The Apothecary

In the pitch-black street, two figures flashed past like ghosts.

"Didn't expect that little thief to have a Lightness Skill!"

"But let's see how far you can run."

Huang Xinglong sneered, drew a breath, and leaped, his speed increasing further.

A Qi Gathering Martial Artist could circulate inner breath through his legs, bursting with speed far greater than raw blood-and-qi explosion.

He was about to catch up to the figure ahead.

With a whoosh, that figure seemed to turn into a flying swallow, darting forward and instantly widening the gap again.

Qin Yang even waved his hand arrogantly at Huang Xinglong, as if saying goodbye.

"Flying Swallow Steps?!"

Huang Xinglong, a dignified Qi Gathering Martial Artist who could command wind and rain in the city, couldn't stomach this insult. Enraged, he flickered and gave chase once more.

The two figures tore through the streets in a mad pursuit.

They chased all the way from the Inner City to the Outer City.

Leaning Against his perfected Flying Swallow Steps, Qin Yang pulled away every time Huang Xinglong closed in.

This time, Huang Xinglong closed to within five meters again, but Qin Yang didn't activate Flying Swallow Steps. Instead, he flipped into a medicine shop.

Burning with fury, Huang Xinglong didn't hesitate and charged straight into the shop's backyard.

But when he landed, Qin Yang was nowhere to be seen.

"This kid can't have gotten far. He's probably hiding inside the shop."

Huang Xinglong's face turned icy as he prepared to search the shop.

"What are you looking for?!"

A hoarse, eerie voice suddenly came from behind Huang Xinglong.

Frowning, he turned around.

Moonlight spilled into the dark courtyard.

A white-robed old man had appeared behind him without a sound.

In his hands, he rolled two White Jade Balls, his face deathly pale under the moonlight.

"And who are you?"

Huang Xinglong's heart tightened.

This old man was clearly no ordinary character.

The White-robed Elder Gazing At Huang Xinglong, his own mind churned with uncertainty.

He hadn't expected someone from a powerful Inner City clan to show up at his door—and a Qi Gathering Martial Artist at that.

"Forget it. Since you're here, don't bother going back."

The White-robed Elder finally decided to kill.

Huang Xinglong's eyes flickered. His body blurred as his Right Hand shot out, slamming a vicious palm toward the old man's face.

The strike was ferocious, whistling through the air.

He had sensed the old man's killing intent and decided to strike first.

Pfft!

The old man seemed not to react. His eyes and nose were smashed to pulp by Huang Xinglong's heavy palm, exposing bone.

But then something horrifying happened.

The White-robed Elder opened his mouth as if nothing had happened: "Did you skip dinner?"

Boom!

Before Huang Xinglong could understand, a tearing, twisting pain exploded in his gut.

"AHHH!!!"

His face contorted instantly. He looked down.

A pitch-black arm had thrust out from the White-robed Elder's stomach, piercing through Huang Xinglong's abdomen like a blade, madly crushing his Internal Organs.

"You... you..."

Huang Xinglong stared at the White-robed Elder but couldn't get another word out.

After a moment, the sound of chewing echoed from the courtyard.

As if a starving giant was feasting ravenously.

The White-robed Elder wiped the blood from his mouth. The eyes and nose that Huang Xinglong had torn off had already grown back, as if they had never been injured.

Zhou Weichan walked into the courtyard at that moment.

"Spirit Sorcerer, why would this man come to our place in the middle of the night?"

Zhou Weichan frowned.

Could it be that their movements in Linjiang City had been detected by the various forces in the Inner City?

"I don't know. But before that, someone else came in."

"However, that person was extremely fast. By the time I noticed, they had already vanished into the courtyard."

"This Qi Gathering Martial Artist might have entered while chasing that person."

The white-robed elder came to his senses, sensing something was off.

This might be someone setting a trap.

"Then what should we do now?" Zhou Weichan said softly.

"The pharmacy is likely exposed. Abandon this stronghold for now."

"Confirm the identity of this Qi Gathering Martial Artist as soon as possible."

The white-robed elder said in a deep voice.

"I'll arrange it immediately." Zhou Weichan nodded.

Soon, only the white-robed elder remained in the courtyard.

He muttered to himself: "Who is causing trouble?"

In a dark corner not far from the pharmacy.

Qin Yang had been watching the pharmacy's movements. After a long while, he still hadn't seen Huang Xinglong come out of the pharmacy.

"This pharmacy is indeed an important stronghold of the Other Shore Cult."

"Huang Xinglong is a Qi Gathering Martial Artist after all, and he just got taken down like that."

Qin Yang's eyes flickered.

Earlier, when he flipped into the pharmacy's backyard, he immediately used the Fleeting Light, Glancing Shadow technique to escape at high speed.

He even burst out with Fleeting Light, Glancing Shadow three times in a row, covering over a hundred meters before stopping.

As for how he knew about this stronghold.

That had to do with an old acquaintance of Qin Yang's.

Yao Ya.

Ever since Qin Yang fired Yao Ya from Daliang Pharmacy, he had people investigate him in secret, learning that he had become the shopkeeper of this pharmacy in the Outer City.

The pharmacy was suspicious—rumored to be opened by a merchant from out of town, who then directly hired Yao Ya as shopkeeper.

Qin Yang knew at once that the pharmacy was shady, but he didn't tip them off. Tonight, it finally paid off.

"With Huang Xinglong dead, the Huang Family is leaderless. They'll be easy for me to handle."

Qin Yang wasn't in a hurry. He waited another half hour before slowly disappearing into the dark street.

In the latter half of the night.

The Huang Manor was brightly lit.

The main hall was packed with people.

"The Family Head has been gone for over an hour and still hasn't returned. Could he have run into trouble?" a clan uncle of the Huang Family said with a frown.

"My father's martial arts are unmatched. There's no way he can't handle a mere little thief," said Huang Tianhu, Huang Xinglong's second son, unconcerned.

"Don't be careless. No matter how strong your martial arts, a sneak attack can still take you down," a clan elder shook his head.

"Brother, say something," Huang Tianhu looked at his elder brother, Huang Ruhu.

"An hour is indeed too long."

"Uncles, take some men out to search first. See if you can find Father's trail."

Huang Ruhu thought it over and decided caution was best.

The clan uncles of the Huang Family nodded one by one, rose from their seats, and quickly led people away.

Soon.

The crowd in the main hall thinned by more than half.

Huang Ruhu also sent the womenfolk back to their rooms to wait for news—staying here would only cause chaos.

But they didn't notice.

A figure had returned and slipped back into the Huang Manor.

Qin Yang planned to take advantage of the chaos and fish in troubled waters.

Most of the guards in the residence had been transferred away, making Qin Yang's infiltration even easier.

But when he quietly arrived at the courtyard of the Meditation Chamber deep inside, he still saw three figures standing guard at the door.

Qin Yang picked up a pebble from the ground and lightly flicked it onto the eaves.

With a soft crack, a faint, crisp sound came from the roof tiles.

The three guards instinctively looked up.

Just then, Qin Yang charged into the courtyard. Blood and Qi erupted rapidly in his legs, transforming him into a streak of light as he flashed out.