Chapter 29: Night Raid

After Lin Tian left the Heavenly Dao Temple, he made his way straight down the mountain. At the foot of the mountain, several people were anxiously waiting. When they saw Lin Tian return safely, they all breathed a sigh of relief and hurried forward to ask, “Young master, how did it go?”

“It’s done, but the price was outrageously high,” Lin Tian replied, his face contorted with pain. Six hundred spirit stones—his entire fortune—were now gone, all for the sake of killing Yin Tianfang.

“If my strength were enough, I wouldn’t have needed to beg the Hall of Heavenly Severance. Never mind, once we’re back, I’ll just focus on cultivating and wait for good news,” Lin Tian sighed softly, leading his people swiftly away.

Atop the mountain, within a secluded chamber of the temple, the old priest took a deep breath, pricked his fingertip, and drew a rune on the ground with his blood. Then, picking up a strand of Yin Tianfang’s hair, he closed his eyes and began to recite an incantation. The strand slowly burned to ashes and fell into the blood-red rune, which immediately glowed with a sinister light. With a sharp cry, a crimson gleam shot into the sky.

Hundreds of miles away, within a cave, Yin Tianfang lay lazily on a protruding rock at the entrance, basking in the sun. Suddenly, an inexplicable dread gripped his heart. He quickly stood up and looked around, but nothing seemed amiss, leaving him puzzled.

At that moment, a blood-red rune flickered on Yin Tianfang’s forehead before vanishing without a trace.

Back in the temple’s secret chamber, the old priest opened his eyes, exhaled a turbid breath, and stepped out. Several people were already waiting for him. Seeing the priest emerge, they bowed slightly.

“Take this spirit jade to Soul Severance Ravine. Bring back a life.”

“Yes, sir!”

The group took the spirit jade from the old priest. Though the jade looked utterly ordinary, without a trace of anything special, they accepted it without hesitation, left the main hall, exited the temple, and transformed into streaks of light, speeding toward Soul Severance Ravine until they vanished into the horizon.

Night fell. The adult demon bird had yet to return. Yin Tianfang remained in the deep ravine, seated cross-legged, quietly cultivating. Little Bit, being a demon beast, needed only to eat and sleep to cultivate, a fact Yin Tianfang deeply envied.

Under cover of darkness, several figures slipped silently toward Yin Tianfang’s location like phantoms. In one figure’s hand, a spirit jade emitted an eerie red glow, growing stronger the closer they drew to Yin Tianfang.

“He’s nearby. Split up and search,” someone whispered. The group quickly dispersed and began searching the area. Moments later, they regrouped—clearly, someone had found Yin Tianfang’s location.

“There’s a cave up on that cliff. The target is inside.”

“Are there any others?”

“No, but there seems to be a demon beast. Its aura isn’t strong. The target’s cultivation is at the fourth level of Qi Condensation.”

“In that case, let’s make it quick and finish the job,” the one holding the spirit jade commanded in a low voice. With a wave of his hand, their figures flickered and melted into the darkness.

Inside the cave, Yin Tianfang was deep in cultivation when a sudden sense of foreboding jolted him awake. In the darkness, a flash of light streaked toward him like a silent bolt of lightning.

In that instant, every hair on Yin Tianfang’s body stood on end, a chilling sensation prickling his back. At the critical moment, he twisted his body aside.

A short sword, barely a few inches long, pierced straight through him, emerging from his chest. The force sent Yin Tianfang reeling forward.

Blood spurted from his lips, his face draining of color as blood poured from his chest wound. It had been so close—just a little more and he would have died then and there.

All of this happened in a split second. Yin Tianfang didn’t even have a chance to fight back before he was incapacitated. Clutching his chest, his breath grew weak. Several figures emerged from the shadows, gazes cold and merciless as they stared him down.

A furious cry echoed through the cave. Seeing Yin Tianfang wounded, Little Bit erupted with a fierce aura and charged at the intruders.

The leading man’s expression remained icy. With a simple gesture, an invisible force bound Little Bit, rendering him immobile.

“Take his head. We’ll return for our reward,” the man ordered coldly.

“Yes, sir!” One of them stepped forward, dagger gleaming as he advanced on Yin Tianfang. Yin Tianfang gritted his teeth, eyes blazing with fury as if he would burn these men to ashes.

Who were these people? Why target him—and with such underhanded methods? Every one of them outclassed him in cultivation, yet they still resorted to ambush. It was utterly despicable, but that was the way of the Hall of Heavenly Severance. Even to kill an ordinary man, they would never confront their target head-on.

This was the first rule drilled into them from the day they entered the Hall: never engage the target in direct combat, no matter how their cultivation compared.

Kneeling on one knee, blood streaming from his chest, Yin Tianfang’s face was ashen and his breathing labored. Watching his foe approach, he was furious but utterly helpless. Even uninjured, he was no match for any of them—let alone now, gravely wounded.

As Yin Tianfang awaited the executioner’s blade, a wild wind suddenly swept through, accompanied by a wrathful, savage screech outside the cave. In a flash, a massive creature stormed in, exuding murderous intent.

At the critical moment, the adult demon bird had returned!

The sudden turn of events stunned the assassins. Before they could react, razor-sharp talons, sweeping with a deadly gale, slashed toward them.

With desperate speed, the assassins formed hand seals, and several flying swords shot forth, gleaming coldly as they intercepted the enormous talons. The clash sent metallic echoes and sparks flying through the cavern. The demon bird’s talons clamped down, crushing the swords with ease.

Then, its beak opened wide, unleashing a beam of black light that blasted the assassins back, blood spraying from their mouths, faces twisted with terror.

“Retreat!” the leader barked. In an instant, he darted for the cave entrance, his form flickering and elusive. But before overwhelming power, all technique was futile. They had barged into this place with murderous intent—the demon bird would never let them escape.

With a thunderous sweep of its wings, like two walls closing in, the bird struck.

Bodies flew backward, blood gushing from their mouths, crashing heavily to the ground. Bones snapped by the dozens in a single blow, leaving them sprawled like broken heaps of flesh.