148: Clearing the last obstacles in northern Xinjiang

Inside the warm pavilion, Situ Jun slowly opened his eyes, the cold glint deep within his pupils quickly receding as if nothing had happened.

He picked up the fragrant tea Hong Mei served at the right moment, took a light sip, and looked at Lin Suwan, his tone returning to its previous gentleness:

“Departing tomorrow, would Su Wan like to come along?”

Lin Suwan put down the jade comb, her beautiful eyes shimmering with a hint of understanding and a faint touch of playfulness:

“Husband, fetching Younger Sister Liu is the main priority on this trip. My presence would only delay your travel time. Furthermore...”

She paused, the corners of her lips curling up slightly into a beaming smile:

“I'm afraid Younger Sister Liu would feel constrained if I went. Hong Mei, don't you think so?”

Hong Mei was focusing on massaging Situ Jun's shoulders. Hearing this, her small face turned red, and she said shyly:

“Madam is teasing this Servant Girl again! I think Madam could go along for a change of scenery, so you don't spend all day thinking about Husband.”

Seeing Hong Mei's naive and charming look, Situ Jun and Lin Suwan looked at each other and smiled. The atmosphere in the warm pavilion became even more cozy and harmonious, as if all the gloom had dissipated.

South of the city, Laifu Inn.

The Heaven-tier room area was quiet, permeated by a deliberately maintained stillness, like the calm before a storm.

The doors of five adjacent upper rooms were tightly shut. Occasionally, extremely alert gazes swept across the corridor through the gaps in the window frames, secretly observing the surroundings.

Inside one of the rooms, the atmosphere was so heavy it was suffocating.

“The Elder still hasn't replied... even his aura has vanished.” A middle-aged man disguised as a merchant had a grim face. The sound transmission talisman at his fingertips remained motionless, like a cold stone.

“The last place the Elder appeared was not far outside the north wall of the City Lord's Manor! He didn't even have time to send out a warning!”

Another tall, thin man disguised as a Loose Cultivator cursed under his breath, his voice filled with fear and anger.

“Damn it! That Situ Jun really is a problem! There is an expert in the City Lord's Manor!”

Everyone began to whisper in low voices, their faces filled with panic and confusion.

“Whether there is an expert or not, we shouldn't stay here long!”

The leader was a seemingly wealthy and amiable old man, but at this moment, his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, as if he could see through everything.

“Old Fourth, go out and investigate, and be careful! Everyone else, pack up immediately and prepare to leave the city separately! Meet at the west gate in half a stick of incense's time!”

The one named Old Fourth was a plain-looking young man. He took a deep breath, suppressed the fear in his heart, and was about to get up and leave.

Just as he was about to head out—

“Bang!”

A dull thud sounded, not from the door, but from their room's window.

The five turned around in horror. Inside the room, a stooped figure had appeared out of nowhere! It was none other than the old malt candy seller, Bai Yu!

At this moment, his face remained haggard, and there were even traces of undried blood at the corners of his mouth. He looked severely injured, as if he might collapse at any moment.

“You... Elder? How did you...”

The wealthy old man hurriedly stepped forward to support him, his voice filled with surprise and concern.

Bai Yu didn't answer. He panted heavily and allowed the wealthy old man to help him sit down.

Only after a good while did he speak with difficulty:

“We cannot stay in Northern Border City any longer; we must evacuate immediately!”

“Evacuate?”

The wealthy old man was stunned upon hearing this and looked at Bai Yu with confusion.

Bai Yu took a “difficult” breath and said:

“There is an expert in Northern Border City; I almost didn't make it back.”

The others were also shocked upon hearing this, looking at each other. They hadn't expected their previous suspicion to come true—Northern Border City really was guarded by an expert, and that expert's strength was likely unfathomable.

“Elder, do you know who it was? Their cultivation...”

Before the wealthy old man could finish, Bai Yu interrupted him with a hand wave:

“I don't know anything. I was injured before I could even react. Their aura was like heavenly might. If I hadn't possessed a life-saving treasure, I would have perished by now.”

Their expressions were grim. If even a Late Golden Core Stage expert like Bai Yu was injured without even seeing the opponent's face, the other party was clearly a Nascent Soul Stage old monster. This power gap made them shudder.

“Could it be a Guardian Monster of the Tianqi Dynasty? But why would such an old monster bother with such a small matter? It's not like the dynasty is facing destruction.”

The group was extremely puzzled, their hearts filled with doubt and worry.

“I'll heal first. You guys quietly go to the Human-tier room area and capture those ordinary people dressed as Western Region merchants for interrogation. Find out which power they belong to and their purpose in Northern Border. I suspect their appearance is what led to me being discovered.”

A subtle glint flashed through Bai Yu's eyes as he gave the orders.

Hearing this, they didn't doubt him and left the room without hesitation to search the Human-tier room area.

Before long, sounds of fighting broke out.

These people dressed as Western Region merchants were not ordinary people at all. There was even an Early Golden Core Stage Cultivator among them, and the others also had significant cultivation, being formidable Cultivators at Qi Refining levels three or four or Foundation Establishment levels one or two.

Among the wealthy fat old man's group, besides him being a level four Foundation Establishment Cultivator, the others were only at Qi Refining levels seven or eight. The disparity in strength was massive; they were immediately discovered by that Early Golden Core Stage Cultivator, and one of them was instantly killed.

“Retreat! Run!”

The remaining four were terrified out of their wits!

The people before them were not ordinary at all!

To avoid implicating Bai Yu, the wealthy old man made a split-second decision and roared:

“Scatter and run! Every man for himself!”

The four were like birds startled by a bowstring, crashing through windows and doors as they fled for their lives in different directions!

Missions and companions were all worthless in the face of absolute power!

Bai Yu was also startled by this sudden turn of events, his expression shifting repeatedly.

He believed his master wouldn't lie to him, but in this situation, he couldn't step in to stop it because of his injuries, leaving his heart full of anxiety and helplessness.

Soon, the fighting ceased.

These fake Western Region merchants were also afraid of attracting the City Lord's Manor's attention. They didn't dare to continue chasing the escapees and instead packed their belongings to leave the 'Laifu' Inn.

After Bai Yu's Spiritual Sense vaguely perceived this, he immediately sent a sound transmission talisman to Zhu Changpo.

Upon receiving Bai Yu's message, Zhu Changpo sneered and replied:

“Send a transmission to your subordinates and have them flee back to the Zhou Dynasty, and you escape back as well. I will deal with these Western Region merchants. This exposure is the perfect excuse for you to withdraw all spies from Northern Border and shift all the blame onto the Western Region merchants.”

A glint flashed in Bai Yu's eyes. He took out a sound transmission talisman, muttered a few words, and after performing a hand seal, it vanished into the sky.

A moment later, Bai Yu's aged figure walked out of the room. After glancing at the Human-tier room area, he slowly left the inn, his figure gradually disappearing at the end of the street.

At the South Courtyard, Zhu Changpo gathered his men and, led by scouts, pursued the Western Region merchants.

Northern Border City, which had just been peaceful for a day, became filled with fear again due to the appearance of Zhu Changpo and his troops. Panic spread through the streets, but fortunately, the City Lord's Manor sent people in time to calm them down, allowing the city's panic to ease slightly.

City Lord's Manor, warm pavilion.

Situ Jun put down his teacup. He looked out the window at the setting sun and said warmly to Lin Suwan and Hong Mei:

“It is getting late; let's prepare to eat. Tomorrow morning, we depart for East Lin City.”

Lin Suwan rose gracefully, and Hong Mei also hurried to instruct the maids to prepare.

Deep in Situ Jun's eyes, there was an indifference that suggested total control, as profound as an abyss, as if everything was within his plan.