Chapter 104: Who Holds the Initiative

Fly!
Fly!
Fly!
Although Fang Junmei knew his speed was no match for Qi Yu’s, what else could he do but exhaust every ounce of his strength to reach Golden Light Village?
Here, he had not even half a helper; he could only rely on himself—rely on himself to resolve this trouble!
...
It took only seven days to reach Golden Light Village.
While still in mid-air, he could see from afar that seven or eight figures were hanging by ropes around their necks beneath the village gate plaque. It was impossible to tell how long they had been there; they were motionless, and it was likely they had long since breathed their last.
Looking closely, one of those figures—an old man—was clearly the old village chief who had enjoyed playing little tricks on Fang Junmei, yet was never truly repulsive.
Fang Junmei’s eyes widened, his heart sinking rapidly.
He scanned the village again. No one was walking outside; it was as quiet as a grave. However, peering through the gaps in the wooden houses, he could see figures moving inside. They were likely too terrified to come out.
As for where Qi Yu was hiding, Fang Junmei could not yet tell, as he was too far away and his spiritual sense was not strong enough to detect him.
Recalling the friendliness the people of Golden Light Village had shown him, Fang Junmei’s fierce eyes narrowed.
This was a matter he had to face.
...
Soon, Fang Junmei landed at the village entrance.
The seven hanging corpses blocked his path. Their eyes were wide open in death, filled with lingering resentment, and a smear of dark red blood remained at the center of their foreheads—the mark of someone having pierced through their skulls with a single finger.
The old village chief was hanging directly facing Fang Junmei. The eyes that met his were filled with terror and despair.
Fang Junmei let out a silent sigh. After taking a deep breath, he transmuted the grief and indignation in his heart into a cold, murderous chill.
With a shift of his focus, he looked ahead.
Qi Yu slowly emerged from a house, a scholarly smile on his face, looking at Fang Junmei with a composed and elegant air.
Having arrived first, he had treated his wounds and changed into a clean, snow-white robe, appearing every bit the refined gentleman of the world. Who would have guessed that beneath his handsome, scholarly exterior lay a cold and ruthless heart?
"Boy, are you satisfied with the gift I sent you?"
Qi Yu said with a smile, though the deep-seated malice in his eyes was as hideous as a venomous snake.
Fang Junmei said nothing, staring coldly at his opponent. He could clearly feel countless gazes peering at him from those houses—gazes filled with complex, desperate expectations.
"If you aren't satisfied, there are more in those houses."
Qi Yu stopped a few dozen paces away, hands behind his back, and added with an evil grin: "Don't worry, I haven't planted anything on them. You can attack me now."
He paused, then added: "However, if we fight and the commotion is too great, causing these mortals to be caught in the crossfire and ground into meat paste, don't blame me. Part of that will be on you."
This man was determined to use the mortals of Golden Light Village to threaten Fang Junmei.
"Give me the Human Thousand-Machine Gu!"
Qi Yu finally demanded sharply.
Hearing this, Fang Junmei reached slowly into his storage pouch and took out the jade bottle containing the Human Thousand-Machine Gu. The bottle was as white as ice and clear as jade; one could clearly see thousands of blood-red, thread-like, bizarre things swimming inside—a sight that made one’s skin crawl.
When Qi Yu saw the jade bottle, his eyes lit up.
"Give it to me!"
Qi Yu barked again, taking a step forward.
"What do you need this for?"
Fang Junmei did not hand it over immediately, asking coldly instead.
...
"What I do is none of your concern!"
Qi Yu snorted coldly.
Fang Junmei said: "If you take this and use it to harm more mortals, why should I give it to you today? I would rather sacrifice the mortals of Golden Light Village than hand it over."
Qi Yu laughed heartily: "You can rest easy on that score. Unless necessary, I never slaughter mortals. I need this item only to refine a higher-grade Gu to deal with a demonic beast."
"Swear an oath to the Human Ancestors, otherwise I cannot trust you," Fang Junmei said flatly.
"Boy, it seems you haven't grasped the situation. The upper hand is in my hands now; why should I swear an oath?" Qi Yu said disdainfully.
As he spoke, he suddenly reached a hand toward a nearby house, and a yellowish, violent wind gusted from his palm.
*Bang!*
With a thunderous crash, the house was blown away, revealing the family living inside: an old man and a child.
*Swish!*
With another whistling sound, the child was snatched into Qi Yu’s palm.
"Grandpa, Grandpa, save me—"
The child, his face drained of color, tumbled in the wind, crying for help in a voice that would break anyone's heart.
"A-Shan, A-Shan—Immortal, please spare my grandson!"
The old man scrambled after them, screaming, his face already covered in tears as he begged.
*Whoosh!*
Qi Yu flicked his finger, and a beam of light shot out, piercing the old man’s forehead. After stumbling forward a few more steps, the old man collapsed with a heavy thud, falling silent forever.
"Grandpa! Grandpa!"
The child, now in Qi Yu’s grasp, wailed in despair at the sight of his grandfather’s death.
As the child wept, more cries of grief erupted from the other houses.
Fang Junmei’s eyes grew deeper and more sorrowful. How could this be? Was power meant only to bully the weak?
...
Qi Yu, however, seemed to enjoy the scene. He laughed, flicked a finger to knock the child unconscious, threw him to his feet, and said: "Boy, do you see the situation clearly now? You have no room to bargain. Give me what’s in your hand immediately!"
By the end, Qi Yu was roaring.
"No, the upper hand is in my hands!"
Fang Junmei insisted coldly. He had to control the situation; otherwise, not only would he fail to save the people of Golden Light Village, but he would likely lose his own life as well. On the way here, he had been thinking of how to respond.
Before his words even faded, Fang Junmei pulled out a black pill—the very pill used earlier to neutralize the Gu.
"If you dare kill one more person in this village, I will instantly poison this entire bottle of Human Thousand-Machine Gu to death!"
Fang Junmei’s gaze was firm, his presence intense.
His experiences in the world had taught him that in a standoff like this, whoever lost their nerve first was finished. To save the entire village, sacrificing a few might be necessary, and Fang Junmei had to bear the weight of their deaths as he moved forward.
"Is that so?"
Qi Yu was also a veteran of the underworld. He squinted his eyes, his voice taking on a sinister, mocking tone.
"If you don't care about their lives, then kill them and show me!"
As he spoke, he stepped down heavily.
*Crack!*
With a sickening sound, the child screamed as his arm was snapped by Qi Yu’s boot. This man was truly a cold-blooded killer.
Seeing this, the sobbing in the village grew even louder.
Raging, icy glares surged in Fang Junmei’s eyes.
Without a word, he uncorked the jade bottle and dropped the black pill inside, then quickly replaced the stopper.
The moment the black pill entered, the entire swarm of Human Thousand-Machine Gu began to seethe, fleeing toward the walls of the bottle as far from the pill as possible, as if Fang Junmei had dropped a ball of fire or boiling water into their midst. Those few that touched the pill began to writhe and contort instantly.
Fang Junmei was playing for real!
Qi Yu was stunned.
Seeing several of the Thousand-Machine Gu reduced to nothingness within seconds, Qi Yu finally panicked. He shouted loudly: "Boy, quickly take out the Life-Ending Pill! Take it out!"
Fang Junmei ignored him, staring at him coldly: "Can we talk properly now?"
Qi Yu was so frustrated his face turned black. Being countered by a junior who exploited his desire for the Thousand-Machine Gu was a humiliation rarely seen in his life.
"Fine, you win! I’ll give you a chance to talk! Take out the Life-Ending Pill!"
Qi Yu relented.
A flash of relief crossed the depths of Fang Junmei’s eyes. He uncorked the bottle once more and retrieved the Life-Ending Pill.
As soon as the pill was removed, the frantic Human Thousand-Machine Gu calmed down.
...
Qi Yu, on the other side, also let out a breath. He cast a sinister, gloomy look at Fang Junmei and said coldly: "What do you want to talk about?"
"Simple," Fang Junmei said. "Swear a few oaths to the Human Ancestors for me. First, after you take this bottle of Human Thousand-Machine Gu, you must truly use it to deal with a specific demonic beast, not to slaughter mortals or other cultivators."
"Agreed," Qi Yu replied readily. It seemed he hadn't lied about that part.
"Second, you have not planted any methods on the mortals of Golden Light Village. If you have, remove them immediately, and guarantee that you will never again trouble them or any other nearby villages, nor will you send others to kill them in your stead."
Hearing this, Qi Yu’s eyes flickered, but he eventually nodded. They were just mortals; letting them go was fine, as they posed no threat anyway.
"Third, you must not trouble me again."
Fang Junmei added.
At this, Qi Yu scoffed: "Is that not too unfair to me? If I swear that, I cannot kill you, but you can still kill me—must I just let you kill me? Boy, don't try to trap me! I won't agree to this one, even if you kill all the Thousand-Machine Gu!"
The man was quick-witted.
In fact, Fang Junmei hadn't thought that far ahead. After pondering for a moment, he said: "In that case, let’s change it to: you cannot seek any helpers to trouble me. If you and I are to fight again, it will be based solely on our own skills!"
This place was near the sect headquarters in the Ten Thousand Savage Mountains. If Qi Yu brought a crowd of fellow sect members, Fang Junmei would surely be doomed.
Qi Yu pondered for a while before saying: "I can agree to this, but you must also swear not to seek helpers to deal with me. Let’s see who lives and who dies in our next encounter."
The Peach Blossom Sword Sect was no small sect, and Qi Yu had his own concerns.
These two were truly evenly matched rivals, both plotting to kill the other.
Fang Junmei thought about it and nodded in agreement.
Even if he couldn't kill him for now, he was confident he could escape using his Earth-Escaping Shuttle.