The poison in this dart was clearly extremely potent; within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the left eyeball of the Prince of Nanxiang had already turned black and ulcerated.
Even those in the hall, seasoned and knowledgeable, showed unease upon seeing that terrifying face. Several young swordsmen even turned their faces away.
Xiao Fengque pushed through the crowd, stepped forward to examine the pulse of the Prince of Nanxiang and the area behind his ear, and his expression changed.
"How is the prince?" the old steward asked tremblingly.
Xiao Fengque stood up and shook his head at the group of heroes behind him.
Everyone realized something from that expression. Or rather, even without Xiao Fengque's autopsy, just looking at the Prince of Nanxiang's face, they could tell that this person had no chance of survival.
The old steward's eyes rolled back, and he nearly fainted. After a long while, he lay on the body of the Prince of Nanxiang and wailed:
"The prince has passed away—"
The Prince of Nanxiang was actually killed right under the noses of the martial arts heroes!
-----------
"That cowardly old thief! He took all the precautions, but ended up getting himself killed!"
"If he's dead, he's dead. Why are we locked up here?"
"The gate is open; you are free to leave if you wish."
"I would like to leave, but I'm afraid some people in this hall won't agree!"
The fact that the Prince of Nanxiang died from a dart in front of all the heroes was certainly shocking. What made everyone even more apprehensive was that, among so many people present, not a single person saw who launched the hidden weapon!
Since it was impossible to determine where the hidden weapon came from, everyone present became a suspect.
The thirteen heroes were politely confined to the hall by the people of the Prince of Nanxiang's mansion.
Given the nature and skills of these chivalrous heroes, the small Nanxiang Prince's Mansion naturally couldn't contain them. However, Lady Du, the widow of the Nanxiang Prince, pointed out that anyone who tried to forcibly leave the mansion might become a suspect. Furthermore, if the real murderer escaped, the heroes' 100,000 taels of silver would be gone forever.
In just a few words, the already disorganized group of江湖人士 (jianghu figures) immediately erupted into infighting. One thought I was the real culprit, the other thought you were a gold digger, and yet another suspected he was trying to frame him. One tried to leave, another blocked his way; one tried to escape, another unleashed a dagger—
Thus, the heroes became mutually restraining, resentful of each other, and constantly monitoring one another. In the end, none of them were able to escape.
Thirteen swordsmen sat in the hall with gloomy faces. After a heated debate, they finally decided to rely on their own abilities to find the real culprit.
Everyone present was a master of their time. To be able to deceive everyone and kill the Prince of Nanxiang with a hidden weapon, the assassin, regardless of whether he was the world-renowned Tian Juan, possessed unfathomable martial arts skills and could not be underestimated.
The heroes still valued their lives, so they spontaneously formed small groups of two or three, agreeing to save each other in life-or-death situations.
The plot unfolds at a rapid pace, tense and suspenseful yet humorous. Sun Xiaoxiao and her family are completely captivated by the suspense.
The heroes were divided into groups and assigned houses. Xiao Fengque and Xie An were assigned to the same room.
As night fell, Xiao Fengque was drawing on his bed with paper and charcoal pencil, while Xie An stood on the floor, expressionless as he laid out a makeshift bed for himself.
For some reason, seeing the two of them like this made Sun Xiaoxiao want to laugh.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
