"Young Master Yue."
Sunx Qian, the young master of the Sun’s Trading Company, bowed with a fawning smile as he led the way.
"This way."
"The company recently hunted a Spirit Deer. Its meat is exquisite and has the wondrous effect of nourishing the body and extending one’s life. The head chef at Drunken Fragrance Residence is particularly skilled at preparing Demon Blood Flesh, so I’ve arranged this banquet especially for you, Young Master."
"Brother Sunx, you’re too kind." Yue Nanfeng, holding a folding fan and fanning it gently, was the very picture of a dashing young nobleman.
"You’ve gone to too much trouble!"
"Nonsense!" Sunx Qian said, waving his hand.
"Your presence alone, Young Master Yue, is a great honor for me."
"In the future, when the company’s business takes it outside Taiyuan Prefecture, I hope Young Master Yue will be able to look after us. I would be eternally grateful."
"Of course," Yue Nanfeng said with a faint smile.
"My father once said that the two great families of Taiyuan Prefecture, the Zhou and the Nie, have held their legacy for many years, hogging countless benefits without ever sharing. It’s time for another Noble Family to rise in the Prefecture City."
"The Sunx Family, I think, would be a very suitable candidate."
Sunx Qian’s eyes lit up, but he quickly followed with an embarrassed smile.
"I wouldn’t dare."
"The Zhou and Nie are Noble Families with a hundred-year history. How could a family of upstarts like the Sunx possibly compare?"
"Are princes and kings destined by birth?" Yue Nanfeng said, his eyes narrowing.
"Those two families weren’t born as hundred-year-old noble houses either."
He truly had this idea: to prop up a great house in Taiyuan Prefecture that could rival the Zhou and Nie families.
The Celestial Eagle Thieves,
could not remain just a band of brigands.
He had long since grown tired of living hand-to-mouth.
"Yes." Sunx Qian’s eyes shone, his face flushed with excitement.
"With your help, Young Master, leaving all else aside, our business dealings will be smooth. The money we earn might not be any less than those hundred-year-old noble houses."
"Come!"
"Young Master Yue, please be seated."
The two sat down one after another, and immediately, perfumed women glided over to nestle beside them and pour their wine.
Not far away, a courtesan plucked at the strings of her instrument, filling the air with decadent music.
"Young Master," one of his men said in a low voice.
"We just received news. Earth Rat Xu Qing is dead. That Zhu Ju is unharmed."
"Hm?"
Yue Nanfeng paused, his wine cup hovering in mid-air. His expression turned grim.
"What a useless piece of trash!"
"Didn’t he claim he could roam the Territory of Three Mansions without a trace? That dealing with a mere Zhu Ju would be child’s play?"
All this time had passed, yet the target was perfectly fine, while the attacker had met an untimely end.
"Well..." The subordinate hesitated before continuing, "He might have capsized in a calm gutter. We heard the Zhu Mansion has over a dozen Powerful Crossbows. They pinned him to the wall of a mine tunnel with a single volley. As for the specific details, your subordinate hasn’t been able to investigate them clearly yet."
"Hmph!" Yue Nanfeng snorted coldly.
"Don’t worry, Young Master," the subordinate whispered.
"I’ve already sent people to investigate the Zhu Mansion and stir up some trouble. We’ll make sure he doesn’t have an easy time."
Suddenly.
"What are you looking at?"
a shrill voice called out from nearby.
"Look again and I’ll gouge out your dog eyes!"
"You..." The Celestial Eagle Thief standing guard behind Yue Nanfeng’s face changed, and he instinctively gripped the hilt of his saber.
"I wasn’t even looking at you!"
’He had, in fact, glanced over, but the person was dressed strangely—a woman disguised as a man. What was the big deal about one look?’
’Plenty of other people had been looking just now.’
"Still talking back?"
Huang Ying, her face sallow and her features altered by Disguise, slammed the table and shot to her feet.
"Courting death!"
"Friend, why the anger?"
Sunx Qian tried to smooth things over.
"To meet is to be fated. Your food and drinks are on me today, friend. Please, don’t be angry..."
"Shitou," Yue Nanfeng said, glancing at Huang Ying with a slight frown. He gestured to his subordinate behind him.
"Apologize."
"..." Shitou gritted his teeth and lowered his head with extreme reluctance.
"My apologies."
"Heh..." Huang Ying raised an eyebrow.
"Quite polite, aren’t you? Not quite like the bandits of the rumors. But it’s useless."
Hm?
Yue Nanfeng’s expression changed. In the next instant, a flash of blade light appeared, engulfing the entire room.
"BOOM!"
*
*
*
"BOOM!"
A massive explosion from up ahead brought the conversation between the two people in the carriage to a halt.
"What’s going on?"
Zhou Ruxuan lifted the carriage curtain, her brow furrowed.
"Elder Hex, pull the carriage over to the side of the road and send someone to ask what happened up ahead."
"Yes."
Elder Hex complied, steering the carriage to a stop at the roadside.
A short while later, a Zhou Family servant came rushing back, his voice a mixture of terror, apprehension, and suppressed glee.
"Miss."
"There’s been a murder at the Drunken Fragrance Residence up ahead! Yue Nanfeng, son of the Celestial Eagle Thieves’ leader, and Sunx Qian, the young master of the Commerce Association, have both been killed!"
"What?" Zhou Ruxuan’s expression changed drastically.
"Who did it?"
Sunx Qian was just the young master of a trading company, with no significant Cultivation or strength. His death was nothing remarkable.
But,
Yue Nanfeng was a Seventh-Grade Expert!
And he carried a Qi Blood Divine Weapon! In all of Taiyuan Prefecture, there were few who could have killed him.
’Even those with the strength to do so would have hesitated, fearing his father. And yet he was killed?’
"I don’t know."
The servant shook his head, a strange look on his face.
"According to the guests downstairs, the perpetrator seems to have been a young lady."
"Apparently, Yue Nanfeng saw that she was uncommonly beautiful and went to harass her. As a result, his entire party of more than ten people was killed by that young lady. Not a single one was left alive."
Hm?
Zhou Ruxuan’s expression shifted, and only after a long moment did she speak slowly.
"One who commits many injustices is doomed to self-destruction. Yue Nanfeng must have run into some passing expert and brought disaster upon himself."
"That seems to be the case," Zhu Ju said with a faint smile.
"When people like that die, it’s a cause for celebration."
"Indeed." Zhou Ruxuan broke into a dazzling smile.
"That surnamed Yue had some bad luck. With a sudden murder case like this, Yue Xihong will have a hard time finding the culprit, even if he wants revenge."
"Excellent!"
"This is truly excellent!"
"Miss," Elder Hex the coachman spoke up.
"People from the City Lord’s Mansion have arrived. They’ll likely be questioning people soon. Should we return to the mansion to avoid it?"
"A killer like that... acts with such impunity. There’s no telling what they might do."
"Yes." The smile vanished from Zhou Ruxuan’s face.
"Back to the mansion!"
Zhu Ju peered out through the carriage curtain.
On a rooftop, Huang Ying, holding a blood-stained long saber, glanced in their direction before turning and leaving.
In order not to alert the enemy, she hadn’t shown her real face. The Celestial Eagle Thieves probably wouldn’t be able to find the real killer.
......
’I wonder when the people the Huang Family sent to exterminate the Celestial Eagle Thieves will arrive. I hope it’s not too long.’
On the way back, Zhu Ju was lost in thought.
Although Yue Nanfeng’s death was ’unrelated’ to him, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t become the target of Yue Xihong’s displaced anger.
The optimal solution.
Was for the Huang Family to send people quickly and annihilate the Celestial Eagle Thieves!
With the Huang Family’s strength, exterminating the Celestial Eagle Thieves shouldn’t be difficult. The key question was whether it was worth it for the sake of Liuu Tinglan and the other two.
"Young Master!"
They had just arrived outside the Zhu Mansion, not even having disembarked from the carriage, when someone came rushing out.
"This is bad!"
"The Second Miss has been kidnapped!"
"Hm?" Zhu Ju’s face darkened.
"Zhenzhen?"
"Who did it? Where did they go? When did this happen? Did they leave any clues?"
"Don’t panic. Speak slowly."
"Yes." The servant took a deep breath and said:
"A short while ago, a villain disguised as a mountain woodcutter infiltrated the mansion. He snuck into the rear courtyard and attempted to abduct both young misses. Fortunately, Yangg Yi discovered him in time, so he didn’t fully succeed. But the man was incredibly strong. He managed to snatch Miss Zhenzhen right under everyone’s noses. Nursing Director Zhang and Qian Hu are leading the others in pursuit toward the South City..."
Zhu Ju got off the carriage and looked up toward the South City.
’To snatch someone and escape from under the noses of so many guards, his strength must be considerable, and his Body Technique must be excellent.’
’Nursing Director Zhang... probably won’t be able to catch up.’
He had the Zhu Family bloodline and could use a Secret Technique to find Zhu Zhenzhen, but such a technique consumed an extreme amount of Essence and blood, causing great damage to the body. He wouldn’t use it unless it was a last resort.
’Fortunately...’
’I have another way now.’
Zhu Ju narrowed his eyes and focused his sense of smell. In an instant, a swarm of scents flooded his mind.
A jumble of sensations—sour, numb, itchy, and painful—assaulted him all at once. If not for his astonishing control over his body, he probably would have let out a sneeze and broken the technique.
Divine Technique—Thousand-Mile Tracking!
This was the Innate Divine Technique of the Golden-Nosed White-Haired Celestial Rat.