Flight Trouble

Xiao Jin's soul perception quickly discovered the owner of that gaze. He was somewhat surprised; the gaze naturally belonged to the guard named Xiao Wang.

"What's going on? Why does this man harbor such hostility toward me? I don't even know him." Xiao Jin was puzzled, but since he already knew the man bore him ill will, he would not let him off easily.

Xiao Jin did not intend to confront him directly. Instead, he wanted to see what exactly the man was plotting.

Without betraying any emotion, Xiao Jin returned to his room and pretended to cultivate.

Time passed quickly during the flight. In the blink of an eye, a day had gone by. Xiao Yi Xian was still cultivating her technique in her room. Aside from meals, Ya Fei rarely left her room, while Guni had not appeared since boarding the Thick-winged Bird. He was probably refining medicine in his room.

"This guy is really patient. He still hasn't made a move." Xiao Jin was already growing impatient.

Ever since sensing Xiao Wang's venomous gaze, Xiao Jin had been secretly watching him, waiting to see how Xiao Wang intended to deal with him. Though it certainly would not pose any threat to him, Xiao Jin was still somewhat looking forward to it—looking forward to the expression on Xiao Wang's face when he realized that no matter what he did, he could not harm Xiao Jin.

There was no helping it. Xiao Jin was bored right now. Since he did not cultivate, he could only find some amusement in Xiao Wang.

Unexpectedly, the fellow had remained in his room the entire time. He had neither come out nor made any suspicious moves. This left Xiao Jin rather confused. Had he given up? Was he no longer planning to target me?

"We should reach the Imperial Capital in a few more hours. I'll wait a little longer. If he still doesn't act, I'll have to go talk to him myself." Xiao Jin decided to wait a little longer and see whether Xiao Wang would make his move.

Just then, Xiao Wang finally acted. He swiftly made his way to the room of the guard called Brother Liang and lightly knocked on the door.

Very soon, a hand reached out from inside and pulled Xiao Wang in.

Xiao Jin saw this through his soul perception, and the corners of his lips curled upward slightly. Finally couldn't hold back anymore? Let me hear what you two have to say. His soul perception passed straight through the door and entered Brother Liang's room. Their conversation then reached Xiao Jin's mind.

"Brother Liang, have you thought it through? Once this is done, we'll get a Xuan Class Intermediate Dou Technique and join Elder Lei's faction. Opportunities like this don't come often." Xiao Wang looked at Brother Liang anxiously. They would arrive at the Imperial Capital in a few hours, and by then, it would be too late to make a move.

"Xiao Wang, are you sure Elder Lei will give us the Xuan Class Intermediate Dou Technique? What if he kills us to silence us afterward?" Brother Liang was still uneasy. If word got out that they had killed Ya Fei's group, he did not even dare imagine what would become of them.

"Don't worry, Brother Liang. Before leaving, I told one of my brothers about my deal with Elder Lei and had him flee the Imperial Capital to hide. If I don't go find him within a month, he'll tell the clan leader that Elder Lei ordered us to assassinate Ya Fei. Then Elder Lei won't get away with it either. With this life-saving trump card, Elder Lei won't dare kill us to silence us."

"Is that person reliable? What if he doesn't tell the clan leader after a month?" Brother Liang was still worried. After all, their lives were at stake.

"Don't worry, Brother Liang. This brother of mine grew up with me. I trust him completely," Xiao Wang said firmly.

Hearing Xiao Wang's words, Brother Liang finally relaxed. After pondering for a while, he seemed to make up his mind and stood up. "Let's do it. Once I get the Xuan Class Intermediate Dou Technique, I'll find somewhere to hide. I refuse to believe Elder Lei can find me."

When he heard Brother Liang agree, Xiao Wang was overjoyed. "Brother Liang, before we kill those two women, can your brother here have some fun with them first? They're both such beauties. It would be a pity to kill them just like that." Xiao Wang licked his lips and smiled lewdly.

"No problem. I only care whether I can get the Dou Technique afterward. Those two women are yours to deal with. But be quick. We don't have much time." Brother Liang agreed indifferently.

"Don't worry, Brother Liang. I'll make this quick," Xiao Wang said with a lustful grin, his mind endlessly imagining how he would deal with Ya Fei and Xiao Yi Xian.

"Stop daydreaming. Deal with Guni and that young man first. We won't have time later," Brother Liang urged. "Don't worry, Brother Liang. With the strength of two One-Star Dou Lings, taking care of them will be as easy as turning a hand," Xiao Wang said carelessly.

The two left the room. Xiao Wang crept toward Xiao Jin's room, while Brother Liang headed toward Guni's room.

Having heard every word of their conversation from his room, Xiao Jin's expression was now extremely grim. He did not care how the two planned to deal with him, but the fact that they had set their sights on Ya Fei and Xiao Yi Xian was something he could not tolerate.

"Xiao Wang, was it? I'll let you know what cruelty truly is." A vicious smile appeared on Xiao Jin's face. He curled his five fingers toward the door, and a terrifying suction force burst forth, forcibly dragging Xiao Wang, who had just reached the doorway, into his grasp. Xiao Jin seized Xiao Wang by the throat and lifted him up. Xiao Wang struggled wildly in his grip, his eyes filled with disbelief and terror.

"Mr. Xiao, what are you doing? I was just passing by." Xiao Wang put on an innocent act, hoping to fool Xiao Jin. After all, he had not made a move yet, so Xiao Jin should not know his intentions.

"Heh, still pretending to be innocent? I heard everything you and Brother Liang said. Tell me, then—how do you plan to die today?"

Xiao Jin's words made Xiao Wang's heart sink to the bottom. Now he could only hope that Brother Liang would capture a hostage. The commotion when Xiao Jin dragged him into the room had been quite loud. With Brother Liang's strength as a One-Star Dou Ling, he must have noticed already. Xiao Wang could only delay for time as much as possible. Perhaps he might even save his own life.

"Mr. Xiao, don't kill me. I'll tell you who sent us. I only ask that you spare my life," Xiao Wang shouted loudly, intending to draw the two women out so Brother Liang could seize them as hostages.

Just as he expected, Ya Fei's door flew open the moment she heard Xiao Wang's voice.

Ya Fei rushed toward Xiao Jin's room. Before she could reach his door, a dagger pressed against her snow-white neck. The icy sensation made Ya Fei stop, her dark gaze fixed firmly on Brother Liang before her.

"Did the clan leader send you to kill us?" Ya Fei's words were ice-cold, devoid of the slightest emotion. The people accompanying her back to the clan had been sent by the clan leader, yet these two now wanted to kill her. She could not help suspecting that this had been the clan leader's order.

"Miss Ya Fei, forgive me. We only want to stay alive." Brother Liang regretted it terribly now. He had just slipped into Guni's room and knocked Guni unconscious when he heard Xiao Wang's shout. For Xiao Jin to subdue Xiao Wang so quickly proved that his strength far surpassed their expectations. Going to help would only mean courting death. He might as well seize a hostage to threaten Xiao Jin; that gave him at least a sliver of hope of surviving.

Ya Fei said nothing, only looking at Xiao Jin with pitiful eyes. She believed that as long as Xiao Jin was there, this clown would not be able to hurt her. It was just that this left a bad impression on Xiao Jin. On their very first trip to the Imperial Capital together, something like this had happened. Xiao Jin would inevitably have his doubts.