The Salt Commissioner panicked.
Not the dignified panic of an official considering consequences, but the kind where the soul packs its bags and leaves the body without notice.
Over six hundred fierce, battle-hardened men were charging straight at him. Meanwhile, the garrison troops—who had been perfectly brave when extorting salt workers—were now scattering through the city like mice fleeing a burning granary.
How was he supposed to stop this?
With righteousness? With paperwork? With the fifty household guards he'd paid half-price?
Those guards were no better off. Faces white, hands shaking, they retreated while desperately shielding the Salt Commissioner, dragging him back toward his official residence.
"Hold the residence!" someone shouted.
They might as well have shouted at the wind.
The walls of the official residence were thin and low—excellent for showing off wealth, terrible for surviving a real fight.
The Guyuan border troops didn't even hesitate. Some rushed the wall and knelt, forming human ladders. Others sprinted forward, stepped on clasped hands, kicked off shoulders, and vaulted over in smooth, practiced motions.
It looked less like an assault and more like a drill titled How to Break a Corrupt Official's House in Under a Breath.
The Salt Commissioner retreated again.
From the outer courtyard to the main hall—leaving behind a few dead guards.
From the main hall to the inner courtyard—leaving a few more.
Then to the back garden—where even dignity finally gave up.
In the rockery, he shoved aside a concealed stone slab, revealing a hidden underground passage. He grabbed only two trusted confidants and fled inside, sealing the hatch behind him. They hurried down the tunnel until they reached a small underground chamber.
A basement.
And inside—
Tie Niaofei.
Bound. Bruised. Bloody.
Still smiling.
When Tie Niaofei saw the Salt Commissioner rush in, his lips curled into a strange, crooked grin.
"Oh?" he said mildly. "So the city gates fell, and the Jin merchants ran?"
He tilted his head.
"Having fun?"
A chill crawled up the Salt Commissioner's spine.
"Guessing there are rebels outside is one thing," he snapped, forcing composure, "but how do you know they breached the gates? And that the Jin merchants fled?"
Tie Niaofei's smile deepened.
The Blood-Stained Dao Xuan Tianzun embroidered on his chest smiled too.
That was when the Salt Commissioner's scalp went numb.
Because the embroidery wasn't shifting.
It was grinning.
Tie Niaofei said softly, "You're dead. They'll find this tunnel soon."
The Salt Commissioner forced a laugh that sounded like choking.
"Impossible! They'll think I escaped through the back gate. They'll search the city, search outside—no one would ever imagine I'm still hiding in my own home!"
"No," Tie Niaofei replied calmly. "They know exactly where you are. Distance. Direction."
He leaned forward.
"This tunnel is obvious."
The Salt Commissioner's heart began to hammer.
"How can you be so sure?"
Tie Niaofei laughed.
This time—
The Dao Xuan Tianzun laughed too.
At first, the Salt Commissioner wanted to believe it was just cloth shifting. A trick of light.
But no.
The embroidery was laughing.
Teeth bared. Mouth wide. Sound echoing.
The Salt Commissioner stumbled back. His guards were shaking so hard their knees knocked.
"Boss…" one whispered. "This Tie Niaofei is wrong. And that thing on his chest is wrong too…"
"Exactly," said the Blood-Stained Dao Xuan Tianzun.
Its voice was deep, soaked in malice, like something dragged up from Yama's Underworld.
"Would you like to see hell?"
The Salt Commissioner gasped.
"W-who's talking?"
The guards screamed.
"It's—it's the embroidery!"
"Impossible!" the Salt Commissioner shrieked. "Absolutely impossible!"
"Hehehe…" the Dao Xuan Tianzun chuckled.
"Come closer. It's been a long time since I tasted fresh flesh."
The guards broke.
They screamed and ran.
The Salt Commissioner followed, sanity shattering. Rebels or monsters—suddenly rebels felt merciful. A blade was clean. Monsters ate slowly.
They burst back up toward the tunnel entrance.
The moment the hatch opened—
They froze.
A crowd stood above, weapons ready, staring down.
They had been waiting.
The Salt Commissioner opened his mouth.
"I—"
Blades flashed.
His two remaining guards fell in pieces.
Chen Baihu reached down, grabbed the Salt Commissioner by the collar, and lifted him like a plucked bird.
"Spare me!" the Salt Commissioner screamed. "Sir! Let's talk terms!"
Chen Baihu chuckled.
"Sure."
He produced a handkerchief.
Embroidered on it was the same divine image.
And it was laughing.
The Dao Xuan Tianzun grinned at the Salt Commissioner.
"Come. Let me see how you taste."
"Aaaaaah—!"
The scream tore through the night.
Chen Baihu dragged him back down into the tunnel, unlocked Tie Niaofei's shackles, and pressed a dagger into his hand.
Tie Niaofei stood, swaying slightly, and smiled down at the Salt Commissioner.
"Now you understand," he said gently. "Don't mess with me."
"Good sir—" the Salt Commissioner sobbed.
"Name your price," Tie Niaofei interrupted.
"Name it well, and you'll die in one stroke. Name it poorly, and I'll carve you for three days."
The Dao Xuan Tianzun added cheerfully,
"I'll eat him during those three days."
"My money!" the Salt Commissioner wailed.
"All of it! Back garden! Left wing-room! Five steps east, four steps south—dig down! Take everything! Just don't eat me!"
Tie Niaofei nodded.
"Fair trade."
One clean slash.
The head fell.
Blood sprayed.
Tie Niaofei collapsed from exhaustion. Chen Baihu caught him.
The Blood-Stained Dao Xuan Tianzun clicked its tongue.
"He died too easily."
Chen Baihu bowed.
"This subordinate failed to capture the Jin merchants. I beg Dao Xuan Tianzun for punishment."
"It is not your fault," the Dao Xuan Tianzun said.
"We will deal with them later."
"First—appease the people."
"And prepare for Xing Honglang."
Chen Baihu bowed deeply.
"This subordinate obeys."