?Changing Situation


    Ye Xuan and his group were fast, galloping through the Soaring Sword Sect''s hunting grounds like horses through a prairie. However, since a group could only be as fast as its slowest member, Xue Bai was able to keep up, albeit barely.


    They would continue their pace until they traveled almost a kilometer from their original location, where they conversed with Shi Tian and his nsmen.


    And after checking their surroundings for any watching eyes or ears, the Ye nsmen took a moment to gather their thoughts.


    "Young Master Xuan, is this Sword Tomb truly so hard to find that you would need Shi Tian and his group." One of the Ye n members spoke up.


    After he voiced his doubts, the rest of the nsmen also perked their ears up, wanting to hear the truth behind this Sword Tomb they''d heard little about.


    "Naturally, it isn''t something that hard to find. As long as we as a group split up and searched carefully, we could find it even before nightfall tomorrow." Ye Xuan exined, "However, the ces left that are still not searched are the territories of Peak Qi Sea Realm demonic beasts. So Shi Tian, that barbarian and his nsmen, are going to be our cannon fodder in search of the Sword Tomb."


    Hearing the simple yet insightful n, the Ye n members immediately started to praise the Young Master to the heavens as if he had solved the mystery of the Universe.


    However, in the face of the praise, Ye Xuan remained calm as if situations like this weremonce and merely waved his hand humbly.


    "Dear god, are people really like this? Don''t you get tired of having people act so one-dimensional around you all day?" In a tree a few dozen meters away, Xue Bai couldn''t help but murmur.


    While he had seen many cultivation novels where a Young Master would be followed by an entourage constantly who would praise them to the moon no matter what they did, however seeing it, in reality, was another thing.


    Xue Bai himself once had other noble children in Snowy Wind City try and submit themselves to him, wanting to be ackey of his, but since he neither wanted one nor didn''t find the nobles worthy enough, he denied them.


    So seeing such an odd cliche in action in front of him, Xue Bai felt exasperated. Even from a distance, the excessiveplimenting and praising felt suffocating.


    Down below, unlike Xue Bai, Ye Xuan was feeling at the peak of his power and, wanting to continue on the feeling, began to throw out orders.


    "Ye Chen, take three people of your choice and go to these coordinates and set up a surveince group. Big brother said that of all the ces where the Sword Tomb could be hidden, this is the most usible. Ye Xiao, take four people with you and split up searching for that barbarian and his nsmen. We need to know where they are at all times. The rest of you follow me!" Ye Xuan barked out three orders in rapid session.


    Ye Chen and Ye Xiao, of the group that followed Ye Xuan, were the strongest besides Ye Xuan, so their leaving was somewhat concerning. But since none of the Ye n members knew as much as Ye Xuan, they all didn''t raise their concerns and merely nodded in subservience.


    And after quickly following his orders to the letter, Ye Xuan''s original group of 14 split up into three smaller groups.


    One group of 4 followed anky youth in a robe simr to Ye Xuan''s, another followed a chubby young man, and the final stayed with Ye Xuan awaiting further orders.


    Xue Bai also stayed near Ye Xuan, as he still didn''t think Ye Xuan was telling the truth even to his own nsmen. His face, even now, was full of hidden intentions. It was as if he trusted none of the ''subordinates'' that followed him, praising him to the moon every chance they had.


    His orders, while they seemed important and meaningful on the surface, didn''t matter much. If he had told the truth about Ye Chen''s assignment, why not all of them go there themselves?<novelnext></novelnext>


    And Ye Xiao''s order made even less sense. He had just said that Shi Tian and his crew were sent off to be cannon fodder in danger zones. Why would they need a surveince squad around them?


    If anything, the only goal Ye Xuan''s orders served was to leave Ye Xuan by himself. As the few people still with him were much weaker and should pushe to shove, Ye Xuan could kill them all with little to no effort.


    And true to his guesses, as soon as the two second-strongest Ye n members left Ye Xuan alone, something happened.


    "Young Master Xuan, what are your next orders?" A youth spoke up after Ye Chen and Ye Xiao''s groups left earshot.


    "Die for me!" In a voice that resembled none of his previous haughty attitude, but more of a demon birthed from the depths of hell, Ye Xuan yelled out as he charged at his three nsmen.


    Then, both stunned and too weak to react fast enough, the first youth Ye Xuan targeted was sted into a nearby tree, where his back caved in on impact. Soon dying after would.


    The next thankfully managed to react after seeing his fallen Ye n member die, but since Ye Xuan was more than six stages stronger than him, he soon fell in a short five exchange-long fight.


    "Young Master Xuan! What are you doing!" The final survivor cried out as he tried to run away in the direction Ye Chen left.


    "Even now, you y dumb? Do you think I don''t know that you all are spies sent by Third Uncle to watch me?" Ye Xuan snorted as he easily caught up to the much weaker runner.


    And grabbing the youth by the neck like a kitten, Ye Xuan didn''t even wait for an answer to his rhetorical question before snapping the youth''s neck like a dry twig.


    ''Oh? That turned rather dark.'' Xue mentally thought.


    Seeing the carnage fold below him, Xue Bai could only be surprised. While he knew that Ye Xuan wanted to be alone, he didn''t think he''d kill his subordinates so fast and cruelly at that. Xue Bai had either thought that Ye Xuan trusted only these three or would try and abandon them before searching for the treasure himself.


    Ye Xuan killing the three was a possibility in Xue Bai''s mind, but it was only so, not any more than that.


    However, before Xue Bai could continue thinking about the constantly changing situation, Ye Xuan had already started running in a direction different from where Ye Chen and Ye Xiao had left. And not wanting to make his already hour-long stakeout go to waste, Xue Bai quickly started his pursuit.


    Thankfully Ye Xuan himself didn''t seem to know where he was going, stopping every few hundred meters before pulling out a map as if to check his surroundings, allowing Xue Bai to catch up.


    But still, as he stayed in the treeline, Xue Bai was still confused about what this youth was nning. He had gone through so much by inviting in another n, separating himself from Ye Chen and Ye Xiao, and even killing three of his n brothers. But if it were all for this Sword Tomb, surely, he could''ve done all of this without going to such lengths?


    Xue Bai didn''t know, but since he had already wasted so much time following this intriguing storyline, he nned to follow it through.


    Plus this Ye Xuan had such a protagonist name that it made Xue Bai feel like someone watching the rise of a protagonist, even if this youth was an unnamed extra in the game.