Volume Three: The Storm at Black Tortoise Gate, Chapter Ninety-Two: The Battle with Duan Hu!

Mingyu was so anxious and enraged that he used a little too much force. The man had been seized by the throat, and with the beating he had already taken, he was barely drawing breath as it was. His eyes rolled back at once; blood gushed from his nose and mouth, and it was plain he would not live.

"Damn it, he was that easy to beat to death?" Seeing that the man had stopped breathing, Li Mingyu had no choice but to curse under his breath.

He turned to look at the woman on the bed. She had long since been frightened senseless by what she had just seen, staring wide-eyed with her mouth gaping open.

"L-lady? Are you all right?" Seeing that the upper half of her body was barely covered, with only a few scraps left to conceal her, Mingyu felt awkward as well. Fortunately, he had arrived in time; she had not truly been dishonored.

The woman saw that the person who had come in was covered in blood from head to toe, like some blood-soaked gourd, and only then did she come back to herself with a start. She screamed and hurriedly used the quilt to hide her body, trembling all over in terror.

Mingyu grew awkward too. He quickly turned around and cleared his throat. "Don't be afraid. I'm here to kill these wicked men. Get your clothes on first, then we'll talk."

His cough reminded her. The woman's face flushed crimson, shame and embarrassment flooding her. Her clothes had already been torn to shreds by that fiend. Fortunately, the man's outer robe had been left on the floor; in her panic, she had no choice but to make do with his clothes.

Mingyu heard the rustling behind him as she dressed. After waiting a moment, the woman finally said, "Thank you, benefactor, for saving me. I can never repay you."

"It's nothing. Just a trifle." Li Mingyu turned back around and finally had time to take a good look at her. She was in her early twenties and quite pretty, except that her eyes were red and swollen from crying.

Only then did the woman clearly see that Li Mingyu was young, merely a boy, and she bowed repeatedly in gratitude. "Thanks to you, young sir, for appearing in time, or else..."

Li Mingyu waved a hand. "Enough with the thanks. Let me ask you: do you know where that Duan Tiger is?"

The woman looked blank and shook her head. "I don't know. I... I only came here yesterday. I usually stay in the front courtyard. Today that fiend tricked me into this room and tried to force himself on me..."

"I heard outside just now that you were snatched here by them?" Mingyu asked, sensing the awkwardness in the air.

At the mention of that painful matter, the woman's eyes reddened again and tears fell anew. She sobbed, "W-wu... I was tricked here by them and by my damned husband! I live in Chang'an City, in Yongping Ward. Curse my useless husband for having no ambition. In recent years he took up gambling. He lost everything in the house, then borrowed their usurious loans. When he had no money to repay them, he lied to me and said I should come to the gambling house to serve tea and water as a servant to work off the debt. Wu... who knew that when I got here, it was nothing like that at all... They... they wanted to do that to me... wu-wu-wu..."

After hearing her out, Li Mingyu could only sigh. This woman was pitiable indeed, sold off by her husband to cover debts without even knowing it.

But at present he could do nothing for her. He could only say, "How about this: hide in this room for now and don't come out. I still have important business to attend to. Once I'm done, I'll come back and think of a way to help you."

When the woman heard she was to be left alone here, she shrank back in fear and said softly, "C-could I... could I follow you? There's a dead man here. I'm scared."

Mingyu frowned inwardly. I'm going to risk my life; what would she be following me for? Stay put like a good girl. You've got some nerve asking for more.

His tone could not help but turn a little cold. "What's there to be afraid of with a dead man? He's not going to rise from the grave. Just stay here. There are still plenty of villains outside, and it would only be inconvenient for you to follow me."

With that, he no longer paid her any mind and went out of the room.

At this point there were still two or three rooms ahead, all lit with lamps, and Li Mingyu had no idea where Duan Tiger was hiding.

He looked around and headed for the largest room. As the leader of the gang, Duan Tiger had no reason to live in anything but the biggest, most luxurious room.

He pushed the door open and stepped inside, only to find a hall. It was empty. Hanging in the center was a painting of a ferocious tiger descending the mountain, its expression savage as though it meant to devour anyone it saw. Along both sides stood several wooden seats in a neat row, along with a screen; the furnishings were rather prosperous. There were two side rooms, and the light was coming from the one on the left.

With a creak, Mingyu pushed open the door with his saber in hand. This time he had not mistaken it; it was indeed a bedroom.

The room was not large. The first thing that caught his eye was a carved wooden bed, and on it were bound two women, one older and one younger. The elder seemed to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight, the younger only in the bloom of girlhood. Their clothing, however, was still in proper order, and they did not appear to have been violated. Seeing him enter, both struggled desperately, but they were tightly bound, and cloth strips had been stuffed into their mouths, so they could only make muffled cries.

The rest of the room was simply furnished: a large wooden cupboard, a low table with half-finished food and wine on it, and several toppled wooden stools. It looked as though someone had been drinking and eating here just moments before.

Li Mingyu froze. He recalled hearing the gang enforcers of the Tiger Gang talking earlier, saying that Duan Tiger had recently brought back a mother and daughter. The two women bound on the bed did seem to fit that description.

It seemed he had not gone to the wrong place. But where had Duan Tiger gone?

While he was still pondering this in his mind, he suddenly noticed that the older woman bound on the bed was making urgent, muffled noises at him, shooting him frantic glances, her face full of terror.

Mingyu was puzzled when, without warning, the lamp in the room was snuffed out, plunging everything into pitch darkness.

At the same time, he heard the whistle of a weapon slicing through the air behind him, aimed straight for the back of his head.

Mingyu was abruptly alarmed. Damn, I was careless!

In the urgency of the moment, he ducked his neck and tucked his head in, bending low as he lunged forward. At the same time, he whipped his horizontal blade behind him to guard his body.

Clang! Clang! Clang! In the darkness, only the clash of weapons could be heard, sparks flashing everywhere.

Then a vicious voice cursed, "Damn it all, bitch! If you hadn't tipped him off with your eyes, I would've hacked him down already! I'll deal with you later!"

Hearing that voice, Mingyu knew the real one had arrived. He called out, "So you're Duan Tiger?"

"That's right, I'm your Tiger Lord! Boy, who are you, daring to make trouble here?"

"I'm the one who came to take your life!" Mingyu said sharply, his brows lifting.

"Damn it, where are my men? I heard someone screaming just now. Was that you? Boy, what exactly are you?" Duan Tiger shouted harshly.

It turned out that when Mingyu had been dealing with the others outside, the commotion had been loud enough for Duan Tiger to hear.

Though Duan Tiger was in his own nest, he was crafty by nature and not nearly as careless as his men. With years of wandering the martial world behind him, he knew very well that those were the screams of someone dying. Since he was in his own lair and his subordinates had let out those cries at the very edge of death, it could only mean a powerful enemy had come for a stealth attack.

With the situation outside unclear, Duan Tiger, shrewd as he was, naturally would not rush out. Better to stay here, wait in safety, and seize the chance to ambush.

Having made up his mind, Duan Tiger quietly took hold of his weapon and slipped behind the door.

Mingyu knew none of this. He stepped into the room, only for the open door to block part of his view, and then his attention was drawn by the mother and daughter, so he failed to notice Duan Tiger lurking behind the door.

Once Mingyu had entered, Duan Tiger, from his angle, happened to see the older woman warning Mingyu with her eyes. He cursed her silently as a filthy bitch and quickly raised his hand to extinguish the lamp before lunging in with his blade.

He had never imagined that this youngster would react so quickly. Even under sudden assault, he was able to respond. Duan Tiger hacked three times in succession, and every blow was blocked.

Li Mingyu gave a cold laugh. "Who am I? You sent your men to abduct me—how can you still not know who I am? I'm here to collect a debt!"

With that, he identified Duan Tiger's position and surged forward with his saber.

"Ah! It's you!" Duan Tiger was genuinely startled. Wasn't this boy supposed to have been captured and hidden in the Earth Temple? How had he ended up here?

Though surprised, he had years of experience and was quick with his hands; he did not stop moving, either, raising his blade to meet the attack as he fought Mingyu in earnest.

The room was pitch-black, and neither man could see. They relied mostly on sound to judge position, their swords clanging together from time to time and throwing off sprays of sparks.

For a short while they went back and forth, and the fight was dead even.