Yue Xing stared at the empty room for a moment, before he rushed downstairs. Panic threatened to overwhelm him as he searched for the innkeeper. Perhaps he was mistaken, perhaps the children weren’t missing after all. Maybe they were still in the inn. Even if they weren’t, perhaps they were still in the city.

  As long as the children were safe, as long as they weren’t captured by the Blood Wolf Gang, nothing else mattered.

  Yue Xing found the innkeeper right away. She was a middle-aged woman at peak Qi Refining who wore a set of simple green robes.

  “Have you seen the three children I was with?” Yue Xing asked.

  The innkeeper blinked at him in surprise at his abrupt question.

  “I have, yes,” she said with a little hesitation.

  Yue Xing sighed with relief. However, he stiffened when he heard the innkeeper’s next words.

  “The three of them went out,” she said. “They said they were going to meet with their big brother.”

  Yue Xing resisted the urge to grab the innkeeper and shake her.

  “Where are they?!” he demanded. “Which direction did they go in?!”

  The innkeeper pointed him in a direction.

  “Thank you,” he said, before tearing out of the inn.

  Yue Xing spent the next several hours scouring Rising Sun City, looking for the children. The entire time, it felt as if an icy claw gripped his heart. He pushed his soul sense to the limit, searching every nook and cranny. However, he saw no sign of them.

  Desperate, Yue Xing asked around, hoping to find a clue. At first he didn’t find anything. However, after some time, he found people who had seen the children. Following their directions, he recreated the Xu sibling’s path after they left the inn.

  And then he came across a stall owner who set up near the city gates.

  “Oh, them?” the stall owner said, a portly man wearing a set of blue robes. “They left the city with their big sister a few hours ago.” He chuckled. “They must’ve tired themselves out running around. She ended up having to carry all three.”

  A pit opened up in Yue Xing’s stomach when he heard this. According to the memories that he scoured, one of the demonic cultivators sent into Rising Sun City was a woman. In fact, Li Zhanhao had assigned her as the leader of the group.

  If she was the “big sister” that took the children, then that meant they were already in the Blood Wolf Gang’s hands.

  No. Yue Xing refused to believe it. Perhaps the woman hadn’t gone too far. If he caught up with her, maybe he could rescue the children before Li Zhanhao got his hands on them.

  Holding onto that desperate hope, Yue Xing left Rising Sun City to rescue the children before it was too late.

  Li Zhanhao fumed as he marched into the main hall of his hideout, covered in minor wounds and injuries. Killing intent rolled off of him. His subordinates, fearful of getting caught up in his anger, kept their distance.

  Li Zhanhao had spent the past several hours fighting with the city lord of Rising Sun City. The two of them were evenly matched at early Foundation Establishment, so neither gained the upper hand.

  However, Li Zhanhao didn’t want to risk the city lord finding out about his goals, so he fled. The city lord chased him for a while, before giving up. By the time Li Zhanhao made it back to his hideout, it was well past nightfall.

  Dozens of lanterns filled the main hall, bathing it in warm yellow light. It took all of Li Zhanhao’s self control to not destroy them all in a fit of anger. In fact, it took all of his self control to not destroy the entire main hall. The past few days had been nothing but a series of frustrations for him.

  First, a group of his subordinates ends up dead and the children go missing. Next, he tracks down the culprit, only to find that they fled to Rising Sun City. He sends a group of his subordinates into the city in order to find the culprit and the children. However, less than a full day later, the city lord of Rising Sun City attacks him.

  It was enough to drive a man crazy. Li Zhanhao wished he could get his hands on whoever took the children from him. Not to kill them. No, that would be too easy. He would make them suffer first, for putting him through all this nonsense. That was the only way he could vent the frustration in his heart.

  However, that wasn’t important right now. What was important was finding the children. As much as Li Zhanhao wanted to get revenge, his own life took priority. If he didn’t find the children, and soon, he might as well kill himself. At least then his death would be painless.

  A voice called out, pulling Li Zhanhao out of his thoughts.

  “Boss!”

  It was the woman, the one he sent into Rising Sun City. He turned towards her, ready to tear her to pieces for arousing the city lord’s ire. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been attacked. However, he stopped when he saw the bundles in her arms.

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  “I found them, Boss!” the woman said.

  She dumped three bound and gagged children on the floor in front of him. Li Zhanhao felt all of his anger and frustration melt away as he stared down at them.

  “You found them?” he asked. “How?”

  The woman gave him a proud smile.

  “It was easy, Boss,” she said. “I found them wandering around the city, alone. So, I knocked them out and carried them back.” She scowled. “I’m the only one who made it out. The others got caught somehow. They’re likely dead.”

  Li Zhanhao shook his head.

  “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “As long as we have the children, nothing else matters.” He narrowed his eyes at the woman. “These are the children we need, right? These better not be three random children that you found wandering around.”

  Li Zhanhao applied a little pressure to the woman. She paled.

  “Of course they’re the right children, Boss!” she cried out. “I’d never try and trick you. I value my life too much.” She gestured to the children. “They match the description you gave us. Check them for yourself.”

  Li Zhanhao studied the woman for a moment, before he stopped pressuring her and nodded. He walked over and picked up the oldest of the children, a boy who was about eight or nine years old. The boy was still unconscious, so he didn’t struggle. Li Zhanhao studied the boy for a moment, before smiling.

  “These are the right children. Perfect!” He looked at the woman. “Good work. I’ll make sure you’re rewarded. Tell me your name.”

  The woman gave him a martial salute.

  “Meng Yingtai, Boss,” she said.

  Li Zhanhao raised an eyebrow at that. He never expected one of his subordinates to have such a delicate name. Not that it mattered.

  “Meng Yingtai, you’re my second-in-command from now on,” Li Zhanhao said. “You’ve proven yourself reliable.” He scowled. “Especially compared to all the other idiots who work for me.” He gestured to the children. “Once we get paid for this job, I’ll make sure to get a Foundation Breakthrough Pill for you.”

  For a cultivator at peak Qi Refining, a Foundation Breakthrough Pill was a priceless treasure. As the name implied, it helped when breaking through to Foundation Establishment. While it didn’t guarantee success, it raised the odds by a significant margin. Li Zhanhao himself took one during his own breakthrough. Otherwise, he might’ve failed.

  “Thank you, Boss!” Meng Yingtai said, a jubilant expression on her face. “I won’t let you down!”

  Li Zhanhao gave her a pleased smile.

  “Send a message to Chen Daiyu of the Blood Lotus Sect,” he said. “Let her know that we have the children. Afterwards, bring them to the dungeons.” He paused. “No, bring the children to my quarters. I don’t want anything to happen to them. It’ll be my head if Chen Daiyu thinks we’ve mistreated them.”

  Meng Yingtai nodded.

  “Yes, Boss. I’ll get right on that.”

  Li Zhanhao almost left it at that, but decided to treat his people. Why the hell not? He was in a good mood. With the children secured, he was no longer a dead man walking.

  “Oh, and tell the others to bring the good stuff from the cellar. Tonight, we’re celebrating!”

  Meng Yingtai hesitated, before nodding.

  “Yes, Boss.”

  With that, she picked the children and headed out.

  A cold expression flashed across her face as soon as her back was turned. Li Zhanhao, lost in his good mood, never noticed.

  Several hours after leaving Rising Sun City, Yue Xing realized that it was too late. He’d never be able to catch up to the woman who took the children, not before she made it back to the Blood Wolf Gang’s. She had too much of a head start.

  However, Yue Xing didn’t stop. He kept going. Even if it cost him his life, he would rescue the children. After his rebirth, he decided to live a life without regrets, even if it meant facing his death. He never expected to test his resolve so soon, but it appeared that fate had other plans.

  And so Yue Xing ran towards the Blood Wolf Gang’s hideout. Thanks to the memories he scoured from the demonic cultivator, he knew where to go. The demonic cultivator had lived in this area for his entire life. He had known it intimately. Now that knowledge benefited Yue Xing.

  Night fell as he traveled across snowy plains, over barren hills, and through bare-branched forests. It was silent, except for the sounds of his running. His breath sounded harsh to his ears. The rhythm of his footsteps almost matched the beating of his heart: hurried and frantic.

  The Blood Wolf Gang’s headquarters were a ruined estate, located within a small valley, that once belonged to a mortal noble family. When Yue Xing neared the valley, he slowed down.

  While the Blood Wolf Gang were little more than a group of bandits, they were still cultivators. According to the memories Yue Xing had scoured, a formation protected their hideout. While it wasn’t as powerful as the formations that protected Rising Sun City, it was more than enough to keep someone like Yue Xing out. The formation also covered the entire valley, making it impossible to sneak in.

  At least, for most people.

  In order to pass through the formation, one needed a special kind of talisman. These talismans allowed a person to enter and exit the formation with impunity. However, they were rare, so Li Zhanhao had only given them to a select few.

  This included the leader of the first group that Yue Xing had killed, the ones who had attacked the village and kidnapped the Xu siblings. Yue Xing acquired the talisman after looting the man’s storage pouch, though he hadn’t known what it was at the time. Thankfully, he kept the talisman instead of throwing it away.

  However, Yue Xing didn’t pass through the formation right away. Instead, he scouted the surrounding area, using his soul sense to conceal his presence. He didn’t know if it would work against Li Zhanhao, but he had no other choice.

  As much as Yue Xing wanted to storm into the Blood Wolf Gang’s hideout in order to rescue the children, he knew that was a suicidal idea at best. Stealth was his best option. However, he also needed to prepare for the worst possible scenario: getting caught by Li Zhanhao.

  As an early Qi Refining cultivator, Yue Xing stood no chance against a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Li Zhanhao under most circumstances. The gap between them was too vast. So, Yue Xing needed to close the gap as much as possible. Then, maybe then, he would survive a confrontation with Li Zhanhao. He hoped it never came to that, but he needed to prepare for the possibility.

  Thanks to yesterday’s shopping trip, Yue Xing had plenty to work with. While the items he acquired were suited against foes in Qi Refining, he had acquired a lot of them, especially the talismans. Yue Xing hoped to make up for the lack of quality with quantity.

  The formations he bought would also help even the odds. If Yue Xing could lure Li Zhanhao into a trap, then he stood a chance. The odds would still be against him, but it was better than nothing.

  For the first time since his rebirth, Yue Xing wished he still had his mid Foundation Establishment cultivation base. At least then, Li Zhanhao wouldn’t be as much of a threat.

  Yue Xing shook his head. There wasn’t any point in wishing for the impossible. All he could do was rely on himself. He had to be enough. The children depended on him.

  With that, Yue Xing scouted around for a suitable place to set up his trap.

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