Longevity by Grinding Skills-Chapter 34: Masked Man

The little maid’s face went pale with fright, and she instinctively prepared to scream.

But before she could make a sound, a rough, strong hand clamped over her mouth.

"Don’t make a sound. If you dare make the slightest noise, I’ll kill you. Understand?"

Xu Yunfan kept his voice low and deep, making himself sound as menacing as possible as he whispered the threat in the maid’s ear.

Hearing his words, the little maid’s eyes instantly filled with tears, and she nodded repeatedly in terror.

"Good. Then let me ask you something."

Xu Yunfan kept his voice suppressed, his tone so low it seemed to crawl out of the darkness.

"Where is the Hu Family’s treasury?"

The little maid didn’t dare hesitate for a second. Trembling, she quickly pointed in a direction.

Xu Yunfan looked up in the direction the maid indicated, where a cluster of buildings was lit as brightly as day. ’It’s a treasury, after all,’ he thought. ’It makes sense for it to be protected by layers of security. But with an intruder in the Hu Mansion right now, that person in black must be drawing most of the attention. The treasury should be less heavily guarded.’

Just as he was about to ask a few more questions, Xu Yunfan’s brow suddenly furrowed slightly, and he instinctively sniffed the air.

’What’s that smell of urine?’

He glanced down in confusion at the little maid before him, who barely reached five-foot-one.

Her body was trembling from head to toe, and she looked utterly pitiful.

"You pissed yourself?"

Xu Yunfan couldn’t help but ask in a low voice.

Hearing Xu Yunfan’s blunt words, the little maid’s fear was instantly replaced by immense shame and indignation.

She buried her head in shame, gritting her teeth. Her terror was gone, replaced by silence. She wished she could find a hole to crawl into and die.

When Xu Yunfan made no further move, the little maid slowly raised her head, only to find that the figure before her had vanished.

She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut, remembering her current wretched state.

’If the other maids found out, I’d never be able to hold my head high again. And if the masters found out, they might be disgusted and just throw me out. It’s not like it hasn’t happened before.’

The little maid looked around cautiously. After confirming no one was there, she quickly lowered her head and scurried away with panicked steps.

From the shadows, Xu Yunfan took it all in without making a sound.

’In this ancient, feudal society, the Great Zhou Dynasty wasn’t as extreme as some dynasties from his past life—where the practice of foot-binding was popular and women might kill themselves if a man merely saw their leg—but an embarrassing incident like wetting oneself was still something no one would dare publicize.’ 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

When his predecessor was at the Jiang Mansion, he had personally seen a maid who was so frightened by a Martial Master’s threatening punch that she lost control and wet her pants.

That Jiang Yu had, of course, been utterly disgusted and sent the maid directly to the Imperial Music Bureau.

’Those powerful families are truly filthy to the core.’

Xu Yunfan hesitated no longer. He set off, sticking to the dark corners and quickly sneaking toward the treasury.

The entire Hu Mansion was now distracted by the woman in black. He barely saw anyone on his way; those he did see were either maids or servants.

As he neared the treasury, he found that the patrols were indeed dense. The guards had steady steps and vigilant eyes, clearly possessing Martial Power. He could tell from their darting glances, however, that the situation at the treasury was not as calm as it seemed.

Xu Yunfan crouched low. His Hunting Skill made his movements difficult to detect as he cleverly used the surrounding clutter and shadows to evade the guards’ line of sight.

’You have concealed your presence, cleverly using cover to hide your form from your prey. Your Hunting Skill Level has increased.’

He held his breath, glancing at the skill-increase notification that had popped up in his vision, and waited quietly for an opportunity.

’This Hunting Skill is more useful than I expected.’

After only about ten minutes, a loud shout suddenly echoed through the Hu Mansion.

"There’s a formidable intruder! Quickly, come protect Master Hu!"

It was the voice of the middle-aged man who had given chase out of the Hu Mansion.

At these words, the guard leader ordered more than half of the men away, and the heavily fortified treasury area was suddenly half-empty.

’It was like someone handing him a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.’

Xu Yunfan was overjoyed. ’Sometimes, good things really do come to those who wait.’

Before him were only four or five guards who were mere beginners in the Martial Dao. Their leader was powerfully built, but his qi and blood were lacking. He looked to be at the Minor Achievement Realm at best.

Xu Yunfan stopped hiding and stepped out from the dark corner, right under the watchful eyes of the guards.

No longer concealed, the sound of his slightly heavy footsteps seemed to pound on the hearts of the guards, causing them all to turn and look.

Seeing this, the lead guard’s expression froze. The newcomer was dressed in black with his face covered, radiating a menacing aura. He clearly wasn’t here for a friendly chat.

He yanked the long saber from his waist and shouted, "Halt!"

The other guards saw this and also drew their sabers, going on full alert.

But Xu Yunfan acted as if he hadn’t heard, his pace unwavering. The muscles all over his body bulged slightly, his bones letting out a series of soft cracks, and his clothes strained against his swelling physique.

In the blink of an eye, Xu Yunfan strode forward and closed the distance on one of the guards.

The guard’s eyes widened in terror, and he instinctively swung his saber at Xu Yunfan.

Xu Yunfan neither dodged nor evaded, simply thrusting the back of his hand forward.

With a loud CLANG and a shower of sparks, the guard’s saber was knocked from his grasp. A faint white mark, barely visible, appeared on Xu Yunfan’s arm, but he was otherwise unharmed.

And within a few breaths, even that white mark had vanished.

"Horizontal Training!?"

The leader cried out in shock. He never expected to encounter someone who cultivated a Horizontal Training skill.

Xu Yunfan threw a punch. The peak of his fist tore through the air with a HISS. It was so heavy and fast that the guard had no time to react before it slammed into his chest.

The guard screamed as he was sent flying like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily against a wall. He spat out a mouthful of blood and was knocked unconscious on the spot.

Seeing this, the other guards’ faces filled with fear, but they still screwed up their courage, brandished their weapons, and swarmed him.

Xu Yunfan showed no sign of panic. Activating his Flying Leg technique, his figure moved like lightning, weaving through the crowd. Every punch was accompanied by a dull thud and a cry of pain.

His fists were like Heavy Hammers, smashing into the guards’ bodies. The sound of breaking bones rose and fell.

The leader was terrified. He swung his long saber wildly, trying to block Xu Yunfan’s attacks.

However, Xu Yunfan dashed forward in an instant, flicked the saber away with a single finger, then brought his hand down to grab the man’s wrist. With a slight squeeze, a sharp CRACK echoed as the bone in his wrist fractured.

The leader screamed, and his long saber clattered to the ground.

Xu Yunfan followed up with a kick to his stomach, sending the man flying. He crashed to the ground and fainted from the pain.

In just a few short breaths, all four or five guards were on the ground, completely incapacitated.