Chapter 943: Target Appears
The man's words were meant to threaten Yang Haoran and Xu Meijing, but also to vent his inner fury and find himself an out.
Xu Meijing remained unfazed, not taking the man's words seriously in the slightest. Yang Haoran likewise paid them no mind; he had heard countless threats before, and the outcome was always the same: he, the one being threatened, lived perfectly well, while those who threatened him all ended up dead.
"Your precious disciple teamed up with the An City Administrative Chief to assassinate me, even using the lives of my friend and his wife to threaten me. If I didn't have a few tricks up my sleeve, my very soul might already be in his hands by now. Senior, tell me, is there a problem with me coming to the Talisman Order to demand an explanation for this?"
As Yang Haoran spoke, his face showed no trace of anger; instead, he wore a faint smile, as if recounting something utterly trivial.
The Gold Talisman Master's face changed, and Xu Meijing, sitting beside Yang Haoran, also showed a shift in expression.
Earlier, outside the underground chamber, the man had already guessed that Han Fushi had likely caused trouble, which was why he decided to move to a different location to understand the situation. However, what he hadn't anticipated was that his disciple would actually conspire with the Administrative Courtyard to assassinate an Underworld Official.
Although he hadn't known Yang Haoran before, nor which city's Emissary of Death Yang Haoran was, a moment's thought led him to surmise that Yang Haoran must be from Lecheng.
His reason for this conjecture was that Han Fushi had previously sought him out regarding the Lecheng Talisman Order, and he had indeed resolved the Lecheng Talisman Order's issues for Han Fushi. Furthermore, he was aware that Han Fushi had some cooperation with the An City Administrative Courtyard, and the An City Administrative Courtyard intended to seize Lecheng soon.
Thinking of this, the man couldn't help but curse Han Fushi inwardly for being an idiot, leaving such a huge handle for the other party, who had now even come knocking on their door. This would put him in a very passive position.
Xu Meijing's expression changed because she was entirely unaware of this matter. The reason she had come to this temple was that she had sensed the presence of Spirit Power, and a rather potent surge of it at that.
None of the Night Watchers under her command could emit such powerful Spirit Power. From the intensity of the Spirit Power she sensed at the time, one would have to have at least opened their Heaven Soul to achieve that level.
Therefore, she had surmised at the time that perhaps an Emissary of Death from another city had arrived in Ancheng and clashed with the Talisman Order.
Before coming to the temple, she had considered if the troublemaker at the Talisman Order might be Yang Haoran. After all, Lecheng, which he oversaw, was a neighboring city to their Ancheng, making his presence in Ancheng quite likely. But if it was Yang Haoran, why had he not contacted her before getting into a conflict with the Talisman Order?
She hadn't been entirely certain if the newcomer was Yang Haoran, but she hadn't entirely ruled it out either. So, she decided to head to the scene to assess the situation. Regardless of whether the person causing trouble at the Talisman Order was Yang Haoran, one thing was certain: the individual was definitely a member of the Underworld Office.
As the Emissary of Death for the An City Underworld Office, with another Underworld Official arriving in her territory and clashing with the Talisman Order, she had to go and investigate the situation. Thus, she tore through space to reach this place.
When she arrived and saw Yang Haoran, she felt a degree of surprise, though she didn't show it at the time.
She didn't know why Yang Haoran had clashed with the Talisman Order, nor who was right or wrong in the outbreak of this conflict. Without asking for an explanation, she simply chose to stand by Yang Haoran's side, ready to fight the Talisman Order to the bitter end.
It was precisely because she was unaware of the whole story that, upon hearing Yang Haoran's words, her expression underwent a significant change.
"Heh, quite bold, aren't you? Daring to assassinate an Underworld Official from our Underworld Office, even resorting to sinister schemes and tricks. I don't know how your Talisman Order handles such matters, but when our Underworld Office encounters something like this, we definitely make sure to eliminate the other party."
Xu Meijing spoke with a frigid expression. Upon hearing her words, the Gold Talisman Master turned his gaze towards her, his eyes narrowing slightly as a potent killing intent erupted from his body.
Both Xu Meijing and Yang Haoran sensed the intense killing intent emanating from the man, but neither of them paid it any mind.
"Heh heh, you don't need to look at me like that, because I don't fall for that kind of act. Besides, these rules weren't set by me; they were set by our Underworld Office. You keep mentioning Luo Yao as if you're very familiar with him. If you want to know if what I'm saying is true, just ask him."
Xu Meijing had just rebuked Han Fushi, and now she was even rebuking Han Fushi's master. As a Gold Talisman Master, the man was accustomed to respect, and being directly challenged by Xu Meijing naturally caused fury to surge within him. However, he forcefully suppressed his inner rage, preventing it from erupting.
Taking a deep breath, the Gold Talisman Master did not lash out. To successfully divert his attention and prevent his inner fury from exploding, he sought confirmation from Han Fushi.
In truth, he already had a guess about the matter, and he felt his conjecture wasn't far from the truth. The reason he still needed to confirm with Han Fushi was not only to divert his own attention but also to give Han Fushi an opportunity to state his reasons or find a solid excuse. That way, the subsequent issues would be much easier to handle.
"Is what he's saying true? " the Gold Talisman Master asked Han Fushi.
"Master, please don't listen to his nonsense! He's making things up out of thin air! I never conspired with the Administrative Courtyard to assassinate him! This matter has nothing to do with me!"
Han Fushi looked anxious, hastily explaining to the Gold Talisman Master and denying Yang Haoran's assertion.
"Heh heh, I wouldn't dare spout nonsense about something like this. The soul of that woman from the Administrative Courtyard is still in my possession. How about I have her come out and bear witness?"
Yang Haoran was not at all surprised by Han Fushi's denial, his smile not wavering in the slightest. Han Fushi, by contrast, was far less composed. The moment he heard Yang Haoran intended to produce the soul of the Administrative Courtyard woman, his expression became considerably flustered. Although Yang Haoran hadn't explicitly named the woman from the Administrative Courtyard, Han Fushi knew perfectly well who Yang Haoran was referring to.
"You scoundrel! Is there anything you wouldn't dare to do? !"
Han Fushi's reaction greatly displeased the Gold Talisman Master. With a cold shout, Han Fushi's body trembled with fright.
"Master, you must believe me! This matter really has little to do with me! Although I was involved, I wasn't the mastermind. All of this was done by Qin Yefeng and that Black-Robed Person! Even if there's a reckoning, it should be with those two!"
As soon as Han Fushi's words fell, the Gold Talisman Master, without giving Yang Haoran or Xu Meijing a chance to speak, directly questioned Han Fushi.
"Where is that Qin Yefeng now?"
At the mention of this, Han Fushi's face showed hesitation. Seeing this, the Gold Talisman Master immediately flew into a rage.
"Speak!"
A sharp shout escaped the Gold Talisman Master's lips. Han Fushi dared not conceal anything further and stammered out quickly:
"He. . . he's in our underground chamber right now. When he knew the operation had failed, he immediately rushed here to seek refuge with me and discuss countermeasures, so. . . so I took him in."
Han Fushi's words confirmed that Yang Haoran's previous conjecture was correct: Qin Yefeng had indeed left the Administrative Courtyard to seek refuge with Han Fushi.
Because he had already made his guess, Yang Haoran was not surprised in the slightest when Han Fushi spoke these words.
"Bring him here, immediately!"
The Gold Talisman Master instantly commanded Han Fushi, his tone exceedingly firm, leaving no room for negotiation.
Han Fushi dared not disobey his master's wishes. After respectfully responding, he promptly left as per the Gold Talisman Master's instructions.
A short while later, Han Fushi returned with someone, but for some unknown reason, this person had already fallen unconscious.
This person was none other than Qin Yefeng, the Administrative Chief of An City—and the primary objective of Yang Haoran's visit!
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