Chapter 344

Ding Xiu had only one elderly wife, who bore him one son and one daughter; publicly, the couple lived in harmony, but in truth, he kept a concubine outside, visiting her every thirteenth day in Chengxi.

The Ding residence had six courtyards, with three study rooms; Ding Xiu spent time daily in Study Room No. 3 and forbade anyone from approaching it.

His three disciples were all in the central courtyard, along with the patrol routes, timings, and positions of the six retainers.

In the shadows, Brother Brother Sikong walked slowly, as if rising in the night to use the latrine, while his mind raced with thoughts.

Scouting, gathering intelligence, surveying terrain, finding the right moment—he had long mastered this theft routine, and during his days hiding in the Ding residence, he had already planned a complete scheme.

Under the dark, moonless night, Brother Brother Sikong arrived at Study Room No. 3, avoided the patrolling retainers, flicked his fingers to knock out several vicious dogs, slipped close, shattered the door bolt, and entered the study.

The room was pitch black, but Brother Brother Sikong was unaffected; after a quick glance, he located the hidden compartment, and without effort, he seized a wooden box in his hand.

"I've been a stable boy these past days—taking my wages is only right, and as for that old bastard Ding Xiu, he punched me..."

He casually weighed the wooden box in his hand, barely suppressing the urge to leave his mark, feeling a pang of vindictive satisfaction.

In Hengshan City, with its millions, his skills in disguise and concealment made him unafraid of imperial court pursuit—only fellow thieves, equally skilled in theft and tracking, who happened to cross his path, gave him pause.

He closed the door and was about to retreat along his planned route when suddenly a loud shout echoed from the front courtyard—he froze, then without hesitation leapt onto the courtyard wall and dove headlong in one direction.

His speed was swift, silent; within a few leaps, he had vanished far away.

"Thief!"

The cry from the front courtyard spread rapidly; Brother Brother Sikong hid in the shadows, hearing the whistling of projectiles behind him, and sneered—but he had already reached another courtyard.

"This place also looks quite wealthy."

After cautiously dodging for a while, Brother Brother Sikong took a moment to observe the household—this was his instinctive habit—and as he looked, his heart stirred.

"Don't stir up more trouble..."

Suppressing the impulse to steal one more thing, Brother Brother Sikong was about to retreat when suddenly a low, agonized scream pierced the air—then, flames erupted in blazing rows across both front and back courtyards:

"Don't let the lecherous thief Brother Sikong escape!"

"?!"

Brother Brother Sikong, who had assumed someone had broken in to rape and murder, was about to flee when he heard the shouts from all directions—his face turned ashen.

"Which bastard is framing Grandpa?!"

Brother Brother Sikong's fury surged—he sensed something was wrong; the household's reaction was too swift. No matter how elite the retainers or guards, none could move with such coordination.

Unless...

"Ambush!"

He leapt upward, dodging the arrow that pierced through the rock garden, the wall, and buried itself deep into the ground—his blood ran cold; he let out a shrill cry and bolted for his life:

"Ding Xiu?!"

Whoosh~

In the night, wind howled, torches flickered, figures surged from all directions, and hidden archers lurked in the dark; even with his exceptional lightness skill, Brother Brother Sikong was driven into desperate disarray.

"Don't let the lecherous thief Brother Sikong escape!"

"Fuck your mother!"

Brother Brother Sikong nearly spat blood—he knew he'd been framed again.

"I've never touched another woman in my life—lecherous thief, your mother, Ding Xiu... ah!"

Li!

Arrows pierced the air, streaked with blood, and buried themselves into the earth.

On a rooftop, Ding Xiu slowly lowered his longbow, glancing left and right.

"Drive him toward the north gate—make it noisy. If Brother Zhongli Wang Luan wants to catch the thief, let him try!"

"Yes!"

Several elite Wutang experts bowed and departed.

"Just let him go like that?"

On the other side of the eaves, Zhu Zhu Zhongying toyed with his three-foot sword: "Brother Zhongli Wang Luan isn't easily fooled—he won't believe it."

"What else can we do?"

Ding Xiu's face was grim: "Do you trust a thief more than the imperial court?"

"I still feel this is a problem, and..."

Zhu Zhu Zhongying shot him a sharp glance: "Jin Jin Zufeng is almost here."

"The Jingping Bureau can't touch the Wutang—what of Jin Jin Zufeng? Would he dare provoke that Marquis? Give him face, and he'll take it!"

Ding Xiu sneered, his voice audible only to the other:

"The Yun Xiang Ding's disappearance was due to Ouyang Ying's negligence—we may face reprimands at most. But if anyone traces it back to that Marquis..."

"Perhaps you're right."

Zhu Zhu Zhongying gazed toward the Wutang, sighing inwardly:

"How did His Highness take this disciple..."

"Only heaven knows."

Ding Xiu's face was blank, but just thinking of that face made his chest tighten.

"Let's go—we must put on a show."

Zhu Zhu Zhongying sheathed his longsword; the two men, each leading over a dozen men, surged forward with great fanfare.

"Huh!"

In the courtyard, beneath the old tree, Yan Yan Chunyang sat cross-legged; silver light flowed like water over his bare torso, yet ultimately dispersed.

Oo~

His pores opened, releasing sweat and blood qi that enveloped the entire courtyard.

Seeing this, the two elderly servants attending the courtyard dared not even breathe.

"Still no good."

Having undergone another blood exchange, Yan Yan Chunyang's face was somewhat pale, his eyes bloodshot:

"Why still won't it work?!"

"My lord, the Thousand Yin Ritual is nearly complete—why not wait a little longer?"

An old servant bowed and said: "Even with the aid of spirit pills, a blood exchange is ultimately a harm to the body."

"The Thousand Yin Ritual—can it truly aid this lord in exchanging blood?"

Turning the prayer beads in his palm, Yan Yan Chunyang drew a deep breath; after swallowing several spirit pills, his complexion quickly recovered.

"The Thousand Yin Dharma Lord is omnipotent..."

"Shut up!"

Casting a disgusted glance at the old servant: "Don't brag before this lord. If the blood exchange fails, this lord will tear down your Thousand Yin Dharma Lord's temple!"

"My lord..."

The old servant's face changed. Suddenly, as if sensing something, he spun around and dropped to his knees with a thud.

"Hm?"

Yan Yan Chunyang looked up.

But from the shadows, a youth in a black robe, pale-faced and of a feminine air, slowly walked out:

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"Yan Yan Chunyang, how is it that when you were born, the Dharma Lord himself sent his blessing, yet you hold not the slightest respect for the Dharma Lord?"

"Fayin Fayin Tongzi?"

Glancing at the two old servants prostrate on the ground, faces pressed to the floor, Yan Yan Chunyang's brows rose with killing intent:

"What thing are you, to dare call this lord by his name?!"

Crack—

As the two men's auras clashed, the courtyard's ground suddenly split, blue stone bricks cracking apart piece by piece.

Hum—

The prayer beads in Yan Yan Chunyang's palm trembled, and a shadow emerged, interposing itself between the two.

"Yingxin?"

Seeing that figure seemingly formed of dark mist, the effeminate youth gave a cold snort and dispersed his aura.

"Brother Fayin, do not take offense."

Yingxin shook his head, looked toward Yan Yan Chunyang, his brows deeply furrowed: "My lord?"

Yan Yan Chunyang swept a cold glance at the effeminate youth:

"If he can bless this lord, that is his honor!"

"You bastard..."

Fayin Fayin Tongzi flew into a rage.

"My lord!"

Yingxin felt his scalp prickle, spun around abruptly, and just managed to hold back Yan Yan Chunyang, who had risen in fury:

"A message from the King—a message has come."

Wooo—

Hearing these words, the furiously enraged

two men instantly dispersed the violent aura about them.

Fayin Fayin Tongzi retreated several steps. Yan Yan Chunyang cupped the prayer beads in both hands, and saw wisps of inky true qi rise, transforming into a single crimson dragon's eye.

"Master!"

Yan Yan Chunyang kowtowed heavily; the others in the courtyard kowtowed one after another. Fayin Fayin Tongzi did not kneel, but bowed, paying his respects with great ceremony:

"Fayin pays respects to the King. May the King be at peace."

"Fayin, you are not in the temple attending your Dharma Lord—what are you doing in Mount Hengshan City?"

The dragon's eye fixed on Fayin Fayin Tongzi, who felt a chill run down his spine and did not dare raise his head:

"Reporting to the King, the Thousand Spirit Dharma Lord lost a Crossing-People Stele in this area. My Dharma Lord sent me here to aid the Blood and Flesh Vajras in recovering this stele."

"Where is your Sect Leader Yan?"

"Reporting to the King, the Sect Leader, his venerable self, should still be at the shores of the East Sea?"

"This king is at the East Sea."

The dragon's eye scrutinized Fayin Fayin Tongzi: "That old turtle is not here. Do you know where it has run off to?"

"This, this..."

Fayin Fayin Tongzi shook his head, indicating he did not know.

The dragon's eye watched impassively, only letting him speak after the latter was drenched in cold sweat:

"You may withdraw."

"I take my leave of the King."

Fayin Fayin Tongzi breathed a sigh of relief, bowed, and withdrew.

And only now did everyone in the courtyard dare not even draw a full breath. Yan Yan Chunyang raised his head, his eyes full of reverence:

"Master..."

"Yan Chunyang."

"Your disciple is here!"

"Tomorrow, go to Dragon Tiger Monastery to Baishan. Take this king's Dharma Card, and have a look at the present generation of Dragon Tiger Monastery disciples!"

"Huh?"

Yan Yan Chunyang started, then bowed and answered at once.

"Shadow Heart."

"Your subordinate is here!"

"Go and meet Long Xi Xiang."

"Yes."

Hum—

At that moment, the dragon's eyes finally dispersed, turning into wisps of inky Qi that sank into the bead string.

"Farewell, Master!"

When Yan Yan Chunyang raised his head again, his eyes were already terrifyingly bright,

Shadow Heart was somewhat puzzled:

Why would the Prince suddenly want to meet Long Xi Xiang?

Whoooosh—

In the night, Brother Brother Sikong fled for his life, sprinting wildly through the streets, cursing furiously in his heart.

His lightness skill was superb, and he would even dive into the ground from time to time, but he was still chased in a wretched state, without even time to staunch his bleeding.

"Not right!"

Suddenly, his foot paused, and he whipped his head back. On the distant eaves and streets, at least several dozen people were chasing at top speed, but they were not surrounding and cutting off his escape.

Instead, they kept pursuing, as if they wanted to......

"They want to drive me toward the north of the city?"

Brother Brother Sikong keenly sensed something was wrong. He abruptly stopped his steps, only to see a streak of Jin Guang soaring into the sky from an extremely distant place. Even separated by more than ten li, he felt a chill at his brow:

"A Grandmaster?!"

Brother Brother Sikong was greatly horrified in his heart, feeling his scalp go numb.

"It's over!"

Seeing that Jin Guang coming at extreme speed, Brother Brother Sikong felt his legs tremble, and didn't even have the thought of fleeing.

The jianghu rumor said he had once escaped from under a Grandmaster's hand, but only he knew that was just a rumor — he had never even caught a glimpse of the Grandmaster's face......

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, and his whole body was already soaring into the air. The fierce wind whistled past on all sides. He raised his head in terror and saw a familiar ghost-face mask.

Dad... pui, savior!

Brother Brother Sikong's tears streamed wildly, his face skin trembling from the gale.

Li Yuan didn't even look back, grabbing Brother Brother Sikong like a kite and shooting off at top speed. So fast was it that even Brother Zhongli Wang Luan, who had been coming at extreme speed, couldn't help but stop his steps.

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