Jianghu Qimen Lu

Chapter 85 Divine Spray

This move was so insidious that it caught everyone off guard, especially the chef, who was completely unprepared. With a loud thud, he took a solid blow to the back! The palm strike was incredibly powerful; Bai Shandian had used eight or nine tenths of his strength, making it a devastating force! The chef screamed and collapsed to the ground, unconscious! Bai Shandian, like a shadow, followed closely, striking three major acupoints on the chef's body with his fingers. He then searched the chef's body and found a treasure pouch containing three porcelain bottles filled with colorful pills. It wasn't labeled which was the antidote and which was the poison. Besides the pills, Bai Shandian also found strange items in the pouch, such as a floral handkerchief, a plastic pigeon, and a retractable sword! Suddenly, a jolt went to the chef, and with a quick touch, he tore off a human skin mask, revealing his true face: a seven-colored cloud!

The crowd erupted in uproar. They thought that Qi Caiyun had seized every opportunity to poison someone by acting as a cook. Her intentions were truly sinister and she was hard to guard against! Bai Shandian ordered the guest monk to bring a bucket of cold water and splashed it on Qi Caiyun's face. In the cold season of late autumn and early winter, Qi Caiyun indeed stirred and slowly woke up! Bai Shandian stared intently into his eyes and coldly retorted, "The 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' is no longer on my person, so why are you still bothering me and the Emperor?!" Qi Caiyun sneered, "I know it's currently on the head of the Mo Qing Society, Chou Jiao, but you're his brother-in-law! You and his sister are, after all, husband and wife! Although you two seem to be fighting fiercely on the surface, based on my life experience, I know that you both secretly love each other; you're just being stubborn and can't let go of your pride! That's why I want to find a breakthrough through you, drug the Emperor, force you to find your brother-in-law, and order him to hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World'! Your brother-in-law will also hand over the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' for his sister's sake!"

"Unfortunately, man proposes, God disposes; your wishful thinking has ultimately failed!" White Lightning sneered.

"At first, Lord Bai, your martial arts were just average. How come your skills have improved so much in the past few days? Did you have some kind of extraordinary encounter?" Qi Caiyun was greatly surprised.

"Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed!" Bai Shandian said mysteriously. Suddenly, staring into his eyes, he said sharply, "Speak quickly! Which of these three porcelain bottles of pills is the antidote!?" Qi Caiyun smiled coldly, deliberately using the same tactic against him, and said mockingly, "Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed! If Lord Bai considers me a friend and doesn't hold back any secrets, I will tell you everything I know!" Bai Shandian was furious and shouted, "It seems you want to experience all ten of the most cruel tortures of the Qing Dynasty before you'll finally give in!" He then took out a large golden pipe from his waist, filled it with tobacco, lit it with a flint, and began to smoke it with relish. Qi Caiyun looked at him strangely, puzzled, thinking, "Opium dens are rampant on the streets now, and some idle Manchu bannermen often lie in the dens smoking opium and become addicted—this has become a common practice in the upper class of the wealthy! Could it be that Bai Shandian also likes this?" Just as she was wondering, she suddenly saw Bai Shandian puffing out smoke, and strings of smoke rings swirled out, flying straight towards her face!

For a moment, he panicked! His major acupoints were sealed, rendering him completely immobile, and he could only endure the onslaught and harassment of the smoke! Strangely enough, the smoke rings seemed to be deliberately working against him, endlessly piling up, until his eyes watered, he coughed incessantly, and even his nose ran! At first, he could barely bear it, but as time went on, he was truly panting like a bull, feeling like he was dying! He couldn't help but shout, "You surnamed Bai, why don't you just stab me to death with your sword! This is too humiliating!" Bai Shanshan laughed coldly and said in a sinister tone, "Want to die? Not so easy! Unless I get tired of you. This is just the beginning. This 'divine spray' is not actually among the ten most cruel tortures of the Qing Dynasty. The real tortures, the real nightmares, are yet to come! Hmph, I will let you enjoy them all, have a great time, and die happy! Ha..." Qi Caiyun completely collapsed. He knew that many officials in the Qing Dynasty had a bad habit of punishing people, using all sorts of bizarre and outlandish methods to make them obedient until they knelt down and begged for mercy before they were released! This is the origin of the ten most cruel tortures of the Qing Dynasty that are famous throughout the court and the country.

"I'll talk! I'll talk! I'll tell you which one is the antidote, okay?" Before Bai Shandian could reply, he shouted, "The one with the red pill is the antidote! As for the porcelain bottles with the black and white pills, don't touch them; they both contain deadly poison! Each pill is lethal upon contact with blood, so be extremely careful! The Emperor and the others should each take one of the red pills; no more, or they'll have adverse reactions!" Bai Shandian cursed under his breath, "Quite a few ridiculous rules!" He stopped puffing away, tapped the ash from his pipe on the sole of his shoe, and put away his large golden pipe, tucking it to his waist. This large golden pipe had a long history; it was bestowed upon him by Emperor Qianlong for his numerous merits in solving strange cases! Don't underestimate this pipe; over the years, Bai Shandian had developed many variations of it, turning it into an excellent weapon for self-defense!

Bai Shandian picked up the porcelain bottle containing the red pills, unscrewed the cap, poured out five pills, fed them to Emperor Qianlong, and then distributed them to the four guards who were still groaning. Half an hour later, Qianlong slowly woke up, let out a cry, spat out a mouthful of foul blood, and slumped to the ground. His expression slowly returned to normal. The four guards beside him also spat out some black blood, sat cross-legged on the ground, circulated their internal energy, and gradually recovered their strength. They jumped up together, and like ferocious demons, came to Qicaiyun. Zhuque struck with lightning speed, slapping Qicaiyun twice across the face, roaring, "You old scoundrel, you dare to attack me in the back! Be careful, or I'll kill you alive!" Qicaiyun only closed her eyes and remained silent, letting him vent his anger. The white tiger also wanted to pounce and hit people, but Qianlong shouted at it: "Stop!" The four warriors then hurriedly turned back, helped the emperor up, and sat him back down at the table.

Master Kongming clasped his hands together and said, "Amitabha! Your Majesty has been frightened! Such a thing happening in my humble temple is unforgivable. I beg your forgiveness!" Qianlong snorted and turned to Bai Shandian, asking, "What exactly happened?" Bai Shandian bowed and cautiously replied, "It was all done by Qicaiyun alone, and has nothing to do with the monks of Yue Wang Temple." Qianlong glanced at Qicaiyun and asked curiously, "His name is Qicaiyun? What is his background?" Bai Shandian truthfully reported, "Qicaiyun is one of the ten most powerful and mysterious figures in the martial arts world today—" "The leader of the Cai Men sect has set his sights on me because he covets the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World.' Now, the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' has fallen into the hands of the leader of the Mo Qing Society, Chou Jiao. Qi Caiyun is plotting to drug the Emperor and the four imperial guards, and is extorting me to help him reclaim the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' from the Mo Qing Society!" Emperor Qianlong was once again filled with anger and roared, "It's the Mo Qing Society again! This audacious underground organization dedicated to overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming Dynasty—I cannot rest easy until it is eliminated! Bai Shandian—" Bai Shandian quickly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty!" He knew that the Emperor was about to issue another important instruction!

Emperor Qianlong walked silently to the palace gate, glanced back, and saw Bai Shandian following closely behind. He smiled slightly. After looking around to make sure no one was watching, he whispered, "I order you to immediately convey my decree: All officials at all levels throughout the country, from prefectures to counties, are hereby ordered to listen to this decree: Anyone who is a member of the Moqing Society, regardless of age, gender, or even a newborn infant, and who has even the slightest connection to the Moqing Society, must be arrested and brought to justice at a later date! As for the bandit leader, Choujiao, he has committed numerous crimes and is extremely heinous. His capture is a capital offense, and his entire family, including nine generations of his relatives, will be executed." "Anyone who obstructs the arrest or tipes off the suspect during the manhunt will be treated as a criminal! Anyone who resists arrest with weapons will be executed without mercy! Bai Shandian, considering your dedication to the Qing Dynasty, your diligence, selflessness, and public service, I will divorce Xiang Quan, that Han woman, on your behalf, and sever all ties with the Mo Qing Society! In the future, I will arrange for you to marry a beautiful and talented Manchu woman. Shandian, what do you say?" Bai Shandian hurriedly knelt down to express his gratitude, but his heart skipped a beat, and he froze on the spot!