Chasing after her husband? Is it even possible to win him back?

The body-cultivating assassin slammed his fist into the wall, his gaze piercing through the collapsed bricks and tiles as he watched the young man with the gun quickly disappear around the street corner not far away. He clicked his tongue with a touch of emotion and walked toward his colleague buried under the bricks and tiles.

The body-cultivating assassin squinted and squatted down, picking through the bricks and tiles, looking at his colleague lying in the ruins with a broken shoulder and his right hand hanging limply at his side.

"Boxer, save me..."

The body-cultivating assassin raised his hand and, amidst the horrified gazes of his colleagues, delivered a powerful punch.

Like a fish that had struggled on the shore for a long time, the assassin's body curled up for a moment before falling silent.

The body-cultivating assassin squinted, completely unconcerned about the spurting blood sticking to his face. He looked at his 'comrade' with the skull caved in, a smirk playing on his lips. He slowly rose, casually covering his 'comrade' with the swept-away bricks and tiles, then effortlessly stepped across the ruins, disappearing into the darkness.

The Serpent King's mission is complete.

At the same time, Chu Xunfeng, carrying the black gold spear, also walked slowly through the streets of the North District.

System, have the two assassins caught up yet?

No, and there's no one around.

Chu Xunfeng nodded, raised his right hand, clenched his fist, and punched his left shoulder. The sound of bones cracking was clearly audible. The intense pain made Chu Xunfeng's face turn pale instantly, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.

With the black gold spear in his right hand, Chu Xunfeng quickly ran towards Dang Kang's mansion. At the same edge of the wall, the young man knocked on the wall a few times. "Lu Ding, it's me, Chu Xunfeng. Something's happened."

"Chu Xunfeng?" A faint murmur came from inside the wall. "What's going on?"

"Come out and help me, my shoulder is split." Chu Xunfeng's voice trembled as he spoke.

Without much hesitation, Lu Ding leaped over the six- or seven-meter-high wall. Upon landing, he saw a young man sitting by the roadside, leaning against the wall, his face as pale as paper and sweating profusely. "What... happened to you?"

Lu Ding hurriedly stepped forward and helped the young man up.

"I was attacked at home." Chu Xunfeng struggled to his feet and tried to explain, "Two guys dressed in black attacked me when I got up in the middle of the night."

Lu Ding's face darkened. "Don't say anything more. Can we get over the wall?"

"Give me a hand, it shouldn't be a problem." Chu Xunfeng was in excruciating pain. He had considered it beforehand and thought he could endure it, but clearly, he had overestimated himself. He could harden his will to hurt himself, but when it came to pain, willpower was useless; the pain would still come.

The pain of a fractured bone is completely different from the pain of being cut by splinters of wood.

Lu Ding led Chu Xunfeng over the wall, and the young man in black, supporting Chu Xunfeng, quickly ran towards Dang Kang's mansion.

Lu Ding settled Chu Xunfeng for the time being, then quickly went to report the situation to Si You, and immediately went to find medicine to heal the wounds. Chu Xunfeng didn't have to wait long before Lu Ding returned.

Behind him followed Si You, and Dang Kang Gong, who seemed to have gotten up in a hurry.

Lu Ding unbuttoned Chu Xunfeng's clothes and immediately looked at the young man's swollen shoulder, his expression not good.

"Chu Xunfeng, what happened?" Si You frowned slightly as he looked at the young man's pale face.

The young man gasped for breath and began to explain, "I don't know. When I got up in the middle of the night, I happened to see two people dressed in black in my yard. After I caught them, they immediately attacked me. I don't know what happened..."

"Don't rush, Siyou." Kang pressed down on the scarred man's shoulder. "Let Chu Xunfeng recover first. As for this matter... I'll inquire about it."

Si You was silent for a moment, then nodded gently, "I understand."

Chapter Seven, Complete Trust

Chu Xunfeng's punch to himself was quite hard.

A punch that cracked his shoulder was no joke. Body cultivators all have qi and blood protecting their bodies, but Chu Xunfeng didn't use his qi and blood to resist the force of the punch when he punched himself.

Therefore, after a careful diagnosis by the doctor found by Dang Kang, the result of this injury was that he would need to rest and recuperate for several days with the help of medicine to fully recover.

After resting for two consecutive days, Chu Xunfeng was informed by Lu Ding that he could go out for the time being, and that Kang wanted to see him because he had some questions to ask.

Chu Xunfeng knew that he, a fourth-realm cultivator, was surrounded and attacked by two profound-realm cultivators, yet he only suffered a single punch, which became a minor point of suspicion.

However, he also had an explanation for this.

"You've arrived?" Kang seemed to never sit in a chair. In the main hall of the mansion, his huge figure sat cross-legged on the carpet, looking at the young man whose complexion had regained some color, and gestured to the futon.

Lu Ding did not enter the main hall, but instead stood guard outside the door.

Chu Xunfeng sat down cross-legged on the futon with some difficulty, his gaze turning to Dang Kang with a cold expression. "Dang Kang, have you found out who the person who attacked me that night was?"

When Kang raised his hand to stop Chu Xunfeng from asking questions, indicating that he would not answer the young man's questions for the time being, Kang looked at Chu Xunfeng and said, "Chu Xunfeng, I have a few questions that I would like to ask you."

“Please speak, Lord Kang.” Chu Xunfeng nodded, perking up.

"What was unusual about the attire of the two assassins who attacked you two nights ago?"

"There was nothing special about them. They were both dressed in black and their faces were covered with black cloth. One was a body cultivator and the other was a soldier cultivator. The body cultivator used fist and palm techniques, while the soldier cultivator used daggers and had also used throwing knives or needles as hidden weapons."

"How did you manage to escape after taking only one punch from them?" Kang stared at Chu Xunfeng, his gaze seemingly scrutinizing him.

"That body cultivator assassin didn't launch a major attack, nor did he confront me. The one I fought was always the soldier cultivator who used a short dagger." Chu Xunfeng's answer was straightforward and without any deliberation. "Because I cultivate both body and weapon skills, after I ambushed the soldier cultivator with my leg techniques and buried him in the ruins of the wall, the body cultivator assassin came forward and exchanged a couple of blows with me. I was caught off guard and took a punch from him. Knowing that I couldn't fight him head-on, I ran away. The body cultivator assassin didn't catch up with me."

"..." After hearing Chu Xunfeng's answer, Kang silently sized up the human youth. "Then let me ask you a question: what became of that assassin who cultivated soldiers?"

"With my level of skill, although that move was powerful, at most I could only shatter the right shoulder of the assassin, which would barely be considered a serious injury."

"So, he's not dead?" Kang tapped his fingers lightly on his knee.

"No, at least as far as I know, he was hit by my kick and buried in the rubble, but he still managed to throw a hidden weapon at me once." Chu Xunfeng shook his head.

Kang remained silent in thought, and the young man did not speak again, but simply waited quietly for Kang to finish his thought.

"That assassin who was a soldier is dead. His skull was shattered by a punch and he was buried in the rubble." Dang Kang looked at Chu Xunfeng. "His shoulder was shattered. Although it was a serious injury, it wasn't fatal."

"With my fist and palm skills, I thought I could kill a Xuanjing soldier cultivator from the top of the head..." Chu Xunfeng was stopped by Dang Kang Gong before he could finish speaking.

“I know it wasn’t you.” Kang sighed and shook his head. “After questioning you these past few days, I also know the background of the assassin who attacked you.”

"Please enlighten me as if I were Lord Kang."

"Have you heard of the Demon Clan's Demon Exorcism Division?" Dang Kang asked, looking at Chu Xunfeng.

The young man shook his head blankly. He had never heard of the Demon Suppression Bureau before. When Hong Ji told him how to contact Ao Xiu, she only mentioned that the Second Prince was the head of the demon race's internal spies.

"Of the two assassins who attacked you, one of them, the Bingxiu assassin, was one of our men, though not one of my direct subordinates." Dang Kang looked at Chu Xunfeng. "He was dealt with. Snake Lord, what a clever scheme."

"Snake Lord?" Chu Xunfeng maintained a puzzled expression.

"The Demon Suppression Division is an organization inherited from the era of exorcising evil spirits. It is a secret service for the human race, mainly responsible for internal affairs. The current superior of the Demon Suppression Division is the second prince of the Dragon Clan, Ao Xiu."

Chu Xunfeng frowned, but his expression and words showed no particular surprise. "The Dragon Clan, are they attacking me?"

"Well, whether you believe it or not is up to you to decide, but I don't recommend you go looking for that Fourth Prince again. The day after you were attacked, our people saw the Second Prince, the Fourth Prince, and the Second Princess having a huge argument on the top of Denglong Pavilion, and they almost came to blows." Kang looked at Chu Xunfeng, "What do you plan to do?"

"..." Chu Xunfeng remained silent for a long time before finally sighing, "For now, I'll focus on healing my shoulder injury. If Lord Kang still needs me, I'll stay. If I'm no longer of any use, I hope Lord Kang can help me out and send me away from the demon race."

Chu Xunfeng's answer was indeed consistent with his established persona. One of the main reasons he dared to say this was that he believed Kang would not let go.

"You're not planning to leap over the dragon gate anymore?" Kang frowned slightly.

"The dragons are about to kill me, and I still need to consider whether or not to leap over the dragon gate?" Chu Xunfeng raised his head in confusion.

"The leap over the Dragon Gate is something anyone with ambition can try; otherwise, the Dragon Clan wouldn't hold a grand gathering every three years." When Kang saw that Chu Xunfeng had misunderstood, he explained with a smile, "If you still have the will, stay here and recover from your injuries. When the Dragon Gate Grand Gathering comes around, I will certainly include you in the roster so you can try to leap over the Dragon Gate."

Chu Xunfeng clicked his tongue inwardly, marveling at how perfectly everything was going according to his plan. Without further hesitation, he said, "Then thank you very much for being Duke Kang."

"No need. This is an opportunity you earned for yourself, so make the most of it." Kang Wei nodded slightly. "Go and recuperate first. There's a gathering at the manor tonight, and you'll have to attend. After all, it's not enough for just me to speak up for you."

Chu Xunfeng nodded, stood up with some difficulty, and bowed slightly to Dang Kang, "Then I thank you for your guidance, Lord Dang Kang."

"Yes, go, leap over the Dragon Gate, don't let me down."

"I will do my utmost to repay your kindness." Chu Xunfeng's tone was slightly moved, but he remained mostly indifferent.

Kang didn't mind at all; instead, he smiled and nodded, watching Chu Xunfeng turn and leave.

It can only be said that suppressing emotions for too long can also have its advantages. You can't act out emotions on a daily basis and just keep a straight face. Anyway, that's how your persona is. Over time, everyone gets used to it, and even someone like Dang Kang won't find anything unusual.

However, when it comes to expressing genuine emotions, others need to show seven-tenths of their emotions to be considered satisfactory. But Chu Xunfeng, with his expressionless face, only needs two or three-tenths of his emotions to make people feel the inner turmoil of this expressionless man, which makes Dang Kang feel gratified.

It can only be said that scarcity increases value, which is indeed an eternal truth.

Chapter 8, When Kang Presents a Gift

In the evening, the usually quiet residence of Duke Kang finally came alive.

Chu Xunfeng was flipping through the military manual in the side room, practicing the moves in the manual with his fingers as if they were spears. From time to time, hurried footsteps could be heard passing by outside the door, and the faint smell of food and wine could be heard wafting into the room.

The servants were probably preparing for the banquet at the Kang residence tonight, but Chu Xunfeng wasn't particularly curious about the progress of the preparations, nor was it something he should care about.

He had already gained Dang Kang's trust, and it seemed that he had also shed the label of the dragon clan. He was also injured and didn't have to do anything. He just needed to focus on recovering. He was happy to have some peace and quiet.

It seems that someone doesn't want him to continue being so idle.

The door to the side room was gently knocked on, and the paper window trembled slightly.

Chu Xunfeng placed his right hand, which he had been gesturing with earlier, on the table and turned his gaze to the door. "Please come in."

The door to the side room was pushed open, and a thin, somewhat short middle-aged man walked into the room carrying a brownish-red wooden box.

"Brother Luo." When Chu Xunfeng saw the newcomer, the expression on his face softened slightly.

"This is the reward you mentioned to Lord Dang Kang before. It should have been given to you earlier, but today some guests came and gave us some gifts, and Lord Dang Kang picked out a few more and mixed them in with this one for you." Luo Ze placed the wooden box on the bedside table. "But as for the second half of what I said, just keep it to yourself and don't go around saying it."

"Don't worry, Brother Luo, I know what I'm doing." Chu Xunfeng nodded slightly. Although he was curious about the gift from Kang Gong, Luo Ze was still around, so there was no need to rush.

"How is your recovery going?" Luo Ze sat down opposite Chu Xunfeng, picked up the teapot, filled Chu Xunfeng's teacup first, and then poured himself a cup of tea.

Chu Xunfeng picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea.