Chapter 195: Listening to His Live Stream

Ma Wu sat in the wooden cabin, still shaken.

He and Li Banfeng pondered together what went wrong today.

This time they were lucky; Ma Wu's life was spared. But if they didn't figure out what happened, they might not be so fortunate next time.

Li Banfeng thought Ma Wu brought too few people: "Only three of you went, and A Qin was the only one capable of fighting."

Ma Wu disagreed that it was due to a lack of manpower: "The Ma family has carried out many assassinations. Having too many people is actually a hindrance. A Qin and Xiao Chuanzi, one for attack and one for defense, and I could recognize Lu Xiaolan and provide support at a critical moment. The three of us were enough for the job. We failed today, first, because of Da Boyien Si, and second, because there's an internal mole."

"Why are you so sure there's a mole?"

"Seventh Brother, think carefully. Lu Xiaolan didn't know I was going after her, right?"Li Banfeng nodded: "She shouldn't have known.""Then why was Da Boyien Si able to find me as soon as he left his territory, and even gain the upper hand? This proves he knew where I was hiding."

Li Banfeng agreed on this point; Da Boyien Si did indeed know Ma Wu's hiding place beforehand. But this wasn't hard to explain."Lu Xiaolan is a scrying cultivator. You stayed near her territory for three days; she must have heard your movements."

"How could she hear? Just aimlessly listening around? You have something called radar in the outer states; does Lu Xiaolan have radar growing on her? Without anyone tipping her off beforehand, Lu Xiaolan couldn't have found me by just searching aimlessly. A Qin is no pushover either. She's done stakeouts and assassinations many times; she chose the spot. How could it be exposed so easily?"

Ma Wu had a point.Li Banfeng asked, "Who could the mole be?"

Ma Wu was silent for a moment, then said, "Seventh Brother, do you know why I took A Qin this time and not anyone else? We still have a good hand on our territory."Li Banfeng was startled: "Are you talking about Zuo Wugang? You suspect he's the mole?"Ma Wu nodded: "He used to be a member of the Lu family."

Li Banfeng shook his head: "We can't make wild guesses; that only stirs up unrest."

Ma Wu said with a grave expression, "Lu Xiaolan is waiting outside, and there's a mole watching inside. We're going to suffer a huge loss. Lu Xiaolan must be dealt with, and the mole must be rooted out. I think it's Zuo Wugang. He has feelings for A Qin. If A Qin liked him, I would have no problem with that; I'm not lacking. But A Qin doesn't care for him, so he blamed it on me and wants to get rid of me with Lu Xiaolan's help."

Li Banfeng was truly exasperated. Two men could actually squabble over a person like that. Fine young men, yet they were so fixated on her. Li Banfeng truly looked down on them!

But Li Banfeng was convinced that Zuo Wugang was definitely not the mole. Zuo Wugang had signed a contract written on special paper. Unless he could somehow nullify that contract, he would have already perished. But if not him, then who?

Ma Wu said, "Seventh Brother, leave Lu Xiaolan to me, and you handle finding the mole. A major crisis is unfolding, a matter of life and death. We cannot afford to be soft-hearted!"

They wouldn't be soft-hearted, but they couldn't act rashly. Li Banfeng told Ma Wu, "I'll talk to someone first. Once I understand things, then we'll make our move."

Late at night, Li Banfeng returned to his own territory. There was a mole in the ten-mile territory, and anything could be known by them. His own one-mile territory was safer. Li Banfeng set up the offering table, waited quietly, and a ghostly flame appeared above it.

"Brother Li Qi, there's something you might not understand: even territorial lords need to sleep.""I see!" Li Banfeng suddenly realized. "So when do you sleep?""I just... What do you need me for?"

Li Banfeng wanted to confirm something: "That group has already established new territory on Autumn Leaf's land. If we kill them later, Autumn Leaf won't cause us trouble, right?""The new territory has been established. As long as it's not within the original territory, the territorial god won't interfere with the life or death of the territory owner. That's the principle, but this matter...""Let's not talk about principles today. You're a reasonable person, but Autumn Leaf doesn't seem to be as reasonable."

Shui Yongquan sighed: "I'm also worried about this. Autumn Leaf wants some popularity, but he's not very bright. He dotes on pioneers whenever he sees them, but this group of pioneers arrived under suspicious circumstances."

Li Banfeng asked, "Do you think they are connected to the pioneers who settled along the border previously?"The ghostly flame flickered before the offering table as Shui Yongquan pondered."I think there's a connection, but I can't say exactly what it is. I'll go talk to Old Elephant Qiu, and then to a few other territorial gods. I don't know what results we'll get. Brother Li Qi, I have a feeling something big is about to happen—not just in my hundred-mile territory, but across the entire Puluo State. I can't control what happens in Puluo State; I just hope it doesn't happen here. I don't contend with others. I came to this remote place just for peace and quiet. Brother, I want us all to have a few peaceful days."

Peaceful days were no longer possible.In the council hall, Xiao Genzi, bruised and swollen, kept apologizing to Ma Wu: "Fifth Master, I'm so sorry. I truly fought with all my might, but they were too strong; I couldn't beat them." Xiao Genzi had led men to escort a batch of goods to Lanyang Village, but the goods were ambushed halfway. Xiao Genzi risked his life to bring his delivery brothers back. This wasn't the first batch of goods stolen; one was ambushed yesterday, and several escorting brothers were severely injured. Now Ma Wu dared not send out any goods. As long as they did, Lu Xiaolan would be watching from her territory; there was no escaping her gaze. Ma Wu didn't blame Xiao Genzi: "Bringing the men back is a good enough accomplishment." He had someone treat Xiao Genzi's injuries and also gave him a reward.

Zuo Wugang, who was nearby, said, "Fifth Master, next time you send out goods, let me escort them.""Alright, if you want to go, then go," Ma Wu smiled. "I'm going to take a walk and visit our neighbor."Zuo Wugang felt that Ma Wu's attitude was off; it had been strange for the past two days, but he didn't dare to ask too many questions.

Leaving the council hall, Ma Wu walked to the edge of his territory. He looked towards Lu Xiaolan's territory. He felt an impulse: he wanted to rush into Lu Xiaolan's territory, drag her out, and take her life. As thoughts raced through his mind, Ma Wu let out a long breath. Calm down. He had to calm down. Lu Xiaolan had Da Boyien Si and her mother, Zhuo Yuling, by her side. She had established new territory and was under the protection of the territorial god. Dealing with her wouldn't be easy; he absolutely couldn't act impulsively.

Ma Wu took a deep breath, paused for a moment, and turned to leave, when he suddenly heard someone speak behind him:"Fifth Brother, were you looking for me?"Ma Wu was startled. He spun around and found Lu Xiaolan right behind him! When did she get here? How did she know I was here?"Fifth Brother, were you thinking of me?" Lu Xiaolan smiled as she looked at Ma Wu. She hadn't crossed the territory boundary.Ma Wu smiled: "How did you know I was thinking of you?""We're telepathic, Fifth Brother. I know everything you're thinking." Lu Xiaolan's tone was playful, just like when they first met.

Ma Wu's gaze swept over Lu Xiaolan's eyes: "Guess what I'm thinking now?""I guess you hate me intensely right now, just as intensely as I hated you back then, wishing I could kill you.""You guessed quite accurately." Ma Wu prepared to activate his technique.

Lu Xiaolan shook her head: "Fifth Brother, you used to be a decisive person. Why have you become so timid now? Whether you want me or hate me, I'm right here. Why don't you dare to come closer? Even if you want to kill me, you need to get closer!"

Ma Wu drew a dagger.Lu Xiaolan feigned surprise: "You're going to kill me with that? Fifth Brother, do you think that thing can kill me?"Ma Wu knew the dagger couldn't kill Lu Xiaolan. He intended to use it to spill blood, thereby gaining the territorial god's protection. Lu Xiaolan saw through his intentions and said with a smile, "Fifth Brother, look how petty you are. I don't want to kill you today, so you don't need to worry. But it'll be hard to say in the future. If you're afraid, then just hide here your whole life and never step out."

Lu Xiaolan left.Ma Wu gripped the dagger tightly and lowered his head. He had no one by his side. If he had taken one more step just now, he might have lost his life.

Back in the council hall, Ma Wu looked at Zuo Wugang and said, "Guess what just happened? I wanted to go see our neighbor, and she knew I was coming. She even came specifically to my doorstep to find me. Don't you think that's quite a coincidence?"Zuo Wugang didn't know how to respond; he couldn't grasp Ma Wu's meaning.

Ma Wu was silent for a moment, then told Zuo Wugang to leave. Sitting alone in the council hall, Ma Wu repeatedly reminded himself to stay calm. Zuo Wugang might not be the mole; finding the mole was Seventh Brother's task. But he couldn't calm down.

"Fifth Master, the newspaper."Xiao Chuanzi brought two newspapers into the council hall. Ma Wu's subordinates had brought them back from Green Water City. Because of the long journey, the newspapers were three days old. Ma Wu saw his name on the second page."Fifth Young Master Ma Still Formidable, Lanyang New Territory Making Big Moves."Making big moves? I can't even leave my own damn home.Ma Wu let out a bitter laugh and tore up the newspaper. The family business he and Seventh Brother had painstakingly built was going to be ruined by Lu Xiaolan.

In Yuezhou's Three Institutes, He Jiaqing lay alone on his bed and let out a laugh."Ma Wu seems a bit agitated lately."A voice responded in his ear: "He's suffered so much and finally got to enjoy some good fortune. Now that good fortune is about to end, he must feel terrible."

He Jiaqing sighed: "I feel quite sorry for him too. Have you ascertained Xiaolan's cultivation level yet?""It's possible she's hiding it well. I've probed several times, but she seems to still be at the fourth level.""Still at the fourth level, which proves the item isn't with her; it's with my friend.""Is that Li Qi, the one you mentioned, your friend?""I heard his voice; there's no mistake. He was my best friend during my four years of college."

"Who should we send to get the item back?""We can't send our own people. Find a way to get Lu Xiaolan to go. Our identities can't be exposed.""Can Lu Xiaolan get it back?""Yes, she can. My friend is a reasonable person, and Xiaolan really wants that item. Just tell her a few convincing words, and Xiaolan will definitely go. Let the two of them talk it out. What's borrowed must eventually be returned. If he doesn't return it, he'll suffer a loss. And if he suffers a loss but still doesn't want to return it, then someone will die. He has a good relationship with Ma Wu. If Ma Wu dies over this, he'll also feel heartbroken."

"So, if he returns the item, he gets to live?""We'll see. Some things I can't be sure of. In the future, if you hear his voice again, forward it directly to me. In the outer states, they call that a 'live broadcast,' you understand?""I understand.""I want to hear him talk. He's very interesting when he speaks. It's been too long since I've seen him; I miss him a bit." He Jiaqing smiled and ended the communication.