But after only a moment, he took a deep breath and pulled his thoughts back to the present.
In a low voice, he asked, "Where is Wang Long?"
Bald Li froze, then stammered, "B-Bro, you're... you're still going to kill him? That's a bad idea! If nothing happens to Wang Long, the Iron Tiger Gang won't investigate too thoroughly. But... but if something really happens to Wang Long... then... then this will blow up into something huge! There are still a few people who know what's going on, and they could track it back to us any second..."
"Where is Wang Long?"
Before he could finish, Qin Fang asked again in a low voice.
Bald Li's words caught in his throat.
He stared blankly at Qin Fang, whose face was splattered with blood and whose gaze was chillingly cold, and couldn't help but shiver.
"J-Just a short way ahead... He, he keeps... keeps a mistress there... H-He should have gone back to his mistress's place."
In the end, he caved.
"Lead the way."
"Huh?"
"Lead the way."
Under Qin Fang's icy glare, Bald Li was on the verge of tears. In the end, with a choked-up voice, he began to walk, saying, "Sir, you really have to reconsider... Wang Long is Wang Hu's biological brother. If you kill him, there will be no turning back. H-How about we... we rethink this and come up with a long-term plan?"
Qin Fang said nothing.
But his mind was clearly made up.
An arrow loosed from the bow cannot be recalled.
The two men he had just killed were both Wang Long's subordinates. Once the news broke tomorrow at dawn, it would be obvious even to an idiot that this was aimed at Wang Long.
As the target, Wang Long would immediately try to recall who he had offended recently.
And he, the one they had forced themselves upon today, would instantly fall under their suspicion.
Unless he fled far away from True Martial County right now, there was no way he would survive.
'...Of course, if Master was willing to intervene, perhaps he could offer some protection.'
'But that would only treat the symptoms, not the root cause.'
'If they really decided to attack him from the shadows, what could his master do?'
'After all, they had a Dark Force Powerhouse on their side.'
'If they were determined to kill him, his death would be certain.'
'Once a person is dead, what can a master do?'
'Not to mention he and his master hadn't yet developed a very deep bond...'
'Even if his master was willing to avenge him afterward, it would be of no use to him as a dead man.'
'So the only option was to leave True Martial County.'
'But could he really leave?'
'He had to remember, his Identity was still with his master.'
'And without an Identity, he would be an undocumented person, a vagrant.'
'One couldn't forget that True Martial had just experienced a vagrant rebellion.'
'The suppression of the rebellion might still be ongoing!'
'If he left True Martial as a vagrant, he'd probably be caught the moment he stepped out!'
'At that point, he would inevitably be treated as a rebel!'
'That was a true dead end!'
'So, what needed to be done today... had to be done.'
'Wang Long... also had to die!'
'Of course, the remaining three... also had to die.'
He took a deep breath, his gaze flickering as he looked at Bald Li, who was trembling as he walked ahead.
Bald Li, walking in front, suddenly felt a jolt run through his entire body, and the hairs on his skin stood on end.
His footsteps suddenly felt incredibly heavy.
With a choked-up voice, he said, "Sir, I... I'll listen to you, I absolutely won't run my mouth. I don't want the silver anymore. We're... we're in the same boat..."
His voice trembled. He had clearly realized something.
Qin Fang's gaze flickered, and he said calmly, "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Bald Li trembled all over, not knowing what to say, just mumbling incoherently.
Finally, after walking a bit further, Bald Li raised a heavy hand and pointed to a quiet alley ahead. "I-It's... in there..."
"Which house?" Qin Fang asked calmly.
"The... the one with the light on... I made a special point of asking around today..."
Bald Li said, trembling.
Since Qin Fang was going to kill someone today, he naturally needed to scout the location first. But for that kind of task, a new face would be too conspicuous, so it was naturally a job for a local snake like Bald Li.
He had done a good job.
After glancing up at the house and letting out a soft breath, a look of grim resolve appeared in Qin Fang's eyes. He said in a low voice, "Wait for me here."
With that, he plunged into the quiet alley.
Bald Li stood frozen, trembling from head to toe. The autumn wind's chill was nothing compared to the cold in his heart right now.
"Madman... a complete madman! The plan has already been exposed, yet he still wants to kill Wang Long..."
"No, this won't work... If this continues, I'll definitely die... Right, run, run... I have to run! At worst, I'll go hide in the countryside for a while!"
"Otherwise, whether this madman manages to kill Wang Long or not, I'm a dead man..."
The more Bald Li thought, the more terrified he became. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He cast another trembling glance at the quiet alley, then turned and ran.
'This guy is a crazy desperado!'
'He's ruthless, killing at the drop of a hat!'
'He completely regretted getting involved in this mess...'
His mind was a chaotic mess, but at that exact moment, he heard a soft sigh from behind him.
That single sigh made the hairs on his skin stand on end.
Before he could say a word.
PFFT!
A sharp, gleaming Dart head shot into the back of his neck and poked out from his throat.
Blood immediately gushed out.
Bald Li's body froze on the spot. He turned his head in disbelief, clutching the wound on his neck as blood instantly soaked his hands. He wanted to speak but could only make gurgling gasps as bloody froth bubbled from his mouth.
"I told you to wait. Why did you run? How can I trust you when you act like this?"
In the moonlight, Qin Fang's eyes held a faint, eerie glow.
Bald Li couldn't speak. He clutched his neck, then collapsed to the ground with a THUD, looking at Qin Fang as if he wanted to say something, but not a single word came out.
Qin Fang just stood by and watched coldly as the man's body spasmed and convulsed, until finally, his head lolled to one side, his eyes open in death.
"Of course... the dead are the most trustworthy,"
he murmured.
Yes, from the very beginning, Qin Fang had never planned to let Bald Li live.
Qin Fang had made his way from being a vagrant, and the things he had encountered on his path of exile made it impossible for him to trust anyone easily.
What he was doing now was something that would offend a major power... killing the brother of a Dark Force Powerhouse.
If even the slightest whisper got out, he would surely die.
It could even implicate his master.
Under these circumstances, how could he possibly let Bald Li live?
Besides, when all was said and done, the one who had forced him into this situation... the originator of this whole mess, was Bald Li himself.
If he hadn't been blinded by greed, planning to turn him in for a reward... how would Wang Long have ever found him? How would he have been forced into this position?
Right now, he would probably be sleeping in a warm bed. Why would he need to be out here in the cold wind, killing people?
'Since you've already involved yourself in my fate, there's nothing to feel wronged about by dying at my hands, is there?'
Gazing quietly at the breathless body of Bald Li, Qin Fang walked over, removed the Dart from his neck, and searched the corpse...
As expected of a degenerate gambler, he was dirt poor. Aside from a few miscellaneous items, there were only a few copper coins.
Still, every little bit counted. After pocketing the copper coins, Qin Fang forcefully dragged the body into the quiet alley to prevent the passing Night Watchman from discovering it.
Only then did he take a deep breath and turn his head to look at the courtyard where a light was still on.
Wang Long was the main target of his trip tonight.
He approached the courtyard without a sound.
No matter what surprises awaited, Wang Long had to die.
His gaze was deep and filled with a cold chill.