Da Xuan Martial Saint

Black Crow Sect Forbidden Land.

This is a very spacious and wide cave, with even several thick pillars supporting the dome above.

The thick smell of blood was extremely pungent; looking towards the center, a blood-red Blood Pool was visible, with something inside it wriggling incessantly, sending shivers down one's spine.

Not far away, numerous followers of the Black Crow Sect were besieging a lone figure.

The one being besieged was none other than Xu Hongyu.

To say she was besieged, however, one wouldn't find the slightest wound on her body. Instead, beneath her feet lay corpses everywhere, and from time to time someone would die under her sword. Relying on her own strength, she battled many of the Black Crow Sect's higher-ups and even gained the upper hand!

"Underestimated her..."

The Sect Master of the Black Crow Sect wielded an iron staff, dancing airtight, standing right in front of Xu Hongyu, but his expression was significantly ugly.

His plan had been to separate and defeat Xu Hongyu's group by using traps to isolate them and then to gather the strength of his followers to besiege her, aiming not to kill her but to heavily injure and repel her, rendering her incapable of attacking again.

However, the Chief Constable of the South City District had strength that completely exceeded his expectations!

He had thought that Xu Hongyu was merely at the Tendon Changing Minor Achievement level. His own strength was not inferior to hers, and with the additional support of many Black Crow Sect followers, he was confident they could put her in a difficult position. But unbeknownst to him, Xu Hongyu had quietly reached the Tendon Changing Major Achievement.

Minor Achievement, Major Achievement.

A single word's difference signified a world of difference.

In the Tendon Changing Realm, even a small step represents a significant disparity. With Xu Hongyu's realm at Tendon Changing Major Achievement, she was holding her ground against the high-ranking members of the Black Crow Sect, even gaining momentum, while they barely managed to impede her progress.

"Xu Hongyu! No matter how powerful you are, your subordinates are nearly dead or injured. Our Sect's Protector deity is about to emerge. You alone cannot stop it! Why persist in this futile struggle? Withdraw quickly and think of another plan," the Sect Master of the Black Crow Sect said gravely.

Xu Hongyu's timing to strike was impeccable—any later and the Protector deity would have emerged, spreading rapidly throughout the city, unstoppable. However, right now was the most critical moment.

"My subordinates are not so incompetent," Xu Hongyu responded coldly, her sword play never ceasing. Her sword light was like myriad raindrops, continuously cascading down, resulting in a continuous clashing sound of metal and sporadically casting up sprays of blood.

"Do you think your schemes are guaranteed to succeed? Mere vermin, even if they truly spread throughout the city, there are plenty of ways to deal with them. What you believe is merely wishful thinking," Xu Hongyu said indifferently.

Although the Sect Master of the Black Crow Sect was a figure in his own right, he still fell short compared to others. There was a gap in both strength and vision. If a few mere vermin could dominate the Outer City and coerce the major forces of the Inner City, then the powers within the Inner City were not worthy of governing Yu City.

However.

While it wasn't an insoluble issue, it was still a headache. Some casualties were inevitable, and if the resolution of the matter ultimately fell upon the Inner City, it would indeed be a joke at the expense of her, the Chief Constable of the South City District.

Hearing Xu Hongyu's words, the heart of the Black Crow Sect's Sect Master sank slightly. For some reason, he felt that what she said might be true; otherwise, the Inner City Area shouldn't be sitting so still at this point.

But things had progressed to this point, and he was on a bridge of no return, with nothing to do but see it through to the end.

"Even if you can cope with the Protector deity, at what scale of casualties are you willing to accept? Won't it all just be polishing the rodent's mirror?" he replied coldly.

Even if the Protector deity couldn't use the entire Outer City District's populace as hostages, as long as they could affect a third, there would still be some room for negotiation amidst such heavy casualties.

Just as the Sect Master of the Black Crow Sect and Xu Hongyu were locking horns with their words, suddenly, bubbles began furiously bubbling in the Blood Pool behind them.

"It's happening!"

The Sect Master of the Black Crow Sect was the first to notice the change in the Blood Pool, a hint of joy flashing across his eyes.

But at that very moment, from a nearby passage came the sound of numerous footsteps, followed closely by many constables led by Xiao He and including Qin Bei and Chen Mu, all arriving at the Forbidden Land.

"All Black Crow Sect members are to be executed on sight, destroy that Blood Pool, Bounty Money one thousand taels!"

Xu Hongyu's cold voice echoed through the Forbidden Land of the Black Crow Sect.

After a brief pause, the crowd of constables suddenly boiled with fervor, their eyes alight with zeal as they charged towards the center of the Forbidden Land where the Blood Pool was located. While a thousand taels of Bounty Money might be modest for people like Qin Bei and Chen Mu, it was almost life-changing for the average constabulary officer.

The fact that Xu Hongyu, the Chief Constable, had personally declared it caused an uproar.

"This is bad, stop them!"

The Sect Leader of the Black Crow Sect's face changed, not expecting such a large force to charge into the Forbidden Land at this time.

The constables rushed to fight, mixing instantly with the Black Crow Sect members in battle.

"A thousand taels of Bounty Money..."

Qin Bei's gaze narrowed slightly as he too raised his Servant's Knife and headed towards the Blood Pool in the center of the Forbidden Land.

To him, a thousand taels of Bounty Money was also a considerable sum, but more importantly, as the Head Constable of the City Defense Division, he knew that Xu Hongyu's words signified the importance of that Blood Pool, which was most likely the thing used to cultivate so-called Protectors of the Sect.

He, Qin Bei, also had a large family living in the Outer City District and lacked the ability to relocate them all to the Inner City. He couldn't tolerate the spread of such dangerous things.

Whoosh!

Chen Mu's eyes were equally cold as he brandished his Servant's Knife and charged towards the Blood Pool.

Originally, Xu Hongyu alone was enough to put the Black Crow Sect members on the defensive, unable to win. Now with the entry of Minor Achievement and Qin Bei, along with many other constables, the tide of battle turned in an instant, with the Black Crow Sect retreating at every turn.

The Sect Leader of the Black Crow Sect and several Vice Sect Hierarchs were also beginning to struggle against Xu Hongyu's sword edge, retreating continuously, but they had no choice but to resist stubbornly, knowing they absolutely could not let her get past.

Gurgle gurgle.

Bubbles continuously emerged from the central Blood Pool, and the blood within it rapidly diminished, revealing the small mice inside. Their gray skins were dense with bloodlines, presenting a ghastly sight.

These Monster Mice kept sucking the blood from the Blood Pool, stretching their limbs, and gradually started to squirm.

Just as some constables had almost reached the Blood Pool, at that moment, a group of Black Crow Sect members carrying poisonous water equipment surged forward, spraying the equipment towards them and preventing their advance.

"Ah!"

Some constables were splashed with the poisonous water, letting out agonizing screams as they fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

The arrival of the poison water team immediately curbed the fervor of the many constables, forcing those who had almost reached the Blood Pool to retreat, watching helplessly as the Monster Mice in the now emptying pool grew bolder and faster.

Finally.

One of the Monster Mice expanded its limbs and crawled out of the Blood Pool, ready to scamper away and vanish.

But at this very moment, Chen Mu broke through from the back of the constables, his Servant's Knife swinging through the air with a gust of wind that howled, lifting the incoming poison water and scattering it aside. His figure surged forward in a rush and, at the same time, he hurled his Servant's Knife forward.

Crack!

The Servant's Knife flew in an arc, landing squarely and slicing the escaping Monster Mouse in two!

He then passed the poison water team, arriving at the dry Blood Pool and picked up his Servant's Knife, chopping down repeatedly and cutting the remaining six or seven Monster Mice trying to crawl out into two pieces each.

The impact of the Servant's Knife against the Blood Pool emitted a crisp sound.

For a moment.

Both the Black Crow Sect members and the many constables paused their motion, their gazes converging in unison.

And they saw Chen Mu, standing with his knife across his chest.

His mouth slightly open, revealing a set of pearly white teeth.