The Xiao Household Isn't for Me! Whoever Wants This Blame Can Take It—I'm Going to Be a Bandit!

Xiao Yan's body trembled slightly amid the crowd.

He instinctively turned his head, staring fixedly at An Yi, who stood nearby with an "innocent and aggrieved" expression.

How could it be such a coincidence?!

There had been no news early or late, yet someone had died just yesterday, and this morning, rumors suddenly spread through Wutan City's markets that "there was a cave behind the waterfall" and "someone had discovered treasure"?!

In this world, aside from him and Medicine Elder, the only person who knew there was a cave behind that waterfall was its creator—the very person who had smashed it open, An Yi!

Xiao Yan felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet straight to his scalp.

Noticing Xiao Yan's ghost-struck stare, An Yi tilted his head slightly to meet his gaze, raised an eyebrow, and softly said in a somewhat mocking tone:

"What are you looking at? Don't tell me you suspect me too, just like those old fools?"

Xiao Yan gritted his teeth and said nothing.

That bastard definitely spread this news himself! And he had done it this morning!

After killing Wang Teng last night, An Yi had deliberately not destroyed the evidence, instead allowing the magical beasts to trample the scene into a complete mess.

This morning, he had deliberately wandered around the crowded Mittel Auction House for an entire morning.

Places like auction houses gathered people from every walk of life. They were also information hubs where mercenaries sold their loot and bought supplies.

All he needed to do was casually chat with someone:

"Hey, have you heard? Someone found a treasure near the great waterfall outside the city."

"You haven't? I heard a few days ago that there's a hidden cavern behind that waterfall!"

Once that spark was planted, the mercenaries dreaming of getting rich overnight would spread it from mouth to mouth. A single morning was enough for this "treasure hunt" news to spread through Wutan City's markets like a plague!

An Yi knew perfectly well that whether or not he had an alibi, once the corpse was discovered here, the Xiao Household elders would surely shift suspicion onto him to protect themselves.

So, he simply muddied the waters himself!

He used this rumor to fabricate a plausible motive of "people dying for wealth" for the appearance of that Cloud Mist Sect disciple!

That way, he would no longer be the only suspect.

More than that, he had calculated human nature down to the bone.

He knew that as long as there were doubts surrounding this matter, Xiao Xun'er—protective and clever as she was—would be on the Xiao Household's side, while Nalan Yanran, who felt guilty toward him, would be on the Cloud Mist Sect's side.

As long as those two key figures firmly believed that a Sixth-Stage Qi Disciple could not possibly kill a Five-Star Dou Practitioner and argued for him with reason, that blame would never land on his head!

An Yi looked at Ge Ye, who had been left speechless by Nalan Yanran's reasoning, as well as the three elders, whose expressions had turned awkward.

An Yi lowered his head. A chilling glint of coldness and mockery flashed through his clear sky-blue eyes.

Everything was proceeding according to his script.

Even the shameless way the three elders had just tried to make him a scapegoat at all costs had been part of his plan!

An Yi slowly raised his head. The innocence in his eyes had been replaced by utter dejection, mixed with extreme disappointment and desolation.

He looked at Xiao Zhan, then at the three elders, and gave a self-mocking, bitter laugh.

"So, in the eyes of the elders, my life, An Yi's life, is nothing more than a discarded pawn that can be thrown out at any time to calm outsiders' anger."

After all, he had been raised by the Xiao Household. If he left without a word, perhaps the Xiao Household would not care, but it would leave him feeling deeply uncomfortable.

But after today's performance of "righteously putting family before all else," he finally had the most perfect and unquestionable reason.

A legitimate reason to become utterly disheartened and leave the Xiao Household for good after being ruthlessly betrayed and abandoned by its upper ranks!

From then on, the skies and seas would be wide open. He would go to the Magic Beast Mountain Range to be his bandit, grind levels like mad, and owe nothing to the Xiao Household of Wutan City.

Back at the Xiao Household.

With the "Treasure Cave" information brought back by the patrol captain as a foundation, along with Nalan Yanran arguing forcefully on Ge Ye's side and Xiao Xun'er repeatedly applying pressure on the Xiao Household's side, the attempt to frame An Yi ultimately fell through.

Although An Yi had successfully cleared himself of suspicion, Wang Teng's death was still a matter of great importance.

A dignified inner disciple elite of the Cloud Mist Sect, the son of a deacon—had he simply been unlucky enough to become a snack for a high-level magical beast, or had he encountered another mercenary team while treasure hunting and been ambushed?

If they did not investigate this matter to the bottom of it, Ge Ye would have no way to answer to the sect.

After all, the one who had died was not some nobody, but the face of the Cloud Mist Sect!

After all the commotion outside the city, An Yi no longer looked as carefree and flippant as usual when they returned to the Xiao Household. Instead, he remained silent throughout, head lowered, looking devastated and disheartened as he quietly followed the group back into the Xiao Household estate.

The moment he entered, he broke away from the crowd and headed straight back to his shabby little courtyard.

Before they knew it, evening was approaching, and the sky gradually darkened.

For once, An Yi did not go to the back kitchen to steal roast chicken, nor did he go to a restaurant outside for dinner. He simply stayed quietly in his room.

Not long after, footsteps sounded outside the courtyard.

Nalan Yanran came looking for him. Almost at the same time, Xiao Xun'er arrived by another path.

The two young women, both of noble status and peerless beauty, unexpectedly encountered one another outside the courtyard gate.

They exchanged a glance, and the atmosphere became somewhat delicate. In the end, neither spoke. With perfect unspoken understanding, they both reached out and pushed open the old wooden gate.

An Yi's door stood open.

The two walked into the courtyard side by side. As soon as they reached the doorway, they saw An Yi in the flickering candlelight, holding a rag and carefully wiping the old table that had barely anything on it. Even the bed had been neatly made.

Seeing this unusual sight, Xiao Xun'er immediately felt a sense of foreboding rise in her heart. "Brother An Yi, what are you doing?"

An Yi stopped what he was doing and looked back at them, his tone calm.

"Packing up. Oh, no, that's not right. I don't really have anything to pack. Mostly, I just want to clean the room before I leave."

"Packing up? Leave?" Xiao Xun'er's heart tightened as she urgently asked, "Where are you going?"

"Where else could I go? I'm leaving the Xiao Household."

An Yi tossed the rag into the basin of water and turned around. "You two saw everything that happened today. I've thoroughly learned just how unwelcome I am in this Xiao Household."

"For something this serious, they were willing to pin the blame on me without a shred of solid evidence!"

An Yi shook his head. "Before, people disliked me and cursed me for not making progress. I thought that was understandable—I was an outsider living under someone else's roof. But today... forget it. Since they dislike me so much, I'll leave. That way, I won't keep offending everyone's eyes by staying here. Otherwise, one day someone might sell me off, and I'd still be helping them count the money."

Xiao Xun'er panicked, her eyes reddening slightly. "Brother An Yi, today's matter was just a misunderstanding! The First Elder and the others were only muddleheaded for a moment because they were too afraid of being held accountable by the Cloud Mist Sect... Don't act rashly!"

When Nalan Yanran heard that An Yi was leaving, however, her eyes lit up. She even stepped forward excitedly.

"You're not staying with the Xiao Household anymore? That's great! Then come back to the Cloud Mist Sect with me!"