Lao Tzu is Ji Gong

After the city lord of Linghai City left, Wenlong's doubts grew stronger. Logically speaking, he couldn't even be considered the future head of the family, so why was the city lord of Linghai City so enthusiastic towards him?

Wenlong shared his doubts with Han Hu, and after analyzing the situation, they both felt that Linghai City was becoming increasingly strange.

Chapter 1264 The Changes in Linghai City

As night fell, Wen Long, dressed in black, went to check out the place he had visited during the day. When he arrived at the street, he found it different from the daytime scene. This street, located in the most bustling area of ​​Linghai City, lacked its daytime liveliness; the empty street was deserted, and the eeriness grew stronger. Before Wen Long even approached, a strong, murderous aura filled the air. Sensing danger, Wen Long quickly left and returned to his residence.

Back at his lodgings, Wenlong was still shaken. In that instant, he felt as if he had seen Death, but after he ran out, the aura didn't follow. Wenlong tried to clear his mind of the doubts, but still came up empty-handed, becoming even more confused.

Three days passed quickly. That evening, Wen Long took Han Hu to a banquet at the city lord's mansion. Even though they knew it was a trap, they still went because they couldn't do what they wanted to do otherwise.

When Wenlong and Hanhu arrived at the city lord's mansion, the eerie feeling grew stronger. Seeing the city lord smilingly come out to greet them, they suppressed their unease and followed him inside.

The city lord of Linghai City led them to the deepest part of the city lord's mansion. As they walked, they suddenly realized that the surrounding environment was becoming more and more desolate, as if they were no longer in the city lord's mansion.

Wenlong cautiously asked, "Where are we going? This doesn't seem to be in the City Lord's Mansion anymore."

The city lord of Linghai City smiled and said, "We've arrived just ahead. Due to insufficient funds, construction here could not continue, so it appears somewhat desolate. You two need not worry."

After Wen Long and Han Hu walked a few hundred steps, Han Hu, who hadn't spoken until now, suddenly stopped, his face grave. With an unprecedentedly serious tone, he asked the City Lord of Linghai City, "City Lord, are you sure this is your City Lord's Mansion?"

"What are you saying, young man? This is my City Lord's Mansion. Do you look down on it? Or do you think it's not good enough?" The City Lord of Linghai City put away his smile and said with displeasure.

Upon hearing this, Wenlong quickly explained to the city lord of Linghai City, "City lord, please don't be angry. Han Hu didn't mean it that way. I apologize to you on his behalf."

Han Hu, standing to the side, remained silent, frowned, then sneered and said, "Then, City Lord, could you explain to us why your City Lord's Mansion has been equipped with the Nine Revolutions Rebirth Formation? Hmm?"

The Nine Revolutions Rebirth Formation, contrary to its name, does not grant rebirth. Instead, it is a vicious ancient formation that drains the power of those within its grasp, replenishing the power of the one who set it up. The souls of those within the formation are unable to reincarnate, forced to slowly vanish from the world—a true and utter disappearance. Death itself is not terrifying; annihilation into the universe is the most horrifying thing. The only way to break the formation is to find and destroy its core before the power is completely drained, offering even a sliver of hope.

Wen Long's expression changed drastically after hearing Han Hu's words. He knew that because Han Hu's martial arts skills improved slowly, he had read extensively since childhood, covering many fields and was also proficient in formations. Therefore, what Han Hu said was probably true.

Wen Long panicked, his face showing helplessness. Han Hu was very puzzled by Wen Long's recent state. Wen Long seemed to be increasingly unable to control his emotions, which was very abnormal. It seemed that Wen Long had started to act this way after leaving the Wen family.

Before Han Hu could continue thinking, a burst of laughter interrupted his thoughts. "Hahahaha... Kid, you are indeed very clever, but you are too clever. You are destined not to live long. Today, I will send you on your way." The city lord of Linghai City said as he attacked Han Hu.

Meanwhile, Wen Long stepped forward and blocked the attack from the City Lord of Linghai City. Although Wen Long had lost some of his composure, he still knew that Han Hu was in danger. If Han Hu was not by his side, he might really die here.

The two fought for a while, still evenly matched. Knowing that he was not strong enough to kill Wen Long, the city lord of Linghai City found an opening and withdrew. At the same time, he shouted loudly in one direction, "Li Longcheng, activate the formation!" and then quickly left.

Wen Long was too late to chase after him. He turned around and landed next to Han Hu. Seeing Han Hu staring at him with a serious expression, he asked, "Han Hu, what's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Do you think I'm handsome and have fallen for me?"

Han Hu asked seriously, "Wenlong, tell me the truth, have you been feeling unwell lately? Are you...?"

Before Han Hu could finish speaking, Wen Long interrupted him, saying, "So what if we know? The most urgent thing is for us to find the core of the formation and get out, otherwise everything else is meaningless."

Hearing Wen Long's deep voice, Han Hu knew that Wen Long had noticed something was wrong with him. But Wen Long was right; the most urgent thing was to get out of the formation.

So Han Hu calmed down and thought about the Nine Revolutions Rebirth Array he had read in a book. Suddenly, he said to Wen Long beside him, "Quick, sense where the spiritual energy is strongest around us?"

Wen Long closed his eyes, sensed the energy, and opened them after an incense stick's time. He shook his head and said, "I can't feel it. It's not that there aren't places with abundant spiritual energy around, but there are many places where I can feel my strength slowly declining. We can't find the correct array eye in a short time. Perhaps that's why no one has been able to break the array!" Wen Long said, his head bowed, his voice low and somber. At the same time, Han Hu noticed that Wen Long's emotions were changing more and more drastically. They had to find a way out, otherwise… the consequences would be unimaginable.

Just as Wen Long and Han Hu were trapped in the formation, the city lord of Linghai City immediately reported the news. In his view, barring any unforeseen circumstances… no, they certainly wouldn't survive. No one had ever heard of anyone surviving a Nine Revolutions Rebirth Formation!

A day later, news of Wenlong's disappearance in Linghai City spread, and the fishing boat that had pushed Linghai City into the spotlight remained silent, fueling growing suspicion. The city lord of Linghai City seemed indifferent, allowing the rumors to spread wildly. The peace and stability of Linghai City were disrupted, and the city was thrown into turmoil.

Wen Long and Han Hu spent a day in the Nine Revolutions Rebirth Array, their strength diminished by more than half, and they still hadn't found the array's core. During that day of being cut off from the outside world, they were unaware of what was happening outside.

They searched many places with abundant spiritual energy, but none of them were the key to the formation. Gradually, Wen Long lost patience, and Han Hu was too exhausted to move any further. So the two of them found a place to sit down and decided to give up the search.

"Han Hu, I'm sorry, I've dragged you into this awful place with me. We'll be gone soon," Wen Long said dejectedly, apologizing to Han Hu.

"What are you saying? We're brothers, how could we be burdened? It's just that we can only be brothers in this last life. It's a pity we can't be brothers anymore," Han Hu said, panting.

"I'll take you out." He then pulled Wenlong and Hanhu up.

"Are you alright? Do you have the strength to go out?" the man in black asked Wenlong, turning his head.

"Yes!" Seeing hope, Wenlong felt as if he had regained his strength.

"Alright, let's help him up and get away quickly." Han Hu was already too weak to speak, so he could only let them support his arms.

Wen Long and the man in black helped Han Hu, and under the guidance of the man in black, they finally found the true core of the formation. At this time, Wen Long also noticed that the man in black was extremely familiar with this formation, as if he had set it up himself. Even though he had many questions in his mind, Wen Long knew that now was not the time to delve into it. He had to save his own life first.

After a stick of incense had burned, Wenlong and Hanhu finally left the Nine Revolutions Rebirth Array. Within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, their physical strength and power had quickly recovered, and their strength had even increased. This was the meaning of rebirth in the Nine Revolutions Rebirth Array: only those who had survived nine deaths and one life could benefit from it.

Seeing that they were alright, the man in black tried to leave. However, Wen Long, who had regained his strength, was unwilling to let him go so easily. There were too many questions surrounding his trip to Linghai City, and he wanted to unravel them one by one, such as who the man in black was and why he had saved them.

Thinking of this, Wen Long immediately stopped the man in black from leaving, "I haven't yet thanked you for saving my life. May I ask your honorable name?"

The man in black paused for a moment and said, "You don't need to know who I am. You just need to know that I saved you and I won't harm you. Also, leave here quickly. The person who set up the formation sensed you as soon as you left and is probably on their way. You'd better leave now."

“But what if I insist on finding out who you are!” Wen Long said, then attacked the man in black. The man in black immediately turned around to block Wen Long’s attack. However, since Wen Long’s strength had already increased, and he did not want to hurt Wen Long, he was at a disadvantage.

Taking advantage of this, Wen Long pulled off the other person's mask and was instantly stunned. Wasn't this Li Longcheng, the most loyal subordinate who followed the city lord of Linghai City?

Li Longcheng realized he had been exposed, so he stopped making a move. He just said, "You guys should leave quickly. The city lord of Linghai City is coming. Otherwise, you won't be able to leave once he arrives."

"Hmph, I was just about to go find him. He hurt me like this, I'm going to get my revenge!" Wen Long said angrily.

However, Li Longcheng frowned and advised, "You may have underestimated the strength of the City Lord of Linghai City. He is not that weak. He only used seventy percent of his power that day. His strength must be above yours."

Hearing this, Wen Long was somewhat shocked. Han Hu, who was beside him, analyzed the situation and advised Wen Long to leave. However, Wen Long thought for a moment and then asked, "Can you answer a few questions for me? How did Uncle Huang Long die? And where did that Third Elder go?"

These were the questions Wenlong was asking for, but Li Longcheng said, "These are not things you can deal with. There are many problems and doubts here, and the deeper you investigate, the more dangerous it becomes. I advise you to ignore these matters for now and leave as soon as possible."

After saying this, Wenlong thought for a moment and then left with Han Hu. After watching them leave, Li Longcheng quickly changed his clothes and returned to his post.

Meanwhile, the city lord of Linghai City, sensing the abnormality of the formation, immediately rushed to its location. However, he was still too late; by the time he arrived, Wen Long and Han Hu had already left.

He immediately went to find Li Longcheng, "Li Longcheng, was there anything unusual about the formation earlier?"

"Reporting to the city lord, your subordinate has not found anything unusual," Li Longcheng replied respectfully.

The city lord of Linghai City thought for a moment and immediately went to remove the formation, but he didn't see Wen Long and Han Hu. He thought to himself, "Damn it, they got away. If my superiors find out, I'll be in big trouble." Thinking of this, the city lord of Linghai City couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. So he immediately ordered a full-scale attack to kill Wen Long and Han Hu.

After leaving the city lord's mansion, Wen Long and Han Hu headed towards the outskirts of Linghai City. The Wen family assassins, who were about to leave, were also puzzled when they saw them leave the city lord's mansion unharmed. The leader immediately ordered his men to follow them.

After they left the city gates and left Linghai City, martial law was quickly imposed inside the city. They vaguely heard the guards talking about how martial law was necessary because a fugitive had escaped from prison, and that it would be lifted once the fugitive was caught.

Chapter 1265: Lure the Tiger Away from the Mountain

After Wenlong and Hanhu hurriedly escaped from Linghai City, which was now heavily guarded, they knew they couldn't risk going back in to die anytime soon, so they settled down in Qinglong Town, which was not far from Linghai City.

To avoid being discovered by the city lord's men, the two changed their names and temporarily stayed at Youjia Inn under false identities.

As soon as Wen Long entered the room, before Han Hu could even close the doors and windows, he slammed his sword on the table in a fit of rage: "Damn it! This Lord of Linghai City, he always greets us with a smile, but behind our backs, he's plotting to kill us! Don't let me see him again! Otherwise, I'll definitely tear him to pieces!"

Seeing that he was so impatient, Han Hu scolded him, "Wenlong! Calm down! I've noticed that you're acting more and more strangely since just now, but what happened?"

Wen Long lowered his head and remained silent for a while before saying nonchalantly, "Oh dear, let's put my matter aside for now. The most important thing right now is to deal with the City Lord of Linghai City. Not only did we fail to find out the cause of Uncle Huanglong's incident on this trip, but we also failed to find the whereabouts of the Third Elder. We even got caught in a formation and almost died here." After saying that, Wen Long clenched his fists angrily.

"Han Hu, I know you are exceptionally intelligent. We have survived this ordeal and are sure to have good fortune in the future. However, the city lord of Linghai City is highly skilled, and I'm sure the two of us have no chance of winning. In addition, we are being pursued by government troops. Do you have any ideas on how to deal with this?"

Han Hu noticed that Wen Long was avoiding his questions, so he let it go. Since he didn't want to tell him, there must be some unspeakable reason. Indeed, as he said, the immediate priority was to deal with the city lord; they couldn't stop there. What secrets lay behind Huang Long's death? Who would be so ruthless as to do this to him?

Thinking of this, Han Hu fell silent and pondered. What could be done to defeat the city lord, whose power was even greater than theirs? They certainly couldn't rely on brute force to solve the problem; they needed to come up with a foolproof plan.

Seeing that Han Hu was trying to come up with a solution, Wen Long didn't disturb him anymore and went to lie down on the bed to rest. The two of them spent the day quietly in the inn without anything happening.

The next morning, Han Hu pulled Wen Long out of bed. After a night of deliberation, he finally came up with a foolproof plan: barring any unforeseen circumstances, the city lord would certainly not be able to escape.

Wenlong was forcibly woken up. Still half asleep and a little angry, he yelled, "What are you doing! Why are you waking me up so early! Get out of the way! Let me sleep a little longer!" After saying that, he covered himself with the blanket and turned over to go back to sleep.

A dangerous glint appeared in Han Hu's eyes. Although he knew that Wen Long's temper had been getting worse and worse recently, he never expected that he would be so disregard for the overall situation.

He then began to yell at Wenlong, "Wenlong, do you know what you're saying? Don't you want to avenge Uncle Huanglong? I've already come up with a foolproof plan, and we can't delay any longer. Please be rational. If you don't want to investigate with me anymore, you can just sleep to death in this inn today and live a life without any results."

After saying that, he slammed the door and left, ignoring Wenlong completely.

Wen Long was startled awake by the roar, and he began to regain some of his composure. He didn't know what was wrong with him lately; perhaps it was… because of that? When he looked up and saw that the room was empty, he hurriedly dressed and ran out to catch up with Han Hu. Seeing that he still had a shred of humanity left, Han Hu ignored him.

"Han Hu, now that you've come up with a plan, where are we going now?" Wen Long asked tentatively, knowing he had just angered Han Hu.

"I have arranged for assassins to impersonate us and appear in various towns around Linghai City. Then, our people will spread the word to attract the attention of the city lord's troops, luring them away from their base and making them run around in different towns. When they are completely confused, we will join forces with Li Longcheng to secretly capture the city lord," Han Hu said calmly, word by word.

“What you said is very insightful, but Han Hu, we still don’t know if Li Longcheng is friend or foe. What if his rescue of us last time was just a ruse to gain our trust and lead us into an even bigger trap? Can we trust him?” Wen Long asked rhetorically.

“I think it’s believable. I have a vague feeling that he knows Uncle Huanglong. Besides, we were trapped in a formation last time, and no one has been able to break it yet. If they wanted to get rid of us, they could have just ignored it. We would have disappeared on our own when the time was right. Why would they go to all the trouble of setting up a formation to save us?”

“What you say makes sense. In that case, let’s take advantage of the fact that the soldiers are out hunting down the assassins, disguise ourselves and infiltrate Linghai City to find Li Longcheng and make some plans with him,” Wen Long replied.

The two then arranged for assassins, gave all the necessary instructions, and spread the word. Sure enough, as soon as the city lord's troops heard about them, they mobilized 90% of their forces to pursue them in the town. Only one small team remained in the city, so even if something went wrong, the two could handle it. It has to be said that Han Hu's plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain was truly brilliant!

The two of them used this as an excuse to easily disguise themselves and sneak into the city.

"Han Hu, although we've arrived in the city, the city lord's mansion is heavily guarded, so we can't even get in. How can we see Li Longcheng?" Wen Long whispered in his ear.

“Since we can’t see him, let’s lure him out. He’s actually the city lord’s confidant, and the city lord has sent troops to hunt us down. Now, Linghai City must be completely in Li Longcheng’s hands. Do you think that if we cause a ruckus in the market and no one can suppress us, he might step in to deal with it?” Han Hu’s lips curled into a confident smile, as if he had planned everything.

"You're quite capable, kid. I didn't expect you to have thought of such a small thing. You're truly a genius like Zhuge Liang, hahaha. With you around, we'll definitely find the real culprit who killed Uncle Huanglong back then." Wenlong patted Han Hu on the shoulder and laughed.

"Alright, don't be so sure of yourself. Although I'm careful, I still fell into a formation last time and was helpless. Uncle Huanglong is cautious and has unparalleled martial arts skills, but he wasn't secretly murdered. Besides, the Third Elder also disappeared mysteriously. Even if we join forces, we're no match for Uncle Huanglong. Even if we find the person behind it, I'm afraid we still can't defeat them." As he said this, disappointment showed in Han Hu's eyes.

"Hey, don't be so pessimistic. Let's take it one step at a time and observe how things develop. Even the most skilled master has his weaknesses. Trust us, we'll definitely get to the bottom of this. Let's go! We'll head to the market now! Let's cause a ruckus and see if Li Longcheng comes out! If he doesn't, we'll tear Linghai City apart!" Wen Long patted Han Hu on the shoulder, exuding domineering confidence.

The two pushed and shoved each other, overturning all the roadside stalls and turning the market into a bustling scene. The soldiers who came to suppress them were beaten one by one and were powerless to do anything. Of course, they had already discussed with the people and compensated them with silver.

City Lord's Mansion.

"Report! City Lord, two people are causing trouble in the market. Our soldiers who went there were all seriously injured and we couldn't suppress them at all. City Lord Qing, please give the order."

Upon hearing this, the City Lord of Linghai waved his hand dismissively, saying, "Longcheng, go and handle it. They're just two madmen. The important thing now is to capture them. Leave this trivial matter to you."

Li Longcheng didn't take it to heart. He never expected that the two men, despite being chased, would dare to venture into the lion's den. He went to the market alone, without even bringing his men. He was confident that with his skills, two mere thugs were no problem.

The two men cried out to heaven and earth, and the soldiers could not withstand their torment. They tumbled and crawled on the ground, crying and wailing.

Han Hu spotted Li Longcheng from afar and thought, "Finally, he's here!" He then gave Wen Long a look, and the two of them took to the air and began to attack Li Longcheng.