Chapter 380: Night Investigation of the Dragon Pool

The aftershocks of the whole courtyard's assembly rippled like a stone tossed into a stagnant pool, the ripples lasting several days before gradually subsiding.

The three elders have calmed down.

At least on the surface, that's the case.

Liu Haizhong shut himself indoors; it is said he broke two tea jars at home.

Yan Bu Gui still tends his flowers and plants, but when he sees people from West Kua Courtyard, his gaze flits away.

Yi Zhonghai remains his composed self, rising early each day to sweep the courtyard; when he meets Li Ping'an he nods, but his words are noticeably fewer.

The Siheyuan has returned to its former rhythm.

By the communal washbasin in the morning, women wash vegetables and laundry, gossiping about the east family's affairs and the west family's.

The men go to work, and those who are idle just loiter.

The children chase and play in the courtyard.

It feels as if that night's confrontation never occurred.

But some things have inevitably changed.

Li Ping'an's life remains routine.

He gets up before dawn, practices boxing with his son, and sends him to school.

During the day he goes fishing on the Yongding River.

In the evening he picks up the children, checks homework, and helps his daughter wobble in her first steps.

Like a truly marginalized person, delighting in tranquil leisure.

Only Lin Xueqing knows that her husband often sits alone at night.

He doesn't light a lamp, just sits in the darkness, sitting for half an hour at a stretch.

Late that night, the Siheyuan sank entirely into dreamland.

In the main hall of West Kua Courtyard, Li Ping'an rose silently.

Moonlight filtered through the paper window, coating his face with a layer of silvery gray.

He closed his eyes, and his Divine Perception spread out like mercury flowing over the ground.

The Siheyuan had already quieted down.

Further away, the streets were dead silent, with an occasional stray cat darting over a wall.

Confirming no one was awake, Li Ping'an's thoughts barely shifted.

The Spiritual Spring Space rippled in the depths of his consciousness.

A set of deep‑gray Night Cloak materialized in his hands out of thin air.

The fabric was neither cotton nor hemp, its texture peculiar—smooth as water yet possessing a certain resilience.

Li Ping'an shed his everyday clothes.

The Night Cloak fit like a second skin, snug and allowing movement without any stiffness.

He tightened the belt around his waist, securing the cuffs and pant legs firmly.

He then retrieved a pair of soft, thin‑soled boots from the space; their soles bore a unique tread, making his steps silent.

Finally, a dark veil covered his mouth and nose, leaving only his eyes exposed.

Those eyes shone startlingly in the darkness.

He pushed open the back window.

His figure drifted out like a falling leaf.

When he landed, not even a speck of dust in the courtyard was disturbed.

Li Ping'an did not use the front gate.

He clung to the wall base of West Kua Courtyard like a gecko, scaling to the roof ridge after a few hops.

He lay on the tiles, merging with the shadows.

The night was the best cover.

The layout of the Siheyuan was clear in his mind as a picture.

He knew which household had a baby that cried at night, which family woke up at night, and which route was the most concealed.

He understood it all.

With a light tap of his toe, his body sprang out.

The Carefree Step unfolded, truly as if riding the wind; the tiles made no sound, and the eaves left no trace.

Within a few breaths, he had swept past several courtyards and arrived at the Old Locust Tree at Hu Tong Kou.

The branches and leaves trembled slightly, as if wind brushed them.

The Shopkeeper's residence lay in the officials' compound in West City.

Li Ping'an had only observed it from afar before.

Tonight, he would approach it closely.

His form raced through the night.

He deliberately chose secluded alleys, avoiding the main thoroughfares.

When he occasionally met night‑patrolling militia, he sensed them in advance, either hiding in the shadows behind walls or leaping onto rooftops to hold his breath.

A scare, but no harm.

About two quarters later, that cluster of courtyards with gray walls and red tiles appeared in his view.

Unlike ordinary Siheyuan, the surrounding walls here were taller and the main gate wider.

The entrance not only had a guard, but Li Ping'an's Divine Perception swept across and sensed two people stationed in the gatehouse, their breaths long, clearly members of a training family.

He circled to the rear wall of the courtyard.

A narrow alley lies here, seldom walked on ordinary days.

The wall is a little over three meters high, and broken glass is embedded at its top.

It suffices to keep out ordinary petty thieves.

It cannot stop a master.

Li Ping'an does not rashly climb over.

Li Ping'an crouches in the shadow at the alley mouth, and Divine Perception slowly reaches into the courtyard like a tentacle.

One layer of courtyard, two layers, three layers…

Suddenly, Li Ping'an's brow furrows slightly.

Divine Perception, upon reaching the third main hall, senses a certain obstruction.

It is not a physical barrier.

But some kind of… qi mechanism.

There is a master inside the house.

And more than one.

Breathing is fine and lingering, heartbeat steady and strong—signs of internal martial arts cultivated to a certain stage.

Li Ping'an withdraws Divine Perception, leaving only a faint thread of awareness attached to the wall top.

Li Ping'an pulls several Stones from his bosom.

He pinches one, flicks it with a finger.

The Stone slices through the air, silently landing in the courtyard's southeast corner.

Thud.

The light sound is almost inaudible.

But the courtyard reacts instantly.

Behind the main hall window, a gaze shoots like lightning.

Though separated by curtains, Li Ping'an still feels the sharpness of that gaze.

Immediately, two dark silhouettes flash out from the side rooms, footsteps light as a cat's, quickly inspecting the southeast corner.

Finding only a Stone, the two exchange a glance, yet remain on guard.

One crouches to examine the ground traces.

The other lifts his head to scan the wall top, gaze like a blade.

Li Ping'an holds his breath, heart slowing to thirty beats per minute, body temperature dropping, vitality contracting.

Almost merging with the surrounding environment.

That gaze sweeps over his position, pausing for half a second.

In the end, it finds nothing abnormal.

"A wild cat, perhaps," the dark figure inspecting the ground whispers.

"Doesn't seem like it."

The other shakes his head, "Too coincidental."

"Check the outer perimeter?"

"No need, guard the interior. The chief instructed that these days require extra vigilance."

The two converse softly for a few sentences, then retreat to the side rooms.

But the courtyard's alertness clearly rises.

Li Ping'an senses that two more figures emerge from the shadows, each lying in ambush at the four corners of the courtyard.

Their breathing is exquisitely controlled; without his keen Divine Perception, they would be almost undetectable.

What a tight defense.

This far exceeds the security standards of ordinary officers.

The Shopkeeper harbors something in his heart.

Li Ping'an's mouth corners lift slightly.

The more so, the more it shows he is nearing the core.

Li Ping'an does not rush to act.

Like a stone statue, lying still in the shadows.

Time passes minute by minute.

The moon climbs to the zenith, then slowly tilts west.

The courtyard changes guard shift.

During the handover, there is a brief gap.

Li Ping'an moves.

His form drifts up like a phantom, toe lightly tapping the gaps among the broken glass at the wall top, and he flips into the courtyard.

Upon landing, the Carefree Step's "Willow Fluff Riding the Wind" activates, using the night breeze to glide toward a holly thicket.

The whole process is silent and soundless.

Not even a holly leaf trembles.

The guard in the corner seems to sense something, turning his head toward this side.

Li Ping'an's pores close, breath restrained.

The guard watches for a moment, finds nothing amiss, and turns back.

Li Ping'an then slowly exhales a puff of foul breath.

Just now, in that instant, he deliberately slowed even the flow of his blood.

His gaze swept the courtyard.

The three‑tiered courtyard was laid out in an orderly fashion.

The Front Courtyard housed the gatehouse and the garage.

The Central Courtyard contained the living room, study, and guest rooms.

The Rear Courtyard held the main house and the bedroom.

Where is the Shopkeeper at this moment?

Divine Perception dared not conduct a wide‑range probe, lest it rouse the masters inside.

Li Ping'an could only judge by experience and observation.

The study in the Central Courtyard still had its light on.

Through the paper window a silhouette appeared, bent over and writing.

In stature, it was about seventy‑to‑eighty percent similar to the Shopkeeper.

But Li Ping'an always felt something was off.

It was too obvious.

Working by lamp in the dead of night seemed deliberately a façade for onlookers.

His gaze shifted to the Rear Courtyard.

The main house was pitch black.

Yet behind the window of the West Wing Room, a faint glimmer leaked out—not electric light, but something like an oil lamp or candle, partially obscured.

Moreover, the qi flow there was the strongest.

At least three masters were hidden in the shadows.

Li Ping'an formed a plan in his mind.

He needed to get closer.

To go from the Central Courtyard to the Rear Courtyard, he had to pass through a Moon Gate.

The doorway was unobstructed, the most open spot for observation.

A guard's gaze swept that spot about every ten seconds.

Li Ping'an calculated the timing.

When the guards at the southeast and northwest corners turned their heads elsewhere simultaneously—

He moved.

It wasn't a straight‑line dash.

Instead, he glided along the ground with a strange footwork.

The "Ground Dragon" from Bajiquan combined with Carefree Step, his body almost flush with the bluestone slabs, skimming the Moon Gate like a shadow.

The moment he entered the Rear Courtyard, he rolled and concealed himself behind a clump of banana trees.

His heart fluttered slightly.

That previous move was perilously close.

The northwest‑corner guard seemed to sense something; when his gaze swept over, the banana leaf rustled as the wind blew it.

The guard glanced twice and did not investigate further.

Li Ping'an waited a moment behind the banana foliage.

After confirming safety, he focused his attention on the West Wing Room.

The paper window was thick, obscuring the interior.

But Divine Perception could penetrate.

He carefully sent out a filament, as fine as silk, probing the crack.

Just as it was about to seep in—

A light shout rang from inside: "Who?"

It wasn't shouted toward the window.

It was directed toward some direction inside.

Li Ping'an's heart tightened; he instantly withdrew his Divine Perception.

Immediately after, the West Wing Room's door opened.

A middle‑aged man in a Zhongshan suit stepped out, his expression grim.

It was the Shopkeeper.

But another person followed behind him.

The man was short, unremarkable in appearance, wearing a plain cotton shirt, yet his eyes shone terrifyingly.

His gaze, like a hawk's, swept the courtyard.

Li Ping'an held his breath, even his Divine Perception fully retracted.

He had an intuition—that the short man could sense the Divine Perception probe.

"Sir, what's the matter?" the courtyard guards gathered quickly.

The short man said nothing, merely squinting and scanning the courtyard inch by inch.

His gaze passed over the banana clump several times.

Li Ping'an's muscles relaxed, his heartbeat nearly halted.

He even began to mimic the physiological state of a hibernating animal.

This is the Turtle Breath technique, attainable only at the master level of Tai Chi.

The short man looked for a moment, his brow slightly furrowed.

"Maybe I'm being paranoid." He shook his head, "but just now I definitely felt a hint of being watched."

The shopkeeper's face darkened: "Is it someone from over there?"

"Hard to say." the short man said, "but we can't talk any more tonight. You rest first; I'll increase the vigilance."

The shopkeeper nodded and retreated back inside.

The short man, however, did not leave.

He stood still in the courtyard, suddenly closing his eyes to focus his spirit.

Li Ping'an's heart alarm bell Great Work.

The next second, the short man opened his eyes, his gaze shooting straight at the banana grove!

"Come out!"

The voice was not loud, yet it was like a needle piercing the eardrum.

Li Ping'an knew he could not stay hidden.

But he did not panic.

At the instant the short man's words fell, he already shot out from behind the banana grove like a cannonball!

Not an escape.

But a charge toward the west wing room window!

The Eight Extremes Fist's "Fierce Tiger Hard Climbs the Mountain" erupted with full force; the fist wind tore the air, booming toward the window!

This sudden move, born of haste, was unexpected by everyone.

The short man shouted sternly: "Stop him!"

Four guards burst out from the shadows.

But Li Ping'an's speed was faster.

Fist arrived, window shattered.

Amid flying wood chips, he had already crashed into the house.

His gaze swept—

The interior was empty of anyone.

Only an oil lamp swayed on the table.

The shopkeeper was gone.

A secret passage!

Li Ping'an instantly understood.

Just now the shopkeeper's retreat back inside was a feint; his escape taking the opportunity was real.

Meanwhile, the short man and the four guards had already blocked the doors and windows.

"What gall!" the short man sneered, "Since you've come, don't leave."

The five encircled, locking their qi on him.

Li Ping'an drew a deep breath.

Tai Chi intention circulated throughout his body.

He knew, tonight there would be a tough battle to fight.

But strangely, his heart held no fear.

Instead, there was an inexplicable excitement.

Like a hunter lying in wait for a long time, he had finally awaited the moment to confront the beast head-on.

Outside the window, the moonlight shone brightly.

In the courtyard, killing intent grew thick.

A master-level duel was about to erupt in this grand manor.

The wind, it seemed, had grown even more biting.