The medicine storeroom contained many herbs; if he were to take them all, it would take at least ten large boxes.
There were too many boxes; he couldn't move them by himself.
So, he picked out the sixteen herbs needed to brew the "Blood-Shocking Soup" and packed them into three large boxes.
Then he found a carriage on the estate, led out the strongest horse from the stables, and hitched it to the carriage.
He then fetched several thick hemp ropes and tied up Zhao Tashan.
He threw the three large boxes and Zhao Tashan onto the carriage and covered them with a black cloth.
Just as Su Que was about to drive the carriage away, he suddenly remembered something, jumping down from the carriage and heading towards a room.
Though he had found quite a lot of valuables on the bodies, there might still be some items hidden in the rooms by these White Lotus Sect members.
About a cup of tea's time later, Su Que emerged from a guest room.
He had searched all the rooms and his clothes in front were bulging with silver coins and valuables.
He didn't find any secret manuals or medicinal formulas in the estate, but did find more than three hundred silver notes and silver coins.
Su Que donned a black cloak he had taken from the estate, leapt onto the carriage, and, with a flick of the whip, drove the carriage out of the estate, heading towards the outskirts of the city.
When passing the city gate, the guard officers saw Su Que driving the carriage, face hidden under a black cloak, with goods on the carriage covered by black cloth, intending to inspect them.
But as they approached, they caught a whiff of a bloody smell, stopped in their tracks, and allowed Su Que to pass through the city gate.
Once outside the city, Su Que whipped the horse hard; the horse, in pain, galloped quickly.
While driving the carriage, Su Que kept an eye on the rear to see if anyone was following.
About a quarter of an hour later, he reached Cyan Flower Mountain.
Su Que whipped the horse up the mountain, but the load was too heavy for the horse. No matter how he lashed its flank, the horse could only pull the carriage to the mountainside, unable to go further.
Thus, Su Que released the bridle and tied the horse to a tree.
He then pulled the carriage up the mountain himself, placing the carriage, medicine boxes, Zhao Tashan, and a large amount of silver coins inside his hiding cave.
He took out a large bundle full of beast traps from the cave and descended the mountain, back to where the horse was tied.
He shortened the bridle, securely tying the horse to the tree.
Then he set up several circles of beast traps around the horse.
This was to prevent other wild animals from eating the horse; it was his meal for the next day.
Su Que thought that since a White Lotus Sect stronghold was wiped out tonight, the White Lotus Sect would definitely take action.
He planned to seize the moment before the White Lotus Sect was fully on guard, to visit Jing Sha and Luo You's stronghold tonight, capture those two, and obtain the "Red Fiend Technique" and "Profound Yin Finger," these two evil techniques.
As for Bai Wuji, the Jade Water City's head of the White Lotus Sect, if he openly slaughtered White Lotus Sect members on the street, Bai Wuji, to preserve the sect's reputation, would almost certainly appear, saving Su Que the trouble of seeking him out.
Su Que retraced the path of the carriage, and while dashing along, he used his True Qi to smooth out the tracks left by the carriage wheels.
In less than a quarter of an hour, Su Que was back in Jade Water City, heading towards Jing Sha's base.
Outside Zhao Tashan's villa, although there were corpses everywhere and blood pooled thickly,
the passing residents, upon seeing it, immediately steered clear, not daring to look further, nor dared to report to the authorities.
Therefore, the wiping out of one White Lotus Sect base remained unknown to other White Lotus Sect members.
The base where Jing Sha was located was a luxurious mansion with seven courtyards.
His more than fifty subordinates lived scattered across the first five courtyards of the mansion.
Jing Sha occupied the deepest two courtyards alone.
At this time, in the evening, it was his time to cultivate the "Red Fiend Technique."
While cultivating the "Red Fiend Technique," one's True Qi would carry a fiery force.
However, cultivating the "Red Fiend Technique" would accumulate fire poison within the body, harmful to one's flesh and meridians.
During the day, the Yang Qi was too strong, causing more fire poison to spawn, intensifying the damage to the flesh and meridians.
Therefore, Jing Sha typically cultivated the "Red Fiend Technique" at night.
Besides this, he would also brew a medicinal powder called "Yin Replenishing Powder."
This powder replenished the body's Yin Qi, removing a certain amount of fire poison, reducing its harm.
At this moment, his two subordinates were in the courtyard outside, brewing the "Yin Replenishing Powder" for him.
Sitting cross-legged on his bed, cultivating the Red Fiend Technique, he suddenly smelled a faint burning odor from outside.
"Damn it!"
He instinctively thought that his two incompetent subordinates had burnt his "Yin Replenishing Powder," cursed, and jumped off the bed, pushing the door open.
Squeak—
Pushing the door open, he saw his two subordinates tending the fire, and the "Yin Replenishing Powder" wasn't burnt.
"Hmm, where did this burning smell come from?"
Jing Sha pondered for a while and asked his two subordinates, "Did you smell anything burning?"
"No...no, sir!"
The two subordinates looked at each other. Being near the medicine pot, all they could smell was medicine, not noticing any burning smell.
"Damn it, where's the fire coming from?"
Frowning, Jing Sha's thought was just forming when he saw thick smoke rising beyond several walls.
...
At this moment, fires were breaking out in several spots outside the mansion, and the White Lotus Sect members were frantically putting out the fires.
Those fires were started by Su Que.
When he arrived at the mansion, he concealed himself atop a wall, observing for a while.
On one hand, he was amazed at the size of the mansion, having no idea where Jing Sha might reside.
On the other hand, he was surprised by the number of White Lotus Sect members inside, unsure who Jing Sha was.
Therefore, he decided to set a fire within the mansion to draw Jing Sha out.
He first dropped a fire stick in the stables.
The stables were filled with dry hay, allowing the fire to grow rapidly.
The fire burned the horses; in pain, they neighed loudly.
Soon, the fire burned through the horse's bridle, and the horses, scorched by the flames, bolted out of the stables, scattering in all directions.
Taking advantage of the White Lotus Sect members' attention being drawn to the burning stables, Su Que slipped into the mansion, setting fire to various other locations.
Sure enough, it wasn't long before Jing Sha was coaxed out.
"Hall Master Jing!"
"Hall Master Jing!"
Su Que hid behind a rockery, seeing the White Lotus Sect members, although frantically saving the fire, change their expressions at the sight of Jing Sha, fawning to greet him.
"What in the world is happening?" Jing Sha frowned and asked.
"Hall Master Jing, we don't know what happened tonight, fires suddenly started in several places!" the White Lotus Sect members replied.
Jing Sha's frown deepened, thinking: this incident is definitely manmade, could someone have infiltrated the estate?
As he pondered this, his heart tensed, he couldn't help but glance around.
Yet he saw nothing.
"You all, put out the fires immediately!"
Jing Sha shouted, then proceeded towards the exterior courtyards of the mansion to look into the other fire-stricken areas.
As he was walking through a corridor, suddenly.
From the shadow on the left side of a building behind him, a figure suddenly emerged.
Jing Sha heard a subtle noise and was about to turn his head.
Suddenly.
A heavy force struck the back of his head, a sharp pain surged, his head ringing, and in an instant, he blacked out, unconscious.
Just as Jing Sha was about to collapse to the ground, Su Que, retracting his fist, caught him in a grasp and with a swing, slung him over his shoulder.
Then, with a leap, he jumped out of the mansion.