I am dying of old age, and I have awakened to the character of longevity.

Liang Zhi, Wang Xiang, and Zhang Lin stared at each other, but no one dared to speak.

On one hand, this matter was too big, who would dare to reveal it? Although they knew that Lin Yun was also one of their own, deep down they were still more inclined towards Xie An.

On the other hand, it was also because the three of them had just cleaned up the mess and hadn't had time to discuss their next course of action. Lin Yun's sudden appearance flustered them, and they didn't know how to respond.

Seeing the embarrassed expressions of the three, Lin Yun felt even more uneasy, thinking that something had happened to Xie An.

Bang!

Lin Yun slammed his hand on the table and stared coldly at Zhang Lin, "Zhang Lin, you speak. Explain everything clearly!"

Zhang Lin was immediately frightened and felt suffocated.

For many years, Zhang Lin had been in awe of this Great Deacon. Now that Lin Yun's strength had improved after his seclusion, the pressure he exerted on Zhang Lin was even greater.

Logically speaking, Zhang Lin should have spoken.

However, Zhang Lin thought of Xie An's kindness to him and stubbornly resisted the pressure.

"Xie An is fine. He's at Blood Ridge Mountain in the north. Should I go find him?"

Lin Yun breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that Xie An was fine, but still glared fiercely at Zhang Lin, "I'll go find him.

You guys stay here and don't move around. The headquarters already knows about the Great Yin Mountain bandits attacking this place. Fang Baiyu might come over, so remember not to say anything out of line."

After leaving these words, Lin Yun hurriedly left.

Watching Lin Yun leave, the faces of Wang Xiang and Liang Zhi turned pale.

"Fang Baiyu is coming…" Zhang Lin frowned, feeling immense pressure. Finally, as if he had made up his mind, he said, "This matter started because of me, and Brother Xie did it to vent my anger. If Fang Baiyu really discovers something, I will take all the blame."

Wang Xiang was straightforward, "Count me in."

Liang Zhi sighed, "Then add me too."

…

Blood Ridge Mountain.

The cold wind presses the pines and cypresses, and the snow covers the solitary grave.

Xie An had come here in the afternoon and sat cross-legged on a rock next to the solitary grave, adjusting his breathing and practicing the Fetal Respiration Technique.

It wasn't until dusk that Xie An got up and began to practice the Five Animal Play.

Tiger seeks food, deer runs long distances, bear shakes its body, ape picks fruit, crane soars…

Each move was powerful and overbearing.

Since entering the Refined Flesh Realm, Xie An's strength had greatly increased, and he clearly felt the transformation of the Five Animal Play.

Since the Five Animal Play had the potential to transform into a martial art of killing, Xie An naturally wanted to practice it as soon as possible to strengthen himself.

At Xie An's age, he saw many things clearly. He wouldn't be worried or anxious about killing Zhu Hu and his group.

Since he had decided to take action, he would simply eliminate them.

Moreover, this was also a necessary measure to maintain the Blood Ridge Black Market.

Zhang Lin, Liang Zhi, Wang Xiang, and others around him had clearly been inhumanly abused by Zhu Hu. If Xie An didn't stand up for them and protect them, how could Xie An convince others in the future? How could he maintain the Blood Ridge Black Market?

Wasn't the strength he worked hard to improve meant to be used?

With Zhu Hu's death, Xie An's attention returned to honing his own strength.

After all, strength was the foundation for him to stand in this chaotic world.

Tomorrow was the Laba Festival, the day of the headquarters' assessment.

Although Xie An was confident in his strength, he didn't dare to be careless. After all, Tang Qingyun had opened the floodgates, allowing deacons from all the Tiger Wolf Gate branches to participate.

Even Fang Baiyu shamelessly arranged for Vice Hall Master Hong Lie to participate in the assessment. Tang Qingyun might also arrange for a hidden expert to come on stage…

Goose feather-like snowflakes fluttered, but Xie An wasn't afraid of the cold. He practiced the Five Animal Play in front of the solitary grave, each move and stance precise. As his skills improved, the power of the Five Animal Method became even more valiant.

It wasn't until a series of footsteps came from far to near that Xie An stopped and looked up, seeing Lin Yun, who was covered in dust, climbing the mountain. Before Xie An could speak, Lin Yun came up to examine Xie An. Seeing that Xie An was unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"I just came out of seclusion and heard that this place was looted by Great Yin Mountain bandits, so I rushed over… What's going on?"

"There are no Great Yin Mountain bandits…" Xie An looked at Lin Yun's worried face and told him the whole story.

Lin Yun listened carefully, sighing repeatedly. He looked at Xie An with shock, probably not expecting Xie An to do so much for the Blood Ridge Black Market and take such a big risk.

His heart was full of emotion.

"This matter… you did the right thing. Otherwise, Zhang Lin and the others would probably be in mortal danger. Even if they were still alive, everyone's morale would be lost. Once morale is lost, this Blood Ridge Black Market… will be a mere name. On behalf of the brothers of the Blood Ridge Black Market, thank you." Lin Yun said sincerely, cupping his hands in thanks.

Although he said so, Lin Yun was thinking about a question in his heart: If he were Xie An, would he have such courage?

Xie An quickly helped Lin Yun up and returned the greeting, "Brother Lin, don't be like this. Brother Wei has done me a great favor. It's only natural for me to do something for Blood Ridge."

After some polite greetings, Lin Yun didn't act coyly, "The headquarters has heard about the looting by the Great Yin Mountain bandits, and Fang Baiyu will probably come tonight. Tell me all the details of the killing and cleanup you did earlier, so I can respond."

Knowing that the matter was important, Xie An told him everything.

Actually, Xie An didn't expect Lin Yun to come suddenly. He planned to face Fang Baiyu's questioning himself. Now that Lin Yun had spoken, Xie An naturally couldn't hide anything.

After listening to all the details, Lin Yun admired Xie An even more and said, "When Fang Baiyu asks, you guys should say less and let me speak. As long as we insist that it was done by the Great Yin Mountain bandits, and Fang Baiyu can't find any evidence, he can only give up. We'll talk about everything after tomorrow's assessment. Let's go, let's go down the mountain and ask Wang Xiang and Liang Zhi about the details they handled."

Xie An readily agreed.

Speaking of which, he hadn't even met Wang Xiang and Liang Zhi, and didn't know the details of their cleanup.

In order to prepare for Fang Baiyu's questioning, they naturally needed to discuss it first to avoid any mistakes.

Soon, the two arrived at Zhang Lin's detached courtyard living room.

Seeing Zhang Lin and the others so restrained and hesitant, Xie An guessed that Lin Yun must have asked them before, but they didn't say anything, which is why Lin Yun went to the mountain to find him.

This meant that in Wang Xiang, Liang Zhi, and Zhang Lin's hearts, his position was more important than Lin Yun's, and they trusted him more.

Xie An saw all of this.

Thinking of this, Xie An had no choice but to step forward and smooth things over, "I've already told Brother Lin about the matter. Wang Xiang, Liang Zhi, tell me the details of what happened next."

Wang Xiang said, "I secretly used a carriage to transport the body to a ferocious beast area at the foot of Da Yin Mountain. After throwing the body... the body was gnawed by tigers and leopards. When I left, the body was already unrecognizable. I'm afraid not even bones are left now. No one noticed me along the way."

"Well done."

Xie An gave Wang Xiang a high degree of affirmation and looked at Liang Zhi again.

Liang Zhi said, "I took my confidants out to suppress bandits. The direction we went was the same direction as Wang Xiang. We made a lot of noise, and many passersby knew that we were going to suppress bandits. During this period, I kept asking passersby if they had seen Zhu Hu and the others who had gone to suppress bandits earlier. Many passersby said they didn't know. But many people knew that we were going to find Zhu Hu."

Xie An was very satisfied and gave Liang Zhi a high look.

This was a bit like the montage technique of his previous life.

Lin Yun finally summarized, "If Fang Baiyu comes to ask tonight, I will stand in front. You just maintain your statements."

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Just then, hurried hoofbeats came from outside the door.

The ground trembled slightly.

There was also a rough and domineering voice.

"Where is the manager of Blood Ridge?"

Lin Yun took a deep breath and solemnly instructed the others: "He's here. Remember everything. Come out with me to greet him."

Under Lin Yun's leadership, Xie An and the other three left the gate of the detached courtyard.

Hiss! Neigh!

A dozen burly men with knives, riding on tall horses, stopped their horses and slowly walked to the gate of the detached courtyard.

Each man had a vigorous aura, holding a saber, and because they were sitting high, they almost looked down on Xie An and the others, which really brought a lot of pressure to everyone.

The leader was Fang Baiyu.

On the horseback next to Fang Baiyu, sat a sturdy man as strong as an ox, with a defiant look, his eyes looking down on everyone, and he said coldly, "Zhu Hu and his men went out to suppress bandits, but they have not been found yet. Shouldn't you managers give Hall Master Fang an explanation?"

Lin Yun stepped forward and said, "Vice Hall Master Hong Lie, Zhu Hu has been out to suppress bandits for a long time and has not returned. We have also been looking for him for a long time. Judging from the direction, Zhu Hu should have entered Da Yin Mountain..."

"The surrounding villagers can all testify to this."

Hong Lie was unable to refute for a moment.

On the way here, they had inquired from the nearby villagers. According to the villagers, they did see people from the Blood Ridge Black Market looking for Zhu Hu in all directions in Da Yin Mountain…

Just then, Fang Baiyu suddenly raised his hand and pointed at Xie An, "Take him back and interrogate him to find out the truth."

As soon as he finished speaking, two men with knives jumped off their horses and waved their bright broadswords straight towards Xie An.

Xie An's pupils shrank.

He thought to himself that Fang Baiyu was not so easy to fool.

Just then—

Clang.

Lin Yun drew his sword and stood in front of Xie An, meeting Fang Baiyu's gaze, "Xie An is the Second Executive of my Blood Ridge Black Market, and he has contributed to managing the Black Market in the past year. Moreover, he is also someone personally appointed by Elder Tang. If you arrest him for no reason, I will definitely inform Elder Tang."

Fang Baiyu narrowed his eyes slightly, probably not expecting Lin Yun to dare to publicly refute his order, but he didn't show any anger, just said coldly: "This Hall Master has long heard that Elder Tang has appointed someone to work in the Blood Ridge Black Market. I didn't expect it to be you... I still have to give Elder Tang face. Then change someone to arrest and interrogate."

After saying that, Fang Baiyu pointed to Wang Xiang.

This scared Wang Xiang so much that his face turned pale.

If he was caught by Fang Baiyu... would he still be alive?

Lin Yun gritted his teeth, "He can't either. If Hall Master Fang insists on arresting someone, I will report to Elder Tang."

Hmm?

Fang Baiyu frowned, his body exuding a murderous aura.

This was the second time Lin Yun had publicly disobeyed his order as Hall Master, how could Fang Baiyu not be angry?

The surrounding men seemed to sense Fang Baiyu's anger, and they drew their swords one after another, the sounds of "clang, clang" rising and falling, endlessly. It seemed that the surrounding air was drawn away, making it difficult to breathe.

Wang Xiang, Liang Zhi, and Zhang Lin were already trembling with fear, cold sweat streaming down their foreheads.

Even Lin Yun felt that he was about to be unable to hold on.

Now that Wei Dian was gone, Lin Yun didn't plan to live. He just wanted to fight for Blood Ridge. But he didn't expect the Zhu Hu incident to happen. At this moment, what he was thinking about was to protect Wang Xiang and the others first. After Fang Baiyu left, Lin Yun would let Xie An and the others run away overnight.

That was all he could do.

As for whether he could make Fang Baiyu give up at this moment, he was not sure.

Just as the two sides were in a stalemate, Xie An stood up at this time and said: "Hall Master Fang, our Blood Ridge Black Market is also your industry. We call you Hall Master, which means we recognize you. But I didn't expect Hall Master Fang to casually arrest his own subordinates for torture. If I tell Elder Tang about this, I don't know what Elder Tang would think? If the entire Tiger Wolf Gate knows about Hall Master Fang's actions, I wonder how everyone should evaluate you? Will they think that Hall Master Fang is ruining the reputation of the Tiger Wolf Gate?!"

If there was one person present who was not afraid of Fang Baiyu, it was Xie An.

At this moment, Xie An put a huge hat on Fang Baiyu.

This made Fang Baiyu feel a chill in his heart.

He had been in charge of the hall for more than ten years and had always been domineering. No one had ever dared to threaten him in such a roundabout way.

Fang Baiyu narrowed his eyes and looked down at Xie An.

Xie An did not shy away and met Fang Baiyu's gaze.