Li Hu led Yi Xieyun and Yi Sihan to a tavern. Signaling for the two of them to look, he pointed out four rough-looking middle-aged men gathered around a street food stall, drinking. Their appearance and attire clearly marked them as outsiders.
"Third Aunt, I can handle this matter on my own. You just don't trust my abilities."
"If they really are targeting the Mermaid Clan, the Immortal Censorate is likely involved. Exercise caution in all things. Besides, possessing Ninth Realm cultivation doesn't necessarily mean you have Ninth Realm combat strength—you must not be arrogant or reckless. There is always someone better, and heaven beyond the skies."
Yi Xieyun nodded slightly. "Have your family lived here for generations?"
"Yes. Ever since this lake first formed five hundred years ago, our ancestors foresaw that this place would surely become a prosperous town, so they ordered our family to relocate here. Now, the entire town belongs to the Li Family."
"Your ancestors certainly had good vision."
"That is all thanks to the blessing of the Yi Family's ancestors," Li Hu replied with a flattering smile.
"There's no need for that." Yi Xieyun glanced at Yi Sihan.
"The ancestors of the Yi Family used the arts of moving mountains and draining seas to carve a giant pit in this wasteland," Yi Sihan explained. "The mountain-like pile of earth that was excavated was moved a hundred miles away to the Peak of Yunxiao, where it floated in the air to become the foundation of Yunxiao City."
"The Yi Family ancestors were truly remarkable. They used magic to alter the terrain here and turn it into a habitable place. I heard that five hundred years ago, this was part of the Western Wastelands, and it was only because of the Yi Family ancestors that it was incorporated into Liangzhou."
As Yi Xieyun listened to Li Hu's praise of the Yi Family ancestors, he observed the pedestrians on the street.
"You've lived here for a long time—do you know who the mermaids are?"
"Not clearly. Our ancestors left strict instructions not to disturb their lives; probing too deeply would provoke hostility. We were only told to guard our family's assets here and gather intelligence."
"Quite wise. Why on earth did the ancestors insist that the mermaids were demons and throw the world into chaos?"
"As to that, we haven't the foggiest. We're just a distant branch of the family."
A woman dressed in coarse cloth caught Yi Xieyun's attention. Despite her rough attire, it could not conceal her beauty. Radiant with joy, she walked home with a light, cheerful step.
Before she even crossed the threshold, she called out in a crisp voice for her father and mother. The couple were busy in the kitchen. Yu Biyue rolled up her sleeves to help, but Yu Mother stopped her.
"You handle everything at the fish farm, and we can't help with that. Leave these little chores to us," Yu Mother said.
"Mother, why stand on ceremony? Though you aren't my birth mother, you raised me, and that bond is deeper than blood."
The four men arrived in a dark alley behind the Yu household. Their leader held a curved blade. His bloodshot eyes made the fisherman's hands tremble incessantly.
"Are you certain this is the girl?" Shi Kong asked.
"I found her precisely according to your requirements: beautiful and exceptionally skilled in the water. I've been observing her in secret for three years. Her face is absolute perfection—definitely number one in all of Liangzhou," the fisherman said, stretching out his hands. "You only gave me fifty taels as a deposit earlier. Now that I've found her, pay me the five hundred taels we agreed upon."
"So this is why you were in such a rush to write and summon me. And here I thought you'd confirmed she had a fish tail in the water."
"How could I possibly see that? I sneaked into the water with her many times, but the lake is too deep; I couldn't dive down at all."
"Is it deeper than hell?" With those words, Shi Kong drove his blade straight into the fisherman's chest. "My blade is starving for blood."
Just then, Qian Hao arrived with the other three men.
"Keep your temper in check! This is Li Family territory. If we get exposed, we'll be in deep trouble."
"The Li Family of today is hardly the Li Family of the past. I happen to have old scores to settle with them—I'm only worried they won't show up."
Before Shi Kong's voice had even faded, Qian Hao threw a punch so fierce that the sheer wind from it made the flesh on Shi Kong's face quiver.
"If you dare stir up trouble again, next time it won't just be wind! You bastard, three years ago you claimed you smelled mermaid blood here. I gave you three years, and you're still dragging your feet, making me waste a trip." Seeing that Shi Kong had not drawn the weapon in his hand, Qian Hao snapped, "With that evil blade of yours draining human blood clean, are you afraid the whole world doesn't know you're a descendant of the Blood Sect? Hurry up and help me clean things up."
Shi Kong carried the desiccated corpse to an uninhabited patch of woods, dumped it on the spot, and left. Yi Xieyun and Yi Sihan had seen him carrying a person out of the back alley from a distance, so they followed behind to examine the corpse.
Yi Sihan said in a panic, "It's the Blood-Shedding Technique of the Blood Sect."
"I never imagined that even after we joined forces with the Li Family two hundred years ago to annihilate the Blood Shadow Sect, there would still be survivors," Yi Xieyun said abruptly, making a decision. "Never mind whether they're here for the mermaids or not—let's capture this fellow first."
When Shi Kong returned, the other seven were all crouching atop the courtyard wall of the Yu household.
"Are we going to kill them?" Shi Kong asked excitedly.
"We can't worry about that now. Since we're here, we can't return empty-handed. But be careful with your strikes—don't kill them with a single blow. It's possible all three are mermaids, or none of them are. Push them into a desperate corner, and the mermaid's tail will naturally appear."
Shi Kong jumped into the courtyard first, shattering the warm, harmonious scene of Yu Biyue and her family eating a meal.
"A mermaid maiden—truly stunning. Let me see that big tail of yours!" Shi Kong swung his sword, and a slash split the dining table in two.
The three family members scattered to escape. Shi Kong slashed toward Yu Biyue, but as she spun to dodge, she drew a soft sword from her waist. The blade whipped forward and struck Shi Kong's wrist with a snap. With a sharp cry, Shi Kong dropped his weapon, and Yu Biyue kicked him flying out of the courtyard.
"That's Seventh Realm cultivation!" Qian Hao exclaimed as he saw Shi Kong sent flying through the air. "Let's attack!"
Shi Kong clambered to his feet and cast a spell, recalling the Blood Shadow Saber to his hand.
"Damn that mermaid—she's powerful."
Right then, Yi Xieyun arrived and blocked his path.
"Get out of my way, you pest!"
Yi Xieyun remained unmoved. "Are you a descendant of the Blood Sect?"
"Yes, and what of it? Die!" Raising his blade with his left hand, Shi Kong brought it down in a vicious arc. An overwhelming wave of murderous Qi condensed into a three-meter-long blade of energy that hacked straight toward Yi Xieyun.
Yi Xieyun struck out with a single palm, unleashing a myriad of crashing thunders. Lightning scattered in all directions, tightly enclosing the blade Qi. Shi Kong was knocked back ten paces and spat a mouthful of blood.
"Thunderous Might, Ninth Realm power... You must be Yi Xieyun, the legendary Child of Destiny of the Yi Family."
"Indeed. The Blood Shadow Saber—first among evil blades. Truly extraordinary."
Before Yi Xieyun's voice had faded, another bolt of lightning shot from his palm. Sensing danger, Shi Kong soared into the air, but the lightning split in mid-air and pursued him relentlessly from behind. He spun around and slashed, knocking the lightning aside.
With a flash of electricity over his entire body, Yi Xieyun materialized directly above Shi Kong. He threw a full-power palm strike, but at that moment, an elderly man rushed forward to block the blow.
"Young Master, run!"
The man channeled all his spiritual energy. His pitch-black hair turned blood-red, and dark purple marks appeared at the corners of his eyes.
"Tu Yao, the Eighth Realm Blood-Handed Butcher. It seems we've found your blood nest today." Pouring more strength into his strike, Yi Xieyun's lightning pierced straight through Tu Yao and shot toward Shi Kong.
Two other men, each wielding a blade, intercepted the lightning. Taking advantage of the opening, Shi Kong fled. With a flash of lightning, Yi Xieyun appeared before the two men. He grabbed them both by the neck and unleashed a surge of thunder power, dropping them limp to the ground.
"Before Thunderous Might, no one escapes."
Panicking, Shi Kong fled toward the outskirts of the town. Finding himself in a deserted area, he stopped to catch his breath. Suddenly, beneath the cloudless blue sky, a bolt of lightning flashed. In the blink of an eye, Yi Xieyun stood right before him.
"Ninth Realm Divine Mastery. It's true after all."
"Why are you here?"
"To capture the mermaid fiends."
"Back then, considering that your Blood Shadow Sect had once been the vanguard in the war between humans and demons, the Li Family left a gap in our lines to give you a path to survival. Why, after two hundred years, are you still practicing such evil cultivation arts and obsessing over mermaid blood?"
"It's not that we're obsessed with mermaid blood—the current Emperor wants eternal youth, and he had the Immortal Censorate capture us and force us to do this. We're victims too! Back then, our ancestors were greedy for mermaid blood, and they paid the price. Two thousand years of foundation was wiped out by your joint forces. We just wanted to live in peace."
"Live in peace, while casually draining people's blood? Is that your idea of living in peace? What are the names of the other two?"
"In the pugilist world, they're known as the Blood-Dropper and the Blood-Clasp."
"The Blood-Handed Butcher, the Blood-Dropper, the Blood-Clasp, and the Blood Shadow Saber... I recall there was also one called Blood Wei Hua. Where is she?"
"Can you spare my life?"
"Tell me—where is she?"
"She was dispatched to Dianzhou."
"Which means we won't be rounding them all up anytime soon."
Knowing he could not escape death, Shi Kong drove his blade deep into his own abdomen. His entire body was sucked into the saber. Yi Xieyun retrieved the Blood Shadow Saber and hurried back toward the Yu household.
Earlier, when Qian Hao gave the order, the other three men had leaped into the courtyard. Just as the Blood-Handed Butcher and his companions saw Yi Xieyun intercepting Shi Kong's escape, they had lurged and waited on the sidelines.
Those three men now attacked the three members of the Yu family. Yu Biyue was engaged by one of them. Another man grabbed Yu Father by the wrist, and a heart-rending cry broke Yu Biyue's focus. Striking a large water vat in the courtyard with her palm, Yu Biyue caused the water inside to rise into three columns that surged straight at the three men.
"Father! Mother! Run!"
The sounds of battle in the courtyard caught Yi Sihan's attention. Qian Hao hurled a stone toward Yu Father; Yu Biyue saw it was about to strike, but she was pinned down tightly by the two men. Channeling her magic, Yi Sihan suspended the stone in mid-air and let it drop. She flew into the courtyard, shouting for them to run.
Qian Hao flew forward and threw a punch. Yi Sihan met it head-on with a palm strike, instantly coughing up blood.
"Yi Sihan of the Four Masters of the Yi Clan. Why are you here?"
"Qian Hao, leader of the Flying Money Gang. Why are you here?"
"I heard there is a mermaid fiend here, and came specifically to catch her."
"The territory of the Peak of Yunxiao is not a place for you to run wild. Mermaids are not demons, and even if they were, it's not your place to capture them."
"Such arrogant words." Seeing flashes of lightning in the sky outside, Qian Hao sneered. "Is that the Chosen Child, Yi Xieyun? A Ninth Realm master, mighty as a god. But I reckon he won't be getting in anytime soon. After all, natural divine strength—not earned through later effort—always has a certain hollowness to it."
"What? You think you can kill me right here on the Peak of Yunxiao?"
"Just watch me try."
Qian Hao threw a punch, but Yi Sihan burrowed into the ground and escaped.
"You think subterranean arts can save you?" Qian Hao followed up by slamming a fist into the earth. Yu Biyue felt a violent tremor run through the ground.
The three men joined forces against Yu Biyue. One of them, wielding a sword, managed to slash her. Taking advantage of the moment when she was overwhelmed by the two opponents, he dipped his blade in her blood and drained it into a vial. The longer she fought, the more strained Yu Biyue felt. She had never encountered such formidable opponents, unaware that all of them were genuine Seventh Realm masters who simply hadn't unleashed their full power yet, bound as they were by orders.
Seeing Yu Biyue panting and gasping for breath, the man specializing in palm techniques exchanged a glance with the fist-wielding attacker. Seizing the opening, the latter threw a punch that sent Yu Biyue flying backward to smash apart the large water vat.
Water soaked her garments, and suddenly she felt the cold grip of death. With a long, piercing cry, her legs morphed into a fish tail, and the surrounding water suspended itself in mid-air. With a wave of her hand, countless water droplets rained down upon the three men standing in a row. At that moment, Qian Hao lunged forward and threw a punch that blasted all the water droplets away, while shockwaves struck Yu Biyue and left her severely injured.
"Indeed a mermaid. This trip wasn't wasted." Qian Hao produced a binding rope made of intertwined silk and tossed it to the swordsman. "Be careful, she still has strength left."
"Perhaps the Vice-Director should beat her flat before we tie her up. This mermaid has trained her water-element magic quite well."
"No matter, she's already heavily wounded. Give her another three years and none of you would be a match for her—and it's not just her water magic that's formidable, her ribbon-sword technique is vicious too. Hurry up and secure her; that fellow Yi Xieyun is nearby."
The man chanted an incantation, and the rope bound Yu Biyue tightly. She struggled desperately to break free, nearly slipping the bonds. One of the men stepped forward and struck her with a palm, finally securing her.
Seeing Qian Hao raise his hand to deliver another blow, the swordsman hurriedly called out, "Have some pity for jade and cherish fragrant flowers—don't you know how?"
"It seems Gang Leader Qian knows how to cherish the fairer sex as well," Yi Xieyun remarked, standing atop the wall before gracefully descending. "You certainly take your time—unflustered and unhurried, as if you were completely sure of yourself even knowing I was nearby. Just what is your background?"
"Immortal Censorate, Dark Division, Ninth Squad, Vice-Captain."
"That's quite a long title. Do you assume I'm terrified of the Immortal Censorate and wouldn't dare do anything to you?" Sparks of electricity danced all over Yi Xieyun's body.
The swordsman lashed out toward the sky, sending a beam of spiritual light soaring upward. With a flick of his wrist, Yi Xieyun struck the light with a bolt of lightning, shattering it.
"Still trying to send messages?" Yi Xieyun sneered. "Is the Immortal Absorption Sect truly invincible? Is that why you dare behave this way? Or do you simply look down on me that much?"
Qian Hao suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of oppression wash over him. "Ninth Realm Divine Mastery... You're far too young."
"And yet you didn't believe the rumors in the pugilist world."
"If you kill me, do you know the consequences? The entire Immortal Censorate will mobilize and wipe out the Peak of Yunxiao."
"It seems you are afraid after all." Yi Xieyun let out a mocking laugh, which instantly shifted into blazing fury. A gale whipped up around him, and the sparks of electricity leaping from his body began to fly further and further outward.
"Run!" Qian Hao bellowed.
The surrounding electrical fire converged, weaving a net of lightning across the sky. The four men soared upward in every direction, but the instant they touched the lightning, they were reduced to ash. Qian Hao crashed heavily to the ground.
"Stop! Don't hurt the innocent!" Yi Sihan cried out as she was supported inside by the Yu couple. The couple had not fled far earlier, but lacking the ability to help, they had simply hidden nearby. When Yi Sihan escaped underground, she had been injured by Qian Hao's shockwave, and the couple had protected her, drawing medicine from her belongings to pull her back from the gates of hell just as Yi Xieyun arrived.
Only then did Yi Xieyun calm his fury. Seeing Yu Biyue lying nearby, struck by stray electrical arcs, he felt a deep, overwhelming sense of apology.