The Affairs of the Martial World - Vol 5: Chapter 5 

Although Zhu Que had already guessed the truth, he still felt deep sorrow and anger.

Such a bold and straightforward man, now separated from the living, had died so cruelly, and no one knew who had caused it.

Qin Fanyu continued, “Because the scratch marks on the bodies could only have been made by Eagle Claw techniques, no matter how I tried to explain, they wouldn’t believe me. It’s understandable. If I were in their place, I’d be skeptical too. In the end, they detained several of my disciples and told me to return, giving me three days to hand over this so-called Duan Xuanji. If I failed to get him, they would hold me and my disciples accountable for the deaths of their brothers.”

Zhu Que recalled the unusual reactions of the Beggar Sect last night at Jilong Mountain. It turned out they might have mistaken him as an ally sent to help the Eagle Claw Sect, or perhaps even believed he was the person called Duan Xuanji.

Qin Fanyu told Zhu Que, “I came to the Le family estate hoping that Le Mengchang could speak on my behalf. After all, I have been framed and dragged into so much trouble. Even now, I still don’t know if Duan Xuanji truly exists or if that young man was impersonating him, forcing me to search for him within three days.”

Zhu Que also felt intense hatred for the culprit and silently vowed to find them and make them pay. Yet, hearing only Qin Fanyu’s account, he could not be certain that the Eagle Claw Sect was completely uninvolved.

He looked at Le Yishan, who said helplessly, “Even if I intervene, I cannot fully explain the situation to the Beggar Sect. I’ve heard that Hero Zhu has always been on good terms with them……”

Zhu Que sighed and recounted last night’s clash with the Beggar Sect. He added, “If their chief were here, we could negotiate and buy some time to investigate this Duan Xuanji. But their chief is like a drifting cloud, unpredictable and rarely seen.”

The young man sitting at the right, Liu Mingdeng, suddenly said, “So many casualties among the Beggar Sect, could all of this have been done by the one claiming to be Duan Xuanji? If so, how did he lure them there to strike? If they had been killed elsewhere and then moved, that seems unlikely. For one person to kill a dozen men without a single escape, all using Eagle Claw techniques, how many could achieve this in the entire martial world? And what is his purpose in doing so?”

Zhu Que could not help but admire the young man. Despite his youth, he thought so deeply. Hearing this, Zhu Que pondered, if the killer did not use Eagle Claw, what martial art could produce similar results? An idea stirred in his mind, and he couldn’t help blurting out, “Dragon Claw Hand.”

But he immediately dismissed it. Dragon Claw Hand is a unique skill of the Shaolin Sect, whose members are always upright and honorable. How could they attack Beggar Sect members in such a vicious manner?

If it wasn’t a righteous sect…… then could it be a descendant of the Duan family, like Duan Xiuming, who supposedly joined a demonic cult? What martial art from a demonic sect could mimic Eagle Claw techniques?

Thinking this through, Zhu Que stood and asked Qin Fanyu, “You said your two sons fought with Duan Xuanji, and the techniques didn’t resemble Eagle Claw. Could you describe how they fought?”

Qin Fanyu replied, “I didn’t get the chance to ask. Does it matter?”

Zhu Que said, “Perhaps from the way he fought, I can recognize his identity.”

Qin Fanyu said, “Then we shouldn’t delay. Let’s go to my home and ask them now.”

The two bid farewell to Le Yishan. He pointed to Liu Mingdeng and said, “He’s my nephew. Though he hasn’t trained in my Eight Trigrams Sect techniques, he’s skilled enough. He’s free right now, so he’ll accompany you and help out. Consider it some experience for him. If you need him to do anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Liu Mingdeng nodded and said, “Exactly. The more people involved in a difficult matter, the more ideas we can have. It’s an honor to act alongside Hero Zhu.”

Zhu Que saw that he was quick-witted, spoke with unusual insight, and had none of the arrogance of a spoiled youth. He felt a good impression of him and said, “If you don’t mind the effort, come along. But please, don’t call me Hero anymore, just call me Zhu Que.”

Le Yishan had his servants select three fine horses from the stables for them. The three rode off directly toward the Qin family estate.

At the Eagle Claw Sect estate, Zhu Que saw Qin Fanyu’s two injured sons. The eldest, Qin Xingyun, recalled that the man called Duan Xuanji struck in strange ways. When their arms met, the other’s arm seemed to twist unnaturally, immediately wrapping around his own and using a coiling force to snap his wrist. It felt… as if he were constricted by a python.

Qin Fanyu said, “Our Eagle Claw Sect has no such unusual technique. It seems this person wasn’t really using Eagle Claw, but only made his fingers resemble it to deceive others.”

Zhu Que shook his head. “It’s hard to say. Perhaps he combined Eagle Claw with other martial arts. Otherwise, determining the cause of the Beggar Sect members’ deaths would be very difficult.”

He thought for a moment and suddenly remembered a kind of soft-style technique1 his master had mentioned. He stood up, grabbed Qin Fanyu’s arms, and rotated them several times until they were interlocked, then asked Qin Xingyun, “Is this how that man struck?”

Qin Xingyun said, “Somewhat similar, but his wrists spun faster. Then suddenly, he stopped and reversed the motion. Somehow… my wrist broke.”

Zhu Que nodded. “This is the Demon Sect’s ‘Great Coiling Silk Hand,’ which emphasizes technique over force. I only know the general idea. If it was truly the work of a Demon Sect member, what advantage could they gain by provoking a conflict between your Eagle Claw Sect and the Beggar Sect?”

Standing nearby, Liu Mingdeng said, “The Eagle Claw Sect and the Beggar Sect are the two largest forces in the martial world around Changzhou. I suspect the Demon Sect wants to carry out some scheme. Afraid that both sides would intervene, they first let them be distracted, perhaps even fight each other, so the Demon Sect could act freely.”

Before Liu Mingdeng finished, a few claps came from outside. They were speaking in Qin Xingyun’s room and had not noticed someone eavesdropping.

Zhu Que’s heart jolted. With his martial skills, someone could be at the door without him sensing it—clearly, the intruder’s lightness skills were comparable to his own.

Qin Fanyu shouted, “Who’s there?”