Ambush and Murder

Nothing happened that night. The next morning, Leian rose early as usual and went out to train.

The day passed quickly. After dinner, he did not meditate again. Instead, he put on his night clothes early, strapped on his longsword, and waited silently in his bedroom.

As the time of his outing the previous night approached, Leian silently left the small courtyard. He then concealed himself beneath the eaves outside Laman Manor and quietly watched the entire estate.

Before long, three figures came into view. Avoiding the patrols, they climbed over the manor walls one after another and sped toward the outskirts of town.

Seeing this, Leian suppressed his presence and quietly followed.

Once outside the town, Leian slowed down. The wilderness was open and bare. Since he did not cultivate Dark Battle Qi, he did not dare follow too closely.

By the time the riverbank outside town came into view, Laman's group had grown to five people. They had presumably met up with Commander Carl and Captain Kelun of the guards.

The five chatted in low voices as they hurried along, but Leian was too far away to make out what they were saying.

Before long, Laman's group stepped onto the main road leading to Hashan Prefecture City. However, rather than heading toward the prefecture city, they traveled in the opposite direction.

Leian was not surprised. The direction Laman was heading was precisely where the Elvis family's territory lay.

However, after traveling for some distance, the five suddenly stopped on a slope beside the road.

Leian crouched down and hid as well, watching intently. He saw the five conceal themselves behind the hillside, looking as though they were prepared for battle.

Seeing this, Leian was slightly puzzled. Could Elvis be passing through here tonight?

With that suspicion in mind, he slowed his breathing and waited silently where he was.

He waited for more than an hour. Near midnight, movement finally appeared on the road ahead.

Leian's spirits rose. He immediately focused his eyes and studied the distance. Soon, he saw a group of travelers round the slope and enter his view.

There were not many people in the group, only eight. They walked two abreast, striding forward at a swift pace.

The night was dark and they were far away, so Leian could only count their numbers and could not make out their faces. Thus, he could not determine whether Elvis was among them.

However, just as the group rounded the slope, Laman and the others decisively sprang out. The five raised their weapons and attacked the rear of the group like tigers descending a mountain.

"Who goes there?"

A deep shout instantly rang across the wilderness. At the same time, someone leaped out from the traveling group and rushed toward the sudden attack.

Clearly, there was an expert among the group as well. The moment Laman and the others made their move, their presence was exposed.

However, Laman's group had the advantage of a planned ambush. Caught off guard, that "expert" could not fight four hands with two fists. Although he successfully blocked one person's attack, the other four at the rear of the group suffered two deaths and two injuries.

Laman's five completely ignored the shout. Before acting, they had already prepared for every possibility. In an instant, they recognized the "expert" who had leaped out to save the others as Elvis Cleo.

At once, Commander Carl spun around, her massive axe chopping repeatedly at Elvis's vital points.

"It's you!"

Flames burned in Elvis's eyes. He swung his blade to block the attacks while roaring in fury. Clearly, he had recognized Laman and the others.

In truth, Laman and his men had not covered their faces. They were in the same prefecture and their territories bordered each other, so they all knew one another well. If they did not fight, it was one thing, but once they exchanged blows, their identities could not possibly remain hidden.

There was no need for such a pointless gesture.

At that moment, Laman and his son, Captain Kelun, and Steward Ryan struck in quick succession while Carl held Elvis back. In an instant, they claimed four more lives.

During the hunt half a month ago, the Elvis family's guards had been devastated. All their experts had died in the Youquan Mountain Range. Among this group, the strongest was only a Level Five warrior. How could they possibly be a match for Laman's people?

Under the curtain of night, the shrill screams sent chills down one's spine.

Just as Laman's group dealt with the last guard, Elvis finally forced Carl back. He held his longsword horizontally before him to guard himself and retreated at high speed, only stopping after opening a distance of more than ten meters.

Perhaps because he felt victory was at hand, or perhaps because he wanted to wear down Elvis's will, Laman did not pursue. Instead, he said softly:

"Elvis, it's two against one. You have no chance left. Surrender now. As long as I get what I want, I guarantee your son will live. What do you say?"

Elvis remained completely unmoved. He stared fixedly at Laman and asked in a sharp tone, "Laman, how did you know I would leave tonight?"

Laman chuckled. "Elvis, neither of us is an idiot. Why bother with pointless probing? You just want to know who tipped me off, don't you? What harm is there in telling you?"

Laman had seen through his thoughts at a glance, but Elvis was not disappointed. As Laman had said, neither of them was an idiot. His decision to travel secretly at night had been made on the spur of the moment. For Laman to grasp his movements so precisely, there was only one possibility:

There was a traitor at his side feeding information to Laman!

However, having a traitor was not terrifying. What was terrifying was not knowing who that traitor was.

Just moments ago, Elvis had quickly reviewed everyone who knew of tonight's operation, yet he still could not determine the traitor's identity. It sent a chill down his spine.

Hearing Laman's words, he drew a deep breath and asked in a low voice, "Who was it?"

"It was Bird, your steward. Never expected that, did you? Hahaha..."

Laman actually revealed the traitor's identity without hesitation. After saying so, he laughed smugly.

Elvis's expression turned extremely ugly, his eyes filled with disbelief. "Bird? Impossible. How could that be possible?"

The Bird Laman spoke of was a Level Five warrior in his sixties. He had served as steward of the Cleo Family for more than thirty years, and he himself had been born and raised on the family's territory. It was indeed difficult to believe that such a person would betray his lord.

Under normal circumstances, Bird truly should not have betrayed them. But people's hearts were changeable, and besides, the Cleo Family itself had played a part in this.

As mentioned before, Elvis's father had often led the guards on hunts for magical beasts to sustain the family. During that time, the guards had suffered many casualties.

By coincidence, Bird's two sons and one grandson all possessed decent talent as warriors and joined the guards one after another. Unfortunately, all three died in the Youquan Mountain Range.

Bird's only grandson in particular had died in battle just half a month ago. With his death, Bird's family line ended, and Bird naturally harbored some resentment.

Then, right at that time, Bird accidentally discovered the truth behind this hunt for magical beasts. That truth made him feel that his grandson had died far too unjustly.

Afterward, the more he thought about it, the more bitter he became. Gradually, he developed the desire to take revenge on the Cleo Family.

As the Cleo Family's steward, he knew very well that Baron Laman had long coveted the Cleo Family. Thus, Laman became Bird's chosen partner.

Soon, the two sides made contact. Under Bird's cover, Laman directly had a trusted subordinate bring the Green-Eyed Demon Falcon raised by his family into hiding within the Cleo Family's territory so they could communicate.

This Green-Eyed Demon Falcon was not a magical beast and possessed little offensive ability. Its only advantage was its swift flight, and it was often used as a short-range messenger. Several towns in Laman's territory raised them. This was how they had been able to grasp Elvis's movements so precisely.

As it happened, Elvis's injuries were severe. He needed treatment from at least a Level Eight Light Archmage. Given the lofty status of a Level Eight mage on the continent, it was impossible for the Cleo Family to invite one to their home for treatment. They might not even be able to produce enough gold coins for the treatment.

Of course, there was another option: purchase a healing magic scroll made by a Level Eight Light Archmage.

However, such scrolls were extremely rare and expensive. Even Hashan Prefecture City might not have one for sale. Elvis had neither the time to wait nor the confidence to send someone carrying such a large sum of money to buy one.

After considering it over and over, he could only act personally. However, word of his severe injuries had already spread everywhere. Once he moved, outsiders could easily guess his purpose.

Carrying such a large fortune while severely wounded, he could not rule out bandits setting their sights on him.

That was why Elvis had chosen to leave secretly at night and rush to the prefecture city as quickly as possible. If there were no healing scrolls for sale there, he could at least hire several mercenaries to escort him to the provincial capital.

The plan had originally been thorough, but there was a traitor at his side.

Still, Elvis had experienced life-and-death battles before. He quickly steadied his emotions and stopped dwelling on why Bird had betrayed him. At that moment, he drew a deep breath and said slowly:

"Laman, don't you merely want the wealth our Cleo Family has accumulated over the years?

"That's right. In order to treat my injuries, I have indeed brought all my family's wealth with me. I can give this money to you, and I can pretend that nothing happened tonight. Once you have the money, we can call it even. What do you say?"

Laman curled his lip and sneered. "Elvis, do you really think that's possible?"

Elvis's face darkened slightly, and his voice suddenly turned icy.

"Laman, must you really go this far? Yes, I am severely injured, but if you push me too hard, I can still drag two of you down with me before I die. Do you dare gamble on that?"

Laman's lips curved up as he gave a low laugh. "If you hadn't said that, I might have been a little worried. But now, I'm even more certain that your injuries are worse than I imagined!"

"You!" Elvis glared at Laman through gritted teeth, fury blazing in his eyes.

Seeing this, Laman suddenly chuckled. "All right, I was only joking. Letting you go is not impossible, but besides the gold coins, I want one more thing. As long as you are willing to hand it over, I guarantee I will keep my word."

Elvis's heart stirred. Only now did he realize that Laman's true goal was not the gold coins. After thinking for a moment, unease crept into his heart, and he instinctively asked:

"What do you want?"

Laman's eyes narrowed slightly, and his expression turned solemn in an instant. "A cultivation manual. I want the inherited secret tome of your Cleo Family!"

Before his words had even faded, Elvis's heart lurched. A flash of panic appeared in his eyes, but he quickly controlled his expression and said flatly:

"It's only a Battle Qi secret tome. Though precious, what matters most in a warrior's cultivation is still the person. It is not impossible to share it with you. I agree."

Laman suddenly sneered. "Don't agree so quickly. What I want is not merely the Battle Qi secret tome, but also—"

At this point, he paused briefly before saying each word distinctly:

"Your Cleo Family Beast Transformation Secret Technique!"