This was a delicate little key, with a faintly engraved number on it.
Tian Qi.
"What is this?" Zhao Ya asked.
The woman shook her head, tears in her eyes, and said, "I don’t know either. This was given to me by my husband before, and he told me to keep it safe."
The key was treated with such care by He Town, indicating its importance.
Zhao Ya accepted the key, looking at the tearful woman, and sighed inwardly.
This woman was not foolish; she had likely guessed that her husband would not be coming back.
"Is there anywhere else you can go in the city?" Zhao Ya asked.
The woman shook her head, "My hometown is thirty miles outside the city, I have no relatives or friends in the city."
"Then take these two children and leave Yan Capital City as soon as possible, go back home, and remember, don’t mention your husband to anyone, and don’t come back."
Then Zhao Ya gave the woman some loose silver taels, not much, but enough for her to live on in the future.
For this woman, giving her too much money would only bring her harm.
The woman expressed endless gratitude and immediately began to pack her belongings, preparing to take her two children home to seek refuge.
Zhao Ya turned and left.
He didn’t leave directly through the front door but instead meandered to an alley behind the alley, then leisurely walked towards the main street of Cyan Dragon Square as if nothing had happened.
While walking, Zhao Ya pondered what this key exactly was.
Since it was a key, there must be a corresponding lock, but the problem was that aside from the faintly engraved Tian Qi number, Zhao Ya couldn’t find any other clues.
But Zhao Ya was not anxious, because this key was clearly related to the things He Town had hidden. Although he had no leads now, as long as he investigated He Town properly, he could probably find a breakthrough.
While thinking, Zhao Ya had a feeling and glanced across the street at a stall selling snacks like tofu pudding and fried dough sticks,
Several customers were sitting at the stall, drinking tofu pudding and observing the pedestrians on the street.
This was not unusual, but the key point was that each of these customers was well-built, and although two were wearing long sleeves, tattoos on their wrists could still be seen.
Not only that, the other pedestrians chatting nearby seemed to be joking, but their eyes were fixed on that alley.
When Zhao Ya passed by, these people’s eyes instantly focused on him.
Zhao Ya understood, thinking these must be people from the Four Seas Gang, thinking they came really fast.
Although his heart was slightly shaken, Zhao Ya showed no abnormality on the outside, walking casually as if he was just heading to an appointment, quickly crossing the long street.
These people didn’t notice anything unusual. Seeing that Zhao Ya left on his own, they withdrew their gazes and continued watching the alley.
Meanwhile, after turning the street corner, Zhao Ya saw Chen Xiao’Er in hiding.
Chen Xiao’Er looked anxious.
"Hero, something seems off. As soon as you went in, unfamiliar faces started appearing around. For safety, I hid here. The news must have been leaked."
"Don’t panic, we have the item, so let the news leak if it must."
Chen Xiao’Er let out a sigh of relief, "Good, then what are we waiting for? Let’s leave this troubled place immediately."
"No rush, you go first, I have something else to do."
Something else to do?
Chen Xiao’Er was somewhat puzzled, not knowing what Zhao Ya intended to do.
But since he said so, Chen Xiao’Er naturally didn’t insist, so he nodded and said, "Okay, you be careful, I’ll leave first."
After Chen Xiao’Er left, Zhao Ya found a hidden place, changed clothes, and put on the Yaksha mask, then silently lurked behind the group of stalkers.
With Zhao Ya’s body technique and concealing breath skills, naturally, these people noticed nothing.
Time passed little by little.
Soon, it was afternoon.
Cyan Dragon Square became slightly livelier, yet the street around the alley remained extremely quiet.
Finally, a carriage slowly arrived, breaking the surrounding silence.
When it reached the alley entrance, the carriage stopped, then the curtain lifted, and out came a tall, burly man.
This man was over two meters tall, with thick body hair, resembling a black bear turned into a spirit.
And he was carrying a person in his hand.
The person’s head hung down, blood continuously dripping, limbs weak and limp, obviously subjected to severe torture.
"Sea Lord Xiong!"
The stalkers hurriedly stood up and greeted him.
The burly man nodded, "Any abnormalities?"
"No abnormalities found, Sea Lord. He Town’s secret hideout should be here."
The burly man grinned, then grabbed the man’s hair, lifting his head.
"Which specific house?"
The man trembled, "The... the innermost house."
"Good!"
Then the burly man casually threw the person on the ground.
With a thud.
The man let out a muffled groan, but his cries ceased abruptly as the burly man stomped on his head, crushing it.
Brains splattered everywhere, yet the burly man laughed with pleasure.
"Damn, I interrogated you personally, and you still dared to stutter and delay?"
The deceased was the one who had drunk with Chen Xiao’Er and leaked the news.
At that time, this person hadn’t just told Chen Xiao’Er about it; he told others as well.
So the news soon reached the ears of Sea Lord Xiong Kun of the Celestial Cyan Sea.
He decided then and there to capture the news spreader and interrogate him harshly.
Therefore, he only arrived a step later than Zhao Ya.
After killing this person, Xiong Kun glanced at the alley, chuckled sinisterly, and then strode in.
He and He Town were both among the four Sea Lords of the Four Seas Gang, but their relationship was extremely hostile.
So when He Town died, he put on a sorrowful appearance in front of the Big Master Huangfu Zhen, but inside he was overjoyed.
Later, when Huangfu Zhen ordered a thorough investigation into the murderer of He Town, Xiong Kun only pretended to be enthusiastic while actually being perfunctory.
It’s a joke.
Whoever could kill He Town couldn’t be an easy opponent.
If he really insisted on investigating, what if he got implicated?
The saying goes, "Better him than me," He Town deserved to die, and he couldn’t repeat his tragedy.
Actually, not only Xiong Kun thought this way; even Lang Songbai and Sheng Lianhua shared the same thought.
They’re just ordinary gang colleagues, why put your life on the line?
But when he heard about the wealth left by He Town, Xiong Kun instantly became extremely proactive.
He not only immediately sealed off the information but also rushed over personally without delay.
Xiong Kun knew well that He Town, as a Sea Lord of the Four Seas Gang for so many years, must have amassed a considerable fortune, so he was determined to claim this windfall.
When he reached the door and was about to push it open.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of people collapsing behind him.
Xiong Kun, originally a notorious bandit with extensive combat experience, sensed something was wrong as soon as he heard it. Without turning back, he forced his way inside the door.
With a crack.
The door and the wall collapsed with a crash.
A woman who had packed her luggage and was about to leave with her children screamed in fright.
Because the scene was horrifying.
Xiong Kun burst in from outside like a frantic black bear.
The woman turned pale with fright.
A hint of confusion flashed through Xiong Kun’s eyes.
A woman, with two children?
Could it be he barged into the wrong place?
Was this not He Town’s resting place?
But now was not the time to worry about that.
Using the momentum from the charge, he had already activated his full Qi Blood, and his flesh instantly turned into a hard armor.
This was Xiong Kun’s famous technique, the Flesh Armor.
With this protection, Xiong Kun finally felt a bit more confident, and he turned to look back.
He saw several people lying horizontally and vertically in the alley, all his subordinates whom he had brought.
Though these people did not have exceptionally high skills, most were Martial Artists of the Third Realm, and a few who had followed him for years had even reached the Fourth Realm.
Yet now, all of them lay on the ground, without a sound.
Seeing this, Xiong Kun couldn’t help but gasp.
The ability to silently take down so many people instantly made Xiong Kun think of the presence that recently gave Sheng Lianhua a big loss,
Sure enough.
As he hesitated, a figure wearing a Yaksha mask, burly and imposing, appeared in the alley and slowly approached him.
"Are you here for He Town’s wealth as well? How about this: I voluntarily withdraw, what do you think?" Xiong Kun hesitated briefly before speaking.
Zhao Ya made no reply, only continued to advance towards Xiong Kun.
Xiong Kun seemed frightened, and his eyes flickered uncertainly.
But as Zhao Ya reached the doorway, Xiong Kun suddenly exploded like an enraged black bear, lunging at Zhao Ya.
In mid-air, Xiong Kun first hurled a hidden weapon, attempting to distract Zhao Ya, and then his fist, as large as a casserole, came crashing down.
But Zhao Ya had anticipated this.
Earlier, Xiong Kun had deliberately spoken weakly, intending to lower Zhao Ya’s guard before erupting into action to catch him off guard.
The entire strategy was cunning and practiced, revealing that Xiong Kun was not as brutish and reckless as he appeared.
But Zhao Ya’s eyes saw through it all.
As the hidden weapon came at him, Zhao Ya dodged slightly, moving like a ghost to appear behind Xiong Kun.
Xiong Kun realized something was wrong, but he didn’t panic. Instead, he focused all his Qi Blood on his back.
In an instant, the Flesh Armor on his back shone with a luster like iron.
At this time, Zhao Ya’s fist also arrived.
When the two collided, a loud boom erupted, and Xiong Kun groaned in pain as he was sent flying backward. When he staggered to the ground again, he dared not linger and fled desperately.
The power of that punch nearly took his life and scared him senseless.
Zhao Ya didn’t pursue him.
Although the punch broke Xiong Kun’s defense, the resulting counterforce also shook Zhao Ya’s Qi Blood, momentarily unsettling his breath.
However, the natural ability of his lungs manifested itself, and within a single breath, Zhao Ya felt his Qi Blood return to normal.
But by then, Xiong Kun had already fled, and Zhao Ya didn’t bother to chase.
This intervention was partly to weaken the Four Seas Gang’s power. After all, Zhao Ya already had a blood feud with them. There will inevitably be a battle, so weakening their strength as much as possible was preparation for the future.
It was also to help the mother and her children.
If the woman hadn’t voluntarily handed over the key, Zhao Ya would have at most given a warning, and beyond that, he would leave it to fate.
After all, Zhao Ya saw He Town as an enemy and had already shown great restraint in not acting against his family. To go further might be asking too much of Zhao Ya.
But the woman obediently surrendered the key and seemed completely unaware of He Town’s matters, so Zhao Ya decided to help her a bit.
Otherwise, she and the two children wouldn’t survive.
At this moment, Zhao Ya took one last look at the trembling woman, said nothing, and turned to disappear behind the eaves.
The woman froze for a moment, then understood, bowed in gratitude in the direction Zhao Ya had left, and then quickly departed with her children.