Chapter 53: Bad Premonition

After leaving the room, Shang Xia wanted to head downstairs but a roaring laughter boomed in his ears.

A grin slowly formed on Shang Xia’s face as he raced downstairs only to be greeted by another stocky man.

“Seventh Uncle, why are you here?”

The man was none other than Yan Qi.

“Young master!” Yan Qi laughed. “The Tongyou City received news of your disappearance and the lady sent me over to look for you. The heavens help the worthy indeed… Young master managed to return unharmed, and your cultivation also increased! I was delighted to hear the news!”

Shang Quan added from the side, “Little Qi here followed another patrol squad to look for you and the outer disciples. Luck didn’t seem to be on his side. However, he managed to join the ambush on the Wind Swallow Race.”

Shang Xia’s eyes lit up and he asked, “Seventh Uncle, tell me what happened during the ambush! Did Tang Yuan really make his move?”

Yan Qi’s expression sank and he became extremely serious. “Indeed… Tang Yuan’s cultivation had already reached the grand completion stage of the Martial Intent Realm! One of the Martial Intent Realm cultivators on the Wind Swallow Race’s side who was only at the large completion stage was caught off guard and seriously injured. His appearance in the battle instantly changed the tides in our favor.”

“However, the expert of the Wind Swallow Race was no pushover. After suffering his injury, he went all out and tried to injure Tang Yuan at the cost of his life. Just like that, he managed to crack our formation and give his companions a chance to escape. Because of his sacrifice, Tang Yuan chose to hold back in order to preserve the Tongyou Peak’s fighting strength. The other Martial Intent Realm cultivator of the Wind Swallow Race charged out of our encirclement with several disciples…”

“Tang Yuan actually entered the grand completion stage of the Martial Intent Realm!” Shang Quan frowned. “It’s no wonder he didn’t appear even after all the commotion the raid caused. He didn’t appear when Liu Jitang deployed away a large portion of the patrol squads… He was probably trying to break through then! If he was sitting at his post, Liu Jitang wouldn’t have been able to move so many personnel around as he liked…”

Tang Yuan wasn’t just the head of the patrol squads. He was also one of Ji Wenlong’s capable generals.

Now that he entered the grand completion stage of the Martial Intent Realm, the strength Ji Wenlong controlled would take a huge leap forward!

Even though they suffered some backlash when the convoy was attacked, his breakthrough would definitely give the Protection Division a huge morale boost. With the victory they achieved against the Wind Swallow Race, Tang Yuan’s reputation in the Tongyou Peak and institution would increase greatly!

Even though the Tongyou Institution was the greatest power in the city controlling everything, the four clans under it were fighting with each other either in the dark or openly. The battle would sometimes stretch into the administration of the Tongyou Institution.

Glancing at Shang Quan, Shang Xia could roughly guess that his uncle was slowly evaluating the strength of the four clans.

The silence was broken by Yan Qi. “During the final part of the battle, a sudden change occurred and experts of the Wind Swallow Race appeared outside our formation to assist those trapped. They killed two of our disciples and helped their companions escape…”

Shang Xia’s mind turned to Yan Ming who had hunted him down during the raid on the convoy. Even though Yan Qi didn’t say anything about the people who appeared at the end, Shang Xia could practically confirm that it was her.

Even though he was curious, Shang Xia knew that it wasn’t time to ask Yan Qi such questions. He needed to verify something else.

“Seventh Uncle, was there anything unusual back in the clan before you came? Did anything happen in the city?”

Shang Quan’s train of thought was broken by Shang Xia’s sudden question and he turned to look at the kid in shock.

Yan Qi had no idea what Shang Xia referred to and he replied after some time. “There shouldn’t be anything unusual. The lady panicked a little when she sent us out to look for you, but that was it… As for the city…”

Yan Qi paused for a second when he spoke up to that point.

“What happened to the city?” Shang Xia asked.

“They imposed martial law. The reason was because of the cultivators of the Azure Spiritual World. Is that something unusual?” Yan Qi frowned.

The city implementing martial law wasn’t something new. Every time a huge event happened in the battlefield between two worlds, the city would enter a state of emergency.

Even though it wasn’t very often, it would still happen from time to time.

It didn’t happen too often due to the cultivators of the two worlds restraining themselves in recent years.

When the battlefield between the two worlds just formed, the killing that happened caused rivers of blood to form. When that happened, Tongyou City implemented martial law once and it lasted an entire year!

Shang Xia’s expression turned serious and he continued, “Seventh Uncle, how many cultivators did the clan send other than you?”

An awkward expression formed on Yan Qi’s face. “Young master, please don’t get mad… The lady was placed in a difficult situation and a lot of our members were sent to protect the institution. We only managed to…”

Shang Xia’s expression sank and he waved his hand hastily. “You misunderstood. It was a simple question. I’m not mad at anything…”

Shang Quan looked outside and fell deep into thought.

Yan Qi might not understand Shang Xia’s thoughts, but Shang Quan was much sharper. “Xia’er, you seem to think that something happened in the city… Is that it?”

“It will be great if it’s just our city…” Shang Xia wasn’t planning to explain further and he quickly changed the topic. “Uncle Quan, it’s been so long. Has there been no news on my fifth grandpa?”

“I sent a report to Uncle Ke previously. However, there hasn’t been a reply…” Shang Quan hesitated slightly. “Xia’er, do you know what is going on?”

Shang Xia forced himself to calm down before going through his thought process. “I received some bad news and I was planning to verify it. However…”

Shang Quan nodded his head to indicate his understanding. A bitter smile appeared on his face. “Right now, the higher ups of the institution and the various families cannot be contacted. If not for Tang Yuan’s appearance, I would have thought that all the Martial Intent Realm cultivators in the Tongyou Peak had disappeared.”

Shang Xia sucked in a cold breath and sighed, “Looks like we have no other choice. I have to look for Tang Yuan.”

Turning to look at Shang Quan, Shang Xia asked, “Uncle Quan, can you make an arrangement for me to meet him?”

“Leave it to me.” Shang Quan nodded. However, he hesitated slightly before saying, “Is this really important? Will it affect our Shang Clan?”

“It’s a matter of life and death…” Shang Xia’s expression sank.

With his face turning pale, Shang Quan rushed out of the pavilion. “I’ll go right now.”

…

The location of the Patrol Hall was at the foot of the mountain. It took up a massive area and from afar, it looked like a massive stadium.

“Our Tongyou Peak placed the Patrol Hall at the foot of the mountain so that it’ll be easy for them to head out. They wouldn’t be able to fit on the peak either.” Shang Quan explained to Shang Xia.

Since Shang Xia was in such a rush, Shang Quan brought him over directly.

The two of them were stopped at the entrance, and Shang Quan bowed slightly and requested, “I am Shang Quan of the Shang Pavilion and I need to meet Tang Yuan immediately.”

His actions were humble and he looked like nothing more than a businessman.

The guard at the entrance was no fool. He retrieved a letter Shang Quan handed over and he looked at Shang Xia standing behind him quietly. “Manager Shang, please wait a moment. I’ll relay your message.”

Shang Xia muttered at the side, “Looks like he’s starting to put on airs now that he broke through…”

“Well, it’s only going to get worse.” Shang Quan whispered at the side.

Nodding, Shang Xia agreed with what his uncle said.

The guard who went into the Patrol Hall earlier ran out after some time and invited them in. “Please enter. The head of our Patrol Hall, Master Tang Yuan, is ready to see you.”

Shang Quan nodded slightly and entered the Patrol Hall. He wasn’t unfamiliar with the place.

After passing through a small passage, Shang Xia saw a group of disciples training in a field nearby.

“Shang Xia!” A voice rang through the air and a horse charged towards him. It stopped a foot away from Shang Xia, displaying the rider’s amazing horsemanship.

“What are you doing here?” The rider removed his facepiece and stared at Shang Xia vigilantly.

“Zhang Jianfei? Did you enter the Protection Division too?” Shang Xia frowned. “I need to meet with Master Tang Yuan immediately. I’m too busy to mess around with you.” He turned away after speaking, but he was stopped by a yell.

“Hold it right there!” Zhang Jianfei leaped off his horse and charged towards Shang Xia instantly.

Twisting his body around, Shang Xia sent a palm flying towards Zhang Jianfei.

Unable to stop himself from rushing forward, Zhang Jianfei was pushed back by Shang Xia’s sudden actions.

After stabilizing himself, a trace of rage formed in his heart. “You…”

His expression changed abruptly as he felt another wave of energy traveling towards him.

Snorting loudly, he circulated his inner qi hastily. Too bad it was useless as the wave of energy crashed into his body without the slightest bit of resistance.

The power of softness and strength showed itself at that moment. He was sent flying by Shang Xia before he could react.

Trying to crawl to his feet, he felt yet another wave rushing towards him. He could only roll on the ground in order to avoid the strikes.

With grass and dirt all over his body, he looked extremely disheveled. With rage clouding his heart, he didn’t notice his sorry appearance as he glared at Shang Xia. He didn’t understand how he lost without the ability to fight back.

When he was still stuck in a daze, Shang Xia was nowhere to be seen. Only his voice rang in Zhang Jianfei’s ears. “Since you joined the Protection Division, didn’t Ju Hang tell you that I broke through to the Martial Extremity Realm?”

“Martial Extremity Realm?! Is this the dao of softness and strength or void and reality?!” Zhang Jianfei spat, but anger filled his heart. “Damn it! Ju Hang, no wonder you talked so much shit previously! You definitely lost to this brat and want me to experience the same fate!”