Chapter 1699: Shadow of the Dark Wings (Part Two)

Over time, Li Yan gathered news of Mu Guyue and Mu Sha. As he feared, trouble found them almost immediately after they returned. It wasn’t because of Mu Guyue’s beauty—though she was striking, such looks were common among the Black Demons. Instead, they were being targeted by a tribal executive who was withholding their cultivation resources.

Mu Guyue had been an orphan, rising through the military ranks through sheer brutality and skill. She lacked a powerful patron. Returning to the upper-realm tribe as a newcomer, such suppression was considered standard procedure. The acquaintances she did have weren’t about to help her over a “minor” matter unless she offered them significant tribute.

The mother and son knew the rules of the tribe. Initially, they simply ignored the man. But the executive grew bolder, buoyed by his own backing and the knowledge that Mu Guyue was a “nobody” from the lower realms. After six months, he withheld an entire bottle of pills from Mu Sha and began siphoning off Mu Guyue’s resources for himself.

Mu Guyue’s rage finally reached its limit. She decided to execute the man in secret. In the lower realm, she would have issued a formal challenge—the most honorable path for a demon. Between two people of the same realm, such a challenge was rarely refused; to lose was a personal shame, but to issue the challenge was the mark of a true warrior. To refuse was to lose one’s demonic pride and invite ridicule.

But Mu Guyue wasn’t interested in a formal challenge anymore. She found it too tedious. She wanted to end his life quietly, without exposing herself. Had Li Yan been there, he would have done the same. She began to plan, waiting for the perfect moment…

But before she could strike, the executive suddenly vanished. He was gone for days, and Mu Guyue could find no trace of him.

‘Did he discover my intent?’ she wondered. She grew wary, fearing she had left a trail. She decided to abort the plan, but after reviewing her actions, she found no flaws. She had been exceptionally careful.

While she was suspicious, no one else in the tribe seemed to notice his absence. An executive in charge of resources often traveled to markets; missing for a month was normal. But two months later, she learned that the man was officially missing, and an investigation had been launched.

She was stunned. She immediately sought out Mu Sha to ask if he had done something. Mu Sha was vindictive and cruel; he might have found a way to kill a Spirit Transformation master despite his own rank.

Mu Sha was equally confused. “I thought you did it, Mother,” he said.

They eventually concluded that the man’s arrogance had earned him many enemies, or perhaps he had simply been killed by an outsider during his travels. Soon, the investigation reached them—as it did everyone who had a grudge against the man. But they hadn’t done it, so there were no flaws to find. They had been in the tribe while the man was seen leaving by the sentries.

Eventually, the matter was dropped. He was just a Spirit Transformation cultivator; his backing only cared as long as it didn’t waste too much time. They knew his habits and had likely warned him to be less greedy. His death was not surprising in a world where cultivators died every day while on missions or searching for fortune. Demons, in particular, disdained soul-lamps, fearing they could be used against them. A demon could be dead for years before anyone realized.

But a year later, Mu Guyue noticed another anomaly. Several other cultivators who had been a nuisance to her or Mu Sha also met with accidents during their travels. One in particular caught her eye: he was the senior brother of the dead executive and had been secretly investigating her. He too had died during a trip.

He had allegedly gotten into a fight at a market over a refining material. The market guards broke it up, but the two left with murder in their eyes. That evening, as he left the market, he was ambushed and killed within a few rounds, his treasures looted.

The Black Demon tribe didn’t hunt down enemies for market brawls unless a Void Refinement expert was involved. Why would they coddle their members like infants? How else would the tribe stay strong?

Mu Guyue connected the dots. All those who targeted her were meeting quiet ends, and the methods felt… familiar.

A few months later, a voice transmission talisman appeared within her cave’s restrictions. She thought it was Mu Sha or tribal business, but the message left her speechless.

She quietly left the tribe and traveled forty thousand miles to a market town. At a street corner, she saw Li Yan.

He was smiling at her. Mu Guyue had already guessed the truth on the way, but she had to be sure it wasn’t an impostor. This was Black Demon territory; how could Li Yan enter silently? She knew his concealment was good, but the tribe had many Void Refinement and even Body Integration masters.

She approached him, quietly releasing her soul power to probe him. It was instantly blocked. Li Yan silently mouthed three words: “Earth-True Domain.”

She was certain. Unless he had been soul-searched or possessed—both of which would have stripped him of his specific soul-defenses—it had to be him.

They entered a private room in a tavern. After setting her own restrictions, she asked, “Both of those matters… were your doing?”

“Yes. It’s too easy for you to leave a trail if you strike personally. I waited until I was sure you were truly settled before calling you out. I’m leaving now,” Li Yan said with a smile.

“How… how did you know what was happening inside? And how did you get a talisman into my cave?” Mu Guyue’s heart trembled. She had never felt so protected. Even in the past, Li Yan had been direct with her, but this was different. She was proud and strong, but his actions caused a storm in her heart.

“I have my ways. Don’t worry about that. You know me—I wouldn’t have struck unless I was certain of success,” Li Yan patted her hand on the table. His words were technically “cold,” but she knew that if things had gone wrong, he would have fought until the end.

As he expected, she didn’t press him further. He had too many secrets, and she didn’t need to know them so long as he was loyal to her and their son.

“I called you here to tell you the trouble is gone. Also, I have a gift for you both. Do not use this unless it is absolutely necessary. It requires a specific environment; if you’re careless, you might not even be able to save yourself,” Li Yan said.

He produced twelve delicate jade bottles and a jade slip. Six were red, six were green.

“The red ones contain three different types of lethal poison. You can distinguish them by the size and color of the pills. Give three to Mu Sha. Each is a miracle of toxicity, designed for assassination. Use them with the environment in mind. Even a Void Refinement cultivator would struggle to neutralize them, and there is a high chance of death. For anyone at or below the Spirit Transformation realm, they are an absolute death sentence.

If used correctly, they are silent killers. With your typical methods, no one will ever trace these back to you. The six green bottles are the corresponding antidotes. I’ve recorded the methods of use, the properties of the poisons, and the ways to distinguish the pills in the jade slip. After you and Mu Sha read it, destroy it. Leave no trace. And it’s best to keep these in the Space Reflection. Once Mu Sha develops his soul power, give him one for safekeeping…”

As she watched Li Yan’s meticulous, almost nagging explanation, Mu Guyue’s eyes grew red and misty. The man before her became a blurred, shimmering figure, yet he had never been clearer in her heart.

He always did things she could never have predicted. Even after saying he had left, he had remained as a silent guardian—a pair of great, dark wings spread over her in the night…