"Unless I kill them all!"
A cold glint flashed in Wei Tu's eyes.
As long as the last two from Qingming Sect died on this Ascending Cloud Flying Boat, no one would know he killed Liang Yijiang.
For him, the real problem was Qingming Sect's main sect—Shenjia Sect.
Shenjia Sect wasn't quite as powerful as the Sacred Cliff Mountain he was heading to, but in Xiao Kingdom's "Western Region," it was a local overlord, standing toe to toe with another top sect, Wanfo Temple.
If he ended up on Shenjia Sect's wanted list, Wei Tu would have to leave the journey halfway and head back home.
"Just right, Yu Wencheng is here."
Wei Tu rubbed his chin, planning to shift all the blame onto Yu Wencheng.
First, the Sun Shooting Tribe and Feng Wu Tribe already had grudges with him, so framing Yu Wencheng cost him no guilt.
Second, Yu Wencheng and his protector, "Old Hong," were the strongest in the flying boat besides the guild's own enforcers.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Boom!
While Wei Tu was thinking, several bursts of black smoke suddenly exploded above the Ascending Cloud Flying Boat, covering several li in every direction.
"Time's almost up. The traitor on board is starting to alert the Six Desires Sect."
Wei Tu's expression changed.
This time, Shenjia Sect dared to fish for criminals and felt sure the Six Desires Sect would follow the plan and rob the boat because they already knew the sect had a mole on board.
In other words, the Canglang Merchant Guild's cross-border trade had been watched by the Six Desires Sect for years.
But, the boat's fourth-rank defensive formation was too strong, so the sect never had a chance. That's why it was on hold.
You can only break in when there's a crack.
Now, with the Qingming Sect causing trouble, it gave the Six Desires Sect the perfect chance to attack.
—Robbing this flying boat would net them far more than the total from raiding all the small convoys over the last ten years.
"I have to move quickly. Finish off Liang Tu and Gu Xianglan before the Six Desires Sect arrives."
Wei Tu put on a shadow cloak to cover his face and quickly headed for the flying boat's control room.
Liang Tu was the one in the Shenjia Sect's plan who was supposed to destroy the boat's defenses.
The other, Gu Xianglan, was standing guard near the luxury suites, watching the other Golden Core cultivators.
...
At the same time.
A hundred li away from the flying boat.
Six people in gray-white robes and black bamboo hats hovered in the air, watching the black smoke signal in the distance.
That black smoke was the signal from their mole inside the convoy.
"Boss, do we go or not?"
The cultivator with a "ghost" character earring glanced at the burly one with "heaven" character on his robe.
The Six Desires Sect bandits never used real names. They called each other by the Six Paths of Reincarnation: "Heavenly Being," "King," "Asura," "Hell," "Beast," and "Hungry Ghost."
Their ranks were based on the upper and lower three paths.
"The flying boat's sudden change makes me think this could be a trap," the leader called "Heavenly Being" said after thinking a moment.
"Better be careful."
Better safe than sorry.
He preferred to make a solid plan before making a move.
"Be careful?" one of the older-sounding cultivators said with a touch of annoyance, "Boss, now only a few big guilds like the Canglang Merchant Guild are still doing cross-border trade between Kang Kingdom and Xiao Kingdom. If we don't take this chance, we'll have nothing left."
This speaker had "King" embroidered on his sleeve. He was the second-in-command of the Six Desires Sect.
"This sudden trouble on the flying boat could mean another group of bandits are making a move. This is the perfect chance for us to muscle in…"
"Second brother's right. If we keep waiting, there's no point in Six Desires Sect anymore. We should just call it quits and go back to our own sects."
"This flying boat's cargo is worth at least two million spirit stones. This haul would be more than the last ten years combined."
Everyone started voicing their opinions.
Hearing this, the Six Desires Sect leader showed some interest.
He was the only Golden Core peak among them. If he pulled this off, with everything he'd saved, he might try to break through to Nascent Soul.
Fortune favors the bold.
As long as no Nascent Soul showed up, even if they failed, he could still escape alive.
"Old Fourth, set up a teleportation array. If things go wrong, we leave immediately."
The sect leader gave the order.
...
Back on the flying boat.
Inside a room near the control room.
"Tier three poison? Who are you?" The one-eyed old man's face twisted in pain, gripping the poison arrow in his chest, shouting angrily.
The mysterious man in the bamboo hat said nothing. He flashed forward, gray poison surging from his palm, clearly planning to finish the old man off.
"Don't even think about it!"
Liang Tu gritted his teeth, forced his spiritual energy to suppress the poison, and summoned his magic to fight back.
But after only a few moves, Liang Tu was already losing ground, nearly killed several times.
Backed into a corner, he was gasping for breath, his skinny body trembling, his legs nearly giving out.
He was running out of strength.
"Even if I die, I won't make it easy for you."
Liang Tu steeled himself. He let out a deliberate opening to lure the man in the bamboo hat closer, then suddenly reached up and yanked off the man's hat.
Instantly, the mysterious man's face was revealed.
"Yu Wencheng?"
Liang Tu's single eye went wide. He stared at Yu Wencheng's face, then used Qingming Sect's special technique to leave clues about the killer inside the cabin.
After doing all this, Liang Tu let himself get killed by "Yu Wencheng's" palm.
Right after, "Yu Wencheng" pressed his palm to Liang Tu's head, searching his soul for remaining memories.
A stick of incense later, "Yu Wencheng" showed a satisfied look, flew out, and left the room.
Of course, the one who killed Liang Tu wasn't really Yu Wencheng—it was Wei Tu in disguise.
For this hit, not only did Wei Tu disguise himself as Yu Wencheng, he also used some signature prairie magic in the killing.
That tier-three poison, for example, was a toxin he brewed using techniques from Fairy Baohua's "Ancient Scroll of Heavenly Fragrance."
Aside from the three big Kang clans, almost nowhere else had access to this kind of poison.
...
For Gu Xianglan, Wei Tu used the same trick—framing Yu Wencheng whenever possible.
But this time, he didn't disguise as Yu Wencheng, but as Yu Wencheng's protector, Old Hong.
Compared to the regular cabins, the luxury suites had two extra Golden Core enforcers from the merchant guild stationed nearby to keep order.
But with his shadow cloak's cover, Wei Tu moved without being spotted by any of the patrolling cultivators.
"In the last half an hour, there were a total of four merchant guild cultivators doing room checks, but I tricked them all."
Back in the cabin, the disguised Bai Zhi smiled at Wei Tu and tried to claim credit.
"You did great this time, Daoist Bai."
Wei Tu smiled, cupped his hands in thanks, and praised Bai Zhi.
He couldn't help but think, people really do change.
Decades ago, he could never have imagined the powerful Heavenly Maiden Sect expert, a peer of the Ghost Luo Demon Lord, Bai Zhi herself, would one day be reporting merits to him.
...
Not long after he returned to the cabin.
About a cup of tea's time later, Wei Tu saw several small flying boats ramming into the Ascending Cloud Flying Boat, blocking the deck.
Out of the boats came a group of cultivators in gray-white robes, faces all covered.
At the front were six leaders, each one late-stage Golden Core, their auras released without holding back.
"Six Desires Sect business! If anyone interferes, forgive us for being rude."
"Our Six Desires Sect only wants money, not lives. If you cooperate, we'll leave after the job's done, and no one will get hurt."
The warning echoed throughout the flying boat.
Immediately, the cultivators onboard panicked. Many passengers and merchant guild members rushed out, trying to escape.
Crash!
A rain of blood fell.
Except for a handful who just managed to get some distance, the rest who tried to escape all became fresh corpses.
Even the lucky ones were chased down by the bandit leaders and killed one by one.
"Cooperate and you'll be fine!"
The bandits barked another warning.
After that brutal slaughter, no one dared to run again.
The atmosphere on the boat instantly went from chaos to dead silent.
"Everyone stays in your rooms! Anyone who comes out dies!"
The Six Desires Sect leader ordered coldly.
Then he signaled his people to split up.
One team went for the merchant guild cargo. Another team started robbing the passengers' belongings.
This was where staying in the regular cabin paid off.
The bandits robbing the regular cabins were mostly Foundation Establishment cultivators, and they weren't that aggressive.
If the regular cabin passengers handed over their valuables, they weren't troubled much.
"Not bad, you've got some brains."
"Stay in your room and you'll be fine."
When the bandits reached Wei Tu's room, they looked at the storage pouch he handed over and were instantly pleased, even giving Wei Tu a few friendly warnings.
Thanks to their limited spiritual sense, they couldn't see the storage ring hidden on Wei Tu.
They had no idea this cultivator could wipe them out in seconds.
"Sure, sure."
Wei Tu faked a smile and saw the bandits out.
When the door closed, Wei Tu watched from the window, a bit envious at the piles of cargo and treasures on the deck.
'Nobody gets rich by playing it safe.'
All that loot had to be worth at least several million spirit stones.
Even as a tier-three alchemist, Wei Tu knew it'd take him a hundred years to build that kind of wealth.
"Good swimmers drown in water."
"Robbery isn't a long-term gig."
Wei Tu shook his head.
Robbery and gambling were the same: get hooked, and sooner or later, you'd lose your life.
Once or twice, but never a third time.
"Shenjia Sect should be here soon."
Wei Tu looked off into the distance.
He saw a golden cloud appear, with over ten flying boats racing toward the Ascending Cloud Flying Boat at crazy speed.
They were way faster than the boats the Six Desires Sect arrived on.
"We're screwed! I knew it was a trap!"
The bandit gang on deck exploded into panic as soon as they saw this.
Against merchant guild cultivators, they acted tough. But when it came to facing a force like Shenjia Sect out to wipe them out, no one dared to stay and fight.
"Warn Old Four, Old Six!"
"Run! Run for your lives!"
The leader's face changed. He slapped his storage pouch, took out a hexagonal array disk, and sent a flurry of spells into it.
In a flash, the array disk formed a complex magic formation, opening a crystalline yellow portal in midair.