As the city was engulfed in darkness, shadows began to creep through the narrow alleys. The inn where Zhang Yong was staying was an obvious target.
The shadows moved silently in the darkness under the white light of the full moon.
"Enter quietly.We don't want him to wake up before we finish this."
Inside the room, Zhang Yong opened his eyes calmly as they glimmered crimson. "Hmph, they moved faster than I thought."
Zhang Yong lay on the bed,seemingly indifferent, but he was observing everything with his Heavenly Eyes from the outside.
The men moved with cautious steps towards the inn, their footsteps barely audible on the stone ground.
One of the masked men gestured with his hand,and they split into small groups. The leader's plan was clear: storm the room from all directions to gain complete control over Zhang Yong.
The room was quiet, as if its occupants were in a deep sleep. Two attackers approached the window, while two others stood at the door, waiting for the signal to break in.
"Three... two... one!" The lead man finished the count and they stormed the room where Zhang Yong lay sleeping on his bed.
He woke up quickly and raised his head, only for it to be covered with a cloth sack. His entire body was lifted from the bed and taken out through the window.
Outside, the team moved swiftly through the narrow alleys, carrying Zhang Yong who seemed to have completely surrendered. Everything was going as planned; infiltrating quietly, capturing him without any commotion, and withdrawing before being discovered.
"That was easier than expected!" said one of the masked men as they hurried towards their hidden carriage outside the city.
"Hurry,the boss is waiting for us in the cave. We don't want to waste any more time," said the leader as he led the group.
After a short distance, they reached the entrance of a dark cave located outside the city limits. The place was desolate, surrounded by dense trees and large rocks that hid the entrance. They lit small torches before entering and began walking through narrow, winding passages.
As soon as they arrived at the location, the boss was waiting for them with the others.
"Did you bring him?"said the boss in a low voice that carried a force that echoed through the cave.
They threw Zhang Yong on the ground in front of the leader. "Yes, sir. He didn't resist at all. As you can see, the mission was extremely easy," said one of the men, kicking the cloth sack containing Zhang Yong.
An unexpected sigh came from the sack in front of them. "You guys... this is extremely annoying."
In an instant, the cloth sack was torn apart as Zhang Yong stood before them. "You are truly fools. I didn't expect you to fall into the trap this easily."
Everyone stopped moving for a moment, stunned by the scene before them. How did Zhang Yong free himself? And why does it seem like he expected everything?
"A trap? I should have expected that. Attack him!" said the leader angrily, trying to maintain his composure, but his tension was evident.
Zhang Yong sighed. "Won't you even let me explain my plan? Fine, I'll excuse myself."
The men began attacking Zhang Yong, but their blows had no effect on him. They were striking his body, but nothing affected him!
This was terrifying for them.
"Alright,let me begin. I acted like a rich scoundrel all day and spent a huge amount of money. If Su Ming hears about this, he'll bury me deep in the ground for being wasteful. Your first mistake was being deceived by an act that wasn't even well-performed; even a blind man could have seen through it. Let's just say human nature's greed and avarice overwhelmed you."
Zhang Yong smiled mockingly as blows continued to rain on his body to the point where one of the thieves' swords broke immediately.
"Then, by saying I would spend only one day here, and with the bad habit of workers eavesdropping on guests, tipping generously showed that I possessed a lot of money, which would therefore be etched in the worker's memory. Additionally, by clearly separating myself from the others, I was sure you would become suspicious of me and start searching for information. Hearing that I would stay for only one day further motivated you to attack me as soon as possible."
The thieves stared in shock. No matter how much they hit Zhang Yong, it was useless.
"Your mistake now is choosing to be the ones to attack me.Fine, I've let you have enough fun. It's time for you to die. Hey, you!"
A purple flame shot out from Zhang Yong's body as the Demonic Devouring Flame appeared before him. "Your orders, my master?"
"Burn everyone here except the leader," Zhang Yong ordered coldly.
As soon as the orders were issued, the purple flame suddenly rose, spreading throughout the cave like waves of fire.
The men's screams filled the surroundings,as their attempts to escape or defend themselves were futile. The flame devoured everything in its path, leaving them no chance of survival.
The leader took a step back, clearly overwhelmed with fear and panic on his face. "You... who in hell are you?!" shouted the leader, trying to maintain his courage despite his trembling voice.
Zhang Yong walked towards the leader calmly and smiled. "Well, you can blame yourself for meeting me. But if you really want to know my name, you can call me... hmm, call me the Ice Demon. After all, that's what they called me in the past . Anyway, farewell."
Demonic Devouring Flame- Devour.
A wave of demonic flame shot towards the leader,turning him into scattered ashes carried away by the wind.
Zhang Yong almost fell to one knee before regaining his balance and began breathing with difficulty. "Damn, you... when will I be able to use you easily? Damn, every time I use you I almost collapse."
The Demonic Devouring Flame stared calmly, crossing its arms. "You can't. You possess a mortal body. Even if it's strengthened, it remains mortal. After all, only an immortal body can withstand a demonic flame."
Zhang Yong snorted coldly. "Then tell me what you know. You know about the structure of life and death, don't you?"
The flame shook its head. "I don't know. I've already lost my memory and I'm nothing more than a flame."
"Tsk,just return," ordered Zhang Yong.
The flame quietly extinguished and returned inside Zhang Yong's body as he let out a sigh. "Just how many things have to reside in my body?"
'Hey!It was all your own choice!' Murasama grumbled particularly.
Zhang Yong stood in the middle of the destroyed cave. The air was saturated with the smell of ash and fire, leaving only a heavy silence enveloping the place.
Zhang Yong closed his eyes and began reading the gang leader's memory, converting everything about the leader into essence, crystallizing his memories with effort.
Suddenly, Zhang Yong's expression changed to a frown, then his face darkened as he clutched his head.
Then he opened his eyes and inhaled the cold air.There was disappointment on his face and a kind of anxiety?
"This is impossible. That bastard's memories have been tampered with. There's only a memory of a masked person and incidents of child kidnappings in Ziang City. That's all. Who exactly is this person? But at least I have a lead. And this leader is indeed connected to the Demonic Spring Sect. We must be careful."
Having obtained sufficient information and resolved his problems in this place, Zhang Yong walked and returned to the city, heading straight back to the inn.
However, before entering, Zhang Yong saw someone leaving the inn. It was none other than Ning Xiao.
Zhang Yong sighed with displeasure. "At this late hour of the night, what are you doing here?"
However, instead of going and bringing her back, and receiving a whole bucket of screaming and the headache that would come with it, he decided to simply follow her secretly. The late night was the time for gang activities in the area. With the slightest slip, this girl could end up, and that was also a reason to follow her secretly. He couldn't let her die.
But he could let her suffer a little to learn the cruelty of the world.
What is this smell? Why is it so fragrant?
Ning Xiao was indeed walking quietly in the street. As she passed by a shop, she was drawn to the smell emanating from it. She turned and looked around at a restaurant.
Ning Xiao swallowed her saliva lightly. When the others were eating fresh dumplings, her reaction was, "I won't eat anything bought by that selfish scoundrel," and she ended up not eating anything. So now she was unable to move her legs a bit because of the smell of food.
However, she pulled herself together forcefully. "No, I came out tonight to investigate. If the others are useless, I can't be too." She turned her head away from the restaurant in pain.
And as Ning Xiao continued on her way, she heard a painful groan in one of the corners.
Ning Xiao quickly looked towards the source of the sound when she heard it and saw an old woman sitting on the ground.
Without delay, she approached her and bent down beside her. "Madam, are you alright?"
When the old woman, Fang Qiuyao, suddenly appeared, she was shocked at first, then screamed, "Ah, my life is suffering, oh! Why is my life so bitter?"
Looking at the old woman crying and clutching the ground, Ning Xiao comforted her. "It's alright, it's alright, madam. If you have any problems, just tell me and I'll help you."
Then the old woman looked at Ning Xiao and asked cautiously, "Who are you, girl? And why are you helping me? We don't even know each other. Do you want to finish off this old woman?"
"Madam, what are you talking about? Helping an elderly person like you is what the young should do. Come, I'll help you up first."
Ning Xiao grabbed the old woman's arm and helped her stand, but her back was bent. After that, the old woman patted Ning Xiao's hand. "You are truly a kind-hearted girl. I wish my daughter-in-law were like you."
Ning Xiao looked at the old woman with a slight smile and said quietly, "Thank you for your kind words, madam. Do you need help getting back home? It seems cold, and you shouldn't be outside alone."
The old woman slowly shook her head, then let out a long sigh.
"Ah,if only I could return home... My daughter-in-law knew that I am injured in my hands and feet, so she left me here to die."
Ning Xiao felt anger rising inside her. "How can this happen! How can a daughter-in-law wish for her mother-in-law's death?"
A few teardrops appeared at the corners of the old woman's eyes. "My daughter-in-law gives me leftovers that even dogs wouldn't eat and forces me to sleep in the firewood shed. What is this if not wanting me dead?"
"This is too much!" Ning Xiao shouted indignantly. "How can there be such an evil person in the world! Madam, I'll go back with you to your daughter-in-law. Such injustice must not exist."
The old woman waved her hand repeatedly. "No, no, my daughter-in-law is a cruel and evil woman famous in the city."
"Don't worry,madam, I'll be fine. I'll take you home."
The old woman showed a relieved expression at Ning Xiao's insistence. "Alright, it seems heaven is helping me, to have a kind girl like you help me."
With that, Ning Xiao accompanied the old woman to her home.
Zhang Yong sighed from a distance."I mean, is she too kind or too stupid? This level of acting is really low, yet it managed to deceive her."
Frankly, Zhang Yong couldn't blame her for her actions. She could only blame being in a world full of deception in countless ways.
'Just to be safe,it's good that I filled the scale before I left.'
After finishing his thoughts, Zhang Yong jumped and secretly followed the two.
After winding through a few alleys, Ning Xiao helped the old woman reach a small house, then knocked forcefully on the door. "Come out, you immoral and heartless person!"
Zhang Yong could only mock the hot-headedness of this girl. He sighed, she can't be dealt with when angry.
"Who dares to knock like that in the middle of the night!"
Immediately, the door opened and a woman who looked fierce, violent to be precise, came out.
Upon seeing her,Ning Xiao had judged her from her appearance. She was truly evil.
"Hmph, you heartless person, I'm here to demand justice for this old grandmother."
When the woman heard Ning Xiao's voice, she was clearly surprised when she came out and noticed the unsheathed sword in her hand. She understood.
"Who are you to interfere in my affairs with this old woman?"the woman spoke angrily.
Ning Xiao looked angrily and shouted back, "Your cruel actions cannot be overlooked!"
"Quiet! Some people are trying to sleep!" a shout came from one of the neighboring houses.
Immediately, a man came out from inside the small house. "Ladies, please, let's talk about this inside. Let's not disturb the neighbors," his voice was polite.
The old woman approached Ning Xiao and pulled her slightly. "Miss Ning, please, let's go inside and talk."
The old woman's voice calmed Ning Xiao's anger a little, and she returned her sword to its sheath. "Alright, I prefer solving problems by talking, and I don't want to hurt anyone."
Ning Xiao and the others entered the house while Zhang Yong remained outside, standing precisely on the roof of the house. "Hmm, was I overthinking? Well, perhaps."
However, a few seconds later, a fragrant smell struck Zhang Yong's nose.
(Toxin Resistance Activated)
'Poison!No... it's an anesthetic!'
Immediately, the door of the small house exploded and flew away, with Ning Xiao coming out right after it.
Her legs were trembling,barely able to stand.
As soon as she exited the hut, she saw dozens of strong men looking at her with smiles, holding various sharp tools and nets in their hands, clearly trying to capture her alive.
"Hehe, she's the companion of that rich boy from the market this morning."
"Good,we hit the target this time. Let's use her as a bargaining chip."
"Let's enjoy her first before that.It's been a long time since we've had tender meat."
Immediately, Ning Xiao drew her sword, but her breaths were ragged and irregular. "Damn!" she cursed in her current state.
'I have to kill one,just one, and open a path to escape,' Ning Xiao thought in her heart.
She gathered her energy and lunged forward to execute a quick attack. Her sword pierced one man's defense and wounded him deeply, causing him to fall to the ground in pain. But she could barely stand after that, as the vision before her eyes began to blur.
"Ha ha, she's already weakening. Don't let her escape!" shouted one of the men, signaling the others to advance towards her.
At this moment, Zhang Yong was observing from the roof, crossing his arms. He sighed slowly. "I mean, she really knows how to attract trouble. But... I can't let this happen."
Zhang Yong immediately jumped into the midst of them, quickly picked up Ning Xiao, and dashed away.
"Stop him!"shouted one of the other men, but it was too late.
Everyone who blocked Zhang Yong's path was kicked away with a single kick from him.
He had already carried Ning Xiao on his back and was moving away.Dealing with them would have been easy, but it would just be annoying. Ning Xiao's life was the priority, and she had to be treated.
When Ning Xiao's vision began to focus again, she looked at Zhang Yong quietly, barely able to keep her eyes open. "How did you know... I was here?"
"I placed a tracking sticker on the clothes I gave you, so I could keep track of your location even if we got separated."
Ning Xiao couldn't argue. Of course, she hated this because it was a complete violation of her and the others' privacy. But she couldn't object to it anymore, because without him, she would now be gone.
"Why did you save me... after I treated you badly?"
Frankly, Zhang Yong was annoyed by this question. Does this look like some cliché story where the hero saves the beauty? To hell with that.
But Zhang Yong wouldn't deny it. If not for his actions and plan, Ning Xiao wouldn't have been affected. Well, a part of him was to blame in the end.
Zhang Yong sighed. "I have a mission from the Matriarch. I must keep you alive no matter what. I don't really care if you insult me or are angry. My decision remains the same."
When Ning Xiao heard his words, she felt a mixture of anger and shame. She wanted to retort, but she was too tired. She no longer knew if this person was here... was he truly kind-hearted? Or was he just following the Elder's orders?
Simply, she no longer cared as she buried her face in his shoulder and then slowly closed her eyes, surrendering to the exhaustion that overwhelmed her.