Li Yuan hadn’t missed the hatred in the eyes of the the inner disciple Ren. He couldn’t afford to gamble on that not turning into action. True, with his master and senior sister stepping up for him—and with sect rules in place, Ren was unlikely to strike directly. But if he chose to take out his anger on someone close to Li Yuan, well, there were plenty of ways to do it.
Everyone in the inner district would know about Li Yuan’s connection to the proprietress of the Ginger Tavern if they cared to investigate. If Ren secretly harmed or killed her, would the Blood Blade Sect really punish him with severity? Probably not. He’d face, at worst, some token penalty, or they’d simply let the two parties settle it themselves.
Such an outcome was unthinkable to Li Yuan. He couldn’t bear the risk. One slip, and everything he cared about would be taken from him. Yet the idea of him openly killing Ren sounded laughable to most. He was officially a ninth rank disciple, after all. How could he possibly turn the tables on an eighth rank rival?
Nonetheless, Li Yuan knew exactly what had to be done.
Late that night, a waning moon cast its weak, yellow glow across the land. Li Yuan quietly packed his usual trio—mask, cloak, and hidden sleeve-dagger—into a small box, then left the inner district in Xue Ning’s carriage.
She didn’t question him. As they rode, they simply chatted about future plans, discussing the intelligence network Li Yuan wanted to build and the trading channels he hoped to open. She was well aware that these goals would require resources, manpower, and the leverage Li Yuan was about to gain as Inspector.
Money, she could earn through her businesses. And if he wanted to gather information on happenings beyond the county, she could do so under the guise of expanding her taverns. By opening more branches, she could also legally hire extra guards and staff who might help Li Yuan with certain covert tasks.
About halfway, with no one else in sight, Li Yuan spoke softly. “Xue Ning, let me off here.”
She hesitated, then threw her arms around him, voice low and affectionate. “Please be careful. If you have nowhere to stay tonight, come find me at White Cloud Alley. I’ll leave orders for the maids.”
Li Yuan shook his head. “No need. I’ll come to you when it’s the right time, and then we’ll re-enter the inner district together. For now, just follow your own plans.”
She hugged him once more, eyes brimming with concern and tenderness. Wasting no more words, he donned his cloak and mask right there in the carriage, tucking the small blade into his sleeve. Like a panther leaping into the undergrowth, he slipped off the carriage at a bend in the road, vanishing into the moonlit brush.
Li Yuan’s tracking skills were already at a level of near-perfection, and he could see the numbers floating around people and animals alike. If anyone approached, he’d detect them long before they got close. In the darkness, he moved like a phantom, nearly impossible to spot.
He guessed that with so many Wei Family women currently being trafficked in the black market, a lot of inner disciples would visit on a whim—including Ren, especially now that he was in a foul mood.
Still, Ren might also head to Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion or somewhere else entirely. Such was the downside of lacking an intelligence network, wanting to kill someone but not knowing where to find them.
Even if Li Yuan did hire people to track Ren, that could leave a trace. If someone realized he’d asked about Ren’s movements just before Ren’s suspicious death, the finger would inevitably point his way—unless he silenced everyone involved, which was far too risky.
I have to make use of that beast taming skill soon... he thought with some frustration. Until then, he’d have to rely on good, old-fashioned stakeouts.
He knew there were only a few boats going to the black market at night, all leaving from the same small dock. Crouching in the nearby reed marshes, he waited.
The hours wore on; daybreak came, but no sign of his target. The first night’s watch yielded nothing.
After spending a night staking out in vain, Li Yuan headed to White Cloud Alley at dawn, where he had breakfast at Xue Ning's residence. He then indulged in a warm bath, served by her maids.
A quick glance showed that his stat points were still ticking along nicely, so he caught a brief nap.
Later, he accompanied Xue Ning on an outing through the inner district. While strolling around, he discreetly checked on Ren’s residence.
Spotting Ren’s carriage waiting out front, apparently about to head off, Li Yuan recalled how Ren had left the inner district right after the sect meeting the day before, likely making a round trip the same day.
Taking note of the carriage’s design and the coachman’s appearance, as well as the 6~7 floating above the man’s head, Li Yuan knew what to watch for.
That day, he decided to lie in wait on the road back to the inner district, anticipating Ren’s late-night return. Concealed in a patch of darkness, he monitored everything carefully.
As the hours dragged on past midnight, a carriage approached. But the driver’s appearance and combat power of 8~9 didn’t match. After that, not a single soul passed. A cold wind howled in the darkness, carrying the night deeper toward dawn.
By the time the third watch gave way to the fourth, Li Yuan caught the distant rumble of wagon wheels again. He peered into the gloom; the driver’s 6~7 figure was male, and the carriage itself seemed to match Ren’s. Quietly, Li Yuan palmed a stone. The moment the carriage drew closer, he hurled the stone with a sudden whip of his arm.
BAM! Struck by the flying rock, the horse neighed in pain, rearing onto its hind legs. The carriage lurched precariously, sending Ren hurtling out.
With no hesitation, Li Yuan instantly flooded his body with shadow blood. The dual-blood fusion triggered, flushing his face a bright red as his hair whipped around him, and he pounced with bestial ferocity.
Time seemed to slow. Still midair, Ren frowned and drew the long blade at his hip. A crimson glow enveloped him like a protective coat of blood, making him look almost impossible to cut. But Li Yuan was already upon him like a ghost in the night, right hand flicking out the hidden blade from his sleeve.
With a crackle, electrifying energy flared along the edge, slicing mercilessly through the dark.
A split second later, their paths crossed. Ren felt a jolt in his grip, the force nearly knocking his sword aside.
In his vision, Li Yuan’s blade was still gathering momentum, streaking toward him like a falling comet. It crashed against the crimson aura shielding his body.
Ren summoned every drop of his blood energy, and the red glow on his skin intensified.
BOOM! A heartbeat later, the aura shattered. Ren let out a cry of pain, eyes wide with shock.
Li Yuan’s follow-through remained unstoppable. His blade slashed across Ren’s neck and ended him right there.
In a single fluid motion, Li Yuan whirled and dispatched the stunned coachman as well. After a quick scan of the surroundings and seeing no witnesses, he swiftly patted down the bodies.
Ren was clearly well-off; Li Yuan discovered three banknotes, each worth one hundred taels of silver.
He slipped the banknotes into his robe. His original plan was to carve traces into the carriage and use Ren’s own blade to create fake evidence, but on second thought, leaving no clue seemed even better.
Next, he scooped up the blood-stained dirt around the scene into a pouch on his cloak. With that done, he dragged the two corpses into a small wooded area and hauled them to the bank of Silver Creek, where tall reeds swayed in the wind. The spot was so remote that anyone merely passing by would never see the bodies.
Li Yuan tossed the remains deeper into the reeds, watching them vanish amid the greenery, then threw Ren’s blade away and disposed of the bloody dirt he’d collected.
Hunching low, he slipped off in another direction. By the time he arrived back at White Cloud Alley, he quietly washed away any traces of the night’s work and fell into a deep sleep.