Cultivation begins with forming a bond with a spirit bee.

When the three spirit stones were mentioned, Hou Youde was clearly furious, and it took him a long time to calm down.

"Speaking of this, Hu Si came to see me a few days ago."

"I was feeding your spirit steed spirit herbs when he came to me. He stammered and couldn't get a coherent answer out, so I ignored him."

Qu Ye's fingertips trembled almost imperceptibly.

After saying that, Hou Youde drank the wine in his bowl dry and poured himself another bowl.

He glanced at Qu Ye's wine bowl and smiled, "Fellow Daoist Qu, you still need to work on your drinking capacity."

"Of course, I can't compare to you, Uncle De." Qu Ye picked up his wine bowl, took a sip, and concealed his expression.

I didn't expect Hu Si to be involved too.

Hou Youde feeding Red Hare for him makes it easy to deduce that he has gone out.

Even if Hu Si didn't take it seriously and was preoccupied with seeking reconciliation with Zhao Haiqiong, the underlying problem still existed.

Such variables must be guarded against.

Qu Ye's eyes were indifferent; he had already made up his mind.

"Uncle Hou, if someone sees you helping me take care of the horses, wouldn't that be inappropriate...?"

"You're worried about that? What's the big deal? Don't worry, it was just Hu Si who saw it. I'll have a good talk with him tomorrow."

Hou Youde didn't care much.

After sitting for a while longer, Qu Ye, seeing that he had gotten the information he needed, took the initiative to get up and say goodbye.

"I'm sorry to have troubled you today, Uncle De. I need to get some more fodder for Red Hare, so I'll head back now."

Hou Youde didn't try to stop him, and said with a smile, "Alright, come visit again when you have time."

Qu Ye bowed and left.

After Qu Ye left, Hou Youde drank alone for a while. After he had his fill of wine, he went over to take a look at Qu Ye's wine bowl.

He shook his head: "Fellow Daoist Qu doesn't seem to be a heavy drinker."

After leaving the courtyard, Qu Ye found a secluded grove of trees and spat out the spirit wine that had been under his tongue.

He then went back to check on Red Hare and teased the Iron Claw Crab.

As the sun set, he returned to the same spot as yesterday and continued his surveillance.

It's not that he didn't want to keep an eye on Hu Si.

However, the area around Hu Si's courtyard was open and flat, with almost no place to hide.

"Tomorrow's banquet..."

Qu Ye looked at the darkening sky, his gaze slightly somber.

Whatever Hu Si's motives may be, everything will become clear tomorrow.

……

Qu Ye waited in the bushes for a whole day.

It wasn't until the evening of the next day that he saw Hu Si knocking on Hou Youde's courtyard gate.

A moment later, Hou Youde came out.

Hu Si respectfully led Hou Youde to the other side.

Qu Ye did not move immediately. Instead, he waited until the two had walked a distance away and he was sure they would not be discovered before he concealed his aura and slowly moved over.

Once he reached a short distance outside Hu Si's courtyard, Qu Ye did not approach any further.

He stopped behind a low earthen slope in the distance, concealing his presence under the cover of night.

From this vantage point, one cannot see what is happening inside the courtyard, but can vaguely hear sounds.

Meanwhile, in Hu Si's courtyard.

A pot of fragrant flowers grows in the courtyard, wafting a sweet aroma.

A stone table was placed in the middle, with a few small dishes on it. There wasn't much wine left, as Hou Youde had drunk most of it.

Hou Youde picked up his wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp. Looking at the two silent men before him, he said, "Didn't you two talk things out? Why are you still like this?"

Zhao Haiqiong squinted at Hu Si, crossed her arms, and leaned back in her chair.

Hu Si picked up the wine pot to pour wine for Hou Youde, his hands trembling slightly. After pouring the wine, he also picked up his own wine bowl: "Brother Zhao, this..."

Zhao Haiqiong remained unmoved.

Hou Youde cursed inwardly, thinking he should have known better than to come and join in the fun, now he was caught in the middle and didn't want to be seen by anyone.

He had no choice but to raise his wine bowl as well: "Alright, it's better to resolve conflicts than to create them, let's drink this wine together."

Zhao Haiqiong stared at Hu Si for a few moments, and finally, out of respect for Hou Youde, reluctantly joined in.

He picked up the wine bowl, but didn't rush to drink. He lightly ran his fingertip along the rim of the bowl and scanned it with his divine sense.

After a moment, he snorted coldly and finished his drink.

After finishing her drink, Zhao Haiqiong stood up, cupped her hands in greeting to Hou Youde, and said, "Fellow Daoist Hou, I'll head back now. I have important matters to attend to tomorrow."

He didn't want to spend a single more moment with Hu Si.

Hou Youde sighed softly, "Let's go then."

After receiving the reply, Zhao Haiqiong didn't even glance at Hu Si, turned around and walked towards the courtyard gate.

Recalling the past, he sneered inwardly.

This Hu Si not only borrowed ten spirit stones from me and refused to return them, but also took advantage of his superior cultivation level to forcibly take 70% of the profits from the spirit herbs. Who is he trying to impress with this act?

This time, he doesn't know he was wrong; he just feels the pain.

Just as Zhao Haiqiong was about to push open the courtyard gate, she suddenly felt dizzy and her legs went weak.

He whirled around, staring at Hu Si, his face pale: "You beast, how dare you poison me?"

Hu Si didn't say anything, he just sat there with his head down, his shoulders shrugging.

Hou Youde also felt his movement power slowing down. He stood up, staring wide-eyed at Hu Si: "Hu Si, are you crazy?"

Hu Si finally raised his head, his haggard face now showing a hint of madness.

"I'm crazy? You're right. You've driven me crazy."

Having said that, he took out his magical artifact and suddenly rushed towards the two of them.

……

Qu Ye listened to the sounds of fighting coming from afar inside the courtyard, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

This Hu Si is indeed suspicious.

Although it is unknown how Hu Si dealt with Hou and Zhao, it is likely through special means such as poison, talismans, and arrays.

Regardless of whether Hu Si's methods succeed or not, the situation inside the courtyard is still unclear. If he rashly shows up, he will only get himself involved as well.

If Hu Si loses, it will be good to have one less potential threat.

If Hu Si wins…

Qu Ye lay prone behind the earthen slope, not moving, and held his breath even tighter.

Once the fluctuations of spiritual energy in the courtyard gradually subsided, he slowly got up and approached the courtyard under the cover of night.

……

In the courtyard.

The unknown toxin spread throughout their bodies, and the more Hou Youde and Zhao Haiqiong tried to mobilize their magic, the more powerless they became.

Zhao Haiqiong was the first to give out.

He intended to use his magic weapon to force Hu Si to retreat, but as soon as he activated his magic power, his face turned deathly pale, and the magic weapon in his hand dimmed.

Hu Si seized the opportunity, suddenly stepped forward, and stabbed the man's abdomen diagonally with his short knife.

Zhao Haiqiong groaned and slammed into the wall, her magical power instantly dissipating.

Seeing this, Hou Youde gritted his teeth and swung his magic weapon at Hu Si's shoulder.

Hu Si couldn't dodge in time and was slashed across the back, drawing blood. He then retaliated with a backhand strike.

Hou Youde's magical power was already sluggish, and this blow forced him to take half a step back.

The next moment, Hu Si turned around, made a hand seal, and unleashed a spell that slammed into Hou Youde's dantian.

Hou Youde's eyes widened instantly, and the anger on his face turned into confusion.

With his dantian ruptured, his magical power dissipated like a flood, and he could no longer hold on, collapsing heavily to the ground.

Hu Si, panting heavily, looked at the two limp men and concluded that they were no longer a threat.

He put away the two people's storage bags, and a long-suppressed sense of pleasure gradually appeared on his face.

If no one knew about this deadly scheme, it would lose some of its flavor.

"I knew you would be wary of the food and drinks, so I never even considered poisoning them."

He walked up to Zhao Haiqiong, turned her head, and made her look at the pot of spirit flowers in the yard.

"A mid-grade bewitching substance, colorless and odorless, can bewitch a mid-stage cultivator in just a quarter of an hour when mixed with the fragrance of flowers."

"If it weren't for this illusion, I really wouldn't be able to deal with the two of you."

Hou Youde glared at Hu Si, his hatred overflowing, and said through gritted teeth, "You beast, just wait to be torn to pieces by the Hou family!"

To everyone's surprise, Hu Si just smiled and didn't take it to heart.

"There are only a few people at this horse farm. If I kill you all, who will know?"

"Once I escape to another place, I can use your spirit stones to try and win back what I lost. Maybe I can even reach the Foundation Establishment stage!"

"You? You're like an animal, and you've even reached the Foundation Establishment stage."

Zhao Haiqiong, covered in wounds, seemed to have accepted the reality. Leaning against the wall, she smiled contemptuously.

Hu Si's smile froze.

"You talk too much."

He stepped forward and beheaded Zhao Haiqiong.

Then he walked toward Hou Youde.

"Fellow Daoist Hou, I know what you're thinking. I went to investigate during the day, and the gate to that Qu family's courtyard was tightly closed. They're most likely in seclusion, so don't expect anyone to come to rescue you."

"Alright, I've said everything I needed to say. Now you can die knowing why."

Having said that, he slashed down with his sword.

Just as Hou Youde was filled with despair and closed his eyes to await death, he suddenly felt a light before his eyes.

A beam of golden light shot in from outside the courtyard and struck the short sword.

clang!

The blade was deflected by the impact, grazing Hou Youde's shoulder and slicing into the ground.