Is He Still Alive?

Night falls.

The vast port, where thousands of sails converge, was shrouded in rain, and countless travelers from the north and south moved about within it.

After arriving at Han River Bay, Hongyu first booked a top-floor room at the largest inn in the port. She had already washed herself clean and sat by the window, looking at the brightly lit night view, with a hint of trepidation in her eyes.

After all, the Blissful Illusory Body is too terrifying!

Hongyu originally thought that intimacy between lovers meant being all lovey-dovey and affectionate, and if things got really bad, she would just grit her teeth and endure it like being stung by a bee.

When I actually started practicing it, I discovered that the Blissful Illusory Body was just like the God-Slaying Whip!

Three lashes shattered the spirit of the virtuous woman; I, her husband, am but an honest man...

Hongyu felt utterly heartbroken, and even considered the absurd idea of having that slut help withstand the lightning tribulation halfway through...

But judging by that slut's physique, I'd guess it's like saying, "Three lashes to shatter a fairy's soul, but I'm a monk..."

Hmm~ Tsk tsk tsk...

Lost in these thoughts, a medium-sized merchant ship slowly entered the river port.

Hongyu snapped out of her daze, took out her telescope, and peered out from afar, quickly spotting Ye Xingge standing outside the cabin.

Soon after, several carriages appeared near the port, heading towards the dock, followed by four or five swordsmen.

After examining it carefully, Hongyu picked up the jade pendant:

"Six people, mediocre in martial arts, probably just low-level errand runners."

"Receive."

Within the river bend.

The three henchmen, trying to maintain a respectable demeanor, lowered the sails and anchor, and slowly approached a relatively secluded dock.

Han River Bay is a major port on the river, but it is officially under the jurisdiction of the nearby Hanyin County. There are patrol officers at the dock to inspect the ships, and according to the law, ships must wait with official documents when they dock.

Ye Xingge stood on the deck with a sword at his waist. Before they even reached the shore, he saw two minor officials approaching, carrying booklets and copying down information such as the ship's shape and the merchant's name.

Once the ramp was lowered, the head clerk went up to the deck and surveyed the cargo and several henchmen in the hold:

"Brother, you're a stranger here. Is Boss Wang not here this time?"

Ye Xingge, holding an umbrella, approached them and glanced at their waist tags, recognizing them as patrol officers dispatched to the ferry by the county government.

After noting down the two names, Ye Xingge took out the ship's manifest from his pocket:

"Hall Master Wang has gone to the Western Regions to open a branch; I will be leading this route from now on."

The clerk took the document stamped with the official seal of the yamen and examined it by the light of an oil lamp:

"Li Pingyi, accompanied by five people..."

The clerk quickly counted the boatmen and found there were only three. He asked in confusion:

"Where are the other two?"

Ye Xingge took out a money pouch from his pocket:

"The journey was long, and I caught a cold along the way, so I disembarked."

"Oh..."

The clerk glanced at the money pouch, then put it in his pocket, put away the ledger, and disembarked, reminding him as well:

"Hurry up with unloading. There's a big meeting going on at Temple of Vast Compassion recently, and quite a few important figures are heading north."

"Thank you for the reminder, sir."

Ye Xingge watched them go with a smile, and once he was sure the two were far away and there was no one else on the shore, he raised his hand to signal to his three henchmen.

The three men rushed into the warehouse, opened the cover, and brought out the thirteen children. To prevent them from shouting and alerting others, they kept their mouths gagged with chains.

Splash~

Meanwhile, three horse-drawn carriages appeared in an alley at the riverbank and arrived at the foot of the platform.

The man in the lead was a middle-aged merchant who boarded the platform while holding an umbrella.

"Incense Master Su."

Ye Xingge bowed his hands in a quaint salute. After introducing himself a little, he entered the cabin and motioned to the children standing in a row:

"These were all collected by the chieftain; from now on, I'll be in charge of delivering them. What do you think, Incense Master Su?"

Incense Master Su glanced briefly at the row of slightly frightened children, and finally fixed her gaze on Ye Xingge.

Ye Xingge smelled like a gangster and had a somewhat unruly air. He didn't look like a good person.

But the contact person had suddenly changed, and Incense Master Su was bound to be suspicious. Seeing that the three henchmen were all familiar faces, he pondered for a moment, then first ordered his men to put the dozen or so children onto the carriage, and then looked at the three lackeys whose expressions were not very good:

"What are those three doing...?"

Ye Xingge glanced back and said, "I'll go with you to deliver the goods. You guys keep an eye on the ship and don't wander off."

The three henchmen, already despondent, heard that the King of Hell was leaving and saw a chance to escape. Their smiles were genuine, and they quickly bowed.

"Take your time, Master. We promise we won't wander off..."

"Yes..."

Ye Xingge didn't say much, after all, Great Beauty would kill him, so he immediately took off the deck with his umbrella.

"Every gang has its rules. In the past, Hall Master Wang didn't follow many rules. I came over and taught him a few, and those two who didn't obey me had their legs broken and were thrown overboard. I hope you'll forgive me Incense Master Su."

"Oh..."

Incense Master Su actually suspected there was something wrong with this.

But what could a minor leader of a boat guild say even if he discovered a problem?

Say something like, "Look! He's a demon!"

Then the opponent used a single hand to split Mount Hua, wiping out his entire gang...

As the saying goes, if you can't solve a problem, you'd better not discover one in the first place.

Incense Master Su thought for a moment but didn't say anything. She simply led the group ahead, making small talk to probe the situation.

"I'm new to this line of work..."

"Not really. He committed murder when he was fifteen or sixteen and was wanted by the authorities. He was later taken in by Stronghold Master Pan and worked as a thug. This is the first time he's gone on such a long trip..."

What is your ancestral home?

"Han River..."

Glug glug...

As they talked, three carriages carrying children drove out of the harbor...

Meanwhile, inside the port.

A large, vermilion carriage stopped in the backyard of the port inn.

Upstairs in his room, Dugu Changxin, somewhat weary from his long journey, ate his dinner, occasionally muttering to himself:

"What exactly did that wandering swordsman mean today? Why did he suddenly jump off the cliff...?"

During the day, Ye Xingge suddenly transformed into a 'Dongguan Boy' and jumped off a cliff in a flash, leaving a deep impression on the group. The father and daughter pondered this all the way, but never found the answer.

At this moment, Dugu Yan stood at the window, gazing at the bustling crowds at the harbor, and sighed inwardly:

"In the world of martial arts, everyone has their own path. If someone is truly determined to die, there's nothing we can do."

Dugu Changxin felt that a person seeking death wouldn't jump with such flair. Unable to understand why, he could only sigh:

"Jingzhou is not under the jurisdiction of the Eight Pillars Hall. There are many things that even I, your father, cannot understand. You are going out to gain experience, so remember not to be careless..."

As the eldest daughter of the Dugu Clan, Dugu Yan possesses extraordinary talent and is highly regarded by the Eight Pillars Hall. At only eighteen years old, her strength has already surpassed that of her cousin Dugu Xuan, whom she has never met, and she is even regarded as 'Little Rain Tower' by the Eight Pillars Hall.

Cloud and Rain Tower's resume is that, without divine weapons, relying solely on his Lineage's foundation and innate talent, he entered the Third Rank at the age of sixteen, the Second Rank class at eighteen, and the First Rank class in his early twenties. He has not been able to surpass him in nearly five hundred years.

Dugu Yan, relying on the Eight Pillars Hall's relentless investment of resources, almost caught up with Cloud and Rain Tower.

But as the saying goes, "The tallest tree in the forest is the first to be felled by the wind." The Eight Pillars Hall already has Yuchi Jingnan, who ranks sixth in the world. If First Rank top-ranking old devil emerges within a few years, the Great Yan will definitely be furious.

Therefore, after Dugu Yan's martial arts skills approached the Third Rank, her elders used the Origin-Sealing Secret Art to suppress her physical growth.

This method does not suppress internal energy, but rather intercepts and seals the fundamental energy that is essential for physical growth within the body.

With resources withheld and physical strength stagnating, one's martial arts skills naturally cannot improve.

Once the seal is broken, this energy will quickly solidify the body, allowing the power to grow to a normal level.

However, this method is a one-time thing; once the body has grown stronger, it is impossible to suppress it again.

Secondly, it can only suppress the power of flesh, blood, tendons, and bones. Once one enters the realm of Qi Cultivation, it cannot be hidden, so it can only be used to protect newcomers.

She used this method to prevent the Great Yan from recognizing her potential and striking first before she could fully develop.

But true heroes cannot be forged in an ivory tower.

Although Dugu Yan is exceptionally talented, she is still somewhat naive and immature due to her lack of experience.

Just like the Baby Bunny, born into a prestigious family with a vast fortune, it harbors too many fantasies about venturing into the world, yet is completely unaware of its dangers.

Therefore, Dugu Changxin personally took on the role of protector, posing as a wealthy merchant from the north, and took his daughter on a journey through the martial world.

With a few days left before the Zen Debate at Temple of Vast Compassion, Dugu Xin, in order to give his daughter practice, relied on the intelligence network of the Eight Pillars Hall to track down Cold Cloud Blade Qiu Shu.

This man was a bandit leader in the Northwest. Some time ago, he failed in his robbery of a caravan and lost his weapons. Based on intelligence, he went to the Flowing Cloud Manor in the Within the Pass to have a famous sword reforged.

The father and daughter followed the clues along the way and found that the two parties were trading at Han River Bay Wharf in Jianghu. So they came here with the father and are currently waiting for both sides to arrive.

This was Dugu Yan's first time venturing into the martial world, and she was taking things very seriously. She was currently searching the vast port to make sure she didn't miss her target.

But after scanning the area for a long time, they suddenly spotted three carriages passing by on a path outside the port.

The three carriages carried a total of seven people. In the back of each carriage, two armed warriors sat outside the carriage, while in the front carriage, there were three people: a coachman, a middle-aged merchant, and a wandering swordsman wearing a bamboo hat.

Although they were quite far apart, Dugu Yan glanced at him briefly and felt that this person resembled the wandering swordsman who jumped off the cliff during the day.

?

Dugu Yan was taken aback, looked at her carefully, and then turned around and went downstairs to confirm.

Dugu Changxin was still sipping his wine when he saw this and asked in confusion:

"Have you found Qiu Shu's trail?"

Dugu Yan wasn't sure if it was the wandering swordsman from earlier that day, and even if it was, it didn't matter. Afraid of disturbing her father's meal with a false report, she casually replied:

"No, I'm just going downstairs for a bit, I'll be right back."

"This area is teeming with all sorts of dangerous people, please be careful..."

"Okay, I know..."