Enemies on a Narrow Road

Chapter 34: Enemies on a Narrow Road

Arbitrarily interrogating, binding, and beating people—these were things only the authorities dared to do. Yet now, the Huang Family was acting with such unbridled arrogance, and the town mayor, who represented the authorities, dared not utter a single word. This showed the sheer scale of the Huang Family's influence, as well as the extent of their insolence.

Finally, after a full day of interrogation, the Huang Family obtained the truth they sought. Huang Nian had forcibly abducted a woman, coerced her husband into driving them toward the forest, and never returned.

"That damn wretch! I told him that place was off-limits; why was he so unafraid of death?" A middle-aged man roared in fury, slamming his palm onto the table. The three-inch-thick wooden table shattered into splinters instantly. This man was none other than Huang Nian's uncle, Huang Xiang, whose cultivation had reached the peak of the Sea-Opening Realm. He was only a step away from compressing the spiritual essence within his body into liquid elemental energy to advance to the Essence-Transforming Realm.

Every direct descendant of the Huang Family kept a life tablet in the family estate to signal their survival; if the person died, the tablet shattered. Huang Nian's tablet had shattered days ago, but no one else knew he had left. It had taken them considerable effort to track down where he had gone. Now, Huang Xiang had arrived with ten family guards to investigate the cause. A scion of such a prominent family dying outside could not be ignored; otherwise, they would have nowhere to hide their faces.

Yet, it appeared Huang Nian's death was entirely self-inflicted. It wasn't that they hated him for abducting a woman—in fact, they had known about such things all along and simply turned a blind eye. They considered it self-inflicted because everyone knew that the Endless Forest was a death trap. Even those in the Heaven-Reaching Realm couldn't traverse it; if they were foolish enough to enter and encounter demonic beasts, they had no one to blame but themselves.

"Third Master, what should we do now?" Seeing Huang Xiang's furious state, a guard stepped forward and asked cautiously. Huang Xiang was notoriously short-tempered; if the guard wasn't careful, he would surely be subjected to a vicious scolding or even a brutal beating.

"What else can we do? Retrieve the boy's corpse first, if there's anything left to retrieve. He sought his own death; who can he blame? Tell these people to go home," Huang Xiang snorted, glaring at the guard. He then gestured toward the suspects tied to the side, signaling for their release. Though he was incredibly annoyed, since the death occurred in that dense forest, he had no one to seek revenge against. He did not suspect the townspeople; no one here possessed that kind of strength.

The Huang Family had weighed upon the people of Greenwood Town like a mountain. Now that they were leaving, the entire town couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Huang Xiang was at the peak of the Sea-Opening Realm, and the guards he brought were also in the Sea-Opening Realm, though mostly in the early and middle stages. He was the only one at the peak.

The eleven men marched imposingly toward the vast forest. Before long, they reached the edge of the woods, where they saw a carriage. It was empty, save for a pool of blood. This was left by the guard Chu Xiaotian had killed, but to Huang Xiang and his men, it appeared as though Huang Nian had disposed of the couple he had abducted. The group didn't linger, following the tracks left behind as they headed deeper into the mountains.

The forest was silent, devoid of even a single wild beast, appearing eerily empty. Two guards in the early Sea-Opening Realm scouted ahead, while Huang Xiang grumbled and cursed as he surveyed the surroundings.

"I don't know what possessed that brat to head so deep into such a desolate, empty place." The Endless Forest was vast, filled with spiritual herbs and resources that made it a place of covetous desire for many across the continent. While few dared to venture too deep, many still entered the fringes to hunt for treasures. Rare herbs, demonic beast cores, hides, and bones were highly sought after throughout the Moon-Refining Continent, and their prices remained consistently high.

However, just as fingers vary in length, so too did the regions of the Endless Forest. While other areas were rich in resources, the forest near Greenwood Town was a legendary wasteland. High-grade herbs were never seen, and the demonic beasts were merely low-level first or second-tier trash; killing them served no purpose other than providing meat. Consequently, this area was ignored, and almost no one ever came here.

No one from the Huang Family had ever visited this place, so Huang Xiang couldn't fathom why Huang Nian had come here to die. Even though there were no high-level beasts, the first and second-tier creatures would have had no trouble killing the five of them.

Following the faint traces left by others, they soon found the site of Huang Nian's demise. It was a small valley where the surrounding trees lay in a chaotic, tangled mess. It was clear a fierce battle had taken place. In the center of the valley lay blood-stained clothing scraps and gory bones, with flies buzzing about—a sight that made one feel an instinctive revulsion from the depths of their soul.

Huang Xiang's expression darkened. Although he had known Huang Nian was dead, seeing the scene of total annihilation left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"You lot, collect these remains first. Afterward, I want every demonic beast within a ten-mile radius to be buried with my nephew," Huang Xiang waved his hand, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes. His voice was so cold it felt as though it could freeze the very heavens.

"Yes, Third Master!" The ten guards responded, pulling out bags and beginning to clear the scattered bones. Huang Xiang's gaze shifted to other parts of the valley, inspecting it carefully.

"Third Master, this isn't right. The young master's Qiankun Bags are missing, and even their weapons are gone," a guard in the middle Sea-Opening Realm said after a while, his brow furrowed as he approached Huang Xiang. While a Qiankun Bag or Qiankun Bracelet might be swallowed by a beast, the weapons certainly wouldn't be. The scene defied logic.

Huang Xiang's face turned so gloomy it seemed ready to drip water. He walked over to the fallen trees and examined them closely. They had been smashed, and while there were sword marks, they were uniform in depth, showing no significant variation.

"Bastards! We've been deceived. My nephew and his men were murdered, and the killers tried to destroy the evidence. The Mad Blade Martial Hall—it must be those scoundrels! Let's go back. I will have their entire hall buried with my nephew!" Huang Xiang roared in a rage, shattering a giant tree with a single palm strike. He turned and strode back toward Greenwood Town. The ten guards exchanged looks, cold smirks appearing on their faces as they followed him.

The scene had naturally been handled by Chu Xiaotian, who had considered all aspects at the time. However, he still lacked experience and had underestimated the expertise of the Huang Family—or perhaps, he had been a bit too greedy. Had he not taken all the spatial items from Huang Nian and his men, Huang Xiang would never have suspected anything.

Chu Xiaotian was unaware that his ruse had been seen through. He remained focused on practicing the Electric Dragon Spear. Aside from the time spent practicing the Heavenly Corpse Art and eating, he devoted every moment to the spear. His progress was nothing short of rapid. After days of practice, he had essentially mastered the Electric Dragon Spear. While he hadn't reached the highest realm, it was at least taking proper shape.

By the pool in the valley, Chu Xiaotian held his spear, assuming a stance before his figure flickered and danced. The spear in his hand truly moved like an electric dragon, roaring and swirling. The air whistled and cracked under the terror of his technique. Finally, Chu Xiaotian thrust the spear forward; with a sharp shriek and a flash of purple light, a deafening explosion erupted against the stone wall ahead. Rocks flew, and a hole one meter wide and one meter deep appeared before his eyes.

"Electric Dragon Spear! Good, truly good! With a strike like this, how many could possibly block it?" Looking at the massive hole he had pierced, Chu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel thrilled, shouting his approval.

He put away the spear and checked the sky. It was mid-afternoon, still some time before dinner, so he decided to head out. He had been so immersed in his training these past few days that he hadn't left the valley, and the clothes he'd taken from the five spatial items were still unprocessed. They were piled up, and they made him uncomfortable just looking at them. Now that he had mastered the spear, he decided to dispose of them and hunt a demonic beast to change up his diet. He was getting tired of eating grilled fish every day.

Xia Xue was busy refining pills, so Chu Xiaotian didn't disturb her. He bundled the clothes together, skewered them with his spear, and hoisted them onto his shoulder. Humming a little tune, he swaggered out of the valley, heading toward the site where Huang Nian and his men had met their end.

At the same time, Huang Xiang and his party were traveling from that very spot back toward Greenwood Town. Chu Xiaotian was ultimately too inexperienced, and having mastered the Electric Dragon Spear, he had grown lax, forgetting to remain vigilant of his surroundings.

Huang Xiang's group, though nearly blinded by rage, were still old foxes. Chu Xiaotian didn't spot them, but they saw him. In particular, the bundle of clothes hanging from the spear on his shoulder was as conspicuous as a sign reading "I am the murderer." Huang Xiang nearly lunged forward to tear Chu Xiaotian to pieces on the spot, but after a moment's thought, he forced himself to hold back. He would wait until Chu Xiaotian reached the burial site, then carve him up alive to appease Huang Nian's spirit.