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

Li Xiao nodded slightly, his gaze falling on Yun Zhonghe, who lay slumped on the ground, his breath weak and feeble: "That's natural. As one of the Four Evils, Yun Zhonghe is lewd by nature. Countless young women in the martial world have been ruined by him, each and every one of which is enough to warrant his death a hundred times over!"

Although Yun Zhonghe was already on the verge of death from torture, he panicked upon hearing Li Xiao's words. He struggled to beg for mercy, but because his acupoints were sealed, he couldn't even make a sound. He could only look at Li Xiao with terrified eyes, full of pleading.

Looking at Yun Zhonghe's cowardly appearance, Li Xiao's eyes remained calm, but instead, he felt a sense of "making the most of his resources".

He bent down and reached out, his fingertips touching Yun Zhonghe's dantian, and the Northern Darkness Divine Art immediately began to circulate.

Yun Zhonghe felt the internal energy he had cultivated for decades in his dantian uncontrollably pouring outwards.

This internal force surged continuously into the other person's body through the meridians. He felt his strength rapidly draining away, and his already pale face became even more ashen, his eyes filled with terror and despair.

In a short while, Yun Zhonghe's dantian was completely drained, and he collapsed to the ground as if his soul had been ripped out, barely clinging to life.

Li Xiao slowly straightened up, his fingertips slightly bent, and all his powerful internal energy gathered in his right index finger, with a condensed and sharp energy swirling around it, accompanied by a sharp sound that pierced the air.

"call out--"

He raised his hand and pointed, the energy shooting out like an arrow. It was the Dali martial art, One-Finger Divine Skill, that he had extracted from Duan Yu while he was drunk.

After so many days of continuous study and practice, his One-Finger Divine Skill has reached the third grade, with its energy refined and mellow, and its power has already manifested.

With a soft "poof," the force of the One-Finger Divine Skill pierced directly through Yun Zhonghe's brow, and blood slowly seeped out from the finger hole, staining the grass beneath him red.

The terror in his eyes froze instantly. His body trembled slightly before falling completely still. The light in his sinister triangular eyes had vanished.

After dealing with Yun Zhonghe, Li Xiao turned and walked towards the girl who was still unconscious on the grass, squatted down and examined her carefully.

"It's alright, she was just put to sleep by a pressure point, she's fine."

After saying that, he slightly condensed his fingertips and gently pressed two acupoints on the girl's neck and waist. The force was precise and gentle, relieving the acupoints without damaging her meridians.

After the acupoints were released, the girl's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she slowly opened her eyes.

At first, her eyes were blank, but when she saw the desolate scenery around her and then caught sight of Yun Zhonghe's corpse lying in a pool of blood not far away, her memory returned instantly, and she immediately trembled and let out a sharp, terrified scream.

"ah--!"

The voice was filled with panic and unease, making one's heart tighten.

Wang Yuyan quickly stepped forward, wanting to reach out and comfort her, and said in a gentle tone, "Don't be afraid, young lady. We are good people. The evil man has been dealt with and will not hurt you anymore."

The girl was already terrified and instinctively shrank back when she saw someone approaching.

She leaned her back against the tree trunk, her hands tightly wrapped around her chest, her eyes filled with vigilance and fear, tears welling up in her eyes, and her whole body trembling.

Seeing this, Wang Yuyan had no choice but to stop and soften her tone. She then gently lifted her long sleeve to reveal the virginity mark on her elbow and said, "Don't panic, young lady. Look, I'm a woman too. We've already dealt with that lecherous thief. You're safe now."

After seeing the bright red mark of virginity on Wang Yuyan's fair arm, the girl finally believed that the other woman was a woman.

Shi Yunting stared blankly at Wang Yuyan, then glanced at the handsome and extraordinary Li Xiao beside her. Only then did her tense nerves gradually relax, and the fear in her eyes slowly faded away.

At this moment, she finally couldn't hold back her tears, which dripped down her pale cheeks and onto her clothes.

"Thank you so much, my two benefactors... My name is Shi Yunting, and I am the daughter of Shi Yihong, the prefectural magistrate of Shouchun Prefecture."

Wang Yuyan replied with a smile, "So you are the daughter of Magistrate Shi. My name is Wang Yuyan, and I am from Pingjiang Prefecture in Jiangnan."

She then pointed to Li Xiao and said, "His name is Li Xiao, and he is also from Pingjiang Prefecture. He is the second son of Li Shen, the prefect of Pingjiang Prefecture."

After listening to the two introductions and learning about Li Xiao's identity, Shi Yunting's fear finally subsided.

"Miss Shi, why did you go outside the city to burn incense?"

Faced with Wang Yuyan's doubts, Shi Yunting slowly explained the reason.

"My benefactor, you may not know this, but my mother's thirty-sixth birthday is in three days. I was planning to go to Yongen Temple to pray for her and burn incense, so I took two maids and two servants with me. But on our way back, when we passed through a wooded area ahead, that villain suddenly jumped out, injured the servants and maids, and kidnapped me without saying a word... I thought I would never see my parents again."

After saying that, she couldn't help but sob again, both from lingering fear and the relief of surviving a disaster.

As Li Xiao listened to Shi Yunting's tearful account, his gaze swept over her still-shaken appearance, then turned to Wang Yuyan, who was dressed as a man beside him, and a few thoughts suddenly arose in his mind.

He and Wang Yuyan also planned to rest in Shouchun Prefecture tonight. If they were seen traveling with two men on their way back, it would cause some unnecessary misunderstandings.

He immediately said to Wang Yuyan, "Yuyan, go deep into the woods and find a secluded place to change into women's clothing."

Wang Yuyan was taken aback upon hearing this, but then she understood.

"good!"

She turned and strode into the depths of the woods, finding a secluded corner where the foliage was dense and she was unlikely to be noticed. There, she quickly changed out of her moon-white robe and returned to her woman's attire.

When Wang Yuyan returned, Li Xiao had already led the two horses to her side: "Miss Shi, we are not far from Shouchun Prefecture. You and Yuyan can ride one horse together, and I will lead the way. Let's get into the city as soon as possible so that your family can rest assured."

When Wang Yuyan returned after changing her clothes, she saw Shi Yunting staring blankly at Li Xiao.

Having survived this life-or-death ordeal, Shi Yunting was filled with gratitude for Li Xiao who saved her. Looking up again, she saw that he was tall and handsome, with a sharp edge that resembled that of a martial arts master, yet he also possessed a calm, reserved, and ethereal quality, completely different from the纨绔子弟 (spoiled young masters) in Shouchun Prefecture.

Seeing this, the young girl, just beginning to experience love, couldn't help but feel a strange emotion. The fear in her eyes gradually faded, replaced by shyness and a barely perceptible admiration, and a faint light shone in her eyes.

Li Xiao's senses were incredibly sharp; he quickly caught Shi Yunting's affectionate gaze and was momentarily at a loss for what to do.

Having lived through several lifetimes, he had witnessed many unpredictable and turbulent aspects of society.

But faced with such a direct yet shy gaze from an innocent young girl, he didn't know how to respond.

"Cough cough—"

He coughed lightly twice, looked away, and reached out to lead the horse beside him, thus concealing his slight unease.