<h4>Chapter 23 - Killing Intent</h4>


    Long Chen easily recognized the owner of the voice.


    Yang Xueqing.


    Hearing her voice, Bai Shiji stopped in his tracks and red at Long Chen. Only then did he slowly dissipate his Abyssal Heaven Fingers.


    Long Chen disengaged and stopped the Vast Dragon Seal.


    “Aunty, we are here ...”


    Upon hearing Yang Xueqing’s voice, Yang Lingqing sighed in relief and shouted excitedly.


    Yang Xueqing had seen Bai Shiji first. Her face was filled with concern as she looked at him. But when she heard Yang Lingqing’s voice, she suddenly realized that none other than Long Chen was fighting Bai Shiji. Her gentle gaze turned cold in an instant.


    Long Chen smiled coldly. He was impressed by how fast her emotions shifted. It was deplorable that she cared more for someone else’s son than her own son.


    Long Chen really hated the feeling and he didn’t want to see Yang Xueqing only caring about Bai Shiji. The moment Yang Xueqing showed up, Long Chen turned around and walked away as if nothing had happened.


    “Stop right there!” Yang Xueqing’s chilly voice reached his ears.


    Long Chen turned around and asked, “What does the wife of the Bai family want from me? Is it because I beat up two useless people from the Bai family? That’s right, I was the one who beat them up. What are you going to do about it?”


    Yang Lingqing had been excited when she saw Yang Xueqing, and now she deted like a balloon. She stared nkly at Long Chen and then at the grim-looking Yang Xueqing. She couldn’t understand why he would say that.


    Long Chen’s words were filled with hostility, and even Yang Xueqing had difficulty breathing. To think that Long Chen would not give her any respect in public. Looking at his nonchnt attitude, she grew angrier.


    She knew that her marriage into the Bai family was already tarnishing her reputation. If she dealt with Long Chen now, people would spread rumors which would bring no benefit to either the Bai or Yang family.


    Yang Xueqing decided to ignore Long Chen and turned around to check on Bai Shiji. “Shiji, I apologize to you and the Bai family. I heard that he beat up people from the Bai family. Is it true?”


    Bai Shiji nodded. “He did indeed hurt Zhixing and Shidong. I was just about to advise him not to fight since our families have such a deep friendship. But before I could, you showed up. Aunty Yang, I trust you. Please take Long Chen back with you.”


    Yang Xueqing was very satisfied at the youth’s understanding. Bai Shiji was also very strong, and he had reached the Seventh Draconic Stage at the age of twenty–an excellent achievement.


    She nodded. “Please say hello to your father on my behalf. I will visit your house and apologize personally soon. I have to leave now.”


    “Take care, Aunty Yang.”


    Long Chen felt disgusted by their asskissing.


    Yang Xueqing’s appearance resolved the issue just like that. But Bai Shiji’s overwhelming strength and the threat of the Abyssal Heaven Fingers was still fresh in his mind.


    <i>If I don’t have a method to counter the Abyssal Heaven Fingers, I will die if I meet him in the Demon Hunting Tournament. There won’t be many witnesses there!</i>


    Long Chen was infuriated by the way Yang Xueqing and Bai Shiji acted towards each other. An idea popped into his mind.


    <i>The wedding and the Demon Hunting Tournament are on the same day. If I kill Bai Shiji, then the Bai family will have to conduct a funeral instead. There’s no way their wedding can proceed!</i>


    The Demon Hunting Tournament and the wedding both spanned three days. Long Chen was deep in his thoughts, wondering about his next steps. He could gate crash the wedding and stop them but he wasn’t strong enough. The Yang family would dispose of him before the Bai family even did anything.


    He remembered that Bai Zhanxiong had once kidnapped some girls from the Jade Pce Brothel. He followed them and witnessed Bai Zhanxiong trading the girls to a group of people that had a red dot on their head.


    He told Yang Xueqing about it, but she didn’t believe him.


    Long Chen had a hunch that there was something weird about the Bai family. He wondered what would happen to Yang Xueqing if she married into their family.


    And now he had a solution.


    He stared coldly as Yang Xueqing and Bai Shiji talked politely to each other.


    <i>The only way is to kill Bai Shiji. I’ve already crippled one of their sons. If I kill the other son, there’s no way they can get married.</i>


    The best time to kill Bai Shiji would be during the Demon Hunting Tournament. But if he wanted to pull it off, Long Chen needed an important breakthrough, and the Dream Lingzhi Mushroom was the key.


    Now that he had a n, Long Chen left knowing that it was meaningless to stay any longer. When she saw Long Chen walking away, Yang Lingqing hurriedly followed.


    Yang Xueqing and Bai Shiji finished their conversation.


    Although she looked kind on the outside, Yang Xueqing was feeling extremely angry. She couldn’t chase after him with so many onlookers, but she knew that Long Chen would pay for the humiliation that he gave her today. She would make him suffer back at the Yang Residence.


    <i>I helped you defuse the situation with Bai Shiji and saved your life but to think you would be this ungrateful. You even humiliated me in front of everyone. I’m so disappointed in you!</i>


    <i>You are so weak and yet you yearn for the heavens, thinking that you are undefeatable. Bai Shiji is not someone you can fight ...</i>


    No one dared to get close to Yang Xueqing with her cold expression. When she walked out of the Warrior’s Market, she saw Yang Lingqing waiting for her at the entrance. She looked behind Yang Lingqing and asked, “Where is he?”


    Yang Lingqing felt nervous and said, “B-Brother Chen saw someone just as he was leaving. He asked me to go home first and proceeded to chase after that person. I don’t know where he is now ...”


    “Chase after someone?”


    Yang Xueqing paused for a moment before smiling coldly. “Nothing but excuses. He’s just worried that I will scold him. To think that he would pull off such an immature trick. The people from the Long family are nothing but swindlers ...”


    Yang Lingqing bit her lip and didn’t say anything.


    She had seen Long Chen chasing after someone with her own eyes. But to Yang Xueqing, it was just a lie ...


    She wanted to argue, but sensing theplicated rtionship between Long Chen and Yang Xueqing, she decided not to.


    After taking a few steps, Yang Xueqing suddenly asked. “Xiao Qing’er, can you tell me in detail what happened today?”


    Yang Lingqing recognized that this was an opportunity to defend Long Chen and told her every detail. She yearned to see Yang Xueqing’s coldness reduce a little, and she praised Long Chen. Once she finished her story, Yang Xueqing merely said indifferently, “Oh? Defeating two Sixth Draconic Stage cultivators? But he’s still powerless against a Seventh Draconic Stage cultivator.”


    Seeing Yang Xueqing’s back moving further away, Yang Lingqing pursed her lips and understood why Long Chen did not take a step back from the powerful Bai Shiji and the immense pressure ...


    ***


    After running through a few streets, Long Chen managed to grab the neck of the man he was following and broke his de. They crashed into a toilet, and Long Chen pinned him to the wall. A stench assaulted them. The man was horrified and didn’t move an inch.


    Long Chen had noticed the man as he walked out of the Warrior’s Market and saw the de on his back.


    At first, he hadn’t thought much about it, but then he suddenly recalled that the man who tried to kill him had used the same de and was also at the Second Draconic Stage. The man also had the same stature as his attacker. He was about to investigate when the man took off. It seemed that he was feeling guilty. Long Chen decided there and then that it was the same assant who had tried to kill him that night.


    After chasing for quite some time, Long Chen finally managed to catch him. Long Chen growled, “I’ll keep this short. Who paid you to kill me? Give me a name or die.”


    Facing Long Chen’s strength, the assant had given up all hope. But upon hearing that there was a chance to turn everything around, he made a decision immediately. “You won’t kill me if I tell who it was?”


    Long Chen nodded. “But you will have to leave Baiyang Town.”


    The assant only wanted to live so he answered simply. “Easy. Bai family, Bai Zhanxiong.”


    Long Chen was surprised by two things. One was how easily the answer came, and two, it had been Bai Zhanxiong all along.


    <i>He wants to marry my mother. Why the heck does he want to kill me over that?</i>


    Long Chen was perplexed.


    The assant continued to say, “I’m not lying to you. The only reason why I''m telling you this is that I hate him. He promised that he would let my daughter go if I killed you but he had already killed her! The only reason why I am still in Baiyang Town is to see if I have a chance to get my revenge!”


    Long Chen watched the assant’s eyes slowly turn red. <i>Looks like he’s telling the truth. </i>It didn’t matter who the hired hand was. To think that the mastermind was Bai Zhanxiong–although it was convenient for Long Chen as he wanted to kill Bai Zhanxiong too.


    Long Chen released him and smiled. “You almost killed me once but now you are at my mercy. Since I already promised that I won’t kill you, you can leave, but only after you eat shit.”


    Before that man could react, Long Chen threw him into the toilet. Water sshed everywhere as Long Chen left hastily.<i> Phew, that was dangerous</i>. <i>Luckily I was fast enough ...</i>


    The sun had already set.


    “Xiao Xi, let’s go to the Deste Mountains.”


    Ling Xi paused and asked. “Why? Are you afraid that thedy will hit you? Don’t be scared. Once I refine the Dream Lingzhi Mushroom, I can protect you. She will never be able to hurt you.”


    Long Chen smiled. “What do you know? I’m not afraid of her, but it''s just that there are many people in the Yang family. You are going to refine the Dream Lingzhi Mushroom and help me decipher the secrets of the Dragon Seal. Considering that everything must be done secretly, doing it at the Yang residence is very inconvenient.”


    “Is that so? Then let us hurry. I finally have something nice to eat ...”


    Ling Xi’s voice was weak but her tone revealed her excitement.


    “Eat?”


    “Hm? Don’t you know that after I ended up like this I’ve never eaten anything? I found some herbsst time and they tasted good.”


    Long Chen heard her excited voice and felt sad. To think that she couldn’t eat and could only experience the delicious taste of food through herbs. It was a difficult thing for a little girl from a wealthy background.


    “Xiao Xi ...”


    “Hm?”


    “One of these days I will let you experience the feeling of eating good food.”


    “Really? I’m a glutton. It won’t be easy to feed me. I’m still a glutton even though I’m like this. A single Dream Lingzhi Mushroom is not enough for me so you’d better work hard!”


    “Yes! This humble person understands!”