Chapter Thirteen: Another Attempt at Robbery?

Lietchen walked back with a heavy heart, the high-level profound-tier combat technique he had just won at auction clutched in his hand. Although he had spent a fortune of seven hundred thousand gold coins to outbid his rivals and gain the technique, in the long run, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. In this world, everything was determined by strength. The Liet family, despite suffering tremendous economic loss, would remain the family possessing the highest-level combat technique for quite some time. If the scroll could be given to someone within the clan with both talent and strength, then in several decades, or perhaps only ten years—or even sooner—the strongest experts in the city would likely all hail from the Liet family. Who would dare oppose them then, knowing they could wield such high-level techniques?

But after the auction, something Meiya said had left Lietchen uneasy: there would soon be another auction held for the upcoming Martial Arts Tournament, and it was likely that treasures which must not fall into rival hands would appear again. “Just who is this Meiya woman, to be able to procure so many extraordinary items…” Lietchen thought resentfully.

Three years ago, the Usiman Auction House had not been so prominent. Since Meiya’s arrival, however, precious items surfaced in abundance, and the auction house’s profits soared—it was no exaggeration to say they were raking in gold every day. Lietchen had sent people to investigate Meiya’s background, expecting she must be a high-ranking member of the Usiman family, or at least the daughter of one. Yet, all the information gathered indicated there was no woman named Meiya in the Usiman family—no one even remotely related to that name! Lietchen had pondered this report for a long while and drew two conclusions: either Meiya was not a member of the Usiman family at all, or his intelligence network was simply not strong enough to uncover the family’s secrets.

Either way, it was not wise to act rashly. Lietchen never fought unprepared battles, especially when the opponent’s depths remained unknown. For three years, Lietchen had continued investigating Meiya’s origins, but to no avail, as if some force was deliberately obstructing the truth. Feeling unsettled, Lietchen had even tried to probe Lord Chet, the city lord, but only received a shake of the head in response. Still, with his seasoned eye, Lietchen caught a flicker of evasiveness.

That old fox must know something! Lietchen ground his teeth in silent frustration.

“Well, if it isn’t Clan Leader Lietchen?” A voice called from behind him and his daughter. Lietchen started slightly and turned to see the speaker. He smiled, “So it’s Lord Chet—and Miss Geli.”

Standing beside her father, Geli appeared the picture of a refined young lady, quietly poised, her long legs accentuating her tall, alluring figure, her beautiful face carrying a faint, knowing smile as she gazed at Liefifi. Liefifi, of course, noticed Geli’s look and felt a surge of annoyance. The two had always competed, openly and in secret, whenever they met. In the past it had been an even match, but since Geli had recently broken through the ninth level of Qi and become a Fighter, the difference between them was now clear.

As the cherished daughter of her family, Liefifi’s talent in cultivation was not weak. At seventeen, she had already reached the ninth level of Qi. If she could break through to Fighter before turning eighteen, she would qualify for admission to the Academy of Battle Qi. Situated at the very heart of the continent, the academy’s reputation and strength far surpassed those of the Royal Academies of the three empires. Every graduate became a prized recruit, coveted by the great powers.

For this reason, the Academy of Battle Qi was a holy land to every practitioner. Once, Geli and Liefifi had stood at the same starting line, but now Geli had taken the lead, earning her pass to the academy. How could Liefifi, who had always considered herself Geli’s equal, possibly accept this? Every time she saw Geli, Geli would give her that same ambiguous, mocking smile, as if both challenging and ridiculing her.

As a noble young lady, Liefifi felt her pride wounded. If not for both their fathers’ presence and the sensitive timing, she would have retorted long ago.

Lietchen failed to notice his daughter’s mood, but he too glanced at Geli and said to Lord Chet, his tone tinged with admiration, “Miss Geli’s talent is truly remarkable—to have become a Fighter at seventeen. Do you intend for her to attend the Royal Academy or the Academy of Battle Qi in the future?”

Lord Chet looked at his daughter, shook his head, and smiled, “That’s up to her.” Then, turning to Lietchen, he said, “But Clan Leader Lietchen, congratulations on obtaining a high-level profound-tier combat technique this time!”

Lietchen waved a hand and sighed, “Let’s not speak of it. For this scroll, the Liet family paid dearly.”

Lord Chet was momentarily taken aback. Lietchen had always been forceful and unyielding; in the past, he’d never uttered words so close to admission of weakness. Clearly, Lietchen’s losses were severe this time—one wrong move, and his family might find itself in dire jeopardy.

After gathering his thoughts, Lord Chet gave a soft sigh. “Clan Leader Lietchen, I can’t comment on your decision, but the upcoming auction may feature even higher-level techniques. Will you do the same again?”

With a wry smile, Lietchen replied helplessly, “To be honest, I’m troubled by the same question. The Liet family has exhausted almost all available funds for this auction. Even if I wanted to, I doubt we’d have the means next time.”

“But,” Lietchen’s expression suddenly darkened, his demeanor growing cold, “if anything threatens the Liet family, I won’t hesitate to stop the auction by force.”

Sensing the chilling aura emanating from Lietchen, Lord Chet’s gaze flickered, then he shook his head, his tone now solemn. “Clan Leader Lietchen, as city lord, I advise you not to act against the Usiman Auction House. Otherwise…”

Lietchen stared at him and replied stiffly, “Of course I know. Unless absolutely necessary, I won’t act rashly.”

Realizing Lietchen had not abandoned the idea, Lord Chet felt helpless. He waved his hand, and after only a few more words, excused himself and left with Geli, citing official business. On the way, Geli asked in confusion, “Father, wasn’t Lietchen acting rather odd today?”

In private, Geli held little respect for the elders and clan leaders of the great families, and Lord Chet let her be. He merely smiled at her question. “It’s nothing, really—just the old tactic of courtesy before force. First he shows weakness, signaling that the Liet family will keep a lower profile for the time being, so others don’t need to target them. Then he shows strength, warning that the family still possesses considerable power and shouldn’t be provoked.”

Geli snorted. “The Liet family is already in such straits, yet still so arrogant. Now with that high-level technique, who knows what the future will hold?”

“Indeed,” Lord Chet nodded, acknowledging the uncertainty of it all.

“Then why not let the Liet family and the Usiman Auction House fight each other to exhaustion? We could…” Geli’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

It sounded like a good idea at first glance, but… Lord Chet shook his head helplessly. The key was Meiya, the chief auctioneer. Although he didn’t know her true identity, he vividly remembered the warning from the Jiang family: should anything happen to Meiya in Changling City…

Seeing her father’s hesitation, Geli stuck out her tongue and whispered slyly, “Father, don’t tell me you’re planning to marry Meiya, that woman—”

Lord Chet rapped her on the head, half laughing, half exasperated. “Nonsense!”

…

Walking back, Liefifi couldn’t help but ask the question she’d been wanting to: “Father, are things really so dire for our family?”

Lietchen replied as they walked, “Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as I made it sound. Given the current situation, we can still raise a considerable sum. With careful planning, we’ll get through this crisis.”

“It’s all that vile bandit’s fault! How dare he target our Liet family!” Liefifi said angrily.

“That’s what puzzles me,” Lietchen mused. “The Liet family hasn’t offended anyone of such strength. Why were we targeted?”

“Could someone have sent him?” Liefifi ventured.

Lietchen shook his head. “Any power capable of sending a cultivator of the Earth tier would have nothing to do with us. Besides, in the Gran Empire, I’ve never heard of such a mysterious, unconventional strongman—perhaps he came from the wider continent.”

“From the continent?” Liefifi repeated uneasily. She had spent most of her seventeen years in Changling City and had never ventured far. She was unfamiliar with other parts of the empire, let alone the vast and distant continent, which to her seemed mysterious and frightening.

“Will he come after the Liet family again?”

“If he wasn’t specifically targeting us, then probably not. We just had a stroke of bad luck.” Lietchen grew thoughtful. “In fact, our losses aren’t as exaggerated as outsiders say. The mysterious man only took some rare medicinal herbs—and most of them are good for soul recovery. Perhaps… he himself was injured…”

As Lietchen pondered, he suddenly felt his daughter tugging at his sleeve. Startled, he followed Liefifi’s gaze and saw that, not far ahead, a figure had somehow appeared—completely shrouded in a black cloak.

Lietchen’s pupils contracted sharply! Though his mind had been preoccupied, he was still a fifth-rank Douluo expert—yet he hadn’t sensed this person’s approach at all! Could their strength be vastly above his own?

Unsettled, Lietchen was about to speak when the mysterious figure’s voice rasped out from beneath the cloak, cold and dry.

“Hand over the Heaven-and-Earth Ring!”

Martial Peak, Chapter Thirteen: Another Robbery? End of update.