Chapter 24: Baffling

Ye Liuyun went up to demand the origin, but the Black-clothed Person was very defiant, preferring death over speaking.

Ye Liuyun chuckled. He struck, breaking the man's limbs.

Still not speaking?

He took out the dagger again, Yi Dao Yi Dao cutting the flesh.

Liang Xue watched and felt terrified, keeping a safe distance.

Finally the man could no longer bear it, begging for a quick death: "Please, give me a quick death!"

"Tell me your origin, and I'll agree," Ye Liuyun said in a cold voice, without any feeling.

"We are Chengzhu Fu's guard," the man finally said.

"Chengzhu Fu? Why come to kill me?" Ye Liuyun was somewhat skeptical.

"It's not just you; we're to kill both of you. I don't know why. I'm only following orders," the man replied.

Ye Liuyun looked up puzzled at Liang Xue, seeing that she too was full of doubt. Both were bewildered.

Then he continued, "How many of you came, and what realms are you in?"

"Six of us. Four True Origin Double, two True Origin Triple. I've said all I know, so give me a quick death quickly!" the man pleaded again.

Ye Liuyun did not hesitate, twisting his neck and stuffing the corpse into a Storage Ring. Then he turned and collected the bodies on the ground as well.

"Let's move elsewhere! This man has already sent a signal. We can't keep ambushing in one spot; it's easy to be discovered."

Liang Xue agreed to his suggestion.

So the two, under cover of night, headed toward the left-side Mi Lin.

They walked while pondering why Chengzhu Fu sent assassins after them.

"I've never offended Chengzhu Fu! Could they be killing you and dragged me in as well?" Ye Liuyun thought and asked.

"I can't figure it out either. I haven't offended them! They might kill you because you're the top of the Ye Clan's inner household, but why kill me too?" Liang Xue was also bewildered.

Not long after they left, three Black Shadows appeared in the Mi Lin.

"The people have vanished! Don't know if they're dead or alive," one said.

"Two Signal Talismans; probably two people were discovered, most likely dead! There should be another person, location unknown," another said.

"We may have been spotted by the target. We can't split up! We came from the front and right side. Let's chase leftward to see," another Black-clothed Person suggested.

So the three of them pursued toward Ye Liuyun's direction.

Ye Liuyun and Liang Xue were not moving quickly; they hadn't expected the pursuers to catch up so fast, nor with such precise direction.

"Damn, they're coming!"

Ye Liuyun instantly heard the movement, quickly using Spiritual Sense Lock on the True Origin Double guard, then fired several arrows, soon wounding and scattering that guard.

Then he grabbed Liang Xue and ran.

He had Spiritual Sense Pathfinding; even in darkness it didn't hinder his escape. Moreover, his footwork was good, and he soon shook off the two pursuers.

But he still didn't stop. After running all night, only when light appeared in the Mi Lin did the two finally pause to catch their breath.

"They assumed we wouldn't go deeper, so they keep chasing us sideways. Should we head into the deep Mi Lin?"

Ye Liuyun suggested.

"Alright!" Liang Xue replied softly, her face slightly flushed.

Ye Liuyun found her a bit odd.

"What's wrong with you?" Ye Liuyun asked, still pulling Liang Xue to change direction.

"It's dawn!" Liang Xue whispered.

"Yes! We must hurry, lest they spot us," Ye Liuyun said, quickening his steps.

"You… you let go of me, we can run faster…" Liang Xue's voice grew softer.

Only then did Ye Liuyun realize he had still been holding Liang Xue's hand! No wonder she said it was dawn—she was reminding him to let go.

"Ah! Sorry! I forgot when I got nervous!"

Ye Liuyun hurriedly let go and apologized to Liang Xue.

"Let's go, now's not the time for this!" Liang Xue said, her face still red.

So the two continued toward the mountain depths, frequently changing direction and often leaping onto trees to walk.

But they never managed to shake the pursuers far behind.

It must be said, the guards' tracking ability was still strong.

And although she was True Origin Triple, Liang Xue wasn't confident fighting even one opponent.

"What a pity you're True Origin Triple and can't even handle a single guard! If I had that realm, I could take both at once!" Ye Liuyun joked to ease Liang Xue.

"I'm only high-level, with little real combat! Not like you, so cruel during torture! Looks like you do this often?" Liang Xue retorted.

"These tricks I learned from stories my aunt told me. And he's about to kill me, why be polite?" Ye Liuyun countered. …

Liang Xue also found some sense in it. She wasn't an uncultivated person. Just as she was about to speak, Ye Liuyun stopped her with a hand gesture!

"Did you hear it? The sound of flowing water?"

Liang Xue tilted her ear to listen, heard nothing, her face full of doubt.

"Just follow me!"

Ye Liuyun led the way.

Having witnessed Ye Liuyun's Divine Sense strength, Liang Xue trusted him completely and followed directly.

Not far ahead, Liang Xue also heard the sound of water flowing.

Following the sound, they discovered a mountain stream. Water cascaded down, forming a small waterfall, and beneath the gorge lay a pool.

Beside the pool, on a clearing, stood a fruit tree bearing several golden fruits, and rare medicinal herbs grew nearby.

"Blood Vein Herb! Finally found you!" Ye Liuyun's Divine Sense swept the area, spotting the golden Blood Vein Herb, strikingly conspicuous.

But Liang Xue didn't pay attention to those medicinal herbs.

They had been in the mountains for several days and were still being chased. Their bodies were covered in sweat stains. For her, a wealthy young lady, it was of course extremely uncomfortable. At this moment, seeing the water, the first thing she thought of was to go down and take a bath!

"Shall we go down and take a bath?" Liang Xue suggested softly, a little embarrassed.

But he saw Ye Liuyun looking at her as if she were a monster.

She immediately caught on and hurriedly explained, "It's not bathing together; we bathe separately. Don't get the wrong idea!"

"Did you see those herbs down there? Each one is very rare! Do you think there are no ferocious beasts guarding this place?"

Ye Liuyun ignored Liang Xue's slip of the tongue and projected his Divine Sense to search for a ferocious beast.

"But why isn't the ferocious beast appearing?" Liang Xue also thought Ye Liuyun's words made sense.

However, based on past experience, if a ferocious beast were present, it would pounce to block them as soon as they approached.

Ye Liuyun smiled faintly and said, "That's because the ferocious beast is right beneath this pool. It knows we can't get past it or harvest its herbs. Moreover, another group of people is also after those herbs."

Since entering Henglin Shanmai, Ye Liuyun's Soul, used at high intensity each day, has been growing rapidly.

Now he can detect a range of nearly three hundred meters, enveloping this entire area.

He discovered that beneath the pool there was a Black Python of True Origin Quadruple.

At the foot of the mountain stream, another seven or eight people were eyeing those herbs greedily, and their cultivations seemed to be at the second and third stages of True Essence. However, a cliff wall separated them, so that group probably hadn't noticed him.

That Black Python was actually monitoring that group, and it might not be able to defeat them, so it kept watching.