couldn’t carry the weapons away, they couldn’t leave them for Ghost Rope either.

Fang Tianlun’s private armory, however, held some high-quality items, including several fifth-grade origin force rifles. Although there were no premium models, they covered a wide range of types, especially a rare fifth-grade submachine gun. There were also over a dozen fourth-grade origin force rifles, half of which were sniper rifles, and even a modified Eagle Strike.

It seemed Fang Tianlun’s hobby was collecting various types of origin force rifles, and now all of them were Qian Ye’s.

Additionally, Qian Ye found two vampire origin force grenades, a crate of special elixirs, and several sheets of spider demon abdominal skin. Finally, there were three anti-magic mithril bullets. Though precious, fighters at the Warlord level generally kept a few as a regular stockpile.

Including the gold coins and sixteen pieces of black crystal looted from the treasury, Ghost Rope’s losses amounted to tens of thousands of gold coins.

Even if Ghost Rope sent someone to rebuild the organization in this area in the future, the loss of accumulated weapons and supplies would take nearly a decade to recover.

Qian Ye called for Lu Yalan, preparing to leave.

Chen Lu, seeing the servants and maids huddled in a corner, suddenly tossed several grenades into the room. The grenades bounced off the walls and floor, exploding one after another.

Qian Ye cursed, pulling Lu Yalan down and pinning her beneath him. The shockwave from the explosions rolled through the corridor. Qian Ye, holding Lu Yalan, tumbled several meters away, avoiding the falling bricks and stones above.

The small room that held the servants, at the end of the corridor, was now unrecognizable. The second floor had collapsed, and most of the outer wall had crumbled, revealing the deep night sky.

Not even a groan emerged from the rubble. The ordinary people caught in the center of the grenade blasts, crushed by the collapsing building, couldn’t possibly have survived.

In the corner of the corridor, a giant steel shield had been set up. Chen Lu crouched behind it, protected in the triangular space formed by the shield and the wall, barely affected by the explosion. Given her frail condition and proximity to the room, such a shockwave would have been fatal or severely injurious. Clearly, she had found a safe spot before acting.

Qian Ye’s worry subsided, replaced by anger. “Those were civilians.”

Chen Lu, nonchalantly, said, “But they had eyes and mouths.” She walked past Qian Ye, saying, “Naive boy, if someone like you deals with the rebels, you’d have died many times over. Who are you to lecture me? Let’s go, we’re leaving here.”

As she spoke, Chen Lu suddenly stopped, her gaze sweeping from head to toe over Lu Yalan. Lu Yalan, who had gone pale, now met her gaze defiantly. Chen Lu snorted, turned, and walked briskly away.

The three of them drove an off-road vehicle out of the estate, loaded it with the spoils, and started the engine. The burning estate was left behind as they drove off into the wilderness.

After four hours of driving, they arrived at a small town just as dawn broke. Their destination was a residential house in the southwest corner of the town, including a three-story building and a modest courtyard.

Chen Lu got out of the car and approached the door, knocking with a specific rhythm. After a moment, a peephole in the black iron door opened, and a white-haired old man peeked out before opening the gate.

The residents appeared to be a wealthy merchant family, with several servants. People were already up and about, but they showed no surprise at the arrival of Chen Lu, Qian Ye, and Lu Yalan, who were covered in dust and blood. They went about their business as if they had seen nothing.

The three were led to the guest quarters, passing through the main house. In the corner of a small garden stood two elegant, white-walled, black-roofed buildings. Lu Yalan went to the bathroom first, while Qian Ye followed Chen Lu into a study-like room.

Here, Chen Lu finally relaxed, reaching out to Qian Ye. “Give me the goods.”

Qian Ye placed the rock-core jade book on the table. “Are these people all rebels?”

Chen Lu smiled, leaning back in her chair, and looked at Qian Ye. “You could say so, or you could say not. They are actually just civilian merchants, living like ordinary people and not directly dealing with the rebels. But when necessary, they can provide us with all the help we need. All, do you understand?”

“All” meant they were willing to give their lives. Such people served as the eyes and ears of the rebels. If there were many of them, it would be terrifying; the movements of the imperial government and military would be impossible to hide from the rebels.

Qian Ye remained silent for a moment, then said, “It’s hard to comprehend.”

“There’s nothing hard to understand. There are many reasons why they do this. For the empire, only the aristocratic families can truly be considered its citizens. The gentry are second-class, and the commoners are even less. What the great figures consider trivial matters can determine the fate of a commoner. The empire is vast, and such incidents are numerous, which is why the rebels exist.”

Chen Lu paused, a faint, mocking smile appearing on her face. “Look, even one Zhao Family wasn’t enough. The empire sent in Commander Lin Xitang and his Northern Army. But after a few years, what happened? The rebels only grew stronger and more numerous, didn’t they?”