Crisis and Harvest

Bai Yu finished dealing with the three corpses, and couldn't help but relax a little.

Just then, he looked up and saw a white-clad young master smiling at him from the opposite pavilion.

That smile was exactly the same as the one the three guards had seen before they died!

Even Bai Yu, who usually didn't show his emotions, couldn't help but change his expression at this moment.

The white-clad young master saw the look on Bai Yu's face, and a hint of almost imperceptible killing intent flashed in his eyes.

He leaped up, soaring through the air, and landed in the small courtyard.

The head steward and Xiao Fu saw him and hurriedly saluted:

"Second Young Master!"

"Second Young Master, what brings you here?"

It turned out that this was the Xiao Family's Second Young Master.

Bai Yu also lowered his head, cupped his hands, and saluted:

"Greetings, Second Young Master Xiao."

Second Young Master Xiao smiled gently and said:

"No need to be so polite."

He then stared intently at Bai Yu:

"What? Has this little brother seen me before? Why did your expression change so drastically when you saw me just now?"

Bai Yu was shocked. This was the murderer who had killed Mangzi and the three guards.

If he accidentally let something slip, there was no guarantee that he wouldn't kill him to silence him.

Bai Yu kept his composure on his face, but his brain was working at full speed.

He pretended to be somewhat apprehensive and said:

"In response to Second Young Master's words, this humble one has indeed seen Second Young Master before."

Second Young Master Xiao became interested and asked curiously:

"Oh? When did you see me?"

He was still smiling, but Bai Yu instinctively felt a killing intent hidden within.

Bai Yu said unhurriedly:

"This humble one once saw Second Young Master in a poem."

"A few months ago, this humble one saw a miscellaneous poem: 'Young men of Wuling, east of the gold market, silver saddles and white horses in the spring breeze, where do the fallen flowers lead? Laughing into the Hu girl's tavern.'

"Originally, this humble one thought it was just empty words, but I didn't expect that upon seeing Second Young Master today, you are just like someone who walked out of that poem."

"Only now do I know that there really are such unrestrained and outstanding young masters in this chaotic world."

Second Young Master Xiao laughed heartily upon hearing this:

"I like what you said, little brother. That poem is worth a hundred taels of silver. Head Steward, make a note of it for this little brother."

The head steward hurriedly said:

"Second Young Master, rest assured, I will settle it together with this little brother's wages."

The Second Young Master looked at Bai Yu again and asked:

"Little brother, where did you see this poem? Is the original manuscript still there?"

Bai Yu was prepared and said:

"In response to Second Young Master's words, this humble one went to the Black Market before to buy some talisman paper and cinnabar."

"I flipped through a few books at an old man's stall who sells antiques. There was a poem written in one of the books, and this humble one found it interesting, so I memorized it."

"Unfortunately, I was short on money at the time and didn't buy it. If Second Young Master wants it, I can lead the way for you."

Bai Yu's words were seamless, pushing the origin of the ancient poem to Old Diao at the Black Market.

Old Diao sells so many books every day that he doesn't even know what's inside them. Even if the Xiao Family's Second Young Master wanted to verify it, he wouldn't be able to.

Second Young Master Xiao suddenly understood:

"So it was at the Black Market. That's not surprising. I didn't expect you to be a book lover as well, little brother."

He chatted casually with Bai Yu for a few words, and then leaped away.

Bai Yu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After inquiring with Xiao Fu, he learned that the Second Young Master's name was Xiao Bushi, and his martial arts skills were outstanding. His martial arts cultivation was at least Seventh Rank or higher.

Bai Yu was wary, hoping that he hadn't revealed anything just now.

For the next two days, he busied himself in the Xiao Family, cremating the three guards and then burying them.

[Successful funeral, reward: Blood Essence +140, Life Experience +999]

[Funeral participation 82%, family satisfaction 51%, choose two rewards.]

[Optional Rewards: Three Years of Internal Energy, Strength +10, Hundred-Zhang Flying Stars, Poison Dragon Whip Technique, Seven Star Sword Technique.]

[Successful Funeral Procession, Rewards Obtained: Strength +8, Life Experience +1024]

[Optional Rewards: Three Years of Internal Energy, Blood Essence +139, Armor Piercing Eight Slashes, Saber Technique Experience...]

[Successful Funeral Procession, Rewards Obtained: Blood Essence +166, Life Experience +719.]

[Optional Rewards: Strength +18, Four Seasons Sword Technique, Swimming Dragon Body Technique, Eight Trigram Palm...]

During his rest, he selected his rewards.

As usual, he first chose the attribute rewards like internal energy, Blood Essence, and saber technique experience.

In an instant, Bai Yu obtained ten years of internal energy, as well as a large amount of Blood Essence rewards.

Now, his internal energy had become incredibly deep and powerful, as if he had been cultivating for over a decade.

Next, he chose a hidden weapon technique – Hundred-Zhang Flying Stars, Yellow Rank, Middle Grade.

As someone who valued caution, hidden weapons, this kind of underhanded and lethal tool, were a must-learn.

Then Bai Yu chose a saber technique – Armor Piercing Eight Slashes.

[Armor Piercing Eight Slashes, Yellow Rank, Middle Grade, Compatibility 77%.]

Another saber technique that could be fused.

Without a second word, Bai Yu invested Life Experience to fuse Armor Piercing Eight Slashes and Soul Severing Saber Technique.

The fusion of the two saber techniques resulted in a brand new saber technique – Soul Severing Thirteen Slashes.

[Soul Severing Thirteen Slashes, Yellow Rank, High Grade!]

Bai Yu couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

He appeared the same as before, but in reality, his true strength had undergone a complete transformation.

The gains from this funeral procession were undeniably substantial.

Not long after, the head steward arrived, with Xiao Fu carrying a tray closely behind him.

The head steward cupped his fist in greeting and said, "Mr. Bai, thanks to you these past two days, the entire Xiao Family has finally felt a lot more at ease."

"This is two hundred taels of silver; please accept it, Mr. Bai."

Bai Yu politely declined a few times before accepting the two hundred taels of silver.

At this moment, the head steward continued, "Mr. Bai, although the bodies of the three guards have been dealt with, the source has yet to be found. I wonder if Mr. Bai has any way to resolve it."

"If Mr. Bai can resolve this evil, there will be an additional five hundred taels of silver as a reward."

Five hundred taels of silver; the Xiao Family was indeed generous.

However, Bai Yu wasn't tempted in the slightest; he couldn't take this money.

He couldn't directly say that the evil was Second Young Master Xiao, could he?

If he dared to say that, he definitely wouldn't be able to leave the Xiao Family estate.

But directly saying that he had no solution would not only ruin Uncle Jiu's reputation but also arouse even more suspicion.

Bai Yu's mind raced, and he said, "To be honest, head steward, I've been in the Xiao Family for three days, and I haven't been able to find the evil, nor have I found any abnormalities. There isn't even a trace of Sha Qi in the Xiao Family."

"How about this? I'll draw a few Sha Qi Alarm Talismans for everyone. If they encounter abnormal Sha Qi, they will make a sound, which might be of some use."

"The Xiao Family guards can carry them during their night patrols. If they can patrol in groups of a few, it should be even safer."

The head steward was overjoyed upon hearing this and hastily thanked Mr. Bai for his hard work.

Bai Yu didn't say much and busied himself for two or three hours, drawing a dozen Sha Qi Alarm Talismans in a row and handing them to the head steward.

Of course, he didn't charge any extra fees and instead cupped his fist in farewell.

Not long after Bai Yu left, in a pavilion, Second Young Master Xiao was overlooking the entire Xiao Family estate.

Inside the pavilion, sat a beautiful woman in red.

Her figure was exquisite, draped in a light veil, revealing endless allure.

The red-clothed beauty said faintly, "Second Young Master, is there anything unusual about this person? Should we kill him?"