As Henwell jumps off his horse, he pulls Cao Mingzhi down with him.

  Pressing down on the stunned Cao Mingzhi’s shoulders, Henwell grabs his longsword and slips into a nearby shop, a carriage and horse rental.

  After Henwell’s warning, the mute guards draw their long knives and form a protective circle, cshing fiercely with the rushing assassins.

  From a small tavern across the street, three Second Rank Martial Warriors leap down. The steward immediately draws his bde to confront them.

  Seeing more and more killers pouring in, the steward shouts to Henwell, “Young master, run! Head toward the city! The imperial patrol will arrive soon!”

  Henwell scans the terrified crowd inside the shop, then strides past the counter toward the trembling shopkeeper crouched in the corner. “Where’s the back door? Take me there!”

  The shopkeeper trembles but leads Henwell and Cao Mingzhi through the courtyard to the back exit.

  “Please spare my life! I have elders above and children below!”

  Henwell nods faintly. “Don’t worry. How could I possibly spare you?”

  With that, Henwell grabs the man’s head and snaps his neck in one swift motion.

  The body colpses, and a short dagger falls out.

  Cao Mingzhi, puzzled, asks, “How did you know he was an assassin?”

  Henwell replies, “He talked too much! In situations like this, a normal person wouldn’t expin so much, he’d just cooperate quietly.”

  Saying this, Henwell heads toward the courtyard wall, lifts Cao Mingzhi, and vaults over it.

  They nd face-to-face with two assassins wielding crossbows.

  Not only is Cao Mingzhi stunned, but the assassins freeze as well.

  Henwell doesn’t hesitate. He grabs one assassin’s head, sms it hard against the wall, shattering his skull.

  At the same time, Henwell kicks the other assassin’s shin bone, making him lose bance and fall to his knees before Henwell.

  Before the assassin can scream, Henwell raises his longsword with his right hand.

  The lion-headed counterweight on the Dusk Greatsword’s hilt crashes solidly against the assassin’s head, leaving a bloody hole.

  Watching the two bodies spill their brains, Cao Mingzhi snaps awake, gasping for breath.

  Before Cao Mingzhi can calm his racing heart, Henwell pulls him toward the edge of the courtyard wall.

  Using the same vaulting technique, they jump into the neighboring yard.

  There are no assassins in this yard, but from the shop ahead, several killers are firing crossbow bolts at the mute guards outside.

  Cao Mingzhi is scared but not a coward. He reaches for his sword’s hilt, ready to charge and ssh.

  Henwell presses down on his shoulder and shakes his head.

  Without alerting the assassins, they quietly scale the wall again, moving further away from the danger zone.

  The next yard and shop are clear, no ambushes this time.

  Still, Henwell chooses not to stop, leading Cao Mingzhi over more walls.

  After several yards, distant whistles and sharp horn bsts echo outside.

  Cao Mingzhi’s eyes light up. “That’s the City Patrol Guard’s horn and the Evil-Catcher Department’s retreat signal! We’re saved!”

  Henwell shakes his head. “No. It’s not time to come out yet. We have to keep moving away.”

  Soon, Henwell guides Cao Mingzhi left and right until they reach a civilian home. Inside, they change into fresh clothes.

  Henwell wraps the Dusk Greatsword in cloth, turning it into a makeshift carrying pole. He hoists several wine jars from the yard, then pushes open the door and leaves the house.

  Cao Mingzhi protests, “We should leave some money behind, we’re stealing someone’s stuff!”

  Henwell gnces at him. “You’re surprisingly w-abiding.”

  Cao Mingzhi adjusts his ill-fitting clothes. “I’m a spoiled rich kid, not a thief!”

  Henwell chuckles. “Not bad. At least you know yourself clearly. But if we leave money behind, we leave traces. That makes it easy for the assassins to track us.”

  Cao Mingzhi shrugs. “Henwell, where do we go next?”

  Henwell shakes his head. “Nowhere. We have to hide.”

  Cao Mingzhi looks puzzled. “What’s the point? The assassins have already shown themselves. An open daylight attack right here in the capital, they won’t get away.”

  ”The Evil-Catcher Department from the Ministry of Justice, the Divine Detective Department, the Law Lock Institute of the Dali Temple, and the Wind-Catching Guard of the Imperial City, they’re not just for show!”

  ”If the assassins hadn’t revealed themselves, maybe they could’ve stayed hidden. But now that they’re exposed, there’s no way to escape.”

  Henwell replies, “Forgot? These people have powerful backers. Are you sure none of these departments have connections to those big shots?”

  Cao Mingzhi frowns. “I doubt it. Anyone who can infiltrate those departments isn’t ordinary. They wouldn’t expose themselves so easily.”

  Henwell ughs softly. “Heh heh heh... So, are you willing to gamble? Put your life on the line?”

  Cao Mingzhi’s expression turns serious. “Forget I said anything.”

  After that, Henwell and Cao Mingzhi head to a gambling den where they win a little money. That night, they stay at a brothel.

  Why these pces?

  Because they don’t ask for ID!

  The entire capital is under martial w now, with officers hunting thieves everywhere.

  But the city is huge. Their first targets are pces with identity records.

  Only after that do they move on to the countless semi-underground businesses. It takes two or three days to finish the full sweep!

  The next day, Henwell and Cao Mingzhi move to a different district.

  With Henwell’s skills, they easily avoid the patrolling officers.

  They spend three days hiding like this. On the fourth night, they check into a pce resembling a bathhouse complex.

  In the middle of the night, Henwell suddenly opens his eyes, turns his head to look at Cao Mingzhi’s room, and smiles faintly.

  After a while, Henwell gets up, dresses quietly, and pushes open the window. Holding his longsword, he vaults down the building.

  Standing on the street, Henwell fres his nostrils softly, then takes off in a certain direction.

  More than an hour ter, Henwell arrives outside a courtyard.

  This district houses many officials and is one of the safest areas in the entire capital.

  The house before him belongs to a Ministry of Justice official, a clerk responsible for documents.

  Such clerks hold seventh-rank positions, not too high, not too low.

  Their authority may seem limited, but if you want to smooth over certain cases, you can’t bypass them.

  So unless someone is completely upright and unyielding, their lives aren’t too bad.

  The small courtyard covers over six hundred square meters and is worth a fortune.

  Henwell doesn’t enter immediately but waits outside the wall for a while.

  About half an hour ter, his ears twitch. Then he hears a faint scream from inside, the voice belongs to Cao Mingzhi.

  The sound is soft but impossible for Henwell to miss.

  He stretches his limbs, then suddenly charges, smashing through the wall and bursting into the courtyard.