Chapter 87: Punishing Evil
Upon seeing the commotion, Fang Chen asked, "What's the background of that Ghost Tiger Gang?"
"It's a small gang composed of a bunch of rogues. They only have a few Qi Condensation Stage martial artists. They usually make profits by lending money. They only dared to come here to collect debts after seeing that the Heavenly Sword Villa was exterminated,” said Huangfu Jie casually.
As he explained, a conflict had already broken out between the Ghost Tiger Gang and those people.
Eighth Brother Qian was not someone to be trifled with, and he had a few people under him as well. Unfortunately, they were still not a match for the Ghost Tiger Gang.
"Fellow brothers, how can we let these outsiders bully us? If the Ghost Tiger Gang dares to find trouble with me today, they will definitely find trouble with all of you in the future!” yelled Eighth Brother Qian.
Seeing that the surrounding members of the Qian Family were getting restless, the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang sneered and pointed at the green mountains. "Look; the Valiant Saber Guards are now standing watch over the Heavenly Sword Villa. As long as I make a commotion, they will come down to investigate! Since I dare to lend money, I’m not afraid of getting it back.”
The crowd fell silent, and Eighth Brother Qian's expression turned solemn. These gangs usually had some connections with the Valiant Saber Guards, and even though they weren’t sure about the Ghost Tiger Gang’s relationship with them specifically, they daren’t to take the risk. If the Valiant Saber Guards really supported the Ghost Tiger Gang, who could bear the consequences? That was the Valiant Saber Guards, not some random martial arts sect! They controlled tens of thousands of guards, and every move their commander made could shake the entire Southern Immortal Prefecture!
Seeing that he had made everyone tongue-tied, the leader of the gang sneered, then instructed, “Someone come and pour oil on Eighth Brother Qian and the rest!”
"Yes!"
The gang members of the Ghost Tiger Gang immediately brought several buckets of oil and poured them on Eighth Brother Qian, his family, and the manor behind them.
"Eighth Brother Qian, are you sure you don’t want to repay the three thousand taels?" The leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang took out a fire starter and looked at him with a smirk.
"You are too ruthless..." Eighth Brother Qian's face turned pale, and his lips trembled. "I don't have three thousand taels on hand..."
The leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang smiled ruefully. "You can sign a promissory note and return it to me in a year and a half."
Huangfu Jie couldn't stand it any longer, and with a cold snort, he leaped off his horse. He landed beside the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang, snatched the fire starter from his hand, and then kicked him off to the side.
The members of the Ghost Tiger Gang were shocked.
"Who are you! How dare you attack the Ghost Tiger Gang!"
"The Heavenly Sword Villa has been exterminated, and you are taking advantage of the situation? Scram! Don’t let me see you again,” warned Huangfu Jie coldly.
Standing up from the ground, the leader squinted and asked, "Who are you? Tell me your name."
"Profound Blade Sect, Huangfu Jie." Huangfu Jie stared at him, his eyes cold and indifferent. "Be sure to remember my name. If you want to find me, I’ll be waiting at the Profound Blade Sect. We can settle our scores whenever you want."
"Ah!" The crowd gasped. The members of the Ghost Tiger Gang were terrified, and the face of the leader turned pale. On the other hand, the eyes of the people from the Qian Family held a hint of hostility and resentment toward Huangfu Jie.
There were rumors that Heavenly Sword Villa was exterminated by the Profound Blade Sect!
"So, you are Seven Profound Blade, Huangfu Jie..."
After the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang calmed down and steadied his tone, he said, "Even if it's you, you don’t have the right to interfere in this matter. Don’t make me call the officers from the Valiant Saber Guards to come and settle this. It is only natural for them to repay their debt. This is a matter of principle.”
Huangfu Jie was taken aback. He didn't expect the other party to not be scared of him. It seemed that the allure of money was truly powerful. When he thought that Commander Jue might be on the mountain now, he smiled immediately. “Alright, go call them now.”
The leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang approached Huangfu Jie, then said in a low voice, "Seven Profound Blade, there are a few officers from the Valiant Saber Guards who are backing us. Why don’t you consider giving us some face?"
Huangfu Jie just smiled. "Hurry up and call them."
The leader’s expression sank. Glancing at his subordinates, he immediately sent someone running toward the mountain.
In about the time it takes for a pot of tea to brew, the sound of hoofbeats echoed, closer and closer, and everyone turned to look. They saw Jue Panshi leading several captains, a group of Valiant Saber Guards, and hundreds of soldiers over.
Everyone gasped.
Isn’t that Commander Jue!?
Some people recognized Jue Panshi.
After the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang regained his senses, he became ecstatic. He never expected that those officers from the Valiant Saber Guards would be able to invite Commander Jue to the scene. He was initially worried that the officers would not be able to match Huangfu Jie. After all, he was the number one expert in the Southern Immortal Prefecture. However, now that Commander Jue was here, what was Huangfu Jie in comparison?
In the Southern Nine Prefecture, it was a rule not to engage in conflicts between the martial arts world and the court. However, only Huangfu Jie knew that Jue Panshi had deliberately descended down the mountain to welcome Fang Chen.
The leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang rushed out of the crowd and greeted Commander Jue and the others with clasped hands. "Esteemed officers, Eighth Brother Qian refuses to repay his debt, yet the Seven Profound Blade wants to stand up for him...”
Before he could finish speaking, he was kicked to the ground by Commander Jue. A few of the Valiant Saber Guards glanced at him for a short while and then ignored him.
Commander Jue led his men and arrived before Fang Chen. He dismounted, clasped his hands, and greeted, "I pay my respects to—"
Fang Chen waved his hand and interrupted him. "Enough. Get to the point."
Reading the room, Commander Jue whispered immediately, "I heard that someone was causing trouble here?"
Eighth Brother Qian and the surrounding members of the Qian Family looked in the direction of Fang Chen in shock.
Who’s that important figure that could even make Commander Jue dismount and pay his respects? Could it be someone from the capital?
The leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang finally realized that something was amiss. His subordinates were absolutely terrified and kept their mouths shut, lowering their heads and staring at their shoes.
Fang Chen smiled. "Commander Jue, I know that the southern region is a little chaotic. After all, there are many sects here and it’s not easy to manage a large number of martial artists, right?”
"Yes, yes, yes," Jue Panshi nodded repeatedly.
Fang Chen smiled widened. "Every sect has their own rules. For example, places like the Heavenly Sword Villa, Profound Blade Sect, and others help maintain order in the martial world. They would not randomly oppress and bully ordinary people, right? However, some of these small gangs and sects seem to be ignorant of these rules. Take the Ghost Tiger Gang for example, it seems like they deal in usury, sucking money out of others like a parasite. The Southern Immortal Prefecture should properly punish and ban such practices to prevent public grievances. If news of this reaches the capital, it won't spell well for you.”
"I should...?” inquired Jue Panshi.
A smile was tugging at Fang Chen’s lips. “To punish evil, do what you must; kill those who need to be killed and confiscate their properties.”
Jue Panshi's eyes slightly narrowed. "I understand."
Many of the Valiant Saber Guards revealed solemn expressions, their gazes somewhat unnatural. Only at that moment did the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang understand what was going on. His expression turned incredibly pale, and cold sweat dripped from his body. He almost popped down to the ground weakly.
The matter was just a measly interlude for Fang Chen, and it didn’t require a second thought.
With that, Fang Chen made his way up the mountain with Commander Jue and the rest.
After they left, Eighth Brother Qian burst into a bout of laughter as he pointed at the leader of the Ghost Tiger Gang and his subordinates. "Your good days are finally over!"
Before the gang could retaliate, soldiers led by the Valiant Saber Guards, immediately arrested them in front of everyone and took them away.
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