Jianghu Qimen Lu

Chapter 23 Luring the Tiger Away from the Mountain

A moment later, a man's voice came from inside the room, asking in a low voice, "I'm about to fly away, don't you want to spend one last time with me?" This was followed by Red Moon's soft voice, barely audible, "What time is it? You're still so reckless! I have a feeling something big is about to happen!" The man chuckled softly, then said coldly, "Although White Lightning and his gang are no pushovers, I, Black Sun, have never been afraid of anyone in my life! Don't worry, I'll leave safely." Upon hearing the name "Black Sun," everyone was instantly energized, as if injected with adrenaline. Zhang Kuang secretly ordered the sharpshooters to load their guns, fill the powder kegs with priming powder, and prepare to light the fuses… As soon as Black Sun appeared, ten shots would fire simultaneously!

Silence fell, broken only by the occasional creaking of the large bed. A moment later, a series of dreamlike, lewd murmurs drifted in… Finally, the rustling of clothes being put on and clothes being put on. Red Moon said, “You should keep this ‘Complete Guide to the Martial World’ with me for now. Come back for it after this storm has passed!” White Lightning and Fragrant Fist exchanged a knowing smile, their hearts pounding with excitement, and they listened intently. Black Sun smiled coldly: “After all these days of meticulous planning, I’ve finally succeeded. I’ll risk my life to break through this barrier, return to Ten Thousand Snake Island, and establish an Eastern Empire!” Silence followed for a long time. Suddenly, Red Moon said softly, "I don't know when we'll meet again after this parting. How about we drink another cup of Daughter's Red wine?" Black Sun laughed loudly and said, "Don't act like we're parting forever. Even if your Qing government were to hunt me down everywhere, I would still disguise myself and come to see you! Look at me now, this beautiful woman. Who would guess that I'm a bearded man? Hehe—" He deliberately imitated a woman's laughter in a high-pitched voice, making Red Moon giggle.

"It seems that the woman I saw on the bed in the cave was indeed Black Sun in disguise. What a pervert!" White Lightning felt a wave of nausea as he recalled Black Sun's seductive manner.

Inside the inn, Black Sun and Red Moon had been drinking heavily when Black Sun suddenly cried out, "You...you actually poisoned my wine! I'll kill you!" A loud crash followed—the sound of a chair being pulled over and a person falling to the ground. Then came Red Moon's triumphant laughter: "Japanese pirate, you've finally met your match! I advise you not to move again. You should know my unique poison, 'One Step Down,' is extremely potent; one step and you'll die instantly! Although your internal strength is excellent, don't recklessly use your true energy, otherwise, the poison will attack your heart, and you'll die even faster and more tragically!" Hearing this, everyone was both shocked and delighted. They were shocked that Red Moon, seemingly frail and beautiful, possessed such a ruthless and vicious heart! They were delighted that Black Sun was such a formidable character; instead of having to fight a desperate battle to annihilate them, Red Moon had greatly helped them!

But then Black Sun collapsed to the ground, vomiting uncontrollably. After a long while, his lips trembled, and he uttered incoherently, "You... Red Moon, I've treated you well, why have you betrayed me?" Red Moon sneered and retorted, "You're a ronin from a remote, desolate country, yet you dare to bully people all over my Great Qing territory, relying on your superior martial arts! As members of the martial arts world, who wouldn't want to eat your flesh, sleep on your skin, and kill you as soon as possible! The 'Complete Book of Martial Arts' is an invaluable national treasure, outlining the evolution of the martial arts world throughout history, as well as the various sects and factions..." "This is a comprehensive guide to the martial arts world, detailing fist techniques, swordplay, and spear fighting. It is arguably the most reliable historical research document on organized crime since the beginning of time, a rare and invaluable book! It belongs to China, to all Chinese people, and every Chinese person has the right to protect it! So, Black Sun, you have no right to it, because you are unworthy!" After saying this, she stepped forward, searched Black Sun's body, and took the "Complete Guide to the Martial Arts World." She opened it, read a few chapters, smiled, and put it in her inner pocket. Black Sun roared in anger, spat out a mouthful of blood, and fainted! Red Moon's footsteps faded into the distance, gradually disappearing, and all was silent.

White Lightning waited for a long time, then suddenly shouted, "Damn it, don't let Red Moon get away!" He hurriedly leaped down from the roof, and the others followed. Reaching the door, White Lightning, fearing to alert the others in the brothel, gently flicked the latch with his longsword. The door opened, and the group filed inside. They saw a young woman of about sixteen lying on the ground, draped in a thin veil, her body vaguely visible, incredibly sexy and alluring. White Lightning flipped her over and tore off a flesh-colored mask from her face, revealing a middle-aged man with cold, sharp eyes—none other than Black Sun! His face was now black, with a trace of blood on his lips; a check of his breath revealed him to be dead. White Lightning stood up, let out a long sigh, and looked around. There was no sign of Red Moon. Seeing the large bed with its bedside table wide open, he quickly ordered a sharpshooter to bring two torches. After lighting them, he growled, "Chase after her!" and leaped into the cave first. Following the others, they entered the cave one by one. Upon entering a side passage, they were immediately dumbfounded. There was another entrance on the left side of the main cave, a very narrow and long passage, like an alleyway. Bai Shandian led the group cautiously forward. In the torchlight, they suddenly saw a gleaming light on the ground ahead—about fifty sharp knives stood upright in the passageway, blocking their path. Wing Chun Quan shouted, "Let me handle this!" and charged forward first. With a flick of her right hand, she launched a rope dart, which swung around and wrapped around the hilt of a sharp knife. With a strong pull, she pulled it out! Wing Chun Quan repeated the process, quickly removing more than a dozen knives and discarding them by the roadside. When they pulled out the eighteenth knife, an unexpected event occurred. They must have triggered some mechanism; with a loud crash, the ground suddenly collapsed, creating a large hole, and everyone fell in!

The pit wasn't deep, but it was dark, damp, and had a strong, fishy smell. Luckily, Bai Shandian was quick-witted; in the midst of his fall, he managed to snatch a torch from a sharpshooter, preventing both torches from going out. A flash of light, and someone cried out in alarm. Only then did everyone realize that there were five venomous snakes, each about the thickness of a child's arm and a meter long, inside the pit! Each had a triangular head, flicking its long tongue, and slithered around the perimeter. They seemed quite frightened by the sudden influx of people and dared not approach, only circling the perimeter. Bai Shandian recognized them as king cobras, extremely venomous. To eliminate the threat, he twirled his sword, stepped forward, and unleashed the Shaolin Great Compassion Mantra Sword Technique. In a few flashes of cold light, he sliced ​​all five snakes in two, drawing cheers from the crowd.

The trap wasn't high, and everyone used their lightness skills to leap onto it. Facing the array of sharp blades, Cai Li Fo Quan roared and casually tossed his weapon—a pair of large bronze hammers weighing over three hundred pounds. With a series of rumbling and clanging sounds, all the sharp blades were destroyed, as if two rolling stones had crushed them, flattening them to the ground! Bai Shandian was overjoyed and couldn't help but exclaim, "What divine strength!" Laughing and chatting, they passed through the array of sharp blades. After walking for quite a while, they suddenly saw a stone door ahead. After searching for a long time, Bai Shandian finally found the mechanism to open the door—there was a lantern on the stone wall next to the door, its flame flickering. Below the lantern was a small indentation. Pressing the indentation with their fingers, the stone door swung open. Instantly, the space opened up before them, a gentle breeze caressing their faces; they had arrived at a secluded suburb by West Lake. Bai Shandian looked around and saw West Lake as a mirror, Su Causeway as a ribbon, and distant mountains as eyebrows. The lights around were dim, flickering like will-o'-the-wisps. Where was the half-figure of the red moon?

"Oh no, it seems we've fallen into a trap!" Bai Shandian suddenly shouted, turned around and ran back into the cave! Xiang Quan was startled and hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?" Bai Shandian increased the force in his feet and secretly used his lightness skill to leap and jump. He shouted from afar, "Hurry up and catch up!" The others had no choice but to follow closely behind and also use their lightness skills to barely avoid being left behind.

Returning to Red Moon's lair, the group was shocked to find that, just as White Lightning had suspected, Black Sun's corpse had vanished! Fragrant Fist suddenly realized the truth and cursed, "That cunning Red Moon! It seems they knew we were lying in ambush outside and deliberately staged a charade to deceive us, luring us away while Black Sun, feigning death, escaped while we chased Red Moon!" White Lightning inwardly pounded his chest in frustration, crying out, "How could I be so foolish? I didn't leave some men to keep an eye on Black Sun!" Zhang Kuang sighed, "Lord White, don't blame yourself. It's fortunate you didn't leave some men here to guard him; otherwise, they would most likely have been killed by him!" White Lightning fell silent, recalling the eerie night of the previous day… Yes, if they had truly confronted Black Sun head-on, who could possibly be his match?!