Su Yueli had been in the imperial city for barely a day, and other than Pang Hu, she had not offended anyone else.
This noble family's reach was truly far-reaching. In such a short time, they had already identified the culprit and even tracked down her lodging.
She couldn't help but marvel at the capabilities of such a clan.
Su Yueli quieted her mind to sense her surroundings.
There were two presences slipping in from the dark alley—one at the early stage of the Fifth Realm, and the other at the mid stage of the Fifth Realm.
Had it been two hours ago, she would have had no choice but to flee when facing two Fifth Realm opponents.
But now, she had firmly established herself in the Fifth Realm, Martial Opening. Even if she had to face both of them, she would at least have the strength to fight, even if she couldn't win.
Then, she noticed one of the presences heading straight for Lin Ye's room.
It was indeed the Pang family. Fortunately, that playful fellow Lin Ye was still wandering aimlessly in the streets.
It was a blessing that he hadn't returned, sparing her the burden of a liability.
Gathering her thoughts, Su Yueli slipped off the bed and hid in the blind spot behind the door.
Before long, there was a soft creak as the window latch was gently pried open with a sharp blade.
The black-clad man at the early stage of the Fifth Realm leaped into the room, muttering in a very low, grumbling voice, “So damn unlucky. Having to get drenched in the midnight dew just to kill a brat from the outer city...”
Holding a gleaming steel saber, he crept to the bed in a few quick steps, violently ripped away the blanket, and stabbed down fiercely.
It was empty.
The black-clad man froze. Strange, where was she?
The intelligence clearly stated she had returned to her room.
Just as he dithered in confusion, a sudden chill rose from behind him.
“Looking for me?”
The cold voice sounded like a death knell.
The black-clad man spun around in horror, only to be met by a fair fist wrapped in terrifying blood qi.
“Fifth Realm?! The intelligence was wrong—”
The black-clad man's pupils dilated, his heart filled with sheer terror.
Didn't the Pang family's informants say this girl was only at the peak of the Fourth Realm?!
This heavy and violent gale of force was clearly that of a genuine Fifth Realm, Martial Opening!
Unfortunately, he didn't even have the chance to cry out for help.
Su Yueli gave him no time to react. The short-range force of her fourth form, River Blocker, erupted instantly.
Knowing her opponent was also in the Fifth Realm, she used her fourth fist form right from the start, channeling all her strength into this single blow.
Her fist slammed squarely into his chest.
“Crack!”
His ribs shattered completely, and his heart meridians were instantly severed.
The black-clad man flew backward like a broken sack, smashing the mahogany round table in the room, and died on the spot.
Su Yueli was slightly stunned. She looked at her fist, deeply surprised.
Although she had just broken through to the Fifth Realm and used her strongest fourth form, she shouldn't have been able to kill someone of the same realm in a single strike, right?
Could it be that the black-clad man had underestimated her too much, and before he could react, she had launched a sneak attack on a vital spot?
She couldn't be sure, but that punch had indeed been aimed right at his heart, and it had landed solidly.
As she was pondering, a flurry of footsteps from the hallway outside interrupted her thoughts.
The mid stage Fifth Realm black-clad man who had gone to kill Lin Ye had found an empty room. Hearing the commotion over here, he immediately realized something was wrong, kicked open the door, and rushed in.
Upon entering, he saw his companion's corpse lying amidst the shattered wood splinters, while Su Yueli stood in the shadows, staring at him coldly.
Fifth Realm?! His companion had actually died without even lasting a single move!
The black-clad man's scalp went numb, his shock beyond measure.
He hurriedly drew the long saber at his waist, his blood qi surging violently as he made a motion to slash at Su Yueli.
Su Yueli lowered her gaze slightly and immediately fell into a stance, preparing to defend and counterattack.
Yet to her surprise, the black-clad man's move was merely a feint.
Midway through his slash, he withdrew his force and lunged toward the corpse on the ground.
Grabbing his companion's collar, he crashed through the wooden window behind him and fled frantically into the night.
It was the rule of the Pang family's death-sworn assassins: if the assassination failed, the corpse must never be left behind for others to investigate.
Seeing this, Su Yueli was about to give chase.
“Who dares to cause trouble here?!”
At the end of the street, a row of torches suddenly lit up. Accompanied by the clanking of armor, a patrol of the Golden Armor Guards, drawn by the loud noise of the shattered window, quickly closed in to surround the area.
Su Yueli stopped in her tracks helplessly.
The patrol in the imperial city was incredibly strict. If she chased after him now, she would surely be captured as an assassin causing trouble in the city.
The captain of the city guards led his men into the ruined guest room and questioned her sharply.
Su Yueli suppressed her blood qi, her expression calm as she gave a brief account of how she had been ambushed by a thief, omitting the fact that she had killed one of them.
She only said that the intruder had wanted to rob and murder her, but seeing her wake up and resist, he had jumped out of the window and fled.
The commotion had also drawn many of the inn's guests to peer out and gossip among themselves.
“Miss Su!”
A young man carrying a long saber squeezed through the crowd. It was Lin Ye, who had just returned from wandering the streets.
Seeing the room in a complete mess, Lin Ye broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly rushed in to ask what had happened.
The guard captain checked Su Yueli and Lin Ye's entry wooden tokens. Seeing that they were legitimate martial artists here to participate in the Martial Arts Tournament, and since there was no corpse or blood at the scene, he did not make things difficult for them.
“To think such scoundrels dare to operate right under the feet of the Emperor! You have been startled, young lady. We will step up patrols in this area and investigate this thoroughly!” The captain offered some polite words before leading his men away.
They knew in their hearts that assassins who could sneak into the imperial city so silently were mostly death-sworn guards kept by the noble families. It was impossible to trace such messy accounts back to their source, so this was merely going through the motions.
After the Golden Armor Guards left, Lin Ye closed the half-broken door, still trembling with fear.
“Miss Su, are you alright? It must be the Pang family's doing!” Lin Ye gritted his teeth in anger.
Su Yueli glanced at him and said flatly, “A Fifth Realm fighter went to your room too. If you hadn't been wandering around outside, I would be preparing to collect your corpse by now.”
Hearing this, Lin Ye shrank his neck back and swallowed hard.
His habit of wandering around had actually saved his life!
“What do we do now?” Lin Ye asked.
“We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Since they failed this time and don't know my true strength, they probably won't dare to act rashly for the next three days. We'll wait until the Martial Arts Tournament begins.”
Su Yueli brushed the dust off her clothes, walked over to sit cross-legged, and closed her eyes to rest.
Meanwhile.
Outside the inn, among the crowd that had not yet dispersed.
A young man dressed in a plain long robe, with his arms crossed, was staring intently at the broken window on the second floor.
The young man had a handsome face and a restrained aura, making him extremely inconspicuous in the crowd.
“Is she in the Fourth Realm? Or the Fifth Realm?”
The young man stroked his chin, his eyes filled with interest.
Ordinary people couldn't perceive that brief clash of blood qi just now, but he had sensed it clearly.
The girl looked to be only around twenty.
For an outsider without any resource backing to reach such a profound realm was truly rare.
She was simply a genius among geniuses.
A smile played on the young man's lips. “It seems this Martial Arts Tournament is going to be interesting. The position of champion might not be so easy to claim after all.”
With that, the young man turned and vanished into the night.
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