I Can See Your Combat Power
Chapter 1722 - 160: Indirect Approach

Chapter 1722: Chapter 160: Indirect Approach

Since the fall of the Ancient Blood Tower, the top assassin organization of Xiehe, there had been no large-scale assassinations targeting noble families within Xiehe.

Even the Da Lin Bounty Guild, which rose during the battle against the Tang, only dared to accept inconsequential tasks in the black market.

In Longzhou today, apart from the disciples graduated from the Unparalleled Academy’s management department stirring up trouble, the overall situation had become very stable.

However, Unparalleled City’s recent actions completely shattered this stability.

The Yun Clan disciples who were brought out of Longyuan might not be very outstanding in Wind Media professional skills, but they possessed formidable Primary Qi abilities.

Compared to ordinary Wind Media who could only flee, these Wind Media trained by Unparalleled City were exceptional assassins.

Omitting the middleman in intelligence exchange, they pinpointed their targets, mapped out escape routes, and then struck fiercely.

The stable situation had led those young nobles who caused major incidents in Unparalleled City to think that they could sleep easy once they reclaimed their family territories.

They would gather a few friends, seek pleasures in brothels and wine shops, and while dodging past servants or maids, they would be assassinated with a short blade or poisoned needle.

The families who lost their loved ones knew very well that Unparalleled City was behind it, but they couldn’t find any evidence to prove their conjecture.

Yun Clan’s art of disguise, paired with intelligence and martial support, made these assassins as elusive as ghosts.

Many offending noble offspring could only hide in the most secret places of their families, yet even then, their safety could not be fully guaranteed.

The desperate noble families then turned to Clan He, also based in Lingjiang, hoping they would send an envoy to negotiate terms with Unparalleled City.

As long as the assassinations against family members ceased, they would ensure satisfactory compensation for Unparalleled City.

Such an entrusted task that required little effort and could gain immense prestige among the noble families was, of course, not refused by Clan He. After several reluctance, they agreed to do their best to persuade, but made no guarantees of success.

To show the importance of the matter, Clan He personally arrived in Unparalleled City, but he didn’t rashly request an audience with the dean but first sought out Du Ting.

No one knew what they discussed, only that after meeting with Du Ting, Clan He left Red Cloud Mountain and conveyed Unparalleled City’s stance to the various families.

"The bereaved families do not need material compensation; they only seek retribution against their enemies. The city hall’s stance is very firm, now is not a suitable time for negotiations."

When Clan He conveyed Unparalleled City’s position to those family heads waiting in Lanshan City, an emotion called panic began to spread among them.

Many families expressed their willingness to increase compensation, as long as their kin were spared from death, everything was negotiable.

However, Clan He could only shake his head, indicating his inability to help; he understood the families’ fear, but was powerless to assist.

Ever since the Flame Sun Sword Master sent three hundred disciples into the Academy, the Unparalleled Academy has truly become the martial arts holy land of Longzhou.

This positive fame naturally placed Unparalleled Academy at a vantage point in public opinion, especially with this latest proclamation, which truly scratched an itch for the scattered cultivators and the weak populace.

It reminded them of being treated like dirt by the noble families and the powerful. Unparalleled City’s willingness to hold the families accountable for the victims made its already brilliant shine seem even more sacred.

And these noble families?

At this point, even if they readily surrendered their kin, they could not reverse the tide of public opinion.

It would also cause disunity among their people. If the families could abandon their core members, then what reason would the side branches have to lay down their lives for them?

As public opinion fermented, they had become the target of public criticism, and their enemies would undoubtedly make good use of this.

After that, a major injury to one’s Primary Qi would be the best possible outcome.

An ancient family with over a hundred years of heritage, all because of a minor mistake in Unparalleled City, was cast into an abyss of endless calamities.

...

At the eastern foot of Red Cloud Mountain

Flame Sun Sword Master Xu Changhao built himself a hut here, and at this moment, this honorable Sword Venerable was roasting meat and cooking wine to entertain an important guest.

A man with a face like a king’s, whose age could not be told, sat upright on a cushion, his calm gaze revealing neither joy nor sorrow, just an immeasurable sense of authority.

There is always some interaction between the outstanding disciples of holy places, and the friendships between men often arise from confrontation.

It’s not always necessary to be equally matched; in fact, sometimes a disparity in strength is more conducive to forming friendships.

Thus, the outstanding disciples of the holy places only need to travel through Xiehe, and mostly they find friends everywhere (except for certain scoundrels who bring disaster to every girl in every place they visit).

And you know, the appreciation for beauty is etched deep in our bones; those of striking appearance are always more favorably received.

This kind of charm is especially lethal to the chivalrous and romantic swordsmen of Yuanzhou.

So after An Yuanxi visited various Sword Sects in Yuanzhou and finished his travels, he gained a host of die-hard friends and followers. Xu Changhao of Flame Sun Sword Sect was one of them.

"When you paid your visit to the Flame Sun Sword Sect years ago, Brother Changhao was already in charge of the sect’s internal affairs. It’s only been a couple of decades, and you have already ascended to the position of Sword Venerable, unlike Yuan Xi who has been wasting his time on the royal patrol, troubled and undecided!"

Time flies; seeing the unchanged face of an old friend always stirs up some emotions.

The warm memories that surface dissolve the barriers that time has built, and as Xu Changhao caught the self-mocking tone in his old friend’s words, he poured wine for An Yuanxi while teasing: "That doesn’t sound like something the Feather God would say."

"Times change, and the new replaces the old. Someone like me, a washed-up Saint Child, has lost all that youthful vigor."

Shaking his head, An Yuanxi drained the wine in his cup and let out a satisfied "heh, heh" sound: "Great wine, so potent!"

"I brought it specially from Ying City. There’s only two jars of it. If it weren’t for the Feather God’s visit, I wouldn’t have had the heart to unseal it!"

Xu Changhao laughed, filling his own cup to the brim, and after downing it, he emitted a sound similar to An Yuanxi’s.

You drink a bowl, I drink a bowl. Without speaking another word, they just drank heartily together, and before long, the pitcher was empty.

Shaking the last two drops but only managing to fill An Yuanxi’s bowl halfway, Xu Changhao hesitated for a while and then stood up to fetch the other jar.

"Drink up, drink it all, then there’s nothing to linger in the mind!"

As he held the wine jar to pour into the cup, the Spiritual Fire blazed vigorously beneath the tripod. The spirit, after being warmed, was even more scorching to the heart – such is the unique way to drink the Spirit Wine named Blade’s Edge.

Taking advantage of the time spent pouring and warming the wine, Xu Changhao began to chat with An Yuanxi about random things.

"If you find the royal patrol uncomfortable, why not go out and start your own faction? With your reputation as the Feather God in Zhongzhou, if you just call out, wouldn’t followers swarm to you? Wouldn’t that be much better than suffering indignities in the royal patrol? I’ve heard that An Jingtian doesn’t seem to get along with you very well."

"You know there are some misunderstandings between our faction and that one, but An Jingtian is a senior after all, he won’t do anything to me."

An Yuanxi shook his head: "Besides, Yuan Xi joined the royal patrol not for fame or gain, but because I truly believe that to uphold the righteous path, one must not be biased. The Dutian Heavenly Patrol is the eyes and ears of Zhongzhou, able to see the true state of the human world. Compared to that, what is momentary injustice?"