Martial Sage from the Vajra Skill

Chapter 253 - 148: Homecoming

When Su Qiming saw the body covered by the white sheet, his vision went black, and he nearly fainted.

He had still been holding onto a sliver of hope, never expecting they would actually find a body.

He staggered forward, trembling, but Su Jianye stopped him.

"Don’t look," Su Jianye explained. "Ah Che... he’s in a terrible state."

The body had been cleaved in two, and most of it was charred. If his old father, Su Qiming, were to see it, he would surely be unable to bear the sight.

"No!"

Su Qiming shook his head, gritted his teeth, and strode forward to rip the white sheet away.

Beneath the sheet, Su Che’s corpse had been pieced back together. A charred wound ran from the crown of his head all the way down, neatly bisecting the body.

The reassembled figure was a gruesome sight. His eyes were wide open, unable to rest in peace, as if he had suffered something terrifying before his death.

Su Qiming’s vision went black again. As his body swayed, Su Jie quickly reached out to steady him.

Su Jianye said grimly, "The family has already sent for the best Corpse Stitcher in the city. We will ensure Ah Che has a dignified departure."

Su Qiming gritted his teeth. "What about the killer?"

He didn’t want a dignified departure; he wanted the killer’s entire family exterminated. ’The body is already in this state, half-charred. What dignity is there to speak of?’

Su Jianye sighed. "It was likely the work of the Blazing Blade, a killer who has been murdering and robbing people recently. But his identity is a mystery. No one knows who he is. Finding him will be next to impossible."

’The Blazing Blade?’

Su Qiming was taken aback. "It wasn’t Xu Yang?"

Su Jianye shook his head. "How could it be him? Ah Che was killed in a single strike. There were almost no signs of a struggle at the scene. His killer must have a cultivation of at least the Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm.

"Xu Yang is a mere Outer Disciple. His Gang Qi hasn’t even reached Great Success. How could he possibly have killed Ah Che?

"The family will use all of its resources to hunt down the killer. As long as the Blazing Blade is still active, we will undoubtedly find him."

Su Qiming nodded. He knew it couldn’t possibly have been Xu Yang who killed his son. ’If Xu Yang had the strength to kill Ah Che, he wouldn’t be tenth on the Ten Heroes List—he’d be first.’

"But even if he wasn’t the one who did the killing, he’s still connected to it. If he hadn’t competed with Ah Che for the Pure Yang Grass, Ah Che would never have left the city and run into the Blazing Blade."

’The family probably won’t kill a Ten Heroes Genius from the Purple Sun Sect over something so trivial. The family is too large, and there are too many gossips; news of something like this would leak easily.’

’But for a mere Outer Disciple, there’s no need for the family to get involved.’

Su Qiming said grimly, "Help me spread the word throughout the Jianghu. Anyone who can provide information on the Blazing Blade will be rewarded with three thousand taels of silver, five Guiyuan Pills, and a personal favor from me, Su Qiming."

The moment the bounty was announced, it sent shockwaves through the underworld of Cyan Yang City. Everyone wanted to claim Su Qiming’s reward and his favor.

Unfortunately, no one in the underworld knew the Blazing Blade’s identity. They only knew that his Saber Technique was fierce and domineering, and that he typically killed with a single strike. His victims’ wounds looked as though they were seared by fire, and he frequently engaged in murder and robbery.

"To think Su Che was killed by the Blazing Blade... Xu Yang’s luck is just too good."

Hearing that Su Che had been slain by the Blazing Blade, Tang Xiao and the others couldn’t help but marvel at Xu Yang’s good fortune. Su Che had left the city to kill Xu Yang, only to run into a grim reaper like the Blazing Blade.

"That guy is unbelievably brazen! How can he dare to kill just anyone? That was Su Qiming’s son!" Guo Huai was taken aback by the Blazing Blade’s viciousness.

To dare kill Su Che and not even bother to destroy the body to cover his tracks... he just swaggered off, completely unafraid of the Su Family’s retaliation.

"No one knows his identity, so what’s there to be afraid of?" Shen Liang said.

’If it were me,’ Shen Liang thought, ’I’d dare to kill him too.’

"Could it be possible that Xu Yang and the Blazing Blade are working together?"

A glint flickered in An Ping’s eyes. ’If I told the Su Family this, would I get the reward?’

Shen Liang said grimly, "Are you trying to get yourself killed? Didn’t you hear? The Blazing Blade is a Bone Marrow Cleansing Martial Artist who killed Su Che in a single strike. If he really is connected to Xu Yang, you’d be signing your own death warrant."

He knew An Ping was trying to forcibly link Xu Yang to the Blazing Blade just to make the Su Family go after him.

Guo Huai nodded. "That’s right, don’t go looking for trouble. Haven’t you heard the rumors that the Blazing Blade might be a disciple of the Purple Sun Sect? With his Bone Marrow Cleansing Cultivation, he’d have to be an Inner Sect Disciple.

"You might want to harm Xu Yang, but don’t end up provoking someone you can’t afford to offend."

A wave of fear washed over An Ping, and he immediately abandoned the idea.

「...」

’So he was from the Su Family!’

Xu Yang had learned Su Che’s identity, but he felt no regret. Under the circumstances, he’d had no choice but to kill him.

Fortunately, the Blazing Blade identity was proving very useful. The Su Family was only offering a bounty for the Blazing Blade and hadn’t come looking for him.

’Still, I have to be on my guard. I’ll need to be more careful when I go to Cyan Yang City from now on. The Su Family might suspect I have some connection to the Blazing Blade.’

The whole affair was too coincidental not to arouse suspicion.

As he got up and walked out of the dining hall, Xu Yang suddenly noticed someone quickening their pace behind him.

"Watch out for An Ping!" Shen Liang’s voice transmission echoed in his ear.

Xu Yang’s gaze hardened as Shen Liang’s transmission continued, "He was going to report you to the Su Family, to tell them you’re connected to the Blazing Blade, but I talked him out of it.

"But I don’t know if he’ll change his mind. You should be careful the next time you leave the mountain."

With that, Shen Liang strode away.

This was the only way he could warn Xu Yang; he didn’t dare have any more contact with him.

’Guo Huai and the others all dislike Xu Yang now, so I can’t afford to get too close to him either,’ Shen Liang thought. ’Those three are too petty. If I associate with Xu Yang, they’ll surely ostracize me.’

He wasn’t afraid of An Ping, or even Guo Huai himself, but he couldn’t afford to offend a well-connected local like Guo Huai.

"Thank you," Xu Yang’s voice transmission sounded in Shen Liang’s ear.

He hadn’t expected Shen Liang to come and tell him something like this. But after a moment’s thought, he began to understand.