?
A cold glint flashed in Xiao Yifeng’s eyes, though he offered no further explanation.
Tang Pei appeared to be acting as a fair mediator, but in reality, he was subtly aligning himself with Li Lifang. The hostility was veiled, but it was there.
Zhu Ming, on the other hand, was a classic case of "once bitten by a snake, fearful of ropes for ten years." He tiptoed toward the headless corpse of the Heavenly Luo Crocodile, his posture screaming cowardice.
He poked the carcass with his sword. Then poked it again. He looked ready to bolt if a single muscle twitched.
Lin Mi watched him with utter exasperation. She massaged her temples. "It doesn’t have a head, you idiot. How is it going to move? Can you try to be a little less embarrassing?"
"I’m just guarding against it playing dead again!" Zhu Ming defended himself, though his voice wavered. "Caution is never a mistake."
Beside him, Ling Sisi covered her mouth to stifle a giggle.
Tang Pei frowned, looking at the massive carcass. "Transporting this beast is going to be an issue. We need to turn it in to account for the destroyed artifacts, and the core is valuable. But my Storage Bag doesn't have the cubic footage for something this size."
"Use mine," Xiao Yifeng said calmly.
He produced his own Storage Bag. With a wave of his hand, the massive corpse vanished. Storage Bags couldn't hold living creatures, but a headless carcass was fair game.
The group split up to scour the battlefield. After sweeping the area for loose cores from the slaughtered aquatic beasts, they handed the loot to Tang Pei for safekeeping.
Their Water-Avoiding Pearls had shattered during the chaotic battle. Fortunately, Tang Pei carried spares.
They split into two groups for the ascent. The two women shared one pearl, floating up gracefully. The four men had to huddle around the remaining pearl.
Squeezed into a tight, shimmering air bubble with three other sweaty, exhausted men was an experience Xiao Yifeng did not care to repeat.
They breached the surface and flew straight for the Enforcement Hall without stopping to tidy up.
When they landed at the Enforcement Hall, heads turned.
The disciples on duty stared openly. The team looked less like elite enforcers and more like refugees. Their robes were shredded, stained with mud and blood, or singed by fire. Some wore ill-fitting spare robes that looked ridiculous.
If Xiao Yifeng and Tang Pei hadn't used their Fire Spiritual Energy to dry everyone off en route, they would have looked like drowned rats.
They approached Elder Ma, the officer in charge of mission submissions.
Elder Ma spotted them from a distance. The corner of his mouth twitched, fighting back a smile. "Did you lot get robbed by bandits?"
Tang Pei offered a bitter smile and bowed. "Elder Ma, you jest. We ran into a Foundation Establishment beast—a Heavenly Luo Crocodile. It was a bitter fight."
Elder Ma’s expression shifted instantly. "Weren't you patrolling the Wentian River? How did a Foundation Establishment beast get there?"
"It seems to be an escapee," Tang Pei explained, glancing at Xiao Yifeng. "Junior Brother Xiao and Junior Sister Ling encountered it first. It somehow broke through to Foundation Establishment during the fight. I’m not clear on the specifics; I’ll let them explain."
Xiao Yifeng stepped forward. He gave a concise, accurate report of the encounter, omitting nothing. With a wave of his hand, he released the massive, headless crocodile corpse from his Storage Bag. It landed with a heavy, wet thud on the hall floor.
"Elder Ma," Xiao Yifeng concluded, "the beast was attempting to self-destruct its inner core. I had no other choice. I preemptively detonated my High-Grade Enforcement Sword inside its skull to kill it instantly. The situation was critical. I ask for the Elder’s forgiveness for destroying sect property."
"Elder Ma!"
Li Lifang jumped in, sensing blood. "That is not the full truth! Xiao Yifeng acted recklessly! instead of joining us to form a defensive array, he detonated a valuable artifact on a whim. He failed to communicate, caused the destruction of our Water-Avoiding Pearls, and acted without discipline! He is a glory-hound who ignores orders. Please punish him!"
"That’s not true!" Ling Sisi cried out, stepping forward anxiously. "Senior Brother Xiao saved us!"
Tang Pei sighed, putting on a mask of righteous regret. "This is my failure as a Sect Leader. I didn't coordinate the team well enough, leading Junior Brother Xiao to misjudge the danger and panic..."
Elder Ma raised a hand, silencing them all.
His eyes narrowed. A faint green light glowed in his pupils as he scanned the crocodile corpse. He hooked a finger, and a blue streak of light shot out from the beast’s belly, landing in his palm.
It was a blue, pulsating Demon Core.
"It really is a Foundation Establishment core," Elder Ma muttered. "Damn logistics... they reported this as a Qi Refining Perfection target. I’ll have to have a word with the Intelligence Division."
He looked up at the group, his gaze sharp. "You’re lucky to be alive. The kid did the right thing. If a Foundation Establishment beast self-destructs, the blast radius would have vaporized you, defensive formation or not. At best, you’d be crippled."
Ling Sisi let out a loud breath of relief. Li Lifang’s face turned the color of a bruised liver.
"As for the destroyed artifacts," Elder Ma continued, pocketing the core with a satisfied grin, "I’ll have replacements sent to your team immediately, along with fresh uniforms. Go back and clean yourselves up. You look like you just crawled out of a beggar’s den. It’s bad for the Hall’s image."
The group flushed with embarrassment. The girls, in particular, shrank back, mortified to be seen in such a state.
"Tang Pei, Xiao Yifeng. You two stay for a detailed debrief. The rest of you are dismissed. I’ll see about bumping up your contribution points for the trouble."
"Thank you, Elder!"
The group felt as if they had been granted a general amnesty. They bowed and retreated quickly. Ling Sisi glanced back a few times before Lin Mi dragged her away, whispering something that made her ears turn red.
Xiao Yifeng and Tang Pei remained. They spent the next hour going over every tactical detail with Elder Ma, handing over the collected cores and the fragments of the destroyed sword.
By the time they walked out of the Enforcement Hall, the sun was setting.
Tang Pei let out a hearty laugh, clapping Xiao Yifeng on the shoulder. "We owe you big time, Junior Brother Xiao. If not for your quick thinking, we’d be in deep trouble. I wonder what kind of bonus the Hall will give us?"
"Sect Leader, you flatter me," Xiao Yifeng replied, his tone polite but distant. "I don't expect a reward. Not being punished for blowing up a High-Grade artifact is luck enough."
"Of course, a Junior Brother of your standing wouldn't care about a few points," Tang Pei said, his smile tight. "You True Disciples are rolling in wealth. You can’t imagine how hard it is for us ordinary disciples to scrape by."
Xiao Yifeng caught the undercurrent of resentment. Ah, the class divide.
"We all have our own burdens, Sect Leader," Xiao Yifeng said coolly. "If you’ll excuse me, I need to return to the mountain and change out of these rags."
He sensed Tang Pei’s hostility, but since the man kept it hidden behind a smile, Xiao Yifeng didn't bother exposing it. But he also had no interest in playing pretend friends.
"Right, right. Safe travels, Junior Brother Xiao," Tang Pei waved.
Xiao Yifeng bowed slightly and turned away.
Behind him, Tang Pei’s smile vanished instantly. He stared at Xiao Yifeng’s retreating back, his expression darkening into a scowl.
Xiao Yifeng returned to the Huixing Small Courtyard alone.
As expected, his disheveled appearance earned him a merciless round of teasing from Little Yue.
"Look at you!" she giggled, poking a hole in his sleeve. "Did you get into a fight with a pack of wild dogs?"
Xiao Yifeng rolled his eyes. "Just get the hot water ready, you brat."
Little Yue’s mouth didn't stop moving, but her hands were efficient. In no time, a steaming wooden tub was ready in the bathing chamber.
As she tested the water temperature, she glanced at him with a mischievous grin. "Hey, little old man... do you want me to help you wash? Big sister here is excellent at scrubbing backs, you know."
Xiao Yifeng paused while unbuckling his belt. He looked her dead in the eye and smirked.
"Sure. I’d love that. Hop in."
He started to pull off his robe.
"Y-You pervert! Little rascal! Keep dreaming!" Little Yue shrieked, her face turning bright red. She turned and fled the room, slamming the door behind her.
Xiao Yifeng shook his head, amused. She talks a big game, but she’s all bark and no bite.
He sank into the hot water, letting the heat soak into his tired muscles. After a long soak and a change into fresh clothes, he went upstairs to cultivate the night away.
The next morning, the team reconvened by the river.
Tang Pei had clearly made a trip to supply. He distributed brand new Water-Avoiding Pearls and fresh sets of Enforcement robes to everyone. He also handed a standard-issue longsword to Xiao Yifeng to replace the one he had detonated.
"Alright, we’re re-equipped," Tang Pei announced, his leadership persona back in place. "The mission deadline is approaching. Let’s split up and finish this. Let's go!"
Xiao Yifeng and Ling Sisi submerged once more, drifting into the underground current.
The cave was eerily quiet. The blood had washed away, and the local scavengers had picked the crocodile’s carcass clean, leaving only white bones.
The ecosystem felt empty. The battle yesterday, combined with the crocodile’s predation, had wiped out nearly everything.
They patrolled for hours, but found almost nothing. Any beast with a hint of spiritual energy had been slaughtered. They spent the time scavenging for missed inner cores stuck in the riverbed.
"Senior Brother Xiao," Ling Sisi said, looking around the empty cavern. "I think... I think we’re done."
Xiao Yifeng chuckled. "I didn't expect to finish the mission by depopulating the entire river. Between us and that crocodile, there’s nothing left alive down here."
"So, what do we do now?" Ling Sisi asked, twirling a lock of hair.
"We patrol," Xiao Yifeng shrugged. "We act as a deterrent. We circle the area, pick up any scraps we missed, and run down the clock. I assume you don't mind earning points for taking a walk?"
"That sounds like slacking off," Ling Sisi giggled. "But... I’m certainly not complaining. No more fighting."
"It's not slacking," Xiao Yifeng corrected with a grin. "It's 'area denial operations.'"
They drifted through the water in a comfortable silence for a while.
"Oh! Senior Brother," Ling Sisi suddenly said, her cheeks turning pink. "I washed your clothes yesterday. But I don't have a Storage Bag, and I didn't want to carry them around on patrol. Can I... return them to you next time I treat you to a meal?"
Xiao Yifeng waved his hand dismissively. "It’s just a robe. You don't have to return it."
"No, I have to! I definitely have to," Ling Sisi insisted, her voice rising in panic. "If I don't, I don't know what Senior Sister Lin Mi will..."
She stopped abruptly, covering her mouth.
Xiao Yifeng raised an eyebrow. "What will she do? Has she been teasing you?"
"Nothing! It's nothing!" Ling Sisi waved her hands frantically, her face burning.
Seeing her embarrassment, Xiao Yifeng didn't press.
The rest of the morning passed in unexpected tranquility. They patrolled, chatted, and picked up loot.