The fourth watch of the night.

The sky was still dark, but a fraction brighter than it had been during the third watch. This was the time when people slept most soundly, and when the mountain air was thickest with dampness.

Outside the Demon Stronghold, in the encampment of the Beihua Prefecture army, everyone was sound asleep except for the squads of soldiers making their rounds with torches.

Even Martial Artists needed sufficient sleep to reach their peak combat strength.

Anyone who could go several days without sleep and remain full of vigor would be a superman.

Outside the camp, a black figure blended perfectly with the night.

She moved like a phantom, effortlessly weaving through the camp and avoiding the gazes of the patrolling soldiers. Few in the Ling Province Jianghu possessed such a Body Technique.

After a few breaths, she arrived before a tent. She suppressed her presence to the absolute minimum, her breathing inaudible, her footsteps completely silent.

At some point, a palm-sized dagger had appeared in her hand.

The dagger was incredibly sharp. It sliced through a corner of the tent as silently as a blade cutting through water, and she slipped inside like a shadow.

As she flew to the bedside, she saw the familiar face of a young man.

The dagger, glinting with cold light, was raised again, then ruthlessly stabbed toward the sleeping man’s throat.

A clear killing blow!

The Soul-Chasing Tower was often able to defeat stronger opponents precisely because of its methods of concealment—killing in silence.

And Han Min was one of the Soul-Chasing Tower’s finest. Even the perception of a Martial Artist was not enough to detect her. With this skill, she had killed countless experts.

In the Jianghu, the Soul-Chasing Tower was the king of the darkness!

But just as the dagger was three inches from Bai Yuan’s throat, he snapped his eyes open.

Without the slightest hesitation, he swung a palm directly at Han Min’s right cheek!

He had clearly sensed her presence long ago.

Han Min was ruthless enough to follow through. The dagger didn’t pause in the slightest; she was clearly prepared to trade an injury for a kill.

But then a bizarre scene unfolded. With a series of CRACKING sounds, Bai Yuan’s body shrank in an instant. Where his throat had been, there was now only the bed plank.

Bone Shrinking Technique!

Han Min’s pupils contracted violently.

She pulled back with her right hand and twisted her body, causing Bai Yuan’s palm strike to graze past her chin.

An excruciating, bone-deep pain shot through her face.

Her once-delicate face was now horrific. The skin on her right jaw was rotting away at a visible rate, with only a nail-sized flap left hanging, dripping blood.

That one slap had disfigured her!

An ordinary woman might have already considered suicide, but Han Min simply stared intently at Bai Yuan, as if nothing had happened.

Bai Yuan grinned. "What a waste of a pretty face."

A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

He had long since sensed an extremely powerful presence in the Demon Stronghold, but he hadn’t expected it to be the female Lord of the Ling Province Soul-Chasing Tower.

He felt no pity for her beauty, of course.

His only regret was that his aim hadn’t been a little more precise.

It wasn’t that he had intentionally disfigured the female Lord. It was just that after practicing the Toad Technique, slapping someone in the face had become his most lethal form of attack.

Han Min narrowed her eyes.

Bai Yuan’s methods reminded her of a terrifying poison art where one fed their own body to the toxin.

She had previously thought Bai Yuan concealed poison in his hands, but now it was clear he had refined his own body into a vessel of poison.

’How ruthless!’

The Soul-Chasing Tower excelled at poisons and hidden weapons, so she had seen many masters of toxicology. But Bai Yuan was the first she’d ever met who had turned his own body into poison.

A poison body was powerful, but the cultivation process was fraught with peril. Only one in ten thousand could succeed; most simply melted into a puddle of toxic sludge.

That was why no one, not even in the Soul-Chasing Tower, dared to practice such a dangerous poison art.

Or rather, even if they succeeded, they would eventually be killed by the poison over time.

Of course, once mastered, such a technique would be the bane of all poison users in the world.

But Han Min practiced with hidden weapons!

SWOOSH!

Han Min waved her right hand, and silver needles shot toward Bai Yuan like a torrential downpour.

Bai Yuan swung his saber to block.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!

The clang of metal on metal was incessant.

As expected of a master of hidden weapons, every one of Han Min’s needles carried immense killing power and flew at incredible speeds, no slower than a shotgun blast.

It was impossible to block them all.

And indeed, Bai Yuan couldn’t block them all. But the needles that slipped past and touched his body simply melted into molten iron.

Such was the tyrannical power of the Toad poison combined with the Fire Erosion Poison.

Unless every one of Han Min’s needles was forged from Divine Iron, they couldn’t harm Bai Yuan.

But flying needles were disposable weapons. Not even Han Min had the financial resources to forge thousands of them from Divine Iron. Doing so would be no different from tossing around Spirit Pills—in fact, it would be even more expensive. Even the Royal Family wouldn’t dare to spend money so extravagantly.

Han Min’s long, narrow eyes narrowed further.

Bai Yuan’s methods continued to surprise her.

Just then, the commotion in Bai Yuan’s tent was noticed, and Li Huan arrived with a large group of men.

Han Min frowned slightly. Although she had many other tricks up her sleeve, the chances of killing Bai Yuan would plummet if she were surrounded.

Not to mention, her strength hadn’t fully recovered, and there was that strange Firearms Team...

Without a backward glance, Han Min unleashed another countless volley of needles to pin Bai Yuan inside the tent, then leaped away and vanished.

...

"That woman is damn good. She actually got away."

Li Huan was a little frustrated.

He only found out afterward that the woman who tried to assassinate Bai Yuan was none other than the Soul Chasing Tower Lord of Ling Province.

But even if he had known her identity beforehand, he still wouldn’t have been able to stop her.

The difference in strength was just too great. Even with her injuries, he was no match for her.

At the same time, a wave of lingering fear washed over him.

He hadn’t expected such a formidable person to be right here in his territory. If not for Bai Yuan, the Soul Chasing Tower Lord might have targeted him instead.

In that case, his death would have been all but certain.

’Good thing Bai Yuan took the bullet for me...’

Li Huan looked at Bai Yuan, amazed. The Soul Chasing Tower Lord of Ling Province was an incredible figure, yet even her assassination attempt had failed to kill Bai Yuan. It seemed Bai Yuan’s strength wasn’t just limited to his Firearms Team.

The fact that someone as discerning as Yang Fangyu treated Bai Yuan as a brother was proof that the man’s strength was extraordinary.

’Of all the people at that private banquet, Bai Yuan had the humblest background. Could that also mean he was the strongest?’

Li Huan felt he had to up his ante and strengthen his relationship with him.

Bai Yuan didn’t sheathe his saber. He looked toward the nearby Demon Stronghold. "Attack the fortress!"

...

"L-Lord! The humans from Beihua Prefecture are attacking the fortress!"

"Lord?"

"Lord!"

The Little Cat Demon burst into the tent, but there was no sign of Han Min.

Seeing the empty tent, a chill ran down the Little Cat Demon’s spine. He knew the Demon Stronghold was finished.

Without Han Min’s iron-fisted rule, the Demons in the stronghold could no longer suppress their unruly natures. Many of the hot-tempered Demons charged straight out of the stronghold to battle the army outside.

The scene instantly descended into chaos.

Under the suppressing fire of the Firearms Team and the charge of the Beihua Prefecture soldiers, the Demon Stronghold quickly fell.

In the chaos, more than half of the Demons were slain, while the rest fled deep into Master Ridge.

Li Huan led his army into the Demon Stronghold, his spirits soaring.

He had taken this impregnable fortress. His father, the Prince, would surely be delighted with this great achievement.

His standing in the eyes of the King of Qingzhou would surely rise significantly.

Bai Yuan was also very pleased.

He had killed countless Demons in this battle, and the amount of enhancement points he’d gained was unexpectedly abundant.

The encounter with the female Lord of the Soul-Chasing Tower was a bit of a surprise, but it was a scare with no real danger. He had peacefully earned so many enhancement points.

Li Huan said, "The Soul Chasing Tower Lord of Ling Province has come to Qingzhou. I must report this to my royal father immediately. Younger Brother Bai, why don’t we set off at once? The Library Pavilion in the Prince’s Mansion holds many excellent Cultivation Techniques."

Bai Yuan replied, "Excellent."

The two of them immediately mounted their horses and rode through the night toward Qingzhou City.

...

As the most prosperous province in Shuofang, and with the Qingzhou Royal Mansion having managed it for a thousand years, Qingzhou City was far more bustling than Lingzhou City.

Just the luxurious bluestone-paved streets were something Ling Province couldn’t compare to.

’The Qingzhou Royal Mansion really is extravagant.’

Li Huan and Bai Yuan dismounted and led their horses by the reins, walking toward the Qingzhou Royal Mansion.

The Qingzhou Royal Mansion was located in the very center of Qingzhou City, occupying hundreds of acres of land. It was the very picture of luxury.

However, the Prince of Qingzhou had countless descendants, so it didn’t feel empty.

"Ninth Young Master."

The old servant at the gate saw Li Huan, bowed, and came forward to take the reins from both him and Bai Yuan.

"Uncle Jiang, this is my sworn brother. Please make sure he is well taken care of."

"Younger Brother Bai, I’ll go report to my royal father first, then we can go to the Library Pavilion together."

Bai Yuan nodded. "Alright."

Before leaving, Li Huan gave the old servant, Jiang, a few more instructions, afraid that Bai Yuan might be neglected.

The old servant whom Li Huan called Uncle Jiang led Bai Yuan to an elegant courtyard.

"Young Master Bai, please rest here for a while. The Ninth Young Master will be back shortly."

"Thank you," Bai Yuan said.

’For Li Huan to call this old servant Uncle Jiang, he must be a long-serving retainer in the Prince’s Mansion, and one of high status,’ Bai Yuan thought.

"This is Osmanthus Tea from the south. The Prince finds its flavor quite pleasing."

Uncle Jiang personally brewed a pot of tea for Bai Yuan.

This old servant had been the King of Qingzhou’s study companion in his youth. After the King of Qingzhou rose to power, he became the old steward of this Royal Mansion. He had watched all the princes and princesses grow up.

Bai Yuan lifted the teacup and took a sip.

It had a sweet, glutinous fragrance with a faint hint of osmanthus, and it even had a slight nourishing effect on the body. It was truly a fine tea.

This Osmanthus Tea must be a tribute from officials in the south to the King of Qingzhou; it was practically unheard of in the Northern Territory.

’It seems all the best things in the world really do belong to the Li Family!’

"The Ninth Young Master has been away for these past few years, and he always said he was living well. This is all thanks to outstanding young men like you, Young Master Bai."

The old servant, Uncle Jiang, spoke in an extremely pleasant voice, like a teacher from some academy. His speech and mannerisms gave no hint that he was a servant.

This was the profound heritage of the Qingzhou Royal Mansion.

It couldn’t be compared to ordinary wealthy or official households.

Just as Bai Yuan and Uncle Jiang were making idle chitchat,

a figure strode into the courtyard.

Bai Yuan and Uncle Jiang had assumed it was Li Huan, but it turned out to be a refined-looking middle-aged man.

"Lord Bai, you came to the Qingzhou Royal Mansion and didn’t even think to inform me."

The newcomer was none other than the man he had met before: the King of Qingzhou’s fourth son, Li Ming.