He Yuzhu returns in Siheyuan

Chapter 837 Qing 1 Knows About the Dragon Clan

Ye Zhen kicked a nearby stone hard, sending it rolling a long way with a thud. He was seething with anger—the various families had joined forces to capture Long Si, hoping to establish their authority within the clan. Instead, not only had their target escaped, but they had also lost several brothers, making them a laughingstock. Seeing the Ye family's continued inaction, the other families nearby gradually lost patience and began packing up to leave. An old man in a blue robe glanced at Ye Zhen and sneered, "Young Ye, in my opinion, Long Si has probably already led the fox demon deep into the old forest. This place is foggy and has many forks in the road; lingering here is a waste of time. We'll go first; you can do as you please." With that, he turned and left with his men. The other families followed suit, and soon only the Ye family remained at the foot of the mountain, making it seem exceptionally deserted.

Inside the cave, Long Si's condition remained dire. He lay on the dry grass, his breathing as faint as a candle flickering in the wind. The wound on his chest was shrouded in a dark purple mist, clearly indicating that he had been afflicted by some kind of insidious evil spell. He remained unconscious, not even twitching his brow, his face as white as paper.

Xiao Shuai was different. He had only collapsed from exhaustion due to depleted spiritual energy and excessive blood loss; his constitution was still relatively solid. Two days later, his eyelids finally twitched slightly, his eyelashes fluttered, and he slowly opened his eyes. The cave was dimly lit, with only a faint glimmer of light filtering in from the entrance, barely enough to make out his surroundings. He tried to move his fingers, but felt weak all over, as if his body had fallen apart; he didn't even have the strength to lift his hand—this time, to resist Ye Zhen's magic weapon imbued with talismans, he had almost exhausted all his magical energy, and it would probably take at least ten days to half a month to recover.

"You're awake?" Little Fox's mother came over with a bowl of steaming herbal water. Seeing that he had opened his eyes, a smile finally appeared on her face. "How are you feeling? Can you speak?"

Xiao Shuai blinked, his eyes adjusting for a moment before he could see that it was her. He smiled weakly and said, "Auntie..." His throat was sore and his voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping, "Where am I...?"

Little Tanuki's mother held the bowl to his lips and carefully let him sip the herbal water. The bitter taste made him cough twice, but his throat felt a little better. Only then did she ask, "What happened to you? Who did you fight with? You're so badly injured, even several tufts of fur on your tail are gone. It's heartbreaking to see."

Xiao Shuai drank a couple more sips of herbal water, regaining his strength, and then recounted everything that had happened in the past few days—from encountering the Ye family and several other families besieging Long Si by the mountain stream, to his intervention to help them against their numerical advantage, to their desperate escape through the mountains, fighting and retreating, leaving no detail overlooked, even mentioning that Long Si had taken a blow from Ye Zhen to protect him. Finally, he looked at Xiao Li's mother, his eyes filled with gratitude: "Auntie, we really owe you a debt of gratitude this time. If you hadn't found us, Long Si and I would probably be... doomed."

Little Fox's mother sighed, reached out and patted his head, her palm warm: "You child, you're just too honest, always meddling in other people's business. Alright, let's not talk about this anymore, you two just stay here and recover. The herbs in the cave are enough for you to get better. Little Fox and I will guard the cave entrance and won't let anyone in."

Xiao Shuai nodded, a warm feeling washing over him, his eyes welling up with tears. He knew his injuries were truly severe, and he could only stay put and recover. He glanced at the still unconscious Long Si, silently praying: "Long Si, Long Si, you have to get better soon, otherwise, if the Ye family doesn't give up and comes after us, in my current state, I can't protect both of us..."

He Yuzhu remained completely unaware of the lurking, turbulent conflicts beneath the surface. He continued to hone his culinary skills and spend his days chatting and laughing with his family, living a simple and peaceful life. Elder Qingyi, however, was acutely aware of everything, as if he possessed eyes that could see through the fog. This elder always appeared detached from worldly affairs, his gray Taoist robe faded from washing. He spent his days either meditating and practicing in his meditation room, or tending to his orchids and bamboo in the courtyard, his movements gentle as he watered and fertilized. He seemed indifferent to worldly matters, but in reality, he had been quietly accumulating his power over the years. His network of informants, like a net cast across the martial world, was extensive, planted in the inner quarters of various families and in the corners of sects. His intelligence network was so dense that even the slightest disturbance could not escape his ears.

At this moment, Elder Qingyi sat on a bamboo chair in the courtyard, the afternoon sun filtering through the bamboo leaves and casting dappled shadows on him. He held a string of glossy bodhi seeds in his hand, each seed round and smooth, clearly the result of years of handling. His fingertips traced the veins of the seeds, producing a soft rustling sound. Looking at his fourth brother standing before him, his usually calm expression was more serious than usual, his brow furrowed slightly: "Fourth brother, there's something you must tell the sect leader immediately."

The fourth brother paused for a moment, then subconsciously scratched his head, his face showing some difficulty: "Elder Qingyi, what's the matter that's so urgent? As you know, the sect leader has been spending all his time with his wife and children these days. He specifically instructed that no one should disturb him unless it's something extremely important. Even trivial matters like personnel transfers and resource allocation within the sect have been temporarily put on hold."

Elder Qingyi stopped what he was doing, the Bodhi seed lingering between his fingers. He looked up at the fourth elder, his gaze calm yet carrying an undeniable weight, his tone steady: "It is precisely because this matter is of great importance, affecting everything, that we must inform the sect leader. It is like this—the dragon clan seems to have appeared, and according to our spies, the dragon appears to be injured, its aura unstable. This matter may be related to the Ye family."

He paused, tapping lightly on the armrest of the bamboo chair with his fingertips, and added, "As you know, the sect leader specifically instructed me to keep an eye on the dragon clan's whereabouts. Although I don't know why he cared so much, once an order is given, it cannot be neglected. Now that we have news, we naturally cannot keep it a secret. The Ye family has always been greedy, and they would do anything for the Dragon Pearl. If they really harm the dragon clan, it could cause a huge disaster, possibly affecting the entire cultivation world. It's always good for the sect leader to make plans early."

The fourth brother then composed himself, his expression turning serious. Although he didn't know why He Yuzhu wanted to inquire about the Dragon Clan, or what the connection was, since it was a task personally assigned by the Sect Master, and now that they had concrete leads, he couldn't afford to be negligent. He nodded firmly, his tone resolute: "The elder is right, I'll go right away. Even if the Sect Master doesn't want to see anyone right now, we must find a way to let him know about this; we absolutely cannot delay."