Chapter Sixty-Nine: Sneaking Into the City

The news of Harman's disappearance and presumed death struck Xu Wen like a bolt from the blue, dealing him a heavy blow. Although their time together had been brief, Dean Harman was a kind-hearted soul, far superior to the teacher-grandfather from the Hortonklin family; in Xu Wen's heart, Harman's significance outweighed that of the Hortonklin clan.

He had originally planned to show Harman his achievements, but now...

Suddenly, a deep murderous intent flashed in Xu Wen's eyes. He stood abruptly, casting a cold, commanding gaze over He Chen and Sackey.

The two were startled. To their surprise, they felt a chilling aura emanating from this junior whose cultivation level was a full star below their own.

"How far is the nearest town from here?"

Xu Wen had lost all desire to continue pretending among the group of young men. His tone was icy as he questioned them.

"The nearest town is fifteen miles from here," He Chen replied. Had he not known that Xu Wen had just suffered a tremendous blow, even someone as mild-mannered as He Chen might have been angered by Xu Wen's interrogative attitude.

Xu Wen proposed without hesitation, "Teacher Long can't quickly investigate the situation in town alone. If we keep waiting, everyone will be in danger. He Chen, select two family brothers to form a team and enter the town. There should be people from the Eight Great Families there. If necessary, we can seek help from the City Guard." Though Harman's news had shaken him, Xu Wen knew this was not the time for grief; the situation was far more dire than he had imagined.

Even the Cloud Empire's capital had lost a large number of its strong and elite—including magisters!

"How can we do that?" Sackey, having learned of Xu Wen's relationship with Dean Harman, no longer harbored his previous hostility. He frowned and said, "What if there are people from the Dark Empire in the town?"

"If there are, Teacher Long's situation will be even more dangerous, and nothing can be done. Are you planning to just sit and wait forever?" Xu Wen's words left everyone momentarily speechless. Seizing the moment, he produced a small porcelain vial from his palm.

"Pick your people. I have a new medicine from Dean Harman! It can conceal our identities; after taking it, our spiritual power will drop by three star levels for three hours."

"Are you insane?" Sackey shouted, staring in disbelief at Xu Wen's calm face and the pill in his hand.

Xu Wen glanced at him indifferently and tossed a 'Concealment Pill' to He Chen. "It only affects appearances. Our real strength won't be impacted." With that, he swallowed one himself.

Once the medicine took effect, Xu Wen's spiritual power appeared to drop to just one star in the eyes of the others, yet he could still summon three-star magic. Only then did everyone relax.

He Chen no longer hesitated, agreeing readily. He was the highest in cultivation among them; after taking the 'Concealment Pill,' his spiritual power level fell to one-star Fire Mage. Four one-star Fire Mages walking about would never be mistaken for students of the Cloud Academy.

"Sackey! I'm leaving things here to you. Try to temper your attitude," He Chen reminded him repeatedly. Sackey nodded, though his gaze kept drifting toward Xu Wen.

"If the town is safe, I'll launch a distress flare. If I don't, after two hours, you all must take the medicine and leave." Xu Wen secretly handed Xie Zhan a bottle of Concealment Pills—ten pills, just enough for all the Hortonklin family disciples.

"Xu Wen, be careful!" Jin Shi and the other women urged him with concern.

Xiang Nan glanced slyly around, then whispered secretly into Xu Wen's ear, "If you run into any villains, just escape by yourself."

Xu Wen looked at Xiang Nan's earnest expression, feeling a pang in his chest. His tense, rigid demeanor softened, and he nodded.

Finally...

Xie Zhan came forward, and the two embraced tightly.

"Take care!"

"You too. Look after everyone for me."

After patting each other's backs, Xu Wen parted ways with He Chen and the others, following their nods.

"Nangong Xueyan, Nishimura Hideki, should we rehearse our alibi?" He Chen, after introducing the two, asked Xu Wen, who looked at him oddly, "Alibi?" He quickly glanced at the handsome, smiling Nishimura Hideki, who seemed unaware of Xu Wen's collaboration with 'Old Huang' from the Divine Weapons Pavilion.

He Chen scratched his nose awkwardly. "I just thought, if we run into people from the Dark Empire, or the El or Salem families, shouldn't we have an excuse ready?"

"No need," Xu Wen replied flatly.

"It's unnecessary. Since the Dark Empire is colluding with rebel families and directly attacking the capital, their forces outside must be few. If we meet them, it'll be bad luck."

With that, he strode ahead.

The three hadn't expected Xu Wen's answer to be so decisive. They exchanged glances and followed him.

Leaving the mountains behind, they emerged onto broad, open plains.

The four quickly found the main road and blended in with a common commercial caravan, slowly heading toward the town. No one dared speak, all vigilantly watching their surroundings, not relaxing for a moment.

The journey was uneventful.

As the town's walls came into view, Nishimura Hideki and Nangong Xueyan exchanged relieved smiles, but seeing Xu Wen and He Chen's increasingly grim faces, their hearts tightened.

It was too quiet...

Even from afar, the flow of people at the city gates was visible, passing freely.

Xu Wen's brows furrowed. Teacher Long should have entered the town by now, so why was everything still so tranquil? He should have informed the City Guard of the capital's attack immediately.

He exchanged a worried glance with He Chen, then casually moved into the caravan.

The caravan members were entirely ordinary—mostly commoners, unable to wield battle energy or magic. A few middle-aged men appeared to be guards, but their cultivation was low, barely three stars.

When Xu Wen and the others joined, the guards noticed, but seeing four handsome, refined youths of little threat, they paid little mind, assuming them to be wealthy young men out for a trip.

Xu Wen casually asked a few irrelevant questions, learning that the merchant group planned to rest briefly in town. Without shame, he claimed to be the young proprietor of a local inn, warmly inviting them to his 'family inn' and offering them a fifty percent discount, which delighted the caravan members. They believed they'd found a naive young master and invited Xu Wen and his party to take the driver's seat.

He Chen, Nishimura Hideki, and Nangong Xueyan, all from prestigious families, were clearly unaccustomed to Xu Wen's blatant lies; hearing his wild stories, they felt embarrassed and turned their faces away.

Unexpectedly, Xu Wen was quite convincing when describing the inn's cuisine, causing the caravan to overlook key details—such as the inn's name.

Near the city gates, the caravan members warmly called them to rest in the driver's seat, only then realizing Xu Wen had claimed they were four delicate sons of nobility who'd been traveling all day. The caravan, eager to ingratiate themselves, happily obliged.

Passing through the city gates, the caravan entered smoothly.

Xu Wen and his companions, however, felt unusually heavy-hearted.

At the gates and atop the walls, dozens of experts, each no weaker than six stars, were stationed. Before the caravan entered, dozens of waves of spiritual energy swept over each person inside.

Clearly, the town was not safe.

——

Little Hei has no idea about the mobile version, never seen it. The PC version works fine.