’Elder Wang from Wooden Man Alley?’

Bai Yuan frowned.

He didn’t understand why the man had appeared before his small courtyard on Wan Jun Mountain.

After killing Wang Ding that night, he had already told Old Dong about it.

But Old Dong hadn’t reacted much. After all, only Wang Ding had been seen, so the matter wasn’t necessarily related to the Wang Family.

If they were to make a move, they needed ironclad evidence. Only then could they finish the job completely.

Old Dong never started a fight he couldn’t finish by annihilating the entire family.

After a moment of thought, Bai Yuan put away his Night Clothes and walked out of his room. This was Wan Jun Peak. Unless Elder Wang had lost his mind, he would never dare to attack him here.

"Elder Wang?"

Bai Yuan pushed open the courtyard gate.

Seeing Bai Yuan appear, Elder Wang’s smile was like a blooming old chrysanthemum. It was an even more fitting image paired with his green robes.

"Nephew Bai, I’ve come today specifically to resolve our misunderstanding."

’A misunderstanding?’

Bai Yuan didn’t think there was any misunderstanding between them, but he remained silent.

Elder Wang said, "About Wooden Man Alley... I was misled by the exaggerated slander of those little bastards. The mechanical wooden men were just meant to be broken for fun anyway. It’s no big deal."

He pushed all the blame for the Wooden Man Alley incident onto his subordinates, absolving himself completely.

As for the matter with Fang Ya that night, he didn’t mention it at all.

For an Elder of the Divine Mansion Sect to be so humble before an Inner Sect Disciple was a sufficient show of sincerity.

That’s right. The reason Elder Wang came to Wan Jun Peak was because he was scared.

Of course, he wasn’t afraid of the current Bai Yuan, but of Bai Yuan’s potential, and the man backing him—Dong Wanjun.

Wooden Man Alley belonged to San Yang Peak, which didn’t have much animosity with Wan Jun Peak.

He had already heard about Bai Yuan’s astonishing battle record at the Dragon Gate Platform a few days ago. He certainly didn’t want to make an enemy of such a genius, especially one protected by Dong Wanjun.

At the end of the day, the enmity between him and Bai Yuan wasn’t that significant.

Seeing that Bai Yuan remained silent for a long time,

Elder Wang took an exquisite wooden box from his sleeve.

"Nephew Bai, you were promoted to the Inner Sect and I haven’t had a chance to congratulate you. Please accept this humble gift as my apology."

Bai Yuan raised an eyebrow.

He hadn’t expected Elder Wang to be so willing to swallow his pride, actually giving a gift to a newly promoted Inner Sect Disciple.

He took the small wooden box and lifted the lid with his right finger.

Inside lay a piece of dried meat that emitted a fresh, unusual fragrance.

Tier Six Monster Flesh!

Bai Yuan had seen Tier Six Monster Flesh before, so he recognized it at a glance.

Although Elder Wang was an Elder of the Divine Mansion Sect, Tier Six Monster Flesh was extremely precious. Even he didn’t have much of it. To produce such a large piece today showed he was truly sparing no expense.

"You’re too kind, Elder Wang. I was the one who was reckless before. I really can’t accept this gift."

Bai Yuan smiled.

Though his words said one thing, his hands showed no intention of returning the wooden box.

’Little rascal...’ Elder Wang cursed inwardly.

However, since Bai Yuan had verbally yielded, it meant the grudge between them was settled.

"It’s just a small trifle. Nephew Bai, please, accept it without worry."

Elder Wang’s smile grew even wider.

As long as Bai Yuan accepted the monster flesh, his trip wouldn’t have been in vain.

The two of them exchanged more pleasantries and false courtesies.

Finally, with a loud laugh, Elder Wang descended the mountain and left.

Bai Yuan gazed at the wooden box in his hand, his mood excellent. With this monster flesh, he could make a lot more nourishing soup.

In his previous life, there was a saying: "First learn medicine, then learn martial arts." It really made a lot of sense.

It was a pity that most Martial Artists in this world were unwilling to spend time on medical skills.

Although Bai Yuan didn’t know medicine, his culinary skills were more potent than most medicinal herbs and stones.

He carefully placed the newly acquired monster flesh in a hidden compartment, then stuffed his Night Clothes into the bundle on his back and headed down the mountain.

...

「Late at night.」

Huanglong Prefecture was as bustling as ever, its many tall buildings brightly lit.

Of course, that was a world belonging to the rich masters and young lords. The common folk had long since blown out their oil lamps and fallen into a deep sleep.

In the eastern part of the city, inside an elegant little courtyard.

A single candle flame flickered ceaselessly.

The wind from outside couldn’t possibly blow into the room, so this draft could only be coming from within.

The candlelight cast the silhouettes of a man and a woman clearly onto the paper window.

The woman’s soft moans could be heard from time to time.

But in the next instant, the woman’s voice stopped abruptly, as if she were a goose with its throat being squeezed.

Or perhaps, the woman’s neck really was being squeezed.

A decadent aura filled the room. Beneath the red canopy, a stark-naked woman stared with wide eyes, looking at the lover before her in disbelief.

"You..."

She managed to force out a sound.

But the man who had been intimate with her just moments ago paid her no mind, his expression colder than ten-thousand-year-old ice.

The woman let out a pained groan.

A cruel arc formed on the man’s lips. He was truly going to kill the woman before him.

If a Martial Artist were present, they would have recognized at a glance that this man was clearly practicing an Evil Refining Technique. He would first have intercourse with the woman and then brutally murder her—a truly vicious method.

This Cultivation Technique was called the Stealing Yin Technique. Martial Artists who cultivated it broke through realms with extreme speed. It had once caused a bloodbath in Huanglong Prefecture, but in the end, all Martial Artists who practiced it were executed, and the technique itself had long since been destroyed.

Unexpectedly, it had reappeared in the world today.

Just as the man was trembling with excitement from his cultivation—

Suddenly!

His head jerked.

Instinct told him someone was behind him.

It was a gut feeling, born from a Martial Artist’s very instinct.

Just as he was about to turn his head, a curved blade glowing with a demonic red light filled his vision.

Tss...

The curved blade was so sharp that it made only a faint sound as it sliced across the man’s neck.

A head hit the floor!

The man’s eyes were wide open. Even in death, he didn’t know who had killed him.

The hand that had been gripping the woman’s throat fell away, limp.

The woman finally had a chance to breathe. She clutched her throat with both hands, gasping for air.

But when she opened her eyes again, all she saw was a headless corpse lying beside her.

"AHHH!"

A scream woke far too many people.

...

The Wang Family Mansion was brightly lit.

The Wang Family Patriarch stared grimly at the headless corpse on the bed.

"Take her away," he said coldly.

Several men who looked like house servants dragged the still-undressed woman away like a pig or a dog.

The woman had been scared witless; no more clues could be gotten from her.

The Wang Family Patriarch took a deep breath.

In just a few short days, the Wang Family had lost two of its outstanding disciples. He suspected someone was deliberately targeting them.

The killer had taken the head, a clear signature of a Ghostwriter.

’The Feng Family?’

’The Luo Family?’

’Or the Zhang Family?’

The Wang Family Patriarch went through all the factions that held a grudge against the Wang Family, but he had no leads.

"Patriarch, what should we do with the Young Master’s body?"

"Find a place and bury it," the Wang Family Patriarch said flatly.

Since he was already dead, he wasn’t worth any more of his energy—not even if he was his own son.

Of course, the matter would not end here.

Tomorrow, the names of those other family members would appear on a Ghostwriter’s Book of Life and Death.