The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 242 - 169 Sudden Changes

Chapter 242: Chapter 169 Sudden Changes

Boom!

It was not yet dawn when the courtyard door was kicked open.

Li Yan woke up in alarm, grabbed his long saber, and was about to escape through the window when his expression suddenly changed, prompting him to quickly crouch down.

He gently pried open the window with the hilt of his saber, only to see silhouettes leaping atop the courtyard wall, drawing bows and aiming at all the rooms.

They were from the Captain Bureau!

Li Yan’s brow furrowed deeply. What did these black dogs want from them?

"Who’s there? Show yourself!"

From another room, Sha Lifei also roared through the window.

He possessed no Divine Skills and, in the pitch dark, couldn’t see that it was the men from the Captain Bureau.

"Captain Bureau, investigating the rebels!"

Accompanied by a cold voice, a man entered from outside, tall and with a charred face, his eyes sinister, carrying a long spear in hand.

"I’ll count to three; if you don’t come out, I’ll kill without mercy!"

Kill without mercy?

Li Yan’s eyes glinted ferociously as he clenched the Hook Paper.

Before his words fell, chaotic footsteps erupted outside the alley, torches flaring brightly while a furious voice exclaimed,

"Feng Han, what are you doing!"

It was Guan Wanche.

Hearing this, Li Yan’s heart slightly relaxed.

Conflicting with the Captain Bureau in Chang’an City was trouble; although he could break through with the help of the Yin Department Army, he would certainly be pursued.

With Guan Wanche arriving, there was at least a chance to parley.

But looking at these two groups, they seemed at odds with each other.

What exactly had happened?

As he puzzled over this, Guan Wanche had already led another group of the Captain Bureau’s men to surround the small courtyard.

He stared rigidly at the man with the spear, coldly saying, "Feng Han, you are responsible for pugilistic outsiders within the city, don’t cross the line!"

The man with the spear glanced indifferently, "Something was lost, a matter of great importance; how can this official sit idly by, especially with Guo Qianhu’s order, we must conduct a thorough investigation."

"A thorough investigation?"

Guan Wanche scoffed coldly, "It seems more like you want to kill and silence!"

The man with the spear’s expression remained unchanged, "This official is merely following orders; Lord Hundred Households, I don’t understand what you’re saying."

Beside him was an elder, forming the Yang Jue with his hands, scanning the courtyard. He released the hand seal, stepped forward, and whispered lowly, "Lord Hundred Households, it’s not here."

"Hmph, let’s go!"

The man with the spear wasted no words and, with a wave of his hand, led his men away, passing by the members of the Captain Bureau outside the courtyard, exchanging hostile glances, the atmosphere as tense as fire and water.

As they passed by Guan Wanche, the man with the spear suddenly stopped, said meaningfully, "Lord Hundred Households, this matter is too big for you to handle, and the person above you can’t handle it either. He who understands the times is a great man."

Guan Wanche coldly replied, "Feng Han, you are too anxious."

"Hahaha..."

The man with the spear laughed coldly and turned away.

Only after they had left did Guan Wanche stride into the courtyard and coldly say, "I know you are all awake; come out."

Creak~

Li Yan and the others came out, looking at each other.

Sha Lifei wanted to complain, but upon seeing Guan Wanche’s cold, murderous eyes, he also shut his mouth.

Li Yan then asked, "Lord Guan, what happened?"

Guan Wanche didn’t answer but instead countered, "Yesterday, Manager Feng Feiyan from Fenglai Inn came looking for you, what did she say?"

Related to Feng Feiyan?

Though surprised, Li Yan kept his expression unchanged and shook his head, "Just the usual New Year greetings, she didn’t stay long."

Woof woof woof!

Just then, a fierce dog led by one of Guan Wanche’s men sniffed around and suddenly barked fiercely at Sha Lifei’s room.

Guan Wanche’s gaze turned sharp, "Search!"

Before he finished speaking, a few members of the Captain Bureau quickly stepped forward, pushed Sha Lifei aside, and searched the room.

Li Yan’s heart sank, sensing trouble.

Soon, these men came out holding a paper figure and threw it in the courtyard, "Reporting to Lord Hundred Households, it’s a Puppet activated by medicine."

"Hmm."

Guan Wanche frowned slightly and looked at Sha Lifei, "What are you doing with these?"

Sha Lifei gave an awkward smile, "Well, the Lantern Festival is coming, I thought of using this thing to liven things up."

"Hmph, useless things for a lifetime!"

Guan Wanche cursed, but the murderous intent in his eyes dissipated significantly as he continued to ask, "Did Feng Feiyan come again afterward?"

"Not seen."

"What did she say?"

"Just the usual New Year greetings, Lord Hundred Households, what happened?"

"Nothing to do with you!"

Guan Wanche replied coldly and then waved to leave with his men. But halfway through, he suddenly stopped.

He hesitated, then said sternly, "A major incident has occurred in the Captain Bureau. Chang’an City might not be peaceful in the future. You have old ties with me and know Feng Feiyan; be careful in your actions, lest you are used as pawns."

With that, he turned and left.

The courtyard returned to silence as the three exchanged glances.

Sha Lifei cursed, "Damn it, what nonsense, have those black-coated dogs eaten gunpowder?"

A thought struck Li Yan, who then spoke solemnly, "Protect me!"

As he spoke, his hands formed a spell, his little finger gently hooking.

Whoosh!

A Grass Spirit Paper Man suddenly flew up and soared into the night sky.

Grass Spirit flew with the wind, its speed incredible.

This object, dominated by Divine Astral, harbored no Yin Evil Qi. Coupled with Li Yan’s increasingly profound Dao, it didn’t take long to catch up with Wan Che and others, lurking among the roadside leaves.

"Lord, what should we do?"

"Hmph, they are looking for Feng Feiyan, probably to kill her to prevent leaks."

"The key lies in that Divine Fire Gun—if we find it before the court intervenes, there’s still room to maneuver."

"The leader last night was the broker Hall Master Bai Ruoxu, who is also a Maitreya Sect adherent. You all gather information through the underworld, see if the other party is still hiding in the city."

"I’ll take people out of the city to search..."

"Yes, Lord!"

Wan Che seemed very anxious. After giving the orders, he shook the reins and galloped away with his men.

After they left, the Grass Spirit on the tree self-ignited, turning into ashes...

...

Inside the small courtyard, Li Yan put away his spell and slightly shook his head.

"The Captain Bureau’s firearms have been lost."

"The Maitreya Sect is behind it, including the broker Hall Master Bai Ruoxu, who is also a sect adherent."

"Feng Feiyan might have become a pawn in the conflict between the two factions of the Captain Bureau. Now her life or death is unknown, who knows where she has fled."

"Sh—!"

Sha Lifei gasped, "This is a major disaster. The court values the new firearms so greatly, discovering their loss will surely lead to great turmoil, and Chang’an will likely be in chaos."

"Really... Daoist, didn’t you say that this year everything would go smoothly? Why is there now such chaos?"

"Alas, I’m not really a semi-sage. The divination showed this, but it is mixed with both good and bad fortune, hard to say clearly."

"Let’s not talk about this anymore."

Li Yan looked into the distance and said solemnly, "The loss of the item has nothing to do with us, but due to this incident, the strife between the two factions of the Captain Bureau will likely come to light."

"We know Wan Che and Feng Feiyan, and inevitably we might be used as pawns, getting dragged into this."

"Moreover, that bastard Bai Ruoxu turned out to be a Maitreya Sect member. Thinking back to when he led us to Xiangji Temple, he probably had ill intentions."

"We can’t stay in Chang’an anymore. Uncle Sha, you all pack up; we’ll leave for outside Chang’an City at dawn to hide and wait for my message."

Sha Lifei was anxious, "What, you are staying?"

Li Yan shook his head, "The matter of the Drum King Contest, I have already promised Manager Wan, and I cannot break my word. Besides, the Hua Mountain spot is very important for us."

"The two factions of the Captain Bureau are now heated up. As long as I hide, they won’t have the time to deal with me. After the Lantern Festival, as soon as I get the spot, we’ll leave immediately for Hua Mountain."

"We could always buy a Magic Artifact and go hide in another state if necessary."

"That... makes sense."

Sha Lifei and Wang Daoxuan sighed.

Given the circumstances, they could only do as Li Yan suggested.

...

The three of them quickly packed up. As dawn barely broke, Sha Lifei and Wang Daoxuan, disguised as merchants, followed the crowd out of Chang’an.

Li Yan, meanwhile, turned back for a last look at the empty courtyard, shook his head slightly, locked the door, and left with his backpack.

He first went to Lanling Square, jumped into the Li family estate from a side courtyard, and spoke to the startled Mrs. Li and Li Kongqing about the situation.

Of course, Li Yan did not mention the firearms, only that there was infighting in the Captain Bureau and they feared getting involved, forcing them to leave.

"This... is truly misfortune falling from the sky."

Li Kongqing was somewhat speechless, shaking his head, "The Princely Heir is very interested in the Drum King Contest, knowing that you and our Shan State Magician formed a team, and he even thought of meeting you to offer encouragement."

Li Yan pondered for a moment, "The Lantern Festival might be dangerous; it’s best that you all don’t leave your houses on that day, and Brother Kong Qing, try to persuade the Princely Heir to stay as well."

"You all wait, wait until the day they move the caskets out of the City God Temple, see the result of the strife in the Captain Bureau; only then might Chang’an settle down."

"This is all I have to say, master, take care!"

After speaking, he deeply bowed to Mrs. Li.

"Ah~"

Mrs. Li sighed as well, "Such is the pugilistic world, many things are beyond our control; you must be careful."

"Yes, Master."

After leaving the Li residence, seeing the increased number of patrol soldiers on the streets, Li Yan felt a stir in his heart and slipped into an alley.

...

Inside the Qingyuan Building.

"Changle Square, inside a lavish mansion courtyard."

"One, two, three, lift!"

Following Guo Luquan’s shout, forty or fifty strong men exerted their strength simultaneously, and three Divine Towers, one large and two small, were immediately lifted.

"Listen to my command, steady!"

"Hei ho hei ho!"

With a loud shout from Guo Luquan, the men chanted rythmically, carrying the Divine Tower forward slowly.

"Set!"

At his command, the men tightened their stance, unflinchingly firm.

These were all strong laborers with immense strength, orderly in their actions under Guo Luquan’s directions, though not quite matching the true porters.

Meanwhile, the rear battle drum band also pushed forward large drums closely following behind, the drum sounds booming, matching the rhythm of the crowd.

Elsewhere, Manager Wan glanced at the note in his hand and slightly shook his head, "Gentlemen, Brother Li has urgent matters to attend to and will come during the Lantern Festival; let’s practice first."

"Things are indeed unstable in the city today; where did he go?"

"Why worry so much, just practice..."

...

Pingkang Square, the Golden Treasure Gambling House had been sealed off.

Teams from the Captain Bureau, accompanied by government officers, turned the entire gambling house upside down.

"Report! A secret passage has been found!"

"Search!"

From a distance, through a window, the Oiran of Qingyuan Building, Zhao Wanfang, withdrew her gaze and, looking at the famished Li Yan, smiled coyly:

"So, planning to stay at the brothel?"