The Jiangshi always followed him while staying hidden and watching from the shadows.
The n preparing the cannons felt them too late.
One slowly turned.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE THO..."
SHHK!
A claw passed through his neck.
His head separated instantly.
Another Jiangshi blurred forward.
Blood sprayed.
A second head flew.
The third tried to activate the cannon.
The final Jiangshi appeared behind him.
Its claws pierced through his skull.
Silence fell.
The three corpses collapsed.
The Thunderclap Cannons remained unfinished.
The entire estate froze.
Everyone stared at the shadowy creatures.
Fear spread visibly.
Even seasoned cultivators stepped back.
Madam Cold Fang looked at the Jiangshi with narrowed eyes.
"What exactly are those?"
Han Yu calmly answered.
"My guards."
The three Jiangshi stood amidst the corpses.
Blood dripped from their claws.
Then as if receiving an unseen order, they stepped backward and rged into shadows once more.
Gone.
Only the dead remained.
The estate erupted into panic.
"Ghosts!"
"What kind of creatures were those?"
"Where did they go!?"
Han Yu remained calm.
But before he could move further, a loud voice bood through the estate.
"WHO DARES CAUSE TROUBLE IN MY DOMAIN!?"
The buildings shook.
Spirit Qi surged.
A large figure shot into the sky.
Palm Hand Lu had finally arrived.
The shout rolled across the estate like thunder.
"TELL ! WHO DARES!?"
A powerful aura erupted from the central mansion as a figure hovered in the air.
The man stood nearly two ters tall, broad shouldered and imposing. His oversized hands looked even larger up close, the fingers thick and powerful like carved roots. Spirit Qi rolled around him while several defensive treasures floated at his side.
He looked down at the destroyed courtyard.
The corpses.
The shattered defenses.
The dead cannon operators.
Then his eyes landed on Han Yu and Madam Cold Fang.
His expression twisted.
"So it was you bastards!" he snarled. "Do you know whose place this is? You dare co here and kill my people?"
His aura exploded outward.
The surviving cultivators below straightened slightly.
Their lord had arrived.
Palm Hand Lu sneered and pointed at them.
"You two have quite the courage. I will skin you alive and turn your fat into lamp oil!"
Han Yu raised a brow.
Madam Cold Fang looked utterly unmoved.
Palm Hand Lu kept going.
"You think killing a few guards ans anything? I have influence across this frontier! Even the great clans deal with respectfully! Kneel now and maybe I’ll let your deaths be painless!"
Han Yu glanced sideways.
Madam Cold Fang’s expression had beco colder.
She spoke.
Only two words.
"Pipe down."
The world froze.
Pressure descended.
Han Yu felt the air itself beco heavy.
Palm Hand Lu’s face changed.
CRACK.
His knees smashed into the ground beneath him.
He dropped instantly.
Below them the others fared worse.
n slamd face first into the ground.
Bones cracked.
Weapons fell from trembling hands.
Several weaker cultivators directly lost consciousness.
Palm Hand Lu struggled.
His face turned red.
"Who... who are you?"
For the first ti fear entered his eyes.
Unfortunately for him... Madam Cold Fang did not answer.
She rely raised two fingers.
Then lightly poked the air.
Han Yu narrowed his eyes.
SHUA
The space before her rippled.
Two icy fangs appeared, beautiful and sharp.
Made entirely from condensed Frost Qi.
Before Palm Hand Lu could react...
They vanished.
SHHK!
The fangs bit into his neck.
Palm Hand Lu froze.
His body stiffened.
Han Yu watched in silence.
The ice spread from inside.
Veins.
Bones.
Organs.
Everything froze.
The man’s eyes widened.
Terror appeared.
Han Yu imdiately felt it.
Fear.
Imnse fear.
Grey wisps rose from Palm Hand Lu and flowed toward him.
Han Yu’s absorbed it greedily.
The others followed.
Fear.
Panic.
Despair.
The entire estate beca a harvest. Han Yu almost sighed in pleasure. He had not expected such a sudden gain.
Palm Hand Lu stood frozen for several seconds.
Then...
CRACK.
His body collapsed.
The ice shattered.
Fragnts scattered through the air.
Silence descended.
Han Yu looked around.
No voices remained.
No movent.
Everyone was dead.
He looked at Madam Cold Fang.
Then at the estate.
Then back again.
"Well..."
Han Yu rubbed his chin.
"That was faster than expected."
Madam Cold Fang simply looked toward the horizon.
"What about the other location?"
Han Yu closed his eyes.
His consciousness connected with Chitterfang.
The rat imdiately responded.
"The children are watching, master. I’ll send an observation crystal."
Han Yu opened his eyes.
"We’ll know soon."
Madam Cold Fang looked confused.
A minute later rustling ca from nearby bushes.
A rat climbed out.
It walked upright carrying a small crystal between its paws.
Madam Cold Fang blinked.
The rat reached Han Yu and handed it over.
Then noticed the woman.
Its whiskers twitched.
It imdiately hid behind Han Yu’s leg.
Madam Cold Fang stared.
"You keep rats too?"
Han Yu shrugged.
"I keep one rat."
He pointed at the trembling creature.
"This is his child."
He paused.
"Well... one of many."
The rat squeaked proudly despite hiding.
Han Yu activated the crystal.
A formation screen appeared.
Dense jungle filled the image.
Trees.
Snow.
Silence.
Nothing moved.
"I guess we wait." Han Yu muttered.
Madam Cold Fang nodded.
The two sat atop a surviving pavilion while the rats watched the final site.
Ti passed slowly.
After a while Han Yu finally asked sothing that had bothered him.
"Why does your brother look different?"
Madam Cold Fang turned.
"He doesn’t look fully human anymore."
Her eyes lowered slightly.
"It is probably the rituals."
Han Yu waited.
"They changed him."
He nodded slowly.
That explained the ears.
The fangs.
The altered appearance.
Still...
Another question remained.
"Did you not stop him earlier?"
Madam Cold Fang beca quiet.
Snow drifted around them.
Finally she answered.
"I tried."
Han Yu looked at her.
"We fought."
"He escaped."
Her eyes turned distant.
"I thought fear would stop him."
A faint bitterness appeared in her voice.
"I was wrong."
Han Yu stayed silent.
"I lost track of him afterwards." she continued. "I was injured too."
Her hand unconsciously touched her side.
Han Yu noticed it.
’She must have been hurt badly.’ he thought.
Madam Cold Fang looked toward the north.
"He spent those years searching."
"Searching for records."
"Searching for thods."
"Searching for the Eternal Smiling Ancestor."
She closed her eyes briefly.
"And eventually..."
"He found the ritual."
Han Yu nodded slowly.
"I see..."
The conversation ended there.
Days passed.
Then more.
The observation crystals rotated constantly.
Rats watched the forests.
The plains.
The hidden areas.
Chitterfang’s children spread across the region.
One week passed.
Then another.
Two weeks vanished like flowing snow.
The final ritual site remained quiet.
Nothing happened.
Han Yu had almost begun wondering if they had miscalculated.
Then...
The crystal flickered.
Han Yu imdiately sat up.
Madam Cold Fang turned.
The jungle appeared on screen.
At first nothing seed different.
Then a figure walked into view.
Han Yu narrowed his eyes.
It was him.
The Frost Bat.
And behind him...
Were smiling villagers.
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