Dao Zhen paid no heed to Jiang Ran’s words.

He just glared at him.

Jiang Ran, for his part, paid it no mind. He had given the pill a sniff a moment ago and sensed it contained quite a few rare ingredients, so he tucked it away.

Just as he was about to find Ghost Seven, he saw Ye Jingshuang approach.

"Young Master Jiang, are you alright?"

Everything had happened so quickly.

Ye Jingshuang had been chasing Ghost Seven, but before she could even get close, both of his hands were gone.

The next moment she blinked, Dao Zhen was slammed into a tree.

The outcome had been decided in the blink of an eye.

Jiang Ran offered a faint smile.

"I’m fine. Miss Ye, you’re injured. Did fighting just now aggravate your old wounds?"

"No."

"That’s good."

Jiang Ran nodded and walked toward Ghost Seven.

Ye Jingshuang, however, gazed at Dao Zhen, fighting a strong urge to run him through with her sword.

But not knowing if Jiang Ran had other plans for him, she refrained from acting.

She simply walked up to him and struck his pressure points with a flick of her finger.

To prevent any mishaps.

Once that was done, she went to find Jiang Ran.

She found him squatting on the ground, looking at the barely-breathing Ghost Seven.

"Are you a wanted criminal?" he asked.

"..."

Ye Jingshuang was momentarily speechless. She felt that this Young Master Jiang had an unusual fixation on wanted criminals.

It was just that she had never heard the name Ghost Seven before.

Ghost Seven was even more baffled by the question.

’The outcome of the fight is clear. What does being a wanted criminal have to do with anything?’

’How can this man be so bizarre?’

When no response came, Jiang Ran paused in thought, then suddenly pulled another small porcelain vial from his robes, took out a pill, and stuffed it into Ghost Seven’s mouth.

Ghost Seven’s face fell. He clamped his jaw shut, refusing to eat the unknown substance.

"It’s good for you. Open up."

Jiang Ran grinned. With a flick of his finger and a sharp CRACK, he dislocated Ghost Seven’s jaw.

Unable to keep his jaw clenched, he was easily fed the pill by Jiang Ran, who then used a pulse of Inner Strength to force it down into his stomach.

Once that was done, he gave the man’s jaw another tap, popping it back into its socket.

The whole sequence of movements was perfectly fluid.

"What did you make me eat?"

Ghost Seven’s expression changed drastically.

"A healing tonic, for internal injuries. As for your hands..."

Jiang Ran glanced at the stumps of the man’s arms and then said to Ye Jingshuang, who had walked over.

"Miss Ye, could you please stop the bleeding by hitting his pressure points? He can’t die just yet."

"Alright."

Ye Jingshuang didn’t ask Jiang Ran why he wasn’t doing it himself... because a ridiculous answer was already forming in her mind. ’Could it be that... he doesn’t know how?’

She could hardly believe the answer herself, but she had arrived at the same conclusion several times before.

The Lightweight Technique, for instance... or using Inner Strength to dry clothes.

Every time she asked, the answer was the same.

By now, Ye Jingshuang was starting to get used to it.

She casually stopped Ghost Seven’s bleeding, then struck a few more pressure points to immobilize him.

With that, both men were completely subdued.

Jiang Ran, however, wasn’t in any hurry. Instead, he glanced back at the two men still locked in a heated battle nearby and asked Ye Jingshuang:

"This Cheng Jimo... what’s his story?"

"He’s a disciple of the Thousand Feather Sect."

After saying this, Ye Jingshuang glanced at Jiang Ran’s face and, realizing he had never heard of the Thousand Feather Sect, added in a low voice:

"The Thousand Feather Sect, like my Liuyun Sword Sect, is one of the renowned righteous sects.

"They’re world-renowned for their Lightweight Technique and hidden weapons; their methods are exceptionally skillful."

This wasn’t the time for a detailed explanation, so she kept it brief.

"I see."

Jiang Ran nodded and began walking toward the two combatants.

’If the Thousand Feather Sect is a righteous sect, then anyone fighting against them is likely a practitioner of the evil arts.’

’Of course, nothing is absolute; even righteous sects have their share of villains.’

’But judging from what happened in the teahouse earlier...’

’Geng Zhaoxing and his men were planning an inside job, trying to abduct the women of the family, even saying something about their "Second-in-Command inviting the mistress up the mountain."’

’That made the rights and wrongs of the situation perfectly clear.’

’What Jiang Ran cared about most was the phrase "up the mountain."’

’It conjured images of "enacting heaven’s will" or "fleeing to the hills to become bandits," which ultimately led his thoughts to wanted posters.’

’And it went without saying what wanted posters meant to Jiang Ran.’

’If that was the case, he couldn’t possibly let them off easy.’

Meanwhile, the man fighting Cheng Jimo was growing increasingly agitated.

’Cheng Jimo is like a sticky plaster, impossible to shake off.’

’If I try to leave, I have to watch out for his hidden weapons.’

’If I try to press him in close combat, his skills are impressive enough. But beyond that, whenever he’s about to be overwhelmed, he uses his Lightweight Technique to create distance and starts throwing hidden weapons again...’

’It’s infuriating.’

He was so focused on the fight that he had no idea whether the battle on Jiang Ran’s side had been decided.

’Regardless, I have to shake off Cheng Jimo before that fight is over. Otherwise, I fear there’ll be no escape for me today.’

With this thought, he was just about to throw caution to the wind and, relying on his Soft Armor, risk it all in a desperate clash with Cheng Jimo.

Just then, a voice called out:

"Will you surrender, or must we make a move?"

The man’s face went pale at the sound of the voice.

A furtive glance revealed Jiang Ran standing there, saber in his arms, with Ye Jingshuang beside him.

’He sighed internally, knowing there was no way out.’

’He had fought alongside Ye Jingshuang moments ago and knew her Swordsmanship was extraordinary. As for Jiang Ran’s saber techniques... that went without saying.’

’Cheng Jimo alone was an even match for him. With these two added to the mix, even ten lives wouldn’t be enough.’

He immediately threw a punch, clashing directly with Cheng Jimo, then floated backward and said to Jiang Ran:

"I surrender. For the sake of having fought alongside this young heroine just now, I ask you, Young Hero, to be merciful and spare my life."

"You’re a practical man, I see."

Jiang Ran let out a dry chuckle.

"Alright then, let me ask you. What’s your background?"

"I..."

The man hesitated, then cupped his fists.

"I won’t lie to you, Young Hero. I have no particular background..."

"You dare lie to the Young Hero’s face?"

Before the man could finish, Cheng Jimo shot him a cold glare.

"Is everyone from Feiyun Stronghold so cowardly, unwilling to admit to their own actions?"

"Feiyun Stronghold?"

A flicker of light crossed Jiang Ran’s eyes. He glanced first at Ye Jingshuang, then at Cheng Jimo.

Ye Jingshuang, however, frowned slightly.

"Brother Cheng, are you referring to the Feiyun Stronghold on Feiyun Mountain, outside of Cangzhou Prefecture?"

"You are well-informed, Miss Ye."

Cheng Jimo nodded.

Hearing this, Jiang Ran turned to look at Ye Jingshuang again.

Ye Jingshuang said:

"A few years ago, my father and I went to Cangzhou Prefecture to pay a visit.

"I remember an old family friend there mentioning Feiyun Stronghold...

"He spoke of them with considerable apprehension."

But that was the extent of her knowledge about Feiyun Stronghold.

Seeing this, Cheng Jimo picked up where she left off:

"In recent years, Feiyun Stronghold has grown increasingly audacious.

"Their Chieftain, Li Feiyun, seems to have had some stroke of fortune. He’s consolidated all the different strongholds on Feiyun Mountain under his command, vastly increasing his power.

"And so, their actions have become more and more brazen.

"They’ve gone beyond just robbing wealthy merchants passing through. Now they form gangs to plunder the nearby villages.

"They kill, they kidnap, and at the slightest disagreement, they’ll slaughter an entire village!

"Their crimes are too numerous to count."

Jiang Ran was left speechless. ’Such a small mountain stronghold is that audacious? How many wanted criminals would that produce?’