Chapter 163 Washing Away Past Humiliation

"Brother Jin, your men are somewhat dishonest."

Hearing this, how could Jin Buhuan fail to catch the meaning behind Xiao Yang's words?

His complexion darkened instantly.

He let out a cold, sharp huff.

"Hmph!"

"Confess honestly, or don't force me to use physical means."

Under the sudden surge of pressure, the men could no longer hold out and dropped to their knees one after another.

"It was all ordered by Liu Xin! He told us to kill that kid!"

At these words, the middle-aged man surnamed Liu froze slightly.

Yet, anger quickly surged across his face.

He was actually being framed!

He cast a glare at his subordinates, causing several Great Martial Masters to shrink back in fright, nervously avoiding the middle-aged man's gaze.

"Good, good, good! A fine pack of ungrateful wolves!"

Though the middle-aged man was seething with rage, he said nothing more.

Deep down, he knew his fate was likely already sealed.

Even if he tried to explain, it would be utterly useless.

Because they needed someone with enough standing to bear the blame.

Clearly, he had been chosen as the scapegoat.

"Heh! Lead the way. I want to question them myself," Jin Buhuan said coldly.

Had it been anyone else, he might have turned a blind eye and let the matter slide.

But this involved Xiao Yang, and he dared not afford even the slightest carelessness.

Whether he could advance any further in his cultivation entirely depended on Xiao Yang now.

"Understood!" the middle-aged man replied decisively.

He cast a venomous glance at his subordinates.

Several Great Martial Masters instinctively shrank their necks.

In truth, they had long conspired among themselves to bring the middle-aged man down at the first available opportunity.

For no other reason than his sheer ruthlessness.

Whenever they acquired benefits in the past, he would greedily pocket half for himself.

This had long since stirred resentment among the others; if not for the middle-aged man's formidable strength, someone would have rebelled long ago.

"Brother Jin, I care little for your internal affairs, but if my brother is wronged, don't blame me for taking matters into my own hands," Xiao Yang said slowly, his face shrouded in gloom.

Jin Buhuan smiled reassuringly and said,

"Naturally, naturally. I will give Brother Xiao a satisfactory resolution regarding this matter."

Xiao Yang knew well that although Zhen Zhuang might seem rather dim-witted at times, he was an intensely upright man.

It was difficult for him to harbor malicious intentions toward others.

Of course, if anyone sought his life, that would be an entirely different story.

In such cases, Xiao Yang would retaliate without a moment's hesitation.

It was precisely this unyielding disposition that had sustained him through a decade of dormancy, living only for vengeance.

Before long, the group arrived at the entrance of the Assassin Guild's headquarters.

Xiao Yang immediately spotted Zhen Zhuang, who was standing steadfastly in place like a wooden post.

A wave of relief washed over him at that very moment.

"Good, good, thank goodness he's safe."

Although Zhen Zhuang bore a few superficial wounds, they were of no consequence to him whatsoever.

After a single night's sleep, those injuries would vanish entirely.

"Young Master!"

Seeing Xiao Yang arrive, Zhen Zhuang ran over with a joyful expression.

Xiao Yang smiled and nodded.

Then, turning to Jin Buhuan, he said,

"Brother Jin, I know you have questions. Feel free to ask him directly."

Jin Buhuan nodded slightly and, without beating around the bush, asked directly,

"Little brother, tell me: why did they attack you, and why did you kill these men?"

He glanced down at the corpses strewn across the ground.

Though they were merely a few Great Martial Masters, their deaths still caused a pang of heartache for Jin Buhuan.

One had to realize that cultivating even a single loyal Great Martial Master cost at least tens of thousands of spirit stones.

Now, seven had died at once.

Over a million had simply vanished just like that.

Zhen Zhuang did not answer immediately, instead turning to seek Xiao Yang's approval with a glance.

"Go ahead. He is the Lord of North Desert City; he will be entirely fair."

"Understood, Young Master!"

No longer holding anything back, Zhen Zhuang recounted the entire sequence of events from beginning to end.

Yet, as he listened, Jin Buhuan's expression grew steadily darker until it was pitch black.

An aura of murderous intent swept over the remaining men.

Consumed by fury, it took him several breaths of silence before he finally spoke.

"Splendid. So it turns out that North Desert City is run according to your whims."

In an instant, the remaining Great Martial Masters dropped to their knees in unison.

"Lord City Lord, spare our lives! We were merely foolish and spoke without thinking!"

Cold sweat beaded densely across the foreheads of the Great Martial Masters.

They knew all too well that the City Lord before them had zero tolerance for transgressions.

At this point, they desired nothing more than to preserve their lives.

However, upon hearing the truth of the matter, Jin Buhuan's resolve to kill had already solidified.

"Spare your lives? When you killed others, did they not beg for mercy? Did you spare them?"

A thunderous roar echoed through the air.

The men trembled violently.

They could only kneel on the ground, too terrified to utter a single sound.

"Men! Take these sickening wretches away and lock them up. I shall interrogate them thoroughly tomorrow."

At his command, several guards stepped forward.

They hauled the men away by force.

Meanwhile, Jin Buhuan turned to Xiao Yang with an apologetic expression.

"Brother Xiao, this is a failure of my supervision, which caused your brother to suffer a grievance. Please accept this as a token of my compensation."

With that, he produced a stack of gold notes and handed them over.

Xiao Yang glanced at them and took them.

"Zhen Zhuang, take these. The City Lord gave them to you."

Zhen Zhuang initially intended to refuse, but after receiving a stern look from Xiao Yang, he quickly tucked them away.

With a smile, Xiao Yang replied,

"Brother Jin, as long as my man is unharmed, all is well."

"You needn't take it to heart. Managing such a vast city, oversights are bound to happen."

Jin Buhuan knew in his heart that no matter how well he governed, there would always be black sheep among the flock.

He didn't dwell on it further.

"Brother Xiao, since today's events have been such a hassle, why don't you come over for a drink at my place? Consider it my apology to you."

Jin Buhuan offered with a smile.

Between the endless stream of matters that day, he hadn't even found time for a proper meal.

Having a chance to eat now sounded rather pleasant.

Xiao Yang readily agreed.

"Then I shall trouble Brother Jin."

"No trouble at all, no trouble at all."

So saying, he draped an arm over Xiao Yang's shoulder as they walked back together.

At the same time, he issued orders to his subordinates.

"Clean this place up quickly, and report back to me tomorrow."

"Yes, Lord City Lord!"

As the group departed, a contingent of City Lord Mansion guards forcibly breached the entrance of the Assassin Guild's headquarters.

They poured inside.

Yet, it didn't take long for them to discover something peculiar.

Not a single soul remained within the Assassin Guild's headquarters.

The only things found were the corpses of three high-ranking members of the guild.

Furthermore, not a single treasure or item of value was left behind.

It could genuinely be described as utterly destitute.

The search left the entire group wondering if they had come to the wrong place and whether this was truly the Assassin Guild's headquarters.

"Roar!"

A thunderous tiger roar shook the air.

It reverberated throughout the entire Great Spirit Sect.

Shortly after, a young man emerged from his quarters, two dazzling rays of golden light flashing fiercely within his eyes.

"Hahaha! My cultivation realm is finally consolidated. It is time to wash away my past humiliation!"

Every time Zhang Long recalled how his quota had been snatched away by another, a wave of rage would boil in his gut.

Now, however, his cultivation had successfully reached the perfection of the first tier of the Martial Marquis realm.

His true combat prowess could even rival a fourth-tier Martial Marquis.

Emboldened by this breakthrough, his confidence had soared, and he intended to use thunderous methods to reclaim the spot that rightfully belonged to him.