Translator: Cinder Translations
---
"Two days ago, I was planning to take our son out when suddenly four or five bandits burst in. Before I could even call for help, I was knocked unconscious."
"When I woke up, I was in a dimly lit underground chamber, with only my son and me."
"They kept us locked up for two days. Apart from bringing us food and water, no one else entered the chamber."
"The bandits were cloaked in black robes, so their faces were obscured, and they never spoke a word."
Jing Yu continued to cry and recount the events, while Heng Cheng analyzed the situation in his mind.
The bandits did not interrogate Jing Yu for any information after capturing her and the child. This suggests they had planned everything in advance.
The bandits knew about the relationship between Jing Yu and Heng Cheng, as well as Heng Cheng's status as an elder of the Beastmaster Sect.
The kidnapping of Jing Yu's child was clearly aimed at him.
This filled Heng Cheng with guilt towards Jing Yu and the child.
"So, how were you released?"
Jing Yu replied, "I'm not entirely sure of the details."
"I only remember that a bandit in black clothes entered the chamber, knocked me out, and when I woke up again, I was back in the courtyard."
"The child is still in their hands. Husband, please think of a way to rescue him."
Heng Cheng mentally assessed the situation: from the time he handed over the spirit stones to Xu Zheng until he returned home, it was only a little over a quarter of an hour.
With a live person in their possession, the bandits should not have gone too far. This means the underground chamber is likely not very far away, probably still within the marketplace.
However, finding an underground chamber in the marketplace would not be an easy task.
Heng Cheng said, "A little over a quarter of an hour ago, I saw a bandit, but he was just a lowly thug with only third-layer Qi Refinement cultivation. He demanded ten thousand spirit stones from me before they released you."
Jing Yu suddenly became agitated, stopping her tears, and grasped Heng Cheng's hand.
"Didn't you leave any marks or traces on this bandit, like a spiritual mark? We could have followed the mark to find the bandits."
Heng Cheng shook his head, "I didn't leave any marks. They threatened to kill your child if I did. I really didn't dare to take that risk."
Jing Yu felt a surge of excitement upon hearing this.
She and Xu Zheng had already succeeded in a large part of their plan. Now, she only needed to delay Heng Cheng and buy time for Xu Zheng to get away from the marketplace.
Then she could find a chance to leave.
Jing Yu cried again, her sobs full of despair.
"What about our son? He's only three years old. Will those bandits mistreat him? What will he feel without seeing me?"
Jing Yu cried pitifully, portraying a concerned mother's anguish vividly.
While Heng Cheng comforted Jing Yu and helped her back to her room to rest, he contemplated how to rescue their child.
When he laid Jing Yu down on the bed and walked out of the room to seek help from a familiar acquaintance in the marketplace, he was unaware of what was happening inside the room.
Under the covers, Jing Yu was holding a communication jade slip.
As Heng Cheng stepped out of the courtyard, he noticed a letter lying on the stone steps by the gate.
The letter read: The writer identified themselves as not one of the bandits but someone who knew the full details of the situation. If Heng Cheng wanted to save the child, he should bring fifteen Silver Horn Grass and ten bottles of Beast Refining Pills to a black rock mountain three hundred miles west of the marketplace at midnight. They would then provide full information about the kidnapping.
The letter also hinted that the whole affair was orchestrated by someone Heng Cheng knew.
Shattering the letter into pieces, Heng Cheng hesitated.
He initially planned to seek help from the marketplace enforcement team, where a Foundation Establishment elder had some connections with him. He intended to ask this elder to help investigate the underground chambers in the marketplace.
However, seeing the letter's claim that this was done by someone he knew made him uncertain.
His affair with his secret lover was not something he could boast about, and keeping it secret was crucial. Thus, few people were aware of it.
Among those who knew about this situation, there was the Foundation Establishment elder from the marketplace enforcement team. Heng Cheng had once encountered this elder named Wang while he was out with Jing Yu and their child.
After some thought, Heng Cheng decided to proceed with his original plan.
It seemed unbelievable that a late-stage Foundation Establishment elder would be tempted by a mere ten thousand spirit stones to kidnap a weak mother and child.
However, Heng Cheng had clearly overestimated his relationship with Elder Wang.
When Heng Cheng met Elder Wang and expressed his intentions, he was told that investigating all the underground chambers in the marketplace was nearly impossible.
The marketplace covered several dozen miles, with countless courtyards and buildings. Many scattered cultivators had dug underground chambers to protect their secrets, making it nearly impossible to search them all.
Moreover, deploying a large number of people to search the underground chambers would easily alert the bandits, who would likely move the child.
Elder Wang advised Heng Cheng to investigate from other angles.
Elder Wang's reasoning was somewhat valid, but Heng Cheng couldn't think of another solution at the moment. He shamelessly asked for some help to focus on investigating the underground chambers in the eastern district, but Elder Wang coldly refused, citing the need to avoid acting rashly.
Seeing Elder Wang's reluctance, Heng Cheng had no choice but to give up on that approach.
With no other options, Heng Cheng had to place his hopes on the letter he had found.
He was skeptical of the letter's content, believing it was another ploy by the bandits to extract more spirit items.
After careful consideration, he decided to meet with the letter's writer.
That night, Heng Cheng arrived at the black rock mountain as described in the letter.
The mountain was not high, only a few hundred meters, and it was bald and easy to identify.
As soon as Heng Cheng arrived, he saw a figure cloaked in black emerging from the base of the mountain—it was Song Wen in disguise.
The black-armored Gu, which had been monitoring the surroundings to ensure no other cultivators were hiding within a ten-mile radius, confirmed the area was clear before appearing to meet Heng Cheng.
Seeing Song Wen's attire, Heng Cheng immediately shouted, "Hiding your head and revealing your tail, it seems you and the bandits are in cahoots."
It was understandable why Heng Cheng jumped to this conclusion. Song Wen's outfit matched the description of the bandits Jing Yu had fabricated.
Song Wen was taken aback, wondering how he had become a bandit.
He quickly said, "Friend, don't misunderstand. I am not a bandit, and your child's kidnapping has nothing to do with bandits."
"Stop your deceit. You must be the Foundation Establishment bandit leader that the person who contacted me mentioned."
As soon as the words left Heng Cheng's mouth, he slapped his waist pouch, and a large toad-like spirit beast emerged.
The toad was over seven feet long, with its limbs on the ground. Its back was covered in dozens of fist-sized growths, from which yellow poisonous smoke was continuously emerging.
"Friend, you should think carefully. Once you take action, you won't be able to find out the child's whereabouts."
"You..."
Seeing Song Wen using the child as leverage, Heng Cheng stopped his movements.
"If what you said is true and you're not working with the bandits, how can you prove it?"
"Why should I prove anything? This matter has nothing to do with me. What I can tell you now is that it wasn't done by bandits at all. It was orchestrated by your little concubine and her accomplices."
As he spoke, Song Wen's face showed a hint of mocking smile.
"Nonsense!"
Perhaps Song Wen's sarcastic tone pricked Heng Cheng's pride as a man, or perhaps his love for Jing Yu wouldn't allow anyone to defame her.
Heng Cheng's anger flared up suddenly.
"Capture him. I don't believe you won't reveal the child's whereabouts."
Heng Cheng's plan was to capture Song Wen and use his life as leverage to find out where the child was.
As soon as the toad appeared, it stuck out a large, flesh-red tongue covered with numerous barbs, resembling a huge wolf's fang.
The tongue seemed capable of extending indefinitely, shooting toward Song Wen like an arrow released from a bow.
(End of the Chapter)
---
Perks of Joining My Pa treon (pa treon . com / CinderTL)
- Read (RDC) Ahead, Currently up to Chapter 332 as of 26Oct24.
- Daily Updates of 2+ Chapters
- Mass Releases
- 2 Other Stories to Read (More Coming in Future)
- Support My Hardwork. and Show Some Appreciation
Become a Paid Member For As Low As $1, Your support is my motivation😊
AND PLEASE LEAVE SOME REVIEWS, It only takes a few minutes. 🥺