The Sun Family Arrives

The morning mist had yet to dissipate when Ye Yun pushed open the courtyard gate, only to find Yan Xiao Liu already pacing anxiously. The usually jovial constable was now deathly pale, his forehead beaded with sweat, his breathing ragged.

"Brother Ye! Something big has happened!" Yan Xiao Liu grabbed Ye Yun's arm with surprising strength. "The Sun Family... people from the Sun Family are here!"

Ye Yun frowned slightly, calmly withdrawing his arm. "Slow down, what's going on?"

Yan Xiao Liu swallowed, speaking rapidly. "The deputy captain of the garrison who died in the bandit suppression last time, Sun Gan, his brother Sun Yu has arrived with people! They say he stormed the garrison camp and beat Captain Zhao Meng until he vomited blood! Now he's coming to the County Yamen for questioning. Chief Chen told me to quickly gather all the brothers who participated in the bandit suppression!"

A flicker of surprise crossed Ye Yun's eyes. The cause of Sun Gan's death was clear – he was killed by a single blow from the bandit leader. Dozens of people present had seen it clearly. The Sun Family making such a commotion likely had ulterior motives.

"What's Sun Yu's background?" Ye Yun asked in a low voice as he walked briskly towards the County Yamen.

"A direct descendant of the Sun Family from the prefectural city!" Yan Xiao Liu whispered, his eyes filled with fear. "I heard he's already a seventh-rank martial artist, and he brought two eighth-rank subordinates this time. Brother Ye, we need to be careful. This Sun Family..."

Yan Xiao Liu didn't finish, but Ye Yun understood his worry. The Sun Family held considerable influence in the Great Zhou court, with many of its members serving in the military, and they were known for their arrogance. Now that a bastard son had died, even if it was an accident, they would surely use it as an excuse to stir up trouble.

On the open ground in front of the County Yamen, over a dozen constables who had participated in the bandit suppression had gathered. Chen Qingzhou stood at the front. The usually smiling captain now wore a grave expression, a scar still healing on his right cheek – a memento from the previous bandit suppression.

"Brothers," Chen Qingzhou's voice was steady and powerful, "when the Sun Family asks questions later, just answer truthfully. Remember, don't talk back, don't say too much."

The constables responded in low murmurs, the atmosphere suffocatingly tense. Ye Yun stood at the edge of the crowd, quietly circulating his Turtle Breath Stillness technique, concealing his aura to the extreme. As he appeared now, anyone would see him as an ordinary constable, never suspecting he was an eighth-rank martial artist.

The sound of orderly hoofbeats echoed from the distance, growing closer, like the drumbeat of fate. Soon, a group of people appeared at the end of the street. The young man at the forefront was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, dressed in a dark blue brocade robe, with a gold-inlaid, jade-encrusted longsword at his waist. His face was handsome, but carried a sinister aura, his brows furrowed with an unshakeable malevolence.

"Sun Yu..." Yan Xiao Liu whispered in Ye Yun's ear, his voice trembling slightly.

Ye Yun nodded slightly, his gaze falling on the two middle-aged men behind Sun Yu. They followed Sun Yu closely, like shadows, one on each side. The man on the left was burly, his arms as thick as a normal person's thighs, veins bulging on the backs of his exposed hands. The man on the right was as thin as bamboo, his eyes narrow and elongated, his gaze as cold as a venomous snake. Both men exuded a steady aura, their steps synchronized as they walked, clearly well-trained guards.

"Peak eighth-rank..." Ye Yun inwardly gasped. The strength of these two men was likely just one step away from seventh-rank. Coupled with Sun Yu, a seventh-rank martial artist, this lineup was enough to sweep through the entire Chun'an County.

"Captain Chen, is it?" Sun Yu reined in his horse before the crowd, looking down at Chen Qingzhou from his saddle. His voice was as cold as ice. "Are all the people here?"

Chen Qingzhou stepped forward, cupping his fist in salute. "Young Master Sun, all the brothers who participated in the bandit suppression are here. If you have any..."

Before Chen Qingzhou could finish, Sun Yu suddenly dismounted and kicked him in the chest! The kick was as fast as lightning, with astonishing force. Chen Qingzhou was sent flying backward, crashing heavily against the County Yamen wall and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

"Captain Chen!" The constables cried out in alarm, some already reaching for their sabers.

"Don't move!" Chen Qingzhou forced himself to stand, raising a hand to stop his impulsive subordinates. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his voice still steady. "What is the meaning of this, Young Master Sun?"

Sun Yu sneered, his gaze like a knife sweeping across the constables. "My brother is dead, and you trash are still alive and well. The Sun Family cannot have died in vain. I need answers."

Ye Yun stood among the crowd, his eyes chilling. Sun Yu's kick had clearly contained hidden force. While Chen Qingzhou appeared unharmed on the surface, his internal organs had suffered significant injury. If Chen Qingzhou hadn't possessed some skill himself, he would have already collapsed.

"The matter of the bandit suppression, the garrison has detailed records..." Chen Qingzhou explained with difficulty.

"Silence!" Sun Yu interrupted sharply. "I ask you, did you find any special items during the bandit suppression?"

Ye Yun's heart skipped a beat. As expected, Sun Yu's true purpose for coming was not to investigate his brother's death.

Chen Qingzhou looked confused. "All spoils of war have been registered, and no special items were found..."

Sun Yu narrowed his eyes and suddenly grabbed Chen Qingzhou by the neck. "Are you sure?" His fingers slowly tightened, and Chen Qingzhou's face immediately turned red.

"Young Master Sun!" Yan Xiao Liu couldn't help but shout. "We really didn't see any special items! The situation was chaotic, the bandits were fleeing everywhere, perhaps..."

Sun Yu snorted and released Chen Qingzhou. "Take me to the place where the bandit suppression occurred. Everyone, immediately!"

Half an hour later, the group arrived at the mountain forest where the bandit suppression had taken place. It was late autumn, and fallen leaves carpeted the ground, rustling with every step. The traces of the fierce battle had faded, with only a few scorched patches of earth and broken trees hinting at the ferocity of the fight.

"Spread out, one person every ten paces, search carefully," Sun Yu commanded. He then took out an exquisite bronze disk from his bosom, intricately carved with complex patterns. "If you find anything unusual, report it immediately."

The constables exchanged glances but still dispersed as ordered. Ye Yun deliberately lagged behind, secretly observing Sun Yu's actions. He saw Sun Yu walking slowly through the forest, holding the bronze disk, occasionally stopping to adjust his direction. The patterns on the disk glinted strangely in the sunlight, seeming to react to some special aura.

"What are they looking for..." Ye Yun wondered inwardly, while outwardly appearing to search along with the other constables.

After a long time with no success, Sun Yu became somewhat impatient. His voice suddenly rose. "Everyone, come here!"

The constables gathered around Sun Yu. He took out a piece of paper with a pattern from his bosom. "Do you see this mark?" On it was a peculiar symbol – an eye-shaped pattern with tiny runes carved in the pupil. This was the private seal of a certain important figure. "Everyone look for a box with this mark. The contents of the box are worth more than all your lives combined!"

Ye Yun's pupils contracted. He had never seen the symbol before, but he felt a strange sense of familiarity, as if he had heard of it somewhere.

"Now, I will teach you how to identify this mark," Sun Yu took out several wooden tokens carved with the same symbol and distributed them to everyone. "Within ten paces, if the token becomes warm, it means this mark is nearby. Remember, whoever dares to conceal it..." His cold gaze swept over everyone. "...will have their entire clan exterminated!"

The constables nervously took the wooden tokens and dispersed to search again. Ye Yun held the cool token, his mind filled with doubt. An item that could cause the Sun Family to act so drastically could not be ordinary. Moreover, judging by Sun Yu's attitude, he seemed certain that this thing was at the bandit suppression site...

"Brother Ye," Yan Xiao Liu quietly approached, his voice extremely low. "I have a bad feeling about this. The thing the Sun Family is looking for, could it be..."

"Shh..." Ye Yun gently shook his head, signaling him to say no more. Just then, the wooden token in his hand suddenly felt warm!

Ye Yun's heart leaped. He pretended to adjust his boot and crouched down, discovering the token's warmth came from an inconspicuous dirt mound to his right front. He cautiously glanced around – the other constables were engrossed in their search, and Sun Yu and his two guards were conversing in the distance. No one noticed him.

Ye Yun gently nudged the fallen leaves on the surface of the dirt mound with his toe, and a metallic glint caught his eye. It was a bronze box, clearly engraved with the same eye symbol as the wooden token!

"This is..." Ye Yun hesitated whether to report it when he suddenly felt a bone-chilling cold. He looked up abruptly, meeting Sun Yu's sinister gaze – the latter had somehow turned his attention in this direction!

"You! Come here!" Sun Yu shouted sternly, pointing at Ye Yun.

Ye Yun's heart pounded, but his expression remained unchanged. He calmly stood up, while subtly kicking the bronze box back into the depths of the dirt mound, covering it again with fallen leaves.

"Find something?" Sun Yu strode over, his gaze as sharp as a falcon's.

Ye Yun spread his hands, a look of confusion on his face. "Reporting to Young Master Sun, I found nothing."

Sun Yu stared intently into Ye Yun's eyes, as if trying to see through his soul. Just as the tension reached its peak, a shout suddenly came from the distance: "Found it! It's here!"