Trapped in the Moonlit City

Starlight was faint, the moon half-hidden behind a dark cloud, shedding only dim halos of light. Looking down from the high heavens, Heavenly Emperor City blazed with countless lanterns, a palace of radiance in the mortal world.

Xiao Chen moved like a divine light, long since lost to the eyes of the crowd. Spreading his Undying Wings, he soared higher and higher, leaving the earth far behind until he flew above the clouds.

Hidden among the clouds, he breathed quietly for a moment, then began to think: Could he truly escape this city just like that? Long Teng had said that once he left the city, the Tiger Servants and Tiger Attendants would immediately strike to kill. Xiao Chen did not fully believe it. Heavenly Emperor City was vast, the sky boundless. Could the Tiger Family truly have such divine powers to seal all directions?

Standing on the clouds, holding a beauty who seemed to have stepped out of a painting, Xiao Chen's thoughts raced as he gazed at the cold, bright moon. How could he escape this place safely?

Beneath the silvery moonlight, Hai Yunxue's snow-white skin shimmered with a crystalline luster, as if carved from jade, sparkling with light—indescribably enchanting. But at this moment, such a peerless beauty seemed like a wooden puppet in Xiao Chen's eyes, utterly ignored. His gaze was as sharp as a blade as he stared at the stars, lost in thought.

'Xiao Chen, let me go. I can help you earn a chance to live…' Hai Yunxue's breath was like orchid, her tone calm. She showed no panic at being captured, composed and unhurried.

'You're just trying to save yourself,' Xiao Chen said, tightening his arm around her slender waist. He gave a contemptuous laugh. 'This was supposed to be our wedding night, and here we are on the clouds. A bit unconventional, but with stars and moonlight, it's still a fine evening with its own charm.'

'You want to kill me?' Hai Yunxue turned her head to gaze at him.

'Why would you say that? Someone as beautiful as you—I could hardly bear to harm you.' Xiao Chen's mouth curled into a brilliant smile, his white teeth gleaming in the moonlight. But there was no trace of humor in his eyes—only a flicker of cold, deadly light that vanished in an instant.

'Because you know you can't escape.'

'Ridiculous. The sky is so vast—who can stop me?'

'The Tiger Servants and Tiger Attendants have already left a spiritual imprint on you. No matter where you flee, they will find you,' Hai Yunxue said very calmly, uttering words that startled Xiao Chen.

'How can that be?'

Hai Yunxue smiled radiantly, making even the starlight seem dull. Her jade-like face carried an otherworldly allure as she said, 'I can tell you how to break it, but you must let me live.' It sounded like a compromise, a trade. But Xiao Chen was deeply wary of her. This woman's mind was unfathomable; she was hard to trust.

'How can I believe you?'

Hai Yunxue smiled softly, her red lips alluring. She parted them slightly and said, 'Right now, the problem is that I need to worry about how you will truly let me go. You hold the initiative, so there's no need for concern.'

Xiao Chen laughed. 'Fine, go ahead and speak.'

'Focus your mind and sense within your spiritual sea. Is there a wisp of misty white light?'

Xiao Chen calmed his heart and probed carefully. He did notice something unusual. 'Correct.'

'That's the mark. It's a unique method of the Tiger Family. Once the spiritual imprint is planted in your body, they can track you to the ends of the earth. To break it, you would need overwhelming power to disperse it—no outsider can help. Clearly, your current strength can't overpower the Tiger Servants. Another way is to use a divine pearl to fix that wisp of spiritual imprint, severing its resonance with the Tiger Servants. I happen to have such a pearl, named the Ninghua Pearl. It can not only immobilize the imprint but also shield you from any strong cultivator's divine sense search, giving you a chance to escape safely.'

'You've thought of everything.'

Hai Yunxue replied calmly and earnestly, 'Because I want to live. I know that once you are in danger, you will kill me without hesitation.'

It was late at night in the Hai family estate. The guests had long departed, but the Hai family could not sleep. At that moment, several old men suddenly opened their eyes, sensing Xiao Chen's presence.

With a rustling sound, a few figures flew out, surrounding Xiao Chen.

'Don't be nervous. I forgot something here.' Xiao Chen held his long blade across Hai Yunxue's neck, facing the old men. 'I know your cultivation is profound, that you can even seal a domain. But I want you to understand that my spiritual perception is extraordinary. If I sense the slightest energy fluctuation, I will immediately cut off Hai Yunxue's head!'

Silently, the old men withdrew.

Xiao Chen left an afterimage in the air and dashed toward Hai Yunxue's boudoir.

'That brat deserves to be sliced a thousand times!'

'Let him be arrogant for a while.'

'Sooner or later, we will skin him alive!'

The younger generation was furious but helpless.

In Hai Yunxue's boudoir, a fragrant scent lingered like orchids and musk, but inside it was pitch black. Xiao Chen pushed Hai Yunxue inside, then abruptly stopped—someone was standing in the darkness.

'You've come. I've been waiting for a long time.'

It was Hai Yuntian. His eyes held helplessness and sorrow. He stared quietly at Xiao Chen. 'I knew my sister would bring you here to get the Ninghua Pearl.'

He opened his palm, and a pearl emitted a soft, gentle light, making his pale hand seem almost translucent.

Xiao Chen said nothing. Hai Yuntian was one of his few friends in this city, and this situation left little to say.

He walked straight over. Hai Yuntian handed him the pearl. 'With this, the Tiger Family won't be able to track you. I hope you won't harm my sister.' He turned his back to Xiao Chen. 'Whatever happens later, I will always remember that I once had a friend like you.'

'I will remember too…'

Before he finished, Xiao Chen's figure suddenly shot backward. A flash of blood—Hai Yuntian had stabbed himself through the ribs with a long sword, thrusting it at Xiao Chen. With such concealment and no energy fluctuation, it was truly vicious and swift.

A blade of light flashed. Xiao Chen drew a bloody line on Hai Yunxue's neck, forcing several old men who were about to extend a domain to freeze in their tracks.

'I told you, my perception is extraordinary. Don't try any divine powers on me. That will only hasten Hai Yunxue's death. Hai Yuntian, you did well—you hid deep. But things have come to this…' Xiao Chen put away the Ninghua Pearl, pressed Hai Yunxue, and flew high into the sky, rapidly departing.

'Roar…'

An earth-shaking tiger roar echoed through the heavens. An extremely powerful energy wave surged from ahead, and behind him, a long howl rang out—a master was breaking through the air.

'Why so coincidental? As if they were waiting for me!' Xiao Chen's expression changed. He dove toward the ground with Hai Yunxue, like a flickering shadow, charging into a complex residential area.

The Ninghua Pearl had just been obtained, and the Tiger Servants were already upon them. Two figures, swift as lightning, almost instantly reached the sky above the Hai mansion.

'How did he disappear?' The old woman Tiger Servant had a fierce temper. Standing high in the air, she coldly swept her gaze in all directions. Another old man of sixty or seventy also had a sharp gleam in his eyes, sending streaks of cold light across the night sky.

'Xiao Chen has obtained the Ninghua Pearl, which can fix your spiritual imprint and prevent it from resonating,' Hai Yuntian said after his wound was treated. He looked up at the two powerhouses in the sky. 'But we have tampered with the Ninghua Pearl. Our Hai family can find him. Don't act rashly—he won't escape.'

Silently, four old men of the Hai family appeared high in the air.

'Heh, good. Let's do as agreed. We know what to do. Damn Long Teng—if he hadn't blocked us, none of this would have happened. But he's already said that Xiao Chen's life or death no longer concerns him. He thinks playing this game with your families is boring.'

'That bastard!' Hai Fanyun, the head of the Hai family, said hatefully.

Members of the Hai family fanned out in all directions, not alarming Xiao Chen but surrounding him. That night, Heavenly Emperor City could not be calm. Many great families watched closely, knowing the show was just beginning.

In a humble residential area, Xiao Chen pressed his blade coldly against Hai Yunxue's neck. 'How can your family track us? You tampered with the Ninghua Pearl?'

Blood once again flowed from her white neck. Hai Yunxue said calmly, 'Gather your power, inject it into the Ninghua Pearl, shatter the light mass inside, and it will sever the connection with the outside.'

Xiao Chen did as she said. But in an instant, the power within his body rushed out like a river bursting its banks, surging frantically into the Ninghua Pearl. He could not stop it. It was as if a black hole was madly devouring his strength. Xiao Chen stood frozen like a wooden statue, locked in place.

Hai Yunxue did not hesitate. Like a wisp of light, she slipped from his grasp.

'Hmph! The Ninghua Pearl has many uses. When your power is drained, I'll make you taste a hundred tortures!' Hai Yunxue wiped the blood from her neck, her world-toppling beauty turned as cold as ice, her gaze even more freezing.

'Hmph!' Xiao Chen let out a cold snort and forcefully shook off the Ninghua Pearl.

'How can this be? What cultivation method do you practice?' Hai Yunxue was shocked, quickly retreating. But she was not worried, as the family's experts had arrived. An old man shielded her.

'I can even refine an evil dragon; what's a mere pearl?'

Hai Yunxue let out a silvery laugh. 'The important thing is that it bought me time. Xiao Chen, you're dead!'

'Hai Yunxue, you are truly terrifying, well calculated indeed!' Xiao Chen was not panicked. What was done was done, and there was no regret.

Hai Yunxue spoke calmly and coldly. 'You are a rare talent. If you hadn't offended the Tiger Family, you could have been useful to me. What a pity…'

'Ha ha…' Xiao Chen laughed heartily. 'So tonight, you plan to kill your husband? Aren't you afraid the world will scorn your cruelty?'

Hai Yunxue was not angered. Her figure seemed as ethereal as an immortal standing among the clouds as she quietly replied, 'I originally intended for the Tiger Family to take you away. But the more I think about it, the more I find you terrifying. I must see you die with my own eyes. Otherwise… with your talent, in a few decades you might truly shake the world. I don't want that to happen, nor do I want to be mocked by gossips for lacking judgment.'

The four old men of the Hai family had all arrived. The area was sealed, and Xiao Chen had no way to escape.

Loud laughter rang out as the Tiger Servants also flew down to hover above. The old woman hissed viciously, 'Even if we can't catch that little beast, taking your life to avenge the Little White Tiger is enough!'

'What do you think you are?' Xiao Chen snorted. 'For elders of your generation to attack a junior like me—aren't you ashamed before the world? The Tiger Family is famous across the Central Plains, but people like you only bring disgrace.'

The old woman Tiger Servant immediately turned hostile. 'Brat, save your glib tongue! The Tiger Family always acts like this. Who dares say anything?'

'So shamelessness has become a tradition,' Xiao Chen said with infinite contempt.

Being so disdained and humiliated by a junior infuriated the Tiger Family members, who wanted to flay him alive.

'And you, the Hai family—a hypocritical clan chasing fame and profit. Look at the grand joke you've made. By tomorrow, the news that the South Barbarian Pearl of the Hai family killed her own husband will spread across the southern wastelands. The other great families are waiting to laugh at you.'

Hearing this, Hai Fanyun said coldly, 'Xiao Chen, stop your glib tongue. Can your insults and provocations change your fate?'

Xiao Chen gave a wild laugh. 'I know I'm going to die, but I'm not afraid of death! A pity I can't cut you all down with my blade. That will always be a regret.'

The Tiger Servants and many Hai family members shouted angrily.

'You dare to brag about killing us?'

'You've only just entered the Spirit-Treasury realm. Try to kill us in your next life!'

Xiao Chen raised his long blade to the sky, his voice cold and resounding. 'If time went back thirty years, all you old bastards here—would any of you dare to speak to me like that? If we were of the same generation, I could sweep you all with one hand!'

'Arrogant!'

'Impudent brat!'

The Tiger Servants were furious, but they had to admit that if time went back thirty years, they might not dare to fight him. This only strengthened their resolve to kill Xiao Chen—they could not give this brat any chance. Otherwise, he would become a huge problem in the future.

'Ha ha…' Xiao Chen laughed, looking down on them all. 'If you were thirty years younger, killing you would be like killing chickens. Now, is there any among your descendants who can match me?'

'What's so great about the Spirit-Treasury realm? Our Tiger Family also has young masters at that level,' the Tiger Servant said hatefully, staring at Xiao Chen. 'Enough talk. I'll kill you now!'

'Wait! Let me do it.' At that moment, a young man from outside the crowd shouted loudly, striding into the arena. He faced Xiao Chen coldly. 'I am Tiger Wind of the Central Plains Tiger Family's younger generation. As you wish, a member of the same generation will kill you!'

With a flash, sword light exploded. Hundreds of beams descended like stars falling to earth, streaking across the sky in dazzling brilliance. They blanketed the area where Xiao Chen stood.

Everyone was astonished. Such a young master had appeared, one who might have already broken into the Spirit-Treasury realm or was about to. But before their praise could even be uttered, a shocking change occurred. Xiao Chen charged against the hundreds of sword beams. All the sword light was melted, unable to harm him. His long blade swept forward, unstoppable! The blade light was like a heavenly rainbow—breaking a hundred, it shattered thousands of beams. Then a wave of blood surged, and a head flew off.

Tiger Wind's headless body stood still for a moment before collapsing into a pool of blood that fountained like a spring.

It all happened so fast, so cleanly. No one could believe that a promising young master had been killed by Xiao Chen in one blow!

'I told you—if you were thirty years younger, you would all be but dirt and dogs, too weak to withstand a single blow.' Xiao Chen stood still in the wind, his long hair moving with the breeze, but his heart was utterly calm. His blade pointed to the sky as he stared down the crowd.

'Tiger Wind…' The old Tiger Servant cried out. She had never imagined that the family's promising youth would be killed so quickly, not giving her time to save him. She was not a direct descendant of the Tiger Family—just an old servant. Now that a direct bloodline had died here, the blame would fall on her. Adding the death of the Little White Tiger, her hatred for Xiao Chen was absolute.

The Tiger Attendant's eyes were also ice-cold. 'This brat must not be kept alive. He has already comprehended a divine ability just now. If I am not mistaken, it is the rare power of melting weapons into the body. If he cultivates it deep enough, he may even be able to refine primordial divine weapons…'

The Hai family members watched warily. Many thought that failing to recruit this young man into the family was indeed a loss. He had only just broken into the Spirit-Treasury realm and already grasped such a terrifying divine ability, showing extraordinary talent on the path of cultivation. Perhaps in a few decades, he would truly shake the world. The more they thought about it, the more they were determined to kill him now—no accident could be allowed.

Far off, experts from other great families watched in silence, taking in everything.