Chapter 97: Chapter 97: Bold People Tend to Succeed (Please collect and recommend!)
Shi Xiaole’s return was, of course, a significant event for the Golden Phoenix Tower.
That night, a grand banquet was held at the Golden Phoenix Tower. Everyone came forward one by one to toast Shi Xiaole. By the end of the banquet, many people were drunk and had to be carried back to their rooms by the servants.
Ru Garden.
Shi Xiaole, his face flushed, covered his auntie’s bare, creamy jade-like left shoulder for her.
The latter turned to the side, propping up half her face, and scrutinized the boy’s bashful demeanor under the candlelight with amusement.
"Auntie, can you tell me about my parents?"
Sensing a change in the atmosphere, Shi Xiaole hurriedly asked.
"Why would you suddenly ask about this?"
Su Yanru was somewhat surprised.
In the past, she had done everything in her power to conceal the news, not wanting Shi Xiaole to bear too much. Now she suddenly realized that this young man had grown up.
"I met people from the Xu family in the north of the river."
Shi Xiaole said.
"Actually, I only spent two months with your parents. I was just over ten years old then. They saved me and took care of me... At that time, your parents were being pursued and killed, but to avoid involving me, they didn’t reveal much. They didn’t even entrust you to me before they left. Instead, they hid you in a dilapidated temple."
"Your auntie searched for you for a long time and nearly went insane before finding you."
Su Yanru sighed, stroking Shi Xiaole’s cheek.
"Does Auntie know where they went?"
Considering he was occupying the original owner’s body, Shi Xiaole asked hopefully.
"At that time I was crying and shouting, your mother probably couldn’t bear it, so she said they were going to Mingliu Villa and that they would be back soon."
Su Yanru sorrowfully said.
Mingliu Villa?
Shi Xiaole made a mental note of this place.
"It’s no use, your auntie has been there several times, but the place is already in ruins. I didn’t find anything related to your parents."
As if knowing Shi Xiaole’s thoughts, Su Yanru shook her head and suddenly asked, "By the way, how did you get involved with the Xu family in the north of the river?"
Shi Xiaole then recounted what had happened with Xu Nianxue. Su Yanru listened, stupefied for a moment, then broke into a charming laugh, "That’s great. Maybe your auntie should prepare a betrothal gift for you tomorrow. With the Xu family shielding you, Lele, you won’t have to fear anything."
Having said that, she focused her captivating eyes tightly on Shi Xiaole.
"Auntie, stop joking around. I have no thoughts about that overbearing Miss Xu."
"Ignorant of romance, you kid. Soon enough, you’ll end up single for life."
Seeing Su Yanru’s lips curve into a smirk, Shi Xiaole thought to himself, if I didn’t say this, would a possessive woman like you let me off the hook?
He didn’t mention his plans to venture into the martial world. A while later, Shi Xiaole excused himself and left.
A night passed by.
The next day, as soon as Shi Xiaole woke up, Chief Steward Meng Qi walked into the courtyard, "Young Master Shi, Knife Assistance Gang leader Cao Ruoyu is here."
As soon as he heard the name Cao Ruoyu, a killing intent involuntarily welled up in Shi Xiaole’s heart.
Back then, Su Yanru had given him the Fuyang Qi Skill in order to buy his silence. However, Shi Xiaole didn’t dare to fully trust this man.
In order to avoid being stabbed in the back by him, this time upon his return, Shi Xiaole had already planned to deal with him secretly.
The main hall of the Golden Phoenix Tower.
Cao Ruoyu saw Shi Xiaole again, and a sense of deep emotion filled his heart.
"Leader Cao, I wonder what brings you here this time?"
Su Yanru, seated at the head, interrupted his thoughts with a smile.
"I don’t know if Su Leader’s beloved disciple Ye Kang is engaged. If not, I would like to marry my daughter to him, to form a marital alliance with Leader Su."
Incredibly, this was what Cao Ruoyu said.
Shi Xiaole and Su Yanru exchanged glances, a newfound respect for this man’s cunning.
Little did they know that as Cao Ruoyu spoke these words, he quietly sighed in his heart.
He had always held Shi Xiaole in high regard, but he never expected him to be so outstanding. The recent defeat of Lei Lie was proof enough, according to information he had received. Lei Lie was a master in the third stage of Qi Absorption, comparable to his own strength before he started cultivating the Fuyang Qi Skill.
At this rate, Shi Xiaole was not far from surpassing him.
How could Cao Ruoyu harbor any nefarious intentions towards such an unstoppable youth? His only thought was to try to get on his good side. He knew Shi Xiaole didn’t trust him, so he proposed marrying his only and most beloved daughter to the Golden Phoenix Tower.
As for why he chose Ye Kang as the groom — firstly, it was because of his identity, and secondly, because of his exceptional talent. Thirdly, he didn’t have the audacity nor confidence to become Shi Xiaole’s father-in-law.
"Kang has no engagement yet, but I can’t force him. If Leader Cao is keen, why not let the two children meet first?"
Su Yanru replied with an easy smile.
"Quite right, quite right."
Cao Ruoyu quickly nodded, thought a while, and gritted his teeth, "I’m not going to hide it. In fact, I came here today because I had an important matter to reveal."
"What is it?"
Seeing his seriousness, Su Yanru was intrigued.
"Recently, two young men who claim to be Wang Bufan’s senior brothers secretly approached me. They want to harm the Golden Phoenix Tower!"
Upon hearing this, both Shi Xiaole and Su Yanru were taken aback.
Everyone in Feiyan City knew about Wang Bufan joining a legitimate martial arts faction.
Last time he died in the faction war, strictly speaking, there weren’t clear rights and wrongs. Therefore, most regular martial factions wouldn’t rashly retaliate to avoid being held accountable.
But just because the faction does not act, does not mean that individuals within the faction will not.
In fact, as long as they don’t make a public scene, they can secretly collude with other forces, and the martial world typically turns a blind eye.
Cao Ruoyu said, "Please rest assured, both of you. From my investigation, Wang Bufan was ostentatious and unpopular within his faction. The two who came this time are his only friends. Moreover, from what I know, they are merely acting independently intending to make a profit from this situation."
"What conditions did they put forth?"
Su Yanru asked.
"After the destruction of the Golden Phoenix Tower, they want ten million taels of silver, three of the Golden Phoenix Tower’s top secret manuals, and, Young Hero Shi’s head."
The closer Cao Ruoyu got to the end of his sentence, the quieter his voice became. What he didn’t say was that the two had also heavily fleeced the Knife Assistance Gang.
Su Yanru’s pretty face darkened, and she scoffed coldly: "Their idea is quite ambitious, but they seem to have no respect for others."
"Do not underestimate these two, Leader Su. Although they only have an absorption realm of three levels, even I am not their match when they join forces," said Cao Ruoyu.
According to their plan, they want to use Cao Ruoyu as a bridge to lure Shi Xiaole out and kill him secretly.
By that time, the combined forces of them and Cao Ruoyu would easily kill the leading experts in the Golden Phoenix Tower. The destruction of the Golden Phoenix Tower would then be inevitable.
Unfortunately, they would never have dreamt that Cao Ruoyu would betray them.
For some reason, looking at the composed and tranquil Shi Xiaole, Cao Ruoyu felt more and more confident that he had made the right choice.
Su Yanru was still contemplating their strategy when Shi Xiaole, who had been silent, said, "Aunt, let me handle this."
"No! Those two are from legitimate martial arts factions, and will certainly not be easy to deal with. It’s better for us to discuss and arrange our plan accordingly," Su Yanru disagreed, worried about Shi Xiaole’s safety.
After all, no matter how strong Shi Xiaole was, he wouldn’t be able to take on two qi absorbing masters alone.
"Aunt, I just want to scout the enemy, I won’t act rashly if I’m not confident," Shi Xiaole held his ground.
On one hand, he wanted to meet the disciples from the mainstream factions. On the other hand, he also wanted to use this opportunity to prove his strength to Su Yanru, as a stepping stone to her approval of his exploring the martial world independently.
"But..."
Su Yanru was instinctively against the idea, but seeing Shi Xiaole’s resolution and not wanting to embarrass him in front of outsiders, she finally agreed reluctantly, "Alright, but you must promise not to make any rash moves."
"Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing," Shi Xiaole assured her.
Seeing this, Su Yanru frowned. Why did she always have this feeling that Shi Xiaole’s understanding of ’knowing his limits’ was not the same as hers?
...
Whoosh. Whoosh.
A day later in the courtyard, Shi Xiaole sheathed his sword. On the roots of the willow tree in front of him, multiple crisscross slashes appeared all at once.
Upon closer look, the length and depth of each cut were identical as if measured with a ruler.
"Bloody Chaos Kill, finally fully mastered."
Shi Xiaole let out a breath of relief.
Even the basic form of Bloody Chaos Kill, if wielded correctly, could exceed Barely Survival. Now, Shi Xiaole estimated that its power had increased by at least 20%.
He was confident that if Lei Lie had confronted the current Bloody Chaos Kill, he wouldn’t have been able to get away unscathed.
"Young Master, Lord Cao is here," Meng Qi came in and reported after a while.
"He’s here? It seems that they are ready over there."
With an icy smile, Shi Xiaole left the courtyard.
With his current strength, any ordinary qi-absorbing master wouldn’t even be a threat to him. He only hoped that the pair had some tricks up their sleeves.
"Young Hero Shi, your plan is too dangerous. If something goes wrong, how am I supposed to explain it to Leader Su?" Cao Ruoyu urged Shi Xiaole, after hearing his plan outside the Golden Phoenix Tower.
Countering their plan with another plan was the strategy they had established from the beginning.
However, Cao Ruoyu always thought that Shi Xiaole would arrange for more experts and trap the two powerful enemies from inside and out. But he just found out that Shi Xiaole planned on tackling it alone.
They say that talent breeds courage, but Shi Xiaole’s courage seemed a bit too excessive.
It must be clear that disciples of major martial arts factions have a strength level in the same realm that is far beyond that of the martial world.
In other words, either of the two men had a strength that was not inferior to, or even stronger than Lei Lie’s.
Even if Cao Ruoyu and Shi Xiaole joined forces, they would still not be able to keep those two in check. Cao Ruoyu indeed arranged for a high-level Qi- absorbing expert, but regretfully, even the three of them combined would not be enough.
"Don’t worry, Lord Cao, I have a plan."
Seeing Shi Xiaole’s nonchalance, Cao Ruoyu felt chagrin and even regretted the actions of this evening. However, there was no turning back, and he could only unhappily lead the way.
Half an hour later, the two arrived at the agreed tavern.
"Senior Brother, the prey has arrived."
At the top of the tavern, two pairs of eyes were coldly watching Shi Xiaole, one of them chuckled.
"Double Absolutes of Knife and Sword, huh, I can’t wait to see how ’absolute’ they will be tonight."
The other man had an icy expression. He held a wine cup, slowly pouring wine onto the ground, as if offering a premature sacrifice to the person about to die this evening.
