Universe Infinite Canteen

Yuan Xiaoyun remained unfazed under Ma Lu's scrutiny, "Younger apprentice brother, are you starting to doubt me again? But have you ever considered one thing?"

"Please enlighten me, elder apprentice brother."

"If those people could disguise themselves as members of the Merry Woods, why couldn't they impersonate the remnants of Tongtian Village as well?

Yuan Xiaoyun spoke gently, "It has been more than twenty years since our master led the effort to wipe out Tongtian Village. Moreover, Elder Lu has just mentioned that they went up the mountain with the determination to eradicate evil without leaving a single survivor, and they confirmed repeatedly afterward that indeed no one was left alive.

"Now, suddenly a group of Tongtian Village remnants has appeared. Isn't that strange? Besides, no matter who these people are, they are obviously targeting our Beggars' Sect and will naturally use all means to create confusion, causing us to doubt each other. The more such a situation arises, the more we should trust each other. Otherwise, aren't we playing right into their hands?"

"Guardian Yuan is right!"

"Young Master Ma, don't be deceived by the villains and become their accomplice!"

Yuan Xiaoyun's words won the agreement of many people around him, largely because he had considerable prestige within the sect. Although not as revered as Chu Qianyuan, he had always been diligent in his duties, and most of the Beggar's Gang members had a favorable impression of him; emotionally, they were unwilling to accept that he could be a traitor.

Ma Lu glanced at Chu Qianyuan next to him. He was Deng Youtai's eldest disciple and had been the first to be initiated. Moreover, Chu Qianyuan was by Deng Youtai's side when they exterminated Tongtian Village, so he should know something. However, it seemed he had made up his mind to remain silent.

Yuan Xiaoyun continued, "Of course, younger apprentice brother, your speculations along with those of Catcher Gu are not without merit. You may as well continue to investigate along those lines. Ah, it's indeed not appropriate to make a move against the Heavenly Dragon Sect before the truth is clear."

Before Yuan Xiaoyun could finish speaking, suddenly a young beggar ran in from outside, frantic, and shouted.

"It's bad, Deputy Gang Leader Jiang, elders, and guardians, the scoundrels from the Heavenly Dragon Sect are heading our way!"

"What?!" Enjoy new adventures from My Virtual Library Empire

Everyone was shocked at the news, but then Deputy Gang Leader Jiang and the others were not concerned but pleased, as the Law Enforcement Elder shouted loudly, "Perfect timing! It saves us the trouble of catching them one by one."

The assembly had already agreed to attack the Heavenly Dragon Sect today and gathered the sect's elite in one place, along with many martial arts masters who had come to lend a hand. However, they decided to postpone the attack after Ma Lu unexpectedly intervened.

No one expected that instead the Heavenly Dragon Sect would come knocking on their door. The Beggars' Sect, being the largest sect under the heavens, had never suffered such an affront. Before the young beggar could finish speaking, some impetuous members had already grabbed their weapons and rushed out the door.

Yuan Xiaoyun was among them. However, he neither rushed to the front nor deliberately lagged behind, standing openly within the crowd, which allayed the suspicions of some who thought he might have fabricated the news to take the opportunity to flee.

And when the crowd charged down the street, they indeed saw a group of martial artists, looking furious, charging toward them. The two groups met on the narrow road, and without exchanging a word, they immediately began fighting.

Chu Qianyuan took the lead, charging towards a burly man who looked like their leader. But after engaging in combat, Chu Qianyuan found that the man's skills were much weaker than he had expected.

And he wasn't the only one with that thought. While these men looked formidable, their actual martial arts cultivation was barely stronger than that of street thugs. There were indeed some experts among them, but they were few in number.

Furthermore, these men had no integrity, and as soon as they saw they couldn't win, they immediately began kneeling to beg for mercy. It was only then they learned that these men were bandits from Crouching Tiger Hill.

According to the begging bandits, some time ago a man and a woman had sneaked into their stronghold and stealthily killed their second-in-command, Du Erlang. The man was named He Qisheng, a disciple of the Songxi Sword Sect, and the woman's... origins were unclear. But on the surface, the two were husband and wife.

The gang leader, Du Dalang, was not there at the time, and upon his return, he was furious, vowing to capture the couple and tear them to pieces to avenge his brother.

Afterward, Du Dalang also found a big shot from Yuchang County to help them, secretly smuggling him and a group of skilled men into the city.

Not only had the big shot arranged for them to hide, but he also provided them with weapons. Just moments ago, the same person sent word that they had found the man and woman.

Upon hearing this, Du Dalang was overjoyed and immediately led his men to the location, only to be beaten into submission by the Beggars' Sect and a group of assisting experts who made them cry for their fathers and mothers.

The head of the house, Du Dalang, was also murdered by Chu Qianyuan with just three strikes of his staff.

Learning the truth, the members of the Beggars' Sect exchanged bewildered glances.

Sometime later, it was discovered that Yuan Xiaoyun, who had been in the crowd, was also missing.

According to the last Beggars' Gang Member to see him, not long after the battle started, a person dressed in a Taoist robe and wielding a Soft Whip headed west. Guardian Yuan gave chase, and after that, nobody saw either of them again.

Could it be... that Guardian Yuan had really run away?

Although nobody openly said it, many people harbored this thought in their hearts at that moment.

Deputy Gang Leader Jiang stamped her foot, "What are you standing around for, go look for Guardian Yuan... Ah, and offer him assistance."

......

Yuan Xiaoyun did indeed need help, but not to deal with the person wielding the Soft Whip, who was actually one of his own men tasked with leading the Beggars' Gang pursuers away.

Up to this point, Yuan Xiaoyun couldn't comprehend how his plan had fallen through.

He had meticulously calculated everything. The Beggars' Sect and the Heavenly Dragon Sect were on the brink of war, and he intended to use the chaos to eliminate everyone involved in the massacre at Tongtian Village all those years ago.

Yuan Xiaoyun didn't have much attachment to revenge. Even upon finding out that his father was Ren Tongtian, his heart didn't waver much.

After all, his birth was accidental, the result of Ren Tongtian raping a medicinal ingredient he had intended to use in his elixirs while drunk.

Soon after Yuan Xiaoyun's mother gave birth to him, she was taken by Ren Tongtian to concoct his Longevity Pill.

Ren Tongtian was a selfish and heartless man. Deep down, Yuan Xiaoyun despised his biological father. In fact, apart from the bandits who followed Ren Tongtian in his pillaging and crimes, there were probably none in this world who wished to avenge Ren Tongtian.

However, Yuan Xiaoyun admitted that once he carefully investigated the events of the past, he was tempted by the legacy Ren Tongtian left behind.

The wealth Ren Tongtian amassed through years of robbery was secondary; what was more important was his Martial Arts.

Although Ren Tongtian's reputation in martial arts circles wasn't particularly illustrious, it should be known that more than two decades ago, he was capable of standing up to Deng Youtai and several Beggars' Sect Elders and protectors by himself, enduring their siege for a long time.

If he had lived to this day, his Martial Arts Cultivation might well have made him the greatest expert of the age, mightn't it?

Yuan Xiaoyun, a disciple of Deng Youtai, was also quite envious of such Divine Technique.