The wind howled savagely through the courtyard, whipping dried leaves into spiraling eddies that danced across the ground. Lu Sheng swept his gaze over the empty yard. Finding no one, he quickened his pace, circling past the bedroom toward the backyard. Two small, isolated latrines stood there, separated from the other structures.
As he approached, the silhouette of a lone figure appeared beside one of the doors. The person stiffened immediately at his presence.
“Who’s that?!”
Lu Sheng halted, startled. He stepped closer, and the dim light revealed the familiar face of the handsome Young Master he had seen earlier—an inner force expert.
The man gripped a short sword tightly, its blade glinting faintly. His bright, watchful eyes betrayed sharp vigilance.
“This Brother, did you come looking for missing people too?” Li Shunxi asked once he recognized Lu Sheng.
“Missing people?” Lu Sheng’s eyes narrowed as a cold unease crept into his chest.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you know, Brother?” Li Shunxi paused, caught off guard by Lu Sheng’s reaction.
“My two brothers went out to the latrine. It’s been a while, yet they haven’t returned. I grew worried and came to check on them,” Lu Sheng replied.
Li Shunxi’s expression darkened. “In that case… two more have gone missing.”
“What do you mean, Brother?” Lu Sheng stepped forward and peered through the narrow gap of the half-open wooden doors. A foul stench drifted out, but the cramped interior was completely empty.
His face sank.
“You mean… those people from earlier—the ladies and guards who came with you…”
“All gone. Every one of them,” Li Shunxi whispered. “There were so many… perhaps they’re trapped somewhere.”
“Let’s search the area. The manor isn’t that large. We might find clues,” Lu Sheng said, licking his lips as frustration tightened in his chest. He had already lost two men before even glimpsing the real enemy.
Li Shunxi nodded. The two circled the backyard quickly and soon came upon a kitchen tucked into a corner.
Li Shunxi pushed the door open first and stepped inside, short sword poised.
The wooden door opened soundlessly, revealing a kitchen buried under a layer of dust. Woks lay overturned, shards of porcelain glittered across the floor, and the stove tops were draped with thick webs. In one corner, rotten scraps of food had long decayed into a dark, sour mess.
“How long has this kitchen been abandoned?” Li Shunxi muttered with a frown. He shot a glance at Lu Sheng, noting the calmness in his expression. This clearly wasn’t Lu Sheng’s first brush with the uncanny.
“You’ve dealt with ghosts before, haven’t you, Brother?” he asked casually.
Lu Sheng raised a brow. For a wealthy young master, this man knew quite a bit.
“Yes. I’ve encountered such things before.”
“No wonder,” Li Shunxi said, giving him another appraising look. “I believe the missing people are only trapped. There were many of them. No matter how quick those things move, they wouldn’t kill everyone this fast. And I checked earlier—there were no signs of poison.”
“You’re certain, Brother?” Lu Sheng asked.
“Pretty much.” Li Shunxi crouched down, studying the ground with focused eyes as he traced shallow footprints and scattered marks.
Lu Sheng followed closely, puzzled by the man’s sharpness. Before long, they reached a stone door embedded in the kitchen floor—the entrance to an underground cellar.
Li Shunxi grasped the iron ring set into the slab. “I’m Li Shunxi. May I know how to address you, Brother?” he asked as he strained and pulled the door open.
A heavy stench rushed out at once.
“Lu Sheng. Courtesy name, Yue Sheng,” he replied.
When the smell dispersed a little, they leaned in to look.
Lu Sheng struck a flint stone, sparks bursting briefly in the dark. In that split-second flare, several bodies appeared—lying motionless on the cellar floor.
“They’re here!” Li Shunxi let out a breath of relief and leapt down without hesitation. “Brother Lu, keep watch at the entrance.”
“Alright.” Lu Sheng exhaled as well, tension easing from his chest.
Duan Meng’an was indeed among the unconscious group. Alongside him were two ladies and two guards—all collapsed in silence at the bottom of the cellar.
One by one, Li Shunxi lifted the unconscious bodies from the cellar. Lu Sheng took each of them from his hands and laid them gently across the dusty kitchen floor.
Before long, all five were out—lined up and unmoving.
“They’re all still breathing,” Li Shunxi murmured, lowering his cheek to one of the ladies’ noses.187Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzNen53A5gi
“Brother, have you noticed what’s wrong with them?”
He glanced at Lu Sheng. The man’s expression remained unmoved, eyes calm and unshaken. Li Shunxi instantly understood—Lu Sheng was far from ordinary.
“Brother Li has a method?” Lu Sheng asked evenly.
“Naturally. Watch closely.” A hint of pride flickered across Li Shunxi’s face as he took out a thin, black, paper-like talisman. He bit the tip of his finger and pressed a drop of blood onto its surface.
Then, he placed the talisman onto the forehead of each unconscious person.
Lu Sheng stood silently to the side, neither interrupting nor reacting. Soon, soft groans rose from the floor. The once motionless group stirred back to consciousness.
“Where… am I?”
“Qingqing, are you hurt?”
“Little Miss! Little Miss, can you stand?”
Duan Meng’an pushed himself upright, shame weighing down his features. He approached Lu Sheng with his head bowed. “Young Master…”
“As long as you’re unharmed. Where’s Ning San?” Lu Sheng asked.
Duan Meng’an said nothing. His head dropped even further.
Lu Sheng’s gaze remained calm, but a chill glinted in his eyes. “We’ll discuss this once we return.”
Li Shunxi interjected, “I don’t think it’s wise for us to split up right now.”
A gentle voice followed, “Our deepest thanks to both of you. I am Gong Ruqing, and this is my sister, Gong Rumeng. Without your help, we might never have seen daylight again.”187Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTDJTYE9O3K
She was the elegant woman who had hidden a sword within her sleeve. Her younger sister—sweet and lively—stood beside her.
Gong Rumeng stepped forward, clasping her hands together. “Thank you once more, Young Masters. But… we still have companions trapped somewhere in this manor. May we trouble you to help us search for them? We know it’s an overstep, but in return, we are willing to offer compensation—notes worth a hundred taels of gold.”
“Oh?” Li Shunxi’s brows lifted as he glanced toward Lu Sheng. Among everyone present, Lu Sheng was the only one he could not read. His attire marked him as someone from a wealthy background, yet his bearing hinted at something deeper—something concealed. Li Shunxi suspected he was much like himself: a Young Master moving under an alias, hiding abilities far beyond the surface.
Noble upbringing left traces—posture, tone, even the way one breathed. With Li Shunxi’s sharp, perceptive eye, he had long noticed the clear difference between Lu Sheng and the two men accompanying him.
Most days, Li Shunxi was confined within his manor. Surrounded by rivals and threats, he concealed his true strength and rarely engaged with the wider world. He had no real measure of how powerful he had become.
Now, encountering someone whose aura matched his own—another disguised expert—stirred a restless excitement in his chest. His fingers itched for a proper exchange, a chance to test himself against an equal.
“What does Brother Lu think? Shall we help?” Li Shunxi looked to him expectantly.
Lu Sheng’s expression darkened. He had to acknowledge that Li Shunxi truly possessed some skill. He studied him for a moment longer before replying.
“Okay.”
After all, he had come to investigate this manor. Losing one of his men before uncovering anything only fueled his irritation and made him unwilling to leave empty-handed.
“Good. I agree as well,” Li Shunxi said with a faint smile. “Let’s return to your rooms. Since you were taken from there to the cellar, there should be traces left behind. And most importantly, we must find that young girl—one of the owners of this manor. Her and that elder brother of hers who supposedly concocts pills.”
Duan Meng’an suddenly burst out, “That’s right! It must be that girl’s doing! And her brother must be evil too! Once we see them, we should arrest them immediately!”
“SHUT UP!” Lu Sheng snapped, fixing him with a cold glare.
Duan Meng’an shivered violently, clamping his mouth shut at once.
The group agreed to Li Shunxi’s proposal and hurried toward the middle room of the courtyard. In the depth of night, the courtyard lay silent and abandoned as they gathered before the main bedroom.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
Heavy knocks pounded against the door. Dust drifted down from the frame, swirling in the wind and stirring coughs among them.
“Open up!”
More knocks echoed.
“Ka-cha.”
The door creaked open on its own.
Li Shunxi cast a quick look at the trembling guards before stepping inside. Lu Sheng followed next, and the rest quickly filed in behind them.
“Anyone here?” Li Shunxi called out, snatching something from the darkness and slipping it discreetly into his sleeve.
On the left side of the room sat a massive pill cauldron. The right side was filled with dust-coated, timeworn furniture, including an unused bed. The whole place radiated a cold, abandoned stillness.
Gong Ruqing, braver than most, approached the bed and swept aside the curtains.
“BOO!”
A black blur burst out without warning.
“STRIKE!” Li Shunxi snapped, his hand lashing out with perfect accuracy.
A shrill, horrific cry pierced the room as the black figure hit the ground. It writhed with an infant-like squeal—a fist-sized black bat. Blood stained the edge of its tiny mouth.
Gong Ruqing stumbled back in fright. “Why is there a bat here???”
Li Shunxi smirked. “That’s a Yin Bat. Heheh… only places steeped in Yin energy can breed such things.” He shot a proud look at Lu Sheng.
But seeing Lu Sheng’s unchanged, expressionless face—no surprise, no admiration—his smugness deflated.
“Does Brother Lu have any expert insights?” he asked, trying again.
Lu Sheng spared him a calm glance. “None. Brother Li’s methods are indeed remarkable. I’m impressed. Still, we should focus on finding the remaining missing people. I doubt that little girl and her elder brother will appear anytime soon.”
Li Shunxi narrowed his eyes, studying Lu Sheng as if trying to read the thoughts behind that calm expression. But in the end, he chose not to ask.
“Let’s move. Since a Yin Bat appeared, we should be close.”
With nothing found in the main bedroom, the group spilled back into the courtyard and began checking the surrounding rooms one by one.
Along the way, Li Shunxi dispatched five more Yin Bats in quick succession. One of them darted out with frightening speed, sinking its fangs into a guard’s neck before anyone could react. The man staggered, nearly collapsing.
If not for Li Shunxi’s swift counterstrike, the guard would have lost his life.
In the wake of that narrow escape, the group’s attitude shifted. Gong Ruqing and Gong Rumeng included, their eyes began to follow Li Shunxi with genuine trust and admiration. The attention of two graceful women only made Li Shunxi prouder, his steps a little lighter and his posture a touch more heroic.
He kept stealing glances at Lu Sheng, waiting—hoping—for even a hint of awe or approval.
But Lu Sheng’s expression remained unchanged. In fact, with each room they searched fruitlessly, his face only grew more severe, the weight of the missing people pressing steadily on his mind.
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