A Thunderous Outburst of Tongues

White Lightning and Red Moon exchanged a glance, pondering: "It is said that the head of the Sticky Rod Office was originally a squad leader of the guards, but later became a minister in charge. They were mainly selected from among the imperial princes, Mongol princes, imperial sons-in-law, and Manchu Mongol ministers. Therefore, their power is immense and should not be underestimated! Within the sphere of influence of the Qing Dynasty, people from the Sticky Rod Office are active in the east, west, south, north, and center, each managed by one of the five Sticky Rod Office heads, known as the Five Bloodthirsty Monsters."

The tall man continued his incessant rambling: "Commander Jin Qiu has an even worse temper; you could say he's capricious and ruthless, killing without blinking an eye. You two, dressed like that, not even carrying a guillotine, are practically asking for death if you see him!"

Red Moon suddenly realized why their gear had been exposed! She thought to herself, "This birdcage-like flying guillotine is incredibly heavy. I initially thought that with both of us wounded on our shoulders, it wouldn't be appropriate to carry such a cumbersome weapon, especially since I don't know how to use it! Turns out, it's a symbol of our identity as members of the Sticky Pole Bureau! Since descending the mountain, we've encountered countless checkpoints. If it weren't for this talkative, kind person's reminder, we would have been walking on thin ice, facing countless dangers!"

The tall man was clearly the leader of several sticky pole worshippers. He ordered a guard, "Go to the armory in the inner room of the main building immediately and fetch a set of blood-dripping weapons for each of them." The guard agreed and quickly flew away, returning in a moment with two sets of blood-dripping weapons, which he handed to the two men, Red and White, and had them carry them on their backs.

Red Moon was extremely grateful and clasped his hands in a salute, saying, "Brother, your righteousness is truly admirable. I will remember it forever. If you ever need my help in the future, please give the order, and we brothers will go through fire and water for you!" The tall man gave a sinister smile and said, "Between brothers, there's no need for formalities!" As a former imperial secret agent, White Lightning naturally possessed extraordinary observation and discernment abilities. He keenly noticed that this tall man was strange; he felt there was something wrong with him! But he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was!

As the two walked down the mountain, Bai Shandian voiced his doubts, and Hong Yueliang also became suspicious, thinking, "I've always heard that the people of the Sticky Pole Bureau are all ruthless and vicious. Since they saw through our luggage, why did they pretend not to hear and not make things difficult for us? And why did they kindly give each of us a murder weapon?! This is extremely strange! Are there really such kind people in the Sticky Pole Bureau?" To be on the safe side, they both took the blood-dripping darts off their backs and held them in their hands, so that if anything unexpected happened, they could get rid of this birdcage-like ghostly thing in time!

To their surprise, the descent down the mountain was smooth, and they passed through all the checkpoints. This eased their tension somewhat. Finally, they arrived at the gate of the official residence at the foot of the mountain. From afar, they could see the gate wide open, and in the wide open space outside, two warhorses were circling and facing off, while two generals were locked in combat, spears and swords clashing! A cloud of dust billowed up and spread far and wide.

Bai Shandian focused his gaze and saw the eighteen chieftain alliance armies in the distance, their banners bright, their swords and spears like a forest, a dark mass approaching the mountain gate like a storm cloud obscuring the sun. Nearby, a troop of Eight Banner soldiers arrayed themselves, ready for battle. At the front, five generals in gleaming armor surrounded a short, stout high-ranking official, who sat astride a tall horse. Strangely, this official's head was wrapped tightly in layers of snow-white medical gauze, like a rice dumpling, revealing only his chubby old face. Most strikingly, blood was seeping from his right ear!

Red Moon couldn't help but chuckle, whispering to White Lightning, "Isn't this Heshen and Fatty? What a huge wound, all bandaged up, looks like a pig's head!" White Lightning grinned and whispered, "This corrupt official, pampered all his life, has never suffered such torment. Your blade slashed off his right ear; it'll probably be a lifelong nightmare for him!" Red Moon couldn't hold back her laughter any longer, bending over with laughter!

Hearing someone laughing suddenly from the ranks behind him, and recognizing the familiar laughter, Heshen flew into a rage and shouted, "When two armies are at war, what a serious and tense moment this is! Who is so bold as to make such an inappropriate and strange laugh at such a time! Guards, seize this person for me!" The Eight Banners troops were thrown into chaos as officers and soldiers craned their necks, shaking their heads and wagging their tails, searching for the person who had laughed.

Red Moon was incredibly clever. She darted out of the Eight Banners ranks and shouted, "Lord He, it's me!" As her voice echoed in the air, Heshen saw a blur before his eyes, and a man had already mounted his warhorse and sat down behind him. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his spine, and his whole body felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He was sore, numb, and weak, and collapsed onto the horse's back!

Then a fragrant aroma wafted over him, and behind his ear, which was throbbing with pain, a sweet, gentle voice said coquettishly, "Lord He, immediately order your men to get out of Qiongshan! Otherwise, your life is over today!" Heshen instantly recognized the voice and exclaimed in shock, "You—it's Red Moon! How...how did you escape from that prison? That was an impregnable underground stone cell! Besides, your shoulder blades were chained! Could it be...you're not human?"

Red Moon slapped him across the face in front of everyone, but still smiled sweetly and said softly, "What are you saying, Lord He?" Heshen was terrified, as if he had encountered a ghost, and exclaimed, "You...you're a god! You're absolutely a god!" One can imagine that such thick iron chains pierced through his shoulder blades, tightly binding his entire body, and coupled with handcuffs and shackles (of course, handcuffs didn't exist in the Qing Dynasty; they were simply a large, thick, square wooden board placed around the neck, with two round holes cut in the front for the hands to fit into, and then clamped shut—this was called a shackle!), and locked to the stone wall, even a god couldn't escape! It's no wonder Heshen was terrified by Red Moon's sudden appearance! He never dreamed she could escape from such a place!

Seeing their commander captured, five gleaming generals spurred their horses and surrounded him. Even a young silver-armored general, who was engaged in battle on the battlefield, became agitated and shouted, "Who dares to kidnap my father? State your name, or I'll take your dog's life!" He feigned an attack, then turned his horse around and rode back.

"Where do you think you're going?!" The vanguard commander, Tornado, roared in the heat of battle, determined not to let him escape! His spiked club transformed into a whirlwind, raining down on him! Unexpectedly, the silver-armored young general's steed suddenly darted forward with lightning speed, narrowly dodging Tornado's thunderous strike! Enraged, Tornado howled, yanked on the reins, and his iron hooves leaped more than a meter into the air, soaring through the sky in pursuit!

The silver-armored young general was actually the eldest son of Heshen. Because of his handsome appearance from a young age—red lips, white teeth, and striking good looks—he caught the eye of Emperor Qianlong, who bestowed upon him the name Fengshen Yinde and designated him as the consort of the Tenth Princess. The Tenth Princess, also known as Princess Guren Hexiao, was Emperor Qianlong's favorite princess. This time, Fengshen Yinde accompanied his father to the front lines for training, and Emperor Qianlong specially gifted him a famous Ferghana horse as a warhorse, named "Black Dragon Chasing the Wind." It was entirely black, except for its snow-white hooves. It bore a striking resemblance to the Black-Hoofed Horse, the steed of the historical general Xiang Yu.

Once the black dragon, Chasing Wind, was unleashed, it truly moved like lightning, leaving Tornado far behind in the blink of an eye. Seeing that Tornado was still relentless, shouting and cursing, Fengshen Yinde spurred his horse forward, pulling sharply on the reins, causing the steed to brake abruptly, its forelegs flying into the air, its body fully extended! In the blink of an eye, Tornado had caught up, but Fengshen Yinde suddenly hid under the stirrups, turned, and thrust his spear, striking Tornado squarely in the throat! Alas, a valiant general of the Moqing Society was unhorsed on the spot, a star fallen! A tragic end, a lamentable fate, leaving one heartbroken and bringing tears to one's eyes!

This scene enraged all the soldiers of the Eighteen Chieftains Alliance army. Everyone was filled with righteous indignation and clamored to charge! In particular, Mo Qinghui's Split Half, without waiting for the leaders Stinky Feet, Jade Ruyi and Zen Master Qinxin to discuss the battle situation, jumped out, holding the Sky-Splitting Axe, and ran like a madman towards the enemy camp!

Fengshen Yinde ignored him, spurred his mount, and arrived at his father's side in the blink of an eye. Pointing his Five Tiger Soul-Severing Spear at the Red Moon, he said loudly, "Please, female general, release my father immediately! We can discuss what's going on!" Unexpectedly, the man with exceptional lightness skills arrived like a whirlwind, swinging his great axe at Fengshen Yinde's head! Fengshen Yinde had no choice but to withdraw his spear, the tip of which flicked and twirled, not only dodging the thunderous blow of the giant axe but also taking the lead and thrusting it diagonally towards Fengshen Yinde's eyes with lightning speed!

This move of snatching food from the tiger's mouth was terrifying in its power, and could be described as cunning, insidious, and unexpected! Seeing that he could strike so quickly under such impossible circumstances, Red Moon knew that he could not possibly dodge the slash that cut him in two! She quickly parted her fragrant lips, and a blade the size of a willow leaf flew out of her cherry-like mouth, turning into a ray of white light that shot straight towards Fengshen Yinde's throat!

It turns out that Red Moon's "Tongue-Splashing Thunder" move was her signature skill. When she first joined the thief's school, she made a living by "opening windows" (stealing from upper pockets) and "feeling tunnels" (cutting open lower pockets with a razor blade). To avoid detection, she developed the skill of concealing razor blades in her mouth. While others merely hid blades in their mouths for emergencies, she could use the agility and elasticity of her tongue, combined with the magical power of her internal energy, to skillfully launch blades as thin as cicada wings, accurately piercing vital points of her enemies—a truly terrifying weapon. This is how she gradually earned the reputation of "The World's Number One Thief"!

Seeing the astonishing power of such a small blade, Fengshen Yinde dared not be careless. He quickly tightened the rope, withdrew his gun, and dodged to the side. A scream rang out, and a Manchu soldier, who had been standing right behind him, fell backward to the ground, his body twisted and dead. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the soldier's throat had been slashed open, his carotid artery gushing forth blood—a gruesome and horrifying death!

(End of this chapter)