The cloaked figure raised a hand and slowly pulled back his hood, revealing a weather-beaten face.

A hideous scar ran from his left brow bone straight down to his jaw, like a centipede coiled upon his face.

His gaze was as sharp as a falcon’s, suffused with the brutish, savage air of one who had spent years licking blood from a blade.

This man was named Huang Kui. Publicly, he was the leader of the Blood Wolf Thieves of Black Cloud Ridge, but in reality, he was a hidden pawn the Lin Family had planted years ago, living under a false identity.

"Patriarch."

Huang Kui spoke, his voice as hoarse as coarse sandpaper rubbing together.

"What was so urgent that you summoned me back? The new year is approaching, and there are many matters to attend to at the fortress. I can’t be away for long."

"I called you back to kill someone."

A cold glint flashed in Lin Yaotian’s eyes. He wasted no time on pleasantries and got straight to the point.

"The others are not strong enough for this task. Only you can ensure it’s done without any chance of failure."

"Who is it? That they would require me to act personally?"

Huang Kui’s brows furrowed, causing the scar to twist and adding to his ferocious appearance.

"A junior from the Fang Family named Fang Han."

Lin Yaotian’s voice held a trace of cold apprehension.

"The boy isn’t even eighteen, yet he’s already firmly established as the number one of Liangshui City’s younger generation. If we allow him to keep growing, my Lin Family will one day be completely suppressed by the Fang Family."

"The number one of Liangshui City’s younger generation, and he’s not even eighteen?"

Huang Kui’s pupils contracted sharply, and the scar on his face twitched, a clear sign of his utter shock.

"The Fang Family actually produced such a monster?"

"That’s precisely why he cannot be left alive!"

The killing intent and anxiety in Lin Yaotian’s words were completely undisguised.

"Among the family’s hidden forces, only your Cultivation has reached the Inner Qi Realm. You are the only choice to carry out this assassination."

Huang Kui pondered for a moment, a cruel sneer crossing his face. "I understand. Is there any specific intelligence? When will he leave the Fang Mansion?"

Even as an Inner Qi Realm Martial Artist, he didn’t dare to easily infiltrate the core of the Fang Mansion to assassinate someone. He could only wait for his target to venture out.

"During the New Year festivities, he will certainly go out to visit relatives and friends." A vicious gleam appeared in Lin Yaotian’s eyes. "That will be the perfect time for you to strike, and it’s why I’ve summoned you back now!"

"Visiting relatives and friends? Heh, a good opportunity to strike, indeed." Huang Kui licked his dry, cracked lips, a bloodthirsty light flickering in his eyes.

"Remember, you only have one chance. You must succeed. Failure is not an option!" A ruthless expression appeared on Lin Yaotian’s face.

"Rest assured, Patriarch." Huang Kui’s tone was firm and filled with confidence. "With my Inner Qi Realm Cultivation, there is absolutely no chance of failure when ambushing a junior in the Bone Refining Realm."

...

On New Year’s Eve, the Fang Mansion was adorned with lanterns and streamers both inside and out, filled everywhere with a bustling, festive atmosphere.

Inside the banquet hall, dozens of mahogany round tables were arranged in neat rows.

The main table at the very center was the exclusive seating for the Patriarch, Fang Lingyuan, and a few powerful Elders. The tables immediately adjacent to the main one were reserved for the family’s most valued and core members.

The remaining seats extended outward in order, with the distance from the main table directly reflecting one’s status within the clan.

In previous years, Fang Han’s family, being from a side branch with no prominent figures, was always seated in the rear of the banquet hall, near the entrance and far removed from the family’s inner circle.

This year, however, when Fang Han stepped into the banquet hall with his parents and younger sister, a well-dressed Steward immediately came forward to greet them, his face wreathed in smiles and his attitude one of utmost respect.

"Master Zheng, Lady Wan, Miss Ying, your seats are this way. Please, follow me."

"Young Master Han, your seat is this way."

The Steward bowed and led the way, first guiding Fang Zheng, Lin Wan, and his younger sister Fang Ying to their seats in a relatively forward position. Then, he respectfully led Fang Han straight toward the very core of the banquet—to a table right next to the main one.

Seated at this table were meritorious family veterans, as well as the Patriarch’s three direct children: Fang Ting, Fang Lei, and Fang Yuyan.

These three were of noble status, considered the pinnacle of the Fang Family’s younger generation, the true core of the direct line.

In the past, not even the top ten disciples of the Inner Hall were qualified to sit and drink at the same table with them.

After all, the top ten disciples changed every few years, but the status of these three was unchanging.

"Cousin Fang Han, please, have a seat."

Seeing Fang Han arrive, Fang Ting, the eldest son, was the first to stand up, greeting him with a smile and a respectful attitude.

"Cousin Fang Han."

Fang Lei and Fang Yuyan also rose and nodded in acknowledgment.

Their politeness held a clear intention of building a connection, devoid of the arrogance common among direct-line disciples.

This wasn’t due to natural humility, but because they knew full well that the terrifying talent and strength displayed by this brother from a side branch had already set his status above the rest.

The future rise or fall of the family might depend on him to a great extent. His actual status and potential had long surpassed that of direct descendants like themselves who relied on their father’s protection.

"Cousin Fang Ting, Cousin Fang Lei, Cousin Yuyan." Fang Han returned the pleasantries politely. His demeanor was calm, not at all arrogant, but inwardly, he couldn’t help but sigh.

’If I hadn’t relied on the system to gain the title of "genius," it would be harder than climbing to the heavens to even speak a word to them, let alone sit at the same table.’

’As the core of the direct line, they were never short of sycophants and were not people that ordinary disciples could easily befriend.’

At the banquet, goblets and wine cups clinked, and the air was filled with laughter and cheerful chatter.

"Brother Zheng, you’re so fortunate! To have a Qilin’er like Fang Han!"

At the table where Fang Zheng, Lin Wan, and Fang Ying sat, people from their table and even adjacent ones came one after another to toast Fang Zheng, their words filled with compliments and envy.

At first, Fang Zheng was a little uncomfortable with being the center of attention, but after a few cups of fine wine, and with his son having truly made him proud, he unconsciously straightened his back. A new confidence and radiance gradually appeared in his speech.

"Congratulations to your line of the family for producing a genius like Fang Han!"

Because of Fang Han, his grandparents, eldest uncle, third uncle, and other relatives were also given seats near the front.

People also came up to them continuously to offer congratulations, including some figures they had to look up to in the past. This made their faces flush with pride, and they responded again and again, feeling greatly honored.

Fang Han sat quietly at the core table, responding to the surrounding congratulations and small talk with concise and appropriate words, neither getting too close nor being impolite.

He was crystal clear in his heart: all the respect and the change in status he was currently experiencing stemmed entirely from the Martial Dao Talent he had displayed.

’If one day I can’t maintain this "genius" title, I’ll be knocked back to where I started, or even worse.’

’Even if it’s just to protect everything I have now, I absolutely cannot allow myself to slack off in my Cultivation for even a moment.’

...

「On the second day of the New Year, early in the morning.」

Fang Han’s family took a horse-drawn carriage to visit his maternal grandfather and youngest maternal uncle.

The carriage traveled along the bustling streets. Inside, his younger sister, Fang Ying, wore a brand-new red padded jacket, chattering excitedly about getting a big red envelope from her grandfather.

Fang Zheng and Lin Wan looked at their son and daughter before them, their faces brimming with happiness and contentment.

The carriage came to a steady stop outside his maternal grandfather’s residence.

Fang Han got out of the carriage in turn with his family. He was the last to step out, and the warm winter sun spilled over him, bringing with it a lazy sense of comfort.

However, the very instant his feet touched solid ground—

An ice-cold, bone-chilling killing intent suddenly erupted.

A black-clad figure completely shrouded in a wide cloak shot out from the shadows under the eaves of a nearby alleyway, moving like a phantom.

The two-foot-long short blade in his hand flashed with a cold light as it thrust straight at his back.

A layer of incredibly dense, faint white light clung to the blade, tearing through the air with a heart-stopping HISS, its speed beyond imagination!

Inner Qi made manifest!

This was an Inner Qi Realm Martial Artist!