Under the Net of Heaven and Earth, Even with Wings, Escape is Impossible

Su Qingyao stood there in a daze, her face filled with desolation and sorrow.

"Unfortunately, that guy still got away..."

"It seems his background is even more extraordinary than I imagined."

"With such skill at fleeing for his life, even the Azure Sea Heart Jade only managed to affect him."

Jiang Lan strolled over unhurriedly. Seeing the large patch of crimson blood beneath the ice, he remarked with apparent interest.

Earlier, it had only worked because they had caught him off guard and Lin Fan had let down his guard. If Uncle Ying had directly activated the item, then with Lin Fan's current skills, avoiding it would actually have been easy.

However, Jiang Lan had long anticipated this scene, so it did not come as a surprise.

Although Lin Fan's Eternal Calamity Sword could help him break through the void and flee, while crossing through the void, with his current physique and strength, he simply could not withstand the raging turbulent currents of Gale Wind.

Even if he did not die, he would be left grievously crippled.

The Azure Sea Heart Jade was precious and worth a fortune, but using it against Lin Fan was just as effective.

The intense, bone-chilling aura contained within it would erupt in an instant, freezing every one of Lin Fan's meridians. For a short time, he would become like an ice sculpture, unable to move.

Even after he later dispelled it, he would still be left with a cold affliction.

Under such circumstances, no matter how heaven-defying Lin Fan's fortune was, once he emerged from the void, he would at the very least be unable to move for ten days to half a month.

"This subordinate was incompetent and allowed the murderer to escape."

Uncle Ying's face was full of guilt.

He had supposedly been protecting Jiang Lan's safety all this time, yet now he had failed to stop even a murderer who was only in the Second Realm.

Jiang Lan waved a hand. "Uncle Ying, there is no need to blame yourself. That fellow came thoroughly prepared, which is why he was so fearless. But in this state, he should not be able to flee very far."

Uncle Ying immediately said, "I'll instruct people to search in every direction and find his trail."

Wang Anming, Lord of Yuyi City, hurriedly added from the side, "Rest assured, Young Master Jiang. I'll contact the lords of the other cities at once and have them send men to investigate and seek out that thief's whereabouts. We will strive to capture him as soon as possible."

Such a major incident had occurred. If he failed to handle it properly, he could forget about remaining Lord of Yuyi City.

At once, he took out a communication jade talisman and began mobilizing Yuyi City's various forces. At the same time, he issued a wanted order and offered a high-price bounty for Lin Fan's capture.

Jiang Lan had not expected the Lord of Yuyi City to capture Lin Fan anyway.

Unless the various immortal sects tracked him using the aura of his true soul, once Lin Fan changed his appearance and reshaped his body, completely remaking himself, who could uncover his true face?

Now that Lin Fan had fallen somewhere and would be unable to move for ten days to half a month, given the usual nature of a Son of Fortune, there was an eighty to ninety percent chance that someone would save him.

What Jiang Lan was considering was this: since Zhao Tianhe and Zhao Dieyi, that grandfather-granddaughter pair, had both appeared ahead of the plot, then after Lin Fan suffered severe injuries and fled this time, perhaps he too would be rescued by someone from the later plot.

In Jiang Lan's memories, there was one more person Within the Realm of Jiangling Commandery who had considerable entanglements with Lin Fan.

But that was no longer important.

When the time came, beneath a net cast over heaven and earth, with his greatest trump card gone, Lin Fan would be unable to escape even with wings. Death would be his only end.

Very soon, news that the Su Family's son-in-law had attempted to assassinate the Prime Minister's son swept through Yuyi City like a hurricane, causing an enormous uproar.

No one had expected a useless live-in son-in-law to have lain hidden in Yuyi City for so long.

In the current Great Xia Dynasty, this crime was no different from assassinating an imperial relative. It was a crime that would implicate nine generations.

The other major cities of Jiangling Commandery also received the news.

The lords of each city immediately coordinated with Yuyi City, mobilizing men to search everywhere while issuing wanted orders and offering sky-high bounties.

All manner of information regarding the Su Family's son-in-law also became known to countless cultivators through the various families of Yuyi City and members of the Su Family.

The many sects and powers within Jiangling Commandery were likewise shocked and deeply alarmed. They could only feel that this Su Family son-in-law was truly audacious beyond measure, utterly heedless of his life.

When the Prime Minister flew into a rage, a million corpses would fall.

For every clan and Daoist lineage implicated, who knew how many heads would have to roll before it was enough?

And attempting to assassinate his only son—this was likely no longer something as simple as a provocation to the Prime Minister...

Fortunately, the Prime Minister's son was kind-hearted and magnanimous. Considering that the Su Family of Yuyi City had known nothing of the matter, he did not pursue the Su Family's responsibility.

Everyone in the Su Family was overwhelmed with gratitude toward the Prime Minister's son.

That night, within the City Lord's Mansion of Yuyi City, Wang Anming hosted a banquet to express his apologies and atone to Jiang Lan for his failure in duty.

The patriarchs of the Four Great Families all came with their clansmen as well. On one hand, they had been invited by the city lord; on the other, they feared being implicated for the offense of causing a disturbance earlier that day.

Although the Su Family had not been held accountable by Jiang Lan, its members still remained uneasy and apprehensive.

Patriarch Su Changkong attended the banquet with Su Qinghan and Su Qingyao, while the clansmen behind them all carried gifts of apology.

The great courtyard of the City Lord's Mansion had been built in magnificent splendor.

The separate courtyard where the banquet was held, however, was rather tranquil. Red walls encircled it, green tiles shaded it, and slender willows and verdant bamboo draped around its edges, brimming with ancient charm.

A faint floral fragrance drifted through the air. Beautiful maidservants flitted among the banquet tables like butterflies among flowers, bringing fine wine or serving exquisite dishes—a sight too lovely to take in.

Yet compared to the Su Family's two daughters, each lightly adorned and beautiful in her own way, they seemed to lose all color.

Su Qinghan still wore a plain white gown, with a light dusting of powder over her face. Her skin was porcelain-like, lustrous and delicate, her features exquisite as though she had stepped from a painting. Within her cold expression was an aloof independence, like a lonely, sheer mountain of ice.

Her figure was slender and graceful, with alluring curves. Her jet-black hair was pinned into a cloudlike bun with a simple jade hairpin, several silken strands hanging beside her crystal-clear ears, giving her a uniquely charming air.

Her younger sister, Su Qingyao, resembled her somewhat, but appeared far more innocent and carefree, untouched by worldly affairs.

Her limpid, gleaming eyes were lowered uneasily, while her tender jade-white hands clutched the lotus-red sleeves of her dress. She was plainly very nervous.

Though an array of delicacies she loved lay before her, she did not dare pick up her chopsticks at will. Her slim waist was held ramrod straight, her posture doing its utmost to maintain the so-called elegant "etiquette" her father had taught her.

Compared to her sister's flustered nervousness, Su Qinghan, who had seen the great wide world, was much more at ease.

She sat quietly beside her father, neither interrupting nor saying much.