Chương 12: A Night of Death Beneath the Black Moon

Su Zhe felt as though his heart was being torn apart. Kneeling before Su Yuan, he composed himself and spoke slowly:"Uncle, not only have I become an inner disciple of the Blacksmith Guild, but I am also now a personal disciple of the Craftsmanship Hall."

"I know you don't want to burden me with trouble, but... seeing you like this pains me. If you won't tell me, I'll investigate on my own." His tone was calm but unwavering. An inner disciple? A personal disciple? Su Yuan exchanged a glance with his wife, Lin Xia. For common folk like them, such titles were lofty concepts beyond their understanding. Lin Xia, however, broke into an excited smile.

"Xiao Zhe, does this mean... you've become a martial lord?" Su Zhe nodded. A martial lord! To Su Yuan and Lin Xia, the significance of these words was crystal clear. In a neighboring village over a hundred li away, a retired martial lord had returned home to buy 100 mu of fertile farmland, marry 18 concubines, and elevate his family into the ranks of local elites. That was the life of a martial lord!

"It was Huang Mazi!" Lin Xia blurted out, her pent-up anger erupting.

"Xiao Zhe, it was Huang Mazi who did this to your uncle!" She went on in a rush, her eyes reddening as she recounted the events:"Your uncle had sold his catch at the fish market and was returning when he spotted Huang Mazi skulking about. He tried to avoid him, but Huang Mazi saw him and demanded five taels of silver!"

"When your uncle refused, Huang Mazi attacked. If it weren't for his cries drawing other fishermen, Huang Mazi would have beaten him to death!" Su Yuan sighed deeply but remained silent. Suddenly, the sound of splintering wood broke the tense atmosphere.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!" Lin Xia and Su Yuan turned toward Su Zhe, only to gasp in shock. Su Zhe had gripped the leg of the wooden table beside him, his face calm. With a casual squeeze, a chunk of the table was crushed into splinters. When he released it, the wood had turned to fine powder that fell silently to the floor.

"What... what immense strength! Is this the power of a martial lord?" The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. The couple stared at him, their hearts racing.

"Xiao Zhe," Su Yuan said hurriedly, his concern evident.

"Don't be rash. I'll recover. If you kill someone, you'll bring trouble upon yourself. Now that you've achieved this status, don't throw your future away." Although Su Yuan wasn't aware of the privileges a personal disciple of the Craftsmanship Hall enjoyed, Su Zhe knew full well. Even if evidence of a killing were found, no county official would dare arrest him without first consulting Sun Tiexin, the Hall's master. However, Su Zhe didn't explain.

Instead, he asked:"Uncle, you said you saw Huang Mazi acting suspiciously. Did you see clearly what he was doing?" Su Yuan shook his head after a moment of thought.

"I only saw him and his men coming out of the reed marshes. I don't know what they were up to... Maybe those bastards heard we came into some money and decided five taels wasn't enough..." Despite racking his brain, Su Yuan couldn't recall any useful details. Su Zhe frowned. Something didn't add up. Huang Mazi had ruled the area for years, extorting people but always stopping short of outright murder. Why this sudden escalation?

"Money to avoid disaster—so we thought," Su Zhe mused, his lips curling into a cold smile.

"But it seems this man is courting death." This couldn't continue. If Huang Mazi dared extort a third or fourth time, their lives would never find peace. Su Zhe had plans to buy a house in the county for his uncle and aunt, but leaving a threat like Huang Mazi unchecked felt unsafe. His thoughts were interrupted when Su Yuan, clutching five taels of silver, began dressing to go out.

"Uncle, what are you doing?"

"That scoundrel demanded the money by tonight. If we don't pay, who knows what he'll do? I can't fight him, so we have no choice but to comply," Su Yuan said, trembling with frustration.

"Uncle, let me handle this." Su Zhe gently took the silver from his uncle's hands and helped him sit back down.

"But Xiao Zhe," Su Yuan protested, "you've just started your path as a martial lord. You can't afford to provoke someone like him, especially since Huang Mazi used to be an inner disciple of the Canal Gang before he was expelled. His men are skilled fighters too. Don't act rashly—live to fight another day." Su Zhe smiled reassuringly.

"Uncle, I won't act impulsively. Stay home and rest. I'll handle this and ensure he doesn't trouble us again. Trust me, I'll settle this peacefully." Lin Xia nodded in agreement.

"Let Xiao Zhe go. He knows what he's doing." Reluctantly, Su Yuan agreed but warned, "Above all, avoid conflict. Be cautious." Before leaving, Su Zhe placed ten taels of silver on the table.

"Aunt, use this to hire a doctor for Uncle. I'll be back soon." As Su Zhe departed, Su Yuan watched him go, a mix of pride and melancholy filling his heart. The night was dark, and the wind howled. Su Zhe moved swiftly; his feet wrapped in cloth to hide his tracks. Following his uncle's directions, he soon found a large, isolated estate. The mansion was impressive but eerily out of place, surrounded by desolate fields.

Rumor had it Huang Mazi had driven out its original owners to use the property for his illicit dealings. Two thugs loitered at the gate, smoking and chatting.

"Is there a job tonight?"

"Yeah. Boss wants someone in the fishing village dead by midnight. With the rain, it'll be easy."

"Boss doesn't kill often. Who is it?"

"Don't know. Some guy named Su. Gave the boss five taels recently. Guess his luck ran out." They chuckled, unaware of the shadow lurking above them in the trees. Listening to their words, Su Zhe's expression turned icy.

"So, they fear my uncle might expose them... Regardless, none of them leave here alive tonight." With a sudden leap, Su Zhe descended silently behind them.

"Who—" Before the first thug could react, Su Zhe's eight-pound hammer crashed down, splitting his skull with a sickening crack. The second thug froze in terror, opening his mouth to scream, but Su Zhe's hand clamped over it. With a swift motion, he crushed the man's chest, shattering his ribs and rupturing his organs. As the man's life ebbed away, Su Zhe whispered coldly, "Breathe deeply... the dizziness will pass soon."

Ten breaths later, he dropped the lifeless body and stepped into the courtyard, bolting the gate behind him.