He watched out of the corner of his eye as they crossed the open ground and slipped undetected behind a building. ShaoShu glanced back at Tonglong and the soldiers, but they were still occupied with the Emperor.

ShaoShu risked looking over toward Xie and Long once more. He saw a figure appear to float over to the edge of the building’s rooftop. It was Hok! She turned toward him, and he pointed to the wrapped captive. Hok seemed to nod, then she simply disappeared.

ShaoShu grinned and looked back at the group of soldiers. One of them glared at him. “What is so funny?”

“Uh, nothing, sir,” ShaoShu replied nervously. He realized that his arm was still outstretched, and he lowered it.

Tonglong looked at him from the far side of the pig crate. “What were you pointing at?”

ShaoShu’s eyes fixed upon the patch of yellow showing from within the captive’s wrapping, and one of the soldiers laughed out loud.

“That is pretty funny, isn’t it?” the man said. “We confiscated the Emperor’s robes, which means even his underpants are yellow!” The soldier chuckled, and he quickly rearranged the blankets to cover the yellow cloth. Even Tonglong grinned.

ShaoShu turned away. He really did not feel much like laughing. Behind him, he heard the Emperor being loaded into the pig crate, and something that sounded like a huge padlock being put through a hasp.

A commotion within the fight club caught ShaoShu’s attention, and he looked over to see two soldiers running toward Tonglong and the soldiers. Unlike the four soldiers standing next to the cart, these men wore black silk robes with blue pants. They were the Eastern Warlord’s soldiers.

The two newcomers stepped into the moonlight and bowed before Tonglong. One of them said, “We have news, sir.”

“Yes?” Tonglong said.

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“Let me start by saying that it is an honor to serve you, sir. We have been informed that our Eastern Warlord has relinquished his command to you.”

Tonglong nodded, and the man continued.

“I regret that I must report that we have been unable to locate Golden Dragon or Xie’s body. In fact, evidence has been found that leads us to believe Xie may still be alive.”

Tonglong’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Still alive? What evidence?”

“There was an attack in the tunnels, sir. Two of our men were found dead. The site was littered with footprints the size of Xie’s.”

“But I shot him in the chest.”

“Yes, sir. Xie was known to wear body armor beneath his robes.”

Tonglong ground his teeth. “I see. I presume you have men looking for him, as well as Golden Dragon?”

“We do, sir. More than a hundred of our soldiers are combing the fight club at this very moment.”

“Keep me apprised.”

“Of course, sir.”

Tonglong spat, and some of his spittle hit the second Eastern soldier’s boot. The man jumped back, a look of disgust on his face.

Tonglong glared at the man, and the man’s expression changed to one of fear. He began to shuffle his feet nervously.

“Is there a problem?” Tonglong asked.

The second soldier straightened. “No, sir!”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, I believe there is,” Tonglong said. “If you flinch like that over a little spit, how will you react when blood begins to spill?”

“Excuse me, sir?”

Tonglong’s eyes narrowed. “How many battles have you been a part of?”

The man looked confused. “None, sir. We have had only peace in this region for more than a hundred years.”

Tonglong gripped the hilt of his straight sword. “Then perhaps I need to help you Eastern soldiers grow accustomed to bloodshed.”

“I apologize, sir,” the soldier said. “I—”

The man’s words were cut short by the sound of Tonglong’s straight sword slicing through the air. His blade moved faster and more powerfully than ShaoShu could have imagined. It breezed clean through the soldier’s head as though it were nothing more than an overripe peach, splattering blood across the torso of the first soldier.

The second soldier dropped in a lifeless heap, and ShaoShu fought back a shriek. Tonglong’s sword had gone from sheath to killing blow in the blink of an eye.

Tonglong turned to the first soldier, and the man dropped to his knees.

“Please spare me, sir,” the soldier said in a quivering voice.

“Shut up,” Tonglong said. “On your feet.”

The soldier stood.

“Tell your Eastern comrades what you have seen here. Show them the stains on your uniform. Let none of them say that they have never seen another man’s blood.”




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