In the opposite building, the Demon Hunting Squad had sworn their oath—sacred yet laughable.
Li Hao knew nothing of this. Had he known, he likely would have found it rather amusing as well.
Envoys of justice... In his eyes, that was nothing more than wishful thinking and self-brainwashing on the part of Liu Long and the others. Did they truly consider themselves the guardians of Silver City?
When Li Hao had shouted that slogan, his only thought had been to seize the moral high ground.
***
Inside the apartment.
Li Hao finished his boxing drills, and Black Panther completed his own dog boxing.
Man and hound were both thoroughly exhausted.
Li Hao sat panting on the floor, while Black Panther sprawled flat, looking as if he lacked even the strength to lift his head.
Black Panther felt he had been thoroughly swindled!
After resting a while, Li Hao endured the soreness racking his body and got up to clean the room.
The stench was overpowering!
It was mixed with the metallic reek of blood.
Stale sweat, blood, and dog smell filled the small room, making it truly foul.
Li Hao cleaned up quickly, keeping guard in case the Red Shadow suddenly appeared, lest it see anything amiss.
After tidying for a while, the smell subsided considerably.
A moment later, Li Hao sat on the sofa, gazing in slight abstraction at the three treasures before him.
Two swords and a stone saber.
All of them were supernatural items!
For an ordinary mortal to possess three supernatural items—none of them ordinary—if someone like that didn't die, who would?
To possess a jade was to court disaster!
"Teacher... Liu Long..." Li Hao muttered softly under his breath.
His teacher was a good man, or at least treated him very well; of that he was well aware.
As for Liu Long... he wasn't bad, either.
If the man didn't plot to seize his saber and swords going forward, then Liu Long truly possessed a trace of a righteous heart.
Liu Long knew Li Hao possessed treasures. He might not know their true power, but he knew Li Hao had them—and even suspected the saber was in Li Hao's possession. Aside from Yuan Shuo and Li Hao himself, not even the Red Shadow's faction necessarily knew for sure; Liu Long was the third person to deduce that the saber was likely with Li Hao.
Yet Liu Long had never brought it up. The man's single-minded obsession was slaying a supernatural and stripping away their mysterious energy to advance.
One had to realize that even the lowliest supernatural item was still a treasure to Liu Long.
He might not be able to wield it, but using such a treasure to trade for mysterious energy wouldn't be difficult at all.
If Liu Long were truly hell-bent on advancing to the supernatural realm and willing to descend into darkness, trading Li Hao and his blades to the Red Shadow's faction might well have secured him that energy.
At this thought, Li Hao's mind gradually cleared.
*Teacher probably shouldn't show himself lightly. Once he becomes a supernatural, he'll have his own troubles and pursuits to handle.*
*Liu Long...*
*If we resolve the Red Shadow's threat this time, where does the path lead after that?*
Thoughts flickered across his mind.
If the opportunity arose this time, perhaps he ought to help Liu Long advance to the supernatural realm.
With that in mind, Li Hao put on his inspector's uniform.
Black Panther raised his head, looking puzzled.
*It's the middle of the night—why put your clothes back on?*
"Come out with me!"
"Woof!"
The dog's eyes brimmed with suspicion. *For what?*
"We're making a trip to Silver City Ancient Academy. Same as before—keep watch for me."
"Woof, woof, woof..."
Black Panther whined softly, seemingly reluctant.
Li Hao chuckled. "Afraid of that thing? What's there to fear! Don't be scared! It's better if it shows up. In fact, I'm hoping it appears again. The more often it appears, the less I'll fear it, and the more I'll come to understand it!"
At this moment, he genuinely hoped the Red Shadow would appear.
Every encounter stripped away a bit of its mystique.
It would no longer be an insurmountable existence!
Although Li Hao currently had to place his hopes on his teacher and the others to resolve the trouble, he believed he couldn't rely on outsiders forever. Besides, the matter of the Red Shadow might not be resolved in a single stroke.
That was his intuition!
"Woof, woof!"
Black Panther resigned himself to his fate. Reluctant though he was, he had to stick with Li Hao to get by, so he obediently fell in line.
***
A short while later.
Man and hound set out into the dark night.
Destination: the Ancient Academy!
***
In the opposite building.
Wu Chao, who was still keeping watch, suddenly stiffened. "Boss!"
The others in the room turned to look at him.
"Li Hao has left the building!"
Liu Long was taken aback. What was Li Hao doing going out in the dead of night?
Didn't he know the danger he was in right now?
What was he playing at!
"Follow him!" Liu Long barked in a low voice. The members of the Demon Hunting Squad moved swiftly, shadowing him without delay.
Even though it wasn't a rainy night, venturing out alone in the dark was still perilous for Li Hao. Supernaturals preferred operating at night. Their rare appearances during the day were precisely to avoid excessive contact with ordinary mortals.
A clear boundary had been drawn between the supernatural and the mundane.
Furthermore, with the Night Watchers in the background, throwing the mortal world into chaos would invite their retaliation.
***
Meanwhile.
In a corner of Qiming Residential District.
Beneath a large tree, amid the shadows, a ghost face suddenly materialized.
The ghost-faced masked man!
Beside the masked figure, a red shadow flickered into view.
Behind the mask, a pair of eerie blue eyes looked into the distance, filled with faint bewilderment.
Li Hao had gone out at night.
*He cannot leave Silver City before the rainy season arrives!*
That sentence surfaced in the ghost-faced figure's mind—a command and directive from above.
His mission was not to kill, nor to deal with Li Hao directly. He had received only one order: prevent Li Hao from leaving Silver City. Li Hao's whereabouts had to remain confined to Silver City!
*A trap?*
The thought crossed his mind. The ghost-faced figure knew that the so-called Demon Hunting Squad had been shadowing Li Hao, but he didn't care.
The Demon Hunting Squad?
The supernatural and the non-supernatural were already two separate worlds.
Liu Long of the Demon Hunting Squad had some renown as a Hundred-Breaker martial master. Yet the martial path had long since declined.
Even Yuan Shuo, who had once rampaged unchecked across the realm, was now nothing more than a hired hand slaving away for the Night Watchers in exchange for their protection.
The era of martial artists had long faded away!
"Follow and see!"
The ghost-faced figure vanished into the darkness in an instant. The Red Shadow did not vanish, however; it drifted through the air, quickly pursuing Li Hao in broad daylight—or rather, out in the open.
The ghost-faced figure seemed unconcerned about the Red Shadow being discovered.
Even if it faced a Hundred-Breaker martial master, he was not particularly worried, because these mundane mortals simply did not understand that supernaturals... truly were no longer mortal beings!
***
Beneath the night sky.
Li Hao walked toward the Ancient Academy with the dog at his side. It wasn't too far, only a few kilometers, roughly a half-hour walk.
At this moment, he carried all three treasures on his person.
When boldness was required, Li Hao was exceptionally daring.
He was certain the Red Shadow would not kill him right now, so he actually hoped it would show up. If it did, he could learn more about it and also determine whether the Demon Hunting Squad could see it.
He knew someone from the squad was definitely following him.
Could these martial masters see it?
Li Hao wasn't sure!
The Red Shadow didn't seem to carry mysterious energy. According to Liu Long, martial masters detected supernaturals through faint fluctuations of mysterious energy; without that energy, could Liu Long still see it?
If he couldn't... that would be the greatest danger.
If Liu Long couldn't see it, what about Teacher?
If Teacher couldn't see it either, matters would become very difficult. Li Hao could see it, but he feared that even if he could, it would be useless—if his teacher and the others couldn't even strike the Red Shadow, that would pose the ultimate threat.
*I hope you show up!*
Li Hao thought to himself, longing to encounter the Red Shadow again.
He had even prepared himself for something audaciously reckless... He might try making a move this time. Relying on the fact that the Red Shadow wouldn't kill him yet, his courage was growing by the minute!
Five minutes passed; no one followed.
Ten minutes passed; still nothing.
Only after fifteen minutes did Black Panther suddenly grow restless, tugging at the cuff of Li Hao's trousers with his teeth.
Li Hao's heart steadied.
*It's here!*
How brazen—the Red Shadow truly had appeared. That signified something terrifying: either the entity behind the scenes was certain Liu Long and his squad couldn't see it, or it was confident that even if they did, Liu Long and his men were utterly beneath notice.
One had to remember that, according to Teacher, Liu Long was capable of taking down supernaturals who had just broken through to the Lunar Nether realm.
Keeping his expression blank, Li Hao continued walking forward.
Yet in Black Panther's eyes, an appalling scene played out.
A red silhouette suddenly emerged in front of Li Hao!
Blood-red!
It stood directly in Li Hao's path.
Yet Li Hao seemed completely blind to it, walking straight through the figure. The Red Shadow swayed slightly, rippling faintly.
At that very moment, Li Hao pulled a sword from his robes.
A small sword!
A faint ripple of mysterious energy seemed to pulse from the blade. Li Hao frowned slightly and glanced around, adopting a vigilant expression.
***
In the darkness.
Liu Long knitted his brows, his voice barely audible. "What's going on? He sensed danger... Did any of you?"
Not a single person present had felt anything out of the ordinary.
Even Liu Long himself hadn't sensed it.
He had merely felt a vague uneasiness!
Only when Li Hao drew the small sword and a faint trace of mysterious energy flickered did Liu Long detect something unusual. Had Li Hao discovered something, or had the sword in his hand sensed something?
That sword... was it the Li family sword?
From this distance, he couldn't glean much, but it was undoubtedly a supernatural item!
***
At the same time.
The silhouette of the ghost face surfaced in the shadows, his eerie blue eyes fixed on Li Hao's location, tinged with surprise.
A supernatural item!
Was this the treasure the higher-ups wanted?
*The sword... has appeared!*
*Did he notice something?*
The ghost face felt surprised and slightly puzzled. He knew Li Hao couldn't see the Red Shadow.
Li Hao hadn't seen it last time, and the same held true now; otherwise, he wouldn't have sensed an anomaly only after walking straight through it. What had prompted Li Hao's reaction had to be that sword. It truly was a treasure!
*Even if you noticed something amiss... what can you do about it?*
The ghost face thought to himself, completely unconcerned.
Even if you discovered it, what of it?
The Red Shadow was right in front of you—what could you possibly do?
Fewer and fewer people could see the Red Shadow these days; he had personally killed quite a few. As for the survivors, they were probably holed up at Night Watchers headquarters; one might not even find any in Silver Moon Province.
***
By the roadside.
Li Hao gripped the sword, frowning as he scanned his surroundings. He suddenly snapped, "Stop hiding! I've found you!"
Silence.
Li Hao abruptly swung the short sword, slashing through the air in all directions. A vicious look surfaced on his face as he gritted his teeth. "If you want to kill me, you'll pay the price! Don't think no one knows you're there just because you're hiding—I've known where you are all along!"
Fierce in appearance, but faint of heart!
"My teacher is a Hundred-Breaker martial master, a top-tier martial master on the verge of the Thousand-Battler realm! If you touch me, you'll offend a Thousand-Battler martial master—is it worth it?"
"We can sit down and talk! It doesn't have to be life and death!"
"..."
Li Hao's words echoed into the darkness.
Meanwhile, he continued brandishing the sword, passing through the Red Shadow several times!
Yet the more he swung, the colder his heart grew.
Why?
What on earth was this Red Shadow?!
He had seemingly inadvertently slashed through it several times, yet the blade passed cleanly through the silhouette without inflicting the slightest harm. Why was this happening?
Even supernaturals weren't immortal or indestructible!
What was this thing?!
The next moment, Li Hao exhaled, sheathed the sword, and called out, "Boss, come out! No one is following me. Are you there?"
A moment later.
From the darkness, Liu Long strode forward in his trench coat, his brow furrowed.
He looked in Li Hao's direction, his eyes icy.
Not because of Li Hao!
Rather... because he had vaguely sensed it: something was wrong, truly wrong. It felt as though something existed near Li Hao.
He strained his senses to the utmost, yet still found nothing.
*There is definitely something there!*
With that thought, he strode forward.
A moment later, he arrived before Li Hao, just as Li Hao watched the Red Shadow vanish rapidly.
Li Hao's heart stirred. *Unwilling to make direct contact with Liu Long? Is it wary, or does it simply see no need?*
As if sensing something, Liu Long abruptly looked in a certain direction, his eyes burning with murderous intent. After a long silence, once the Red Shadow had completely vanished, Liu Long spoke in a chilled, low voice: "Interesting... What a pity!"
"A pity?" Li Hao asked, puzzled.
Liu Long frowned and said coldly, "A pity I am not a Thousand-Battler! It seems to be a form of mental energy... Hundred-Breakers possess momentum; Thousand-Battlers possess spirit! No wonder it's so arrogant. With my momentum, I cannot peer into it... which means only reaching the Thousand-Battler realm could possibly allow one to lock onto it with spirit intent!"
With that, he snorted coldly. "Arrogant enough!"
Yet it possessed the reasons and the power to back up that arrogance.
He had sensed it, yet could not pin it down. Facing such an existence was an immense trial for Liu Long—exceptionally difficult to deal with, and one that could easily lead to a fall.
Li Hao's expression flickered slightly.
Momentum, spirit!
Teacher had mentioned this as well.
*Thousand-Battlers possess spirit!*
Could spirit see the Red Shadow?
Or could it still not see it, but at least lock onto its position?
This trip hadn't been in vain!
The Red Shadow hadn't taken Liu Long seriously, believing Liu Long couldn't see it, and hadn't cared much. Yet Li Hao had gleaned a crucial piece of information here.
Energy on the mental plane!
A Thousand-Battler's spirit intent might be able to lock onto it!
At this point, Liu Long looked at Li Hao again and fell silent for a moment before speaking. "Did you come out on purpose just to draw out the entity in the shadows for me to observe?"
"Yes!" Li Hao nodded.
Of course, that hadn't been his primary purpose. He had merely wanted to test whether Liu Long could see it and whether he himself had any way of making physical contact with the Red Shadow. As it stood, conventional martial arts couldn't, and supernaturals might not be able to either.
Yet Li Hao knew one thing: the blades could!
Indeed, just moments ago, both the jade pendant and the stone saber in his robes had faintly stirred with energy, which Li Hao had suppressed. He had resisted the urge to draw them and refrained from using them.
Liu Long said nothing more, glancing down at the short sword in Li Hao's hand with flickering eyes. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Know yourself and know your enemy. Though this move was risky, it allowed me to understand the danger far better..."
He pondered for a moment and added, "It touches upon the mental plane... This might truly be troublesome! It might even be an entity on the Thousand-Battler level..."
A Thousand-Battler wasn't necessarily insurmountable.
The crux was that it couldn't be seen.
Liu Long dropped the subject and changed the topic. "Head back early. Don't wander around!"
With that, he vanished on the spot.
The plan might need some adjustments.
Li Hao's excursion had been a good thing for him, granting him a deeper understanding of the enemy. He had already prepared himself to battle a combatant on the Thousand-Battler or Solar Radiance level. Though he was only a Hundred-Breaker, this was his home turf.
He had even planted a large number of landmines around the warehouse.
However, an invisible Thousand-Battler-level combatant was another matter entirely. He needed more thorough preparations and plans to solve this dilemma.
***
Beneath the moonlight.
Li Hao pulled his clothes tighter around himself. Liu Long hadn't spoken of giving up, which meant he was still searching for a way.
That was a good thing; Liu Long hadn't backed down in fear.
"Thousand-Battler... the mental plane!"
Committing these details to memory, Li Hao continued on his way. This time, the Red Shadow did not reappear.
Soon, he reached the Ancient Academy.
Rather than entering through the main gate, Li Hao, now agile and nimble, pushed off the wall with a single leap, scaled it, and vaulted over into the academy grounds.
The academy's security was decent, but it was only designed for ordinary mortals. Li Hao was, after all, a Ten-Slayer realm martial master; evading standard security was no trouble at all.
***
Outside the courtyard.
Hu Hao, who was keeping watch in secret, furrowed his brows slightly and looked in a certain direction.
Beside him, Li Meng, who had been badly injured earlier, had a pale face as she waited. She suddenly turned her head toward Li Hao and muttered in bafflement and irritation, "Why is he here again?"
He was coming here far too frequently!
"Leave it be!" Hu Hao said. They had already suffered a setback at noon; there was no need to speak out now. If he was here, he was here.
While the two were speaking, Li Hao walked straight into the courtyard.
This time, no one stopped him.
***
The Yuan Residence.
The courtyard was quiet. Yuan Shuo wasn't outside; he wouldn't be basking in the moonlight in the dead of night.
The door to the main house swung open on its own without any wind.
In the living room, Yuan Shuo seemed to have just finished cultivating. Having recently broken through to the Thousand-Battler realm, he was still consolidating his foundation.
His hair was dyed white again, and the wrinkles had reappeared on his face, making him look no different from before—not at all like the middle-aged man in his forties Li Hao had seen earlier.
"Teacher!"
Yuan Shuo nodded, glanced at him, and suddenly frowned, his voice dropping low. "Someone has their eye on you?"
"Yes."
Yuan Shuo scrutinized him with furrowed brows, then said with a heavy tone, "There are faint traces of spirit intent... You've been locked onto!"
"What?" Li Hao didn't quite understand.
Yuan Shuo explained, "Thousand-Battlers awaken the spirit! Before, I wouldn't have been able to detect it, but now... I can sense that someone left faint traces of spirit intent on you... and not long ago, either. Probably just moments ago. Did you run into the killer?"
Li Hao nodded. "I did! Captain Liu was following me, but he couldn't detect it. He also said it might involve the mental plane!"
"Tricky indeed!" Yuan Shuo sighed. "Though I suspected as much, having it confirmed still gives me a headache!"
Li Hao thought for a moment and added, "There's one more thing: the enemy leaves no trace behind. Captain Liu couldn't detect or lock onto it. Teacher..."
"Don't worry!" Yuan Shuo shook his head. "At our level, we don't rely merely on what's before our eyes; what you see isn't necessarily real! With spirit intent, even invisibility arts cannot deceive me, unless they are far stronger than I am."
Li Hao nodded. Since Teacher put it that way, he naturally wasn't boasting.
Li Hao hadn't come here just for this, either.
He retrieved the stone saber and placed it on the table.
Yuan Shuo looked at it, seemingly understanding what it was.
Li Hao said softly, "There is a peculiar mysterious energy inside it. It's far more aggressive than ordinary mysterious energy—unlike the gentle nature of starlight energy, its impact is ferocious!"
"Do the swords and sabers have different purposes?"
Yuan Shuo grew pensive. "The Li family sword, the Zhang family saber—one is gentle and nourishes the body, the other sharp and suited for assault. Among the Eight Great Families, there are also the Zhao family's fist, the Liu family's leg, the Wang family raised a big turtle, the Hong family's hammer, the Zhou family's spear, and the Zheng family's young master dragged behind..."
"Taken literally, the fist, the leg, the Wang family, and the Zheng family might not have weapons. But it's hard to say—fists and legs don't preclude weapons, and that turtle might represent a defensive shield or the like."
Yuan Shuo didn't rush to discuss the saber, analyzing the situation instead. "If the weapons of the other six families have all been taken, then the other party has absorbed their energy as well. The spear and hammer excel at attack, the turtle shell excels at defense, fists and legs are ferocious..."
His expression grew slightly solemn. "Then they will truly be difficult to handle. The main issue is that we don't know how much energy they've absorbed—all of it, a portion, or if the other weapons didn't even contain the energy found in the swords and sabers. The fact that they haven't dared to seize it openly, and instead want to capture and raise you, probably means they still fear the Night Watchers. That suggests their power shouldn't exceed our imagination by too much."
Rubbing his temples, he quickly continued, "I'll accept the saber for now, but I can't guarantee a breakthrough! Primarily because I don't know if there's enough time or enough energy inside it. But rest assured, even if the enemy exceeds the Solar Radiance realm, they aren't unbeatable!"
Li Hao nodded. "As long as Teacher is prepared. If things go south... we run! If we can't beat them, we flee. Teacher can always carry me away, right? Worst comes to worst, we flee to Night Watchers headquarters—they wouldn't just leave us to die, would they?"
Yuan Shuo chuckled. *Now that sounds like my student.*
However, that was easier said than done, and running wouldn't be easy; the distance was too great.
Silver City was simply too small!
It was too far from White Moon City.
As for fleeing right now, Li Hao was unwilling, and Yuan Shuo refused to yield. Besides, fleeing now would only provoke the enemy into acting prematurely, which would make matters worse. A few more days might give Yuan Shuo a chance to break through.
Master and disciple wasted no more words.
Yuan Shuo didn't even refuse, accepting the stone saber outright.
At a juncture like this, pleasantries were pointless.
Li Hao didn't linger and soon departed the courtyard.
***
Once Li Hao left, Yuan Shuo attempted to absorb a trace of the energy.
Before leaving, Li Hao had warned him that it was very painful.
Yuan Shuo hadn't taken it seriously.
Yet the moment he absorbed even a sliver of the saber energy, Yuan Shuo's mouth twitched. *Fuck, that hurts!*
This energy... was far too violent!
A moment later, his eyes lit up. *Good stuff.*
The ancestral weapons of the Eight Great Families truly were top-grade treasures; this sealed stone saber was actually brimming with such potent offensive energy.
"The Eight Great Families of Silver City... the more I learn, the more enigmatic they become!"
With that thought, he recalled the exploration of the ancient civilization ruins scheduled for the end of the month.
Yuan Shuo sank into deep thought.
*Could those ruins... have something to do with the Eight Families?*
Originally, the two had seemed entirely unrelated: one was in Silver City, while the other was nearly beyond the borders of Silver Moon Province; one was a small local matter, while the other was a ruin of an ancient civilization.
Yet now, he suddenly felt there might truly be a connection.
*I remember that at the main gate of the ruins, a turtle was embossed... I didn't think much of it before. Could it... have something to do with the Wang family of the Eight Great Families?*
At this thought, Yuan Shuo became lost in contemplation.
Those ruins were the largest he had discovered over all these years, the most well-preserved, and likewise the most perilous.
His injury from three years ago had occurred right there.
Many had died on that expedition, prompting the Night Watchers to abandon the exploration and keep the area sealed off.
Recently, it was slated to be reopened, and word had it that it wouldn't be the Night Watchers alone, but several supernatural organizations joining hands to explore it. Evidently, the Night Watchers were also worried about suffering heavy casualties again.
Though they had to share the spoils, they had no choice; there was strength in numbers, and if losses were heavy, everyone would shoulder them together.
*The Eight Families... the ruins... the killer behind the spontaneous human combustion cases...*
If the killer behind the combustion cases knew something about the Eight Families, or suspected—or even outright knew—that the ruins were connected to them, would they take part in the upcoming expedition?
If so, and if the enemy was an organization, would they concentrate more of their strength over there?
If that happened, Silver City would actually be somewhat safer.
*Don't dwell on that for now!*
Yuan Shuo took a deep breath. The urgent priority was resolving Li Hao's crisis first.
As for the ruins, he would look into that later.
Chapter 28