Chapter 334: I Understand Now!

Li Xiaofei was startled by their reactions.

What? Am I supposed to know who she is?

“I thought she was someone you called for backup,” Lei Yinuo said.

Li Xiaofei shook his head and asked, “Wasn’t she your backup?”

The three exchanged confused glances. Only then did they realize none of them knew the identity of the mysterious woman.

“If she could instantly kill Golden Body Realm experts, she must be at least at the Dao Union Realm, or possibly even at the Divine Realm or Transcendence Realm, like a Saint,” Lei Yinuo speculated.

“Wouldn’t it be great if she’s one of our hidden Saints from Great Xia?” Xie Renyu added, clearly hopeful.

Li Xiaofei remained silent.

He felt like he had seen that mysterious figure somewhere before but couldn’t quite place her. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he finally voiced the question that had been bothering him for a long time. "From what Lei Yinuo mentioned earlier, it seems Great Xia has long been aware of Edward and Igus’ treacherous actions, and that their faction’s slaughter of our young talents isn’t a recent occurrence. So why hasn’t Great Xia taken formal action against them?"

Lei Yinuo couldn’t help but sigh deeply.

“It’s complicated,” he said, his voice filled with frustration.

"Heart is willing, but the strength is lacking," Lei Yinuo said in a low, somber tone.

"The beast tides have mysteriously erupted within our borders for decades, leading to the deaths of ten of Great Xia’s Saints. The number of expert martial artists has plummeted. You know as well as I do that cultivating Great Xia's ancient martial lineage is not something that can be achieved overnight. The loss of every expert warrior is an irreplaceable blow to Great Xia in the short term. As the nation’s power waned, Great Xia’s influence within the Star Council rapidly diminished. In contrast, the emergence of the new martial system has allowed Western countries to rapidly train a large number of powerful warriors in a short time, leading to their rapid rise in strength.”

“Countries like the Yiggs Union, Bayer Federation, and the European Independent Nations Alliance have artificially created a massive number of new martial experts in just a few decades. The new strength of these nations has also increased their influence and control within the Star Council, especially within the Inquisition, where their voice has skyrocketed. To give a simple example, of the 8,936 agents within the Realm of Traces, there are 7,132 Westerners, while fewer than 300 Great Xia agents."

"The Inquisition has long upheld a foreign inspector policy for worldwide operations, and due to this, most of the inspectors and deputy inspectors stationed within Great Xia’s borders are Westerners. They’ve gone mad with power and become increasingly active. They’ve been using various methods and pretexts to secretly undermine the foundations of Great Xia's ancient martial lineage for a long time now. Any emerging talents were either coerced, suppressed, or outright eliminated."

"Eventually, Great Xia realized what was happening. But despite multiple lawsuits, investigations, and reports, no real progress was made. On the surface, the reason was that these inspectors had undergone specialized training. They operated in such underhanded ways, including entrapment, framing, covert attacks, and bribery, that it became nearly impossible for the authorities to gather concrete evidence."

"But the deeper issue lies within our borders. Many of Great Xia’s martial families have become corrupt, greedy, and rotten. They’ve started colluding with these inspectors. On top of that, they’re shielded by the Star Council."

As he spoke, a flash of hatred crossed Lei Yinuo's eyes.

In the past, when the world was invaded by star beasts, civilization crumbled, populations plummeted, and humanity faced an apocalyptic disaster, nearly leading to its extinction. It was Great Xia’s ancient martial lineage that had risen to hold the line for humanity.

Countless martial artists from Great Xia had fought the star beasts, shed their blood in the heavens and the depths across continents and oceans, and extended a compassionate hand to help humans across the world establish base cities amid the star beasts' onslaught. It was only through these efforts that humanity had survived.

During this process, countless Great Xia martial artists had perished in foreign lands and been consumed by the beasts. To say that Great Xia’s ancient martial lineage saved the Earth was no exaggeration. However, the war against the star beasts had also cost Great Xia dearly as well. Many martial traditions were lost, and its talent pool was severely depleted. Yet, those who had been protected by Great Xia did not show gratitude.

Instead, they harbored dreams of restoring their former glory and constantly sought to rise as world leaders. While they enjoyed the protection of Great Xia, they quietly accumulated power to pull Great Xia down from its position and take its place. It’s like the modern version of the farmer and the snake!

"Great Xia’s Dragon Group has been around for a long time," Lei Yinuo continued. "It was founded by the first-generation Saint, Taiyi, as an independent super martial force. In many ways, it represents the pinnacle of Great Xia’s martial strength. It’s like a special forces unit for ancient martial arts in the modern era. Today, the Dragon Group has a history spanning four hundred and fifty-six years."

"However, the Dragon Group has always operated in the shadows and rarely appears in public or in the media. Its existence is kept secret, which is why most people don’t even know it exists.After discovering the dirty tactics of the Inquisition, the Dragon Group began to organize countermeasures. Unfortunately, we suffered several losses early on, costing us dearly. When Edward and his team targeted Ye Liuying and you, the Dragon Group caught wind of their plan and sent me to handle the situation."

At this point, Lei Yinuo continued, "After I uncovered their scheme, I originally planned to request additional reinforcements from the organization. But then you, kid, caused such a commotion that it completely blew up my plan. I had no choice but to activate the only rookie intern at Liuhe Base City, Xie Renyu, and make a last-ditch effort. The plan was to either complete the mission or die trying. Luckily, we managed to pull through."

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Li Xiaofei finally understood the full story. He also realized that Lei Yinuo’s actions, such as asking for 50 million star coins to arrange a meeting with Ye Liuying, were actually part of his covert assistance. Otherwise, as a target, how could he have met with Ye Liuying, another target, so easily?

Li Xiaofei turned to Xie Renyu.

But why would the heir to the most prestigious family in the northwest join the Dragon Group?

Xie Renyu sighed dramatically, "I told you, I just wanted to latch onto a big, strong backer for free. Who knew I’d face such danger during my internship? If I’d known, there’s no way I would’ve joined."

Lei Yinuo chuckled. "Even though you're still a rookie, your performance in this mission was impressive. Once I file my report, you’ll definitely get promoted to a full member."

Xie Renyu scoffed, "Pfft, who cares about that?"

But in that moment, he revealed his true personality of an unrestrained heir from a prestigious family. He was no longer pretending to be the composed city leader.

Li Xiaofei, however, saw through Xie Renyu. There was a fire in him. Despite his dismissive attitude toward the Dragon Group, he deeply valued the honor it represented. Otherwise, he could have turned tail and run at the sight of the Punishers. Yet, he had stayed and fought to the bitter end, even going so far as to sacrifice himself for the mission with the Dragon Group's forbidden technique.

Wait... Forbidden technique?

"You two used a forbidden technique, didn’t you?" Li Xiaofei suddenly asked. "How are you still alive?"

Lei Yinuo and Xie Renyu exchanged glances before asking, "Your aunt... who is she, really? How did she manage to heal us, even with the fatal injuries from the forbidden technique?"

Li Xiaofei froze for a moment.

Little Aunt saved them? Little Aunt!

Suddenly, a flash of realization struck him like lightning.

"I understand now!" Li Xiaofei couldn’t help but exclaim aloud.

He finally understood who the mysterious woman who had effortlessly slain two Golden Body Realm Punishers were. It was Little Aunt!