Masked Strongman

Little Maid was instantly frightened pale, instinctively wanting to scream.

But before she could make a sound, a rough, powerful hand covered her mouth.

"Don't make a sound. If you dare make the slightest noise, I'll kill you. Understand?"

Xu Yunfan lowered his voice, making it deep and menacing as he threatened Little Maid beside her ear.

At his words, Little Maid's eyes immediately filled with tears, and she nodded repeatedly in terror.

"Good. Then let me ask you."

Xu Yunfan still kept his voice low, so deep it seemed to come from the darkness itself.

"Where is the Hu Family's treasury?"

How could Little Maid dare hesitate? Trembling, she quickly pointed out the direction.

Xu Yunfan looked toward where she pointed and saw that the buildings there were brightly lit, as though it were daytime. He considered it silently. It was only natural for such an important place as the treasury to be guarded layer upon layer, but someone had infiltrated Hu Residence now. That black-clad man had drawn away a great deal of attention, so the treasury should be less heavily guarded.

Just as he was about to ask a few more questions, Xu Yunfan's brows suddenly furrowed. He instinctively sniffed lightly.

Why was there a smell of urine?

Filled with confusion, he lowered his head and looked at Little Maid before him, who was barely one and a half meters tall.

Her body was trembling like a quail, and she looked utterly pitiful.

"Did you wet yourself?"

Xu Yunfan could not help asking in a low voice.

Hearing Xu Yunfan's blunt words, the fear in Little Maid's heart was instantly replaced by overwhelming shame and indignation.

Embarrassed and angry, she lowered her head, clenched her teeth, and no longer felt afraid. She said nothing, wishing she could crawl into a crack in the ground. She even wanted to die.

When Little Maid saw that Xu Yunfan had made no further move, she slowly raised her head, only to discover that he had already vanished.

She opened her mouth, then immediately closed it again as she remembered her current miserable state.

If the other maids found out, she would never be able to hold her head up for the rest of her life. If the masters found out, they might despise and detest her, then throw her out of the household. Such things had happened before.

Little Maid cautiously looked around. After confirming that no one was nearby, she quickly lowered her head and hurried away in a fluster.

From the shadows, Xu Yunfan took in all of this without making a sound.

In this ancient feudal society, although Great Zhou was not like certain dynasties from his previous life, where foot-binding was prevalent and women would seek death after someone saw their legs, wetting one's pants was still an embarrassing matter no one dared speak of.

Back when his former self had been at Jiang Manor, he had personally seen a maid get frightened so badly that she wet herself after a martial instructor threatened her with his fists.

Jiang Yu had naturally been utterly disgusted and directly sent that maid to the Imperial Brothel.

Those wealthy, powerful households truly had filthy foundations.

Xu Yunfan hesitated no longer. He strode forward, keeping close to the dark corners as he quietly made his way toward the treasury.

The entire Hu Residence was now focused on that black-clad woman. He encountered few people along the way, and those he did see were maids or servants.

When he approached the treasury, he found that the patrolling guards were indeed densely stationed around it. Their steps were steady and their gazes alert. They clearly possessed some martial ability, yet their eyes kept shifting about. The treasury was obviously not as peaceful as it appeared.

Xu Yunfan hunched over. His hunting skill made his movements difficult to detect, and he cleverly used the surrounding clutter and shadows to evade the guards' sight.

'You concealed your form and hid yourself cleverly behind obstructions, preventing your prey from noticing your movements. Your Hunting Proficiency has increased.'

Holding his breath and suppressing his presence, he glanced at the proficiency notification that had appeared in his field of vision and quietly waited for an opportunity.

This hunting skill was proving even more effective than he had expected.

Only about ten minutes later, a shout suddenly rang out through Hu Residence.

"An intruder has broken in! Hurry and protect Master Hu!"

It was the voice of the middle-aged man who had chased the intruder out of Hu Residence.

Upon hearing this, the leader took more than half of the treasury guards away, leaving the heavily guarded treasury half empty in an instant.

It was as if a pillow had been delivered right when he was sleepy.

Xu Yunfan rejoiced inwardly. Sometimes, if one waited a little, good fortune might come on its own.

There were only four or five guards before him, all barely initiated into martial arts. Though the minor leader had a burly build, his vitality was somewhat lacking. He looked to be no more than at the Lesser Accomplishment realm.

Xu Yunfan no longer concealed himself. Under the watchful eyes of the guards, he stepped out from the darkness of the corner.

Now that he no longer hid himself, his slightly heavy footsteps seemed to tread upon the guards' hearts, causing them all to turn and look.

The leading guard's expression changed at once. The newcomer was dressed in black, his face covered, and his bearing fierce. He was clearly not here for tea.

He drew the long saber from his waist and shouted, "Halt!"

The other guards also drew their long sabers, fully on guard.

Yet Xu Yunfan seemed not to hear them. His pace did not slow. The muscles throughout his body swelled slightly, his bones crackled softly, and his clothes stretched taut over his bulging muscles.

In the blink of an eye, Xu Yunfan had taken several great strides and closed in on a guard.

The guard's eyes widened in terror. The Plain Dao in his hand instinctively slashed toward Xu Yunfan.

Xu Yunfan neither dodged nor evaded. He raised the back of his hand and thrust it forward.

With a clang, sparks flew everywhere. The guard's Plain Dao was jolted from his grip, while Xu Yunfan's arm showed no injury beyond a faint white mark that was nearly imperceptible.

Within a few breaths, even that white mark quickly disappeared.

"Iron body training!?"

The leader cried out in shock. He had never expected to encounter someone who practiced external body cultivation.

Xu Yunfan threw a punch. His fist tore through the air with a hissing sound, heavy and swift. Before the guard could react, the blow struck him squarely in the chest.

The guard screamed and flew backward like a kite with its string cut, slamming heavily into the wall. He spat blood and passed out on the spot.

The remaining guards revealed fearful expressions, but they still gathered their courage, brandished their weapons, and charged together.

Xu Yunfan remained utterly calm. With Fleet Foot exerted, his body moved like lightning, weaving back and forth through the crowd. Every punch was accompanied by a dull thud and a scream.

His fists were like heavy hammers smashing into the guards. The sounds of snapping bones and tendons rose one after another.

The minor leader was horrified. He wildly swung his long saber, trying to block Xu Yunfan's attacks.

However, Xu Yunfan dashed in front of him, flicked the long saber away with one finger, then brought his palm down and seized the wrist holding the weapon. With a slight exertion of force, a crack rang out as the wrist bone fractured.

The minor leader screamed, and the long saber fell to the ground.

Xu Yunfan followed with a kick to his lower abdomen. The minor leader flew through the air and crashed onto the ground, passing out from the pain.

In only a few short breaths, all four or five guards had fallen, completely unable to resist.

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