Chapter 51: The Thatched Raincape and Bamboo Hat by the River

Li Xuan stretched his neck and said, "Brother Kong Sheng, thank you for your hospitality at Misty Shadow Mountain. I hope that next time we meet, we can still be friends. Calve your anger and start thinking about how to save your enshrined elder!"

Before leaving, Li Xuan tossed a piece of rock to Kong Sheng and said, "I have sealed the method to crack the origin pattern formation inside it. It will automatically unseal in one hour, and then you will be able to break the formation!"

Riding the wind, Li Xuan departed, covering several thousand meters in the blink of an eye.

Kong Sheng initially wanted to give chase, but worrying about Kong Linghui's safety, he let Li Xuan leave unhindered.

"Sheng'er, step back a bit!"

Once Kong Sheng had stepped away, Kong Linghui channeled his origin artifact to shatter the vines, which triggered a backlash from the surrounding origin patterns. Relying on his full cultivation base, he managed to escape the swamp entirely unscathed.

However, Kong Linghui paid a heavy price for this: his origin artifact was shattered, and he lost a portion of his Peacock Great Ming King bloodline.

"Sheng'er, what are your thoughts?"

Hearing this, Kong Sheng did not dare to say a single word, respectfully listening to Kong Linghui's reprimand: "In the future, if you can buy off that brat Li Xuan, that is best. If you cannot buy him off, seize the right opportunity to eliminate him once and for all so there are no future troubles."

Kong Sheng pondered for a long time before saying, "Enshrined Elder, don't you find it strange? Since the Golden-Feathered Roc King's origin crystal is not with Li Xuan, why would the Tang family and the Imperial Court bet their most precious pearl on him? Could they be harboring some unspeakable secret?"

Kong Linghui, naturally suspicious by nature, guessed, "Most likely, Tang Mingchen initially wanted to follow the vine to unearth the melon just like this old man, but they discovered other secrets about Li Xuan, which is why they are willing to waste resources on a good-for-nothing."

The betrothal gifts from the Imperial Court were truly enough to make anyone green with envy, and the Tang family had also invested tens of millions of origin crystal stones to assist him, even providing a vast quantity of top-grade medicinal herbs. There must be some shady dealings behind all this.

"Sheng'er's reminder is well-taken. This old man was too obsessed with living a second life and thus lost my reason."

Thinking of the newly increased guards at the Li family's ancestral residence, Kong Linghui immediately issued an order: "Sheng'er, find a few pretty maidservants and send them to Li Chenxi, claiming they are Xi'er's dowry maids going ahead to adapt to life in the Li household. Keep a close eye on any movements at the Li ancestral residence!"

With a troubled look on his face, Kong Sheng said, "Does the Enshrined Elder really wish to marry Xi'er off there? But she is only sixteen years old, I am afraid..."

Kong Sheng treasured this younger sister dearly; how could he bear to watch her jump into the tiger's mouth?

Kong Linghui replied, "I didn't say we were sending her just yet, did I? I said send the maids. That brat Li Xuan won't even be able to touch a single hair on Xi'er. You and I have both witnessed Li Xuan's methods; how could we let Xi'er walk right into the wolf's den?"

Only then was Kong Sheng reassured. He asked, "Will the Tang family and the Imperial Court try to meddle? On the surface, it is the Li family's ancestral residence, but in reality, it has already become the spoils of the Tang family and the Imperial Court. Would they let outsiders dip their fingers in?"

Somewhat displeased, Kong Linghui said, "Sheng'er, you are usually quite sharp, so why are you playing the fool at a crucial moment? Our Kong family is marrying off a granddaughter, not storming a pass in broad daylight—who would dare say anything? Didn't the old emperor already have a go with the Tang family's ancestor? At worst, this old man can have a go with them too!"

With Kong Linghui's mind made up, Kong Sheng dared not say anything more, only hoping that Kong Xi would be blessed with her own favorable destiny.

Kong Linghui still held one trump card: Old Hei. The Bone-Corroding Heart-Devouring Gu was not so easily dispelled. As long as Old Hei remained alive, he would never escape his control.

Li Xuan ran wildly all the way. Since the Kong family's enshrined elder had personally stepped in, there was no guarantee that other factions wouldn't hunt him down either. Even with the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow, survival wasn't guaranteed. Returning to the imperial city was his only chance of turning the tide. Reluctant as he might be, he could only use the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow as a return gift for Gong Jinglin.

Suddenly, a bell-like voice echoed in his ears: "Where is Your Excellency heading in such a hurry?"

Li Xuan looked left and right, failing to spot anyone. Just as he was about to lift his foot, an inexplicable wave of origin energy struck, dragging him directly backward.

Plop!

Caught completely off guard, Li Xuan plunged headfirst into the river water.

Just as Li Xuan was about to curse fiercely, a single glance made him snap his mouth shut in fright.

There sat an peerless beauty, her face half-concealed by a fine gauze veil. Her twin peaks rose high and overlapped beneath her chest, displaying a breathtakingly curvy and exquisite figure. Who else could she be if not Xiao Ning, the woman who had pursued him in Misty Shadow Mountain?

Xiao Ning was dressed in a dark green cut-out tight-fitting long dress, sitting leisurely by the riverbank with a fishing rod in her delicate hands, fishing at ease.

Li Xuan wanted to make a sound, but a single gesture from Xiao Ning silenced him. Left with no choice, he had no option but to quietly wade ashore, completely drenched.

Li Xuan cursed his wretched luck, inwardly lamenting his misfortune at running into such a God of Slaughter—and a powerhouse at the early stage of the Profound Realm to boot. Truly, whatever one wished to avoid the most always came knocking.

Feigning ignorance, Li Xuan tried to slip away while standing back-to-back with Xiao Ning, only to be pinned firmly in place by a wave of mercury-like origin energy, unable to move an inch.

Xiao Ning slowly turned around, placing a slender, jade-like finger against her lips and making a "shh" sound.

Enraged inwardly, Li Xuan thought, *I'm not a three-year-old kid, I don't need you to help me pee!*

Suddenly, Li Xuan felt a chill run through his entire body as he noticed the coldness piercing through Xiao Ning's distinct black-and-white pupils.

This sensation was even more terrifying than facing Kong Linghui when the latter unleashed the Peacock Great Ming King bloodline power.

Li Xuan had an illusion that if Xiao Ning wanted to kill him, a mere stretch of her finger would be enough to poke him to death.

He could neither leave nor stay. This was the fiftieth-ranked existence on the Dark Night Imperial Ranking. Having failed her mission last time, she was here today to carry out the assassination once again.

As an assassin, Xiao Ning could truly be considered a freak. Since her prey had appeared, why hadn't she attacked yet? Instead, she was just sitting here fishing.

At that moment, a fish began to bite the hook, sending ripples spreading far across the water.

Xiao Ning pulled hard with her lotus-root-like arms, and the fish hook flashed with a cold light as it swung back and forth, completely bare.

Li Xuan noticed that the hook was completely straight; even with a hundred rounds of bait, it would never catch a fish.

Yet, Xiao Ning paid it no mind, baiting the hook once more, casting it into the river, and continuing to wait for a bite.

Utterly baffled, Li Xuan kicked a pebble straight into the river and said, "Xiao Ning, I know you're here to assassinate me, but please don't..."

With her waterfall-like dark hair swaying gently, Xiao Ning turned her head back and once again made a "shh" sound, casting a charming, seductive glance toward Li Xuan.

Right now, however, Li Xuan was in no mood to appreciate it. Cursing angrily in his heart, *Stinky b*tch, she's just playing cat and mouse. Go to hell!*

With a flying kick, Li Xuan aimed at Xiao Ning's smooth, soft back, channeled his origin energy, and frantically executed the Wind-Riding Technique to make his escape.

Drawing the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow, he readied himself to strike Xiao Ning at any moment, unaware that Xiao Ning had no intention of pursuing him at all.

After fleeing a hundred miles or so, Li Xuan was panting heavily with exhaustion. The moment he stopped to rest, a sudden gale rose up in the woods, and dozens of figures descended from thin air, surrounding him dead center.

With a grin, Li Xuan asked, "Are you assassins from the Dark Night Imperial Ranking?"

He was asking the obvious; who in broad daylight would dress entirely in black with only a pair of eyes exposed?

The assassins ignored Li Xuan completely, immediately closing in with flashing blades and swords, thrusting, hacking, slashing, and stabbing at him.

Facing a series of near-death situations, Li Xuan resisted with all his might. The moment the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow fired its first arrow, the heavens and earth shook violently, terrifying the assassins into fleeing in all directions.

Covered in wounds, Li Xuan bled heavily despite the miraculous healing speed of the "Qingnang Codex," feeling the world spin around him as he nearly fainted.

"Xiao Ning, when on earth are you going to stop? If you want origin crystal stones, I'll give them to you!"

Faced with such merciless ambushes, Li Xuan wished he could uproot the entire Dark Night Imperial Ranking.

"To end this? Li Xuan, in this lifetime you will never shake off the assassins of the Dark Night Imperial Ranking, especially not this young lady's pursuit!"

Before he knew it, Xiao Ning had silently appeared right in front of Li Xuan. Her gaze was filled with killing intent, yet she showed no sign of attacking him.

Staggering to his feet, Li Xuan said, "Then come on!"

Placing his right hand on the bowstring of the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow and aiming it squarely at Xiao Ning, he declared, "At worst we'll perish together! As long as I live, I won't let you have an easy time!"

As calm as stagnant water, Xiao Ning still showed no intention of striking him. With her bell-like voice, she said, "Shouldn't that second half be my line? Ever since I joined the Dark Night Imperial Ranking, no one has ever seen my face. But you saw everything you shouldn't have seen. That's why I won't butcher you so quickly. Instead, I'm going to toy with you slowly until this young lady gets tired and bored, and only then will I skin you alive, strip your tendons, and suppress your soul in the Nine Nether Hells."

Possessing a peerless and devastatingly gorgeous appearance, Xiao Ning harbored a deeply malicious heart.

To her, Li Xuan was nothing more than a plaything of a prey.

Roaring, Li Xuan yelled, "Since that's the case, I'll drag you down with me!"

The Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow erupted with divine might, tearing open the void directly as a purple-gold divine dragon emerged once again from the spatial rift, its power multiplied manifold compared to before.

A roaring torrent of heaven and earth swept upward like a tsunami, surging toward Xiao Ning.

However, with her back turned to Li Xuan and without even glancing at it, Xiao Ning swept her jade hand across the void. A beam of white light materialized out of nowhere, directly grabbing hold of the heavenly torrent. As her jade palm clenched, thunder rumbled and the dragon's roar turned into a pitiful wail.

That unstoppable torrent twisted a few times before being completely swallowed and extinguished within her palm.

"This is..."

A profound shock gripped Li Xuan's heart. The power of the Sun-Swallowing Divine Bow was something even Kong Linghui, at the peak of the Profound Realm, could not withstand. Yet, facing Xiao Ning, it was handled with such effortless ease—something only a Spirit-Connecting Realm powerhouse could achieve.

Seeming to read his thoughts, Xiao Ning parted her cherry lips and said, "Just as you imagine, with your 'help,' this young lady has already broken through to the Spirit-Connecting Realm. Killing you is no longer enough to vent the hatred in my heart. I will torture you to death slowly, watching you go mad!"

Though stunningly beautiful, she spoke of death as casually as breathing, treating human life as if it were worth nothing at all.

Xiao Ning continued, "That day, I promised you I wouldn't harm your eldest and second sisters. As long as you amuse me well, they will be fine. Otherwise..."

Slowly raising her jade-white arm and waving it, she caused a distant mountain peak to collapse with a thunderous crash.

While deeply shaken, Li Xuan muttered under his breath, "So this is the strength of the Spirit-Connecting Realm. Ten thousand Kong Linghuis added together probably wouldn't be a match for her!"

Paying him no mind whatsoever, Xiao Ning said coldly, "Come here and massage my shoulders!"

Startled by her words, Li Xuan looked up to see Xiao Ning standing completely unguardingly, shrugging her fragrant shoulders slightly to gesture for him to knead them.

Turning his thoughts rapidly, Li Xuan decided to play along and stepped forward to massage her shoulders while secretly setting up an origin pattern formation. Just as he was about to activate it, a foot slammed down on him, and Xiao Ning chided angrily, "As my prey, how dare you harbor crooked thoughts? Have you grown tired of living?"

Applying a sliver of weight with her lotus foot, her Spirit-Connecting Realm origin energy pressed down upon Li Xuan like a mountain, causing a cracking sound to echo from his chest.

Xiao Ning thoroughly enjoyed this sensation. Back then, when Li Xuan had forced her into a desperate corner, the moment he mounted her, a tingling current had surged through her entire body, leaving her feeling utterly refreshed and deeply gratified.

At the time, Xiao Ning had even let out a soft moan, though it had been masked by the thunder.

Having no intention of punishing Li Xuan just yet, she slowly lifted her foot and said, "Ant!"