Shi Jiabao wasn’t a renowned clan passed down through generations. To be precise, it was precisely because Shi Tianqi, a great martial artist, emerged that the clan gradually gained its current status. With shallow foundations and unremarkable elders, when the head of the clan was suddenly assassinated, everyone in the fortress became panicky, confused, and chaotic. It was in this moment that Ling Yue appeared and naturally became their lifeline.
“Does anyone in the fortress know why your father left?” After years of experience navigating the martial world, Ling Yue had gone through initial shock and grief, sorted his thoughts, and now asked Shi Xiaodang and Shi Xiaoxiu the most critical question.
Meng Qi had sheathed his blades and swords into his Ji Zi Ring, his hands naturally hanging by his sides as he stood beside them like a pine tree, silently listening without interrupting.
The Shi family wasn’t related to Meng Qi by blood or friendship, so he had no reason to expend excessive effort on their behalf. However, if he could uncover clues, he wouldn’t mind lending a hand. After all, everyone in the martial world knew that “Crazy Blade” Su Meng was known for his righteousness and sense of justice!
Shi Xiaodang and Shi Xiaoxiu exchanged glances, sorrowfully shaking their heads. “After nightfall, we questioned Master Zhou and the servants and maids attending my father. They said that at dusk, my father hurriedly left his study with a solemn expression and immediately exited the fortress.”
The others, including Butler Zhou, nodded in agreement, corroborating the young masters’ account.
Ling Yue sighed. “Actually, Old Beggar and your father had a life-and-death duel planned for tonight to challenge the second tier of the Celestial Ladder, with Su Xiaoxia as the witness. However, we waited in vain for half the night without seeing your father, so I came here.”
Upon hearing the first half of this, Shi Xiaoxiu and Shi Xiaodang’s faces turned pale. Could it be that their father was killed by Uncle Ling’s staff? If they had a formal duel with a witness, there must have been a binding agreement, making it impossible to seek revenge openly and justly.
After hearing the entire explanation, they quietly relaxed, glancing at the valiant and steady Meng Qi, hastily saying, “Could it be that Father hurried out precisely to attend Uncle’s appointment, only to be secretly assassinated on the way?”
They had seen Meng Qi’s image in Changle and could preliminarily confirm his identity. “Crazy Blade” Su Meng’s reputation for righteousness was renowned throughout the martial world. Even when smeared by evil cults and deviant sects, the “Chuyang True Immortal” had cleared his name. With Su Meng as the witness, there was no doubt about the matter—Father indeed didn’t attend the appointment.
Ling Yue shook his head. “Old Beggar and Su Xiaoxia met by chance, and only afterward did I invite him to be the witness. The assassin who harmed your father couldn’t have known about this beforehand. Why wouldn’t the assassin wait until after your father and Old Beggar had fought each other to exhaustion before making a move, thereby reducing danger and increasing the success rate?”
The role of a witness is threefold: first, to be a person of high moral standing whose words carry weight and credibility; second, to prevent underhanded tactics during life-and-death duels, such as hidden accomplices; and third, to prevent opportunistic interference and ensure no one benefits from the chaos.
“Moreover, your father isn’t someone who would leave without explanation, especially for a life-or-death appointment. He would definitely leave you a few words before departing. His hasty departure suggests another urgent matter,” Ling Yue deduced.
At this point, he turned serious. “Old Beggar and your father made a pact: in our life-and-death battle, if I die, he will treat my disciples as his own. If he dies, whatever concerns Shi Jiabao will become Old Beggar’s concern. I will spare no effort, even at the cost of my life, to fulfill this promise. Although the duel didn’t happen, Old Beggar will still honor this commitment.”
This statement greatly stabilized the morale of Shi Jiabao. Shi Xiaoxiu, who had been holding herself together, immediately burst into tears, sobbing sorrowfully.
Dressed in a green robe, Meng Qi, who had been quietly teaching the Tao Te Ching for days, suddenly spoke up: “Judging from the current situation, Lord Shi wasn’t leaving for a life-or-death appointment. If he had prior arrangements, he wouldn’t have scheduled the duel for today. After finishing other tasks, could he still maintain his physical and mental peak condition? Obviously not.”
“In other words, something urgent compelled him to leave the fortress. Since it was an unexpected event, how was this message conveyed to him? Following this line of thought, we should be able to find some clues.”
When emotions are involved, one’s judgment becomes clouded. Neither Ling Yue nor Steward Zhou and the others were novices in the martial world—they should have considered this earlier. However, they had been too focused on whether Shi Tianqi had left any words or notes behind. Now, after Meng Qi’s logical explanation, they suddenly realized their oversight.
The butler Zhou exclaimed, “After dinner, I faintly heard bird calls coming from the study. At the time, I didn’t pay much attention, but now that I think about it, it might have been a secret message!”
Shi Xiaodang and his sister became very excited and immediately rushed toward Lord Shi’s study. Ling Yue’s expression turned grave as he closely followed, with Meng Qi walking calmly behind.
Lord Shi’s study was neatly arranged, with brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, as well as books and collectibles neatly categorized, reflecting the meticulous and orderly nature of its master.
Such a person wouldn’t leave things in disarray; everything would be in its proper place… Meng Qi made this judgment with just a glance.
Precisely because of this, Shi Xiaoxiu had previously only searched in the usual place where Lord Shi kept notes, without thoroughly checking other areas. Now, she walked to a bookshelf, opened a secret door, and retrieved confidential reports arranged chronologically, pulling out the last one.
This note couldn’t really be called a letter; it was merely a strip of paper as wide as a finger. On it were three overlapping images drawn in a peculiar way: an eagle, a golden tent, and a wolf with a broken tail. The drawing was difficult to imitate, resembling a child’s random doodle. Besides these images, only three characters were written on the paper: “Luo Hun Jian” (Soul-losing Ravine).
“Luo Hun Jian?” Shi Xiaodang abruptly turned around, his eyes red.
Luo Hun Jian had treacherous terrain and beautiful scenery, located only two or three hundred miles from Shi Jiabao. He was very familiar with it!
“Wait a moment,” Ling Yue raised his hand to stop him, pointing at the strange drawing and asking, “Is this a secret mark?”
Shi Xiaodang and Shi Xiaoxiu shook their heads in bewilderment. Only Steward Zhou gasped sharply: “Lonewolf!”
“Lonewolf?” Meng Qi immediately thought of the grasslands upon hearing the name, especially considering the eagle and golden tent depicted above.
Steward Zhou clenched his teeth and said, “Only the Lord and I knew of this—it was one of the fortress’s secrets.”
“Lord Shi had intricate connections with influential families and sects such as the Gao Clan of Changle and the Huamei Villa. He always helped them gather secrets from the grasslands in exchange for favors. Later, he secretly nurtured an orphan from the grasslands, eventually sending him into the golden tent through intermediaries. With the intelligence we provided, he repeatedly achieved great feats and gained the trust of Gourdo. The overlapping pattern of the broken-tailed wolf, golden tent, and eagle was his secret mark.”
A trusted spy within the golden tent had suddenly left the grasslands and returned to Northern Zhou, carrying intelligence that must be extremely important and urgent, too critical to wait for the normal process… No wonder Lord Shi looked so grave and left in such a hurry without leaving a single word! Meng Qi mused thoughtfully.
Ling Yue, famed for his opposition to the grasslands, acted without delay. He quickly took Butler Zhou with him and flew toward Luo Hun Jian.
Meng Qi, who had repeatedly received kindness from the Huamei Villa and the Chunyang Sect, and whose humorous elder brother was a member of the Northern Zhou royal family, immediately joined them upon hearing that the matter concerned the grasslands, determined to help without hesitation.
The Shi siblings had only reached the Qi-opening stage and couldn’t fly, so they had no choice but to ask an expert-level elder to accompany them.
It wasn’t far to Luo Hun Jian, and soon Meng Qi and the others arrived overhead. Below was a stream splitting the mountains, nearly waterfall-like in its rush, creating mist that spread out, hazy and ethereal, resembling a fairyland.
As soon as Meng Qi activated his Insightful Vision, he scanned the area from above and immediately noticed something amiss, so he descended.
It was a patch of forest beside the stream. Around a certain point, a large area of trees had died, and at that central point lay two corpses.
“Lord!” Steward Zhou looked closely and cried out in grief.
Ling Yue’s eyes reddened, his expression sorrowful, as he approached one of the bodies. The corpse lay face down, wearing a black robe made of special material—clearly a protective artifact of treasure-grade quality. There was a thin wound at the back of the head.
When the body was turned over, the arriving Shi siblings immediately burst into anguished cries. It was indeed Shi Tianqi. There were no other wounds on his body—only that single wound at the back of his head!
As Ling Yue was lost in thought, he saw Meng Qi approach, squat down, and examine the body. Hopeful, he asked, “Any discoveries?”
“One sword strike killed him instantly. The sword qi was extremely well-controlled. It destroyed the Yuan Shen and shattered the brain matter without spreading further. For the killer, this method was the least energy-consuming and left room for contingencies,” Meng Qi explained as he examined the body. “For someone with the killer’s strength, if the sword qi had fully erupted, it could have destroyed the entire mountain range, let alone the corpse. But he didn’t do that. Moreover, Lord Shi’s battle robe, treasure-grade weapon, and Ji Zi Ring were all still on the body, indicating that after a single strike, the killer immediately fled without lingering or doing anything unnecessary.”
“This was a purely professional assassin, one who could suppress his greed.”
Ling Yue’s expression darkened. “An assassin from the Bureau of Impartiality at the Green or Blue level—sent specifically to eliminate the witness!”
An assassin from the Bureau of Impartiality at the Green or Blue level? Shi Xiaoxiu swayed unsteadily, nearly fainting.
Has anyone ever successfully taken revenge on the Bureau of Impartiality?
The other corpse had clear grassland features, likely the spy from the golden tent. However, his body had been completely shredded by sword qi. A light touch reduced it to dust, leaving no trace. If not for the lack of wind just now, Meng Qi and the others might not have even seen the body!
This wasn’t due to the assassin’s lack of professionalism. It must have been the employer’s explicit instruction to erase all traces.
“To hire a Green or Blue-level assassin from the Bureau of Impartiality, the importance of the intelligence must be unimaginable,” Meng Qi frowned slightly. At this point, it seemed the trail had gone cold.
Shi Xiaodang and Shi Xiaoxiu checked the Ji Zi Ring but found nothing related. They could only retrieve their father’s treasure weapon, cradling his body with sorrowful expressions, saying, “We don’t even know who hired the Bureau of Impartiality…”
Nine out of ten chances it was the golden tent—it was even more dangerous than the Bureau of Impartiality… Meng Qi sighed, wondering what was brewing on the grasslands?
Unfortunately, the trail had already been cut off!
Just then, Meng Qi suddenly had a premonition. He abruptly closed his eyes and sensed, deep within the mist, a shadow hidden there—an indistinct figure whose exact position was impossible to pinpoint. It was silently watching them, patient, focused, terrifying!
A Blue-level assassin from the Bureau of Impartiality? The thought immediately flashed through Meng Qi’s mind. He didn’t even have time to draw his blade, using his hands as weapons instead, fully alert.
That shadow seemed to sense Meng Qi’s awareness, gently retreating and vanishing into the ravine.
“Master Su?” Ling Yue, Shi Xiaoxiu, and others were startled by Meng Qi’s reaction.
Meng Qi exhaled and said gravely, “The Green and Blue-level assassins from the Bureau of Impartiality are still nearby.”
He paused, his expression serious. “It means there’s still a clue that hasn’t been erased!”
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