The Next Move

Feng Xiu was stunned by the scene.

Uncle Zheng's throat bobbed. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Chief Escort Zhou is a martial artist at the Inner Qi realm. His body is protected by qi, and even a powerful crossbow with a hundred-pound draw can barely hurt him."

"That palm strike was left by a woman~"

Even without Uncle Zheng saying so, the two of them could see it. The palm print was small and delicate, and strikingly clear.

Feng Ao paid no heed. He continued solemnly holding Zhou Gang's arm and feeling his pulse, his brows furrowed tight.

Medicine and martial arts were inseparable. When it came to medicine, Feng Ao was even more skilled than an ordinary doctor. He quickly tapped several acupoints on Zhou Gang's chest, at the Danzhong Acupoint, and on his back.

After he finished, color gradually returned to Zhou Gang's face, and the pain on his face eased somewhat.

"Father, how is Uncle Zhou?" Feng Xiu finally dared to ask, hurrying to speak.

Feng Ao let out a long breath and said slowly, "Brother Zhou's pulse is disordered, and the circulation of his qi and blood is obstructed."

Feng Xiu looked bewildered and turned to Uncle Zheng.

Seeing that he didn't understand, Uncle Zheng explained, "Chief Escort Zhou is in no serious danger. His qi and blood simply went awry, and he temporarily fainted."

It was an ordinary affliction among martial artists. Almost all of them encountered similar problems to some degree during their cultivation.

But in light of the matter with Su Wantang, it no longer seemed so ordinary.

Could Su Wantang have struck Zhou Gang with a single palm and left him like this?

Feng Xiu fell silent.

In the end, Zhou Gang had gotten into this mess for his sake.

"Wen Zheng, tell me the whole story from the beginning. What exactly happened?" Feng Ao's eyes blazed as he looked at Feng Xiu, his gaze imposing without the need for anger.

Feng Xiu nodded, then told them everything without holding back.

Uncle Zheng also spoke up to corroborate his account. Feng Xiu had only made the decisions; he was the one who had actually carried them out.

"There's no record of her entering the pass, her contract is clean, and the Wu Clan is behind Fragrant Flower House. How much do they know about this?"

Feng Ao's brows knitted together. The whole affair was cloaked in strangeness.

Zhou Gang's inexplicable amnesia hadn't shaken him that much, but the palm print had given him plenty to think about.

Feng Xiu didn't know much about the Inner Qi realm, but Feng Ao knew it well. Inner Qi, commonly known as Divine Qi, was different from the internal force of Blood Burning.

Inner Qi meant cultivating a strand of Innate Qi in the dantian. Such martial artists were also called innate masters. Their qi and blood surged within them, banishing evil and driving away ghosts and gods!

There were only eleven such experts in all of Green Rock City, including Feng Ao himself!

"Not simple, huh..." Feng Ao mused, the corner of his mouth curling into a cold smile. "They used my son to set a trap, then hurt my brother. Good, good, very good!"

A fierce killing intent burst from his final words. The air froze in an instant, and the entire hall trembled faintly as teacups and tables rattled.

"Wen Zheng." Feng Ao then gave an order.

At that moment, Feng Xiu seemed lost in some memory. As his recollections surfaced, Feng Ao called his name several times, but he didn't hear him.

Uncle Zheng tugged at his sleeve.

Feng Xiu came to, his expression grave. "Father, this matter isn't so simple."

"How long has Su Wantang been in Green Rock City? Three months. She went from a penniless orphan fleeing disaster to the top courtesan of Fragrant Flower House. Money is easily within her reach."

Feng Xiu's voice was calm. "If she can even erase memories, then money is just a number to her."

"What does she want with Shou Zhuo? Aside from being a young master of the Feng Clan, what does he have that she could want?"

Uncle Zheng's expression shifted slightly. "Does the eldest young master mean..."

Feng Xiu looked at Feng Ao again and suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question. "How long did it take you to obtain the River Law Seal back then?"

Feng Ao's pupils contracted. Silence briefly settled over the hall.

"Three years," Uncle Zheng replied from the side. "But that doesn't make sense. What would she want the River Law Seal for? She doesn't need to release water to irrigate the fields."

"Because there's something in the reservoir!"

After considering it carefully, Feng Xiu decided to tell them what he had previously seen—the scales in Tang Reservoir.

"It's strange. The city had just had rain, and then Su Wantang promptly killed Liu Wenjun and injured Uncle Zhou when he came looking for trouble."

Su Wantang wasn't after money. Since she had set her sights on Feng Shouzhuo, the answer was obvious.

Given the Feng Clan's unique position, it seemed there was only one thing she could want: the River Law Seal, which allowed its bearer to freely enter and leave Tang Reservoir.

Silence briefly settled over the hall. Feng Ao slowly rose to his feet, his gaze fixed on Feng Xiu.

"That's too hasty a conclusion. What makes you think there's something foul in the reservoir? A single scale?"

Feng Xiu said nothing. He had no way to refute him; that was simply what his theory rested on.

He had already thrown the scale away. He didn't even have the thing itself anymore, so how could he convince them?

"It's only a supposition. I carry the River Law Seal with me, so Su Wantang definitely couldn't get her hands on it easily. That's why she went after Shou Zhuo."

"But if we follow this line of thought, Jade Belt Reservoir won't be opened again anytime soon. If it stays closed, whatever's inside won't be able to get out. That means Su Wantang has no reason to stay here."

Feng Xiu's voice turned grave.

At present, the three of them were at an impasse. All the leads had run dry: Zhou Gang was unconscious, Su Wantang had fled, and Liu Wenjun was dead.

But if they followed Feng Xiu's reasoning, everything seemed to fit together. That would mean the rain had disrupted Su Wantang's plans.

Then Zhou Gang had come knocking, and staying any longer would have gotten her nowhere. That was why she had injured him.

Now that Feng Xiu had finished speaking, his expression was calm.

Beyond his thoughts, however, a ridiculous sense of delight flickered through him.

Yes, delight. A great deal of it!

Su Wantang's unknown methods didn't allow her to overwhelm powerful martial artists outright.

The patrons of Fragrant Flower House had also said they'd once heard fighting in Su Wantang's room. If she truly possessed some unfathomable supernatural method,

Zhou Gang should have been a dead man. And if she'd followed through with even a little more—

His body should have been reduced to dust, without anyone knowing a thing!

In other words, martial artists still had a chance to fight back!

"Then tell me, what do you think is in the reservoir?" Feng Ao asked.

"I don't know. But I want to check the Dark Canal."

The main sluice of the reservoir couldn't be opened, but there were several dry canals near the farms under the Feng Clan's jurisdiction.

If Su Wantang meant to release some creature, and if there was more than one scaled creature, they might find traces of it in the canals.

Feng Ao watched him for a while, then slowly nodded. "Be careful."

"I understand."

Feng Xiu was about to rise when Uncle Zheng suddenly spoke. "Eldest young master, I have something to say, though I'm not sure if I should."

"Speak."

Uncle Zheng glanced at Feng Ao. "If Su Wantang really can erase the memories of Chief Escort Zhou, Han Che, and the brothel madams—in other words, if she can erase the memories of anyone she's come into contact with—could she also target the second young master?"

Feng Ao froze. Feng Xiu was even more stunned.

Feng Shouzhuo!

Damn it, how could he have forgotten him?

"Quick, go check on Shou Zhuo!" Feng Ao's expression changed, and he immediately spoke up.

Uncle Zheng solemnly acknowledged the order. As soon as he opened the door, he saw the escort guards waiting outside, their faces full of anxiety, but he had no time to deal with them.

He pushed through the crowd and hurried away.

Seeing this, Feng Xiu stepped forward.

"Young Master Feng, how is our Chief Escort?" Han Che asked, his voice low and tense.

"Don't worry, everyone," Feng Xiu replied, a reassuring smile on his lips, though he wasn't sure himself.

"I've already found an excellent doctor."

Han Che still wasn't at ease. He went into the hall to make sure Zhou Gang was unharmed, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

"Then I'm grateful for your trouble, Young Master Feng." Han Che cupped his hands.

"It's nothing."

Even so, Han Che still found the matter strange. But Zhou Gang's illness was so inexplicable that he couldn't find the source of it for the moment.

"The Chief Escort didn't do anything this morning." Han Che paused, his brows furrowing. "You mentioned Fragrant Flower House and Su Wantang, but I asked the other brothers, and one of them said he saw us leave with his own eyes."

Han Che looked up, a trace of bewilderment in his eyes. "But I can't remember anything."

Han Che was one of Zhou Gang's escorts and had also entered Su Wantang's boudoir.

If Su Wantang erased memories by touching people or fighting them,

then the situation at the time should have been that Zhou Gang hadn't taken Su Wantang seriously.

He definitely wouldn't have made a move himself. Instead, he would have been looking to give the escort guards a chance to hone their skills.

Maybe he'd had Han Che exchange a few blows with her?

The thought flashed through Feng Xiu's mind. He continued to reassure him, "It's all right. Don't dwell on it."

Han Che opened his mouth, but although doubts crowded his mind, he could only let the matter drop.

Not long after everyone left, a guard came in and bowed as he reported, "Clan Head, Eldest Young Master, Daoist Yellow Dragon has returned."

Feng Xiu brightened. "Quick, invite him in."

A moment later, Daoist Yellow Dragon entered the main hall.

He was still wearing that old Daoist robe, and the little girl named Jiaojiao followed behind him. She held a skewer of candied hawthorn and was licking it with relish.

Feng Ao rose to greet him and clasped his hands. "The Daoist has arrived. Forgive me for not welcoming you sooner."

Daoist Yellow Dragon hurriedly returned the salute. "Clan Head Feng, you're too kind. This old Daoist came to bid you farewell."

"Bid us farewell? You're leaving, Daoist?"

Daoist Yellow Dragon nodded and sighed. "The Sweet Dew Grand Festival took a toll on my foundations and cultivation. It's time for me to return to Yulin Prefecture. That Daoist temple may be dilapidated, but it is still my home."

Only then did Feng Xiu notice that his face truly was much paler, and exhaustion lingered in his eyes.