The Cycle of Reincarnation in the Four-Courtyard House: A Journey Through the Heavens

To save the seriously injured A'Zhu, Xiao Feng disregarded his own safety and resolutely went to Juxian Manor to ask the divine physician Xue Muhua to treat her.

This led to the famous scene of the heroes of Juxian Manor besieging the village and Xiao Feng fighting a bloody battle. It also deepened the relationship between A'Zhu and Xiao Feng through the test of life and death, but it also sowed the seeds for the tragedy to come.

His plan to take Wang Yuyan north was twofold: firstly, to avoid the delicate atmosphere of Mantuo Manor, and secondly, to make a detour to the vicinity of Shaolin Temple to secretly keep an eye on A'Zhu's movements. If the opportunity arose, he would completely cut off her dangerous path and prevent her from repeating the mistakes of the original story.

The tragic fate of Xiao Feng and A'Zhu, who both perished in the original novel, left Li Xiao with a deep sense of regret. If possible, he still hoped that the two lovers could eventually be together.

After listening to Li Xiao's explanation, Murong Fu's gentle smile froze for a moment: "You want to take Yu Yan to travel in the north? Brother Li, are you aware that the situation in the north is complicated, and the martial arts world has been quite turbulent recently? It may not be appropriate to take Yu Yan on such a journey."

Alarm bells rang in his mind. Li Xiao's words clearly indicated that he wanted to take Wang Yuyan away from him. Once the two were alone, Wang Yuyan's feelings for him would only grow weaker. Moreover, he was not at ease letting this mysterious man and his cousin stay together for long.

Li Xiao glanced at him indifferently and said calmly, "Precisely because the martial world is not peaceful, we should take Yu Yan out to see the world. Besides, with me by her side, I will definitely protect Yu Yan's safety."

His words addressed Murong Fu's concerns while subtly demonstrating his determination to protect Wang Yuyan, leaving Murong Fu speechless for a moment.

Wang Yuyan stood to the side, her heart pounding faster than usual.

She had never considered traveling alone with any man other than her cousin, but upon hearing Li Xiao's words, she surprisingly felt no resistance whatsoever; instead, she secretly looked forward to this journey.

She gazed at Li Xiao's tall profile, then subconsciously looked at Murong Fu's gloomy expression. The inner turmoil surged again, but in the end, she did not refute Li Xiao's words.

......

For the next seven days, Mantuo Villa was quite quiet.

Murong Fu was in a hurry to find his maid and four retainers that day, so he did not stay at Mantuo Manor for long and left quickly.

Li Xiao spent most of his time in the Langhuan Jade Cave—a treasure trove of martial arts manuals brought by Li Qingluo from the Langhuan Blessed Land, covering the unique skills and mental techniques of various schools and sects.

With his extraordinary spiritual power gained from transmigrating, he possessed an almost photographic memory. As his fingertips brushed across the pages of books, the moves, diagrams, and key techniques in the classic texts were all imprinted in his mind. In his spare time, he would combine these techniques with his own Northern Darkness True Qi to deduce and verify them, and his experience in martial arts was quietly improving.

During this time, Li Xiao took the opportunity to meet Li Qingluo alone and frankly expressed his idea of ​​taking Wang Yuyan to travel in the north. After thinking about it for a while, Li Qingluo nodded in agreement.

She was already dissatisfied with Murong Fu's ambition and cold-heartedness, and did not want her daughter to continue to cling to this hopeless affection. Moreover, she could see that Li Xiao was exceptionally skilled and calm, and was by no means an ordinary wandering swordsman. With him taking care of Wang Yuyan, she could rest assured.

With Li Qingluo's consent, Li Xiao felt a great weight lifted from his shoulders.

On the morning of the seventh day, just as dawn broke, the stables of Mantuo Manor had already prepared two fine horses. One was jet black and glossy, which was Li Xiao's own Ferghana horse named "Chasing the Wind".

The other horse, with its snow-white coat, was a mare that Wang Yuyan had raised herself, named "Zhu Yue".

When Li Xiao learned the horse's name, he jokingly told Wang Yuyan that the two horses' names were a good match, which made Wang Yuyan blush.

Today, Wang Yuyan has changed into a moon-white long robe, her long hair is all tied up in a jade crown, and the delicate beauty between her eyebrows and eyes has been deliberately concealed by Li Xiao's magical makeup skills, adding a touch of youthful heroism.

Seeing Li Xiao approach, Wang Yuyan subconsciously gripped the sword at her waist—a light sword that Li Xiao had specially found for her, for self-defense.

"Is everything ready?"

Li Xiao handed over a light bag containing dry food, medicine for wounds, and a few changes of clothes.

"This kind of attire makes it less conspicuous. If anyone asks along the way, I can just say I'm your junior brother."

Wang Yuyan took the baggage and nodded gently. Having already experienced dressing as a man before, she was not as hesitant as she was last time.

The two mounted their horses swiftly. Li Xiao reined in his horse, glanced back at the Mantuo Manor shrouded in morning mist, and then gently spurred his horse, saying, "Let's go!"

Two fine horses galloped swiftly, heading north in the morning light. The sound of their hooves gradually faded into the distance and soon disappeared at the end of the mountain path, leaving only the faint fragrance of datura flowers lingering in the morning breeze.

On this day, following the road signs, the two had arrived at the outskirts of Shouchun Prefecture in Huainan West Road. The scenery on both sides of the official road gradually changed from open fields to woodlands with varying density. The intertwined branches of the trees blocked most of the sunlight, casting dappled shadows. In addition to the sound of horses' hooves and the wind, the air was filled with the fresh scent of grass and trees, making it unusually quiet.

Li Xiao possessed immense internal strength and exceptional hearing, and as he approached the edge of the forest, he suddenly reined in his horse and listened intently.

Seeing this, Wang Yuyan slowed down and asked softly, "What's wrong?"

Li Xiao raised his hand to signal her to be quiet, his gaze sweeping across the deep woods ahead, and said in a deep voice, "Listen, there's someone in the woods."

Wang Yuyan listened attentively, holding her breath. At first, she only heard the rustling of leaves in the wind, but after a while, she vaguely caught the sound of very light clothes rustling through the air.

The sounds were rapid and fragmented, clearly indicating someone was moving quickly using light-footed skills, and their breathing was slightly disordered, as if they were fleeing in haste. Such light-footed skills were not top-notch, but they were certainly not something an ordinary martial artist could possess.

Before the words were finished, a thin figure suddenly darted out from the depths of the woods, its toes barely touching the ground as it leaped several feet, its movements hurried yet swift.

He was a middle-aged man with a sallow complexion, his clothes covered in dust and grass clippings, and cold sweat beading on his forehead, clearly indicating that he had been on the run for a long time.

What's most eye-catching is that he was carrying a huge, coarse cloth bag on his shoulder. The bag was bulging and looked quite heavy, with some irregular shapes showing through the edges, making it unclear what was inside.

The cloth bag swayed slightly as he ran, occasionally making a soft scraping sound, which added to the eeriness of the desolate wilderness.

After the man darted out of the woods, he paid no attention to Li Xiao and his companion on the official road. He was only focused on running northwards, using his light footwork to quickly cross the road and head towards the barren slope on the other side.

Li Xiao's eyes darkened, and with a slight flick of his wrist, a riding whip transformed into a streak of light and flew directly towards the man.

"call out--"