Sneak Attack

Wenlong slowly walked toward the cave entrance. "Father, Mother, the survival of our entire clan is at stake. Someone has to do certain things.

"This time, I'll go to Wan Family Town first and scout things out. You don't need to worry too much."

Long'er's mother was already streaming with tears. Wenlong was her very lifeblood.

Ever since her eldest and second sons had been killed by the Kai family, she had never wanted Wenlong out of her sight again.

Yet for the sake of the clan's livelihood, her son, blessed by their ancestors, had learned a whole array of skills. If he did not help their clansmen make a better living, who else could?

Long'er's father punched the stone wall, shaking loose fragments that scattered across the ground. He hated his own helplessness, too. His son was only nine, yet he had to charge at the very front for their clan.

Of course, his son said he was only going to scout things out, but the dangers were easy to imagine. If the Kai family discovered him, he would never return.

Yet he could offer only a feeble protest against his son's words. His heart ached.

Wenlong raised his head toward the sky, refusing to let his tears fall. Of course, he was not going to Wan Family Town merely to scout.

What he had left unsaid was that, whether he had to steal or rob, he would bring back supplies.

"Father, Mother, give me a little brother." Once Wenlong had said it, he dared not linger. He used Shadow Step and vanished into the distance in an instant. Behind him, his mother's heart-rending sobs had already begun.

Wenlong could never bear to see his mother's tears. He had long since felt his family's love, and so he was willing to risk his life to do something for the clan.

As soon as he left the village, Wenlong picked up speed. His own tears flew in the wind. He could not bear to leave his parents, either.

He raced along, choosing only deserted routes for fear of running into members of the Kai family who had come searching.

For safety, he entered the woods whenever he encountered mountains and traveled through barren land.

He kept his Mental Power probing throughout the journey, giving anyone he detected a wide berth. With utmost caution, he made his way toward Wan Family Town.

Only when Wan Family Town came into view in the distance did he stop on a nearby mountain and find a large tree to rest in.

He waited for night to fall before climbing down from the tree and creeping toward Wan Family Town.

Standing on high ground, Wenlong spotted a brightly lit mansion within a deep courtyard. That was probably the Kai family head's residence.

Probing with his Mental Power and using Shadow Step, he easily slipped past the Kai family's guards and entered the compound.

After locating the grain storehouse, Wenlong was just about to head there when he discovered that the nearby Embroidery Pavilion held a great deal of fabric.

He immediately changed his mind and slipped over, putting all the fabric into his storage space before heading for the grain storehouse.

Inside the grain storehouse, he looked everything over and was just about to put the grain into his storage space.

Suddenly, a commotion arose outside, growing louder and louder. Perhaps someone had discovered the missing fabric and alerted the people in the compound.

He dared not make a move. Lying down amid the piles of grain, he settled into a comfortable sleep.

The commotion outside continued until dawn before gradually subsiding. Someone also came to inspect the grain storehouse, but Wenlong hid himself among the grain.

They checked the place, found nothing, and hurried out of the granary.

It seemed he would have to wait until dark. Wenlong periodically probed outside with his Mental Power.

He discovered a boy about his own age, arrogantly ordering the servants around and either beating or berating them.

Wenlong could not help peering outside through a crack in the door. Seeing how finely the boy was dressed, he wondered whether this was the Kai family head's young grandson.

I'll let you swagger around for one more day. Tonight, I'll kill you and let your family taste the pain of losing a loved one, too.

Wenlong continued using his Mental Power from time to time to keep track of the boy's movements.

When he saw the boy finally enter the East Wing Room, Wenlong thought to himself, Late tonight will be the hour of your death.

That night, the compound did not quiet down until very late. From time to time, the only sounds were the guards' footsteps by the compound walls.

Wenlong quietly filled his storage space with grain before stopping to probe for any activity nearby.

Seeing that the guards were only moving around near the walls, Wenlong swiftly entered the East Wing Room, darted up onto an overhead beam, and searched for the boy he had seen during the day.

With his Mental Power, he detected that the people attending the boy nearby were already fast asleep. The boy, too, was sleeping soundly in his room.

Wenlong approached the sleeping boy and used Shadow Hand to launch the Shadowless Needle. It struck the boy's fatal point in an instant, pierced straight through him, and returned to Wenlong's Shadow Hand.

Only after seeing that the boy had made no sound at all did Wenlong use his Mental Power to search the room for valuables. He moved every useful item in the room into his storage space until it could hold no more.

Seeing no unusual activity nearby, he calmly walked out of the room and detected that the guards had just finished patrolling past one side of the compound wall.

He hurriedly used Shadow Step, swiftly cleared the wall, and disappeared into the night.