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In front of the spectators' eyes, Yu Chi stepped onto the arena wearing a black robe with a piece of cloth covering his face. His eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. In his hands, he held two black daggers that gleamed like snake fangs. Even as he walked onto the stage, his footsteps made no sound.
He stood firmly on the arena, full of confidence. From the opposite side, a girl with green hair tied into two buns at the back stepped up, holding a long spear over two meters in length. She was Tu Lan, the daughter of the second elder of the Tu Clan.
Tu Lan bowed slightly to greet her opponent, and Yu Chi returned the bow. The burly announcer stepped down from the arena and shouted, "Begin!"
The moment the word left his mouth, Yu Chi shot forward like a hawk. Since he wasn't used to direct combat, he could only rely on his speed. Tu Lan didn't stand still either. She swung her spear in a wide circular motion in front of her.
But before she realized it, Yu Chi had already slipped under the spear. The spearhead passed just above his head, barely brushing his hair. It was a perfect opening!
"Hahaha, inexperience can be deadly sometimes."
Yu Chi gripped his dagger in a reverse hold. While sliding, he slashed Tu Lan's leg, leaving a shallow cut.
"Hahaha, well done, boy! Cut them up!" Laughter came from the Yu Clan's seating area. Although it was only a shallow wound, it was enough.
Suddenly, Tu Lan dropped to her knees! The dagger had been poisoned.
"You!! Does your clan have no honor at all?!" Tu Lan screamed in anger. This was not an honorable way to fight. At least, the Yu Clan had never used such methods before.
Yu Chi smiled beneath his face covering. "Hmph, you bastards always force us into unfavorable positions, and now you're complaining?"
As he spoke, Yu Chi raised his dagger, about to take her arm before leaving. He couldn't kill her openly in front of this crowd, and the poison was only a paralyzing one, not lethal.
Just as the dagger was about to touch her arm, the sound of clashing metal rang throughout the entire arena!
The second elder of the Tu Clan had jumped onto the stage and blocked Yu Chi's dagger. Yu Chi retreated two steps, holding his wrist. Even though it was just a clash of weapons, the difference in strength between him and the second elder was huge.
But… contrary to expectations, the second elder didn't stop there. He boldly advanced, trying to kill Yu Chi. This scene made the heads of the other three clans feel a sting. Where did the Tu Clan get the confidence to kill the second son of the Yu Clan?!
Whoosh!
Only then did lines appear around the second elder's arms as the Yu Clan master appeared behind him, holding his two daggers.
Suddenly! The second elder's arms were severed and fell to the ground… He dropped to his knees. The Yu Clan master didn't stop there. With a swift strike, he cut off his head!
It was no longer possible to continue the competition. The Yu Clan master immediately issued orders: "Fourth Elder!! Take the children and leave the arena right now! The rest of you, step forward and fight!"
The relationship between the two clans had already been fragile. They only needed a spark to ignite a war, and it seemed that spark had come from the Tu Clan's side.
The Tu Clan master stood up from his seat, his height exceeding two meters, holding a massive spear over three meters long!
He jumped down from above.
Boom!
He landed like a meteor from the sky. Rocks shattered across the arena and dust rose into the air. "Yu Clan Master, you must have lost your mind!"
He took a spear-fighting stance and continued, "Today, we will wipe out the Yu Clan!"
After those words, he charged toward the Yu Clan master. Chaos erupted everywhere. The arena had fallen into complete disorder. Some people tried to flee, while others took advantage of the chaos to rob others.
The masters of the remaining three clans did not intervene at all. Whether it was the Luo Clan or the Guang Clan, this matter didn't concern them. If one clan was destroyed and the other left weakened, the three clans would become two. That would benefit them, so interfering was not in their interest.
Down near the arena, Shu-ming stood alone. His sharp gaze watched the scene. "Damn these idiots!" His beloved money was on the verge of disappearing. How could he just stand still in a situation like this!
He began looking around, as if searching for someone, until his eyes landed on Luo Feng and Luo Yan. Luo Feng was also looking in every direction, searching for something. Shu-ming took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "Luo Feng!!!"
His voice was loud enough for both Luo Feng and Luo Yan to hear. Luo Feng ran toward him, his hand already on the hilt of his sword, ready for any unexpected incident.
Battles were breaking out all around them. He pushed with all his strength to reach Shu-ming. Luo Yan followed closely behind, using Luo Feng's back as a shield. He also wanted to get out.
When Luo Feng reached Shu-ming, he spoke, "Sorry for leaving you in this situation. I was looking for you but couldn't find any trace of you in all this chaos—"
Shu-ming ignored his words and spoke seriously, "Do you know the location of the Tu Clan?"
"The Tu Clan? Yes, I know it, but why…?"
A suspicious smile appeared on Shu-ming's face. "Isn't it obvious? We're going to rob their clan."
Luo Feng felt his heart tighten. "The Tu Clan is a powerful clan. Robbing them would be…"
Luo Yan interrupted with an excited voice, "That's a great idea… Since all their members are here, we can wear black clothes and steal from them… That way, even if we're discovered, they won't know our identities." He thought inwardly:
"I need the money anyway for the elixir."
Shu-ming looked at Luo Yan with narrowed eyes. "I didn't say you could come with us… But the more people, the better we can steal."
Veins bulged on Luo Yan's forehead. "Hah? Kid, don't underestimate me."
Shu-ming felt disgusted by his reaction. "Tsk, kid? You talk like you're seventy years old."
The two continued bickering, but they soon stopped and headed together toward the Tu Clan. Time was critical here.
Half an hour later, the three arrived in front of the Tu Clan, wearing black ninja-like clothes with their faces hidden. Only their eyes were visible.
From the fierce battle happening in the arena, they deduced that the fight would last at least three more hours before the Yu Clan fell. That time was more than enough for them to rob the Tu Clan, since most of its members were currently absent.
Without making a sound, they climbed over the walls. Luo Yan spoke:
"This place is completely empty. It looks like they gathered all their people to attack the Yu Clan. As if they wanted to wipe them out today."
Luo Feng looked at Luo Yan seriously. His cousin had never been insightful or wise before. He was just an arrogant and useless person. Even death shouldn't change someone that much.
But he focused on the current task. The three continued moving along the walls until they saw two guards walking inside the clan. Luo Yan spotted them and, with a swift motion, struck the back of both their heads, knocking them unconscious.
He quickly dragged them outside the walls.
A short while later, one of them woke up. "Huh? Where—am I?" The moment he fully opened his eyes, he saw three fully masked figures in front of him. He felt terror from the gazes of two of them, though the third seemed somewhat friendly.
"W-what do you want?! This is the Tu Clan!"
Slap! Slap!
Shu-ming slapped him hard on both cheeks. "Are you stupid? We know this is the Tu Clan—that's why we're here. Now tell us where you hide your treasures."
As he spoke, Shu-ming quietly drew his sword from its sheath. The guard didn't waste any more time. "Spare our lives! I swear I'll tell you everything!"
He had children who depended on him and a family waiting for him. If he chose the clan over his family… he couldn't imagine the suffering he would leave his children with from such a young age.
"Alright, alright, no need for the drama. Just tell us and we'll let you live," Shu-ming waved his hand indifferently.
After the guard described the location of the treasury, Shu-ming knocked him unconscious again but left him alive. The three then moved according to the guard's description…
A short while later, they found a medium-sized building. The guard had said this was the clan's treasury…
But in front of its door, a person was sitting on a chair, calmly reading a book in his hand, confident that no intruders would appear. He was thin and looked elderly, with a light beard.
Upon seeing him, Luo Feng spoke while they hid on a nearby building. "That person is the fourth elder of the Tu Clan. I've met him before."
"Then go and destroy his martial arts foundation before he notices. Your strength is more than enough," Shu-ming replied.
Hearing that, Luo Feng rushed forward at high speed. He appeared in front of the chair, his hand extended toward the elder's stomach. Before the elder could notice, the next moment, as his hand touched the stomach, the elder looked up.
But it was already too late. "Haaaghhh!" He spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. The qi in his body was rapidly dissipating. Luo Feng didn't give him time to make any sound and calmly struck the back of his head, knocking the fourth elder unconscious.
Luo Feng signaled to Luo Yan and Shu-ming, and they quietly ran toward him.
Shu-ming placed his hand on Luo Feng's back. "As expected of you."
Luo Yan once again reassessed Luo Feng's strength. It far exceeded his expectations.
The three entered the building in front of them. On a wooden shelf sat three wooden boxes. When they opened them, each box contained only a small number of silver coins—perhaps only ten thousand silver coins in total.
"It's impossible for this to be all their wealth…" Shu-ming placed his hand on his chin while thinking.
He scanned the entire place with his eyes until his gaze fell on the wooden floor behind the boxes. There was a slight, almost unnoticeable difference in one of the wooden panels—a square that looked slightly darker than the rest of the wood.
Shu-ming approached quietly and stepped on the panel with his foot. A faint rubbing sound was heard. He smiled calmly. "Found it."
He bent down, slipped his fingers into the narrow gap, and slowly lifted the wooden board. Beneath it appeared a square opening leading to a narrow stone staircase descending downward. Cold air rose from the opening, carrying a faint metallic scent.
Shu-ming looked at the other two and said in a low voice, "The real treasury is underground. The guard only gave us the surface-level storage."
Luo Feng went down first, his hand on the hilt of his sword, ready for any danger. Shu-ming followed, then Luo Yan. The staircase was short—no more than ten steps. They ended up in a small room lit by two small oil lamps.
The room contained six large iron chests arranged neatly, and in the center, a wooden shelf holding several smaller locked boxes with iron padlocks.
Shu-ming opened the nearest iron chest. The gleam of silver coins reflected on his face. The chest was almost full of silver coins.
But Luo Feng narrowed his eyes. "This is strange… How can the Tu Clan possess such wealth?"
Luo Yan felt the same. "This is really strange. Their wealth might equal or even exceed that of all four clans combined."
The chests were filled with silver coins. The six chests probably contained more than two million silver coins… A massive amount for an ordinary clan in an unremarkable city.
Luo Yan stepped forward to examine the small wooden boxes on the shelf. He opened them slowly. They contained some medicinal herbs, a few elixir pills, and other items. Although they weren't particularly rare, they were still useful.
"This is not the time to question things. Just take everything. We'll leave before they return from the battle," Shu-ming spoke with a hint of urgency.
And so, while the Tu Clan was busy with another battle, they lost their entire fortune in the darkness. They never expected that someone would dare to rob their clan without any regard for its status in Yancheng City.