At this moment, there was a knock on the door, and the voice of Hong Xu came from outside.
"Esteemed Village Chiefs, the meal has been delivered. Please come down and eat!"
After a night of battle, Diao Ruhai and the others were indeed somewhat hungry, but no one dared to move hastily. They all looked at Zhan Feng.
"You all go down and eat. Just bring me a portion of the meal later. I’ll stay here to guard the Meat Field," Zhan Feng said.
He refused to leave the Meat Field even a step, afraid of another mishap.
Fu Tingfang and Diao Ruhai went downstairs.
Sure enough, the Hong Family had sent a sumptuous breakfast.
Fu Tingfang ate absentmindedly, while Diao Ruhai disregarded everything, eating heartily with large mouthfuls.
Soon, Diao Ruhai was full, and then stretched wearily.
"I’m going to take a nap. Third Miss, call me if you need anything."
"Okay, go ahead!"
Diao Ruhai yawned as he went upstairs, found an empty room, and laid down to sleep.
Having not closed his eyes all night, he quickly fell asleep, snoring.
Diao Ruhai didn’t know that while he was sound asleep, a figure was listening carefully on the roof above his head.
At this time, Zhao Ya held his breath, employing the Concealing Breath Technique to its fullest.
Because he knew that Zhan Feng, who possessed Fourth Realm strength, must also be in this small building.
Hence, he was extremely cautious and vigilant.
Upon hearing Diao Ruhai’s snores, a flicker of murderous intent appeared in Zhao Ya’s eyes.
This time he returned, first to investigate the results of last night’s fire, and secondly to see if there was an opportunity to exploit.
The fire had a very good effect; the estates of the Hong Family and Yang Family were almost razed to the ground.
Zhao Ya was very satisfied with this, and then quietly followed Hong Xu, who was delivering meals, to this secluded courtyard house.
Just now, when Diao Ruhai went downstairs to eat, Zhao Ya had already heard it from the rooftop.
As for this Diao Ruhai, Zhao Ya had placed him at the top of his must-kill list.
So after he finished eating and went back to his room to sleep, Zhao Ya started moving cautiously.
With the aid of his Peak Performance Body Technique, Zhao Ya was as light as a feather, without a trace of sound.
Soon, Zhao Ya had reached the back eaves. With a nimble spin, he flipped under the eaves, hooking onto the crossbeam below with his hands.
Beneath his feet was the window of the room where Diao Ruhai was sleeping, but Zhao Ya was in no hurry.
If he kicked open the window and barged in, it would surely alarm Zhan Feng.
Although Zhao Ya was not afraid of Zhan Feng — the previous night’s battle had shown Zhao Ya that Zhan Feng’s Palm Technique was fierce, but his Lightweight Body Technique was not superior, at least not as good as his own.
But if the bandits from Cyan Bamboo Ridge were alarmed, it would be difficult to kill Diao Ruhai.
So Zhao Ya lifted his leg, hooked the crossbeam with both feet, and assumed a hanging stance, lowering himself to the window.
At this moment, even the sound of Diao Ruhai grinding his teeth was clear to hear.
Zhao Ya drew his saber and inserted it into the window seam, gently cutting open the latch inside, then slowly pushed the window open.
When the gap was big enough for himself to pass through, Zhao Ya used his Body Technique, slipping into the room as swiftly as a cat.
The entire process sounded complex, but it only took a little over half a minute in reality.
When Zhao Ya stood by the bed, Diao Ruhai was still fast asleep.
Under normal circumstances, for a Martial Artist with Third Realm strength, such a situation was quite unexpected.
But firstly, it was because Diao Ruhai felt that with Zhan Feng, a Fourth Realm expert, on the second floor, who would be so reckless as to come here and create trouble, thereby lowering his guard.
Secondly, because Zhao Ya’s Lightweight Body Technique was now superb.
To be as light as a feather was no joke, and with the Concealing Breath Technique, even Fourth Realm Zhan Feng was completely unaware, let alone Diao Ruhai.
Seeing the thunderous snorer Diao Ruhai, Zhao Ya silently sneered, flipped his wrist, and the Meteorite Iron Saber slashed straight for his neck.
Even in his sleep, Diao Ruhai, being a Third Realm warrior, immediately woke up.
The first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was the saber light coming towards him and Zhao Ya standing beside the bed.
In that instant, Diao Ruhai even thought he was having a nightmare.
But the oncoming saber wind told Diao Ruhai that this was all real.
Fear filled Diao Ruhai’s eyes instantly, and his mouth opened wide, attempting to shout.
But it was too late, Zhao Ya’s saber was incredibly fast, and with one slash, Diao Ruhai’s head was separated.
Thud.
Fresh blood spurted from the cavity, staining the headboard a deep crimson.
Looking at Diao Ruhai’s head, with eyes wide open and a face frozen in the shock and fear of his final moments, Zhao Ya felt an immense satisfaction, as if the deep-seated anger in his chest had suddenly dissipated, leaving his mind clear.
Back then, when Meng Lei was ambushed and died tragically in his arms, the instigator was undoubtedly the Great Village Chief of Cyan Bamboo Ridge.
But this Diao Ruhai was also one of the accomplices.
Now that he’s dead, Zhao Ya considers it as collecting a bit of interest in advance.
At this moment, footsteps suddenly echoed from the stairway, heading directly towards him.
Without hesitation, Zhao Ya grabbed the quilt from the bed, covering Diao Ruhai’s head and the bloodstains on the headboard.
Subsequently, Zhao Ya swiftly hid behind the door, using the Concealing Breath Technique to minimize his presence to the point of barely being noticeable, even his breathing was faint.
It was Fu Tingfang who came.
After having a meal, she felt a bit sleepy and decided to find a place to rest for a while.
But as she approached Diao Ruhai’s room, Fu Tingfang suddenly detected a strange scent.
Though a woman, she had practiced martial arts with her brother from a young age and grew up in a bandit nest, making her very familiar with this smell.
It was the stench of blood!
Fu Tingfang’s heart jolted.
Why was there such a strong smell of blood?
Just as she was about to open the door, she hesitated and pulled her hand back, pretending to know nothing, and mumbled, "So sleepy, I need to find a place to sleep."
Saying this, she yawned and left.
Listening to the receding footsteps, Zhao Ya frowned slightly.
Moments ago, he had planned to ambush Fu Tingfang from behind once she entered, but she didn’t fall for it.
Clearly, Fu Tingfang wasn’t a fool.
Zhao Ya knew that the smell of blood couldn’t be hidden from those at Cyan Bamboo Ridge. He was merely trying to lure Fu Tingfang or someone else inside, to kill another.
But seeing that the plan failed, Zhao Ya realized that things weren’t going his way, and Fu Tingfang had already caught on.
Fortunately, killing Diao Ruhai wasn’t in vain.
So Zhao Ya quickly searched the corpse and planned to retreat the way he’d come.
But just as he reached the window, the room door, along with half of the wall, suddenly collapsed with a loud crash.
Immediately following, a figure burst out from the dust, aiming a pair of fleshy palms straight at Zhao Ya’s face.
Without hesitation, Zhao Ya raised his saber to block, swinging at the approaching palms.
The figure dodged and landed beside the bed; it was Zhan Feng.
He glanced at the blood-soaked quilt on the bed and knew that the fifth brother, Diao Ruhai, had met a grim fate, filling him with rage.
He had been in his room admiring the Meat Field when Fu Tingfang rushed in to inform him that something might have happened to Diao Ruhai.
At first, Zhan Feng couldn’t believe it, as he was stationed on the second floor, wondering who would dare to cause trouble under his watch.
But upon reaching Diao Ruhai’s door, the overwhelming smell of blood was like a stinging slap to Zhan Feng’s face.
In his fury, he smashed through the wall with a palm strike and entered the room.
"You little brat, you’ve got some nerve to commit murder right under my nose. Do you really think I can’t kill you?" Zhan Feng said coldly.
By this time, those downstairs had heard the commotion and were heading up.
Listening to the chaotic footsteps, Zhao Ya felt no fear.
He dared to come because he was confident he could escape safely.
Moreover, Song Linqing had told him that there was a surprise hidden beneath the Meat Field, likely affecting Zhan Feng already without him realizing it.
Thus, Zhao Ya merely smirked coldly and leaped out of the window.
This silent disdain infuriated Zhan Feng completely.
He dashed forward and followed, instructing Fu Tingfang along the way.
"Third Miss, keep an eye on the Meat Field; I’ll return with this brat’s head."
With that, Zhan Feng’s figure was gone.
By this time, Huo Tianxiao and others had already burst into the room.
"Third Miss, what happened?" someone asked.
"Damn, who killed the fifth brother?" Huo Tianxiao exclaimed as he uncovered the quilt to find Diao Ruhai decapitated.
Fu Tingfang gritted her teeth, staring out the window, words slipping out between her clenched jaws.
"It was Zhao Ya who did it!"