Hao Yongnian stepped out of the sedan chair with a hint of excitement in his eyes and asked, “This is the place?”

His personal servant was eager to secure the second payment of five taels of silver, so he nodded and replied, “I heard that the girl was brought here from Jiangnan by the hostess. She’s twelve years old and very beautiful. This is her first day on the job, and she’s waiting for you to open her up, Young Master.”

“Things haven’t been going well for me lately, so I was looking for a nice virgin girl to help me get rid of some negative energy,” Hao Yongnian said with a smile. “I’ll reward you if she’s really as good as you say.”

The servant was thrilled to hear this. He barely had to put in any effort, yet he was potentially going to receive compensation from both sides!

Before long, Chen Gang approached them and greeted, “Welcome, Young Master Hao.”

Hao Yongnian merely took a casual glance at Chen Gang before averting his gaze, leaving his servant to deal with Chen Gang in his stead.

“It’s Ms. Ruhua’s first day on the job, so you’re going to have to pay a little more than usual,” Chen Gang said.

The servant was rather taken aback by this.

Didn’t Chu Qiguang prepare this girl as a gesture of apology? Why is he charging money? Has he made some type of mistake?

Unsure of what to make of the situation, he decided to play dumb, and he declared boastfully, “If there’s anything that Young Master Hao isn’t short on, then it’s money! He has enough silver in his coffers to buy Ms. Ruhua ten thousand times over!”

Chen Gang led the two men toward the courtyard, where the gate had already been opened from the inside by Qiao Zhi.

***

Elsewhere in the courtyard, Lin Nan sat cross-legged on the bed in his room.

All of a sudden, he was awoken from his meditation by Qiao Zhi, who had slipped into the room through the window. He was immediately met with Lin Nan’s sharp and wary gaze.

“My king! I’m Ermao! I’ve finally found you!” Qiao Zhi said ecstatically.

Lin Nan presided over most of the cat fiends in the Azure Sun County, so he wasn’t surprised that a cat fiend had tracked him down.

However, a puzzled look appeared on his face, and he asked, “Ermao? Since when did you get so fat?”

Qiao Zhi was somewhat offended by the remark, but he didn’t show it. Instead, he explained, “The weather’s getting colder, so my fur has grown out a bit.”

“How come your voice has also become more rugged?” Lin Nan asked.

“I screamed myself hoarse recently from my mating calls,” Qiao Zhi explained.

Lin Nan nodded. To him, all orange cats looked more or less the same, so he accepted Qiao Zhi’s explanation without much thought.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I came to tell you that people are searching the nearby area,” Qiao Zhi replied in a concerned manner. “I’m worried that they could be sent by the local authorities, so I came to inform you.”

A grim look immediately appeared on Lin Nan’s face at this news, but before he could do anything, he heard the sound of people approaching his room.

“Right this way, Young Master Hao. Ms. Ruhua is waiting for you inside.”

“That’s them!” Qiao Zhi exclaimed as the door opened, immediately darting under the covers.

A hint of killing intent flashed through Lin Nan’s eyes, but he quickly put on an innocent expression, thinking he might be able to bluff his way out.

As soon as the door opened, Hao Yongnian was greeted by the sight of a man sitting on the bed and something moving under the covers.

“You filthy slut! How dare you try to pass yourself off to me as a virgin?!” he roared furiously.

He jabbed a finger at Chen Gang as he ordered, “Capture this bastard!”

Immediately after, he stormed toward Lin Nan’s bed with a look of murderous rage in his eyes.

Lin Nan still clung to a sliver of hope that he could somehow avoid a violent confrontation, but that hope was instantly shattered when a loud cry rang out from outside.

“Get him!” Chu Qiguang yelled.

A massive commotion broke out as all the dog fiends under Big Head began shouting, “Surround this place! Don’t let even a single fiend escape!”

With no hope of a peaceful resolution, Lin Nan sprang into action.

A ferocious killing intent flashed through his eyes as every joint in his body cracked and popped audibly. He launched himself at the dumbstruck Hao Yongnian before throwing a devastating punch.

Even though Hao Yongnian was a little caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, his reflexes as a third-state martial artist saved him. He crossed his forearms in front of his body, forming a protective barrier against Lin Nan’s incoming fist.

However, the moment their bodies made contact, his expression changed drastically.

Not only was Lin Nan a fourth-state martial artist, he possessed superior strength to a human martial artist of the same caliber thanks to his fiendish constitution. Hao Yongnian felt as though he were standing in the path of a charging elephant, and a single punch was enough to inflict internal injuries.

His entire body felt like it was about to fall apart, and he stumbled backward involuntarily.

He had just managed to steady himself when Lin Nan charged at him once again.

Lin Nan had a clear advantage over Hao Yongnian in terms of physical prowess, so there was no need for him to resort to any tricks. He unleashed a relentless barrage of blows, forcing Hao Yongnian to fight desperately just to survive the onslaught.

All the guards who had accompanied Hao Yongnian to the courtyard abandoned their task of capturing Chen Gang as they rushed to Hao Yongnian’s aid. In the blink of an eye, Lin Nan found himself surrounded.

A violent battle broke out inside the room, and Lin Nan was like a ferocious beast in human skin, inflicting severe injuries on his opponents with every single blow.

Even though Lin Nan was the most powerful martial artist present, the room that served as their battlefield was less than twenty square meters in size. As a result, there was barely any room to maneuver, and that placed him at a disadvantage.

Surrounded by Hao Yongnian, his servants and his guards, Lin Nan inevitably took some hits. Most notably, he suffered a heavy blow to his left knee, and a stab wound to his back.

Meanwhile, Chu Qiguang, Qiao Zhi, and Chen Gang had already gathered outside the room.

“We did it!” Qiao Zhi cheered triumphantly.

He turned to Chu Qiguang with an ecstatic expression, only to find a palpable aura of aggression and hostility radiating from him. Clearly, Chu Qiguang’s condition had flared up again.

“The job’s not done yet,” he said with a sinister grin.

Chen Gang felt both anxious and excited.

Hao Yongnian’s the kind of big shot young master who would never even spare us a glance, yet he’s fallen straight into our trap!

A twisted sense of accomplishment welled up in Chen Gang’s heart at the thought of bringing down such a powerful figure, reigniting his ambition to make a name for himself.

The battle in the confined room was as fierce as it was brief, and it didn’t take long for the commotion to die down. Moments later, a fox staggered out of the room, covered in blood.

The fox was Lin Nan. He had sustained some severe injuries during the fight, forcing him to revert to his true form.

He glared resentfully at Chu Qiguang, Qiao Zhi, and Chen Gang. At this point, it had already become clear to him that the three of them had used him to get rid of Hao Yongnian and his entourage. After the battle, one of his hind legs was broken, and he had several deep wounds on his back.

To make matters worse, he couldn't use his human martial arts in his current fox form, so his combat prowess was significantly compromised. In this state, he didn’t like his chances against Chu Qiguang and Qiao Zhi.

Just as Lin Nan was weighing his options, Chu Qiguang stepped aside and made an inviting gesture, allowing him to pass freely.