“Huanggu Pavilion?” Qiu Ming frowned. “We should only have branch altars within our borders. The strongest members of this organization’s main altar seem to be Liang Shaoyi and Chen Xian. One cultivates the Tianpeng Blood Violet Art, and the other the Yuquan Rising Light Decree. Both are considered two-seal experts, about the same level as us. Rumor has it that they were disciples of the Kongheng Fist Academy, which was destroyed by a mysterious person ninety years ago. They won’t be easy to deal with.”

“The main point is that the Huanggu Pavilion branch altar within our borders has already defected to the enemy country. I’m afraid you won’t be well-received there,” Yun Shan added.

“In that case, I’ll accompany you,” Qiu Ming said decisively. “Tiancan and Yun Shan, you two go back and cooperate in defending the city across the river, and wait for the teacher.”

“Alright!”

“Understood.”

The two nodded.

Although Tiancan extremely disliked Yun Shan, at this moment, compared to Li Cheng颐, he felt that Yun Shan didn't seem so annoying.

They could also understand Qiu Ming’s thoughts. Someone with Wang Yichen's formidable talent, and also from this city, with impeccable roots, would be a huge loss to Qu Ling Prefecture if something unexpected happened and he was led astray.

“In that case, thank you, Lord Qiu Ming!” Li Cheng颐’s mind raced, and he instantly understood the other party’s intentions.

“It’s urgent. Shall we leave now?” Qiu Ming looked at Li Cheng颐.

“Yes!”

*Whoosh!*

In an instant, the two transformed into afterimages and disappeared into the distant plains.

Leaving only Tiancan and Yun Shan behind.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

Even though Yun Shan was wearing a porcelain jar on his head, he seemed to be able to see Tiancan’s miserable state.

“What are you ‘tsk’-ing about! What? You think you could have won?” Tiancan couldn’t help but get angry.

“No, I wouldn’t have even fought him,” Yun Shan laughed.

The two had been secretly competing for many years, and this was the first time he had seen the brainless Tiancan suffer such a great loss.

But in the end, their conflicts were all because of the interests of their subordinates.

In reality, everyone below the Yin Spirit level, all martial artists, whether from bloodline families or true Qi martial artists, were like insects in their eyes.

The lives and deaths of these people were like a game.

The subordinate interest groups on both sides fought to the death, but in the end, they might share a meal together, bury the hatchet with a smile, and restore harmony as fellow disciples.

On the other hand, those who defected to them died in vain.

Their grudges were easily settled by the changes in their emotions.

Within Qu Ling Prefecture, some people saw this clearly and chose to retire. But more people, knowing the reasons, still desperately tried to climb up.

The Ouyang family was like that.

*

*

*

It took Li Cheng颐 more than a day to travel from Qu Ling Prefecture to Xinmeng Town back then.

But now…

In just half a day, he and Qiu Ming arrived at the former Xinmeng Town, the first foothold he had when he first came here.

A cold wind blew through the city. From afar, on the city walls of the small Xinmeng Town, one could see many incomplete breaches being filled and repaired by laborers with some kind of black mud.

Teams of patrolling soldiers with complete armor constantly circled the city.

Li Cheng颐 even saw his old subordinates from the county among them.

Evidently, these people were dispatched from Cangshi County to provide temporary support.

He didn’t have time to greet these people. With unchanging speed, he leaped straight up, transformed into a gray shadow, and crossed the city walls, heading towards the Wang family.

In the blink of an eye, he had quietly arrived in front of the Wang family’s courtyard gate. His body quickly solidified, he stood still, and looked at the dilapidated gate in front of him.

*Whoosh.*

Qiu Ming appeared beside him.

“This is your home?”

“Mm,” Li Cheng颐 nodded, stepped forward, and pushed the door open.

The courtyard door wasn’t locked at all. Nowadays, almost every family in Xinmeng Town hung white silk, and some families had simply been wiped out, leaving nothing behind.

Too many people died on the day Huanggu Pavilion broke through the city walls.

So many that even the surrounding thieves and bandits didn’t dare to approach, fearing that those blood-bodied monsters in the wild would attack again.

The stone slabs in the courtyard were broken, and some places were turned up, revealing the black soil underneath.

Half of the houses had collapsed, desolate and lifeless.

Li Cheng颐 couldn’t sense Wang Yiheng’s aura here, and Wang Yifeng and his wife’s auras were also gone.

Too many people died that day. It was said that the bodies of many people were torn to pieces and mixed together, making it impossible to distinguish them. They could only be buried together, buried under the ground in front of the town guard’s residence, and a separate monument was erected.

Nothing.

Li Cheng颐 searched the house for a while, and had no choice but to go out.

He went to find his crazy older brother again, but in his room, he found a corpse that had been dry and stiff for a long time.

At this point, apart from Wang Yiheng, there might be no other living members of the Wang family.

Li Cheng颐 and Qiu Ming left the Wang family and strolled through the streets of Xinmeng Town, checking the current situation.

Most of the pedestrians on the street were hurrying along. There were few people, and the shops they passed all hung white silk, obviously mourning dead relatives.

From some houses, one could hear heart-wrenching cries from afar.

“This city is ruined,” Qiu Ming sighed. “With an insufficient number of residents, I’m afraid it will be merged and relocated before long.”

“Huanggu Pavilion…” Li Cheng颐’s face was cold. Although he occupied Wang Yichen’s body, it was just a starting point, but his interactions with Wang Yifeng and Wang Yiheng were real after all.

“With Qu Ling Prefecture’s capabilities, can they find where they moved to?” he asked in a low voice.

“They can, but the key is that they must have left the country by now,” Qiu Ming shook his head. “If we pursue them across the border, the danger will be great.”

Li Cheng颐 was silent, walking forward without a word.

Crossing a street corner, he suddenly stopped.

Several men dressed as laborers were kicking and punching a woman in the corner of the street.

The woman was disheveled, covered in stench, curled up on the ground, and endured it silently without saying a word.

“Trying to steal stuff, huh?!”

“You’ve stolen three times in a row! Do you really think our restaurant has no temper?! You made the manager scold us!”

“You two hold her down, I’ll break her hand! Let’s see how this bitch steals in the future!”

“Don’t! I beg you… my sister… is dying of illness, she just needs a little money, just a little bit, to hire a pharmacist…”

The woman finally struggled to cry out.

Her voice was hoarse, filled with deep fear and pleading.

Such things were common, just beating and punishing a thief, nothing special.

But when Li Cheng颐 heard the voice at this moment, he stopped, paused, and looked over there.

“What’s wrong?” Qiu Ming asked from behind.

“Someone I know…”

Li Cheng颐 was silent for a moment, then replied.

He stepped forward, approached, and stopped behind those laborers who were hitting her.

“How much money did she steal from you?” he asked.

The men were stunned, turned around, and saw that Li Cheng颐 and Qiu Ming were dressed unusually. Immediately, their expressions changed from angry to humble and ingratiating.

“Three taels, sir. This kid stole a full three taels of silver!”

Li Cheng颐 carefully took out his money bag, counted out three taels of silver, and handed it to one of them.

“Go, I’ll pay for it.”

The three men looked at each other, took the money, and quickly ran away.

Obviously, they could all tell that this person was not to be trifled with. Whatever his reason for paying for the person, they were happy to get the money. They ran away quickly to avoid the other party regretting it later.

After the men left, Li Cheng颐 didn’t get any closer, he just glanced at the woman.

Without greeting her, without asking her anything, he turned around, took Qiu Ming, and silently left, walking away.

The woman curled up on the ground, leaning against the corner, tightly clutching the stolen silver in her hands. Only now did she slowly look up and look at Li Cheng颐’s departing figure.

The face she revealed was none other than Guo Yurong, who had borrowed books from Wang Yichen in the bookstore back then.

Back then, she and Wang Yichen had almost gotten engaged and married, but now…

After her father, the deputy town guard Guo Hu, was killed in battle, her family members were also devoured by that great chaos, leaving only her and her two younger siblings to depend on each other.

She was fine, but one of her younger brothers had his legs broken by heavy objects, and now his injuries were infected, putting him in critical condition. But the money had been burned in the fire…

Guo Yurong looked at Wang Yichen’s departing figure, looking at his delicate and exquisite clothes, and the faint aura that was even more imposing than her father.

She knew that the current Wang Yichen had definitely reached a level far beyond her imagination…

Thinking of her burned home and her critically ill brother…

She lowered her head and wiped away her tears. Suddenly, she made a decision… She struggled to stand up and quickly chased after him.

Since he was still willing to help, perhaps… perhaps…

She chased for hundreds of meters in one breath. Just as she was about to give up, the two men in front of her, Wang Yichen and the other man, finally stopped.

Guo Yurong quickly stepped forward.

“Wang Yichen… Lord!!” She looked at his still clean and neat face, and the words she originally wanted to say, the pleas she wanted to make, suddenly turned into sadness, and she couldn’t say a word.

“Guo Yurong,” Li Cheng颐 said softly, “What’s the matter?” He wasn’t related to her, so helping her once could be considered repaying the favor of borrowing books back then.

“I…” Guo Yurong looked at his face, recalling the scene when she refused to get engaged to him back then…

She felt a burning sensation on her face, and she couldn’t bring herself to beg him.

“Is this enough?” Li Cheng颐 took out a handful of silver, about a dozen taels, and stuffed it into her hand.

“I’ve also heard about your family’s affairs. It’s the same as my family… I’m looking for my second sister. Have you seen her anywhere?”

“She went to the county with the refugees. I don’t know anything else…” Guo Yurong replied in a low voice.

“Thank you.” Li Cheng颐 turned around and left with Qiu Ming.

“Please wait!!” Suddenly, Guo Yurong knelt down with a thud, her forehead heavily touching the ground.

“Lord Wang! I really have no choice…” She lowered her head and didn’t dare to look at him. “Can you let me follow you! I’ll do anything, I’m willing to do anything! Just… let me follow you!”

In the days after losing her parents, she was too clear about the fate that she and her two younger siblings might face in the future.

Without a protector, the three of them would be helpless, without even the ability to survive. In the upcoming food shortage in Xinmeng Town, being captured and sold into slavery would be considered a light sentence.

She already felt something was wrong with her body. She always wanted to cough when she breathed, and her lower abdomen would cramp violently every night. She didn’t know if she had eaten something bad.

Her brother wouldn’t last long either, and her sister was okay, but she was too young, only nine years old. Without enough food and clothing, it was a question of how long she could live.

Therefore, at this time, Wang Yichen, who unexpectedly appeared in front of her, seemed like the last straw, instantly giving her the only hope.

Li Cheng颐 shook his head slightly, about to refuse. He naturally didn’t have time to carry a few burdens with him.

But just as the words reached his lips, Qiu Ming, who was on the side, suddenly let out a soft “hmm” and stared at Guo Yurong, sizing her up carefully.

“What is it? Lord Qiu, have you discovered something?” Li Cheng颐 looked at her.

“It’s just a bit unexpected. I didn’t expect that in this remote place, in addition to producing a peerless genius like you, I could actually see such a rare…” Qiu Ming paused, stroking his chin and staring at Guo Yurong.

Making her heart beat wildly.

‘Could it be that I’m also a genius!? This expert has seen my true potential at a glance??’ Guo Yurong’s eyes widened, and a hint of anticipation appeared on her face.

“Lord Qiu, please speak plainly,” Li Cheng颐 frowned.

“Oh… I just didn’t expect to see such a rare case of terminal illness here,” Qiu Ming said as if waking from a dream.

“If she doesn’t get treatment, she’ll live at most one year.”

“…” The anticipation on Guo Yurong’s face instantly froze.

“…” Li Cheng颐 was also speechless. This Qiu Ming seemed to have some strange and inexplicable hobby.

(End of this chapter)