CHAPTER 78

Outnumbered

Early the next morning, just as the fifth watch approached, the Liu residence was exceptionally quiet in the dawn light. The last chicken in the household had fulfilled its duty the day before, transformed into a delicacy served to guests, leaving the courtyard in serene stillness. Even the distant crowing of roosters from neighboring homes couldn't disturb the peace.

Although she had used a cleansing talisman before bed the previous night and Madam Qian had repeatedly assured her of the cleanliness of the bedding, Su Yan couldn't resist tearing open another cleansing talisman upon waking.

After confirming that all her belongings were in order and her ever-present jade pendant was securely tucked against her body, Su Yan smoothed the nonexistent wrinkles on her sleeves with satisfaction, gave her robe a light shake, and walked to the bedside. Leaning over, she observed Tong Tong, who was still sound asleep.

Tong Tong lay with her arms and legs spread wide, forming a bold "X" shape that took up the entire bed. The thin quilt only covered her from the abdomen down, and her white undergarment hung open, revealing two slender and elegant collarbones. Though the curves of her chest couldn't be described as delicate or alluring, the milky-white softness of her skin alone was enough to captivate.

Su Yan watched silently for a while, the line of her lips softening gradually, and the displeasure from the previous night seemed to dissipate like mist.

One hand braced against the edge of the bed, the other gently caressed her peach-blossom-like cheek. Her fingers brushed over it a few times, a mischievous glint flashing in her eyes. With a half-hearted, almost negligible force, she poked the soft, elastic flesh of her cheek. The plump skin beneath her finger retreated timidly, like a coward begging for mercy, shrinking back obediently. When her fingertip withdrew, the elusive cheek flesh bounced back triumphantly, as if it had never been threatened by the pressure.

After toying with it back and forth several times, Su Yan, like a mischievous child who had found a new toy, took delight in playing with the plump cheek beneath her hand, her smile deepening.

Seeing Tong Tong pout her lips and mumble a few words, as if she were about to wake up, Su Yan quickly withdrew her finger. Remembering that her collar was open, she worried that this silly girl, prone to wild thoughts, might misunderstand, and even more so that she might catch a chill. Her fingers, which had just left her cheek, moved to the front of her robe.

Just as she was about to pull it closed for her, she saw her eyelashes flutter slightly. Then, with a sudden shout, "Su Yan, stop right there!" she opened her eyes wide and yelled, "Give me back my lamb skewers!"

'So this fool was still thinking about those nonexistent lamb skewers?'

Su Yan's hand froze, her expression turning strange as she stared at the fierce-looking Tong Tong, waiting for her next words.

Her still-drowsy gaze wandered aimlessly around before finally settling on the slender hand resting on her chest. Tong Tong's sleepy eyes widened in confusion. Before she could fully process the situation, she instinctively asked, "Senior Brother, why are you touching my chest?"

"I... I..." Su Yan, rarely at a loss for words, faltered. Her fair face suddenly flushed with a rosy hue, a delicate and vibrant color she had never seen before.

Only when she noticed the suspicious blush on Su Yan's face did Tong Tong seem to snap out of it. She quickly covered her chest, glaring at him with a mix of shame and anger. "You... you... you took advantage of me! You're trying to cop a feel!"

'Wow! Su Yan, you scoundrel! I misjudged you! How dare you do something so inappropriate while I was asleep... At least do it when I'm awake!'

Before Su Yan's face could shift from red to black, Tong Tong's expression of shame and anger had already transformed into bashfulness. "Oh, come on, if you wanted to, you could've just said so... How would I know if you didn't tell me? If you wanted to touch, I might not have refused! After all, we're already husband and wife..."

"..." Su Yan's lips twitched slightly. Her hand, hidden in her sleeve, clenched tightly. She fixed her gaze on the shy and timid Tong Tong, barely suppressing the inexplicable emotion rising in her chest, and said coldly, "You have half a cup of tea's time to get ready to leave."

"Eh... eh?" Tong Tong stuck her tongue out at his retreating back but still managed to get herself ready within the allotted time.

'What's this? You take advantage of me and then act like nothing happened?'

'You heartless person...'

Following Su Yan into the courtyard, she was surprised to find it eerily quiet, as if it were the calm before a storm, filled with an unsettling strangeness.

"Senior Brother, don't you think it's weird? Why is it so quiet? Shouldn't people in mountain villages be up early working?" Tong Tong glanced around the empty courtyard and the tightly closed doors of the other two rooms, tugging lightly at Su Yan's sleeve as she whispered.

"Knockout drug," Su Yan replied calmly, a faint, disdainful smile curling at the corner of her lips.

'Such petty tricks are hardly worth a glance.'

"Oh, so you mean they were drugged by that half-beast?" Tong Tong nodded, then raised another question. "But why did you let her escape last night?"

'He could have easily taken her down, and she had even prepared herself to beg desperately! Yet, to her surprise, he simply let her go. And before leaving, the half-beast even pulled a dirty trick, though, well, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise...'

Thinking of that hazy yet sweet kiss, the corners of Tong Tong's lips curled upward. But as another thought crossed her mind, the light in her eyes dimmed.

Su Yan had been closely observing her expression. Noticing the change, her brow twitched slightly, but she pretended not to notice and turned away, speaking softly, "Only by letting the line run long can you catch the big fish... Now, it's time to reel it in."

'A dozen half-beasts were hardly something a wealthy village chief could cultivate. Who was the mastermind behind this? Could it be connected to the Demon Sect?'

With such suspicions, Su Yan decided to locate Liang Shoucai's lair and wade into this muddy water.

So that's how it was! She had thought Su Yan's old injuries had flared up, weakening his cultivation to the point where he couldn't even handle a seemingly harmless half-beast... But then again, recovering so quickly from a severe injury inflicted by a Great Ascension-stage expert without any lingering side effects, Su Yan, your regenerative ability is downright monstrous! It's almost on par with some six-legged, winged insect everyone despises!

Could this be the power of a demonic cultivator?

"Ah! Senior Brother, you really are cunning, crafty, treacherous, despicable..." Tong Tong wanted to heap on more praise but stopped under Su Yan's icy glare.

"Let's go." Too weary to correct Tong Tong's unconventional compliments, Su Yan retrieved a yellowish-brown hair from her Qiankun pouch, plucked from the girl's tail the night before, and flicked it into the air. With a quick hand seal, he cast a minor tracking spell. The hair, as if infused with spiritual energy, spun a few times in the air before darting steadily in one direction.

Su Yan grabbed Tong Tong's hand, and the two of them chased after the tail hair. In less time than it takes to drink a cup of tea, they stopped before an enormous estate. Compared to the other houses in Niutou Village, this mansion stood out with its red walls, green tiles, carved beams, and painted pillars, a clear display of the owner's immense wealth.

The tail hair shot straight toward the inner quarters, winding through a maze of corridors before vanishing into a rugged rockery.

As Su Yan and Tong Tong made their way, they encountered no resistance. The vast estate had no maids or servants in sight, further hinting at its unspeakable secrets.

To avoid alerting anyone and to conceal their identities, the two refrained from sword flight. They kept up their pursuit but could only barely keep pace with the tail hair. When it suddenly disappeared into the rockery, they lost track of it entirely.

Yet, there was no need to search further. Su Yan had already sensed something unusual.

With a flick of her wrist, she summoned Changhong, holding it before her as she shielded Tong Tong behind her. Her voice turned cold as she commanded, "Show yourself."

As soon as the words fell, a series of mechanical clicks echoed, and as the two rows of artificial rock formations slowly parted, a foul stench surged into the sky, even dyeing half the horizon a bl0ody red. It was clear that the forbidden art practiced by this half-beast must have gathered the essence of all evils to amass such an immense amount of resentment and malevolent energy. Even if Su Yan hadn't come to investigate, it would have been impossible to conceal for long, sooner or later, disciples of the mystic sects would have intervened. Yet Liang Shoucai had been tyrannizing this place for so long, likely already colluding with those very disciples, which explained his audacity...

Understanding this, the chill in Su Yan's eyes deepened by a fraction.

"Hahaha, I thought we were dealing with some big shot, but it turns out it's just a pretty boy and a little girl. Are these two rookies really worth all this fuss? Ah Huang, are you itching for a beating, huh?" The man draped in gold and silver stroked the jade ring on his finger, casting an impatient glance at the most inconspicuous girl among the half-beast crowd behind him, his voice harsh and menacing.

The girl who was called out seemed terrified, trembling as she lowered her head and hid behind a tall, imposing tiger-man beside her, concealing the malice in her eyes.

"Hmph, I'll deal with you later!" Liang Shoucai spat, his face twisting into a lecherous grin as he turned back. "I've never tasted a man before. I hear the male courtesans at the Yanying Pavilion are quite the delicacy. Looks like today's my lucky day, hehe..."

Liang Shoucai's laughter cut off abruptly after just two chuckles. His eyes widened in terror as he clutched his throat and collapsed to the ground, unable to utter another word.

Only then did a thin line of bl0od appear across his throat.

Su Yan's hand, holding the long Changhong sword, seemed as though it had never moved, yet it sent a chill down the spines of everyone present.

"Who else wants to die?" Her eyes, dark as ink, swept slowly over the faces of the half-beasts. Some of the more timid ones couldn't withstand the pressure and fell to their knees, begging for mercy.

"I won't accept this!" Suddenly, a low female voice rang out, stark and abrupt in the silence, causing a flicker of surprise to pass through Su Yan's sharp, cold eyes.

Following the voice, she saw it was the wolf-tailed girl who had escaped from her grasp the night before, Ah Huang.

"Oh?" Su Yan gave a cold smile, raising her left hand lightly and curling her fingers into a claw-like shape. From dozens of yards away, Ah Huang clutched her throat in agony, her face turning pale as if she were being strangled.

"It's not impossible for me to spare your lives..." Though she smiled, her eyes remained icy cold, sending a chill even to Tong Tong standing beside her. "It all depends on whether you have the ability."

With that, her fingers suddenly relaxed, flicking lightly as if shaking off insignificant grains of sand. Ah Huang collapsed to the ground as if thrown, her pained expression easing slightly before she broke into a fit of violent coughing.

"Defeat her, and you'll be spared." Su Yan pointed casually, her tone calm and composed.

"What?" Tong Tong's amused expression turned to disbelief. She pointed dumbly at herself. "Me?"

After Su Yan nodded to confirm she hadn't misheard, Tong Tong's face fell completely. Ignoring the crowd of half-beasts watching from across the way, she tugged at Su Yan's sleeve, pleading pitifully, "Big brother, Brother Yan, dear brother... How could you possibly send a weak girl like me to fight these brawny, not-so-simple savage creatures? How could you? Really?"

Su Yan patted her head soothingly and said gently, "Of course I could."

"Huh?" After a moment of shock, Tong Tong bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes as she looked at Su Yan as if he were a heartless executioner.

"How long has it been since you practiced your swordsmanship?" Su Yan ignored her accusatory gaze and asked abruptly.

"Um... well, about, uh, maybe two or three months... ahaha..." Tong Tong awkwardly scratched her nose, but quickly regained her composure. "How could I find time while busy running away? Besides, besides, you haven't been practicing either..."

The last sentence was muttered so softly she could barely hear it herself. Surely Su Yan hadn't noticed... right?

"Hmph, if you wish to remain stuck at the Golden Core stage forever, I won't bother with you anymore." Su Yan shot her a sidelong glance, her expression tinged with frustration and helpless disappointment.

"Senior Brother, I was wrong! Please discipline me!" Tong Tong immediately changed her tune, bowing sincerely to Su Yan with a pleading look.

'Ugh, he always knows how to hit where it hurts! Senior brothers are the worst...'

Thus, after Su Yan unilaterally decided, Tong Tong's practice match against overwhelming odds began, though for her, it was merely training. For the half-beasts forced into the fight, it was a life-or-death struggle.

Holding her Biling sword, Tong Tong stood among a group of burly half-beasts like a chicken among cranes, appearing relaxed and at ease.

'Well, they're just humans enhanced with beast-like abilities, right? Nothing too impressive. Stay calm.'

'Dealing with fellow cultivators of the same level might be challenging, but handling them? Piece of cake.'

'Su Yan, prepare to be dazzled by this young lady's magnificent skills! Ahahaha...'

Tong Tong thought optimistically, unaware of the sinister smile flickering in the eyes of the wolf-tailed girl who had once again retreated into the shadows.

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