169: Li Xiu, who was targeted

Hearing the angry roar coming from ahead,

Lu Yi pulled Shen Yueyao along, relying on his agile movement technique to squeeze through the noisy crowd and reach the very front in just a few moments.

As they pushed through the layers of onlookers wrapped in animal skins and caught a clear view of the young man at the center of the whirlpool, surrounded by a group of city gate guards in black armor holding long spears,

the expressions on both their faces instantly became incredibly colorful.

The man surrounded in the middle wore clothes made of high-quality fabric, but they were now tattered, with even the hem showing signs of being torn by sharp teeth.

His face was covered in the weariness of travel and dust, making him look quite disheveled.

Yet, his spine was held straight, and his eyes, even in this predicament, remained stubborn, unyielding, and carried a hint of arrogance.

Who else could it be but Li Xiu, the "former fiancé" of Shen Yueyao, whom they had only seen in the Shen Family hall a month ago?

After seeing that familiar face clearly, Shen Yueyao's interest in watching the commotion was instantly extinguished, as if a basin of cold water had been poured over it.

What replaced it was deep helplessness and an instinctive annoyance.

"Why is it him again?" Shen Yueyao frowned, unable to help shrinking behind Lu Yi, and muttered softly: "He's truly like a lingering ghost... We've already come to this godforsaken Cangkong Realm, how can we still run into him?"

In her view, this was simply a suffocating "ill-fated connection."

Compared to Shen Yueyao's disdain, Lu Yi raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth curling up wildly, revealing a playful smile that said "just as expected."

"Heh, this is what they call the 'protagonist's law.'" Lu Yi chuckled inwardly: "As a standard Trash protagonist in a broken engagement trope, even without a map, he will appear in places with Opportunity under the guidance of fate."

He held back Shen Yueyao, who wanted to turn and leave, not wanting to get involved with Li Xiu, and transmitted his voice: "Don't be in such a rush to leave; this is a rare show, let's watch a bit longer. I also want to see what kind of scene our Young Lord Li is making this time."

At this moment, Li Xiu, standing before the city gate and being harassed by the guards, was actually depressed to the extreme.

Ever since he was humiliated at the Shen Family a month ago and publicly set that explosive "three-month agreement," he had returned to the Li Family and, in just half a month, successfully achieved rebirth through destruction.

This was all within his expectations; his previously shattered Meridians and loss of Cultivation were all to switch to a miraculous Cultivation Technique he had accidentally obtained.

The way this Cultivation Technique was Cultivated was all about great ups and downs. By actively abolishing his Cultivation to temper his Physical Body and condense his Meridians, he finally sought further development through rebirth after destruction.

Half a month ago, he reached the time for rebirth after destruction and successfully reshaped his Meridians. However, he knew very well that even after rebirth, his Realm still needed to be started from scratch.

Cultivating step by step, even if he was a Genius, he could not possibly catch up to Lu Yi in the remaining short two and a half months.

To win back his dignity and reclaim the white moonlight in his heart, he had to seek a greater Opportunity. Just at this time, Li Xiu's father told him about this great Opportunity about to open in the Cangkong Realm.

The news about this Opportunity was also something his father had accidentally learned, but he did not know the specific details. Thus, Li Xiu did not delay at all and rushed over without stopping; he decided to take a gamble.

So he arrived early in the Cangkong Realm, a full half-month earlier than Lu Yi and the others. However... the ideal was plump, but the reality was skinny.

In these past half a month, he had wandered around the vast snowy wilderness outside Cangyuan City like a headless fly for over ten days. Not only did he not see a single hair of the Opportunity, but he also encountered countless attacks from snowy Yao Beasts.

This led to his current disheveled, beggar-like appearance.

Although he hadn't found a great Opportunity, Li Xiu hadn't been idle these past half a month. As the Child of Luck, he very "fittingly for his persona" triggered a side quest before entering the city—saving a damsel in distress.

Outside the city, he accidentally rescued a lone young girl from a group of men in black. And that young girl, as luck would have it, was none other than the eldest Young Miss of the Chu Family in Cangyuan City.

According to the usual script, this should have been the beginning of a romantic encounter. However, this also caused him a lot of trouble.

Because the men in black were sent by the Young Lord of Cangyuan City to surround and suppress the eldest Young Miss of the Chu Family. Li Xiu's "butting in" and "saving the damsel" instantly made this narrow-minded Young Lord hold a grudge.

Therefore, at the city gate at this moment, these black-armored guards had obviously long since received instructions from the Young Lord and, having learned of Li Xiu's appearance and attire, were deliberately waiting for him here.

After all, Cangyuan City was the only city within a hundred miles, and with Li Xiu's Cultivation, he could not stay outside for long and had to return to the city to rest.

They ignored the Spirit Stone Li Xiu handed over and notified the Young Lord. At the same time, using the excuse that Li Xiu was "of unknown identity, suspicious in behavior, and suspected to be a spy from Beicang Prefecture," they not only refused to let him enter the city but also did their utmost to humiliate him with words.

The purpose of all this was to delay Li Xiu until the Young Lord arrived. "Enter the city?"

The leading guard captain was a bald man with a face full of flab. He used the tip of his spear to arrogantly point at Li Xiu's nose and mocked loudly: "Where did this stinking beggar come from, wanting to enter our Cangyuan City? Why don't you go pee and take a look at what kind of pathetic state you're in!"

The guard captain sneered, lowered his voice, and said in a tone only Li Xiu could hear: "Kid, if you want to blame someone, blame yourself for not having eyes. Having offended the Young Lord, this Cangyuan City... will be your Forbidden Ground! If you're sensible, just wait here honestly! Otherwise... don't blame us for taking action and letting you taste what it means to be worse off than dead!"

"You..." Li Xiu clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. "Boom—" The spiritual power inside his body, which had only just recovered and was still somewhat unstable, surged wildly within his Meridians.

This is going too far! Simply going too far! Although he was down and out in the Upper Realm, he had once been the Young Master of the Li Family; when had he ever suffered such humiliation from common guards?

Although he didn't want to cause trouble just after arriving here, he really couldn't swallow this anger!

Just as Li Xiu's eyes sharpened, ready to force his way in, or even if it meant exposing his trump cards, to teach them a lesson, a sudden change occurred.

Just as the guard captain saw Li Xiu daring to glare and was about to order his men to seize him, a crisp, melodious, yet clearly angry and anxious shout came from within the city: "Stop!! Let's see who dares to touch a single hair on his head today!!"