As Chu Ge hid in the shadows and collected the corpses,
farther back in the small creek, Wang Xiuyun had evidently also recovered her strength and began to climb out of the water, calling out weakly.
"Th-, thank you, benefactor, for stepping in. My Wang family—"
Before she could finish speaking, she saw that the mysterious person with skin as tanned as an old farmer had already vaulted away, leaving only a sentence drifting into the woods in a hoarse, elderly voice.
"Lass, the pugilistic world is treacherous and human hearts are fickle. Realm of strength does not equal actual combat power either, so you still need to be a bit more worldly-wise."
Hearing this, Wang Xiuyun froze. Soaking wet and lying beside the cold stream, she watched that figure rapidly pass through the woods and head off into the distance, her gaze suddenly turning somewhat dazed.
Having returned from the prefecture city, she had fancied herself well-acquainted with many young elites and grand scenes, and the martial arts she had learned were without exception top-tier. Therefore, during the past few days since her return, her mindset had indeed been somewhat frivolous.
Hearing today that her family's caravan had been attacked and casualties had ensued, she ignored her father's stern reprimands. Relying on her high skill and bold daring, she had secretly climbed out of the family compound and left the city, intending to turn the tide single-handedly.
Unexpectedly, she had been deceived by the traitor Ding Ying and suffered a fall.
Thinking that if she had truly fallen into the hands of the villains, the consequences would simply have been too dreadful to contemplate, she realized she had only been making things worse.
"Still... that ol'—that old mister saved me."
Wang Xiuyun murmured under her breath, pulling herself up from the creek.
Abruptly hearing the sound of approaching footsteps, she immediately grew vigilant.
Upon seeing that the clothes of the people coming from the opposite woods belonged to the city's bailiffs, she let out another sigh of relief, though her guard was not completely lowered.
A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit. No matter what she said now, she would never blindly trust anyone again.
Inside Linyuan City, matters were already in utter chaos.
Over a dozen mysterious figures in cloaks had suddenly raided several prominent households in the prosperous district, instantly plunging the surroundings into panic and disarray.
Fortunately, however, the master of Tiger Martial Arts School and the bailiffs remaining on guard in the city had acted in a timely manner, intercepting the numerous marauding bandits. The two factions were currently locked in fierce combat.
Within a deep, walled courtyard, several explosions like thunderclaps rang out from the collision of combat energies, sending surrounding flowers, plants, and dirt fragments scattering.
Two figures crossed paths rapidly within the courtyard.
People were even fighting in the corridors of other directions.
Soon, one of the elderly figures gave a muffled grunt and retreated with a flash, his figure landing abruptly atop an artificial rockery at the rear to steady himself.
With a loud bang, the rockery split apart, tottering precariously.
The old man's figure swayed a few times before he managed to stand firm, his expression unsightly as he stared at the cloaked man outside the pavilion opposite, his gaze then shifting unostentatiously toward the subordinates who were all entangled in the surrounding area.
"Hachachacha, Hu Xuezhi, is that all your Tiger Crouching Technique amounts to? These are cat paws, not tiger fists!"
Outside the pavilion, the cloaked man laughed at his leisure, his cold mouth curving into an icy arc as he spoke. "Since this envoy lured Tian Youji away on a wild goose chase, how could I possibly overlook you?
"Did Tian Youji think that inviting you to hold down the fort inside the city would make everything foolproof? That is underestimating this envoy far too much.
"If you make no move now, you can still withdraw completely unscathed. This envoy only seeks wealth; once my subordinates outside have harvested theirs, we will naturally depart. How about it?"
Hu Xuezhi's expression was grim, but he did not answer.
Abruptly, a steady and cold voice drifted in from outside the courtyard wall.
"You had better worry about whether you can depart safely yourself!"
With a bang, the courtyard gate burst open wide, revealing the short-bearded, leopard-eyed, robust figure of Tian Youji.
The cloaked Iron Token Envoy's expression changed abruptly. "You didn't leave the city?!"
"Feinting to the east and striking in the west, luring the tiger away from the mountain—did you really think Tian is so easily played around with by you?"
Outside the city, Chu Ge had already removed the porter's Shadow Puppet Face Pattern, recovered his own appearance, and was riding swiftly back on horseback.
He had originally intended to leave the city to observe the clash between Tian Youji and the external envoy from the stronghold of the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult, while also seeing if there was an opportunity to pick up scraps.
Yet unexpectedly, upon making the trip outside, he had not run into Tian Youji or the Iron Token Envoy at all. Instead, he had accidentally saved Wang Xiuyun and collected five corpses.
However, through interrogating the two "Death-Chasing Ghosts" earlier and overhearing the exchange between Ding Ying and the others, he had already figured it out.
It turned out that the Iron Token Envoy was not outside the city at all, but was instead using a diversionary tactic to lead a surprise attack inside the city.
He had also quickly realized something.
The reason he hadn't spotted Tian Youji's figure when he left the city was probably because Tian Youji had never left at all.
"Could it be that Tian Youji saw through the opponent's diversionary tactic of luring the tiger away from the mountain long ago? And if he saw through it, could he too have an insider?"
Chu Ge galloped wildly on horseback.
Seeing the city's outline ahead, he abruptly vaulted off the horse and abandoned it, his cloak unfurling like a giant bird soaring into flight.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—"
In an instant, he untied his cloak and rapidly executed his movement technique. The distinctly outlined muscles across his entire body coordinated and undulated with an abundance of explosive power, akin to a fierce tiger descending a mountain. Rushing fiercely toward the city, his speed was even faster than a horse's.
Tian Youji not leaving the city meant he was likely already clashing with the Iron Token Envoy inside.
With Hu Xuezhi, a Blood Change Realm martial artist, still in the city—even if Hu Xuezhi's qi and blood were in decline—the Iron Token Envoy would not come out on top.
Chu Ge was primarily worried that his old residence would be uprooted by some blind cultists of the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult.
After all, he still had a fair amount of gold and silver jewelry kept in the main house. Once ransacked, he would have nowhere to cry.
A cup of tea's time later.
Chu Ge had already rushed to the bustling, chaotic city gates.
Robbers and fierce villains appearing within the city had caused numerous panicked and apprehensive commoners to flee outside, though they dared not run too far and had all gathered near the city gates. Heads bobbed in a dense mass, noisy and quite chaotic.
With even the city gates reduced to such chaos and no government soldiers to rein them in and maintain order, the situation inside the city was evidently even worse.
Passing through the clustered mob at the city gate, Chu Ge was forced to squeeze his way into the crowd.
Some fishermen from the fish dock who recognized him immediately offered warnings when they saw someone still heading into the city.
"Young Master Chu, there are plenty of vicious and atrocious robbers inside the city, and people have already met with foul play earlier. You must not go in!"
"That's right, Young Master Chu. Let's all stay here together; losing wealth averts disaster, let's just leave it at that."
"It's fine, I'm also a martial artist of Tiger Martial Arts School and have the strength to protect myself. Thank you all for the warnings, neighbors."
After offering his thanks all around, Chu Ge pushed through the crowd and entered the city.
At this moment, hardly a soul could be seen inside the city. Many commoners who had not fled outside were hiding in their homes.
Occasionally, panicked-looking commoners could be seen on the streets, also running toward the city gates.
Even some local ruffians were taking advantage of the chaotic times to follow along in looting, snatching grain and rice. It was absolute disorder everywhere, laying bare the evil side of human nature without reservation.
Chu Ge had no time to spare for distractions and headed straight for the prosperous district where his home was located.
Just as he reached the street corner, he heard the sounds of clashing weapons and the shouts of battle.
His expression changed slightly, and he paused at the street corner to observe for a moment.
He saw numerous city guards, bailiffs, and disciples of Tiger Martial Arts School not far away, surrounding and slaughtering a group of cloaked Heaven and Earth Incense Cult bandits.
Judging solely by the momentum and tactical situation of the two sides, the forces inside the city clearly had the upper hand.
The group of bandits was gradually falling into a disadvantageous position.
"Good, the situation looks like it's under control."
Chu Ge breathed a sigh of relief.
Just at that moment, a bandit happened to break through the encirclement and flee toward him, his expression filled with the desperation and fierce bravado of someone driven to the end of his rope.
As his qi and blood surged, his skin turned a pale cyan and his muscles bulged—unmistakably the manifestation of the Muscle Refining Realm, with tough skin and iron-like muscles.
The sabers of nearby soldiers hacking into his body seemed capable of leaving only minor gasps of wounds, with virtually no excessive spurting or flowing of blood.
This fellow charged forward like a rushing tiger or bolting wolf, bursting straight out of the encirclement and heading directly for the street corner where Chu Ge stood.
A thought stirred in Chu Ge's heart, and he took a step back, preparing to sit back and reap the rewards.
Now that his side held a commanding advantage and the situation in the city was under control, he had no direct desire to stand out and show off.
That was to avoid any hidden, formidable experts of the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult lingering nearby who might have gone unnoticed and targeted him, though intercepting a Muscle Refining Warrior was something he could easily accomplish with a flick of his hand.
Before you continue