Gao Wu insists on cultivating immortality.

Chapter 424 Using Four Ounces to Move a Thousand Pounds

Old Slant Eyes wasn't deliberately making things difficult for Gao Wu. Even without Hu Qiniang and the others informing on him, he would still choose two people to launch a close-range surprise attack.

Gao Laosi is cunning and quick with his sword. Although he is not a master, he is good enough to cause trouble.

It's fine if Gao Wu doesn't want to; the group is used to being dissolute and lacks discipline.

Kill Gao Wu, that chicken, to warn these monkeys!
Old Squinty had three poisoned needles tucked between the fingers of his right hand; at this distance, he was confident he could pierce Old Gao's skull with them.

A fast swordsman must be at least one level above an ordinary swordsman in terms of martial arts skill to be able to deflect a poison needle fired with true qi at such close range.

After all, poison needles are small and fast, making it extremely difficult to hit such a tiny hidden weapon with a sword.

Facing the old man's cold and menacing gaze, Gao Wu stood up and said, "I will do my best in this battle, to live up to Ninth Master and my brothers."

Old Cross-Eyes is the ninth son, surnamed Li. Everyone calls him Old Cross-Eyes in private, but in person they respectfully address him as Ninth Master.

He didn't immediately turn hostile and attack because there was no need for it.

Doing good deeds shouldn't be done secretly! He needed to cultivate good relations with the Tie family and handle these details carefully.

Seeing Gao Wu so obedient and compliant, the old man nodded in satisfaction. He then turned to the crowd and said, "Everyone is risking their lives. Anyone who dares to cheat or shirk responsibility will not be let off lightly."

Everyone stood up and responded in unison.

"Ninth Master, I'm a strange man, which might arouse suspicion. It would be much better to have Hu Qiniang come with me, with a woman by my side."

"Hu Qiniang is skilled in hidden weapons and poisons,"

Taking advantage of a moment when no one was speaking, Gao Wu suddenly raised his voice and made a suggestion.

Old Man glanced sideways at Hu Qiniang, whose face was deathly pale, and smiled sinisterly: "Good idea, you two together."

Hu Qiniang's face turned even uglier upon hearing this. She dared not do anything to the old man, but glared fiercely at Gao Wu, wishing she could tear the old man apart!

Pretending to be a servant is too dangerous; if you make a move, you'll be hacked to death by the guards.

Even if Tie Zhen's personal guards are not proficient in martial arts, they must be battle-hardened elites.

When swords are wielded, there's no distinction between martial arts and battlefield skills. What's worse, the enemy will inevitably be fully armored, making close combat extremely disadvantageous.

Gao Wu grinned at Hu Qiniang, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.

He kindly reminded her, "Seventh Sister, you're dressed too heavily. You don't look like a servant. You should remove that layer of white powder from your face to avoid giving yourself away."

Old man with the slanted eyes wholeheartedly agreed: "That's right, you should tidy yourself up and look like a servant."

After saying that, Old Slant-Eye explained the action plan: if the other party wanted to go to the stables to see the horses, they would have to pass through this residential area first.

There were simple wooden sheds on both sides, as well as a few brick and wood houses. The terrain was narrow, making it perfect for an ambush.

The main problem was that several families who guarded the horse farm were arrested, and some were even killed. Old Cross-Eye didn't trust anyone else, so he had to resort to rather crude methods.

Gao Wu, however, thought the plan was good. It was already quite impressive that they were able to make preparations in advance on Tie's territory in such a hurry.

The fact that such a loosely organized assassin group as the Blood-Clad Alliance possessed such strong organization and operational capabilities truly impressed him.

Keep in mind that this was ancient times, when communication relied entirely on letters and people. Even if the distance was only a few dozen miles, it would take a whole day to send a message.

Despite their backward state, the Blood-Clad Alliance was able to gather so many people and attack their target according to plan.

Planning, organizing, communicating, and executing—it takes an immense amount of manpower and resources.

It can only be said that the Blood-Clad Alliance has capable individuals and is very powerful.

To match his identity, Gao Wu changed into a short brown outfit, which was a coarse cloth short shirt with some patches on it, made of the roughest hemp material.

She changed into straw sandals and took off her hairpin, replacing it with a headscarf.

This body was exposed to the wind and sun every day, and the skin was somewhat purplish-red. After changing clothes, he looked like a servant who took care of horses.

To enable Gao Wu to play a role, Old Slant-Eye also gave Gao Wu a soft sword to be wrapped around his waist.

This type of flexible sword is mainly for easy concealment and carrying; in reality, the blade isn't flexible at all. To be honest, it's far less comfortable to use than his usual sword. It's barely usable.

Hu Qiniang washed her face, took off her jewelry, and changed into a clean blue dress. She looked a bit older, but more simple and unpretentious.

The others also found their positions in the rooms on either side, preparing various hidden weapons, crossbows, and even fishing nets. Crossbows were strictly forbidden to be kept privately, and this group of assassins didn't possess such heavy weapons. After all, they were difficult to carry, and even if they obtained them, they couldn't use them on their person.

A group of assassins were busy at work, while Gao Wu observed silently from the side, but he didn't see the expert who had been hiding in the room.

This expert should be the main force behind the operation, and there may even be one or two other experts of the same level hiding in the shadows.

Unfortunately, his Yang spirit was locked up, and he couldn't transmit his spiritual power outwards. He could only slightly enhance his six senses, so he probably didn't have much of an advantage compared to the top experts in this world.

Just past noon, Gao Wu saw billowing dust outside the horse farm and could faintly hear the sound of horses' hooves.

Old Man X-Eye glanced at the distance and said to Gao Wu and Hu Qiniang, "Go, bring the people over. Once you get there, launch a surprise attack and create chaos. It would be best if you could capture Tie Zhen."

Gao Wu and Hu Qiniang both nodded, and Gao Wu even patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Ninth Master, we will definitely do a great job this time and will not let you down!"

Old man with the slanted eyes laughed heartily: "Good, I will reward you handsomely after it's done."

The horse team was fast and soon arrived at the gate of the horse farm.

The rough and simple gate naturally couldn't stop the knights. But this was their own territory, and there was no need to cause trouble.

Tie Zhen was dressed in black scale armor, with a sword at her waist. She rode a tall, magnificent black horse and was surrounded by many knights.

She was already used to such a throng of guards, a group of fully armored soldiers with swords and bows, who could easily defeat even hundreds of bandits.

The Tie family is a target of envy and trouble, and she always takes her guards with her whenever she leaves the city.

The Northwest is not safe, and recently the infighting in the imperial court has intensified. The political struggle has spread from the court to the local level, forcing everyone to choose sides.

Choosing the wrong person could very well mean the execution of the entire family. The problem is, the Tie family doesn't have the luxury of not taking sides…

Tie Zhen felt a little annoyed by these thoughts. When she turned her gaze to a couple who were quickly approaching, she frowned even more.

"These two people look unfamiliar..."

The maid Xiangyu beside her said softly, "You do look unfamiliar. Since you've arrived, Lao Luo should at least come to greet you. If Lao Luo doesn't come, there's Lao He and the others."

Tie Zhen looked into the depths of the horse farm with her narrow phoenix eyes. She could still see faint smoke rising from the houses inside, and there were faint signs of human activity, but she couldn't tell anything unusual.

She was just bored and suddenly thought of coming to the horse farm, so there shouldn't have been any problem.

Gao Wu and Hu Qiniang quickly came over, untied the rope securing the door, and opened it.

The maid Xiangyu rode forward two steps and asked Gao Wu, "Who are you? Where is Lao Luo?"

Gao Wu looked up at the woman high above him. She was beautiful and probably around thirty years old. She wore exquisite black scale armor, which showed no signs of wear, indicating that she had never experienced a real battle.

However, this woman had a cautious look in her eyes and did not have the demeanor of someone in a superior position, so she was clearly not Tie Zhen.

His gaze fell upon the woman surrounded by several knights. Through the gaps in the crowd, he could vaguely see that the woman had long eyebrows and phoenix eyes with a sharp gaze. Her face was covered by a veil to shield her from the sand and dust, and her black scale armor was even more exquisite and beautiful. Her mount was also very magnificent and tall.

Without a doubt, the woman inside is Tie Zhen.

Gao Wu thought Tie Zhen was quite pretty; at least her eyebrows and eyes were beautiful, and she had the heroic and dignified air of a northern woman. She looked to be about twenty-four or twenty-five years old.

He said directly to Tie Zhen, "General Tie, we are assassins who have come to kill you!"

Tie Zhen on the other side did not hold an actual military rank; Gao Wu's use of "general" was a respectful title.

Tie Zhen was unfazed, but the maid Xiang Yu was somewhat taken aback, while the knights in full armor around them drew their swords and bows.

The one who was most distressed and horrified was Hu Qiniang. She stared wide-eyed at Gao Wu, her face full of disbelief.

Gao Wu smiled at Hu Qiniang: "You bunch of rebels dare to assassinate General Tie? You're courting death! Why don't you kneel down and surrender!"

Hu Qiniang was terrified; her mind was in complete chaos, and her body was trembling uncontrollably…

Old Squinty, who was watching from a distance, couldn't hear what Gao Wu was saying, but when he saw Hu Qiniang's unusual behavior, he knew something was wrong.

Gao Wu didn't care whether Tie Zhen believed him or not. He turned around and shouted loudly with his inner energy, "Stop hiding! General Tie already knows you are plotting something sinister. Come out and surrender now, and you may still have a chance to live."

Old Slant-Eye's beard trembled with rage. How dare that scoundrel, Old Gao Si!
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(End of this chapter)