It was late at night.
The night wind blew softly. The temperature had indeed dropped over the last two days. Hidden in the darkness, Qin Fang felt a piercing chill.
Yet, his expression remained unchanged as he looked down at his left hand...
He had forced his left index finger back into place, but now it was red and swollen like a sausage. The lines of the knuckle were stretched smooth, and waves of unbearable, throbbing pain pulsed from it.
'The bone inside must be shattered. I'll have to get Master to look at it later... I wonder if there will be any permanent damage.'
He thought.
But his face remained impassive as he looked up at the street not far off.
This was the South Market. It was usually quite lively before dawn, but now, deep in the night, only a few shops still had their lights on, with faint sounds drifting out. The occasional pedestrian hurried along the street, but for the most part, it was quiet.
Bursts of curses and excited shouts occasionally pierced the night air...
That was the sound coming from the gambling den.
In this day and age, most normal people worked from sunrise to sunset... with the exception of degenerate gamblers.
CLACK CLACK CLACK~~
"All is well!~~"
The sound of a wooden clapper rang out. Qin Fang looked up and saw a Night Watchman patrolling the street with a lantern.
It was past midnight.
The Night Watchman moved on, striking his clapper and calling out "All is well" every now and then. He didn't notice Qin Fang, who was deliberately standing in the shadow of a wall.
Qin Fang remained where he was, waiting calmly.
A moment later, the faint sound of hurried footsteps approached, followed by Bald Li's urgent whisper, "Sir? Sir? Are you still there?"
Qin Fang's expression flickered. "Over here," he said.
Bald Li froze for a second before rushing over. Seeing Qin Fang, he let out a visible sigh of relief. A nervous expression immediately appeared on his face, and he whispered quickly, "Sir, Wang Long and his men are getting ready to leave!"
Qin Fang's expression shifted. He narrowed his eyes. "Where are they?"
"Follow me!"
After whispering this, Bald Li quickly scanned their surroundings and began to lead the way.
Qin Fang, narrowing his eyes, quickly followed.
He followed Bald Li through the streets, turning left and right, and they soon arrived at the back door of a gambling den called 'Ruyi'.
Just as they got there, Qin Fang's eyes narrowed. Several figures were emerging from the gambling den's back door.
"Shit, this damn weather. It was hot as hell a couple of days ago, and now it's freezing?! Fuck..."
"Heh heh, you son of a bitch, looks like your luck was in tonight, eh? So? How about you treat your old man to a trip to Lan Gui Fang?"
"Get lost! When I was losing my ass a few days ago, you didn't offer to treat me, did you, you little shit?"
Cursing and grumbling, they continued down the street.
"Th-that's them..."
Bald Li's voice trembled as he whispered.
Qin Fang recognized their voices, too... It was Wang Long's crew.
Their voices were very familiar to Qin Fang.
"Sir, are we... are we really..."
Bald Li's voice trembled.
Now that the moment had arrived, his courage was clearly failing him again.
Qin Fang said calmly, "Let's go. Follow them."
"Huh? I... I have to go too?" Bald Li's face went white as a sheet.
Qin Fang gave him an indifferent glance. "You don't want to go? You don't want the money?"
Bald Li opened his mouth, but seeing that Qin Fang was already following stealthily, he gritted his teeth and had no choice but to follow along on tiptoe.
The men laughed and joked boisterously as they walked. But after a few streets, one of them broke off from the group. "Brother Long, I'm heading home. I'll see you tomorrow!"
"Alright," came Wang Long's voice.
One of them had split off.
Qin Fang's eyes narrowed slightly.
Then he saw the man turn into a dark alley.
He must be home.
Qin Fang immediately whispered to Bald Li, "Follow the others from a distance. I'll take care of this one and catch up."
Bald Li trembled all over, realizing what was about to happen...
'This is murder!'
'Even though I'm a hoodlum, I never imagined I'd get involved in something as serious as murder!'
'...Refugees really are all desperados!'
He thought, his heart trembling.
But the smile on his face was uglier than a grimace of tears, and his voice was on the verge of sobbing. "Sir... th-then... you... you'll be quick, right...?"
Qin Fang said nothing more. He quickened his pace, hugging the wall as he followed the man into the dark alley.
A Dart was already held fast in his right hand.
The night was too dark for him to make out which one of the men it was... but he was definitely one of the targets.
The man seemed to be in a good mood, humming a little tune as he walked, completely oblivious to the pair of cold, menacing eyes that had locked onto his back.
Qin Fang carefully quickened his pace, getting closer and closer.
His skill with the Darts was only at the Minor Achievement level; he could only guarantee his accuracy within five meters.
Moreover, all his practice had been on stationary targets. Now, he had to hit a living, moving person.
He wanted to get closer to be sure.
His time was also limited. He wasn't sure if the others would also split up in the meantime.
If they split up, it would be very troublesome.
'Since I've decided to make my move... I have to eliminate all of them in one night.'
'Otherwise, by tomorrow, the news will have spread. They'll be on their guard, and that would be a problem.'
Closer and closer, closer and closer...
Finally, he was within five meters.
But Qin Fang didn't strike. He kept moving closer.
Finally, the man ahead seemed to sense something. He grunted and instinctively began to turn.
Without a moment's hesitation, Qin Fang flicked his right wrist, and the Dart flew!
The man only had time to turn halfway. The next instant, with a SWISH, before he could even register what was happening...
THWACK!!
The Dart buried itself precisely in his neck!
The man's entire body suddenly stiffened, his eyes widened in disbelief.
The moonlight was faint, but they were only three or four meters apart. The man's eyes had adjusted to the dark from his walk, so he saw Qin Fang instantly.
Then, his eyes widened, and he tried to speak, but only a gurgling sound came from his throat.
Bloody foam frothed at his lips.
Qin Fang remained silent. He lunged forward and, before the man could react further, grabbed the Dart in his throat and brutally shoved it deeper.
The man's body fell to the ground with a heavy THUD.
His body convulsed as he tried to struggle.
But his neck had been pierced through. That final push, in particular, had completely severed his windpipe, throat, and the surrounding blood vessels.
Blood spurted out. The massive loss of blood made his vision go black.
After a final, full-body tremor, his eyes stared wide as his struggles ceased in bitter resignation.
One target down.
Qin Fang stood up and let out a soft breath. Only then did he look down to identify his victim...
Then he recognized him.
"Was the meat tasty?"
He asked in a low voice.
This was the man who had found the meat his master had given him in the kitchen and taken it for himself.
The man was obviously in no condition to answer him.
His eyes were vacant, completely devoid of light.
He died with his eyes wide open, an expression of disbelief on his face.
Qin Fang pulled the Dart from the man's neck. A spray of warm blood hit his face.
But his expression remained unchanged...
He hadn't seen much of anything since becoming a refugee... except for corpses. He'd seen plenty of those.
Qin Fang then quickly searched the body. A moment later, he narrowed his eyes, looking at what he held in his hand...
Besides a few miscellaneous items, he found a full three or four taels of broken silver.
"Consider it payment for the meat."
He muttered, stuffing the silver into his robes.
He looked up. The alley was quiet, the moonlight dim.
Qin Fang did not linger, turning and walking away.
'Five more to go.'
'I have to finish them all before dawn.'
He thought.