Chapter 70: The Cunning Often Meet Disaster

Coming out of the prefectural government office, everyone wiped a cold sweat from their foreheads.

Especially Su Huafang, who could clearly feel the power of the martial artists beside Prince Lu; they were at least Third Rank.

If just one of them stood up, they could easily wipe out their entire group.

"Li Xunshou, your courage is truly great," Su Huafang exclaimed. "In that situation, you actually dared to interrupt the conversation between Prince Lu and the Prefect."

Li Lin shook his head and said, "If we hadn't stepped out at that moment, we would have fallen into a very troublesome situation later. It was just a gamble."

Bai Lizhuang hissed in a breath. "What do we do now?"

"Of course, we return to Yulin County," Li Lin said, glancing at the sky. "The sooner we leave, the better."

Su Huafang nodded and said, "I agree as well. The two Bai Xunshou, and Young Master Zhao, what do you think..."

Bai Liwei said, "Let's go back together; having someone to look out for each other is good."

Bai Bufan was somewhat regretful; he still had two brothels he hadn't visited yet.

Who knows when he would be able to come again.

Zhao Hao was somewhat hesitant. "I think..."

Li Lin looked at him and said, "Young Master Zhao, if I were you, I would not stay here for the time being. Your uncle is the Registrar, and he has some connection with Prefect Fang. If Prince Lu truly investigates, he will inevitably be implicated no matter what. If you stay here in Jincheng, you will likely suffer misfortune as well. It would be better to return to Yulin County with us; at least you can stand outside the situation and watch how things develop. When the time comes, whether you wish to save someone or keep yourself out of it, you will have room to maneuver."

Zhao Hao pondered for a moment and said, "I'll listen to you."

Su Huafang said, "Then let us all pack up first. Handle whatever matters need attending to as quickly as possible. Meet at the North City Gate in two hours."

Good!

The crowd immediately dispersed.

Li Lin returned to the inn, picked up his bundle, checked the contents inside, found nothing missing, and stuffed the alchemy furnace into it.

After paying the innkeeper for the room, he carried the bundle and went to the market.

He remembered he needed to buy rouge for the Tree Immortal Lady.

The rouge shops were easy to find, and there were quite a few of them.

But Xue Sui Zhu was available in only one shop, and it was a government-run establishment.

"So expensive, forty taels of silver?" Li Lin hissed in a breath.

The shopkeeper was a middle-aged woman who still retained her charm. She waved her handkerchief and said, "Oh, honored guest. This is the price. Xue Sui Zhu was previously something only the Imperial Consorts in the palace and noble ladies in Jingcheng could use. Now that it has been distributed down to the commandery prefecture, it is already very cheap."

"Can you make it cheaper?"

"No, the price is set by the imperial court; we cannot change it. If I lower it by one tael, I will have to cover that one tael of silver myself during the month-end inventory."

Li Lin saw that the woman did not seem to be lying, so he had no choice but to painfully pay the forty taels of silver.

This trip not only earned no money, but he also lost ten taels of silver.

Holding a round wooden box painted white with faint golden patterns, he opened it and saw that at the bottom of the white wooden box, in the center, there was a circular depression holding a pool of translucent, red 'jade'.

It had a faint fragrance.

No wonder it was called Xue Sui Zhu.

No wonder it was so expensive; even Li Lin thought this thing was extremely beautiful.

He put the box into his bundle and left the rouge shop.

After walking for a while, his expression became solemn.

Because he felt that someone was following him from behind.

Soul Hunters, because they nurture 'Yin Qi' within their bodies, possess senses that are, in essence, quite sensitive to this kind of energy source for Apparitions.

Therefore, the senses of a Soul Hunter are relatively sharp.

He did not turn around but pretended to be strolling idly, then, without seeming to, arrived at a relatively secluded area.

The alley here was very narrow, surrounded by low, short tiled houses.

Li Lin flashed behind a mud-brick house, blocked everyone's line of sight, and entered a stealth state.

He then hid behind an old tree not far away.

Shortly after, footsteps approached.

Three people arrived at the corner where he had disappeared, looked left and right, and after a moment, someone said, "Damn it, where did that brat run off to?"

Li Lin narrowed his eyes; he saw the face of the follower.

It was the 'Lin Qiyu' who had tried to scam him earlier but failed.

This middle-aged man wore a look of extreme anger. "If he had not refused to help, we could have blocked the Tiandian Gate outside until the leader returned, and we would not have suffered such great losses. I certainly would not have been stripped of my position as Escort Leader by the leader. Hmph, he definitely hasn't gone far. Split up and search. If you see him, shout loudly. When we catch him, I will make him compensate for my losses and then flay his skin off."

Hearing this, Li Lin gently set aside his red-tasseled spear and then drew the short sword he had tucked in his bosom.

The other two Escort Masters had walked far away, while Lin Qiyu searched nearby.

Li Lin quietly crept up behind him.

Soon, he arrived behind Lin Qiyu.

Hiss!

The short sword pierced Lin Qiyu's lower back.

Lin Qiyu's body straightened up from the pain, but he used some cultivation method to suddenly lurch forward several steps, instantly breaking out of Li Lin's attack range.

Then he shouted, "He is..."

Li Lin now knew the Lightness Art; he caught up in the blink of an eye and stabbed the short sword into the other kidney.

This time, Lin Qiyu truly could not speak. His face turned deathly pale green; he knelt on the ground, trembled for a while, and then collapsed face down.

His eyes bulged wide, filled with bloodshot veins; he had literally died of pain.

However, his voice still carried out. The two Escort Masters had not gone far; hearing the sound, they immediately rushed over together.

But just as they arrived not far in front of Li Lin, their heads shot up into the sky.

The blood spraying from their severed necks was like a watering can, droplet by droplet.

By the time both bodies and heads hit the ground simultaneously, a masked figure suddenly appeared behind them.

Li Lin took a cautious step back.

He could tell this masked person was very powerful.

"Friend, no need to be tense; it's me!"

The voice sounded somewhat familiar.

Shortly after, the person pulled down the mask covering their face, revealing a young man's countenance.

Li Lin recognized him: the leading youth from the Tianyi Gate.

"Tianyi Gate's eldest senior brother, An Xin!" This young man smiled with curved eyes, very approachable: "Friend, we meet again."

Li Lin clasped his fist: "Spirit Hunter, Li Lin. Thank you for your help... why are you here?"

"These two minor escorts were far from your match; I was doing something unnecessary." An Xin smiled and said: "Our Tianyi Gate has already let Shunfu Escort Agency go; I was just strolling on the street when I saw this Lin Qiyu actually dare to follow Li Xunshou, so I followed to see if I could resolve the misunderstanding between you two?"

Resolve a misunderstanding?

If it were to resolve a misunderstanding, would one need to wear a mask?

Would one strike with a killing move upon the first engagement?

This An Xin had come solely to kill.

"Thank you, young hero An; I have urgent matters now and must reunite with my companions. We shall meet again if fate permits." Li Lin did not wish to chat further with this person.

He felt the other party was deeply scheming.

Of course... he himself was much the same.

Similar kinds usually repel one another.

"Then I shall not trouble you further." An Xin clasped his fist: "We shall meet again if fate permits."

Li Lin turned and walked away.

An Xin stood motionless in place, staring at the spot where Li Lin had vanished.

After quite some time, more than a dozen masked men in black approached from nearby.

An Xin spoke coldly: "Sink these three corpses into the river to feed the Apparitions; ensure no one finds them. Clean up all bloodstains and such thoroughly."

The men in black acted quickly; one of them came forward to ask: "Eldest senior brother, we have learned that the chief escort of Shunfu Escort Agency intends to relocate his wife and children to Yulin County."

"Does he have a backer in Yulin County?"

"Unclear."

"Then continue investigating."

(End of this chapter)