The night was deep.

Bai Yuan was roused from his sleep by a knock on his courtyard door.

He frowned slightly.

’This is the mountainside of Wan Jun Peak. Who could be knocking at my door so late at night?’

Though filled with doubt, he threw on some clothes, grabbed the Blood Tiger Scimitar from under his pillow, and opened the courtyard gate.

A petite, unfamiliar woman stood outside, her face etched with anxiety.

"Who are you?"

Bai Yuan asked in confusion.

"Senior Brother Bai, my name is Fang Rou. I’m Fang Ya’s cousin."

At the mention of Fang Ya’s name, Bai Yuan’s guard lessened somewhat.

But to his surprise, Fang Rou suddenly dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face.

"Please, you have to save my sister."

Bai Yuan frowned. "Come inside and talk."

’I remember Fang Ya was supposed to get married today,’ he thought. ’For her cousin to suddenly show up here... something has clearly gone wrong.’

Fang Rou followed Bai Yuan into the courtyard. Once the door was closed, she caught her breath and began to speak.

"Today was my cousin’s wedding. I had already seen her to the bridal chamber, but then I happened to see Wang Ding carrying her into a carriage. I knew something wasn’t right, so I followed them. To my shock, the carriage went straight into the Divine Mansion Sect, and my cousin ended up being taken to Elder Wang’s room in Wooden Man Alley!"

Fang Rou got straight to the point.

She quickly told Bai Yuan what she had seen that night.

Fang Rou looked at Bai Yuan expectantly. The Fang Family would certainly not dare to act against the Wang Family, so Bai Yuan was her last hope.

She and Fang Ya had grown up together, so she knew the Fang Family all too well. Although she didn’t know what the Wang Family was planning, she knew her cousin was most likely in grave danger.

In her panic, she had no choice but to seek out Bai Yuan.

She had often heard Fang Ya talk about Bai Yuan; they had a good relationship, and Fang Rou herself had even met him a few times.

Fang Rou was a servant disciple of the Divine Mansion Sect, which was why she was able to reach his courtyard on the mountainside of Wan Jun Peak.

Bai Yuan shook his head. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"I can’t get involved in this."

’This whole thing is strange, but it’s ultimately an affair between the Wang and Fang Families. If I, an outsider, get involved, and it turns out Fang Ya is fine, I’d just be asking for trouble.’ he reasoned. ’While he and Fang Ya were on good terms, they weren’t *that* close. Besides, Elder Wang of Wooden Man Alley is a Blood Refining expert. He’s not someone I can deal with.’

Fang Rou gritted her teeth. "Sister Ya has a Stabilizing Spirit Pearl. If Senior Brother Bai is willing to help, I can make the decision to give the pearl to you."

’A Stabilizing Spirit Pearl?’

Bai Yuan raised an eyebrow.

When Martial Artists practice their arts, their blood and qi can easily become excessive and lead to qi deviation. The Stabilizing Spirit Pearl had the divine effect of calming the heart and clearing the mind, making it an incredibly rare treasure.

But the reason Bai Yuan was interested in the Stabilizing Spirit Pearl was because of Spirit Extraction...

’I can’t believe Fang Ya has such a divine artifact.’

"...Alright, I’ll give it a try."

Seeing that Bai Yuan had finally agreed, Fang Rou took a deep breath. "Thank you."

...

「Main Peak, Law Enforcement Hall.」

"Younger Brother Bai, is there a reason you’ve come looking for me this late?"

Li Da, an Elder of the Law Enforcement Hall, gazed at Bai Yuan, his late-night visitor.

Bai Yuan said, "Brother Li, I have a favor to ask."

A slight smile touched the corners of Li Da’s lips as he asked with interest, "Younger Brother Bai’s business is my business. Speak freely."

’The young man before me is Dong Wanjun’s own Inner Sect Disciple,’ Li Da thought. ’If it’s just a small favor, I certainly don’t mind helping.’

Bai Yuan then recounted the story he had heard from Fang Rou that night.

The room fell silent.

Li Da frowned, then let out a soft sigh.

"Younger Brother Bai, this matter is rather tricky."

’Even though I’m at odds with Elder Wang of Wooden Man Alley, I’m not about to provoke a Divine Mansion Sect Elder based on Bai Yuan’s word alone,’ he mused.

Bai Yuan said, "When this is over, I can give you five pills equivalent in value to Blood Refining Pills."

Li Da raised an eyebrow.

’Blood Refining Pills are desperately needed by Blood Refining Martial Masters,’ he thought. ’But they’re incredibly difficult to refine, so there’s always a price but never a supply. Even I only have five of them.’

Bai Yuan added, "My master is due back in ten days."

"Deal!"

Li Da readily agreed.

’Five Blood Refining Pills were enough incentive to act,’ he thought. ’If Bai Yuan can put in a good word for me with Peak Master Dong... so what if I offend that guy Wang? I can’t stand him anyway.’

"Let’s go. We’re off to Wooden Man Alley."

...

「Wooden Man Alley, the Wang Estate.」

Fang Ya lay on the bed in despair, tears flowing from the corners of her eyes to soak the pillow.

Elder Wang, standing before the bed, was already poised to pounce.

Just in the nick of time—

"You can’t go in there."

A woman’s alarmed cry rang out from outside the door.

Elder Wang froze, recognizing the voice as one of his household maids.

Before he could go out to check, the door was kicked open with a BANG.

"Li Da!"

Elder Wang saw who had arrived and gritted his teeth in fury.

Li Da took in the scene, and recalling what Bai Yuan had said earlier, a knowing smile played on his lips.

"You old dog, you really know how to have your fun, don’t you."

Bai Yuan, who had entered with Li Da, also saw the scene in the room, and Fang Ya lying limply on the bed.

He could tell at a glance that Fang Ya had been given Muscle Relaxant Powder.

His gaze shifted to Elder Wang, his eyes flashing with disgust.

’Fuck, that’s disgusting.’

Now that he had leverage over Elder Wang, Li Da was in high spirits.

"I’m taking this woman. In return, I’ll pretend I didn’t see anything tonight. How about it?"

Elder Wang’s expression was grim.

’I’ve always kept my cultivation of an evil technique a secret,’ he fumed internally. ’If Li Da finds out, it’ll all be exposed. I’ll definitely be punished then, and not even my backer will be able to save me.’

"Fine."

Elder Wang snorted coldly.

The words had barely left his lips when Bai Yuan stepped into the room, took some white powder from his robes, and put it in Fang Ya’s mouth.

Fang Ya felt a warm current spread from her abdomen, and the feeling of weakness finally vanished.

She scrambled off the bed, not wanting to stay a moment longer.

Li Da chuckled. "Well then, Elder Wang, I’ll be taking my leave."

He felt incredibly satisfied. With this leverage, even if he couldn’t cause any real harm to Elder Wang, he could still make the man feel sick for a long time.

...

When Bai Yuan brought Fang Ya back to Wan Jun Peak, Fang Rou was already waiting anxiously at the foot of the mountain. Seeing Fang Ya appear, she finally let out a long sigh of relief.

"Rou’er, thank you."

Fang Ya looked at her cousin Fang Rou, moved. If Fang Rou hadn’t found Bai Yuan, she would never have escaped Elder Wang’s clutches tonight.

She would not only have lost her innocence, but having lost her yin energy, she would have had no hope of any future breakthroughs.

Fang Rou spoke with Fang Ya at length.

After a long while, Fang Ya finally turned to Bai Yuan apologetically. "Junior Brother Bai, I’ve troubled you."

She knew that by offending Elder Wang today, Bai Yuan had made an enemy who would not let the matter rest.

Bai Yuan smiled faintly. "It’s nothing."

’Compared to getting the Stabilizing Spirit Pearl, offending Elder Wang was nothing,’ he thought. ’Besides, I already have a grudge with Elder Wang over what happened in Wooden Man Alley. And as a disciple of Old Dong, I have no reason to be afraid of him holding it against me.’

Fang Ya took off the crystalline pearl strung on a red thread from around her neck.

"This is the Stabilizing Spirit Pearl."

’This Stabilizing Spirit Pearl was an heirloom from my mother’s side of the family,’ she thought. ’She gave it to me before she left... I never thought it would end up saving my life.’

Bai Yuan’s eyes lit up as he looked at the Stabilizing Spirit Pearl.

’To think I’d see a Stabilizing Spirit Pearl again so soon.’