"He has many enemies. Over the past ten-odd years, he likely settled his grudges across the nearby cities in secret, leaving only the strongest one in Bafang City.
"As for who it is specifically, I don't know either. I only know his formidable foe is in Bafang City.
"If you head there, look around and see. It's possible he's already dead, or he might still be biding his time.
"Though knowing him, he's like a turtle—incredibly patient, even more enduring than an old fossil like me. There's a good chance he hasn't made his move yet,"
Old Master Chen Peijun said placidly.
"Thank you, Senior,"
Lin Zheyu said, cupping his hands in respect.
He had not expected Master Liang Song to have gone to Bafang City; no wonder he had been gone for so long.
Bafang City was far from Songyi City, separated by mountains, rivers, and several cities. At the traveling pace of an ordinary caravan, it would take well over a month—nearly two—to arrive.
Lin Zheyu planned to see if he could track down Master Liang Song once he reached Bafang City.
He was someone who repaid kindness. If possible, he would help Master Liang settle his vendetta along the way to repay him for imparting his martial arts.
Leaving Zeyi Lake, he made his way to Bidan Teahouse.
Jia Yanyong and the others were not around; they would also be leaving on this journey.
For the next month and more, they would be sleeping in the wind and dining in the dew, so they were seizing every moment to indulge themselves in the Hundred Pavilions.
"Manager Wu, you truly have no intention of leaving?" Lin Zheyu asked one last time.
"I'd better stay. My family's roots are in Songyi City; leaving would mean starting entirely from scratch. Besides, I've asked around—the rebel army claims to be an army of benevolence and righteousness and won't slaughter ordinary folk. I don't possess much wealth anyway, so I'm not afraid of being robbed."
Wu Yinghe spoke with a distressed, helpless look.
If the choice were purely his, he would have loved to leave. With a great tree like the Feihong Gang to lean on, even if life in Bafang City couldn't match their former glory in Songyi City, the gang's clout would guarantee far more comfort than staying behind.
Unfortunately, his parents, wife, and in-laws refused to depart, and his grandfather and uncles were equally unwilling to abandon their home.
Helpless, Wu Yinghe had no choice but to let the matter drop.
"Then take care of yourself," Lin Zheyu said.
After sitting in Bidan Teahouse for a while and listening to a bit of storytelling, he departed.
Returning to his small courtyard, Lin Zheyu changed into practical martial attire and left Songyi City.
Although he was set to leave in three days, he continued to devote substantial time to martial cultivation each day, just as usual.
Stepping into the mountain forest, Lin Zheyu shifted his posture. Channeling qi and blood power into his legs, he employed his qi and blood burst technique and circulated the Golden Goose Skill.
Whoosh!
He shot forward like an arrow, his speed terrifyingly fast.
Having brought Mountain-Shattering Leg to perfection, his legs could now easily withstand the reckless unleashing of the qi and blood burst technique without fear of tearing his muscles, skin, membranes, or fracturing bones.
For now, however, Lin Zheyu could only use it to travel in straight lines, and his control was still rather unrefined.
Whenever an obstacle suddenly appeared ahead, he often couldn't halt his momentum in time to avoid crashing into it.
Boom!
A thunderous crash rang out. A massive tree blocking his path was pulverized by Lin Zheyu's fist.
He had nearly slammed into it just now.
Rustle, rustle, rustle.
Mist shrouded the entrance of Lion Valley.
Lin Zheyu had returned here to lie in wait.
Over the past twenty-odd days, he had frequently staked out the entrance of Lion Valley, but unfortunately with little to show for it.
The bandits within Lion Valley and the Xing clan both knew this entrance had been exposed and had switched to other routes.
Ten-odd days ago, Lin Zheyu had shadowed bandits from Lion Valley and discovered another entrance. After staking it out for a few days, he had pulled off another heist, plundering cargo worth over two hundred taels of silver. After that, that entrance had also fallen quiet.
Those slippery rascals had countless paths in and out of Lion Valley. As a lone man waiting by a stump for a hare, catching a big fish was exceedingly difficult.
Last time, by sheer coincidence, he had run into the Xing clan party right after their transaction with the Nine Nether Cult and pocketed several thousand taels of silver.
That had been heaven-defying luck.
That single windfall seemed to have drained his fortune entirely; he hadn't crossed paths with any substantial prey since.
*Should I sneak straight in?*
*There must be good things inside that shrine,*
Lin Zheyu mused.
His savings stood at 3,168 taels of silver, alongside thirteen packets of Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoction medicinal powder.
It seemed like a fortune, but it would burn away fast.
Once he reached Bafang City, he would need to find a way to purchase a powerful martial art manual.
Ordinary Qi and Blood Realm arts already cost seven or eight hundred taels, and a manual capable of cultivating to the Qi and Blood Like a Dragon realm would likely take several thousand taels—if one could even be found for purchase.
*No, I can't take the risk.*
*The Nine Nether Cult is too bizarre. Who knows what unfathomable methods they have up their sleeves?*
Lin Zheyu shook his head, abandoning the thought.
With his golden finger, there was no need to take such a massive gamble.
After encountering the living corpse, Lin Zheyu harbored even deeper suspicions about the Nine Nether Cult; the power lurking behind them was monstrously formidable.
He was merely a small fry in the Qi and Blood Realm; it was best not to meddle recklessly.
Time slipped by, and the sky darkened.
Lin Zheyu ceased circulating the Turtle Breathing Art, stood up, tapped the ground with his toes, and vanished into the mountain woods.
Another day without a harvest.
Night fell.
Lin Zheyu sat cross-legged in his courtyard, cultivating the Turtle Breathing Art.
His other arts had all been cultivated to perfection, leaving only the Golden Goose Skill and Turtle Breathing Art.
Cultivating the ninth layer of Golden Goose Skill was exceptionally difficult. Mastering it would require years of gradual grinding—at least twenty to thirty years.
An ordinary martial artist would never waste that much time attempting to fuse a violent qi and blood burst technique into leg techniques.
It simply wasn't worth the investment.
Even if someone were willing to spend that much time, success was far from guaranteed.
First, learning the qi and blood burst technique itself required years of painstaking, dedicated practice.
Second, conditioning the body to withstand unrestrained bursts required at least seven, eight, or even ten years of continuous tempering with high-grade medicines and tonics.
Then came mastering leg techniques to the pinnacle of perfection before one could even hope to merge the qi and blood burst technique with them.
The entire process was exceedingly demanding; failure in a single requirement meant total defeat. Ordinary practitioners could never achieve it.
Only Lin Zheyu, backed by his golden finger, dared entertain such an audacious idea.
The moon hung bright amid sparse stars.
Clear moonlight draped a silver veil over the entire courtyard.
Lin Zheyu's chest rose and fell gently, his breaths long and slow.
His presence subsided to the bare minimum, resembling that of a commoner who had never practiced martial arts. If he swapped back into the green scholar's robe he wore while storytelling, he would look like nothing more than a frail, bookish scholar.
Suddenly, Lin Zheyu's ears twitched. He opened his eyes and gazed toward the distant night sky.
A flare shot into the sky, bursting across the heavens in a gorgeous, brilliant flash.
*That looks like the Zhao clan's territory. Has the Zhao clan come under attack?*
Lin Zheyu was somewhat surprised.
Rising to his feet, he entered the room, changed into night-prowling garb, masked his face with black cloth, and vanished into the darkness.
Such an intriguing occurrence rarely came along; how could he not go watch the spectacle?
Those great families were dripping with wealth; perhaps he could fish in troubled waters.
Whoosh—
Several shadowy figures flickered past beneath the night sky.
Concealed within the shadows, Lin Zheyu pushed the Turtle Breathing Art to its limit, keeping his aura completely restrained. Coupled with the Golden Goose Skill, he moved without making the slightest sound.
He did not employ his qi and blood burst technique; his control over it was still incomplete, and while it granted immense speed, it stirred far too much commotion.
By the time Lin Zheyu arrived at the spot where the signal had been fired, the intruder had already departed.
*It really is the Zhao clan's estate. Though it's only a branch family's residence, the side courtyard of the main lineage is right next door. This person is quite bold!* Lin Zheyu thought to himself.
The Zhao estate was currently in turmoil. Defenses were tight, with guards brandishing crossbows, ready to shoot anyone attempting an assault full of holes.
City patrol soldiers were also arriving in waves.
Seeing no opportunity to fish in troubled waters here, Lin Zheyu set off in pursuit of the intruder.
*Who could it be? Could it be the Xu, Ren, or Chen clan?* Lin Zheyu wondered.
Surveying his surroundings covertly, he noticed quite a few curious onlookers tracking the intruder just like him—five people in total, all tailing far behind.
Suddenly, several more flares soared into the dark sky from all directions, bursting into vivid sparks.
Judging by the smoke signals, two were from the Feihong Gang, one was from the Nine Stars Gang, and two were from the Wuding Gang.
Lin Zheyu pulled to a stop, a look of bewilderment on his face.
*Someone is trying to stir up serious trouble!* he thought.
Songyi City's defenses were currently strict, with tight inspections on all incoming and outgoing individuals, making infiltration difficult.
The perpetrators were very likely the major families of Songyi City, though he couldn't tell which family had laid this trap.
Lin Zheyu leaned toward the Xing clan; only the Xing clan possessed both the strength and the ambition.
With a flick of his frame, he dashed toward the location where the Feihong Gang's distress signal had been launched.
Those two locations corresponded to the territories of the Xu clan and the Chen clan.
Lin Zheyu did not head toward the Xu clan; instead, he rushed toward the Chen clan's distress location. The Xu clan had numerous experts and heavy security; they would be fine without his intervention.
Chen Clan, Pine Court.
This was the estate of a Chen branch family.
The perpetrator possessed great self-awareness, knowing that the direct lineage's estate was heavily guarded by elite experts, and did not dare strike the main residence.
Although most clan members had already departed with the first evacuation, about a fifth of their forces remained behind.
Those left behind were all elites, tasked with tying up loose ends and guarding the clan's assets in Songyi City.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—
Scores of arrows whistled through the air as a black-clad figure bolted out from Pine Court, leaping several times before swiftly melting into the night.
"Hmph, dream on if you think you can catch me!"
The black-clad figure glanced at the flare rising into the sky and sneered.
Before long, several figures burst out behind him, giving chase at breakneck speed.
"Jie-jie-jie... Want to catch me? Go practice for another hundred years!"
A harsh, raspy voice rang out as the man taunted them arrogantly.
He intentionally paused, waiting until the two pursuers behind him closed to within ten meters, before darting forward again to widen the gap.
It was as if he were mocking the two Chen clan members as useless trash.
"Be careful, he seems to be intentionally luring us in!" the old man on the left said gravely.
He was a Qi and Blood Realm expert of the Chen clan whose strength had reached the First Blood Transformation, and he was skilled in leg techniques.
Yet this man before them was a notch faster even than him.
"Haha, useless trash, too scared to chase?"
"If you don't chase, I'll come back every night to kill a few of you, hahaha!"
Seeing his two pursuers slowing down, the black-clad man stopped, turning around to jeer at them.
"Useless trash, your Chen clan is nothing but—fuck!"
Halfway through his words, the black-clad man's expression changed violently.
A terrifying blast of wind swept in. The attacker's speed was astonishingly swift, closing in beside him in utter silence.
It was utterly inconceivable.
The black-clad man had absolute confidence in his own perception and speed. While there were people in Songyi City capable of approaching him unnoticed, such individuals were exceedingly rare—all heavyweight elders guarding their clans who would never leave lightly.
His mind raced as his inner qi and blood power erupted. Stamping down violently, he attempted to dodge the ferocious incoming palm.
Yet it was too late.
The attacker was terrifyingly fast; in the blink of an eye, the palm slammed into his chest.
Crack, crack, crack!
A dense chorus of bone-fracturing snaps echoed from within his body. Every rib in the black-clad man's chest snapped, and his entire body went flying backward.
With a booming crash, he slammed onto the ground, shattering the bluestone paving beneath him.
He widened his eyes, staring ahead, but the person who had struck him was already gone.
Pfft—
The black-clad man spat out a mouthful of blood, his breath entirely extinguished. His eyes remained wide, filled with the grievance of a death with unclosed eyes.
*An expert of the Second Blood Transformation. The faction behind him is bound to ache over this loss,*
Lin Zheyu thought as he melted into the darkness. Less than two breaths had elapsed from the moment he struck to his departure.
With his current strength, an ambush utilizing a threefold qi and blood burst Mountain-Shattering Palm would leave even an expert of the Qi and Blood Four Transformations to perish with eternal regret on the spot.
Chapter 97