A group of Cao Bang disciples rushed over holding torches. Leading them was a brawny man with a fierce, fleshy face, carrying a Ghost Head Saber. His menacing aura made it seem like he could draw his blade and start cutting people down at any moment.
Yue Yufeng’s face paled. She recognized the man. He was one of Zhao Tianxiong’s trusted henchmen, "Life-taking Saber" Liu Biao. His cultivation was at the Third Grade Initial Stage, a powerful expert ranked among Military Generals.
"Well, well, you have accomplices!" Liu Biao sneered, his face alight with excitement. "Perfect. We’ll wipe you all out in one go! Brothers, get them! Dead or alive, it doesn’t matter!"
The disciples roared and charged, drawing their sabers and brandishing their swords. They paid Xia Wuyang and the others no mind at all.
Yue Yulong forced his Qi Blood to surge, ready to fight them to the death, but a hand gently pressed down on his shoulder.
"Just watch. Your help isn’t needed." Xia Wuyang’s voice was calm and steady. He, too, paid these men no mind.
He didn’t even draw his sword. He simply lifted his foot and gave a light stomp.
RUMBLE...
Centered on where his foot landed, the green flagstone ground rolled up like a wave. Violent Qi Blood, carrying rubble and rainwater, transformed into a circular shockwave that swept outward.
The three disciples at the very front were struck as if by a giant hammer. They flew backward, spitting blood, and crashed into a wall, falling silent. It was clear they were dead.
The few behind them were caught in the shockwave. With tendons snapped and bones broken, they screamed as they tumbled to the ground, and soon they too fell silent.
Liu Biao had the highest cultivation. Seeing that things had gone wrong, he hastily retreated, but a piece of rubble still struck him in the chest, breaking three of his ribs. He staggered back, his face a mask of horror.
"A... A Celestial Human!" he stammered, his voice trembling.
Only a Celestial Human of the Super Grade or higher could possess such terrifying power. Moreover, the feeling Xia Wuyang gave him was even more dreadful than the one his own Gang Leader inspired.
Xia Wuyang didn’t even spare him a glance. With a flick of his sleeve, a gentle stream of Qi Blood wrapped around the Yue Family Siblings. "Let’s go. We’ll come back for them after you’ve had a chance to recover."
Like a great roc spreading its wings, the three of them soared over the high wall and vanished into the vast, rainy night. He planned to let the siblings, who were not in good shape, recover for a while before going after Zhao Tianxiong and his men.
Liu Biao collapsed to the ground. After a long moment, he screamed hoarsely, "Quick... quickly report to the Vice Gang Leader! An incredibly powerful Celestial Human staged a jailbreak!"
「In the western part of the city, not far away, stood the abandoned River God Temple.」
Seeing that Yue Yulong was in bad shape, Xia Wuyang didn’t go far. He found a hidden spot nearby, planning to treat Yue Yulong’s injuries first.
The place had once been a site of flourishing worship. Twenty years ago, a great flood had destroyed the dikes, half-ruining the temple. The common folk had moved away, and now only crumbling walls remained, serving as a temporary shelter for beggars and vagrants.
With the heavy rain tonight, even the beggars had taken shelter elsewhere. The temple was empty, making it a perfect place to hide for a while.
Xia Wuyang led the Yue Family Siblings into the dilapidated main hall. He released his Qi Blood, evaporating the rainwater from their clothes, then flicked his finger to ignite a bonfire. The orange flames drove away the cold and darkness, and the area quickly warmed up.
"Sit down and heal. Stabilize your injuries first." He tossed Yue Yulong a bottle of elixirs. "Blood Coagulation Pills. Apply them externally and take them internally. Rest and recover well."
Yue Yulong took them and gave Xia Wuyang a deep look. He didn’t ask any questions and silently applied the medicine and began to regulate his breathing.
He truly couldn’t hold on much longer. Now, with Xia Wuyang’s help, he was recovering at an extremely fast rate. It wouldn’t be long before his injuries were stabilized.
Yue Yufeng, however, couldn’t hold back. She cupped her fist in a salute. "Senior, my brother and I are eternally grateful to you for saving our lives. But... if I may be so bold, what is your name, Senior? And why did you save us? Someone of your power surely wouldn’t know a pair of nobodies like us."
Xia Wuyang had his back to them, gazing out at the curtain of rain beyond the hall. After a moment of silence, he spoke slowly. "Your father and I have a past connection. You are the children of an old acquaintance. Since I found out about your plight, it was only natural that I would step in to help."
Yue Yufeng trembled and stared at Xia Wuyang in disbelief.
Yue Yulong opened his eyes as well, bloodshot streaks appearing in them. "Senior, you knew my father?"
"Fifty-one years ago, during the Royal Family’s spring hunt, an assassin fired a hidden arrow at the Crown Prince, intending to kill him." Xia Wuyang’s voice was low. "It was your father who blocked that arrow with his own body. I was there at the time, responsible for the Crown Prince’s safety. His action saved me from a great deal of trouble."
’Those words were half-truth, half-lie. While he hadn’t revealed his identity, as the Crown Prince, he naturally had a duty to protect himself. Yue Zhan had saved his life, which certainly counted as saving him from a great deal of trouble.’
The siblings exchanged a look, seeing both excitement and pain in each other’s eyes. They didn’t make the connection to the Crown Prince, since his current situation was common knowledge: aged and decrepit, utterly muddle-headed, and with only a few months left to live.
Furthermore, because Yue Zhan had died relatively early, he had never had a falling out with the elder Crown Prince. Before Yue Zhan was killed, the elder Crown Prince had even done everything in his power to try and save him.
Unfortunately, the elder Crown Prince could barely protect himself at the time, let alone save Yue Zhan. In the end, Yue Zhan was killed anyway.
The two siblings knew the circumstances of that time, so they bore no resentment toward the elder Crown Prince; in fact, they even felt a certain fondness for him.
Their mother had told them the story of their father saving the Crown Prince countless times. Now that Xia Wuyang had recounted the specific details of the event, they no longer had any doubts.
’That was their father’s proudest choice in life, but it was also the beginning of the Yue Family’s nightmare. Still, it was a matter of fate. If the elder Crown Prince hadn’t been deposed later on, who knows what heights their Yue Family would have reached by now? They would surely have been basking in glory.’
For the merit of blocking the arrow, Yue Zhan was seen as the Crown Prince’s confidant, but this also made him a thorn in the side of certain people, and he was ultimately framed and killed.
"Father often said he had no regrets. Even before he died, his greatest regret was that the Crown Prince had been harmed by villains." Yue Yulong’s eyes turned red. "He said His Highness the Crown Prince was an enlightened ruler, worthy of dying for, and he never once complained about his fate."
"An enlightened ruler?" Xia Wuyang repeated softly, a bitter smile touching his lips. He didn’t know what to say.
’If he were truly an enlightened ruler, how could he have done so many foolish things after that incident? In the end, he was just an ordinary man.’
’And now, he had even allowed the children of an old acquaintance to wander the Jianghu. If he hadn’t come to his senses in time, they would likely have lost their lives.’
He turned around, his gaze falling on the siblings’ faces. "The main culprit who framed your father back then was indeed the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen. He has since paid a terrible price and is now living a fate worse than death. The other is Zhao Tianxiong. You have indeed found the right enemies. But even with the Cao Bang in chaos, Zhao Tianxiong himself is a First Grade Perfection Grandmaster. With your level of strength, what made you think you could assassinate him?"
He was quite perplexed by this. Although Yue Yulong and Yue Yufeng could be considered outstanding among the younger generation, they were still leagues behind an old monster like Zhao Tianxiong, who had dominated the Jianghu for over a century. Why would they even think of assassinating him?
’To be honest, it was truly an overestimation of their own abilities.’

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