Immortal Reincarnation Tribulation

Chapter 16 Nighttime Escape

The following morning, a large group of Yao family members left the Zishan Sect and returned to the Yao family's direction along the original route.

"Brother Hu, if I may ask, have you met Second Master Yao?" Du Fan had been preoccupied with his thoughts until he was a hundred miles away from the Zishan Sect, when he asked Hu Daniu seemingly casually.

"Haha, this is the first time I've heard Brother Du speak up after traveling this far. As for Master Yao, I have naturally met him before. Why do you ask?" Hu Daniu laughed heartily and asked in return.

"It's nothing. I've been in the Yao family for so many years, but I've never met him before. I just suddenly remembered him and asked casually," Du Fan explained casually.

"Actually, I've only met Second Master Yao a few times. He enjoys traveling and fine food, so he often goes abroad. After returning to the Yao family, he lives a secluded life. When he does meet servants and disciples, he is always kind and approachable. Therefore, the entire Yao family has a very good impression of Second Master Yao. It is said that Second Master Yao is not only exceptionally talented, but also has outstanding aptitude for cultivation. As for his cultivation level, it is definitely above Steward Xiao's, but only the head of the family probably knows the specifics. The head of the Yao family intends to pass the position of family head to Second Master Yao, but because Second Master Yao is lazy and unwilling to deal with political and worldly affairs, he has refused many times and the matter has not been mentioned." Hu Daniu was lost in memories, and it was clear that he had great respect for Second Master Yao.

"It's easy to draw the skin of a tiger, but difficult to draw its bones." Du Fan gazed into the distance, his eyes gleaming with a faint light, and sighed softly.

"What do you mean by that, Brother Du?" Hu Daniu asked, puzzled.

"It's nothing. I just suddenly thought of a phrase, and I don't know what it means, so I just said it offhand." Du Fan smiled slightly, neither confirming nor denying.

……

More than half a month later, the group returned to the Yao family safely, where the head of the family personally greeted them.

After learning the situation, Patriarch Yao felt deeply sorry for Zhang Yan's fate, but was quite satisfied with the trip. He fulfilled his promise and rewarded Hu Daniu and Wang Shan each with a Qi Refining Pill, which naturally made the two overjoyed. At the same time, he also rewarded Du Fan, Commander Han, and their hundreds of guards with a considerable amount of gold and silver. It seemed like everyone was happy, but only Du Fan knew the undercurrents beneath the surface.

……

"Brother Du, I've been running around like crazy while you were gone. I had to go to the cultivation academy before sunrise to cultivate, then come back for chicken legs at night, then deliver food to Sister Ruoxi late at night, then run back for more chicken legs in the middle of the night, and then go back to cultivation before sunrise again..."

As evening approached, Xiao Hu returned with a sigh. Upon seeing Du Fan, he was initially overjoyed, but then began to complain again.

"You're quite busy." Seeing Xiao Hu return, Du Fan temporarily put aside his worries and jokingly scolded him.

"Not just busy, extremely busy! Sigh, the capable are always busy."

Xiao Hu sighed heavily and went into the room. Du Fan knew without a doubt that the kid was going to get chicken legs. Seeing Xiao Hu like this, Du Fan smiled, and much of the gloom that had been building up in his heart for days dissipated.

Until the bright moon hung high in the sky, Xiao Hu and Du Fan sat on the grass in the courtyard, one holding a chicken leg and chattering incessantly, the other smiling silently.

Suddenly, a resolute glint appeared in Du Fan's eyes. He had made up his mind, turned around abruptly, and slapped the chicken leg out of Xiao Hu's hand.

"Brother Du, what are you doing?" Xiao Hu's mouth was still frozen in the moment he stretched his neck to bite the chicken leg, staring at Du Fan in astonishment, his expression blank.

"Stop stuffing it in. Isn't it time to send food to Ruoxi?" Du Fan asked solemnly.

"Yeah, but it'll be fine if it's a little longer, right?" Little Tiger was confused.

"Do you trust me or not?" Du Fan asked again.

"Of course!" Xiao Hu said decisively.

"Will you obey me unconditionally?"

"Absolutely!"

"Do you want Ruoxi to marry that Wu Hao?"

"In no mood!"

"Okay, go inside and pack up all your chicken legs. Let's go find Ruoxi together!"

"Okay! Wait, Brother Du, what do you mean?"

"Stop talking nonsense and go!"

……

Late at night, two furtive figures moved about the Yao residence, bypassing several courtyards and climbing over a high wall before appearing in Yao Ruoxi's courtyard.

Led by Xiao Hu, who knew the way well, the two arrived at the window of a house.

"The earth shakes the high hills, revealing the eternal beauty of the Western Mountains," Little Tiger said in a sarcastic tone.

Du Fan's lips twitched suddenly. Before he could react, sure enough, strange noises came from inside the room.

"The gate faces the sea, where three rivers converge and flow for ten thousand years."

Du Fan was speechless. Two years ago, when Xiao Hu was still a child, Du Fan had told him the story of "The Deer and the Cauldron" while putting him to sleep. He never expected that the kid would use this passage from the story here, which made him both laugh and cry.

The soft footsteps of the person inside slowly approached, the window trembled slightly, and soon it was completely opened. Du Fan immediately saw the rattan covering the window.

"Hey, Du Fan, you're back?" Yao Ruoxi saw Du Fan at first glance and asked in surprise.

At this moment, Yao Ruoxi's complexion was rosy and she was still beautiful. There was no sign of her fasting for more than a month, and she was obviously doing very well.

"Do you have a way to get out?" Du Fan looked at the dark green vines covering the window, which were similar to the vines that Yun Qian had created with her magic during the fight that day. He figured they couldn't be broken by ordinary means, so he frowned.

"Actually, I can go out, but only once. My father doesn't know about this. This is my trump card, which I'm saving for a crucial moment," Yao Ruoxi said mysteriously.

"Alright, now's the crucial moment. Go ahead and use it. I'm going to take you two away from home!" Du Fan said with a sense of relief upon hearing this.

"Run away from home?" Yao Ruoxi and Xiao Hu were both taken aback.

"Du Fan, when did you suddenly become so clever that you could come up with such exciting and fun ideas!" Yao Ruoxi was taken aback for a moment, then her eyes gradually lit up, and after a quick glance, she was already eager to try it out.

"This isn't really a good idea, but it sounds really exciting!" Little Tiger's eyes lit up, and he seemed quite interested as well.

"Ruoxi, you absolutely cannot marry Wu Hao. He's not like what we think, and... never mind, I'll talk to you about it later. Just pack your things and come out. Let's go now!" Du Fan was speechless at the two of them. These silly kids were really something else, completely oblivious to their current situation.

A while later, Yao Ruoxi had a pink cloth bag slung around her neck.

"You all step back a bit," Yao Ruoxi said with a smile.

Du Fan and Xiao Hu retreated two zhang.

Yao Ruoxi reached into her waist with one hand and a piece of yellowish-brown paper appeared in her hand. Upon seeing this, Du Fan and Xiao Hu both narrowed their eyes, clearly recognizing it as a talisman!

"Hey, Ruoxi, this thing can make your house collapse!" Du Fan's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly remembered the huge fireball that killed the cultivator that day, and his expression changed. He suddenly reminded him.

"It's alright, don't worry, just watch out." Yao Ruoxi winked at him, seemingly unconcerned.

With a flick of her arm, she slapped the earthen-yellow talisman onto her shoulder. The talisman seemed to stick to her clothes, remaining firmly in place, while she herself became somewhat blurry in an instant.

The next moment, to Du Fan and the other man's astonishment, Yao Ruoxi smiled and passed through the wall.

When Yao Ruoxi stood in front of Du Fan, she made a face at him, then snatched the talisman from his shoulder. The talisman shattered into pieces, eventually dissipating into specks of yellow light.

"Not all talismans are for attack or defense. This one is an Earth Escape Talisman that I secretly bought in the cultivation black market last year for five spirit stones. As long as there is earth-attribute material in the obstacle, I can pass through it. It's just a pity that all talismans can only be used once." Yao Ruoxi said with no small amount of pride, but at the end there was a hint of regret.

"Alright, now is not the time to talk. Let's escape from the Yao family first," Du Fan said solemnly, suppressing his surprise.

The other two had no problem, though their faces still showed signs of excitement.

Although the Yao residence was heavily guarded, the three of them were extremely familiar with the terrain and easily evaded all the sentry posts, patrolling guards, and courtyard guards. After climbing over a high wall, they successfully escaped from the Yao family.

"This was so much fun!" Yao Ruoxi patted her small chest gently, looking like she wanted more.

"Brother Du, where are we going next?" Xiao Hu was also a little excited, his cheeks flushed.

"I'll tell you all the details after we escape Tianxiang City." Du Fan breathed a slight sigh of relief, but still dared not be careless.

"But it's past midnight now, and the gates of Tianxiang City have long been closed. I'm afraid we can't get out now," Yao Ruoxi explained to Du Fan.

"If the defenses are weak, can you handle it?" Du Fan frowned; he had indeed overlooked this question.

"This is the imperial city, and the guards here are naturally top-notch elite soldiers, no less than the elite guards of my Yao family. However, with Xiao Hu's and my strength, we can definitely break through, but it will inevitably alert the palace. If a major conflict breaks out, our actions will be exposed," Yao Ruoxi pondered for a long time before analyzing the situation.

"Let's go to the vicinity of the south gate of Tianxiang first, and then we'll see how things go," Du Fan decided immediately.

It was late at night, and everyone had already turned off their lights and gone to bed. Tianxiang City was deathly silent. Only three figures moved erratically in the darkness, constantly approaching the south gate. After more than an hour, they were less than a thousand feet away from the gate.

Inside the main residence of the Yao family, the lights were still on, making it stand out against the surrounding darkness. Inside, Yao Batian was sitting upright in a chair, reading a classic book.

"Master, I have urgent business to report!"

"Come in." Yao Batian put down the book and frowned.

Steward Xiao rushed in, looking flustered. Before Yao Batian could even ask any questions, he spoke up urgently.

"Master, something terrible has happened! The young lady has run away! Steward Du and Xiao Hu have also disappeared at the same time."

"What? How dare you!" Yao Batian's eyes flashed with a sharp light. He slammed his hand on the wooden table beside him and suddenly stood up. The wooden table was shattering and finally collapsed with a "boom".