The journey with two additional companions, while less lonely, brought about no small amount of trouble. Lam Vy was a clever and vivacious girl, but also incredibly curious. After witnessing Tran Kien's true strength, she practically clung to him, constantly asking this and that about his saber arts and his experiences surviving in the dense forests. Tran Kien, accustomed to silence, was initially unaccustomed to it, but faced with the girl's enthusiasm and pure, untainted gaze, he gradually opened up.
The old man, Trinh Cong, was much more taciturn. He would occasionally point out common magical beasts and medicinal herbs along the way; his knowledge was vast and profound, entirely unlike a typical guard. Yet whenever Tran Kien inquired about their background, the old man merely laughed it off. Tran Kien didn't press the matter, knowing everyone had their own secrets.
After five days of travel, they finally arrived at Lac Nam Town.
It was a small town situated at a river fork, quite prosperous and bustling thanks to the merchant boat docks. Houses stood close together, streets were paved with clean bluestones, and pedestrians bustled about. The peaceful and safe atmosphere here completely contrasted with the desolate, danger-filled forest they had just traversed.
They found an inn named "An Lac" (Peace and Joy) to rest. After bathing and changing into clean clothes, Lam Vy immediately dragged Tran Kien out to the streets, demanding he take her to see the river lantern festival.
"Big Brother Tran, let's go! Look, it's so lively here. We've toiled for so long, we should take a little break!" Lam Vy pleaded, her large, round eyes sparkling.
Tran Kien looked at her eager face, then at the peaceful surroundings, and his heart relaxed a bit. He nodded.
The lantern festival in Lac Nam Town was indeed extraordinarily bustling. Thousands of lanterns of all shapes and colors hung along both sides of the river, their shimmering light reflecting on the water to create a dreamlike scene. The sound of laughter, singing, and children playing blended together.
But while Lam Vy joyfully ran to buy lanterns shaped like fish and butterflies, Tran Kien faintly frowned. The habit of vigilance had seeped deep into his very bones and blood. He wasn't drawn in by the liveliness, but quietly observed the hidden corners.
And he saw them.
A dough-figurine vendor at the street corner. A boatman idly rowing on the river. A few vagrants mingling in the crowd. They seemed to have no connection to one another. But their gazes, from time to time, would inadvertently sweep toward Trinh Cong and Lam Vy with an unconcealed coldness and calculation.
Tran Kien's heart tightened slightly. They were being tailed.
He didn't know who these people were, but he could sense they were no ordinary bandits. The auras emanating from them, though meticulously concealed, were incredibly sharp and dangerous.
That evening, upon returning to the inn, Tran Kien immediately went to Trinh Cong's room.
"Senior, Lam Vy," he said, his voice extremely solemn. "This place is not safe. We are being watched. Pack your things, we must leave tonight."
Hearing this, Trinh Cong's expression instantly changed. He looked into Tran Kien's resolute eyes, knowing the youth wasn't joking.
But Lam Vy pouted. "Big Brother Tran, aren't you being too paranoid? After being in the forest for so long, do you see danger everywhere? This is Lac Nam Town, there are soldiers patrolling, who would dare cause trouble?"
"I am not joking," Tran Kien emphasized. "I spotted at least five suspicious individuals monitoring us. The killing intent on their bodies is very heavy."
"Maybe it's just a coincidence," Lam Vy still didn't believe it. "We just arrived, how could we have enemies? Besides, Grandpa and I are just ordinary people..."
"Lam Vy, say no more," Trinh Cong suddenly spoke up, cutting off his granddaughter. He looked at Tran Kien, his eyes holding a trace of gratitude and guilt. "Young Hero Tran, this old man trusts your judgment. We will leave immediately."
But it was too late.
Right at that moment, muffled "thump! thump!" sounds suddenly rang out from the corridor outside, followed by the terrified screams of the waiter and other guests.
"BANG!"
The door to their room was kicked open by a powerful force. Over ten men in black wearing iron masks, brandishing gleaming long sabers, surged in like a black flood. The aura radiating from each of them had reached the Qi Condensation Realm; the leader was even stronger than Trinh Cong.
"Hahaha! Lord Trinh, we've finally found you!" the leader let out a hoarse laugh. "Our Young Master has said, as long as we capture the Young Lady alive, our brothers will be heavily rewarded!"
Lam Vy's face instantly turned deathly pale. Only now did she truly believe Tran Kien's words, but it was already too late. Trembling, she drew her long whip and stood protectively in front of her grandfather, though her voice wavered: "Who... who are you? Why do you want to capture me?"
"The Young Lady doesn't need to know much," the leader said, his lecherous gaze sweeping over Lam Vy's budding adolescent figure. "Just obediently come with us. Rest assured, our brothers will 'take good care' of the Young Lady."
"You beasts!" Trinh Cong roared furiously. He drew his sword, knowing he was no match, but determined to fight to the death. "Even if I die, I won't let you touch a single hair on my granddaughter's head!"
An uneven battle erupted right inside the small room. Trinh Cong attacked desperately, his sword arts profoundly exquisite, but due to his old age, waning strength, and unhealed injuries, he was forced back continuously by the leader within just a few exchanges. Lam Vy wielded her whip to assist, but surrounded by five or six black-clad men, she could only struggle to defend herself.
Tran Kien didn't panic at all. The moment the door was smashed, he had retreated into the corner of the room, his back against the wall, his matte black saber already in hand. He was like a hunting panther shrinking back, awaiting the moment to deliver a fatal strike.
He knew this was not the time to show off bravery. He had to find the sole path of survival in this desperate situation.
His target wasn't the leader, nor was it the men in black besieging the grandfather and granddaughter. His target... was the wooden window behind the leader!
Just as the leader unleashed a full-power saber strike, intending to finish off Trinh Cong, and everyone's attention was fully focused on it, Tran Kien moved.
He didn't charge forward. He kicked fiercely against the wall behind him, his entire body shooting out like a cannonball. He didn't use a saber art to attack, but used his very own body.
"Iron Mountain Lean!"
This was the simplest move in the Iron Dash incantation, using the shoulder and back to ram into the opponent. But augmented by his Primordial Qi, its might was astonishingly terrifying.
The leader was feeling smug when he suddenly felt a powerful gust of wind assaulting his flank. Terrified, he turned around, only having time to see a black blur crashing towards him.
"BOOM!!!"
Using all his strength, Tran Kien rammed directly into the leader. The leader only managed to let out a miserable shriek as his entire body was sent flying horizontally like a sandbag, smashing through the corridor railing outside and plummeting straight to the floor below.
Tran Kien didn't fare much better. The collision caused his qi and blood to roil. But he didn't stop. He shouted loudly to the still-stunned grandfather and granddaughter: "Follow me!"
Saying that, he dashed out into the corridor, not running down the stairs, but toward the end of the corridor, where there was another large window. Without a moment's hesitation, he smashed through the window and leapt straight out into the night.
Below was a dark, narrow alley.
But just as he landed, and as Lam Vy and Trinh Cong also jumped down after him, dozens of other black silhouettes silently appeared from both ends of the alley, blocking all avenues of escape.
An old man dressed in brocade robes, with greying hair and beard, stepped out from the shadows, clapping his hands in praise. The aura radiating from this old man was unfathomably deep; he was at least at the Foundation Establishment Stage.
"Excellent! What a young hero!" the old man laughed and spoke, but there was not a hint of a smile in his eyes. "To be able to send my subordinate flying, your skills are indeed not bad. But this game of chess, it is time for it to end."
Tran Kien, Lam Vy, and Trinh Cong were tightly surrounded in the middle. The three stood back-to-back. An absolute dead end.