Chapter 16: Fortuitous Encounter

The next day at dusk.

After Cao Shangfei returned to Black Wind Cave, he did not see Yan Buji's figure.

That's right; the Grand Boss usually appears at night, and sometimes Cao Shangfei also wonders if the Grand Boss is a bat that can't stand the sun?

Bat...

Yeah!

Cao Shangfei does not know what kind of miraculous internal art the Grand Boss cultivates. Each time after sending the captured martial artists to his place, they vanish like human evaporation, leaving no trace. Could it be that these martial artists, as the rumors say, are swallowed alive and skinned by the Grand Boss, eaten down to nothing? Thinking of this, one cannot help but feel chills……Or perhaps there is some other hidden circumstance? Perhaps the Grand Boss disposed of them with some unknown method, but no matter what, this mystery always lingers in the heart, impossible to dispel.

Ha!

Cao Shangfei was waiting for Yan Buji's arrival; at this moment, Fourth Boss Mian Li Zhen and Fifth Boss Hua Xiu Niang also came.

Upon seeing Cao Shangfei, Mian Li Zhen chuckled and said, 'Yo, this isn't Third Boss, any news?'

"Ah, don't mention it; let's wait until the Grand Boss arrives to talk." Third Boss shook his head.

Hua Xiu Niang frowned: 'Could it be that you were discovered by the people of the Shui Tian Escort Agency?'

"That's not the case, but Second Boss has a chance to make good on his word. This time escorting the Wu Family here is none other than the previous Escort Head, Lin Qun!" Cao Shangfei gave a hehe laugh.

Second Boss Chi Ren Fo walked over, his face solemn, saying: 'Is it really him who has come?'

"Of course, unless you got the other's appearance wrong, I wouldn't mistake them."

Chi Ren Fo drew a deep breath, as if trying to suck the surrounding air into his belly. On his originally ferocious and terrifying face, he now revealed an extremely strange smile. The corners of his mouth slowly split, forming an exaggerated and twisted arc, making people involuntarily feel a chill.

"That's good……" Chi Ren Fo said softly, his voice low and hoarse, filled with an indescribable evil aura. His blood-red eyes stared fixedly ahead, as if through the void making eye contact with someone. Then he added: "I, the little monk, also want to learn his sword technique again!"

Seeing Chi Ren Fo like this, everyone's faces showed no expression, only feeling that this was indeed him.

Time passed bit by bit, as if being pushed by an invisible hand. Unnoticed, the sun gradually set westward, and the remaining glow in the sky also slowly disappeared. After several hours, night fell silently, the whole world shrouded in a layer of mysterious darkness.

Fine drizzle, occasional breezes.

Suddenly, a figure appeared before the rear hall door; in a blink, several people looked over—it was Yan Buji arriving.

Several people clasped their fists and bowed, saying, 'Greetings, Grand Boss.'

Yan Buji glanced at everyone, then immediately walked to the main seat and sat down, saying, 'Please sit.'

"Thank you, Grand Boss."

Yan Buji looked at Mian Li Zhen and asked, 'Fourth Boss, how are the preparations?'

"Replying to Grand Boss, everything is ready."

"Hmm."

Immediately, he looked at Cao Shangfei: 'Third Boss, how did the task I assigned you go?'

Third Boss's heart jumped; this time he hadn't gathered any useful information, and he didn't know whether the Grand Boss would be dissatisfied.

"Replying to Grand Boss, I went to the Wu Family camp and checked; the goods on those wagons are mostly porcelain and silk. But the camp also has the grandmaster-level expert Lin Qun present, making it impossible to examine everything thoroughly; please punish me, Grand Boss!" Third Boss immediately stood up, clasped his fists, and apologized.

Yan Buji frowned: "Is that so..."

This matter is also within expectations; after all, if Cao Shangfei accidentally alerted people, it would be bad, and failing to obtain useful information is quite normal.

However, with the Wu Family's large entourage plus a grandmaster escort head from the Shui Tian Escort Agency guarding them, it surely isn't just ordinary cargo.

The atmosphere instantly fell silent; with Yan Buji not speaking, no one dared to make the slightest move.

Cao Shangfei lowered his head, sweat beading on his forehead; in a blink he saw that Yan Buji's shoes and pant legs had not a speck of dirt, secretly his heart pounded with fear.

One doesn't know how high the Grand Boss's martial arts are; now it's raining outside, the muddy mountain road yet his clothes are spotless as new—truly terrifying.

After a moment, Yan Buji then said: 'Tomorrow, when they come, act.'

"Yes!"

"Go down."

"Grand Boss, if tomorrow we encounter Lin Qun, the little monk wants to duel him alone!" Chi Ren Fo's eyes burned with fighting spirit, fixed on Yan Buji.

"Of course it's fine, but if you lose again..."

"The little monk will not lose!"

"Good!"

Yan Buji appreciated Chi Ren Fo's absolute confidence, pursuing the pinnacle of Martial Dao by challenging strong foes. If he weren't harboring such thoughts, he would not have stayed in the Three Mountains Region in the first place.

After everyone left, Yan Buji narrowed his eyes sitting in the main seat, yet his heart could not feel happy.

It's nothing else; today Yan Buji discovered that someone had visited one of his strongholds. Although the traces were handled quite perfectly, it was precisely because his own investigative methods left behind had been tidied up to perfection that Yan Buji noticed the clue!

Yan Buji never thought that making all preparations would guarantee getting what he wants; precisely because the world is unpredictable and one cannot foresee unimaginable changes, he deliberately leaves some traces!

Thus, Yan Buji actually did not completely clean up the traces in his own stronghold, but the traces of that stronghold happened to be fully processed—this is proof that someone came.

Not ordinary thieves or bandits, but people who came specifically to investigate him!

"It seems it's really because of my Blood Essence Skill that they came. Capturing martial artists to train—this sort of thing will eventually be exposed; fortunately dragging so many people before being noticed is truly a matter of fate." Yan Buji chuckled, his eyes flashing with a dim light. In his dim pupils appeared all the preparations he had made over the past decade or more, making him unable to help but lament that whenever he is about to reap rewards, some unpredictable change always appears.

And of course, it is precisely because of these changes that he has become who he is today—hard to say good or bad, just take it step by step.

Since they came for the Blood Essence Skill, with such clean and efficient means, and still able to find his stronghold, it is highly likely that the Iron Tiger Guard are the ones who came.

Perhaps they had already come earlier, merely investigating news around Lin Shan Cheng all along, and the actions of the Three Mountains Bandits are no different from those of the former Blood Flow Sect, so they naturally become suspects.

"Fortunately I usually don't show my hand much and act alone. If I really displayed power in public, I'd likely have been discovered long ago. The Iron Tiger Guard watching those with Blood Essence Skill certainly wouldn't act rashly; they would try every way to lure me into action, confirm I bear Blood Essence Skill, then truly reveal their fangs. If that's the case...."

Yan Buji's eyes turned, and he chuckled.

At worst, I'll abandon these Three Mountains Bandits; anyway, after the Spring Literary Assembly passes, I won't stay in Lin Shan Cheng.