Chapter 122: Unexpected Accord (I)

In the morning, the sky was a hazy gray. At No. 33 Jindong Street, just like usual, Lin Zheyu rose early to practice martial arts and study the Toxicology Codex. Three days earlier, after consuming a unit of accumulated Origin Force, he was only a step away from breaking through to the third transformation of blood qi.

Bang, bang, bang!

His fists struck the wooden stake, leaving shallow dents in the iron-birch wood. This special wood was as hard as iron or stone and could only be chopped after being softened with fire. But with his growing strength, Lin Zheyu could now punch shallow imprints into the iron-birch stake's rock-hard surface.

Rumble.

The blood qi within his body surged and roared like a tiger, a clear sign that he was nearing his third transformation. Every three transformations of the Blood Qi Realm marked a threshold. The third, known as the Tiger Transformation, imbued one's blood qi with a faint trace of spirit.

Boom!

Another punch slammed into the wooden stake, leaving a shallow fist mark. The tremendous recoil was absorbed by a gauze of blood qi concealed within his flesh.

After more than four hours of cultivation, the sun rose, casting a wash of golden light over him. He rested for a moment, then took out the Toxicology Codex and began studying it.

The Toxicology Codex was immensely valuable. With the knowledge it contained, one could easily build a small faction of their own. From the Codex, Lin Zheyu learned much about herbs, poisons, and how to guard against assassination attempts by poison masters in daily life. It was a profound field of study.

Without proper precautions, even the strongest martial artists could perish if a lucky poison master managed to craft a toxin potent enough to affect them. The Codex alone listed no fewer than twenty poisons capable of harming experts at the Marrow Refining or even Force Transformation Realms.

Unfortunately, while their characteristics and antidotes were described, the formulas themselves were not recorded. Perhaps these poisons were too precious, passed down only through oral tradition rather than written record. Or perhaps even the compilers of the Codex never learned how to make them. After all, it came from an old village deep in the mountains outside Songyi City, so being able to produce a text like the Toxicology Codex was already an extraordinary feat.

Lately, the weather had been growing hotter. Songyi City was located in the southern region, where winters were short and summers were long. Though spring had only just begun, the temperature was already rising rapidly.

After studying the Toxicology Codex for several hours, Lin Zheyu went out for a patrol, bought some herbs on the way back, and resumed his research. Though there had been frequent clashes between factions in the city lately, Jia Yanyong, Xie Jiang, and Lin Zheyu's deputy, Zhen Bin, were handling most of it, leaving little need for Lin Zheyu to intervene personally.

Before long, night fell. A dark figure leaped over Lin Zheyu's courtyard wall. The instant it landed outside, the figure darted away soundlessly into the distance. Its movements were eerie and elusive; under the cover of darkness, any ordinary onlooker would have thought they were seeing things.

With tensions running high, there were far more patrol soldiers in Songyi City than usual. Lin Zheyu evaded several patrols in succession before arriving at a uniquely styled residence. The deep night was utterly still. All the surrounding homes were dark and silent, their occupants asleep, yet the residence before him blazed with light.

A plaque hung above the main gate, bearing a large, bold character—Xing. The gates were tightly shut, and numerous guards patrolled within. These past few days, Lin Zheyu had not spent all his time training and studying the Toxicology Codex; he had also been gathering intelligence and scouting locations.

This was the residence of Xing Penghai and his family. Xing Penghai's father, Xing Zhicheng, was the brother of Xing Jinglong's father and was stronger than Xing Zhiyuan. From Lin Zheyu's distant observation, it appeared that he had already reached the Blood Qi Realm. Within the entire residence, only Xing Zhicheng possessed any real strength. Yet his blood qi was faint and weak, hardly worth fearing.

Lightly tapping his toes, Lin Zheyu leaped onto the wall, blending seamlessly into the shadows. Once the patrolling guards passed, he jumped down and crept toward the brightly lit main hall of the Xing residence.

The mansion was vast, so Lin Zheyu had no idea where Xing Penghai's quarters were. However, since the main hall remained brightly lit at such an hour, it was clear that some important discussion was underway and Xing Penghai might well be among them.

In an esteemed household like this, maids and guards were everywhere. When he reached the hall, several guards stood watch outside. He stopped at a distance, scanned his surroundings, and leaped onto the roof from a shadowed corner. He crept along the roof beams until he was directly above the hall.

Just as Lin Zheyu was about to lower himself to listen in, two dark figures emerged from the hall, vaulted over the courtyard wall, and disappeared into the darkness. That made him blink in surprise. He had come to spy on the Xing Family's schemes, yet they themselves were slipping out into the night to strike at someone else.

I'd better follow and find out.

With a flicker of movement, Lin Zheyu sped after them, and before long, he had caught up to the two figures clad in black nightwear. Both men were at the peak of the Organ Forging Realm, so their strength was rather ordinary.

Silently, Lin Zheyu followed behind them. Using his perfected Golden Goose Technique in tandem with the Tortoise Breath Grand Method to conceal his aura, even those of equal strength would have struggled to detect his presence.

Hm?

Soon, Lin Zheyu noticed something was wrong. The path they were taking seemed to lead toward his own residence. There was no one else other than commoners living in that direction.

They're coming for me?

Lin Zheyu was speechless as he thought,

Well, isn't that convenient.

In the blink of an eye, they reached his courtyard. Seeing the two preparing to climb over the wall, Lin Zheyu tapped his toes and shot forward.

Bang, bang.

Two dull thuds echoed as the figures collapsed to the ground. Grabbing one in each hand, Lin Zheyu slipped back into his courtyard. He pulled off their black masks and was stunned to find a familiar face. It was Xing Penghai!

Didn't expect this guy to walk right into my hands,

thought Lin Zheyu, shaking his head.

The other man was a stranger. However, from the assortment of small bottles and poison pouches he found on the man, it was clear the fellow was an expert in the poison arts. Lin Zheyu had no intention of waking them. He already knew what they had come for.

Crack, crack.

The sound of bones snapping rang clearly under the moonlight. The two men's eyes flew open, wide with confusion and terror.

At the Xing family residence, a gentle voice echoed through the hall.

"My lord, it's time to rest," said a young woman softly. The woman appeared barely past twenty. Her figure was alluring, and her face charming, with her large eyes glistening with moisture.

"You go on ahead. I'll come soon," replied Xing Zhicheng gently.

He sat quietly in his chair, reading a scroll by candlelight. He felt no concern for his son's safety. With Xing Penghai acting alongside the poison expert Fugui, even a first transformation Blood Qi Realm cultivator could be slain if caught unprepared, let alone a youngster who hadn't even reached the Organ Forging Realm.

"I'm not sleepy, my lord. Let me stay and keep you company." She spoke softly as she walked behind Xing Zhicheng, kneading his shoulders.

"My lord, the other esteemed families have begun sending their family members out of Songyi City to avoid the coming chaos. When will our Xing Family begin arranging the same? May I have a few spots then, to arrange for my parents to leave as well?" said the woman in a tender tone, her fair hand tracing lightly across Xing Zhicheng's chest.

Though the Xing Family could not evacuate easily, they could still send off a few direct kin or less important members to preserve their bloodline.

"We'll discuss that later. The rebel army hasn't reached the city yet, so there's no rush," said Xing Zhicheng calmly.

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

He caught her delicate hand and, with a gentle tug, pulled her into his embrace.

Crack!

At that instant, the roof shattered open. A dark figure dropped down from above, the gleam of an impossibly sharp blade slicing straight toward Xing Zhicheng.

Slash.

"

Ah!

"

A delicate scream echoed as the woman, flung aside in panic by Xing Zhicheng, was cleaved cleanly in two midair. Blood splattered across the floor.

Xing Zhicheng had no intention of fighting the black-clad intruder, as the force of that strike had clearly surpassed the first transformation of blood qi. He was no match at all! Without sparing the corpse a glance, he bolted for the door, intending to rally his guards and surround the assassin.

The guards were armed with crossbows, so if he could just buy enough time, reinforcements from the Xing Family would arrive. But how could Lin Zheyu allow that to happen? His figure flickered and vanished, reappearing an instant later right before Xing Zhicheng.

Xing Zhicheng clutched his neck, eyes wide with terror and disbelief as he thought,

So fast!

All he had seen was a flash of cold light, followed by the chill and sting of steel across his throat.