Night Raid

Under the moonlight, the empty street lay like a dead giant python, coiling in the darkness.

Li Xuan stood frozen, staring in the direction the creature had disappeared, unmoving for a long time.

Shi Yong walked back, his face ashen, "Couldn't catch it. That thing runs faster than a horse, vanished in the blink of an eye."

Su Ying got up from the ground, clutching her hammer, her voice trembling, "Senior Brother Li, what did that thing mean just now? What mark?"

Li Xuan didn't answer.

He turned and walked back into the house, squatting down where he had been sitting. He dipped his finger into the black, viscous fluid that had splattered when his blade struck the creature.

The fluid was cold, carrying a scent of decay.

He brought his finger to his nose.

There was no smell.

But the Blood Fiend Gang Qi within him stirred on its own, as if encountering something familiar.

"It's the same as in the mine," Li Xuan stood up, looking at Shi Yong. "The aura from that shadowy figure is from the same source as the aura from the Shaman's dried corpse when its eyes opened in the mine."

Shi Yong's face grew even uglier, "You mean... that thing escaped from the mine? But didn't the mine collapse?"

"It didn't escape," Li Xuan said. "It's been out here all along."

He walked to the window, looking at the broken lattice.

"Gurqin was sealed away for thirty years. He couldn't have done nothing in those thirty years. These shadowy figures could be the residual souls of his subordinates, his 'eyes' scattered about, or perhaps..." he paused, "things he has nurtured."

Su Ying asked softly, "Nurtured? With what?"

Li Xuan glanced at her, not answering.

But Su Ying understood on her own, her face instantly paling.

The missing people.

Those townspeople who vanished without a trace, their bodies never found.

"You mean... all those people were...?" she couldn't finish.

Shi Yong punched the wall, cracking it, "Damn it! Did we come too late? Are they all dead?"

"Not necessarily," Li Xuan said. "I wounded that thing just now. When it fled, it didn't head out of town, but deeper into it. That indicates its lair might be within the town."

Shi Yong's eyes lit up, "You mean there are survivors?"

Li Xuan remained noncommittal.

He walked to the doorway, looking down the dark street towards the deeper part of the town.

"It's almost dawn," he said. "That thing fears the light. When day breaks, we'll search for its lair."

At Mao Shi, the eastern sky began to show a fish-belly white.

Li Xuan and the other two tidied up briefly and began searching the town.

Black Stone Market wasn't large; it took only the time it takes an incense stick to burn to walk from east to west. However, the town was built on a hillside, with houses arranged according to the terrain, high and low, with narrow, winding alleys, some only wide enough for one person to pass.

They set out from the town hall, heading north.

They saw no one on the road. Every house had its doors and windows tightly shut. Occasionally, they could hear faint sounds from within, but no one answered their knocks. The remaining residents had been terrified into silence, too afraid to open their doors to anyone.

Shi Yong grumbled as they walked, "These people, we're here to save them, and they're still hiding."

"Don't blame them," Li Xuan said. "If it were you, with dozens of people missing over three months, and three strangers suddenly appear, would you dare open the door?"

Shi Yong thought about it and fell silent.

When they reached the northernmost end of the town, Su Ying suddenly stopped.

"Senior Brother Li," she pointed ahead, "what is that?"

Li Xuan followed her gaze.

At the end of the town was a small hill. On the hill stood a dilapidated temple. The temple was small, with only a main hall. The plaster on the walls was peeling, the roof tiles were broken, and the entrance was overgrown with weeds.

But what caught Li Xuan's attention wasn't the temple itself, but behind it, on the far side of the hill, was a black crevice. It looked like a natural rock fissure, or perhaps a man-made opening.

There were traces of black viscous fluid on the edges of the crevice, the same fluid that had splattered from the creature last night.

"Found it," Li Xuan gripped his sword hilt.

The three slowed their steps, approaching the old temple.

The temple door was ajar, with some blurred patterns carved on its wooden panels.

Li Xuan leaned closer to examine them. They were Buddhist statues, but eroded by wind and rain, their features no longer discernible.

He reached out and pushed the door open.

Creak--

The door hinges let out a grating sound.

The main hall was empty. The Buddha statue was long gone, leaving only a worn-out offering table overturned in a corner. Thick dust covered the floor, and scattered footprints marred its surface.

Li Xuan squatted down, examining the footprints. Some were large, some small. Some were bare, some wore straw sandals--

"There are survivors," he whispered. "At least seven or eight people, being herded inside."

Shi Yong's eyes lit up. "Where?"

Li Xuan pointed behind the temple.

The crevice was deeper than it looked. Upon entering, they realized it wasn't natural but had been widened artificially. Axe marks scarred the rock walls on both sides, and some of the stones looked new, indicating recent work.

The crevice sloped downwards, leading underground.

Li Xuan lit a torch and went in first.

Shi Yong followed, his heavy saber already drawn. Su Ying walked last, her hammer dragging on the ground with a faint scraping sound.

The crevice grew wider and deeper as they walked.

After about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the space suddenly opened up. They had entered a natural cavern.

The cavern wasn't large, about twenty yards across. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, and the floor was uneven and pockmarked. The air was filled with a foul stench, like rotting meat mixed with animal feces.

The torchlight shone--

Shi Yong gasped.

On one side of the cave wall, a dozen people were huddled.

They were crammed into a corner, clad in rags, their hair matted and faces dirty. Some bore wounds. Hearing the commotion, they all looked up in unison, their eyes fixed on the newcomers.

Their eyes were filled with terror.

Su Ying couldn't help but cry out, "People! There are still living people!"

She took two steps forward but was grabbed by Li Xuan.

"Don't move," Li Xuan's voice was extremely low.

The torchlight shifted to the other side.

Three figures stood there.

Humanoid in shape, they were shrouded in black mist, their eye sockets burning with green light.

They were identical to the things from last night.

The three dark figures turned their heads simultaneously, their green lights flaring in the darkness like three pairs of will-o'-the-wisps.

"Damn it," Shi Yong gritted his teeth. "Three of them."

Li Xuan released Su Ying, his Blood Wolf Saber unsheathed, Blood Fiend Gang Qi instantly covering the blade.

The three dark figures paused when they saw the blood-red light on the saber.

"Shi Yong, protect Su Ying and those people," Li Xuan said. "These three, I'll handle them."

"Are you crazy?" Shi Yong exclaimed, anxious. "You just broke through to Inner Qi--"

Li Xuan ignored him.

He took a step forward, activating the Mountain Suppressing Art to its limit, his legs rooted to the ground. Blood Fiend Gang Qi surged wildly within him, flowing from his arm into the saber, then erupting from the blade--

A three-foot saber aura shot forth, detached from the sword!

The saber aura struck the foremost dark figure. The black mist exploded, and the creature let out a piercing shriek as it was cut in half!

The remaining two lunged simultaneously.

Li Xuan didn't retreat, swinging his Blood Wolf Saber horizontally.

The second strike hit the left figure's shoulder. The blade sank half a foot deep, and the creature shrieked and stumbled back.

But the one on the right had already reached him, its black mist condensing into a claw that lunged for Li Xuan's chest!

Li Xuan sidestepped, evading the claw, and simultaneously threw a punch.

On his fist, Blood Fiend Gang Qi condensed into a bloody protective film.

His fist slammed into the creature's chest. The black mist exploded, and the thing was sent flying backward, crashing into the cave wall.

The first creature, cut in half, had already dissolved into black smoke. The remaining two struggled to their feet, the green light in their eyes flickering uncertainly, as if debating whether to continue fighting.

Li Xuan stood with his saber held high, his gaze fixed on them.

"Come on," he said.

The two figures exchanged a look, then suddenly turned and fled, disappearing into a narrower crevice deeper within the cavern.

Li Xuan pursued.

The crevice was too narrow for more than one person to pass.

He squeezed through sideways, chasing for about ten yards before entering another cavern, larger and darker.

The two dark figures were gone.

But someone was in the cave.

A person in a black robe stood in the center of the cave, his back to him.

Li Xuan tightened his grip on the saber hilt, circulating his Blood Fiend Gang Qi to its maximum.

The person in the black robe slowly turned around.

Moonlight shone down from a crack in the cave ceiling, illuminating his face—

Ghost Face.

Li Xuan would never forget that bronze mask.

On the night Iron Wall City fell, the owner of this mask had nearly killed him with a single palm strike.

"We meet again," Ghost Face spoke, his voice hoarse like grinding metal. "Li Xuan."

Li Xuan remained silent, his blade already pointed at him.

Ghost Face chuckled.

"Don't be nervous. I'm not here to kill you today," he said. "I'm just here to deliver a message."

"Who sent you?"

"Gurqin," Ghost Face replied. "He asked me to ask you: a month from now, on the day he is released, will you stand with him, or with the Crimson Firmament Sect?"

Li Xuan stared at him.

"You're helping him?"

"Cooperation," Ghost Face said. "We each get what we need."

Li Xuan recalled Yun Qingxuan's words: Ghost Face was not a Barbarian, and the aura around him was extremely strange.

"What do you need?"

Ghost Face didn't answer, merely looking at him, his eyes beneath the bronze mask as deep as an ancient well.

"You just need to answer my question," he said. "A month from now, which side will you be on?"

Li Xuan was silent for a breath.

"I'll stand on my own side."

Ghost Face paused for a moment, then laughed. He laughed loudly, his laughter echoing in the cave like the cry of a night owl.

"Interesting," he said. "Then I'll deliver your answer to Gurqin as is—that old fellow has waited three hundred years, he can afford to wait a little longer for an answer."

He turned and walked towards the depths of the cave.

Li Xuan wanted to pursue, but as soon as he moved his feet, he stopped.

Because behind Ghost Face stood dense, black shadows.

At least twenty to thirty of them.

They crowded in the depths of the cave, the green lights in their eye sockets like a sea of ghostly fire.

Ghost Face didn't look back, waving a hand.

"See you in a month, Li Xuan. I hope you're still alive by then."

As his voice faded, the black shadows vanished simultaneously.

Li Xuan was left alone in the cave.

He stood in place, the hand holding his saber trembling slightly.

The Wolf Soul imprint within him had been vibrating wildly just now.

While Ghost Face was speaking, the imprint felt like it would burst out of his body.

Li Xuan took a deep breath and sheathed his saber.

He turned and walked back along the crack.

Outside, Shi Yong and Su Ying had already rescued the trapped people. Over a dozen of them, men and women, old and young, all of them gaunt, with hollow eyes, like ghosts crawling out of hell.

Su Ying, her eyes red-rimmed, was feeding water to a child.

Shi Yong saw Li Xuan returning and walked up to him. "How was it? Did you catch up?"

Li Xuan shook his head.

Shi Yong glanced at his expression and didn't ask further.

The three of them led the group of people out of the crack slowly.

Outside, the sun had already risen.

Sunlight shone on the dilapidated temple, on the overgrown grass, on the faces of the rescued people.

Some knelt and kowtowed, some hugged and cried, some sat in a daze, as if they hadn't yet realized they had been saved.

Li Xuan stood at the temple entrance, watching it all.

His mind held only one thought.

A month later, Gurqin would break free.

And he had just seen Ghost Face, seen dozens of black shadows.

The black shadows of the Northern Territory and the seal in the mine were indeed connected.

Worse, Ghost Face and Gurqin had partnered up.

One Ghost Face was already at the peak of the True Qi Realm. Add to that a Shaman King who had lived for at least three hundred years, plus dozens of undead Shadow creatures—

Could the Crimson Firmament Sect withstand them?

Shi Yong walked over and stood beside him.

"What about those people?"

"Bring them back to the sect," Li Xuan said. "The Shadow creatures they saw are evidence. The Shadow Division can investigate; let them."

Shi Yong nodded, turned, and went to make arrangements.

Su Ying walked over, her eyes still red, but she wasn't crying anymore.

"Senior Brother Li," she said softly, "I just saw something."

Li Xuan looked at her.

"In the cave, behind those Shadow creatures," Su Ying said. "There was a very bright thing, green, like a stone, floating in the air. Those Shadow creatures were circling it, as if... as if they were worshipping it."

Li Xuan's pupils constricted.

That was Gurqin's "eye."

Or rather, a part of Gurqin's power that had been scattered externally.

Just like the bone staff in the mine.

Just like the Wolf Soul imprint within him.

So, Gurqin had been infiltrating outwards for the past thirty years.

Using these Shadow creatures, these "eyes," and his scattered power, he was slowly eroding this land.

Black Stone Market was just the beginning.

What about other places?

How many more towns were experiencing the same thing?

Li Xuan clenched his fist.

"Let's go," he said. "Back to the sect."

Seven days later, Crimson Firmament Sect.

Bing Qi Courtyard.

Li Xuan sat cross-legged on the bed, observing himself internally.

[Name: Li Xuan]
[Realm: Inner Qi Realm First Layer (Stable)]
[Strength: 19.2→20.5]
[Stamina: 65.0→68.3]
[Agility: 3.0→3.5]
[Spirit: 6.5→7.2]
[Potential Points: 9.3]
[Cultivation Method: Blood Fiend Bone Forging Technique Third Layer (Limit Break First Stage)]
[Cultivation Method: Mountain Suppressing Art (Perfected)]
[Special: Wolf Soul Imprint (Dormant), Blood Fiend Diamond Body (Bones Gleam Golden)]

For seven days, he had cultivated day and night, refining all the malevolent energy absorbed during the Black Stone Market battle, completely stabilizing his realm.

But it wasn't enough.

He looked at the wooden shelf beside him.

Three items were placed on the shelf:

A jade slip delivered by the Shadow Division, containing information about Gurqin.

A black stone brought back from the cave in Black Stone Market; it was a companion ore from around the "green stone" that still held faint power fluctuations.

A letter delivered by someone entrusted by Steward Liu, containing only one sentence:

"See me in three days."

Li Xuan picked up the letter and read it for a long time.

Steward Liu had been in seclusion attempting to break through to the Grandmaster Realm for several months.

Now, he suddenly wanted to see him.

Why?