Returned

Night slowly fell. Tonight, dark clouds veiled the moon, leaving the sky dim and lightless.

On the city walls, the soldiers on duty sprawled every which way, some already beginning to nod off.

At the same time, a figure silently arrived beneath the walls. With a leap, he rose like a scallion pulled from dry earth, soaring upward as though riding the clear breeze beneath his feet.

After reaching the wall, he flashed aside, nimbly avoiding the nonexistent patrol guards, then vaulted back down the other side.

There were somewhat more people patrolling the city at night, but they were much the same as the soldiers atop the walls, merely going through the motions.

Li Yan had raised Wind Chasing Wave Treading to the level of Mastered. As he moved now, he was like an exiled immortal treading the wind—not only was he incredibly fast, but he made scarcely any sound.

Before long, he arrived outside the Shangguan Family.

However, the Shangguan Family was in very poor shape at the moment!

Outside the main gates, quite a few commoners were sleeping soundly against the surrounding walls. Others held torches and continuously patrolled the area, as though they feared people coming in—yet even more as though they feared someone leaving.

Seizing an opening, Li Yan leaped over the wall and entered the Shangguan Family estate.

The situation within the residence was the complete opposite of outside. Not even a candle had been lit inside; everything was pitch-black.

Just as he was wondering about this, a fierce wind suddenly howled behind him. Li Yan instinctively drew his blade in a backhand slash, and Waning Moon intertwined with a folding fan in midair.

A tremendous force came crashing in. In an instant, Li Yan was blasted several yards backward. As he looked up, he could not help sucking in a cold breath—Shangguan Liuyun had already attacked again.

"Brother Liuyun, hold your hand! It's me!"

He kept his voice low. The folding fan stopped an arm's length from his face, yet the terrifying wind it carried still made Li Yan's cheeks sting.

"You are... San Huo?"

A moment later, candles were lit in the side hall, and Li Yan sat facing Shangguan Liuyun.

"Monster, San Huo, I truly did not misjudge you. You're a complete monster!"

"In just a few short days, your Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art has actually broken through to the third layer. If the patriarch who created this art back then learned of it, his jaw would probably hit the floor."

"I just... happened upon a fortunate opportunity..."

Shangguan Liuyun did not press him to get to the bottom of things, but suddenly frowned and asked, "San Huo, did anything go wrong when you broke through?"

Hearing this, Li Yan thought briefly before telling him what had happened when he broke through to the third layer.

Shangguan Liuyun nodded. "This was indeed my mistake as your elder brother. I thought that even if your talent was extraordinary, breaking from the first layer to the second without the aid of miraculous pills would take at least several months. I forgot to tell you about some of the things that happen when this art breaks through."

Because of the unique nature of the Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art, every breakthrough was in fact a process of flowers blooming.

The terror of such accumulated energy erupting all at once could easily backlash upon the cultivator if he was not careful.

Therefore, when breaking through, the practitioner had to disperse all of his True Qi throughout his muscles, bones, and flesh, using it to strengthen his physique so it could withstand the impact.

At the same time, he had to empty his meridians, providing room for the True Qi about to erupt.

Even so, every breakthrough was no small gamble for the Shangguan Family.

"Actually, if one could also cultivate a body-tempering art, the Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art would be much safer when breaking through a realm. Unfortunately, the Shangguan Family has searched for many years and still failed to find a suitable body-tempering art."

Hearing this, Li Yan suddenly recalled that he seemed to have a body-tempering art himself.

Ever since the Hundred Beasts Marrow Quenching Scripture broke through to the fifth layer, Li Yan had not touched it again. Mainly because the Attribute Points it provided were not even as plentiful as those he picked up from killing people.

Yet Shangguan Liuyun's words gave him another idea. Perhaps he could find an opportunity to give it a try in the future.

"By the way, Brother Liuyun, why don't I see Brother Feiyun?"

"This..."

Hesitation appeared on Shangguan Liuyun's face, and Li Yan immediately sensed that something was wrong. "Did something happen?"

After thinking for a moment, Shangguan Liuyun finally said, "Come with me."

The two came to a side room. Upon entering, Li Yan saw someone seated on the bed, circulating his cultivation in meditation.

Shangguan Feiyun's face was deathly pale, his lips purple, and the heavy dark circles beneath his eyes looked like smoky makeup. There was no need to think about it—he had almost certainly been poisoned by a deadly toxin.

"This—how did this happen?"

"He was poisoned."

"Poisoned?" Li Yan was greatly alarmed. These past few days, he had poisoned no small number of people himself, so he naturally understood how dangerous poison was. If Shangguan Feiyun had been poisoned, would the Shangguan Family not have lost another formidable fighting force?

"That day, the city's commoners were bewitched into storming the estate, and people with ulterior motives had mingled among them."

"When Xiyun was seized, I set off in pursuit. As a result, Feiyun was ambushed with poisoned needles. For a time, I could not attend to both ends... and I failed to rescue Xiyun as well..."

"Fortunately, this toxin is not particularly severe. Feiyun can suppress it by circulating his cultivation himself, but the Shangguan Family has no spare fighting strength left at present..."

"Furthermore, in two days, the people who abducted Xiyun will trade with the Fierce Wind Bandits. If Xiyun falls into Wang Dingtian's hands..."

At this point, a flash of hatred and pain appeared on Shangguan Liuyun's refined face for the first time.

"Brother Liuyun, don't worry. Things have not reached the point of no return."

"San Huo, do you have an idea?"

Although Shangguan Liuyun considered Li Yan's strength to be nothing remarkable, in his heart, martial prowess was not the only measure of a person's strength.

Roaming the martial world required more than martial arts alone. Strategy, methods, and temperament—every one of these was extremely important, and their usefulness could even surpass martial skill.

And in Shangguan Liuyun's eyes, Li Yan was lacking in none of these aspects. In fact, he was outstanding beyond what someone of his age ought to be.

Sometimes, when righteous and prestigious sects like theirs could not devise a solution, someone as unreasonable as Li Yan could resolve the matter with ease.

"Let me think..."

After pondering for a moment, a vicious glint flashed through Li Yan's eyes. "There is indeed a way..."

"What is it?"

"First, deal with the Fierce Wind Bandits!"

At these words, Shangguan Liuyun's pupils abruptly contracted.

He had considered all kinds of possibilities, but never expected Li Yan to propose such a method in the end.

If the Fierce Wind Bandits were so easy to deal with, why would the matter have dragged on until now?

"San Huo, the Fierce Wind Bandits are no ordinary bandits. Though you killed a batch of them, they still number close to a thousand. Besides, how will you deal with Wang Dingtian, who is at the Fifth Level of Meridian Opening?"

"Right now, I am stretched too thin. I absolutely cannot go with you!"

Li Yan waved his hand. "Brother Liuyun need not act in this matter. If you were not here to hold down the ghosts and demons in the city, it would not be easy for me to make my move outside."

"This... what exactly are you planning to do?"

The corner of Li Yan's mouth curled up. His gaze fell upon Shangguan Feiyun on the bed, and he sneered. "Return the favor in kind. That is all."

Li Yan had arrived without a sound, and when he left, dawn had still not fully broken. After moving carefully through the city for a while, he found the inn marked with white cloth strips.

Perhaps to make things easier for Li Yan, the window had not even been properly locked.

The moment he entered the room, Mo Cheng, who had been meditating cross-legged, opened his eyes. "How did it go?"

After explaining the general situation to him, Li Yan did not hide his own plan.

After gaining a rough understanding of the situation, Mo Cheng nodded slightly, then said, "Everything else is manageable, but there is one problem."

"What?"

"The commoners of Dongjiang City!"