Rain Listener House.
One of the zither strings snapped with a boom and the melodious tune came to an abrupt end.
Rain Listener sat upright, pondered for a moment, and said emotionally, “I didn’t expect the first time that Remnant Snow failed to complete a mission was to kill a youngster at the Human Dipper Stage and not a famous powerful figure.”
The attendant outside the door fell silent. His face was solemn, and he did not know what to answer his master.
In that night’s operation, the assassin Grey Marten had come back with a completely destroyed sea of qi and a wrecked cultivation base. Assassin Ghost Moon had been surrounded by dangers, and even until the end, couldn’t detect a trace of her opponent.
Remnant Snow had also been defeated.
The wound he had sustained was only an inch away from his heart. He would have died instantly if his heart was pierced.
Gray Marten, Ghost Moon and Remnant Snow had all lost to the same person. And that person was precisely the teenager at the Human Dipper Stage who was about to take the provincial examination.
The result was so unbelievable and shocking that the attendant still couldn’t believe it.
“Even if the mission ended in a failure, it’s good that they are still alive.”
Rain Listener rose to his feet. Clad in an azure scholarly robe, he looked particularly elegant and refined. He stood in front of a window with his hands behind his back. The torrential rain abruptly stopped and the stars in the night sky looked particularly bright.
“Lord, when Ghost Moon returned, she mentioned that a master intervened in the assassination operation at the time.”
The attendant at the door suddenly remembered something. “Also, the master asked Ghost Moon to pass a message back to us.”
“Oh.”
Rain Listener’s eyes gleamed with interest. “What did he say?”
“He asked if you still remember the blood sunset of blue mountain.”
Blood sunset of the blue mountain!
Rain Listener’s heart trembled as a purgatory world consisting of mountains of corpses and seas of blood flashed in his mind.
In that world, the sunset was red like blood as it enveloped the blue mountain. Thousands of cultivators were slaughtered on the ground and only a mighty figure, bathed in blood, stood tall and proud on the peak of the blue mountain.
“It’s him.”
A dazed look came to Rain Listener’s calm and indifferent face while his emotions constantly fluctuated.
After a long moment, Rain Listener suddenly turned around, calmness restored to his eyes. He ordered, “From tonight on, this mission is permanently canceled.”
Outside the door, the attendant was dumbfounded for a moment. The words ‘blood sunset of blue mountain’ completely changed the Lord’s attitude.
The fact that Remnant Snow, Ghost Moon and Gray Marten all failed their mission would no doubt have a tremendous impact on the reputation of Rain Listener House.
Given Rain Listener’s identity and wisdom, he must know about the negative impact but he still made such a decision. The attendant couldn’t follow his thinking.
“Go, you don’t need to understand the reason. You just need to know that we can’t touch Lin Xun.”
Rain Listener took a deep breath and sighed out loud.
……
Yao Susu and Lian Fei were waiting anxiously in the hall like ants on a hot pan. A long time had passed but they still hadn’t heard back anything. They both couldn’t help but worry.
“To kill Lin Xun, we spent ten thousand gold coins to hire assassins from the Rain Listener’s House. Yet, we haven’t heard a bit of news from them!” Lian Fei grumbled in a displeased tone.
Susu tried to console him even though she was feeling quite agitated by the wait, “Brother Fei, let’s wait a bit longer. Even if something unexpected pops up, the rich and powerful in Haze City will not be able to tolerate Lin Xun's existence anymore. Don’t forget, Lin Xun is a poor mouse. None of the prestigious powers are willing to be shamed if he stays alive after tonight!”
Bam!
At this time, the previously shut tight door had been opened. Yao Tuohai strode in briskly.
“Father,” Susu greeted.
Lian Fei also said, “Father-in-law.”
Yao Susu and Lian Fei felt more energetic when they saw him come in. However, when they saw the grim look on Yao Tuohai’s face, a sinking feeling appeared in their stomachs and their hands turned clammy.
Yao Tuohai’s face was ashen and his eyes held a steel glint. An imposing aura flowed off of him as if he was an ancient, angry beast.
“Father, just…just what happened?” Yao Susu couldn’t help but ask.
“Starting from today, you two are forbidden from causing any trouble in Haze City! Neither of you are allowed to have anything to do with Lin Xun,” Yao Tuohai coldly ordered with a bit of power in his voice.
Yao Susu and Lian Fei felt their hearts tremble. In an instant, they realized that something had gone wrong with the operation tonight. It had to have been completely outside of their expectations. After all, at Yao Tuohai’s current social status and cultivation, he rarely encountered setbacks. However, he looked incredibly resentful and angry.
Yao Tuohai had no desire to vent about what had happened earlier. After all, he had lost to a single punch from Xue Jin and even got a little injured from it. This was extremely humiliating towards him, so he naturally wouldn’t tell these two about it.
He took in a deep breath and grimly said, “Just leave it like this. In the future, if you want to get revenge, Lian Fei, you’ll have to take it one step at a time. You first need to pass this year’s examinations. After that, I’m sure you’ll have many opportunities in the future to achieve what you desire.”
Lian Fei felt his spirits sink, and he was having trouble controlling the expressions on his face as he asked, “Then…are you saying that Lin Xun isn’t dead right now?”
Yao Tuohai frowned and coldly glanced at Lian Fei before saying, “Susu, keep an eye on him. Before the provincial exam, you have the make sure he doesn’t do anything idiotic!”
He turned and left after that.
Lian Fei’s face became ghostly white, and his eyes glazed over. They had expended all of those resources and spent all of that money to kill Lin Xun. Yet, he now realized that all their efforts were for naught. He still hadn’t killed his archenemy, the guy who killed his own father! He felt as if the world had just crashed down on him, and it was a heavy blow.
Yao Susu felt angry and indignant for him after seeing him like that. Frustration bubbled within her. Lin Xun was merely a callow youth who had come from Feiyun Village, a rural backwater in the middle of nowhere. How could he, a lowly peasant, end up being stronger than cultivators from rich and powerful families? How was it possible that he was able to fight against assassins from Rain Listener House and come out alive?
What scared her the most was that she had a sneaking suspicion that her father had gone out tonight to meddle with this, but he had come back without being to alter this at all! Lin Xun was still alive!
That was too frightful!
Her father was a Heaven Ascension cultivator and was famous throughout the entire southwestern province. Furthermore, he had worked together with the Great Commander Liu Wujun, but they still had failed. Just how did Lin Xun come out of this alive?
The more she thought, the more alarmed she became. Before she noticed, a layer of cold sweat had appeared on her.
……
The first rays of the rising sun ripped apart the endless night, driving away the darkness. It signaled to the world that a new day had begun. Despite the bloody and dangerous night, Haze City felt exceptionally peaceful and calm this morning.
People bustled about the city, doing their usual routines. The streets and alleys were filled with the sounds of the city and nothing felt out of the ordinary. However, this type of serene peace made all of the cultivators who were trying to pay attention to last night’s events feel even more on edge. Until now, they hadn’t gotten any concrete news!
Just what exactly had happened last night? Did Lin Xun end up dying? If so, why were the dozen plus powers behind this operation keeping their mouths shut? Not even a single bit of news had been leaked so far. No one had a clue!
This kind of peaceful atmosphere felt a bit off, and many of the cultivators, even the well-informed seniors, scattered throughout Haze City had no information at all.
But the more people thought, the more uneasy they became. There must have been some unexpected event that occurred last night. Otherwise, why would it be so quiet now? Furthemore, for there to be no news at all, it meant that something or someone was suppressing all of this. This type of power was too terrifying!
Many of the cultivators suspected that since not a scrap of information had been leaked so far, it was likely it’d stay this way in the future. Basically, no one would know what had happened!
In the southwest region of Haze City, inside a small residence.
Cao Yunxiu had a strange look on his face. As the leader of the Achievers Society, he was originally planning on using what had happened last night to cause a sensation in the city, attacking the rich and powerful. This would put their foes on the defensive side.
However, who would have thought that all of the information regarding last night’s events had been entirely suppressed and locked down? He couldn’t get a single hint!
This made him feel quite upset and uneasy at the same time. Whoever was responsible for causing this information blockade had to have power beyond belief.
“But everyone, remember, the rich and powerful forces in the empire and the poor are like fire and water. Conflict will break out one day and that is when our Achievers Society will rise.”
The members of the Achievers Society bore looks of determination. They were born in a poor family and so they naturally didn’t want to be poor all their lives.
“Brother Cao, what should we do now?” someone asked. The people next to him were all members of the society and they all exchanged dismayed looks, looking unsure as to what they needed to do next.
“We can only go with the flow.” Cao Yunxiu fell silent for a long period of time before he finally sighed. “Based on the current events, we can only be patient for a bit longer and wait for another opportunity to strike”.
He paused and then the look in his eyes became determined as he sonorously announced, “However, everyone should remember that the rich and poor have an unassailable gulf between them in this empire. We are like water and fire. Before long, there will be a conflict that will break out between our two groups. At that time, our Achievers Society will have a chance to rise and fly!”
Everyone present became infected by his energy and they became more excited. They had been born into poor families, but that didn't mean they wanted to stay that way for the rest of their lives!
“Brother Cao, do you think Lin Xun is dead or alive?” someone suddenly asked.
Cao Yunxiu frowned and said expressionlessly, “It doesn’t matter whether he is dead or alive. Since he has refused to join our Achievers Society, he has nothing to do with us. Since he doesn’t follow the same path as us, then—”
Before he finished speaking, someone already understood what he wanted to say and interjected, “He’s our enemy.”
Cao Yunxiu smiled slightly, but shook his head and corrected him, “He’s not quite an enemy, but if he gets into trouble, he shouldn’t expect those also from poor families to stand on his side. I’m curious to know how he plans to gain a foothold in the empire now that he has angered the powerful major forces and has drawn a line with us. That’s only if he is still alive.”
……
It was unknown how long Lin Xun had been sleeping, but vaguely, he heard an ice-cold voice devoid of emotions ringing in his mind again.
“Dao Seeker, the Omega Secret Realm will open again in one year and the third test of the Great Azure Cloud Path is called Hundred Battles.”
“There are only three chances to pass. If you fail after three attempts, the Omega Secret Realm will fall back into a sealed state until a chance for it to open again in one thousand years.”
When the voice died away, Lin Xun suddenly quivered all over and his eyes sprang open.
Rain Listener House.
One of the zither strings snapped with a boom and the melodious tune came to an abrupt end.
Rain Listener sat upright, pondered for a moment, and said emotionally, “I didn’t expect the first time that Remnant Snow failed to complete a mission was to kill a youngster at the Human Dipper Stage and not a famous powerful figure.”
The attendant outside the door fell silent. His face was solemn, and he did not know what to answer his master.
In that night’s operation, the assassin Grey Marten had come back with a completely destroyed sea of qi and a wrecked cultivation base. Assassin Ghost Moon had been surrounded by dangers, and even until the end, couldn’t detect a trace of her opponent.
Remnant Snow had also been defeated.
The wound he had sustained was only an inch away from his heart. He would have died instantly if his heart was pierced.
Gray Marten, Ghost Moon and Remnant Snow had all lost to the same person. And that person was precisely the teenager at the Human Dipper Stage who was about to take the provincial examination.
The result was so unbelievable and shocking that the attendant still couldn’t believe it.
“Even if the mission ended in a failure, it’s good that they are still alive.”
Rain Listener rose to his feet. Clad in an azure scholarly robe, he looked particularly elegant and refined. He stood in front of a window with his hands behind his back. The torrential rain abruptly stopped and the stars in the night sky looked particularly bright.
“Lord, when Ghost Moon returned, she mentioned that a master intervened in the assassination operation at the time.”
The attendant at the door suddenly remembered something. “Also, the master asked Ghost Moon to pass a message back to us.”
“Oh.”
Rain Listener’s eyes gleamed with interest. “What did he say?”
“He asked if you still remember the blood sunset of blue mountain.”
Blood sunset of the blue mountain!
Rain Listener’s heart trembled as a purgatory world consisting of mountains of corpses and seas of blood flashed in his mind.
In that world, the sunset was red like blood as it enveloped the blue mountain. Thousands of cultivators were slaughtered on the ground and only a mighty figure, bathed in blood, stood tall and proud on the peak of the blue mountain.
“It’s him.”
A dazed look came to Rain Listener’s calm and indifferent face while his emotions constantly fluctuated.
After a long moment, Rain Listener suddenly turned around, calmness restored to his eyes. He ordered, “From tonight on, this mission is permanently canceled.”
Outside the door, the attendant was dumbfounded for a moment. The words ‘blood sunset of blue mountain’ completely changed the Lord’s attitude.
The fact that Remnant Snow, Ghost Moon and Gray Marten all failed their mission would no doubt have a tremendous impact on the reputation of Rain Listener House.
Given Rain Listener’s identity and wisdom, he must know about the negative impact but he still made such a decision. The attendant couldn’t follow his thinking.
“Go, you don’t need to understand the reason. You just need to know that we can’t touch Lin Xun.”
Rain Listener took a deep breath and sighed out loud.
……
Yao Susu and Lian Fei were waiting anxiously in the hall like ants on a hot pan. A long time had passed but they still hadn’t heard back anything. They both couldn’t help but worry.
“To kill Lin Xun, we spent ten thousand gold coins to hire assassins from the Rain Listener’s House. Yet, we haven’t heard a bit of news from them!” Lian Fei grumbled in a displeased tone.
Susu tried to console him even though she was feeling quite agitated by the wait, “Brother Fei, let’s wait a bit longer. Even if something unexpected pops up, the rich and powerful in Haze City will not be able to tolerate Lin Xun's existence anymore. Don’t forget, Lin Xun is a poor mouse. None of the prestigious powers are willing to be shamed if he stays alive after tonight!”
Bam!
At this time, the previously shut tight door had been opened. Yao Tuohai strode in briskly.
“Father,” Susu greeted.
Lian Fei also said, “Father-in-law.”
Yao Susu and Lian Fei felt more energetic when they saw him come in. However, when they saw the grim look on Yao Tuohai’s face, a sinking feeling appeared in their stomachs and their hands turned clammy.
Yao Tuohai’s face was ashen and his eyes held a steel glint. An imposing aura flowed off of him as if he was an ancient, angry beast.
“Father, just…just what happened?” Yao Susu couldn’t help but ask.
“Starting from today, you two are forbidden from causing any trouble in Haze City! Neither of you are allowed to have anything to do with Lin Xun,” Yao Tuohai coldly ordered with a bit of power in his voice.
Yao Susu and Lian Fei felt their hearts tremble. In an instant, they realized that something had gone wrong with the operation tonight. It had to have been completely outside of their expectations. After all, at Yao Tuohai’s current social status and cultivation, he rarely encountered setbacks. However, he looked incredibly resentful and angry.
Yao Tuohai had no desire to vent about what had happened earlier. After all, he had lost to a single punch from Xue Jin and even got a little injured from it. This was extremely humiliating towards him, so he naturally wouldn’t tell these two about it.
He took in a deep breath and grimly said, “Just leave it like this. In the future, if you want to get revenge, Lian Fei, you’ll have to take it one step at a time. You first need to pass this year’s examinations. After that, I’m sure you’ll have many opportunities in the future to achieve what you desire.”
Lian Fei felt his spirits sink, and he was having trouble controlling the expressions on his face as he asked, “Then…are you saying that Lin Xun isn’t dead right now?”
Yao Tuohai frowned and coldly glanced at Lian Fei before saying, “Susu, keep an eye on him. Before the provincial exam, you have the make sure he doesn’t do anything idiotic!”
He turned and left after that.
Lian Fei’s face became ghostly white, and his eyes glazed over. They had expended all of those resources and spent all of that money to kill Lin Xun. Yet, he now realized that all their efforts were for naught. He still hadn’t killed his archenemy, the guy who killed his own father! He felt as if the world had just crashed down on him, and it was a heavy blow.
Yao Susu felt angry and indignant for him after seeing him like that. Frustration bubbled within her. Lin Xun was merely a callow youth who had come from Feiyun Village, a rural backwater in the middle of nowhere. How could he, a lowly peasant, end up being stronger than cultivators from rich and powerful families? How was it possible that he was able to fight against assassins from Rain Listener House and come out alive?
What scared her the most was that she had a sneaking suspicion that her father had gone out tonight to meddle with this, but he had come back without being to alter this at all! Lin Xun was still alive!
That was too frightful!
Her father was a Heaven Ascension cultivator and was famous throughout the entire southwestern province. Furthermore, he had worked together with the Great Commander Liu Wujun, but they still had failed. Just how did Lin Xun come out of this alive?
The more she thought, the more alarmed she became. Before she noticed, a layer of cold sweat had appeared on her.
……
The first rays of the rising sun ripped apart the endless night, driving away the darkness. It signaled to the world that a new day had begun. Despite the bloody and dangerous night, Haze City felt exceptionally peaceful and calm this morning.
People bustled about the city, doing their usual routines. The streets and alleys were filled with the sounds of the city and nothing felt out of the ordinary. However, this type of serene peace made all of the cultivators who were trying to pay attention to last night’s events feel even more on edge. Until now, they hadn’t gotten any concrete news!
Just what exactly had happened last night? Did Lin Xun end up dying? If so, why were the dozen plus powers behind this operation keeping their mouths shut? Not even a single bit of news had been leaked so far. No one had a clue!
This kind of peaceful atmosphere felt a bit off, and many of the cultivators, even the well-informed seniors, scattered throughout Haze City had no information at all.
But the more people thought, the more uneasy they became. There must have been some unexpected event that occurred last night. Otherwise, why would it be so quiet now? Furthemore, for there to be no news at all, it meant that something or someone was suppressing all of this. This type of power was too terrifying!
Many of the cultivators suspected that since not a scrap of information had been leaked so far, it was likely it’d stay this way in the future. Basically, no one would know what had happened!
In the southwest region of Haze City, inside a small residence.
Cao Yunxiu had a strange look on his face. As the leader of the Achievers Society, he was originally planning on using what had happened last night to cause a sensation in the city, attacking the rich and powerful. This would put their foes on the defensive side.
However, who would have thought that all of the information regarding last night’s events had been entirely suppressed and locked down? He couldn’t get a single hint!
This made him feel quite upset and uneasy at the same time. Whoever was responsible for causing this information blockade had to have power beyond belief.
“But everyone, remember, the rich and powerful forces in the empire and the poor are like fire and water. Conflict will break out one day and that is when our Achievers Society will rise.”
The members of the Achievers Society bore looks of determination. They were born in a poor family and so they naturally didn’t want to be poor all their lives.
“Brother Cao, what should we do now?” someone asked. The people next to him were all members of the society and they all exchanged dismayed looks, looking unsure as to what they needed to do next.
“We can only go with the flow.” Cao Yunxiu fell silent for a long period of time before he finally sighed. “Based on the current events, we can only be patient for a bit longer and wait for another opportunity to strike”.
He paused and then the look in his eyes became determined as he sonorously announced, “However, everyone should remember that the rich and poor have an unassailable gulf between them in this empire. We are like water and fire. Before long, there will be a conflict that will break out between our two groups. At that time, our Achievers Society will have a chance to rise and fly!”
Everyone present became infected by his energy and they became more excited. They had been born into poor families, but that didn't mean they wanted to stay that way for the rest of their lives!
“Brother Cao, do you think Lin Xun is dead or alive?” someone suddenly asked.
Cao Yunxiu frowned and said expressionlessly, “It doesn’t matter whether he is dead or alive. Since he has refused to join our Achievers Society, he has nothing to do with us. Since he doesn’t follow the same path as us, then—”
Before he finished speaking, someone already understood what he wanted to say and interjected, “He’s our enemy.”
Cao Yunxiu smiled slightly, but shook his head and corrected him, “He’s not quite an enemy, but if he gets into trouble, he shouldn’t expect those also from poor families to stand on his side. I’m curious to know how he plans to gain a foothold in the empire now that he has angered the powerful major forces and has drawn a line with us. That’s only if he is still alive.”
……
It was unknown how long Lin Xun had been sleeping, but vaguely, he heard an ice-cold voice devoid of emotions ringing in his mind again.
“Dao Seeker, the Omega Secret Realm will open again in one year and the third test of the Great Azure Cloud Path is called Hundred Battles.”
“There are only three chances to pass. If you fail after three attempts, the Omega Secret Realm will fall back into a sealed state until a chance for it to open again in one thousand years.”
When the voice died away, Lin Xun suddenly quivered all over and his eyes sprang open.
