"Ten!"
As the countdown began, everyone finally snapped out of their stupor.
"He killed someone!"
The villagers of Swallow-Edge Village were horrified. None of them had ever witnessed such a bloody scene before.
And the killer—was their own Little Shitou!
Just a few months ago, he'd been a bookish young scholar, clutching the Classics, dreaming of passing the Imperial Examination.
Now, he stood there with a bow in hand, killing people without hesitation!
"Shitou… what kind of rank has he reached to dare kill martial hall disciples in broad daylight?"
"Good! Serves them right!"
Out of ten villagers, eight had suffered at the hands of martial hall thugs before.
After all, many of their family lands had been seized by landlords—with help from these so-called martial masters.
"You—you've got some nerve!"
Huang Tao finally came to his senses, shouting in rage, "You're just a petty Flag Officer, and you dare kill people in public? Is there no law left in Poyang County?!"
The young man on horseback showed no expression. He slowly drew another arrow and nocked it on the bowstring. "Nine."
"Brothers! Take him down together!"
Huang Tao unsheathed his sword with a ringing clang. "Even if Thousand-Household Xiang Tingchun himself were here today, there's no way he could protect you!"
One after another, blades left their scabbards.
The crisp ring of metal echoed across the open road as over thirty martial hall disciples formed a line before the white horse.
"Six."
The countdown continued, unbothered.
Some of the Tailei Martial Hall men began to waver.
'He's not bluffing… is he really planning to kill us all?'
"What are you afraid of?!"
Huang Tao bellowed, his face twisted with rage. "He's just one man!"
"Senior Brother, maybe we should… call Fifth Master instead?"
They were martial hall students, not soldiers.
They didn't earn salaries, most even had to pay tuition each year. Bullying villagers was one thing—but risking their lives?
No one was that stupid.
"Yeah, Senior Brother, let's go get Fifth Master to handle him!"
"Three!"
"Two!"
Before the final number came, panic exploded.
Clatter, clatter!
Most of the martial hall disciples bolted, throwing down their weapons as they fled in every direction.
"Come back, cowards! Come back!"
Huang Tao roared, but no one listened.
In the blink of an eye, only five or six men remained—either too angry or too loyal to abandon him.
Even Wei Xu tried to run.
"Stop right there!"
Huang Tao grabbed him by the collar. "Didn't you hear him? He said you and I aren't getting away!"
Chen Sanshi lifted the Kaiyuan Bow.
"Gentlemen," he said calmly, "time's up."
The next moment, the bowstring cracked like thunder—followed by the sharp hiss of arrows cutting through air.
"Swish—"
"Swish—"
"Swish—"
Whether they were tempering blood at the Beginner or Minor Achievement level, it made no difference.
One by one, the martial hall disciples still standing were struck straight through the skull before they could even take a step.
They tried desperately to dodge or rush forward, but they couldn't even get close before the next arrow came.
Every shot hit its mark. Every life ended instantly.
There was no pain—just the silence of death.
"Senior Brother, I told you! I told you not to come!"
Wei Xu's voice broke into a sob. He threw his sword to the ground and turned to run.
"Thwack—"
Before he could take a single step, an arrow buried itself in his back, piercing through his heart.
He fell face-first into the dirt, dead before he landed.
From start to finish, barely ten seconds had passed.
Now, only Huang Tao remained.
The sword in his hand trembled uncontrollably.
Arrow after arrow—every shot had struck dead center. There hadn't been a single chance to dodge.
"Hyah!"
Chen Sanshi slung his bow over his shoulder and spurred the White Swan horse forward, spear in hand.
He charged toward the final survivor like a thunderstorm unleashed.
"I'll fight you to the death!"
With nowhere left to retreat, Huang Tao could only gather his qi and blood and slash wildly toward the charging warhorse.
But his courage had already collapsed before the fight even began.
Chen Sanshi had reached Major Achievement in tempering blood and was mounted on a battle horse. Huang Tao didn't even last a single exchange before the spear—like a blade of willow—pierced straight through his heart.
His body was lifted clean off the ground, thrown several dozen zhang away before Chen Sanshi finally reined in his horse.
He pulled the spear free and let the corpse fall lifelessly to the dirt.
Once again, silence fell.
The yellow mud road of Swallow-Edge Village was soaked red with blood.
"Oh heavens above!"
Uncle Lai was so terrified he fell flat on his backside. "He's gone mad—he's completely mad!"
"Shitou…"
Zhao Qiao finally came to his senses after a long moment of shock. "What… what now? How are we supposed to clean this up?"
"Shi ge'er killed all of them?!"
Wu Da's eyes were wide—first filled with awe, then fear. "He slaughtered so many martial hall disciples. They'll come for you soon."
"Shi ge'er, let's run for it!"
Zhuang Yi blurted out, "We can flee to the next county—become mountain bandits if we have to!"
But Chen Sanshi remained calm.
Zhang Chao and Li Hao—those two deserved to die long ago, no need to hesitate there.
As for the rest, leaving them alive was never an option.
It wasn't that he was reckless or bloodthirsty. It was simply that if he left these jackals breathing, they'd circle him like hyenas—waiting for the slightest weakness before swarming in for the kill.
If he dared to kill, it was because he had the strength and leverage to do so.
Right now, military supplies to the garrison were cut off. Thousand-Household Xiang Tingchun was already desperate and furious.
If things truly got out of control, Chen Sanshi could simply expose the matter of the Medicine Valley.
Xiang Tingchun was dying to get his hands on evidence to bring the martial halls under control.
And even if he couldn't find proof, with his "empty-handed wolf's trick" nature, he'd make up something to use.
At this point, the military and martial halls were in direct opposition. There was no need to worry about escalating the conflict.
In times like these, one had to act with the tide.
Besides, the Tailei Martial Hall was weaker than the other three.
The old Hall Master had only just recovered from serious injuries. He wasn't dead, but still in seclusion to recuperate.
The only one handling things outside was Song Wu—the fifth son of the Tailei Hall Master.
Song Wu's cultivation in tempering bones was shallow, and the breathing method he practiced was a low-grade one from the martial world.
With Chen Sanshi's Dragon Elephant Blood enhancing his strength, even if he couldn't guarantee victory, he was absolutely confident he could escape unharmed.
Zhao Qiao didn't know any of this and said anxiously, "Shitou, we have to leave now!"
"Uncle Zhao, you're worrying too much. It'll be fine."
Chen Sanshi's ears twitched slightly. "Someone's coming. You all go hide inside first."
He had already caught the sound of approaching footsteps—two separate groups closing in fast from both ends of the village.
…
"You idiots! Why didn't you stop them?!"
Song Wu was sprinting toward the scene, a disciple struggling to keep up behind him.
"Fifth Master, he's our Senior Brother! How could we stop him?"
"This fool! Always causing trouble when times are tense! I never should've taken him as a disciple!"
Song Wu's expression was dark and grim.
Just a few hours ago, his father—still recovering from injury—had been invited to a banquet at the Eight Treasures Restaurant by Thousand-Household Xiang Tingchun and hadn't returned since.
It was definitely about the issue of military funding and supplies.
Xiang Tingchun was bound to make trouble for them.
And now, he had just received news that Huang Tao had led men to attack Chen Sanshi.
If that kid got injured or killed, wouldn't that be handing Xiang Tingchun the perfect excuse to strike against their martial hall?
"What's going on?!"
As Song Wu neared the village, he saw large groups of his own disciples fleeing in panic.
"Fifth Master?!"
The terrified disciples seemed to regain their souls the moment they saw him.
"Fifth Master, it's bad! Really bad! There's been a massacre—so many are dead!"
"You mean you killed Chen Sanshi?!"
Song Wu's gut sank.
He'd met the kid back at Tiger Head Mountain. Strong, yes—but still only a Flag Officer at the Minor Achievement stage of tempering blood.
And Huang Tao had taken more than thirty disciples with him—seven or eight of whom had reached Minor Achievement themselves.
With that kind of lineup, they should've overwhelmed him easily.
But the disciples' next words flipped his expectations on their head.
"No…"
The young man gasped for breath. "It was that military brat! He went berserk—he killed so many of our people!"
"What?!"
Song Wu's face turned pale. He broke into a full sprint.
When he arrived, what met his eyes was a field of corpses.
Huang Tao. Wei Xu. Several inner disciples—all dead.
And there, sitting tall upon his white horse, was Chen Sanshi—expressionless, his spear dripping blood.
Song Wu's fury exploded.
"How dare you, you insolent brat?!"