Chapter 331: 337. Chapter 337: Nightly Foray into the Inner Chambers

337. Chapter 337: Nightly Foray into the Inner Chambers

Wei Hanshan left satisfied.

After returning to his manor, seeing his degenerate, frightened son caused by Yun Xinying's sudden departure, he instantly flew into a rage.

They say a tiger father has no dog-like son, yet how did he produce such a worthless good-for-nothing?

Look at that young hero Lin, also a seventeen-year-old boy—how can the difference be so great?

Truly, one is heaven, the other earth—utterly incomparable.

"A Chen, lock him in the basement; as long as that young hero Lin doesn't leave the provincial capital, he is not to be released."

Wei Hanshan, with a cold face, took out the anger he'd suffered at the Eight Extremes Martial Hall on the refined young man Wei Bowen.

He is, after all, a prominent merchant whose stamp makes the provincial capital tremble—yet he has to play the fool and smile before two juniors, how humiliating, how degrading!

How can he not properly discipline this son who never heeds advice and keeps bringing trouble?

With anger surging, Wei Hanshan ignored the middle-aged steward A Chen grabbing Wei Bowen by the scruff like a puppy and dragging him to the basement, coldly ordering: "Starve him for three days and three nights! See if he still dares to think with his lower half!"

"No, Father! I was wrong, I'll change—isn't changing enough?"

Wei Bowen let out a heart-rending cry.

Truly, hearing it breaks the heart, seeing it brings tears.

Wei Hanshan remained unmoved, coldly watching Wei Bowen being dragged into the basement.

Everything is self-inflicted; no one else is to blame.

It's also time to bring back the illegitimate son raised outside.

Eight Extremes Martial Hall, Provincial Capital Branch.

Shi senior brother, still not recovered from learning that the "Enchanting Witch" Organization founder is Hu Suqi, even half an hour after Wei Hanshan's departure, sat dazedly in the guest hall chair.

Having been single since birth for thirty years, he finally opened his meridians and found someone he likes.

As it turns out, his beloved is obsessed with taking revenge on his master, even wanting to turn his master into a puppet—what the fuck!

Lin Ke offered no words of comfort or advice.

Such matters can only be figured out and overcome by oneself.

"Senior brother, I have some matters to attend to tonight; I may not rest at the martial hall."

After keeping his senior brother company for over half an hour and fulfilling his duty as a junior, Lin Ke said a word and rose to leave the guest hall.

Returning to his bedroom and sitting at his desk, Lin Ke activated the mark he'd left on Yun Xinying for remote delayed surveillance.

The Lotus Heart Boat is a river barge, but it's not just one vessel—it's a flotilla of seven or eight boats joined together.

The boat Yun Xinying occupies is the most high-end, extravagant pleasure den of the entire Lotus Heart Boat, utterly decadent.

At this very moment, Yun Xinying, dressed as a man, is flanked left and right, immersed in a sea of pink softness.

Such behavior isn't because Yun Xinying is bold and ignores Lin Ke's threat; she simply doesn't want to reveal her hand.

As usual, whenever Yun Xinying came to the Lotus Heart Boat, she acted this way; naturally, she cannot now show any abnormality.

She also intended to rely on the "Enchanting Witch" Organization's outpost established at the Lotus Heart Boat to protect herself.

She dare not slip up, lest other members of the "Enchanting Witch" Organization notice something amiss.

Suddenly, Yun Xinying's drinking motion paused for an instant.

She suddenly felt that someone far away was coldly watching her.

"You all, go away."

Setting down her cup, Yun Xinying clapped her hands, driving out the several bewitching courtesans, then activated the room's soundproofing.

"Pay respects to the Witch Master!"

Yun Xinying knelt on the ground, performed the great salute, and solemnly paid homage.

Silence.

A suffocating silence.

A pressure like a towering mountain fell silently upon Yun Xinying, collapsing her to the ground and making her whole body tremble.

With a puff.

Yun Xinying spat out a mouthful of clotted blood, having suffered a serious internal injury.

Yet she felt pleased about it.

This meant the Witch Master had already inflicted punishment.

The sword hanging over her head is frightening precisely because no one knows when it will fall.

"Do you know your guilt?"

A majestic voice seemed to come from the infinite distance, reaching Yun Xinying's ears.

Startled, Yun Xinying jerked, strained under the immense pressure, and fearfully replied: "Subordinate acknowledges guilt."

"Knows guilt? Where lies the guilt?"

"Subordinate... subordinate should not have acted on his own."

Yun Xinying now knows full well that her private alteration of the organization's plan and the ambush on Lin Ke have been exposed.

All she doesn't know is whether the Witch Master has discovered her leaking of organizational information.

"Hmph! Still not being honest!"

With a cold snort, fury descended.

It was as if an invisible giant palm descended from the heavens, striking Yun Xinying's back heavily.

Crack after crack sounded.

Yet it was Yun Xinying's bones and the room's wooden floor that shattered together, breaking into several pieces.

Having suffered such a blow, Yun Xinying no longer had the strength to spit blood.

The intense pain even caused her to temporarily lose her voice.

Her mouth opened wide, but she could not utter a cry to vent the pain.

"Trash!"

The Wizard Lord, whose whereabouts were unknown, coldly spat out a word, and the will that had descended upon the room of the pleasure boat quickly retreated.

Through the mark, Lin Ke, who had been observing the scene all along, immediately noticed that the mark he had placed on Yun Xinying's body had been broken.

Moreover, a force followed the mark in the void, seeking to trace its source.

"Hehe."

Lin Ke chuckled, promptly severing all connections between himself and that mental imprint.

He did not attempt to pursue that force; instead, he traced it in reverse.

The "Wizard Lord" mentioned by Yun Xinying is most likely the second daughter of the Hu Warlord, Hu Suqi.

If the information given by Wei Hanshan is true.

To verify this is also quite simple.

Lin Ke looked up at the sky outside the window; it was still early, with several hours until nightfall, so he was not in a hurry.

Setting aside those miscellaneous matters, Lin Ke once again turned his attention to the "Construct" system.

He wondered whether he could implant a "Construct" into a mortal immortal martial artist to enhance the practitioner's strength.

The world is different, the rules are different.

The individual pieces and sets he had designed before are not suitable for this world.

Lin Ke needs to design the individual pieces and sets of "Construct" according to this world's operational rules.

Wait, operational rules, rules, operation.

Those two words were like a spark, instantly igniting in Lin Ke's mind a brainstorm dubbed "Inspiration Burst."

The source of the Great Dao, different paths lead to the same destination.

In this world, the martial path of mortals and immortals has four realms: Qi Power, Condensing Truth, Unity, and Penetrating the Void; legend also speaks of a fifth realm, "Beholding the Divine."

In the state of "Inspiration Burst," Lin Ke's sealed memories were partially awakened again, and...

Corresponding a first-rank wizard with a Qi Power realm martial artist, a second-rank wizard with a Condensing Truth realm martial artist, a third-rank wizard with a Unity realm martial artist,

Most importantly, corresponding the Penetrating the Void realm with a fourth-rank wizard, that is, a fourth-rank sage.

The so-called "Penetrating the Void" actually means comprehending the rules and resonating with the world's will!

"Wrong!" Lin Ke suddenly thought of something else.

The martial path of mortals and immortals and wizards may have corresponding realms, but their strength still differs.

Martial artists possess only combat power, lacking creativity.

Wizards are more balanced in all aspects, even more profound, so whether it's combat power or creativity, they are stronger than mortal immortal martial artists.

Lin Ke, however, did not delve deeply into this point.

Because this is a minor detail, not very important.

What Lin Ke is now concerned about are only two things: first, trying to perfect the "Construct" system on his own, attempting to implant a "Construct" into mortal immortal martial artists; second, investigating whether "Penetrating the Void" truly is comprehending the world's operational rules.

Having set his goal, Lin Ke no longer wastes mental energy thinking.

Tonight there are still important matters; he must nurture his spirit in preparation.

Time flies by in an instant.

Late night.

Heaven cooperates; tonight there are no stars, no moon.

"This is truly a good omen."

Clad in night attire, Lin Ke completely blended into the darkness, following silently behind the senior brother who had slipped out of the martial hall without greeting.

According to the senior brother's nature, Lin Ke had long inferred that Stone Senior Brother would tonight sneak into the inner chambers to investigate whether his beloved is actually the founder of the "Witch Charm" organization.

"Tsk..."

Watching the senior brother heed nothing, heading straight for Hu Suqi's separate residence where she lives alone, Lin Ke couldn't help but suck his teeth.

The senior brother has a very clear grasp of Hu Suqi's whereabouts, huh.

I don't know what charm this Second Miss Hu possesses that makes the senior brother so concerned.

The two senior brothers, one ahead and one behind, sneaked along the way, avoiding all sightlines, successfully infiltrating the vicinity of Second Miss Hu's villa.

Upon arrival, Lin Ke discovered many invisible-to-the-naked-eye alarm devices that are hard for mortal immortal martial artists to detect intuitively and require powerful mental power to summon.

Lin Ke had no intention of revealing himself to warn the senior brother.

Perhaps thinking this seems cold-hearted, but Lin Ke's best choice is truly to let the senior brother go first to scout the path.

As for Second Miss Hu, in Lin Ke's intelligence system, she is renowned as a cultured lady famous for music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

There has never been any information linking Second Miss Hu to the martial world, or more precisely, to the underworld beneath the curtains.

Lin Ke does not know Second Miss Hu.

Knowing oneself and knowing the enemy ensures victory in a hundred battles.

Lin Ke will not rashly confront her when he completely lacks understanding of Second Miss Hu.

If he were to capsize in a gutter, that would be most uneconomical.

"Senior brother, you've worked hard."

With a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, Lin Ke lingered outside the villa's warning perimeter, using the surveillance secret technique he had refined this afternoon to remotely monitor the senior brother's movements.

As for the senior brother's personal safety, Lin Ke is not worried.

No matter how you say it, the senior brother is an early Unity realm mortal immortal martial artist strongman; it's impossible for him to be instantly killed by Second Miss Hu, who schemes behind her master Li Shuwen but dares not show herself.

Moreover, whether Second Miss Hu will act against the senior brother remains unknown.

Let's just observe for now.

Senior Brother Shi smoothly evaded the overt guards at the annex, went straight from the outer court into the inner court, and headed straight for the boudoir where Second Miss Hu stays.

Standing outside the window, Senior Brother Shi halted the motion of pushing the window open, his expression complex as he moved to the door and lightly knocked.

"Who?"

A pleasant, melodious female voice came from inside the room.

"It's me."

Senior Brother Shi replied in a low voice, his mood quite heavy.

"Director Shi?"

The female voice first sounded surprised, then angry, "Director Shi, coming late at night without notice, what urgent matter requires such underhanded tactics? It's deep into the night; even if Director Shi had a monumental affair, please come tomorrow following etiquette, and visit formally. Director Shi, please go back, lest we meet again embarrassingly."

Senior Brother Shi remained unmoved, gently released force from his palm, shook open the bolt, and entered Second Miss Hu's boudoir.

Inside, the electric light was already on.

Second Miss Hu, with noodles facing up, wore a thin, sheer nightgown, sat on the edge of the bed, her face full of anger, waiting for Senior Brother Shi to enter the room.

Her alluring yet annoyed demeanor, her dazzling white peaks, made Senior Brother Shi instinctively avert his gaze.

No matter the occasion, whenever he saw Hu Suqi, Senior Brother Shi could never relax.

A man usually known for his bold and unrestrained nature would unconsciously become fidgety.

"Cough!"

Senior Brother Shi gave a light cough, "Put your clothes on."

"Yo!"

Hu Suqi rolled her eyes, "Director Shi dares to sneak into a woman's boudoir at night but won't look someone straight in the eye—is he a petty person or a gentleman?"

"I'm here for a serious matter."

Senior Brother Shi clenched his back teeth, forced himself to straighten his head, stared directly into Hu Suqi's eyes, and asked in a low voice, "Are you the founder of the Witch Charm organization? Was the plan by the Witch Charm organization, using my seventh junior sister Li Sisi to target my master Li Shuwen, devised by you?"

Upon hearing Senior Brother Shi say that, Hu Suqi's expression changed instantly.

She lightly raised her hand, and the clothes hanging on the rack flew over on their own.

Having dressed, Hu Suqi walked toward Senior Brother Shi and asked seriously, "How did you know I founded the Witch Charm organization?"

"Answer my question first!"

Senior Brother Shi did not retreat; he merely exerted his true Qi to stop Hu Suqi's continually approaching body.

"Answer my question first!"

Hu Suqi narrowed her eyes, and intangible thought power surged forth, instantly breaking through Senior Brother Shi's true Qi, then she stepped forward a few paces.

"Answer my question!"

Senior Brother Shi raised his right palm, releasing a powerful aura field that sought to freeze everything in the room.

"Answer my question!"

Hu Suqi swiftly formed seals with her flying hands, executing an unknown technique that, in an extremely short time, placed her in a state akin to "not among the Five Elements," bypassing the aura field of Senior Brother Shi's insight into entering the Return-to-One Realm, and then she took a large step forward.

At this moment, the two were already very close.

If Hu Suqi merely pushed out her chest a little, the two would have extremely intimate contact.

Senior Brother Shi's face actually flushed slightly, truly hard to judge.

After a moment of silence, suppressing the urge to withdraw his right palm, Senior Brother Hu spoke solemnly, "Are you or are you not the founder of the Witch Charm organization? Have you devised a plan against my master?"

"Alas!"

Hu Suqi sighed deeply, her eyes meeting Senior Brother Shi's with frankness, and solemnly said, "I indeed founded the Witch Charm organization, but my original intention was merely to explore and restore ancient witchcraft knowledge; I did not expect that the fragmentary ancient witchcraft would affect the minds of cultivators, causing many in the Witch Charm organization to fall into the demonic path. I have long severed ties with the Witch Charm organization, and I do not know that they are targeting your master."

"You guarantee?"

"I guarantee!"

"I hope you haven't deceived me."

Senior Brother Shi remained silent for a long time, dropped a sentence, turned and left.

As he turned, Senior Brother Shi secretly thought, if you deceived me, what would Eighth Junior Brother do to you—I would certainly not stop him.

Hu Suqi did not try to detain Senior Brother Shi, standing still in place.

Moments later, Lin Ke's figure appeared silently, and he greeted:

"Hello, Witch Master."