Top Soldier Pursued by a Beauty

"Alright," Zhao Dong agreed decisively.

Immediately after, Li Long tidied his clothes and strode out. His expression turned grim again, completely lacking the subservience he had shown in front of Zhao Dong.

"Senior Brother Li, you're back."

The gatekeepers, upon seeing Li Long, immediately began to nod and bow obsequiously.

Li Long's gaze swept over the two of them, and his already somber face turned even more sullen. "When were these clothes washed?"

The two were utterly baffled. What the heck?

Despite their confusion, they hurriedly replied, "Senior Brother Li, I washed these clothes yesterday."

"I washed mine yesterday, too."

"Insolence!" Li Long suddenly roared, startling them both.

"You're wearing clothes that were washed yesterday?" Li Long raged. "Your post represents the very face of our Blood Sect! By wearing yesterday's clothes, are you trying to make outsiders think the Blood Sect is full of unwashed bumpkins?"

"Huh?" The two were stunned. "But... Senior Brother... wearing clothes washed yesterday is perfectly normal, isn't it?"

"Nonsense!" Li Long grabbed one of them by the collar. "You ate yesterday, does that mean you don't have to eat today?"

"You dare talk back to me? According to the sect rules, what is the punishment for insubordination?"

SWISH!

Hearing Li Long actually mention the sect rules, the two men's faces went pale with fright.

"We were wrong... Senior Brother Li, we were really wrong... We'll go change our clothes right now... right now..."

"Get lost, and don't let me see this a second time!"

At Li Long's bellow, the two turned tail and ran. Halfway, however, they suddenly realized something was wrong and hurried back, saying awkwardly, "Senior Brother Li, if we leave, the main gate..."

"I'll watch it for you. Go and come back quickly!"

"Yes, yes, thank you, Senior Brother Li! Thank you!"

Only after the two had departed did Li Long breathe a sigh of relief. He quickly turned to look for Zhao Dong.

Zhao Dong strode over, scrutinizing Li Long. "So this is how you draw people away?"

"Heh... I honestly couldn't think of any other way," Li Long said, scratching his head in embarrassment.

Zhao Dong didn't bother saying more, simply gesturing for Li Long to lead the way.

As they entered the mountain gate, several peaks appeared before their eyes. They walked toward the center, where a great hall came into view. Outside the hall stood a colossal, sky-piercing tree that emanated a dense Spiritual Energy.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Dong's pupils dilated. "Is this a Spirit Tree?"

"Exactly. This is one of the most prized treasures of our Blood Sect, a thousand-year-old Spirit Tree," Li Long said proudly. "This Spirit Tree produces its own Spiritual Energy. Sitting cross-legged beneath it to cultivate can increase your cultivation speed tenfold."

He sighed, "The fruit from the tree is an even greater treasure for cultivators, but unfortunately, with our status, we're allotted at most one fruit a year..."

Just one? Zhao Dong thought to himself. If I get the chance to overthrow the Blood Sect, I'll uproot this Spirit Tree completely! What's this about one or two? Only children have to make choices. I want it all!

Zhao Dong withdrew his gaze. Li Long pointed to a moderately sized peak. "Brother Dong, that's the peak where you'll find the Elder Ouyang you're looking for." Li Long had already told him the name of the man who took Xu Yafei: Ouyang Hong.

With that, Li Long led Zhao Dong toward the mountain. He deliberately chose less-traveled paths, and they soon arrived smoothly at the base of the peak.

The deeper they went, the denser the Spiritual Energy became. On the peak where Ouyang Hong resided, the Spiritual Energy was so rich it felt almost viscous.

Zhao Dong secretly marveled. In an environment like this, even a dog tied up here could probably become a spirit, couldn't it?

「Ten minutes later.」

Avoiding passersby and crossing through overlapping mountain ridges, they came upon a palace. Though not as magnificent as the great hall at the entrance, it was still incredibly luxurious.

"This is Elder Ouyang's cave dwelling," Li Long said, a hint of envy in his eyes.

"Are all the cave dwellings in the Blood Sect this luxurious?" Zhao Dong asked.

"How could that be possible?" Li Long smiled bitterly. "Elder Ouyang holds a high position, so he has the privilege to live in such a magnificent cave dwelling.

"With my status, I only qualify to live in an ordinary cave dwelling on the mountainside. The Spiritual Energy there is worlds apart from what it is here."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Dong roughly understood why Li Long would betray the Blood Sect. The sect's strict hierarchical system likely left those at the bottom with very little sense of belonging. Bullying the weak was probably a common occurrence here. Otherwise, the two guards at the gate wouldn't have been trembling with fear over Li Long's completely baseless excuse to make trouble. After all, in a normal sect, no matter how powerful an elder was, he couldn't just fabricate charges against a disciple, right?

Snapping out of his thoughts, Zhao Dong immediately activated his Divine Sense and probed the palace. Probing with Divine Sense was a technique only Cultivators possessed.

As his Divine Sense swept over the palace, his brow instantly furrowed. "The person I'm looking for isn't inside!"

"Then Elder Ouyang and the woman must have gone out," Li Long said. "I've been here a few times and often saw him taking her with him."

"I heard your Blood Sect refines puppets. You don't think Ouyang Hong plans on turning Yafei into one, do you?"

"No!" Li Long asserted firmly. "Refining a puppet isn't this troublesome. I can see that Elder Ouyang cares for that woman a great deal. He definitely doesn't intend to turn her into a puppet."

Hearing this, Zhao Dong finally breathed a sigh of relief. As long as she wasn't being turned into a puppet, everything else was manageable.

Just then, two figures—one old, one young—suddenly appeared on the road in the distance. Zhao Dong immediately pulled Li Long up into a nearby tree to hide.

As the pair drew closer, Zhao Dong's heart pounded.

"Yafei!" Watching the dazed woman trailing behind the old man, Zhao Dong's eyes instantly reddened.

Yes! The woman before him was none other than Xu Yafei, the one he longed for with all his heart!

Ouyang Hong led Xu Yafei to the entrance of the great hall, then turned and ordered, "Go wash the clothes, fetch the water, and prepare tonight's meal in advance."

"Yes..." Xu Yafei nodded blankly, then turned numbly and walked toward a nearby laundry area.

Without a second glance, Ouyang Hong turned, opened the door, and entered the great hall.

Once Ouyang Hong was gone, Zhao Dong rushed into the laundry area.

"Yafei!"

Watching her beautiful silhouette, Zhao Dong's breathing grew ragged with excitement, his eyes turning red. Tears welled in his trembling eyes.

"Yafei..." he called again, but Xu Yafei, as if she hadn't heard, continued to wash the clothes with her head bowed.

Zhao Dong was stunned.

He hurriedly stepped forward and pulled Xu Yafei to her feet. "Yafei, what... what's wrong with you?"

"Who are you?" Xu Yafei's expression was dazed, her eyes filled with confusion as she looked at him.

THUMP!

His heart lurched. An ominous premonition instantly engulfed him.

"She must have had her memory sealed by Elder Ouyang!" Li Long, who had hurried to catch up, explained while anxiously looking out the door.

"Sealed memory?" Zhao Dong's expression darkened, a monstrous killing intent surging from deep within him.

He quickly checked Xu Yafei's body and saw that her injuries had indeed all healed. That being the case, Zhao Dong certainly wasn't going to leave her here.

"Yafei, I know you don't remember me, but I'm here to save you. Please, just come with me."

Zhao Dong grabbed Xu Yafei's hand and started to lead her away, but she suddenly began to scream. "Ah! Let go of me... Let go of me! I won't go! I won't go!"

Zhao Dong was shocked and hastily tried to cover her mouth. "Yafei, don't shout! I'm really not a bad person, I'm here to save you!"

He tried to explain, but Xu Yafei refused to listen.

Nearby, Li Long was on pins and needles.

"Brother Dong, we have to go!" he urged, glancing nervously toward the palace. "He probably heard the commotion. If he comes out, neither of us will be able to leave!"

"Bullshit! I came here to save her! You expect me to leave without her?"

Zhao Dong's eyes were bloodshot as he refused to back down.

Seeing this, Li Long was about to explode with anxiety. He was tempted to flee on his own, but the thought that his life was still in Zhao Dong's hands forced him to stay. He could only continue to keep watch, praying desperately that no one would come.