Back to Wan Family Town

As Wenlong saw life within the Lineage gradually settle down, he quietly set his mind at ease and focused on practicing martial arts.

One day, after finishing his training in the secret passage beneath the Ancestral Grounds, he emerged and stood at the ancestral hall entrance, looking out over the training ground. Seeing his companions all practicing diligently, he came up with an idea.

He leaped up the hill behind the grounds to check whether the snares had caught anything. Luckily, he found five pheasants. After collecting them, he ran to the stream to slaughter and clean them.

Then he returned to the edge of the training ground, gathered dry firewood, and set the cleaned pheasants over it to roast.

Before long, the aroma drifted through the air, and Shitou, Linzi, and the others came over, every one of them drooling.

Before they even reached him, Wenlong smiled and said, "I'm not handing out pheasants this time. If you want to eat, you'll have to win them with your skills."

Wenlong then announced a series of martial arts contests. First place would receive a whole roast pheasant, while second and third would each receive half.

The saber contest would offer the same prizes, but only first place in Shadow Step would receive a reward. If they wanted roast pheasant, they would have to prove their skills.

Shitou immediately organized the contests, while Wenlong simply watched from the sidelines with a smile. Everyone put their backs into it, hoping to win a prize.

The final results took Wenlong completely by surprise. His eldest female cousin, Wenzhu, took first place in both Shadow Step and hidden weapons.

Her saber skills were impressive too, earning her second place. The other prizes went to Shitou, Linzi, and his second-eldest female cousin, Wenye.

He had never expected Wenzhu to be so formidable. She could launch hidden weapons in rapid succession, and every one hit its target.

After handing out the prizes, Wenlong personally demonstrated how to launch hidden weapons in rapid succession. He also demonstrated Shadow Step and his saber techniques, explaining the key points they needed to keep in mind.

It seemed he would have to visit Wan Family Town again and make some trouble for the Kai family. The main problem was that practicing with stones every day still left them unable to defeat an enemy in a single strike.

He needed to bring the Smithy back from Wan Family Town and forge his own throwing darts. Only then would he have weapons capable of taking down an enemy with one strike.

Wenlong went to discuss it with his father and uncles. At first, none of them agreed to let him take another risk. But once they considered his reasons, they all fell silent.

Finally, a clan uncle called Seventh Uncle said, "All right. I've learned smithing before. Still, safety comes first. Be careful above all."

His parents reluctantly agreed to let Wenlong venture into Wan Family Town once more. This time, he brought Shitou and Wenzhu along to make the trip safer.

The next day, three horses galloped out of the exit from the Ancestral Grounds. Their riders were Wenlong and the two companions he was leading, Shitou and Wenzhu.

Wenlong once again took the detour through the Wasteland with them. The journey went smoothly, and they encountered no unfamiliar travelers.

It was not until evening, when they drew close to Wan Family Town, that the three stopped to rest. After they ate their dry rations, Wenlong instructed the other two to hide where they were and wait to receive him when he returned.

As the night deepened, Wenlong bade them farewell and quietly slipped into Wan Family Town.

He did not want to waste his strength at the outset, so he simply crept into town under cover of darkness. With the aid of his mental power, the night hardly hindered him.

The Smithy was not difficult to find along the dark streets. Its large sign proclaimed what it was, making it an easy target to locate.

Wenlong first scanned the area with his mental power. Only after confirming that no one was around the Smithy did he boldly slip inside.

He packed up the raw materials and smithing tools alike and stored them all in his space.

Once he had cleared out the Smithy, Wenlong reflected that a trip like this was no easy undertaking. He would not be satisfied unless he filled his space before heading back.

Knowing the way well, Wenlong loaded everything from the nearby Cloth Shop into his space, but he still was not satisfied.

He returned to the Kai Family Compound. Since it had guards patrolling the grounds and vicious dogs at the main entrance, he had to proceed carefully, climbing over the wall at the rear.

Only after activating his mental power to scout the area did Wenlong once again slip into the Kai Family Compound without anyone knowing.

Apart from the guards near the perimeter walls, everything inside was quiet. Presumably, everyone was asleep.

His target was still the grain warehouse. Having been there once before, he found it easily.

Wenlong continuously scanned the area around the warehouse with his mental power and discovered that quite a few traps had been added. He sneered inwardly. You think these petty tricks can stop me? Dream on.

He easily disabled the traps one by one before entering the warehouse. The head of the Kai family truly had an abundance of grain. Even after Wenlong filled his space, plenty remained, leaving him seething with resentment.

When he emerged from the warehouse, the compound was still silent. Unwilling to leave it at that, Wenlong wanted to get some silver to spend, but he had no idea where to look.

He thought of the accounts room. There probably would not be much silver kept there, but then he reconsidered. Even a little is better than nothing.

He activated his mental power again and kept scanning. Before long, he found a room that looked like an accounts room.

Whether it was or not, he slipped inside. Judging by its appearance, it certainly was. He began rummaging through chests and cupboards, and only after a thorough search did he find a little over a hundred taels.

Wenlong felt frustrated. Still, he had known perfectly well that they would not leave too much money in the accounts room.

Unable to swallow his anger, Wenlong looked at the roomful of ledgers. Burning them all would at least count as doing a good deed for the poor.

He found a fire striker beside the oil lamp and splashed the lamp oil over the ledgers before setting them alight. Fed by the oil, the flames instantly blazed higher and higher.

Wenlong had already darted into the darkness. Using Shadow Step, he crossed several rooftops in succession, then looked back from a distance to enjoy the spectacle.

The fire spread rapidly, and the Kai Family Compound soon descended into chaos. Guards rushed about fighting the blaze, their shouts rising one after another.

Just as Wenlong was secretly congratulating himself, he suddenly heard urgent hoofbeats approaching from afar.

The experts hired by the Kai family had arrived. Each possessed exceptional skills, and they brought the fire under control in an instant.

Wenlong's heart jolted. Knowing he could not linger, he used Shadow Step to flee swiftly. But the experts seemed to have detected his movements and pursued him relentlessly.

As he ran, Wenlong tried to think of a plan. Suddenly, inspiration struck, and he deliberately headed toward the place where Shitou and Wenzhu were hiding.

After entering a stretch of woodland, Wenlong shouted, "Shitou, Wenzhu, get ready to attack!" The two, already lying in ambush, immediately emerged and joined him in attacking their pursuers with hidden weapons.

Wenzhu launched her hidden weapons in rapid succession, and Shitou's aim was good as well. Together with Wenlong's nimble footwork, they kept even these experts from closing in for a time. On top of that, Wenlong's deadly hidden weapons were unerringly precise, not a single shot missing its mark.

Several experts fell to the ground, while the rest were battered until they cried for their fathers and mothers. If Shitou and Wenzhu had been using Iron Throwing Darts, probably not one of them would have escaped unscathed.

Wenlong laughed heartily and shouted, "Let's go!" The three sprang onto their horses and rode toward the Wen family's Ancestral Grounds, soon disappearing into the night.

The remaining Kai experts did not dare pursue them. People still lay scattered across the ground, some dead and others wounded. They did not want to end up like them.

By the time a large group from the Kai family arrived, they could only stare at the pitch-black road ahead, with no idea which direction to pursue.

Only the agonized wails of the wounded on the ground tore through the night sky.