The soldier was in a state of utter confusion, realizing that his disguise, which he had maintained for several days, was so easily broken in front of the wicked man. But now there was no way out, so he had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue pretending.

He swallowed hard, forced a smile, and gestured to clasp his hands in a fist salute again: "Grand Commandant, I am Hei Niu, how could I be anyone else? The Qin army has strict laws and regulations, how dare I impersonate someone else?"

"Whether it's true or not, we'll find out soon enough." The wicked man approached him slowly, a mocking smile on his lips.

The soldier felt an overwhelming sense of oppression wash over him, as if a hundred-pound hammer had struck his heart. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Jing Ke's headless corpse, the stench of blood still lingering, sending chills down his spine. He knew that if he didn't act soon, he would surely meet the same fate as Jing Ke.

"Whoosh—"

The soldier suddenly drew his short sword from his waist, and with a swift movement, he lunged at the wicked man like an arrow released from a bow. At the same time, he violently swung his arms, shooting out two hidden weapons concealed in his sleeves! They were two poisoned short arrows, gleaming with an eerie blue light, heading straight for the wicked man's face.

"A mere trick, yet you dare to show off your skills before an expert?" The wicked man sneered, his figure flashing rapidly as he dodged the poisoned arrow in an instant.

The next moment, he nimbly approached the soldier's side, looking down at him: "If you were willing to use real swords like Jing Ke did before, you could hold out for a while. This kind of method is nothing but courting your own destruction."

The soldier gritted his teeth, brandishing his short sword fiercely, the blade flashing through the air, attempting to block the villain's space to counterattack. But he knew in his heart that the villain was a veteran of countless battles, his body as tough as steel, and these few sword strikes would probably be ineffective.

Sure enough, the wicked man merely raised his hand and slapped the blade away with a "crack." With a dull thud, the soldier's hand nearly split open. He was instantly terrified, shocked by the wicked man's terrifying strength!

"when--"

The wicked man slapped his hand again, instantly knocking the short knife out of the soldier's hand. Before the soldier could even think of a counterattack, a tremendous force struck him from the abdomen.

The wicked husband kicked him hard in the stomach, sending him flying several meters away before crashing into the corner of the wall with a loud bang.

"Hmm..."

The soldier coughed up blood, his internal organs felt like they were about to be shattered, and he collapsed to the ground, unable to get up. But he still glared at the wicked husband, his eyes full of resentment. If he couldn't kill the wicked husband today, how could he be willing to fail like this?

"Still not admitting defeat?" The wicked man approached coldly, each step seemingly trampling on the last vestiges of dignity of the lowly soldier. "You clowns, always doing useless things. Tell me... how much can this kind of assassination attempt stop my Qin state?"

The soldier bit his lip, struggling to lift his head: "You...you...Qin...is barbaric and tyrannical, sooner or later...someone will deal with you..."

"Hahahaha!" The wicked husband threw his head back and laughed wildly, the sound especially biting in the night wind. "What a fine 'handling'! But no one in the world can handle me, the wicked husband. Do you think I can rely on you Tom, Dick, and Harry?"

"The three Donghu tribes, the Yan state, and even the other six states all tremble under the iron hooves of this Grand Commandant. Do you really think you... are stronger than them?"

As he spoke, he suddenly stopped laughing, drew his sword, the blade reflecting the cold moonlight, and pointed it directly at the soldier's throat: "Speak, are you Tian Guang or Gai Nie? I'll leave you with a whole corpse."

The soldier spat out a mouthful of blood and said hatefully, "I am Tian Guang. It is the greatest regret of my life that I could not kill you today. Kill me or torture me, it's up to you!"

"Tian Guang?!" The wicked man revealed a mocking smile. "The scholar from Yan, erudite and courageous, praised by his contemporaries as a wise and valiant knight-errant, actually only knows how to attack from behind, and he even uses poisoned arrows! What a disgrace you are!?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of cold light appeared.

Blood splattered on the spot, and the last glimmer of light in Tian Guang's eyes quickly dimmed. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but he was too weak to utter a word, leaving only the terror and despair of dying with his eyes wide open.

The wicked man, expressionless, wiped the blood off his waist knife with his sleeve: "Hmph... You're all just fame-seeking rats, only interested in your own little corner of the world. You're more like short-sighted villains than heroes."

He looked around the streets and alleys, and seeing that there were no more hidden assassins, he sheathed his sword and turned away.

The starlight was faint, and the lamplight flickered.

The wicked man walked on with his hands behind his back, as if strolling leisurely. The sharp night wind blew by, seemingly whispering tales of the bloodshed that had just occurred.

......

Early the next morning.

When the crowd arrived, they were immediately relieved to see the wicked husband leisurely eating breakfast.

Wang Jian glared coldly and roared, "These damned assassins have tried to assassinate me time and time again, and this time they even dared to assassinate my Qin Grand Commandant in the street! They're courting death!"

"Grand Commandant, I think we have no choice but to carry out the massacre this time, otherwise it will be difficult to maintain peace in the long run!" Erniu's face was full of murderous intent, and his big hand gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist tightly.

The wicked husband put down his chopsticks and slowly wiped his mouth. "Chun Ning, a few days ago I asked you to send someone to summon Yang Duanhe. Have you received any reply?"

Chun Ning immediately replied, "Received it. They said they've arranged for the Black Ice Guard to be stationed in Yan Kingdom, and they're probably still planting spies and gathering intelligence..."

"Go and issue a message to the State of Yan in my name as Grand Commandant."

The wicked man stood up, put his hands behind his back, and went to the eaves outside the door. Looking at the sky with rolling dark clouds, he said coldly, "A knight-errant who uses martial arts to disrupt the law, attempting to prevent the world from unifying under one great force and to gain so-called empty fame, should be executed."

"From this day forward, within three months, we must thoroughly eliminate all the Mohists and Righteous Men within the territory of Yan. Anyone who reports such individuals will be rewarded with three thousand coins. Anyone who harbors or conceals such individuals will be punished along with the others."

"If the perpetrators are not eliminated after three months... all those who have committed crimes, practiced martial arts, or joined the army shall be executed, along with their entire families and neighbors."

"Slaughter an entire alley in the city, slaughter the entire village in the village, until there are no more people violating the rules!"

Upon hearing this, Erniu immediately exclaimed, "Grand Commandant is wise; this is the only way!"

Wang Jian and Wang Tian exchanged a glance, both hesitant and unsure of what to say.

"boom……"

A blinding white light flashed across the sky, followed by a thunderous roar. The wicked man suddenly turned around and said in a deep voice, "I have given them several chances; this is the last one."

"If they still do not cherish it... does it mean that everyone in the world says that my Qin state is cruel and that I, the Grand Commandant, am a bloodthirsty man? Then let them see the ruthlessness of Qin and me, the Grand Commandant."

Erniu said excitedly, "Grand Commandant, leave this matter to me. I will go and draft the order to issue it immediately!" After saying that, Erniu turned around and left quickly, as if he was afraid that the wicked man would change his mind.

"Chun Ning!"

"Your subordinate is here!"

After a moment of contemplation, the wicked man said, "Send word to Yang Duanhe to come to Yan State immediately to take charge and personally oversee this matter. Let him lead 50,000 troops."

"The appointed time with Your Majesty is approaching. Yan and Qi have already reported back, so we should return to Xianyang as soon as possible."

Chun Ning clasped his hands in a fist and said, "This humble general obeys."