Chapter 97: Calm Before the Hunt
A new day dawned over Oakwood City.
Though the skies were clear and bright, the city itself buzzed with unrest. Whispers of yesterday's duel—of Su Tianhao's stunning victory and Su Jian's public humiliation—spread like wildfire through taverns, crowded markets, and clan halls alike.
While the entire city reeled in chaos, caught between admiration and wild speculation...
Su Tianhao simply stirred peacefully from his sleep.
Yaaawn~
He stretched lazily, blinking at the soft morning light filtering through the windows of his modest chamber in Fei Wu Quarter. That single yawn wiped away every last remnant of sleep. He sat up slowly, back straight, his mind already turning over the events of yesterday with quiet clarity.
Shortly after returning home, the Patriarch had sent someone to deliver the prize money—one thousand gold coins, handed over without fanfare.
'Before now I already had about four hundred and eighty gold coins... with that additional one thousand gold coins, my amassed wealth is nearly one thousand five hundred gold coins!'
He couldn't help but smile at the thought.
Just one month ago, his total wealth hadn't even reached five gold coins—a few hundred silver coins at most. Compared to his current fortune, that was a single drop measured against a vast ocean.
'With this much, I won't have to worry about money again until the Qingyun Sect Examination.'
His analytical mind was already moving ahead.
'Right now the entire city thinks I'm already a Peak-stage Martial Disciple. Perhaps it's time to make that assumption a reality.'
Yesterday had been his most restful day in weeks—no training, no cultivating, no meditation. Highly deserved rest. But now that rest was over. It was time to return to the kind of harsh, focused training that produced real growth.
Su Tianhao rose smoothly from his bed, his hand reaching naturally for Shadowfang resting sheathed against the wall. The familiar weight of the blade settled at his waist as he strapped it on.
'Dragonspire Forest. Only by training in that kind of environment can I truly grow faster.'
The logic was sound—his previous visit had proven it beyond any doubt. He'd gone from 4th level Martial Apprentice Realm to 1st level Martial Disciple Realm in just two weeks. Not only that, but the Raging Dragon Fist had advanced from Initial Mastery all the way to Perfection in that same stretch of time.
Two weeks.
And it wasn't simply his natural talent driving that rate. What contributed most was the innate devouring ability of his physique—consuming blood essence directly from spirit beasts, bypassing the bottlenecks that constrained ordinary cultivators.
'My goal this time: reach Peak-stage Martial Disciple Realm and achieve Small Success in Shadow-Splitting Flash.'
Though he was only at the 4th level currently, he didn't doubt himself for a moment.
'By the time I reach Peak-stage Martial Disciple Realm and unlock the second layer of the Nine Heavens Sword Scripture, I wonder how much stronger I'll truly become...'
His golden eyes gleamed with quiet anticipation. He turned and headed for the door.
But while Su Tianhao carefully planned his next step forward, far more sinister plans were already unfolding in the shadows—plans that had nothing to do with growth, and everything to do with death.
---
He emerged from Fei Wu Quarter dressed in his signature azure robes, Shadowfang riding firmly at his hip. His golden eyes carried that familiar distant quality—as if seeing through the morning haze into a horizon only he could fathom.
As he entered the disciples' quarters, conversations softened and heads turned. His presence didn't demand attention—it invited it. Like a steady flame burning in calm wind, there was something unmistakable about him now: confidence without arrogance, strength without noise.
"Look! It's Young Master Tianhao!"
"The Second Young Master! He can truly be considered the strongest prodigy in the younger generation of Oakwood City!"
"Exactly! Everything about him has become shrouded in mystery—his master, his techniques, even his cultivation base!"
The disciples murmured amongst themselves, voices hushed with awe and laced with admiration. A few faces carried the unmistakable tinge of envy as he passed in long, unhurried strides. But none dared approach him directly.
The current Su Tianhao was like a mountain path glimpsed through morning mist—clearly just ahead, yet not so easily reached.
Su Tianhao remained utterly indifferent to their stares and flattering whispers. Their opinions simply weren't worth his attention anymore.
At the main gates, his expression warmed slightly at the sight of familiar faces.
"Good morning, Young Master!"
The guards greeted in unison, backs straightening in proper salute—genuine warmth behind the formality.
Su Tianhao returned their greeting with a quiet, easy smile.
"Good morning to you all. No need to be so tense around me—just be your usual selves," he said calmly.
Even with his rising status, he felt no need to demand such rigid formality. These gate guards were among the very few who had continued to acknowledge him as their Young Master during his lowest, darkest days. He remembered that clearly, and had long since vowed to repay their loyalty when the time came.
Hearing his words, the guards were briefly stunned—then their faces broke into warm smiles.
"We understand, Young Master," they said together, the stiffness leaving their postures all at once.
Su Tianhao nodded once and departed. As his figure disappeared into the city streets beyond the gates, the guards could only watch in quiet admiration.
"Such a talented prodigy with such impressive character—that's truly rare," one guard said softly.
"Far better than Young Master Jian in every way," another added before he could stop himself.
"Hey!" His companions immediately hushed him with urgent whispers.
Whatever their private feelings, Su Jian was still the Young Master of their clan. Speaking such things aloud was asking for trouble they couldn't afford.
Su Tianhao was naturally unaware of any of it. By then, he had already stepped into the main streets of Oakwood City.
---
The streets stirred with the familiar rhythm of morning life. Merchant stalls lined the cobbled roads, their modest awnings rustling gently in the autumn breeze. The scent of grilled skewers, candied fruits, and warm flatbread drifted through the air—subtle but inviting. Vendors called out their wares in practiced tones, blending seamlessly into the hum of footsteps and quiet chatter. Children wove between legs with bright laughter, old men huddled over board games in warm patches of sunlight, and cultivators in simple or ornate robes moved steadily past—some deep in conversation, others lost entirely in their own thoughts.
Su Tianhao walked through it all unhurried and calm—like a quiet stream flowing steadily through a noisy market. Wherever he passed, heads turned subtly and whispers trailed in his wake, yet none dared approach too boldly. He was no longer just a familiar face in this city. He had become a presence that commanded respect without demanding it.
What he didn't notice, however, was the pair of sharp eyes watching him from above—tracking his every movement, every gesture, with the patient focus of a predator that had already chosen its prey.
Hidden in the shadowed corner of a second-story teahouse, a crooked smile curled slowly on the lips of a hooded figure. One eye gleamed with sinister anticipation. The other—a pale, sightless orb completely devoid of color—remained fixed unblinkingly on Su Tianhao's retreating figure below.
Blood Grin.
"I thought he would stay in his little safe haven for a few days after such a big match," he whispered to himself, excitement quietly distorting his already hideous face. "Who would have thought he'd walk right out of the Su family estate the very next morning..."
Jejeje...
"He walks like he owns the world." His tongue flicked out, wetting cracked lips. "How delightful it will be to break that pride—piece by agonizing piece."
He slowly rubbed his palms together, barely containing the dark anticipation coiling within him. Greed flickered openly in his lone gleaming eye, raw and unrestrained.
"When I finish playing with him, all his secrets will become my trophies... Ahh~ I'm going to savor every moment of this!"
His whisper dissolved into the ambient noise of the teahouse below.
"Be prepared, Su Tianhao..."
---
Su Tianhao arrived at Dragonspire Forest as the morning sun climbed steadily higher. The familiar mountain rose behind the sprawling wilderness like a sleeping giant, ancient and indifferent. The treeline pressed dense and thick at the forest's edge, and from somewhere deep within came the low, reverberating roar of a spirit beast—unhurried, entirely unbothered by whatever smaller creatures might tremble at the sound.
Resting his hand lightly on Shadowfang's hilt, Su Tianhao gazed at the towering wall of green before him.
"Dragonspire Forest," he murmured quietly. "I'm back."
Without hesitation, he stepped in. The canopy closed overhead almost immediately, golden morning light filtering down in broken rays through the swaying branches above. The path ahead was filled with fierce beasts and unknown trials—but none of it stirred even a flicker of doubt within him.
Every step he took was steady and purposeful—as if he were walking not into danger, but toward destiny itself.
Unbeknownst to him, death had already entered the forest—wearing a twisted smile, waiting patiently in the dark.