Chapter 140: Dark Undercurrents

Wang Changyu looked at the two individuals, her face clouded with confusion. According to her plan, Wang Changsheng should have appeared, masked, to stage a robbery and murder, using the incident to observe Li Qiwen's reaction. Wang Changsheng had personally agreed to this.

"Why are there two Qi Refining cultivators? Could they be helpers brought by my ninth brother?" Wang Changyu's beautiful eyes were filled with doubt; she didn't recognize either of them. She glanced at Li Qiwen, who looked genuinely tense, not as if he were feigning it.

Under a towering tree in the distance, a grasshopper leaped up, hit empty space as if it had struck something solid, and fell back down. Wang Changsheng was hidden precisely there. According to his agreement with Wang Changyu, he was supposed to appear and commit robbery and murder to gauge Li Qiwen's reaction. However, with two Qi Refining cultivators suddenly showing up, was Li Qiwen perhaps planning to play the hero and save the maiden?

"Who are you people? Fairy Wang's relatives are not far from here; don't cause any trouble." Li Qiwen stepped forward, shielding Wang Changyu behind him, and said, bracing himself.

"Husband, don't waste words with him. The Wang family's stronghold isn't far. Kill them quickly and bring this girl's head back to report." The short, stout woman's eyes showed malice. She conjured a red pair of scissors, which grew larger in the wind, and sent them flying towards Li Qiwen. The burly middle-aged man summoned two gleaming blue short swords and struck at Wang Changyu. Their coordination was highly practiced; clearly, this wasn't their first time doing such a thing.

Li Qiwen hastily activated a talisman in his hand, which transformed into two fist-sized red fireballs. Immediately after, he summoned a blue short sword and engaged them.

"Fairy Wang, you must leave quickly; I'll cover your retreat."

"No, I won't go. If we leave, we leave together." Wang Changyu summoned two blue short swords and met the attack.

A series of dull thuds from clashing metal rang out as several spiritual artifacts fought fiercely. Li Qiwen, only at the fourth level of Qi Refining, did not have abundant spiritual power. Once his power was depleted, both he and Wang Changyu would surely die. He hastily pulled a stack of red talismans from his pocket and threw them at his opponents. As soon as the talismans left his hand, they transformed into over a dozen red fireballs, hurtling towards the other side. The short, stout woman calmly summoned a red round shield and held it in front of her.

"Boom!" A burst of explosions erupted as the dozen or so fireballs struck the red shield, flashing brilliantly before dissipating.

Li Qiwen frowned deeply and secretly communicated to Wang Changyu: "Fairy Wang, these villains possess profound spiritual power. If you stay with me, I will surely die. Please leave quickly; I have my own way to escape." Wang Changyu looked troubled and was about to refuse, but her ears twitched, her eyes shifted, and she agreed. While controlling her two blue short swords, she slapped a Flying Talisman onto herself. With a flash of blue light, a pair of blue wings, about a zhang in size, sprouted from her back. She flapped them vigorously and ascended into the air.

"No, that girl is trying to escape! Stop her!"

"Go quickly, Fairy Wang!" Li Qiwen shouted, pulled out a gleaming blue talisman, and threw it at his opponents. As soon as the blue talisman left his hand, it transformed into hundreds of blue wind blades, showering down on the other side. Hundreds of blue wind blades struck the red shield, shattering it into pieces. Fortunately, the short, stout woman crushed a shimmering blue talisman, which formed a hedgehog-like light barrier, enveloping both her and the burly middle-aged man. Seizing this opportunity, Wang Changyu's blue wings flapped furiously, and she flew off into the distance. Without anyone controlling them, the two blue short swords fell to the ground.

"You brat! How dare you ruin our plans? Die!" The burly middle-aged man controlled his two blue short swords, striking at Li Qiwen. Li Qiwen hastily summoned a blue shield, which spun around him erratically. The two blue short swords struck the shield, producing dull thuds.

By this time, Wang Changyu had vanished. The three continued to fight fiercely, not appearing to be faking it. Wang Changsheng had been hidden nearby all along; the three Qi Refining cultivators couldn't possibly have detected his presence.

"You brat! How dare you ruin our plans? Die!" The burly middle-aged man cackled menacingly as his two blue short swords glowed brightly and slashed towards Li Qiwen. Li Qiwen, only at the fourth level of Qi Refining, found it extremely difficult to control two spiritual artifacts, and his face quickly turned pale. Seeing the two blue short swords bearing down on him, his face turned ashen, and he closed his eyes. The imagined intense pain didn't arrive, only two dull thuds.

"No! A Foundation Establishment cultivator! Run! Ah!" Li Qiwen opened his eyes and saw that the short, stout woman and the burly middle-aged man were entangled by a golden thread, unable to move. A young man in blue robes stood before Li Qiwen. Judging by his spiritual power fluctuations, he was clearly a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Seeing Wang Changsheng, Li Qiwen didn't dare to delay. He bowed respectfully, cupped his fists, and said, "This junior, Li Qiwen, thanks senior for saving my life."

"I just happened to be passing by. I've been tracking these two for a long time. You should leave quickly; I have questions for them." Li Qiwen, naturally not daring to refuse, quickly picked up Wang Changyu's spiritual artifacts, bowed to Wang Changsheng, and hurried down the mountain at great speed.

"Senior, please spare us! Senior, please spare us! This is our first time; please have mercy!" The burly middle-aged man pleaded for mercy.

"Answer my questions honestly, and I can let you leave this place. Was this incident your spontaneous idea, or were you instructed by someone?" Wang Changsheng stood with his hands behind his back, his tone calm, a glint of murderous intent flashing in the depths of his eyes. The burly middle-aged man showed hesitation, wanting to speak but holding back.

"Hmph, husband, don't listen to him. Do whatever he wants to do to us. Even if we tell the truth, he still won't let us go." A cold light flickered in Wang Changsheng's eyes as he sneered, "You have no choice. I'll give you five breaths of time. If you don't answer by then, you can go meet King Yama!"

The burly middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, then said, "We don't know who the person is. He offered us a thousand spirit stones to kill that girl just now and leave the man alive."

"What did the man and woman look like? Did he mention his surname? Do you know the origin of that woman?"

"The man was tall and thin, at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and used a pair of scythe-like spiritual artifacts. He didn't reveal his background. The woman just now is a disciple of the Wang family from Qinglian Mountain. We didn't want to attack her, but our young son was taken by him. If we didn't obey him, he would kill our son. Senior, every word I've said is the truth. Please spare our lives!"

Wang Changsheng frowned deeply. The mastermind clearly didn't want to reveal their identity. "How was that person supposed to contact you after the deed was done?"

"He said that when the time came, we were to take the girl's head to Baiyun Ridge in Yunzhou for exchange."

Wang Changsheng pondered for a moment. With a single hand gesture towards the two, the golden threads binding them loosened and flew into his sleeve, disappearing. "Leave your storage bags and get out!" The two were overjoyed immediately. After thanking him, they dropped their storage bags and used their Cloud Stepping art to leave.

They hadn't flown far before Wang Changsheng summoned three blue flying daggers and sent them towards the two. Two screams rang out, and the two individuals fell from mid-air.

"Fools! I said I would let you leave *here*, but I never said I would let you escape!" Wang Changsheng picked up their storage bags, then checked their bodies to ensure nothing was missed. After confirming, he used his Cloud Stepping art and flew towards Qinglian Mountain. He had originally intended to capture them and interrogate them under torture. However, from what they had revealed, the mastermind was extremely cautious. Torturing them would likely yield the same information, so he simply decided to dispose of them early.

Upon returning to Qinglian Mountain, Wang Changsheng recounted the incident to Wang Yaozong. Wang Yaozong immediately convened a clan meeting, inviting several clan elders for a discussion.