Chapter 499: Chapter 506: Too Bloody


    Only then did they notice the earth near the horse carriage stained red with fresh blood, much of which had seeped from within the carriage. Han Yu and Feng Jianling felt a sense of foreboding upon witnessing this scene. Han Yu, without a care for anything else and not concerned with whether there might be hidden dangers inside, immediately went over and lifted the carriage curtain.


    The scene before them was so bloody that it took their breath away. Even Han Yu and Feng Jianling, who were ustomed to such sights, felt a sense of difort at the carnage. Inside the carriagey four men and a woman, all hacked to death with indiscriminate shes, their bodies thrown inside. The carriage was utterly soaked with blood.


    Yet Han Yu and Feng Jianling, well-versed in bloodshed, were only momentarily diforted by the sight. After all, battlefields bore far more ghastly scenes than this, but that violence was of a different nature. They furrowed their brows and began examining the wounds on the corpses. The more they saw, the more rmed they became, and Han Yu felt chills run down his spine. The only constion was that his daughter-inw was not among these people.


    Although the corpses’ wounds were messy, they could tell that all the injuries were inflicted by a single individual. To dispatch these five so swiftly indicated formidable martial arts skills, even excellent ones. Not merely killing them outright, the assant had tortured them to death. The brutal injuries suggested deep hatred or a significant vendetta against these individuals.


    “Big Brother Feng, can you tell who might be responsible for their deaths?” Han Yu guessed the culprit was probably someone from Jianghu, given the targeting of these five people. As he was not well-acquainted with the affairs and individuals of Jianghu, Han Yu could only turn to Feng Jianling for insight.


    Feng Jianling carefully inspected the wounds on the bodies, shaking his head in confusion, “Forgive myck of discernment, but I cannot identify the sword technique used. Despite the chaos, the method is systematic. A person with such high martial skills would be well-known in Jianghu, yet I cannot ce anyone who matches this style. Could it be that they are not from Jianghu at all, but rather a warrior or secret guard from a big family or powerful faction?”


    Feng Jianling voiced his guess, feeling increasingly certain of this conclusion. Given his familiarity with the martial arts world, it made no sense that he would not recognize their techniques.


    Han Yu felt even more uneasy after hearing Feng Jianling’s words. If the assassin were a secret guard from a major force or family, it implied a strong likelihood of involvement with the Imperial Court—and with the Court desperate to eliminate him, this ced his daughter-inw in even greater danger. Moreover, given the murderer’s ruthless approach, which had left them both shaken, there was no telling what they might do next!


    Feng Jianling saw the gloominess in Han Yu’s face and empathized with his feelings. Having Miss Yue taken by such a person was even more worrisome than being with the five deceased.


    “Xiu Qi, don’t think too much. Since the person didn’t harm Miss Yue, there must be a reason. Her safety should be assured for the time being. Let’s focus on finding her as quickly as possible,” Feng Jianling said, though these words were easier said than done. With the lead on Su Wenyue suddenly cut off, where should they begin the search?


    But Han Yu was not one to lose hisposure. His daughter-inw was waiting for him to rescue her, so he needed to stay spirited, not letting even the slightest hope pass by. He nodded in agreement and started inspecting the carriage for any traces with earnest, hoping to discover something—anything. Unfortunately, this time he couldn’t find even a simple cipher or anything of value.


    Han Yu also understood that the likely secret guard from a significant family or power was adept in their methods, unlike the five deceased. Would they let his daughter-inw leave behind any information?


    “Now that the trail has gone cold, we have no choice but to go back to our previous method. We’ll start here and spread out in search for her,” Han Yu said, standing up with a somber voice.


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    Feng Jianling nodded, admiring Han Yu’sposure. He could see how much Han Yu valued and cared for his daughter-inw; otherwise, he wouldn’t have left everything behind to search for Su Wenyue, who might already be dead. Confronted with their current ordeal, he remained calm and collected.


    “Even if we use your method, the scope bes much broader. We don’t have enough people for such an extensive search; it’s too slow. I’ll recruit more personnel and call upon friends in Jianghu to join the search. We must find a clue,” Feng Jianling dered.


    “Great favors are beyond thanks; I appreciate your help!” Han Yu was grateful, but the priority was finding his daughter-inw. He nned to deploy more people, and to set up surveince along the routes leading to Chang’an and Yiyang, in case the abductor intended to take her there, possibly linked to the Imperial Court or Zhao Fan.


    While the search outside turned the world upside down, Su Wenyue was lying unconscious, her face flushed, sweating profusely, and moaning faintly in pain—a truly distressing sight for Han Yu had he seen it.


    This state had persisted for a day. However, with no one else in the room and the person who had taken her away absent, no one discovered her condition, which seemed destined to worsen if left unchecked.


    The Phantom had gone out to handle tasks dictated by his master, nning to return by noon. An unexpected turn of events dyed him until evening to settle matters.


    There was no avoiding these circumstances. His rescue of the woman was already a merciful act, as he typically never meddled in the affairs of others. This time, he did it partly out of consideration for his master—an incident involving the woman would surely sadden his master. Although irritated by this fact, serving by his master’s side for so long meant he hade to ept that his master’s wishes were not his to influence.


    Yet as much as he saved her, he couldn’t neglect his duties because of her. That morning, he had only prepared two steamed buns and locked the door from outside, trapping the woman inside without ess to food. By now, he figured she must be ravenous. Given her frail state, he decided to prepare more food for her in the evening.


    The Phantom hadn’t realized that his attitude towards Su Wenyue had already changed. If he truly disliked her, he wouldn’t have bothered about whether she went hungry—as long as she didn’t starve to death. Su Wenyue’s conduct during their journey had involuntarily earned his respect, which led to this change in his behavior. On the day the Phantom ughtered those five men, Su Wenyue had been present. Not the most attentive soul, the Phantom saved Su Wenyue, but showed no reluctance to killing. She had witnessed that bloody scene directly, vomited on the spot, and despite having leaped from a high cliff, received no proper care since then. Her condition was markedly frail, nearly causing her to faint, but still, she bore the pain and fear without a whimper after being taken by the Phantom.