The Imperial Guards, like Yama, slaughtered until the Empress cried out for help.

Zhang He knelt weakly on the ground, staring at He Lian's headless corpse, his eyes bloodshot and turning red.

"He Lian..."

At that moment, a series of scenes flashed through his mind.

He Lian stayed with him when he was poor in his early years, and the two faced the storms together.

Whether it was murder, robbery, or theft, He Lian was always with him.

When they were young, the two were known as the "Mandarin Duck Thieves".

But to his surprise, a mandarin duck had its head ripped off right in front of him today.

Zhang He raised his head, his noodles trembling, his pupils bloodshot.

"The Embroidered Uniform Guards! You've gone too far!"

"I want you all to be buried with He Lian!"

"What a joke! A rat causing trouble on my turf dares to talk big?"

"I just crushed your wife's head. If you're so capable, take revenge. If not, just rip your own head off."

Shen Qing retorted with a mocking expression.

In his previous life, he was a cow or a horse, spending his entire life at his workstation until his death.

Reborn into this life, he finds himself still a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Even murder isn't illegal, so why would we tolerate you?

Putting everything else aside, even in a verbal battle, Shen Qing can't afford to lose.

"Bloodthirsty Fist!"

Zhang He gathered his inner strength into his fist, and a blood-red fist shadow swept towards him. The Jinyiwei guards around him acted quickly, casting several large nets toward Zhang He.

However, this maneuver was only adequate against ordinary Acquired Realm cultivators, and it was insufficient against Zhang He, who was about to break through to the Innate Realm.

Zhang He nimbly maneuvered through the woods, quickly dodging several large nets and rushing straight towards Shen Qing.

Shen Qing snorted.

"Your fists are as soft as a girl's."

After saying that, he threw a punch at Zhang He, and his punch was just as fast as Zhang He's.

With a loud bang.

Zhang He was sent flying by Shen Qing's ordinary punch, crashing into two large trees and smashing them to pieces.

As the dust settled, Zhang He quickly stood up, but his trembling right hand showed that taking Shen Qing's punch was no easy feat.

Zhang He stared intently at Shen Qing, completely bewildered.

Why is the commander of the Imperial Guards in Baiyun County so powerful? Also, isn't the commander Sun Yan, that good-for-nothing?

And judging from his aura, isn't he at the sixth level of the Acquired Realm? Why is his power so great?

When he was young, he worked as a bodyguard and traveled all over the country, so he had some experience.

He had seen geniuses who could rival those at the peak of the Acquired Realm at the age of twenty.

But how did he end up in Baiyun County? And as a mere squad leader?

The next moment, his gaze swept over He Lian's corpse beside Shen Qing's feet, and his eyes turned red again.

He gritted his teeth and shouted.

"Genius, huh? I don't care about my life! I'm going to cripple you today!!!"

Zhang He's face flushed red as he channeled his internal energy through his heart meridian, maximizing the stimulation of his physical body.

It brought strength, speed, and reaction time to their peak.

This is his desperate tactic.

After exchanging blows, Zhang He realized that he couldn't possibly defeat Shen Qing in terms of strength.

However, Shen Qing is still too young and has not had time to accumulate experience, so he has shortcomings.

If you are strong, you will have weaknesses in speed and technique.

He was at the peak of the Acquired Realm and had even activated the Life-or-Death Secret Technique. He had lived long enough, and his fist techniques had already reached their peak.

A confident glint appeared in Zhang He's eyes: "The advantage lies with me!"

With this thought in mind, he charged out like a vicious dog, unleashing a punch imbued with blood energy. As the blood energy spread, four more blood-red fist shadows appeared in the air.

The five fist shadows intertwined, making them difficult to distinguish.

All the Imperial Guards were sweating bullets. They knew it was a smokescreen, but with their skills, they couldn't see a single flaw.

Suddenly, the black dog seemed to remember something and shouted loudly.

"My lord, this is the Blood Shadow Fist! It's four fake and one real. The blood color of the fake fist shadows will gradually fade."

Zhang He glanced at him and was surprised that someone in this remote area could recognize the Blood Shadow Fist and even see through his weakness.

"What good is knowing the flaw? It's too late!"

Zhang He grinned maliciously, increasing his speed by a factor of three.

Shen Qing did not move, her eyes were cold.

That's true, there really wasn't time to argue.

But what does it matter whether you can see through it or not?

Shen Qing locked his gaze on the five fist shadows, bowed slightly, and gripped the hilt of his knife.

"Rubbing the wind".

Qinghe suddenly emerged from his body, illuminating the forest with a blue light from his blade.

Three consecutive slashes, as if trying to crush the swift wind.

Bang bang bang!

The four blood-red fist shadows were shattered by the blade.

Zhang He stood frozen in place, his right hand cleanly severed at the wrist, blood gushing out continuously.

"How is this possible?"

How could someone at this age possess such exquisite swordsmanship while also having a cultivation level comparable to his?

A look of resentment appeared in Zhang He's eyes.

He was only one step away from reaching the Innate Realm.

Once tonight is over, the sky's the limit.

But why did I encounter a monster like Shen Qing on the night before dawn?

In that instant, several figures flashed before his eyes.

They were all people he killed.

Is it really true that karma is cyclical?

Meanwhile, in the nearby woods, Zhang Zhi, who had been secretly watching, had already widened his eyes.

His face was filled with disbelief.

He simply couldn't accept this situation.

His father, who was at the peak of the Acquired Realm, was actually killed like a dog.

His gaze shifted slightly to Shen Qing, who stood proudly, and his heart began to race, pounding like a drumbeat; he could even hear his own heartbeat.

Zhang Zhi immediately realized that the source of his fear tonight was this young man who was not yet twenty years old.

"I have to go right away..."

Shen Qing's power made him unable to even think of resisting. Zhang Zhi subconsciously took two steps back, about to run away.

But the next moment, Zhang Zhi stopped abruptly as he broke a tree branch.

The crisp click sound was so loud in the silent forest.

It drew everyone's attention.

The dark clouds dispersed, and moonlight shone down on the mountains and forests.

Zhang Zhi's body was so clearly visible.

Shen Qing narrowed his eyes and sneered, "There are still some who slipped through the net."

Zhang He roared, "Zhi'er, run!"

He then pounced on Shen Qing like a madman, his movements lacking any of the discipline and imposing presence expected of a peak-stage Acquired Realm martial artist.

His spirit had been broken by Shen Qing's blows, and now all he wanted to do was stall Shen Qing and give Zhang Zhi a chance to escape.

Shen Qing snorted coldly and plunged a knife into Zhang He's back, piercing through his chest and pinning him to the ground.

On the other side, Black Dog and his men acted swiftly, their morale soaring due to Shen Qing's strength.

Of course, Zhang Zhi was also terrified.

Lin Zikai punched him right in the face, but he didn't react.

With a bang, Zhang Zhi was sent flying.

On the other side, the black dog leaped high and elbowed him directly in the face.

Then several Imperial Guards threw out a large net, trapping him. Immediately afterwards, a dozen Imperial Guards swarmed forward, raining blows and kicks upon Zhang He.

Shen Qing looked down at Zhang He and sneered.

"You're really useless. What have you been protecting? You can't protect anything."

Zhang He's eyes were bloodshot and filled with rage. He struggled to raise his head, his eyes blazing with hatred, and roared.

"Imperial Guard! I'll... you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Shen Qing stomped on his face, slightly deforming his cheekbone, and knocked him unconscious.

Shen Qing sheathed his sword.

"Alright, give it a good review."

"Go all out and interrogate them."

This means that it doesn't matter if the interrogation is fatal, as long as they get the information they need.

After saying that, Shen Qing grabbed Zhang He's hair and walked towards the depths of the valley.

He really wanted to see what was deep in the valley.

As for Zhang He, even though he was seriously injured and unconscious, Shen Qing couldn't possibly leave him here.

Even a severely injured peak Acquired Realm cultivator is still a peak Acquired Realm cultivator.