Chapter 409: Stealing Is Better Than Not Stealing

Whoosh…

The wind howled as Xu Sanyan stood in the open wilderness, his eyes narrowed against the breeze. He stretched his arms wide, savoring the refreshing wind on his face, feeling an indescribable sense of ease and comfort.

This reminded him of his days as a bandit—a time of feasting on meat, hacking off heads with his broadsword, and indulging in arson, murder, plunder, and every conceivable wickedness.

It had been a long time since he’d felt this free. Ever since arriving in the Central Region, it felt like someone was chasing him, forcing him to rush about without rest. Now, thanks to the calamity of the flesh giant, he had escaped the whirlpool of confinement, a blessing in disguise.

He wondered about the Wang Family, his two Madams, their maids, and whether Yang Shuang’er had survived.

Beside him, Lin Fan remained despondent, his mind still replaying his first encounter with Zuoqiu Yi, unable to shake off the memory.

Li Hai, who had been following behind, straightened his expression and spoke slowly,

“Fellow Daoists, this old man is advanced in years and has no desire to meddle in worldly affairs. I only seek a quiet place to live out my remaining days. Let us part ways here.”

“Heh…”

Xu Sanyan didn’t even turn his head, a faint smile curving his lips. “To end your days in peace… Very well, let us part ways here.”

Li Hai’s heart tightened, his wariness instantly rising. He sensed hidden meaning in Xu Sanyan’s words.

His suspicions were confirmed when Xu Sanyan continued, his voice dripping with malice:

“Only… this parting is eternal!”

Before the words faded, a massive hand slammed down, the surging shockwave whipping Li Hai’s robes. His face twisted in shock as he screamed, “Why are you killing me?!”

Bang!

The earth cratered, a bloody smear deeply imprinted into the ground. Li Hai, unable to withstand even a single blow, died instantly.

Xu Sanyan flicked his wrist, and Li Hai’s storage pouch fell into his hand. He opened it to find it overflowing with spirit stones—over ten thousand, a testament to Li Hai’s avarice.

The pouch also contained miscellaneous items, which Xu Sanyan glanced through before storing them all away.

Lin Fan finally snapped out of his daze, staring at the bloody remains on the ground. “Holy Son, why did you kill him?”

Xu Sanyan turned his head indifferently. “What, were you planning to keep him warm at night?”

“Uh…”

“Let’s go.”

“Oh.”

In the southeastern part of the Qian Kingdom lay a small city called Zhangzhi. With a population of only seventy to eighty thousand, it was quite impoverished, its people barely scraping by.

One day, two figures entered the city: one exuded an air of refined elegance and serene composure, while the other was stoic and honest, bearing a black sword on his back. They were none other than Xu Sanyan and Lin Fan.

Zhangzhi City was one of the five cities Xu Sanyan had chosen as formation bases. Located in the west, it represented the metal element and symbolized ruthless execution.

“Holy Son, what are we doing here?” Lin Fan asked, puzzled.

Xu Sanyan pondered for a moment before replying, “I have a task for you. Can you handle it?”

“Holy Son, please instruct me. This disciple will give it my all!” Lin Fan replied solemnly.

“Go into the secret realm and gather as many soul crystals as possible. The more, the better.”

“Uh…” Lin Fan hesitated. It wasn’t that he was unwilling to do the task, but rather that he dreaded returning to the Jade Clan and enduring that woman’s torment again.

Unable to refuse outright, he could only nod reluctantly. “This disciple accepts the mission.”

“Good!” Xu Sanyan clapped him on the shoulder and produced two sticks of incense. “This is Soul-Summoning Incense. It has remarkable properties and will greatly assist you.”

After explaining the incense’s properties, Xu Sanyan led Lin Fan to a secluded spot and sent him into the secret realm.

Now alone, Xu Sanyan first circled the city to familiarize himself with its layout and the various factions within. Finally, he retrieved the mother-child stone and sent a message:

“I’ve arrived. Where are you?”

A moment later, a reply came through the stone: “Thirty li south of Zhangzhi City, at Zhangzhi Mountain.”

Xu Sanyan pocketed the stone and strode out of the city gate, gazing at the mortal merchants lining the streets. The sight felt like stepping into another world, as if he had returned to his days in the Qi Kingdom.

Cultivators were present in the city, but most were only at the Celestial Being Realm. Foundation Establishment cultivators were rare, and not a single Dao Seeking Realm cultivator could be seen.

The city gates stood unguarded, swinging freely open to all who passed through, a testament to the city’s lack of defenses.

Following the main road south, a low mountain soon appeared in the distance—Zhangzhi Mountain.

The person Xu Sanyan had been communicating with was Chang Yulian, whom he had sent earlier to collect fresh blood for his array.

A figure waited at the foot of the mountain. Upon seeing Xu Sanyan, she flew forward and nestled into his arms, cooing coquettishly, “Master, you’ve finally come! I’ve been so lonely these past few days.”

Xu Sanyan frowned slightly as Chang Yulian approached, a pungent, fishy stench assaulting his nostrils.

“Heh, little hussy,” he sneered, “still pretending to be lonely? You’ve probably been keeping a whole harem of young boys.”

“Oh, please! I’ve been as pure as jade,” Chang Yulian retorted, her voice slightly breathless. She quickly changed the subject, “Master, come with me. I’ve been working diligently these past few days, taking meticulous care of everything you entrusted to me.”

With that, the two climbed over the low mountain. Behind it lay an artificially carved cave. Chang Yulian slipped inside first, while Xu Sanyan stood at the entrance, twitching his nostrils. The fishy stench grew even stronger.

The cave sloped downward, pitch-black inside, but this posed no obstacle for Xu Sanyan.

After about a hundred steps, the path forked. Chang Yulian pointed left, “This is where I live,” then gestured right, “And over there is the Blood Pool.”

Xu Sanyan had no interest in her quarters. He strode purposefully to the right, the stench of blood growing thicker with each step. Ten more steps brought him into a vast cavern.

In the center of the cavern lay a deep pit. The blood within had thickened, some even congealing into solid clumps.

“How many people is this?” Xu Sanyan asked, pinching his nose against the overwhelming stench.

Chang Yulian, seemingly accustomed to the smell, counted on her fingers. “About a few hundred, I’d say. I didn’t want to draw too much attention, so I only targeted some merchants, travelers, and refugees.”

Her casual tone made it sound as if she were describing squashing ants underfoot, utterly indifferent to the lives she had taken.

Xu Sanyan nodded slightly. This should suffice for a while.

In their conversation, ordinary humans were treated no differently than pigs or dogs, their lives utterly disregarded.

Xu Sanyan emptied a storage pouch specifically for storing the fresh blood. Ignoring Chang Yulian’s attempts to detain him, he returned to Zhangzhi City.

In that oppressive atmosphere, Xu Sanyan had no interest in engaging in any intimacy with her. Besides, he knew Chang Yulian inside and out, from top to bottom, from surface to depths—there was no longer any thrill of discovery.

The old saying still held true: a wife is inferior to a concubine, a concubine to a prostitute, a prostitute to a stolen encounter, and a stolen encounter to one that remains unattainable. In the end, it all boiled down to the human tendency to crave novelty and tire of the familiar.

In the county magistrate’s office in Zhangzhi City, Magistrate Yu Huisheng sat on the dais, his brow furrowed with worry. A few strands of white had begun to appear in his once jet-black hair.

His mood had been foul lately. Every other day, someone came to report a missing person, and the number of disappearances had already exceeded a hundred, with no leads in sight.

If the missing were all commoners, it might have been manageable. But among them was his own brother-in-law.

(End of the Chapter)