By a stroke of chance, he came into possession of the Seven Kills Sutra. This sutra is notoriously bloodthirsty; several of its previous inheritors, unable to master the sutra’s innate nature of slaughter, ultimately met their end at their own hands. Qin Yu is a man of justice and chivalry. After obtaining the Seven Kills Sutra, although he intended to right the injustices of the world, he realized that to increase his strength, he would have to rely on killing. It was at this point that the Fire Scorpion Gang came into Qin Yu’s sights. These ruthless thugs, who committed every conceivable evil and killed without batting an eye, became the starting point for Qin Yu’s cultivation of the Seven Kill Sutra. Afterward, he nearly lost his way several times and was nearly consumed by the sutra’s backlash, but Qin Yu persevered through it all. Finally, he fully mastered the Seven Kill Sutra—only to realize that the secrets surrounding it had seemingly only just begun to unfold... ....
Chapter 28: The Scheme
Qin Yu hung up the phone and casually slipped it into his pocket. He’d just spoken with Zhang Xiaofei to ask about recent developments. It had been half a month since the last incident, and Qin Yu hadn’t seen Zhang Xiaofei in that time either. After a brief inquiry, Qin Yu learned that Zhang Xiaofei had rented a simple place in the countryside; while the transportation wasn’t very convenient, he was living a quiet life. Qin Yu cautiously asked Zhang Xiaofei about Zhang Qiqi’s situation, but Zhang Xiaofei just brushed it off with small talk, refusing to reveal the truth. Qin Yu understood that for any girl, facing such an incident would be a major blow—leaving lasting psychological scars at the very least, and in some cases even leading to depression, with occasional suicidal thoughts. In the end, Qin Yu couldn’t muster the courage to speak to Zhang Qiqi, so he exchanged a few more casual words with Zhang Xiaofei before hanging up. Qin Yu was currently in the county town near the Fire Scorpion Gang’s territory. Earlier that day, Uncle Xu San had sent word that the Fire Scorpion Gang’s second-in-command—who had been living comfortably on the island—had finally left the island. According to the report, it was highly likely he was headed to a restaurant called Honghan Restaurant in the nearby county town. This Honghan Restaurant was owned by the Fire Scorpion Gang’s second-in-command himself, and its primary purpose was to entertain business associates. The second-in-command was a cautious man and would arrive an hour before his guests. This, however, presented Qin Yu with a golden opportunity. Qin Yu stood in a narrow passageway, but the smile on his face sent a chill down anyone’s spine. With a “bang,” a bullet struck Qin Yu’s left leg, and he immediately dropped to one knee, gasping for breath. “Send someone to take that knife from him. The rest of you, stay put—this kid’s a real sly one. If Old Lin hadn’t ordered me to spare him, I’d have finished him off long ago.” “What era are we in? Throwing knives? Are you Qin Yu or Little Li? Trying to be a knight-errant, are you?” After confiscating the knife from his waist, the second-in-command teased him without holding back. Qin Yu clenched his teeth and pressed his hand against the bleeding wound on his left leg, but still managed to say, “The person you’re here to see today is Lin Hao, right?” “Oh, so you’re not completely stupid after all. But why do you keep doing such foolish things? It’s not enough that you’ve provoked our Fire Scorpion Gang—you’ve gone and provoked Old Lin too. You really don’t know the meaning of the word ‘death’!” As the Second-in-Command spoke, the two men pinned Qin Yu down. “I’ve seen just how terrifying you are—you know the Bone-Contraction Technique, right? I won’t tie you up this time.” Whether on purpose or not, the two men—knowing full well he had a wound on his leg—pressed down hard, causing blood to gush continuously from the wound. Qin Yu gritted his teeth, his inner rage growing ever stronger, but he knew the time wasn’t right yet. So he said, “Do you know that back then, when I went to assassinate your boss, it was at Lin Hao’s behest? And now, of all things, you want to do business with the very person who tried to kill your boss.” The Fire Scorpion Gang’s second-in-command gave a contemptuous laugh and kicked Qin Yu squarely in the face, causing blood to gush from his nose and teeth. “You little brat really don’t know when to back down. Trying to sow discord at a time like this? Assassinate our boss? What a joke—they’re family! Fine, since Old Lin isn’t here yet, I’ll tell you a story.” The second-in-command laughed even more arrogantly. Glancing at Qin Yu, who was standing nearby unable to speak, he raised an eyebrow and said, “But there’s a price to pay for hearing this story!” The Second Brother kicked Qin Yu in the stomach again, causing him to cough several times before finally coughing up a mouthful of blood. “Do you really think the few people we have on the surface of the Fire Scorpion Gang are enough to do anything? Is drug trafficking that easy? We’ve got connections at the top—our boss is one of them, and so is Old Lin. How could one family turn against another?” Hearing Lao Er’s words, Qin Yu was genuinely taken aback, but the pain in his body left him no time to ponder whether he was right or wrong. Qin Yu suddenly looked up and burst into laughter. “Smack!” Another slap. The Second-in-Command shook out his hand and said, “You’ve still got some energy left, don’t you? Still laughing?” Qin Yu licked the blood from the corner of his mouth and said in an extremely low voice, “You’re as good as dead!” “Damn it, this kid must be out of his mind. If he really is crazy, I won’t know how to explain this to Old Lin.” Second-in-Command was actually startled for a moment by that voice, then said. As he spoke, the Second Brother seemed to hear a noise coming from downstairs. He sent someone to check it out, and before long, the man came running back in a panic. “What’s the matter? Why the rush? Did your mom die or something?” “Second Master, Second Master! There’s a fire downstairs!”
