Chapter 26: Chaos in Tiger General City
Tomorrow is the first day of the Lunar New Year! Wishing everyone a happy new year, all the best, and may all your wishes come true!
——————————I am a gorgeous dividing line——————————
Although Snowball is sometimes confused and bewildered, it is also clear about its mission. It is precisely because of this that Snowball will dedicate itself without hesitation when it feels her call.
As the second emperor of the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, Feng Yi was always extremely noble and had never had the habit of gently comforting others. Seeing the pain in Feng Fei's eyes, he wanted to offer some comfort but didn't know how to begin. His lips moved slightly, but ultimately turned into a silent sigh, disappearing into the air and returning to his storage ring before Yuan Jue and Feng Fei could even notice.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue embraced tightly for a long time before slowly letting go of each other. Seeing themselves reflected in each other's eyes, they finally smiled at each other.
"Sister Feifei, let's leave."
Perhaps it was the mutual sympathy between Feng Fei and Yuan Jue that stung Ming Feng, for Ming Feng's voice was extremely indifferent at this moment. If one listened carefully, one could still sense the despair and pain that Ming Feng was suppressing. Under other circumstances, Ming Feng might have followed Xue Tuan, but at this moment, Ming Feng seemed to be holding on to something, which was why she was able to continue to stand firmly in front of Feng Fei.
Feng Fei stopped in front of Ming Feng and embraced her. "I'm sorry."
Mingfeng gently shook her head, pushed Fengfei aside, and walked out first.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue exchanged a glance, only to see a look of utter helplessness on their faces.
The two quickly caught up and returned to the open space they had been in before. Above them, the same strange creatures were still swimming around, as if everything that had happened below had never affected them.
Without hesitation, Feng Fei and Yuan Jue emerged from the water. At this moment, Ming Feng had returned to normal and looked at Feng Fei and Yuan Jue calmly as they came out.
The three walked side by side to the place where they had once grazed the horses.
There were four people traveling together at first. But now there are still three horses, but there are three people.
For a moment, Feng Fei and the other two were somewhat pained, but the next moment Ming Feng smiled and said, "Let's set off quickly!"
Mingfeng mounted her horse and waited for Fengfei and Yuanjue on its back.
Yuan Jue quickly mounted his horse and rode to Ming Feng's side, gently patting her on the back. Ming Feng gave him a nonchalant look, and Yuan Jue returned the gesture with a slight smile.
At this moment, Feng Fei also mounted his horse, and the three of them quickly galloped towards Tiger General City.
They had already wasted a lot of time underwater. They didn't know if Bai Zhi could handle everything that had happened in Tiger General City. Because of the sudden changes underwater, a dark cloud settled over the hearts of Feng Fei and the other two.
Although their mindset wasn't entirely relaxed before crossing the lake, at least the four of them were intact. Now, however, there were only three. While Xue Tuan was still within Feng Fei's consciousness, she could no longer be considered a complete life form. If there was any chance of success, Feng Fei would definitely return a complete Xue Tuan to Ming Feng. Feng Fei secretly vowed in her heart: she would overcome all future tribulations!
By this time, Yuan Jue finally had the energy to think about the ins and outs of the matter. But the more he sorted things out, the more horrified he became to discover that a vast net had suddenly descended upon them from above. If they didn't find a real and thorough solution, perhaps one day they would be caught in that net and end up as fish on a chopping block, at the mercy of others.
This feeling was definitely not good, and it was not something Yuanjue wanted to see, so he desperately wanted to know more and have more power.
This trip to Bai Zhi's place is not only to help her quell the internal strife, but ideally, to seize control of her power. This would give them more confidence to resist what is to come.
Yuanjue slowly sorted out the various thoughts in his mind, and his mind gradually calmed down.
Throughout the journey, Feng Fei's expression remained uneasy. She felt that their sudden encounter with the Karmic Fire Red Lotus, coupled with the inexplicable collapse of Tiger Roar City, both events carried a strange undertone. However, she could not grasp the key to their situation and could only keep them in mind for later consideration.
This time, the three of them did not stop on their way and arrived at Tiger General City.
Tiger General City was far from the quiet and peaceful place they had imagined; chaos and riots raged everywhere. It was as if Bai Zhi hadn't integrated the forces of the Black Tiger and White Tiger lineages at all after her return. Instead, she had simply let things drift and let them run their course.
Almost all the shops in Tiger City were closed. An elderly man, walking with difficulty, was knocked to the ground by someone rushing past. He lay on the ground, groaning in pain with a lacerated scalp, but no one offered to help. Many people hurrying away even carelessly touched him with their hands and feet. In an instant, the old man was on the verge of death.
Squads of heavily armored guards patrolled the streets—more like robbers than patrols. They kicked open the doors of every shop they passed, regardless of whether they were closed. Once inside, they took the most valuable items. Some soldiers even dragged women out of the shops, ignoring their cries and pleas. Their actions were utterly lewd, groping the women indiscriminately. Some even went so far as to slip their filthy hands inside the women's clothing, reaching for their breasts or the area below their navels.
Such appalling scenes were now commonplace in Tiger General City.
Feng Fei could barely contain his fury. The snake-bone whip at his waist suddenly lashed out, landing on the lewd and vulgar soldiers and drawing strings of bright red blood.
"ah!"
The soldier who was chosen by Feng Fei immediately clutched his wound and rolled on the ground in pain. If Feng Fei hadn't known that she hadn't used her full strength, she probably would have thought that she had crippled these people!
The crowd seemed surprised to see a Cheng Yaojin appear halfway through their journey. After a moment of stunned silence, they glared angrily at Feng Fei: "Where did this blind dog come from!"
After roaring, the leader finally noticed Feng Fei, whose angry expression only enhanced her allure. His lecherous eyes narrowed instantly. At that moment, a quick-witted soldier, having dodged Feng Fei's initial lash, quietly moved behind the leader and whispered, "Boss Zhao, look at that beauty! Tsk tsk, she must taste amazing under you!"
Zhao Laoda's face shrank even further, and drool seemed to drip from the corner of his mouth, as if he was already fantasizing about Feng Fei bowing and responding to him.
Before Feng Fei could even get angry, Yuan Jue had already raised his eyes and let out a cold snort.
This cold snort struck the hearts of the soldiers with a heavy blow; one timid man was so frightened that he wet his pants.
Yuan Jue curled his lip in disdain and was about to pull Feng Fei away. He even regretted not having Feng Fei disguise himself before entering Tiger General City, to avoid attracting the covetous eyes of petty villains. Instead, it made him feel incredibly disgusted. Seeing how those people looked at Feng Fei, Yuan Jue felt it was an insult to Feng Fei, and he felt extremely uncomfortable, as if he had swallowed a fly.
Yuan Jue wanted to leave, but the soldier leader was unwilling to let Feng Fei go so easily.
Seeing that Feng Fei was about to leave, he immediately shamelessly moved closer to her.
Yuan Jue kicked out, sending the soldier leader sprawling backward. Fortunately, Yuan Jue hadn't put much force into the kick, otherwise the soldier leader wouldn't be lying on the ground clutching his chest, crying in pain.
The quick-witted soldier, seeing their leader Zhao suddenly kicked to the ground, rolled his eyes and, with a forced smile, cautiously took a few steps toward Yuan Jue: "May I ask what important business these distinguished guests have brought to our Tiger General City?"
Yuan Jue didn't want to pay attention to this person, but considering that Bai Zhi was most likely not in Tiger General City, and that he couldn't quickly find out what had happened in Tiger General City, he changed his mind and looked at the clever soldier without showing any emotion.
This soldier, known as San'er, was a notorious loafer in Tiger General City, skilled at harassing, threatening, and robbing ordinary people to obtain resources for survival. His greatest talent was reading people and situations. A few days ago, Tiger General City suddenly descended into chaos. All the most distinguished nobles mysteriously disappeared, all their shops closed, and the city's garrison vanished. Then, some people with martial arts skills stormed into the heavily guarded military compound, taking armor and weapons to impersonate the city guards.
The man San'er followed, Boss Zhao, was just such a person! Boss Zhao was originally just a local ruffian in Tiger General City, but because of his ruthless methods, he had several lives on his hands. Seeing that he could curry favor with Boss Zhao, San'er volunteered to be his follower. Afterwards, San'er did indeed live a life of good tea and good food, and a warm bed with beautiful women to sleep in. San'er even naively prayed to God that this kind of life would continue, but he never expected to encounter such a demon today.
Seeing Yuan Jue's expression, San'er immediately became ingratiating and said, "My name is San'er. If you don't mind, please call me Xiao Sanzi."
Seeing Yuan Jue nod almost imperceptibly, San'er forcibly suppressed the burning desire in his heart and respectfully said, "I wonder if the three esteemed guests have a place to stay? I know..."
Before San'er could finish speaking, Yuan Jue interrupted him: "What's going on in this city?"
San'er hesitated, as if there was something he couldn't say openly. Yuan Jue saw the awkward look on San'er's face and knew that he probably wouldn't get any information without any benefit. So he took Feng Fei and walked into an almost deserted alley.
San'er didn't know what was going on with Yuan Jue. He was hesitating whether to chase after him when he heard Yuan Jue say "Come here." He immediately followed after him.
At this moment, Zhao Laoda, having been helped up by the others, saw San'er eagerly following Yuan Jue away and immediately cursed angrily, "You traitorous bastard! If you're so capable, don't end up in my place! Ouch! That hurts..."
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Purple-Gold Threads
Meanwhile, San'er, who had followed Yuan Jue into the alley, was extremely uneasy. Although the three noblemen he had met earlier seemed very kind, there was no shortage of people in the market who looked kind but were wicked at heart! One must always be cautious!
San'er was muttering to himself when he noticed that the three important people had stopped. He quickly straightened up and put on a fawning smile: "Important people..."
Yuanjue waved his hand, signaling San'er to stop talking nonsense and quickly tell them what they wanted to know.
Seeing that the nobleman before him was not one to enjoy flattery, San'er nervously swallowed hard: "Your Excellency, Tiger General City has been in chaos for the past few days! However, I do not know the reason, I only know that all the other nobles in the city have fled!"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Jue and Feng Fei exchanged a glance. They hadn't expected that Bai Zhi would run away after returning with her people. They couldn't believe such a reason even if they were beaten to death, yet it had become a fact right in front of them.
Then San'er continued, "Not only did those nobles run away, but all the shops under their jurisdiction also closed! However, the people in those shops didn't leave; only the nobles suddenly departed, taking with them all the armored men in Tiger General City. Since no one was in charge, Tiger General City descended into chaos! Many ruffians sneaked into the rations area; some stole the rations and ran, while others put on armor..."
At this point, San'er's face flushed red, because he was one of those armored men. They weren't wearing armor to maintain order in the city, but rather to take advantage of the Tiger Guard's remaining power to steal some benefits in this chaotic city. He felt like he was living a life of luxury lately; not only did he eat and drink well every day, but he could even feast on the fair-skinned women he had never been able to touch before.
A hint of intoxication flickered in San'er's eyes, but she snapped back to reality with a start. She saw the nobleman staring at her coldly, as if he were looking at a dead man! A dead man! San'er was horrified. She immediately suppressed her chaotic thoughts and continued recounting to the nobleman before her the various events that had occurred in Tiger General City recently.
After listening to San'er's fragmented account, Feng Fei and Yuan Jue roughly understood the situation. Although they were unconcerned about the chaos in Tiger Roar City, they couldn't ignore the way people treated human life like dirt. Yuan Jue then coldly ordered, "Hmph, talk to your Boss Zhao later. If he doesn't bring men to maintain order in this small area of Tiger Roar City, he might lose his head."
Hearing Yuan Jue's chilling words, San'er trembled like a leaf. After a long wait, he was shocked to find that the three noblemen had already left. San'er collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted. He cursed himself for not being quick enough this time; he'd tried to gain some benefits, but had almost scared himself to death. And he hadn't even gotten anything this time. He'd thought it was a lucrative position, but… sigh. San'er sighed and was about to stand up and leave when he noticed a gleaming golden ingot hidden beneath his robe after sitting down!
"Good heavens!" San'er exclaimed inwardly, quickly clutching the gold ingot to his chest. He cautiously looked around, and only after confirming no one was watching did he wipe the gold ingot with his sleeve, shake it in his mouth, and then let out a satisfied sigh: "Tsk tsk...it's real..."
San'er carefully hid the gold ingot in his bosom. Seeing that no one was around, he casually dusted himself off and walked outside. In his heart, however, he was wondering how to spend such a large piece of gold. This was the first time San'er had ever seen so much gold in his life; he never expected that a noble person would so casually bestow it upon him.
Leaving aside the fact that San'er was already scheming about how to spend the gold, Yuan Jue and Feng Fei, along with Ming Feng, went directly to the mansion where Bai Zhi had previously lived.
In Yuan Jue's view, the mysterious disappearance of the people in Tiger General City was extremely strange, and might be inextricably linked to the various events that had occurred before. With this in mind, Feng Fei and the other two did not hesitate to head to the Bai residence.
The Bai Mansion is located on White Tiger Street in the northern part of Tiger General City. This street is home to the most powerful and influential people in the entire city. However, some time ago, this area seemed to have been struck by something terrifying. Everyone vanished. And there wasn't a trace of blood anywhere. It was as if the owners had something to do and had taken everyone away. If it weren't for the numerous details indicating what everyone was doing before their disappearance, everyone would probably think that the owners of these mansions had packed their valuables and quietly left.
Before entering the North City, Feng Fei and his two companions concealed themselves, thinking it was better to avoid trouble, and carefully sneaked into White Tiger Street.
An eerie atmosphere permeated White Tiger Street. Feng Fei felt a chill run down his spine, as if someone had been secretly watching their movements without revealing it, instead observing them with calculated intent. This unsettling feeling didn't last long, disappearing completely when Feng Fei and his companions entered the Bai residence.
Feng Fei told Yuan Jue about this discovery. Yuan Jue pondered for a moment and then said to Feng Fei, "I also noticed it, but when I followed it with my divine sense, I didn't find anything unusual. And thankfully, that feeling completely disappeared when we entered the Bai Mansion."
Feng Fei nodded slowly, though he still had some doubts in his heart, he said nothing more.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue Mingfeng quickly arrived at the backyard of the Bai residence. Only after Yuan Jue explained did Feng Fei understand why they had come to the backyard first.
It turns out that the White Tiger backyard was Bai Zhi's usual office, and it shared the same residences as the important members of the White Tiger lineage. Many important meetings were held in the backyard. Moreover, Yuan Jue knew that there was a hidden secret room in this backyard, where he, Bai Zhi, and Bai Shuqing used to practice their skills; very few people knew about it. The secret room was extremely well-preserved, not only hidden but also very spacious and secure. If it was locked from the inside, it could not be opened from the outside by any means except with a special key. It also contained many things, and living there for a long time would not cause any problems.
It was precisely because of this that Yuan Jue felt that, given the current situation, Bai Zhi might be leading the core members of the White Tiger lineage to hide there.
Feng Fei followed Yuan Jue around and around, thinking that Bai Zhi and the others had disappeared suddenly, as if they had never appeared. This reminded her of the sudden disappearance of the small family that Hua Tianzhao belonged to, which Yuan Jue had mentioned to her earlier.
On the way, Feng Fei told Yuan Jue about this possibility. Yuan Jue also felt that this matter might have something in common with Hua Tianzhao's case, but since they had not yet investigated the secret room, the two of them could not make a hasty conclusion.
Despite Yuan Jue's strong desire to find Bai Zhi and the others in the secret room in the backyard, reality was cruel; Yuan Jue found no clues whatsoever in the secret room.
Dejected, Yuan Jue sat down on a stone bench in a pavilion in the backyard, wondering which other places Bai Zhi could go.
At this moment, Feng Fei did not sit in the pavilion like Yuan Jue, but instead carefully examined the entire backyard.
Since Yuan Jue said the backyard was extremely important to Bai Zhi, and given that Bai Zhi and the others rushed back in such a hurry to discuss important matters with key personnel, they would inevitably have used the courtyard they used for each council meeting. This means that Bai Zhi and the others most likely disappeared in this backyard. There is no such thing as a perfect disappearance; even the world's top experts cannot completely destroy all evidence after killing someone to silence them.
So what Feng Fei needs to do now is to find the subtle traces left behind when he "destroyed the body" in this backyard.
Feng Fei patiently searched every inch of the ground. His efforts paid off; he finally found several strands of purplish-gold silk threads beneath the stone platform at the north corner of the pavilion where Yuan Jue was resting. Overjoyed, Feng Fei picked up the threads and discovered they were exceptionally long. Upon closer inspection, they seemed to have been stretched from a lake some distance away in the backyard to the pavilion.
Feng Fei's movements brought Yuan Jue back to reality. Looking at the few strands of purplish-gold silk, a figure flashed through Yuan Jue's mind, but he was immediately drawn back by Feng Fei's voice: "I think these threads were left by someone, and judging from their appearance, they seem to lead to that pond. And judging from the marks around here, it's very likely that the owner of these threads was suddenly attacked here, and while fighting and retreating, he didn't notice that his clothes were caught on the flowers and trees. Afterwards, that person retreated towards the candy-eating area, which is why these threads ended up among those flowers and trees."
Feng Fei rubbed the thin thread in his hand and muttered to himself, "I always feel like this thread looks familiar."
"This thread must have been pulled off from the clothes Yang Mu was wearing that day."
"You mean Yang Mu was the one who retreated towards the pond?"
"Very likely."
"Then let's go take a look."
After saying that, Feng Fei took the lead and flew towards the direction of the pond.
It is early winter now, and even Fengfei, who is immune to heat and cold, can feel the biting chill.