Chapter 47: Heaven's Defect and Earth's Absence

Axe Gang Headquarters, the Dark Base.

Chen, the slick-haired leader of the Axe Gang, was playing mahjong with several glamorous women.

A subordinate rushed in with a report: "Boss Chen, someone's forcing their way into the base."

Chen raised an eyebrow, unmoved: "Pung! Give me a kong!"

He tossed the dice, which clattered across the table and came to a stop. With a sly grin, he drew a tile from the end of the stack, but his expression quickly darkened. "Damn! Why is it the one-bamboo? Where's my kong bonus?"

With a bang, Chen slammed his fist onto the table. "What kind of fool just barged into my Axe Gang and ruined my luck? Damn it!"

Outside the base, Su Yao was in the thick of battle. Her feline agility, the secret mechanical arts she had learned during three years abroad, and the recent transformative elixir she had taken had greatly enhanced her skills. She fought ten men at once without faltering.

But she was still alone, and her strength was not inexhaustible. The Dark Base of the Axe Gang had hundreds of men guarding the perimeter alone. She could be worn down by sheer weight of numbers.

After half an hour, the ground was littered with the Axe Gang’s henchmen, and Su Yao was covered in wounds. She had left in a hurry and hadn’t brought along the medicinal plasters from Xiang Nan, so she could only grit her teeth and push on. Yet her spirit did not waver; her attacks remained fierce. Hatred burned in her eyes, fueling her resolve.

By now, Xu Qingshan was probably dead, and Yaya must have cried herself unconscious. Anyone who made Yaya suffer deserved to die.

She unleashed her mechanical device, sending a web of nearly invisible steel wires into the air, forming a dense net that shot toward the Dark Base. A new wave of henchmen charged out, only to be ensnared by Su Yao’s net. The wires bristled with silver needles coated in secret toxins; a mere touch brought instant numbness.

But such a net required great strength to wield. With this attack, two or three dozen henchmen lost their fighting power, but Su Yao was left drained.

With the outer ring of thugs eliminated, she didn’t hesitate and charged straight into the base.

Inside, a barrage of gunfire greeted her. Even with her feline reflexes, Su Yao could not avoid being grazed by bullets; blood streaked down her arms.

She swung her steel wires, vaulting into the air and landing on the second floor. With swift, deadly strikes, several gunmen on the upper level fell lifeless.

Meanwhile, at a shadowy corridor, Chen stood with a sinister, cunning smile on his face.

Behind him stood two men, both wearing wide-brimmed round hats and dark sunglasses, tall and thin, dressed in matching gray tunics reminiscent of the Republic era. Each carried a long object on his back, though it didn’t look like a weapon.

Chen clapped slowly, his applause echoing through the empty entrance. "Pretty girl, you’ve got guts to break into my Axe Gang all by yourself. You look so fresh and lovely, I almost hate to kill you."

"Here’s the deal: I’ll give you another chance. Serve me obediently, and I’ll forgive your insolence today."

Su Yao raised her dagger, radiating heroic confidence. "Ha! A toad lusting after a swan! I haven’t forgiven you yet, you bastard!"

Before the words had faded, her device snapped open, and steel wires shot through the air, carrying her in a flying leap.

Chen’s mouth twitched and he stepped back half a pace. The two blind men in long tunics stepped forward, pulling from their backs not weapons, but a specially made guzheng.

Their names were Tian Can and Di Que, both third-tier masters of the ancient arts. The guzheng was their sonic weapon.

In an instant, they braced themselves and struck the strings with unnaturally long fingers.

A powerful wave of sound shot out, visibly distorting the air and bearing murderous intent toward Su Yao midair.

Sensing the invisible force, Su Yao was forced to veer aside. The sonic wave, sharp as a giant blade, grazed her waist and smashed into a wall more than ten meters away, slicing out a massive chunk and sending debris flying.

"What terrifying power!" Su Yao thought, alarmed. Her opponents’ strength far surpassed hers. But she had come this far—there was no turning back.

Before she could react, another, even stronger wave of sound slashed toward her. She twirled her wires, soaring toward the ceiling. This time, the sonic blade nicked her calf, tearing open the skin and sending blood streaming down.

The wave crashed into the ceiling, carving a huge hole and flooding the air with sunlight and swirling dust. Su Yao gritted her teeth through the pain, spun in a dizzying arc, and landed back on the platform.

At that moment, a third wave came. With no time to think, Su Yao triggered her device and leapt again on her wires.

The sonic blast struck the platform she’d just vacated, collapsing it with a thunderous crash.

Now, Tian Can and Di Que saw that her aerial maneuvers depended on nearly invisible steel wires.

A barrage of sonic waves came. One struck the wire she relied on, snapping it instantly. Bereft of support, even with a cat’s agility, Su Yao could no longer dodge. Gravity pulled her down, and another sonic blade was headed straight toward her.

In the next second, she would surely be cleaved in two.

In the depths of despair, she suddenly felt the air shift around her, as if a gentle force redirected all that momentum. A flash of cold light—

"Taiji Swordplay!"

A familiar silhouette intercepted her in midair. With a deft twist of his sword, he diverted the sonic blade aside. It crashed into the wall behind them, leaving a gaping hole and nearly collapsing the structure.

Su Yao landed safely in a warm, broad embrace. Like a dream, she stared at Xiang Nan, speechless.

"Glad I didn’t catch a dead cat," Xiang Nan quipped, helping her to one side. He took out a pouch of medicinal powder and several plasters from his storage space.

"Apply the medicine first. Leave the rest to me."

With that, Xiang Nan rose to face Tian Can and Di Que. Backlit by the sun, his figure seemed larger than life, radiating brilliance.

Having just had their sonic attack blocked by his sword, Tian Can and Di Que were both stunned. Though blind, their perception of their opponent was keener than anyone’s—the newcomer’s cultivation was unfathomable.

Behind them, Chen’s face twitched with impatience. "What are you waiting for? He’s just a brat! Kill him for me!"

"A brat?" Tian Can scoffed. "Our Devil’s Music technique—most third-tier warriors can’t withstand it. You think a mere boy can?"

"Enough talk! It’s him! Kill him now!"

Chen’s subordinates had already whispered Xiang Nan’s identity to him. He would never let slip this golden opportunity to kill the young lord of the Eagle Alliance.

Meeting a formidable foe, Tian Can and Di Que grew all the more excited.